After killing and taking all the points of two of the students that ambush him, Caleb Li went deeper inside the forest.
While inside the teacher's tent, the atmosphere buzzed with the murmurs of anticipation and excitement.
The previously astounding killing speed of Caleb Li had faded from memory, replaced by a focus on current standings.
However, out of the blue, his name surged back to the top hundred.
Initially, few took notice of the sudden change, but Miss Freya's keen eyes caught sight of his name.
She raised an eyebrow slightly, maintaining her outward calmness, but those who observed her closely could sense the anticipation brewing beneath the surface.
Previously, it had been Amanda who was the pride of her class, but since her transfer to the inner city, Miss Freya had harbored concerns about her class's fate in the upcoming College Entrance examination.
Yet, today, Caleb Li's results piqued her interest, sparking a glimmer of hope within her.
"When this is over, I must ask which village he was sent to in the ancient realm," she resolved with newfound determination, contemplating how she could help nurture Caleb Li's strengths.
Just as she pondered strategies to enhance Caleb Li's abilities, his ranking surged from the 98th position to the 81st position.
Witnessing this unexpected leap, her heart skipped a beat, and she could no longer contain her composure.
A rare, beautiful smile graced her lips as she fixed her gaze firmly on the screen, a sense of pride swelling within her.
Sitting a couple of feet from her, her nemesis, Mr. Klaus, saw the sudden change in her countenance and followed her gaze.
He widened his eyes in shock when he saw a name he had long forgotten.
"How is this possible?!" he exclaimed in his heart.
He wanted his student to dominate the ranking, at least the top hundred, but now, it seemed that wouldn't be the case.
Besides, there was not only Caleb Li making strong waves.
There was Rose and other students racing toward the top 100.
All this left him baffled. Still, he could control himself when he saw the top two names dominating the ranking.
They were Archie and Valaria, while Minjun from Palm Valley High was close behind them.
With two of his top students leading the ranking, his face swelled in pride, and he couldn't wait for the training exercise to be over to brag about it.
Meanwhile, Caleb Li was busy hunting all the ranked beasts that came across his path. With two swords in his hand, he became a fearsome existence to the beasts.
Standing right in front of him was a massive beast.
The Feathered Cave Lizard.
The feathered cave lizard was a dangerous beast known for its swift attack and deadly tail whip.
However, Caleb Li didn't seem to care about it.
He dashed toward the feathered cave lizard and swung both his swords at the same time.
His right sword deflected the sharp claw attack of the feathered cave lizard while his left sword attacked the feathered cave lizard's neck.
The Feathered Cave Lizard was stunned; he didn't expect a puny human to act swiftly and decisively again.
Bang!
His deadly cold blade cleaved deep into the neck of the Feathered Cave Lizard and a guttural howl escaped from its mouth.
Filled with rage, the Feathered Cave Lizard went berserk and swung its tail like a deadly whip, trying to kill him alongside him.
Caleb Li's instinct kicked in.
With his vast experience in the Dark Forest, he reacted swiftly deploying his movement skill: the shadow steps.
Whoosh!
He disappeared from his original spot and appeared by the left side of the Feathered Cave Lizard and swung his sword.
Bang!
His sword went straight through the neck of the Feathered Cave Lizard and severed it from its body.
Looking at the dead lizard, he smiled lightly and scanned it with his bracelet.
With that out of his way, he went deep into the forest. The deeper he went, the more he realized something was wrong.
There should be more Rank-1 beasts in the forest, but he found none after walking for over thirty minutes.
Slowly, his expression began to change, turning solemn. Suddenly, he heard bestial cries from his west and dashed toward it.
Behind a cliff, ten powerful Rank-1 beasts gathered without attacking each other.
Their gaze was fixed on a small tree with five fruits on it.
The fruits were almost ripe, turning purple, and the beasts fixed their gaze on it.
The scent coming from the fruit was invigorating, and he could feel the spiritual energy in his body resonate with the scent.
Without thinking twice, he knew he must get his hand at least on one of the fruits.
Even though he didn't know what type of fruits they were, since they could resonate with his Qi, he knew they couldn't be poison.
Hiding behind a massive tree, he waited patiently for the fruits to ripen while he pondered how to get his hand on more than one fruit.
After two hours, the thick scents of the fruits had filled the surrounding, and all the beasts began to act restless as the fruit would ripen at any moment.
Caleb Li also prepared, gripping his two swords tightly with his gaze fixed on the fruits.
Just as all the fruits turned purple, he and the beasts acted at the same time.
While all the other students were grinding to gain more points to increase their ranking, Caleb Li was on another quest.
Unknown to him, this would change the perception about the world forever.