Chapter 83: The First Encounter

Three confused gazes simultaneously turned toward Zhou Huai.

Ye Xi blinked, her small face filled with incomprehension.

Yuan Kai's huge metal helmet tilted slightly, seemingly also expressing confusion.

Shen Fuhai even broke off his upside-down posture, jumped down from the tree, and looked at him breathlessly.

"Gandalf, you… weren't you just…"

He wanted to say "daydreaming," but felt it was impolite and swallowed the words back.

Ever since just now, this mysterious mage had been standing in place without moving a muscle.

That look made it seem like he had given up thinking and was ready to let it rot.

But considering the other person was a badass who could incinerate a forest with a wave of his hand, none of the three dared to say anything extra.

As a result, this daydreaming contestant suddenly said he had found the key to breaking the formation.

How could this not shock people?

Facing the three people's gazes, Zhou Huai's expression was calm.

"The formation core is not on the trees, nor in the grass."

He reached out and pointed to the ground under his feet.

"It's in the stones."

"You guys search carefully, the stones with red triangle symbols drawn on them are the formation core."

As soon as these words came out, the three were even more dumbfounded.

Not only did he know the formation core was a stone, but he even knew the pattern on it crystal clear?

Could this guy have opened his Heavenly Eye or something?

But the other party's terrifying strength was right there; no one dared to raise any doubts.

The three looked at each other and immediately took action.

They no longer paid attention to the surrounding trees, but lowered their heads and began to search carefully on the ground.

After a moment.

"Eh?"

Ye Xi let out a soft exclamation.

She pinched a small stone from the roots of a cluster of ferns.

"Look, is this it?"

Yuan Kai and Shen Fuhai immediately crowded over.

Zhou Huai also cast his gaze over.

That stone was only the size of a pigeon's egg, grey-white all over, and completely unremarkable.

If not intentionally searched for, it would be extremely easy to overlook.

On the surface of the stone, a simple triangle drawn with red paint was clearly visible.

"It really is!" Shen Fuhai's breathing became a bit hurried.

From inside Yuan Kai's metal helmet, a muffled exclamation also came out.

"Oh god, you can even find this?"

Holding the stone, Ye Xi looked at Zhou Huai, her clear eyes filled with curiosity and inquiry.

"What should we do next?"

Shen Fuhai answered a step ahead.

"According to conventional formation-breaking methods, as long as it's crushed, the restrictive formation should disappear."

Hearing this, Ye Xi nodded.

She placed the small stone in her fair palm, her slender five fingers slowly closing.

"Snap."

A soft sound.

The stone shattered in response, turning into a handful of delicate powder that slipped through her fingers.

The moment the powder hit the ground.

The surrounding air suddenly rippled violently like water waves.

The jungle in front of them began to distort and blur, as if separated by a layer of frosted glass.

Countless phantom images of trees overlapped and then quickly dissipated.

A fresh breeze blew past, dispersing the final illusion.

The world before their eyes suddenly cleared up.

The originally airtight jungle became much sparser.

In the distance, one could even faintly see the outline of a towering peak.

The restrictive formation was broken.

The three people's gazes toward Gandalf completely changed.

That was a complex gaze mixed with awe, curiosity, and even a trace of fear.

How on earth did this man know?

Even the pattern was described without a single error.

This feeling was as if someone had stuffed the standard answer into his hands in advance.

Of course, everyone present was a smart person.

No one would be foolish enough to voice the doubts in their hearts.

Ye Xi walked up to Gandalf, raised her small face, and her tone carried a hint of caution.

"Big Boss, next… where should we go?"

Shen Fuhai and Yuan Kai also stood silently to the side, waiting for Gandalf to speak.

Imperceptibly, this mysterious mage had already become the absolute core of this team.

Zhou Huai thought for a moment.

"Stay put for now."

"Let me think again."

After speaking, the three saw that this big boss closed his eyes once more, entering that abstruse state of daydreaming.

…

Inside the bedroom.

Zhou Huai abruptly opened his eyes.

His consciousness returned to his main body once again.

On the television screen in front of him, the host Wei Zheng's voice was still loud and clear.

"Got it!"

He suddenly raised his volume, a pleasant expression appearing on his face.

"Audience members! Just received news, a team has successfully broken the outer restrictive formation!"

Female host Lin Xi immediately cooperated and asked: "Oh? Which team is so amazing? Let's take a look quickly!"

