19 Chapter 19: The First Slaying of Exotic Beasts

"This…" Wang Youle seemed to have something to say.

"Do you have any objections?" Jiang Xinyu's piercing gaze shot towards Wang Youle, scrutinizing him from a position of superiority.

"No… none!" Wang Youle shook his head repeatedly.

"That's good, hurry up and eat, then we'll enter the arena!"

During the short mealtime, Wang Lan managed to clarify the relationships within this small team. He was not familiar with Wang Youle, having met him only today. The other three, however, had been known to Wang Lan since childhood. Jiang Xinyu was his childhood friend, while Xu Xiangwen and Gong Feiyu were his classmates from elementary to middle school. The four of them were quite close to each other.

Jiang Xinyu seemed to despise Wang Youle, however, Xu Xiangwen was a bit closer to Wang Youle, while Gong Feiyu simply did not dislike him.

Looking at it this way, although the four were a team, their relationship was not very solid. Wang Lan finally understood the fleeting hostility he had seen in Wang Youle when he had found out about Wang Lan's awakening as a Star Martial Warrior.

Wang Lan had already formed a tight bond with the other three, and now that he had awakened as a Star Martial Warrior, it was evident that he was a threat to Wang Youle's position.

However, Wang Lan felt no guilt about muscling in or taking someone's place; after all, he had at least eight years of friendship with the three. Furthermore, even without Wang Lan, Wang Youle's position in the team was precarious. By not actively ousting Wang Youle, Wang Lan had already shown utmost benevolence; the rest did not matter.

Star Martial Warriors had to pay to enter the Junior Trial Grounds: despite being a Different Dimensional Space, the trial grounds were safe, or at least relatively so.

Moreover, within the trial grounds there were stationed troops to maintain order and protect the Trialists, which all cost money.

The cost for a Star Martial Warrior below the Star Cloud Stage was five thousand a day; for ten days, that was fifty thousand. This time, the main goal was to help Jiang Xinyu break through to the Star Cloud Stage, totaling two hundred and fifty thousand for five people.

This figure might take a common person five years of economizing to save up, but for Jiang Xinyu it was just a trifle, and she swiftly swiped her card for entry.

"Since I won't be participating in the distribution, I should pay my own fifty thousand," Wang Lan murmured.

"Fine, for next quarter's rent, you help me round off the change," Jiang Xinyu replied.

I'm at a loss here, that change clearly starts with a nine.

Upon entering the trial ground, they first had to go to the changing room to switch into combat gear. The climate within the trial grounds was bizarre and ever-changing, so they needed to wear clothing that ensured a constant temperature and facilitated combat.

Wang Lan glanced at the combat gear and his mouth twitched. It looked a bit like the tight-fitting leather suits that superheroes in American comics wore. Never mind whether it was breathable or not, Wang Lan couldn't accept just the design.

"What are you dawdling for? Aren't you going to get dressed? Don't let Xinyu finish changing before you even start," someone urged.

"Who designed such an awkward outfit?"

"It's developed by the Xinyu family's company, didn't you know? Isn't their logo right on the clothes?"

"Isn't wearing this embarrassing?"

"What are you thinking? This is just an internal thermoregulating shirt. You still need to wear the Graphite Thin Armor on the outside. The embarrassing parts will all be covered. Did you think you would just go out wearing this? I can't hide my 'big weapon' like that," Xu Xiangwen remarked.

"Xu, I've realized something... you've become increasingly flamboyant," Wang Lan commented.

"You've only just noticed? I've been finding him unbearable for the past year," Gong Feiyu interjected as he easily donned the leather suit, pressing a blue button on the belt around his waist, causing the outfit to tighten suddenly, clinging perfectly to his body.

Following suit, Wang Lan put on the form-fitting leather suit and started searching the changing locker, "Where's the armor?"

"Follow me," Gong Feiyu said, patting Wang Lan on the shoulder and leading him out of the changing room to another room. It was only then that he realized the armor was fitted by robots on a special platform.

