Time passed quickly, and by 10 p.m., the Snow Bull Mercenary Team had not yet returned from the mountain. This caused some unease among the group, and the ten mentors were growing anxious. They had only two more days before they had to lead the students back, and if the trial wasn't resumed soon, their trip would have been a wasted effort.
Half an hour later, just as everyone was preparing to rest, the entire Snow Bull Mercenary Team returned. They were exhausted, their eyes dim with defeat—they had returned empty-handed.
"Sorry, we searched through most of the mountain but still couldn't find any trace of it," said Captain Gao.
The mentors were immediately disappointed. The mercenary team was too small; it might take days, even weeks, to find the snake. Even if they found it, they might not be able to capture it immediately.
"We'll rest tonight, and tomorrow we'll try again. Hopefully, luck will be on our side. If we still can't find it, then the trial will have to end," said Mentor He, nodding in acknowledgment, though his tone was full of disappointment.
Kent shook his head from the side. If they had listened to him, they wouldn't have wasted an entire day.
He wanted to try again to resume the trial and stepped forward, "Captain Gao, can we reconsider my suggestion now?"
Captain Gao looked at Kent with a deeper scowl. "We couldn't find it with all of us searching; do you really think you have a way?"
"Why not?" Kent replied. "You came with preconceived notions, thinking that as mercenaries, you're more experienced and capable, while I'm just a student. You ignored my suggestion, and now we've wasted an entire day. Are you proud of yourselves?"
Captain Gao was stunned by Kent's unrelenting words, and his face flushed with anger. Nobody liked being confronted like this, especially not after a full day of hard work. But Kent's words cut through him. For the sake of resuming the trial, they had traveled from hundreds of miles away, spent an entire day in the mountains without results, and now this student was berating him.
"Fine," Captain Gao said, his voice cold as a snake's hiss. "Tomorrow, you can join us. But if you don't lead us to the snake, I'll expect Saint Stone High to compensate our Snow Bull Mercenary Team with one million credit points for the mental distress and loss of reputation."
Everyone's face changed at the mention of the million credit points. Was this really necessary?
Mentors like Leng Zimu and Zhao Zhi, who had long disliked Kent, couldn't help but enjoy seeing him run into trouble. "This arrogant guy finally got what he deserved," they thought. "Maybe now he'll learn his lesson."
The members of the Snow Bull Mercenary Team, meanwhile, were all smirking, pleased to see Kent being put in his place.
"Captain Gao, this isn't necessary. He's just a student," Mentor He said, his face darkening. "You're overreacting."
"You know he's a student?" Gao sneered. "But he doesn't think so. He's rude and presumptuous. If I don't teach him a lesson, he'll think he can get away with anything."
With that, Captain Gao felt like he had the upper hand. He would show Kent that he wasn't someone to be disrespected.
Kent shrugged nonchalantly. "If you want to gamble, I'm game. I, Kent, am never afraid of anyone."
He looked Captain Gao in the eye and said, "You said it yourself. If I don't find the 45-level Knife Scaled Blood Serpent tomorrow, I'll make sure Saint Stone High compensates you with one million credit points."
Then he turned the tables. "But what if I do find it? What do you say then?"
Captain Gao's eyes flashed with sharpness. He hadn't expected Kent to call his bluff, and now he was a little unsure of how to respond.
Still, he wasn't convinced Kent could find it. He pondered for a moment before answering coldly, "If you find the Knife Scaled Blood Serpent, I, as the leader of the Snow Bull Mercenary Team, will personally donate one million credit points to Saint Stone High."
The mentors breathed a collective sigh of relief. The terms seemed fair now—if Kent lost, he would pay up. If he won, they'd receive a generous donation.
But Kent smiled coldly. "I don't need your donation. Remember, you'll be donating under my name, so you'll be the ones who look good in the end."
Captain Gao narrowed his eyes. "What do you want, then?"
"Simple," Kent said. "If you lose, you'll donate to Saint Stone High under my name. The payment should be made in one lump sum within a week."
"Fine. We'll do it your way," Gao said with a sneer. "Let's see what you're really capable of."
Kent smiled, "You'll know soon enough. For now, take care of your team. Make sure you're well-rested, or you might miss the opportunity when we find it."
With that, Captain Gao led his team back to the camp, while Kent's group slowly dispersed.
Later, as the night deepened, Mentor He took a deep breath and approached Kent. "Kent, this is a big deal. A million credit points is no small sum. Are you sure you can find it?"
Kent shrugged, "I'm not sure. The mountain's huge. I'm not a god. It's not like I can find it just by wishing."
"You still said that with such confidence?" Mentor He was shocked.
"I'm not doing it for the money," Kent said with a laugh. "It's just who I am. I can't stand being underestimated."
"Alright, alright," Mentor He said. "Let's go together tomorrow. I'm sure you know I can't let you go alone after what happened."
Kent felt a sense of warmth from Mentor He's words.
As the camp settled down for the night, Kent was about to rest when Zhao Mengxi suddenly appeared at his tent, calling out softly, "Kent, are you asleep?"
"I was just about to," Kent replied, poking his head out of the tent. "What's up? Can't sleep?"
"No, I just wanted to say that if you run into any trouble, you can come to me for help," Zhao Mengxi said kindly.
"I will. Thank you," Kent nodded, not thinking much of it.
At 5 a.m., Kent's alarm went off. He got up, left the tent, and walked a little further from the camp, summoning Wukong.
Today's mission was fraught with uncertainty, so Kent decided to level up Wukong once again just in case.
"Wukong, eat this," he said, handing over the remaining three bottles of Advanced Evolution Liquid.
Each bottle provided more than 20,000 experience points, and within a minute, Wukong's experience pool reached 70,000. The upgrade button was lit.
Kent immediately thought, "Upgrade!" and in an instant, golden light flashed around Wukong as it grew in size, doubling in height.
Minutes later, Wukong had leveled up from 13 to 20, becoming an elite-level beast master. Its body had grown significantly, its muscles bulging, and its imposing presence was enough to make anyone feel a sense of pressure just by looking at it.