The star rating of a mercenary group is determined by its size, not the strength of its members.
Although the mercenary group stationed at the Bull Horn Mountain Secret Realm was only a two-star group with fewer than fifty members, the strength of these mercenaries was beyond estimation.
While it was uncertain whether they could truly deal with the Knife Scale Blood Snake, there was no other choice—only the mercenaries could possibly handle it.
Kent quickly turned and fled down the mountain, using Wukong's agile movement techniques. He darted through the dense forest like a monkey, evading the pursuing Knife Scale Blood Snake for the time being.
As the saying goes, "Going down is easy, climbing up is hard." It took Kent only a fraction of the time it would have to climb up, as descending is a fast-paced action, while ascending requires effort. Kent pushed himself to the limit and soon reached the foot of the mountain.
At this point, the Knife Scale Blood Snake was closing in, moving with the speed of two wind wheels.
However, as Kent emerged from the forest, the snake seemed to sense something and abruptly stopped its pursuit, retreating back into the dense forest, disappearing without a trace.
"This snake knows that once it reveals its whereabouts, the mercenaries will surround it and hunt it down," Kent realized. The creature was smart enough to avoid danger and act strategically.
After a brief wait, Mr. He, the class advisor, appeared. Upon seeing Kent, he asked in confusion, "Kent, what happened?"
He had come after the flare was shot to provide support.
If Mr. He couldn't handle the situation, a red flare would have been shot to signal other instructors for backup. If a yellow flare had been launched, all instructors would immediately evacuate with their students.
Kent looked grim and replied, "Mr. He, I encountered a Knife Scale Blood Snake—three heads, six legs, huge in size, level 45. I was lucky to escape. If not, I would have been done for."
Mr. He was stunned. A level 45 Knife Scale Blood Snake was something he couldn't handle, and even if ten instructors teamed up, it would still be a tough fight.
"Where is it now?" Mr. He asked, his gaze shifting nervously around.
"It disappeared in that direction, seems like it's unwilling to leave the mountain," Kent said, still shaken.
Mr. He, looking in the indicated direction, gritted his teeth and took out a flare, launching it into the sky. A yellow light exploded, signaling the extreme danger on the mountain and instructing all instructors to lead their students down immediately.
At the same time, the mercenaries stationed nearby noticed the disturbance and sent two people on off-road motorcycles to investigate.
Five minutes later, after hearing the story from Kent, the mercenaries' faces changed, and they fell into deep thought.
"If this is true, we need to immediately halt the trial and inform the leader to return right away," one of the mercenaries said.
Usually, the Knife Scale Blood Snake is a leader-level monster, between level 30 to 39, but the one Kent encountered was a boss-level creature, a Knife Scale Blood Snake King.
Since the secret realm was in a different space from Earthstar, there were no satellite signals, and communications tools couldn't be used. They could only contact their leader once they were outside the secret realm.
One of the mercenaries quickly left, while the other stayed behind, ordering the staff and students from Saint Stone High to retreat to the plains.
Soon, a team of instructors and their students arrived. After hearing the situation, they immediately crossed the iron suspension bridge and moved away from Bull Horn Mountain.
Zhao Mengxi and the others were among the second batch to evacuate. Seeing that Kent was unharmed, Zhao Mengxi let out a sigh of relief, but still refused to interact with him, disapproving of his behavior.
After all the teachers and students had retreated and set up camp on the plains, the mercenary leader, along with his team of over twenty members, returned. They were joined by the ten members stationed there.
The mercenary group was called Snow Bull. The leader, Mr. Gao, looked weathered and worn. After learning the details, he immediately made arrangements, dividing his team into four smaller groups of nine each. Each team would search a different direction to track down and eliminate the Knife Scale Blood Snake.
Although Bull Horn Mountain was a solitary peak, it was towering over 10,000 meters high, with an expansive area. The four teams entered the mountain, but soon disappeared without a trace, making it extremely difficult to find the snake.
Furthermore, since the Knife Scale Blood Snake could briefly fly and leave no trace of its movements, tracking it was nearly impossible. Finding it would be pure luck.
Kent realized this and had an idea that he might be able to help.
He had scanned the snake's attributes earlier and discovered its weaknesses.
Weaknesses:
The snake prefers open, well-ventilated areas. Its heads do not feed and are drawn to wind, making a whistling sound when feeding.The snake is not sensitive to chaotic air currents and has no sense of smell, making it unable to distinguish scents.
Given this, Kent thought he might be able to track the snake and potentially even capture it.
During his previous task with the Bloodhand Tyrant Dragon, Kent had acquired several bottles of high-level tranquilizer serum. If the situation allowed, he could try using them.
With this plan in mind, Kent stepped forward and called out to Mr. Gao, who was about to leave.
"Wait a minute," Kent shouted.
Everyone turned their attention to him, curious about what he wanted.
Mr. Gao, with his broad nose and pragmatic nature, frowned and asked, "What is it?"
"I think I can help," Kent said confidently.
Mr. Gao immediately turned to look at Mr. He.
Mr. He replied, "This is Kent. He was the first to spot the snake, and he managed to escape its pursuit unharmed."
Only then did Mr. Gao give Kent a closer look, sizing him up. "This is no small matter. Even we don't have a full grasp of how to deal with it. What can you possibly do to help?"
Kent replied, "I can help you find the snake, and I have a way to capture it. Please let me join the hunt."
Mr. Gao, surprised but still skeptical, said, "You can share your plan, and if it seems feasible, I'll consider it. But remember, human life is precious. There's danger in joining us, so I suggest you reconsider."
Kent frowned, disappointed. "If you don't trust me, then forget it. I'll say nothing more."
Mr. Gao glanced at him coldly but didn't insist further. He simply led his team away.
Meanwhile, the teachers and students of Saint Stone High could only wait where they were. The trial had been interrupted, but they hoped it would resume, as it would be a shame to leave just like this.
However, if they had to go to Nylon County for field training, the ten instructors wouldn't be able to handle it all, and any potential danger would be too risky.
Fortunately, the area was beautiful, with a sky full of auroras and a gentle breeze, making the wait somewhat enjoyable.