Ten Thousand Wood Estate.
When he arrived here again, Su Hao found... the entire forest looked exactly the same.
Not a tree more.
Not a tree less.
He found it highly unreasonable.
"With Senior Brother Wu's goat-horned spirit's reforestation speed, the mountains should be green all over in no time, but the trees here are still the same number... Could Senior Brother Wu be in the timber business on the side?"
Wood cultivated by a monarch-level spirit should be top-notch and valuable, right?
He looked at the Dream Butterfly.
The Dream Butterfly looked back at him.
One human and one spirit seemed to have the same idea.
But then he remembered, the little one wasn't good at cultivating plants.
"Gu nuo (???︿???)"
...
When Su Hao saw King Wu again, he had a strange feeling.
His hair didn't seem as thick anymore.
"Senior Brother."
"Little师弟's here, have a seat."
King Wu boiled water to brew tea, a hint of weariness in his eyes.
"What's the question today?"
"Uh, no, all three of my spirits have hit a bottleneck now. I'm planning to take on some missions to train them."
King Wu secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
As long as it wasn't a question.
Ever since that day, he had recommended a few techniques and ultimate moves to Su Hao.
He thought these challenges would keep Su Hao busy for the whole semester, but who would have guessed...
"Senior Brother, about the Spirit Burst technique, I don't think it has to leave a mark with illusions. Actions, sounds, even spiritual energy traits could work. I've modified it a bit, take a look..."
"Senior Brother, I think neither the Blazing Flame nor the Fire Flame ultimate moves suit the Ember Crow. Based on my analysis... (omitting a thousand words)... it's best to have some ultimate move that makes flames flow like water."
"Senior Brother, my Water Kirin has already learned the Wave Stacking ultimate move. Are there any others to learn..."
"Senior Brother, about the Fire Feather Stance, I was thinking..."
"Senior Brother..."
"Senior Brother..."
"Senior Brother..."
...
A barrage of questions left King Wu breathless.
After years, he had to pull out his books to review.
His jet-black, thick hair had even lost a few strands because of it.
Hard! Hard! Hard!
How was Little Su's brain wired?
King Wu exhaled.
Hearing that Little师弟 wasn't here to ask questions, King Wu seemed to sit up a bit straighter.
"Thinking of taking on fugitive capture missions, right?"
"With your current strength, completing B-rank missions is enough, but often you won't be fighting the fugitives directly. You'll assist local guilds in pursuit and interception. Never act alone, and know how to protect yourself."
He paused and added:
"Actually, capture missions come in two types. One is chasing ordinary fugitives—these people usually have no trump cards and are less dangerous.
"The other type involves hunting terrorists or spirit hunters.
"Then you must be extremely careful. Even if the target is just a formal spirit master, a stronger figure might emerge from behind... You've encountered terrorist attacks before, right?"
Su Hao nodded.
After a moment's thought, he tentatively asked:
"Senior Brother, how strong are terrorist organizations exactly?"
"Terrorist organizations..." He sighed slightly. "They're like a malignant tumor rooted on our planet. Though they can't compare to the Alliance, lurking in the shadows, they cause no small trouble.
"These organizations can be roughly divided into three."
"Three?"
"First, the Wan'en Sect. This organization is tightly structured, controlling the lower ranks through brainwashing, while the upper echelons are extremely mysterious..."
He shook his head.
"Second, the Hand of God. This organization has fewer members. Its top ten strongest are called the 'Ten Fingers.' They mainly operate in the New World, seemingly aiming to capture some powerful spirit, and have relatively fewer conflicts with the Alliance.
"But the Hand of God once attacked the Golden Eagle Federation's No. 2 Laboratory and succeeded, stealing some data."
"The last terrorist organization is called the Black Society.
"It's actually a conglomerate of countless small groups, harboring many serious criminals. It's chaotic internally, with numerous members and plenty of fanatical madmen. It's the Alliance's main target for suppression.
"On our school's mission platform, tasks like assisting in destroying Black Society strongholds occasionally appear... Those count as large-scale missions."
"Then there are hunters, but those spirit hunters are even more cunning than terrorists, making them hard to track."
King Wu offered advice.
First, take two or three C-rank missions to practice—the platform also requires star upgrades to take B-rank missions.
Then move on to higher-difficulty missions.
"Remember, don't hesitate when facing these fugitives. If you can't capture them alive, decisively... kill them."
...
Whale Island University, Mission Building.
Su Hao had already picked his missions on the spirit ring, but he still needed to go to the Mission Building to claim them and swipe his student card.
Early in the morning, he rode the Water Kirin there.
From afar, he saw the imposing Mission Building.
And students coming and going.
Su Hao walked into the hall and looked up.
On several walls of the mission hall, screens were hung, scrolling through various missions.
He observed for a while, then walked to one of the service windows and handed over his student card.
"Hello, I'd like to claim mission number 0125."
The front desk staff picked up his student card and swiped it.
On the screen facing Su Hao, information appeared.
[Student: Su Hao, Freshman]
[Combat Evaluation: Elite Level]
[Mission Record: None]
After some processing, he quickly claimed the mission.
Capture a criminal named Wang Erkun.
"Fengchuan Village, huh."
...
For the first mission, including travel time, Su Hao spent a total of 4 days.
For the second mission, the criminal was more cunning. He searched a mountain forest for three full days before finding traces and tracking the guy down.
It took a week in total, and after returning to school, he had to fill out a leave request for a required course.
The third mission...
"Die!"
The fugitive in front of him was grimacing fiercely. His spirit had already fallen, but he suddenly pulled a grenade from his pants pocket and pulled the pin.
"Boom!"
Su Hao was startled by the blast.
But the Water Kirin beneath him raised its hooves and swiftly retreated far away.
A layer of water curtain appeared in front of him, blocking the aftermath.
The fugitive, whose protective abilities were exhausted, was left with a mangled face from the grenade. He fell unwillingly.
...
After completing three missions, Su Hao was promoted to a two-star student.
He could now claim B-rank missions.
"I've seen blood now..."
After all, in that last mission, the fugitive's death was quite gruesome.
He was about to claim a B-rank mission when suddenly, a red-highlighted B++ rank mission appeared in the mission hall.
[Large Mission: Black Society Stronghold]
[Mission Description: Traces of Black Society criminals have been found on the outskirts of Linping City. Support from elite-level spirit masters and above is needed.]
[Mission Difficulty: Multiple elite-level enemies]
[Requirements: Elite-level students (020) (★★ Certification)]
[Rewards: 100-500 credits, one B-rank resource exchange voucher]
[Note: Led by an instructor. Mission remaining time: 00:59:48]
Su Hao was taken aback.
At that moment, the entire mission hall was bathed in glaring red light.
"An emergency mission?"
He thought back. Linping City seemed to be an ordinary city relatively close to Whale Island.
Su Hao considered whether to take the mission.
Forget the credits, that B-rank exchange voucher could get some limited-edition rare resources.
He was tempted.
But this mission carried risks.
To take it or not.
The glaring red light in the hall seemed to signal the urgency.
He stood there for a while, watching senior brothers and sisters rush in upon hearing the news.
The number of people claiming the mission kept ticking up.
(120)!
(320)!
(720)!
In just ten minutes, half the slots were filled.
A boy in white hurried into the hall. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks and turned to look.
The Ice Six-Tails on his shoulder also turned.
Both of them stared at Su Hao.