Following her voice, the island map on the screen changed rapidly.

The camera zoomed in rapidly from a green light spot in the lower left corner of the map.

Finally, it switched to an overhead perspective above the heads of Gandalf and the other three.

Looking at the screen, Wei Zheng showed an approving smile on his face.

"It's the team from Dongning Province! I really didn't expect that they actually made a Breakthrough of the restrictive formation first, successfully taking the lead for Dongning Province!"

Lin Xi also smiled and chimed in: "It seems the strength of this year's candidates from Dongning Province cannot be underestimated."

"Eh?"

She suddenly uttered a question.

"Brother Wei, look, why are they not moving at all?"

"Shouldn't they be seizing the time now to pull apart the score gap with other teams?"

Wei Zheng pondered for a moment and gave his own guess.

"Perhaps they consumed too much energy breaking the formation just now and need a short rest."

"After all, sharpening the knife does not delay the work of chopping wood."

Seeing this, Zhou Huai had already firmly remembered the approximate location of his team on the island in his heart.

He closed his eyes, and his consciousness sank into Gandalf's body once again.

…

In the jungle.

As expected, Ye Xi and the other two did not move around randomly, but dutifully surrounded him, guarding against the surroundings.

Zhou Huai slowly opened his eyes.

"Follow me."

He spat out three words, without any extra explanation, and walked straight in one direction.

Ye Xi and the others didn't hesitate at all and immediately stepped forward to follow.

After the incredible scene just now, they had completely recognized reality.

What they needed to do now was to tightly hug this big boss's thigh.

Meanwhile, inside the live television broadcast room.

Female host Lin Xi discovered a new problem.

"Brother Wei, I noticed that the team from Dongning Province seems to only have four people."

"Where is their fifth team member?"

"Could it be… that they got lost right at the start?"

Hearing this, Wei Zheng also looked closely at the screen, then shook his head.

"That's not necessarily the case."

"It could also be a special tactic of their squad."

"In past National Examinations, similar tactics have also appeared. Actively separating one team member to act alone to avoid being wiped out in one go by other teams, thereby preserving points."

"Sometimes, this tactic can indeed play a miraculous role."

The two were analyzing.

Wei Zheng suddenly let out an "Eh," his brows slightly furrowed.

"Something is wrong."

"The direction the Dongning Province team is advancing… they are not heading towards the depths of the island."

"You must know, the closer to the center, the higher the Rank and density of exotic beasts, which is the best place to farm points."

He stared closely at the map on the screen.

"Wait! Their direction… it seems they are about to encounter another provincial team!"

"Although the other party hasn't broken free from the restrictive formation yet, as long as the Dongning Province team steps into the other party's range, both sides will meet!"

"Audience members! Are we about to see the first team clash of this National Examination?!"

Lin Xi's face also showed a nervous expression.

"But Dongning Province only has four people, and the other side is a full five-person team. If a fight breaks out, they're likely to suffer a huge loss!"

Before she finished speaking.

The broadcast camera had already switched to the encounter scene.

In the picture, the Dongning Province team led by Gandalf collided head-on with another team wearing uniform yellow team uniforms.

That team was precisely the Jinchuan Province representative team from the west.

The five people from Jinchuan Province were stunned for a moment when they saw Gandalf and the other four.

They hadn't figured out yet why someone could walk from the outside into their restrictive formation.

But immediately, they reacted.

Who cares how they got in, points delivered to their door, it would be a waste not to take them!

"Prepare for battle!"

The captain of Jinchuan Province let out a loud shout, and the five instantly set up their formation, the light of various skills beginning to condense in their hands.

However, the next second.

The ferocity on their faces froze.

I saw that the man at the head, wearing a gorgeous star moon robe, casually raised the staff in his hand.

"Thud! Thud! Thud!"

The five people from Jinchuan Province only felt an irresistible terrifying force descend from the sky, pressing their legs so soft that they knelt uniformly to the ground.

Immediately after, the land beneath their feet became like a swamp, swallowing their bodies inch by inch downward.

No matter how they struggled, it was to no avail.

Fear instantly gripped their hearts.

They raised their heads and saw a scene they would never forget for the rest of their lives.

Five huge meteors burning with faint green flames tore through the sky.

Whistling down.

Boom——!

Five strands of white light shot straight up into the sky.

The Jinchuan Province representative team was completely wiped out.