Chu Ge ran into the restroom on the first floor of the teaching building; it was class time, so there was no one inside.
He had just run in and had not even caught his breath when he vanished into thin air.
Chu Ge felt the world spin again, a dizzying sensation.
A few seconds later.
He sensed that he had landed on the grass, his body numb, eyes unable to open.
"This Survival Challenge Task is Faction Survival Competition!"
"There are twenty-four Survivors participating in this Faction Survival Competition, divided into two factions, each with twelve Survivors, including three undercover agents in each faction!"
"The setting for the Faction Survival Competition is a park, with a duration of 24 hours. Leaving the park area constitutes failure. Killing an opposing faction's Survivor will earn you 100 Survival Points, but mistakenly killing one of your own undercover agents will result in a deduction of 200 Survival Points!"
"The Faction Survival Competition officially starts now!"
The emotionless female voice kept echoing in Chu Ge's ears, leaving him dumbfounded.
Faction competition!
And undercover agents?
"A special reminder, you are one of the three undercover agents. You will land together with the opposing faction!"
Upon hearing this, Chu Ge almost exploded with fury!
I'm just a rookie!
Does it have to be this thrilling?
At that moment, he felt his control over his body beginning to return, and he instinctively opened his eyelids. A green snakehead came into view.
Chu Ge shivered all over and instinctively retreated.
Following that, he felt he had bumped into something furry, and turning his head, he saw a Giant Panda.
More precisely, it was a Giant Panda cub, black and white in color, fluffy and seemingly harmless.
He immediately calmed down.
They're all Survivors!
As long as they don't figure out his identity, they absolutely wouldn't dare make a move on him.
"Ah! A lion!"
The opposite Green Snake let out a shriek, shrinking back as well.
This Green Snake must be a Green Snake, with a yellow-orange belly and some black spots on its back, the body less than thirty centimeters long.
Chu Ge had seen the Green Snake before on Animal World, so he remembered it.
He had indeed done a lot of homework this month.
"A lion!"
"Our faction has a lion, that's awesome!"
"Could he be an undercover agent?"
"It's possible, but thankfully it's a juvenile lion."
"You're just a little kitten!"
Sounds rose and fell all around him, and Chu Ge scanned the group, confirming indeed there were twelve Survivors, including himself.
His size was above average. Besides the Green Snake and Xiao Panda, there were also two Mice, Xiao White Sheep, a Crab, a White Dove, a Brown-haired Teddy, a Wild Little Rabbit, a small Orange Cat, and a Vulture.
A bunch of lower beings.
Chu Ge became the center of attention, all the Survivors except for the Vulture retreated, maintaining a distance from him.
The Vulture stood on the grass, nearly thirty centimeters tall, looking to be in its adolescence, those claws so sharp and fierce.
It was eyeing Chu Ge with a piercing gaze.
Definitely not a newcomer!
Chu Ge immediately made a judgment and hummed, "Me, an undercover agent? I am an African Male Lion; do I need to be undercover? My appearance is to boost your strength! An undercover agent is definitely an inconspicuous creature that can only rely on sneak attacks!"
His tone was full of pride, as he purposefully made others lower their guard against him.
Upon hearing this, the Survivors thought it made sense.
Even if Chu Ge were a young lion, he would still be a formidable presence to them.
Besides the Vulture and Xiao Panda, none of the other Survivors would be a match for him.
As for Green Snake, it was nonvenomous.
Of course, not all Survivors were aware that Green Snake was nonvenomous.
"So what you're saying is that the Crab is definitely the undercover, right?"
A sweet female voice echoed, causing Chu Ge and the other Survivors to shudder and instinctively turn to look.
Uh...
Teddy!
Just by the sound of her voice, one would think she was a beautiful young girl—how could her Survival Entity be Teddy?
Even Chu Ge was at a loss for words.
The Crab was likely a Chinese Mitten Crab, also known as a River Crab or Chinese Mitten Crab.
It spread its pincers, cursing and swearing, "Who do you think you're looking down on, you Ri Tian!"
"Ri Tian? You..." Brown-haired Teddy trembled with fury, but she didn't dare to charge at the River Crab.
As a human, she was afraid of crabs, let alone now that she was just a small Teddy.
"Enough, stop quarreling. Now is not the time to find the undercover. We are all strangers at the start, and to avoid friendly fire, we should first unite. Let's check out our surroundings; it's broad daylight." The Vulture spoke up in a hoarse voice, clearly that of a middle-aged man.
The Survivors followed suit and looked around.
They were surrounded by green bushes that shielded them from the eyes of passersby in the park.
As for their previous quarrel, to the outside world, it was no more than barking dogs and chirping birds.
It was a weekday and there weren't many people in the park; the sound of square dancing music drifted from a distance.
"This Survival Competition is all about teamwork. I've gone through it once before. It's tough to fight alone; if we collaborate and defeat the enemies one by one, then distribute the kills so everyone can take down an enemy, that is true victory for all. So before that, we need to pick a leader."
The Vulture went on, implying that with his superior experience, the leadership role was rightfully his.
Green Snake flicked its tongue and said, "What if you're the undercover and you lead us to death?"
The other Survivors nodded along. They were no longer newbies to the Survival Trial and had witnessed death, so they couldn't fully trust any one person.
The Vulture lifted one of its talons, gleaming coldly in the sunlight, and snorted, "My talons have been hardened to level 2. With my experience and strength, if I were the undercover, you'd all be dead by now. That doesn't fit the pattern of the Survival Arena. Rookies, don't overthink. With me here, I'll lead you to victory. Do you want to end up as zoo exhibits instead?"
Level 2 hardening!
The Survivors were frightened.
Chu Ge internally let out a sigh of relief; it seemed that level 2 Survival Skills were indeed powerful at the moment.
He surveyed the other Survivors, trying to determine if any of them were undercovers.
However, they all maintained their animal appearances, and he could not read their expressions.
"Let's follow him for now; after all, he has experience."
A Mouse spoke up, its voice faint, perfectly embodying the phrase 'as timid as a mouse'.
The Survivors had no objections since no one contested the Vulture for the position of leader.
The Vulture surveyed all the Survivors and said, "There are three undercovers among us. Pay close attention regularly. If you notice anyone with a hostile intent toward us, we'll assume they're the undercover. Then, we won't rush to kill but will break their legs and disable them first. This way, we can also avoid killing by mistake."
Upon hearing this, the Survivors felt a chill in their hearts.
So cruel!
Teddy and Xiao Panda were so scared that they quietly moved closer to Chu Ge.
After a month of training, Chu Ge looked like he was two to three months old; among those present, he was the only one who made the other Survivors feel they could contend with the Vulture.
"Teddy, the two Mice, Kitten, your job is to go out and gather intelligence. Remember, don't go near any cats or dogs, regardless of how cute they might be. Even Sparrows and butterflies should be treated with caution. Your goal is to figure out how big this park is, not to scout the enemy,"
The Vulture began issuing tasks. Upon hearing the orders, the four reluctant Survivors crawled out of the bushes.