The Third Frontier

"I am your chief instructor for this mission, Black Crow."

His voice clearly reached everyone's ears.

"Without further ado, you are all well aware of the deficit in the Ten Thousand Demon Tower. Without those demonic beasts, the academy's living energy is somewhat stretched."

To reduce costs and increase efficiency, the academy raises some low-level demonic beasts to maintain daily consumption.

But a few days ago, a batch ran away and another batch died. Now, there's barely enough left to generate electricity.

Black Crow's gaze was cold, without the slightest hint of a joke.

"So, your new mission is here." He raised his hand, and a scarlet map instantly appeared on the large screen behind him, marked with countless flashing light points.

"This is the Number Three Border Battlefield. Your mission is to form three-person teams led by an instructor, enter the periphery of the battlefield, and capture a batch of first to third-tier demonic beasts alive as supplementary resources for the Ten Thousand Demon Tower."

"Capture alive?"

"Go to the real battlefield?"

A suppressed exclamation sounded in the crowd.

Illusions and real battlefields are two completely different concepts.

Although the required tiers were not high, this was capturing them alive, which was much harder than killing them on the spot.

Black Crow turned a blind eye to the freshmen's reactions. He continued to announce in that cold tone, "During the mission, there are no rules and no limits on methods. Your score is only linked to the quantity and quality of the demonic beasts you finally bring back. Now, I will start announcing the groups."

Everyone held their breath.

A good team would have a survival rate several times higher on the battlefield.

"Group One, ..."

"Group Two, ..."

Black Crow read the names very fast, not giving anyone time to react.

Chen Guan listened quietly, calculating in his heart who would be more convenient to team up with to farm points.

It would be best to have two capable and relatively worry-free tool people.

"Group Seven." Black Crow's voice paused. His gaze swept through the crowd and finally landed on three people.

"Yin Chen, Hong Yuan, Chen Guan."

Chen Guan raised his eyebrows, not surprised. It was a familiar group again.

The advantage of teaming up with these two was that it saved trouble, but the disadvantage was that he couldn't get any screen time.

It seemed that if he wanted to farm popularity points recently, he still had to start from that cheerful netizen account.

Yin Chen's expression didn't change much. He glanced in Chen Guan's direction and nodded slightly.

Great, he could get carried to victory again.

Yin Chen completely relaxed now. He even had the leisure to adjust his collar, ensuring that he maintained his demeanor in any environment.

Teaming up with Chen Guan, he only needed to think about one thing: how to get carried more elegantly.

Chen Guan's gaze swept over the two of them and then looked at the high platform.

[Coffin Team! It's the Coffin Team again! Yay!]

[Yin Chen: Understood, slack off. Hong Yuan: Understood, charge blindly. Brother Guan: Understood, carry the team.]

[The person above, you really understand the division of labor.]

There was no obvious fluctuation in popularity points. It seemed that this conventional grouping could no longer stimulate the audience's nerves.

He needed a new breaking point.

The teams were quickly assigned. Black Crow's figure disappeared from the high platform and when he reappeared, he was already standing in front of the three of them.

The unapproachable aura around him made the other teams preparing to depart subconsciously step aside.

"Group Seven, follow me."

Black Crow didn't spout any extra nonsense. He turned around and walked towards a helipad at the edge of the martial arts arena.

There, a pitch-black armed transport ship was quietly hovering.

The three followed.

The light inside the cabin was dim, with only a few rows of cold metal seats.

As the cabin door closed, a slight sense of weightlessness came over them. The transport ship lifted off the ground, quickly leaving the noise of the academy behind.

There was no talking along the way.

Hong Yuan tried to find some topics to talk about, but after hitting a wall twice on Black Crow's cold face, which was comparable to a coffin board, she sensibly shut her mouth and started wiping her precious giant axe.

Yin Chen closed his eyes to rest, adjusting his mental power.

Chen Guan leaned against the cold cabin wall and called up the forum panel that only he could see.

He looked at the active forum netizens, wondering if he could casually take two more photos.

Capturing alive would indeed affect efficiency.

But their team was okay. Two mental specialists and one physical hallucinant. The efficiency shouldn't be low. First place this time should still be theirs.

He quickly conceived a few plans in his mind. The sound of the transport ship's engine began to change, and a violent jolt came from the fuselage.

"We're here."

Black Crow's voice sounded. He had unknowingly stood at the cabin door.

The cabin door slid open to both sides, and dust flew directly into the cabin.

Hong Yuan frowned, and Yin Chen also opened his eyes, the calmness on his face fading a lot.

What appeared before their eyes was a scarlet wasteland with no end in sight.

The sky was gray, and the ground was dark red, as if it had been soaked in blood countless times.

In the distance, a huge transparent shield looked like an inverted bowl. Outside the shield, towering demonic aura and the flashes of explosions could be faintly seen.

There were no birds singing or flowers fragrant like in the academy here, only a cold defense line made of steel and death.

Dozens of soldiers wearing armor were moving in and out in front of the defense line. Their expressions were numb, their movements mechanical, turning a blind eye to the three newly arrived students.

This was an annual fixed program. Although it came a bit earlier this year, there was nothing to make a fuss about.

"This is Supply Point Number Seven of Battlefield Number Three, and it is also the starting point of your mission this time."

Black Crow's voice pulled the attention of the three back.

"Thirty kilometers east from here is the marked safe hunting zone. The creatures you need to deal with are all below the fifth tier. Your targets are all there."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the faces of the three one by one.

"The academy's mission briefing can be thrown away as waste paper. Here, I'll set three new rules for you."

"First, I am only responsible for leading the way and confirming the target area. I will not make a move."

He held up one finger.

"Second, the mission targets must be alive."

He held up a second finger.

"Third," his voice carried coldness, "don't expect me to save you. If you are going to die, try to die faster. I don't have time to collect your corpses."

After speaking, he put down his third finger.

Hong Yuan's breathing became a bit heavy. This tone of speaking was really unpleasant, as if they were going to die right now.

Yin Chen's face also became somewhat solemn.

Chen Guan met Black Crow's gaze and nodded: "Understood."

A slight ripple flashed in the depths of Black Crow's eyes, but it quickly faded away.

This kid was much tougher than he thought.

What he just said were naturally harsh words. Wasn't the purpose of dispatching instructors to every team just to protect these students?

He didn't say anything more and turned to walk towards the depths of the wasteland.

"Follow me."

Passing the frontline supply point, the surrounding environment became increasingly dead silent.

Huge claw marks and coagulated black bloodstains could be seen everywhere on the ground. Broken demonic beast skeletons and metal fragments were mixed together, forming a doomsday-like scene.

Hong Yuan walked at the very front, dragging her giant axe on the ground, carving out a shallow trench.