No explanation from Gong Feiyu was necessary; there were footprints on the ground to stand inside, and one simply had to stretch out their hands, grasping the handles on either side.

"Scanning for model… Pairing model… Loading model, please stand still as the robot equips the armor."

Then, the chest plate, backplate, and skirt armor were swiftly equipped.

"Equipment complete, please step off the equipment platform."

Looking at himself in the mirror, Wang Lan remarked, "This is more like it."

The tight-fitting colorful leather suit had become an inner layer, and with the armor on, he looked exceptionally valiant and dashing.

"The backpack behind stores water, energy bars, and other essentials. The war blade can be worn on your waist or held in your hand. Let's go, Xinyu is probably waiting for us."

Following Gong Feiyu, Jiang Xinyu emerged from the other side. Seeing Jiang Xinyu in female armor, Wang Lan's eyes lit up. Although he knew she was beautiful, this was the first time he saw such a valiant side of Jiang Xinyu, prompting him to take a longer look.

"Is everyone ready? The next ten days will be tough. Our target is the Snow Spider. The Snow Spider's attributes match mine, and its Soul Bead can help me level up faster. Let's head out—"

Their watches contained a map of the Exotic Beasts' distribution within the trial grounds, and could also project holograms in the Different Dimensional Space. This technology, unrealized in the outside world, was surprisingly implemented in the Different Dimensional Space.

"Xinyu, I heard that in the Different Dimensional Space, any technological weapons would fail. Is that true? What's the principle behind it?"

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"That is indeed the case, but I don't know the principle behind it."

"If firearms worked in the otherworld, Pioneering Legions wouldn't be so dangerous. Just give me a Type-95 automatic rifle, and I could take down a whole clan of Exotic Beasts in the beginner's trial ground by myself. Sadly, while I can bring a Type-95 here, it's only good as a stick for stoking fire."

"It must be because the physical laws are different," Wang Lan sighed and said.

"While we haven't reached our destination, let me introduce the abilities of our team members. There's no need to introduce myself, as you know. Xu Xiangwen can awaken the innate Heavenly Eye, which allows for long-range scouting that can ignore obstacles. His Star Martial Skill is Physical Clone. Every time we come back safely, it's all thanks to Xu Xiangwen."

"Gong Feiyu has Earth Attribute Star Power, and his Star Martial Skill is also of the Earth Attribute. Wang Youle has the Fire Attribute.

"You currently have no Star Martial Skill, but your close combat abilities are not bad; you can serve as the melee fighter of the team. This way, with me as the ranged damage dealer, Gong Feiyu as the crowd control and support, Xu Xiangwen on constant alert for scouting, and Wang Youle randomly providing support."

"Okay!"

Soon, the five-person team arrived at the Snow Spider territory. It's a stretch of continuous snowy mountains, hard to imagine that just a kilometer away was the scorching desert of Chibi, yet here it was a world of ice and snow.

Such a close distance yet such vastly different climates could only be found in a Different Dimensional Space that defies common sense.

Looking from a distance, the slopes were covered with an array of white spiders, their bodies the size of millstones, with eight furry long legs. Unlike what Wang Lan had imagined, the legs of the Snow Spider were not slender like a sharp knife; they were not the kind of murder weapons.

"The Snow Spider is an imperial-style gregarious Exotic Beast, with living habits similar to ants and bees. There is one Spider Queen and one Spider King in the Snow Spider tribe. The Spider Queen dominates the Snow Spider tribe and is responsible for laying eggs. The Spider King commands all the Snow Spiders and also closely protects the Spider Queen.

"Snow Spiders move very fast, with strength equivalent to an adult human. Their skills are Rapid Freezing Cold Air and Ice Needle Rain Dew. The Rapid Freezing Cold Air is spewed from the mouth, a blast of cold air with temperatures below negative one hundred degrees Celsius. Ice Needle Rain Dew is sprayed from the bodily orifices, covering an angle of one hundred eighty degrees.

