In the large conference room on the Forest Peak military base, high-ranking officials from the base and some professors from Saint Hua University were all gathered, looking at the monitoring screens in front of them.
Hundreds of screens projected various scenes, including students traversing through dense forests, students who had separated from their groups and were traveling alone, and students eating dry rations.
These were the monitoring videos from the mountains. Although the large beasts on the mountain had been driven away, they couldn't take the safety of the students lightly. The monitoring network had long since covered the entire mountain, like a pair of eyes in the sky, observing every move of everyone.
"This trial came suddenly, but it's a good opportunity for us to evaluate these students. They are all better in every aspect compared to previous years!"
"Yeah, this group is good. They really are the cream of the crop."
"Hmm, it's only been three hours, and the last team has already stopped. This won't do, their stamina is too weak."
As soon as the words fell, the gazes of everyone in the conference room turned towards the team where Amelia was. The most immediate impression was that this team had set off the latest and rested first.
Aiden Jameson, the instructor, furrowed his brow tightly, and his expression became even worse.
Gradually, most people's attention was focused on the teams at the front, not on the trailing teams. After all, what was worth their attention was undoubtedly excellence.
At this time, Tyler, who should have left long ago, was still in the base. In his single-room house, he somehow managed to get hold of a monitoring screen and was watching Amelia. His brows furrowed slightly, and he only had that little girl in his eyes!
...
Wyatt Parker was contemplating the problem at hand while Amelia sat on a large rock by the roadside, starting to place soft pads into her shoes. These were the pads she had prepared in advance. She wasn't sure if her tender feet could cross this mountain, so she could only find a way to ease the pain.
"Are you okay?" Wyatt Parker asked.
"I'm okay," Amelia nodded, but in reality, she was not okay at all. She just had a habit of not showing weakness in front of anyone except Tyler.
Wyatt Parker glanced at Amelia's feet but didn't say anything. Although Amelia looked weak and in need of help, Wyatt knew there was nothing he could do at the moment. He was too preoccupied with other matters.
Wyatt solemnly addressed the team, "We have a problem with our route up the mountain. This is a big mountain, and if our route is even slightly off, we could end up just circling around the mountain, which is a very scary thing. We need to re-plan our route."
Amelia remembered the bedtime story Tyler had told her, "If you're not familiar with the terrain, the weather, the animals, and everything in the mountains, then don't try to conquer a mountain."
She had no doubt about everything Tyler had said, even the words in the story.
Everyone began to plan their own routes, and Amelia handed her own route map to Wyatt Parker. He looked surprised and started drawing on the map.
After a long time, the team set off again. However, some people's hearts began to panic because they had wasted too much time. They might have fallen far behind.
They stopped again for lunch, and each person ate a small pack of compressed biscuits. Nobody dared to eat too much because they all knew that this was different from the scenic mountains they usually visited. This was a real mountain.
As they walked, their pace slowed down, and they began to feel trapped by the mountain. They felt like they were never going to get to the end, and everyone started to get anxious.
Amelia mechanically moved forward, her face pale and covered in sweat. She was thinking about Tyler, who was holding on through sheer willpower. She was on the verge of collapse, but she had become accustomed to staying calm and not showing too much emotion.
If it weren't for Wyatt Parker slowing down the team's pace, she would have fallen behind long ago. And this was only the first day.