"The back of the Snow Spider is covered in hard armor. Below the Star Shine Stage, it's almost impossible to breach their defenses, but the abdomen of the Snow Spider is very soft and is the key to defeating them.

"Actually, the best candidate to deal with Snow Spiders is someone with the Earth Attribute, as the Earth Spike skill can easily kill a large number of them. However, Snow Spiders live on glacial and snowy terrains, where Earth Attribute Star Martial Warriors' Earth Spikes can't break through the ice layer, and due to the ice layer's interference, the deployment of Earth Attribute skills also becomes problematic. Too bad..."

In fact, Jiang Xinyu's team already knew this information; it was just for informing Wang Lan.

"Is everyone ready? Once we're set, we'll start fencing off the area."

Fencing off is about luring a few Snow Spiders into their combat zone to kill. There are Snow Spiders everywhere on the mountain, and if you rush to kill them head-on, it's suicidal; you'll be surrounded by Snow Spiders in no time and won't leave a bone behind.

Jiang Xinyu dashed forward in an instant, shooting ice arrows to enrage a few Snow Spiders. Originally, the Snow Spiders were comfortably perched on the snowy ground, enjoying the caress of the glacial cold. Suddenly awakened from a cozy nap by the attack, they were startled awake.

With the explosive nature of the Snow Spider, plus so many brothers around, could they endure it?

In an instant, the provoked Snow Spiders stood up, stretching their long legs and rushing towards Jiang Xinyu.

The Snow Spider's Ice Needle Rain Dew and Rapid Freezing Cold Air attacks had limited range, and they mostly fought in close combat.

"Get ready!"

"Jiang Xinyu called out, and the team instantly changed their positions and started working together."

Wang Lan stood side by side with Jiang Xinyu and, on her signal, Wang Lan dashed towards the Snow Spiders like lightning.

The greatest threat from the Snow Spiders was the Rapid Freezing Cold Air, which could instantly freeze a person into ice at temperatures exceeding one hundred degrees below zero. Moreover, each Snow Spider could store varying amounts of cold air, affecting the severity of their attack.

Thus, Wang Lan couldn't directly face the Snow Spiders; he had to constantly change directions and approach indirectly. When he managed to outflank them, suddenly, a whistling sound broke through the air.

An ice spike shot out from a Snow Spider toward Wang Lan. To be honest, Wang Lan hadn't seen where it came from, but the Snow Spider's aim was off. Anyway, that ice spike definitely wasn't going to touch even the hem of Wang Lan's clothes.

If one ice spike didn't work, suddenly, a myriad of ice spikes sprung from the Snow Spider, shooting at least twenty in one second. This instinctively reminded Wang Lan of the comprehensive test he took at the Star Martial Hall.

Turns out, the test device was inspired by Snow Spiders.

Wang Lan's blade flashed, swatting away the ice spikes that posed a threat to him. As for those that didn't, he ignored them, of course.

Three minutes later, Wang Lan successfully closed in on the Snow Spider.

In close combat, the Snow Spider's legs swept at him like a long stick. Snow Spiders have eight legs, but only four are needed to maintain balance. The remaining four legs were its weapons for killing the enemy.

Clang—

A crisp sound echoed, and Wang Lan's body was instantly flung away.

"Who told me Snow Spiders have the strength of an adult human? Does an adult have this kind of strength?" Wang Lan grumbled to himself.

The Snow Spider's armor was incredibly hard, capable of clashing head-to-head with the blade of his battle sword.

Quickly, the Snow Spider closed in again, its four legs fiercely stabbing down toward Wang Lan's chest.

"Wang Lan—" Jiang Xinyu cried out in alarm.

"Swoosh—" With a slash of his blade, Wang Lan cut through the joints of two legs of the Snow Spider. The joints were armored on the outside, but not on the inside, and with one slice, the two legs were left dangling by their armor alone.

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