Preparations Before The Hunt

"Hey, Group One is also here," someone in Damon's squad muttered as they rested after an hour of recuperation. The group had spent the time regaining their strength, and now they noticed another group running towards them, their haste evident as they carried the injured.

"They finally arrived, huh?" Damon muttered, his eyes narrowing as he observed the approaching students. It was Mu Bai's squad, and they were clearly in bad shape. Damon had anticipated their arrival, which was precisely why he had allowed his classmates to rest for so long.

"We should hurry up and go ahead, face the beast first," one of the students in Damon's squad urged, his voice betraying his impatience.

"Yeah, Group One has almost caught up to us. We need to move and maintain our lead," another student added, now fully recovered and eager to press on.

However, just as the students began to assemble their belongings and prepare to head out, Damon, who had been silently watching their movements, suddenly spoke up. "No, we're not leaving yet."

His words brought the entire squad to a halt. They turned to Damon, puzzled by his decision. Damon had led the squad throughout the entire trip, and he had left a strong impression on them. So why was he now halting their progress?

"Why not? Mu Bai's group is already here. They definitely need some rest, and while they recover, we could go ahead and slay the beast," Zhang Shuhua said, his brows furrowed in confusion. "Shouldn't we be moving now to kill the beast and secure our lead?"

Damon merely shook his head, his expression calm but firm. "No, we can't."

The students exchanged glances, unsure of what to make of his response. Zhang Shuhua, feeling the weight of the group's collective gaze, pressed further, "Why can't we? We have the strength to take on the beast. We just need to act quickly."

"Do you all seriously think you can defeat a magical beast?" Damon asked, his voice carrying a quiet intensity that silenced the murmurs among the students. "Even the weakest magical beast requires a squadron of ten veteran hunters, and even they might not succeed. What gives you all the confidence that you can just barge into the cave and defeat the wolf inside?"

The weight of Damon's words settled heavily on the group. The students began to shift uncomfortably as they recalled their earlier encounter with the demonic vines—a much lesser threat than the beast they were about to face. During that fight, many of them had struggled to even conjure their magic. How could they possibly hope to face a magical beast, one of the most ferocious and dangerous creatures in existence?

"So, what should we do?" one of the students asked, his earlier enthusiasm now replaced by a sober realization of their situation.

"We wait," Damon replied, his voice steady. "We wait for Team One to recover. Then, we'll work together to come up with a plan and fight the beast together. This isn't a competition. If any one of us, or even a group, manages to slay the beast, we'll all get an A. There's no point in rushing in and risking our lives."

The logic behind Damon's words began to resonate with the group. They realized that their priority should be survival, not competition. Their earlier bravado now seemed foolish in the face of the reality that lay before them.

"We'll just wait for Team One to reach us and then cooperate to slay the beast," Damon continued, his tone measured and persuasive. "The examination isn't about who gets the glory; it's about earning the highest score possible. And that means having as many people as possible prepared to face the beast."

Damon's words carried weight. The elite class might have been divided into multiple groups, but the outcome of slaying the beast would be the same for all. If they cooperated, the likelihood of success would increase dramatically. Everyone would earn an A, and more importantly, everyone would survive.

A magical beast, even at its weakest, possessed the power to decimate an entire squadron of veteran hunters. The beast they were about to face was no ordinary creature; it was a formidable summon of the mad summoner Bai Yang. To face such a beast without experience or preparation would be nothing short of suicide.

Damon knew this all too well. He had no intention of following the plot as it was laid out. His safety was at risk, and he wasn't about to take unnecessary chances. The more students they had, the greater the number of capable mages who could help him face the beast. And Damon needed every bit of help he could get.

The students who had been eager to move on now found themselves agreeing with Damon. They settled down to wait for Mu Bai's team, their earlier impatience giving way to a sense of camaraderie and shared purpose.

Within a few minutes, Squad One arrived at the resting area. Damon immediately took the lead in explaining his plan for cooperation. Most of the students in Squad One agreed with his reasoning, recognizing the wisdom in joining forces. Even those who initially had reservations, like Zhao Kunsan, eventually saw the importance of working together.

Mu Bai, the leader of Squad One, didn't hesitate to agree. He knew the dangers that lay ahead and understood that their best chance of survival lay in cooperation. With both squads on the same page, they began to plan their strategy for slaying the beast. They agreed to rest for three more hours, giving Mu Bai's team time to recover and make the necessary preparations.

---

"Spiritual level two... the effects are impressive, but my cultivation is limiting me from reaching my full potential," Damon mused as he sat in meditation, focusing on his progress.

After half a year of intense meditation and concentration on the space element, Damon had reached entry level two in both space element control and spiritual attainment. Compared to Mo Fan's rapid progress, some might wonder why Damon's spiritual attainment seemed so slow, especially after using the Stone of Will for six months. But there was a good reason for this.

First and foremost was Damon's own mental strength. The space element was notoriously difficult to awaken, often only manifesting at the advanced rank for most mages. For a select few, it could awaken at the intermediate or even primary mage rank, making it one of the most powerful innate abilities a mage could possess.

Awakening the space element required immense mental strength, which was why it was so rare. Damon, however, had used his system to force an awakening. Unlike a natural awakening, where a mage's mental strength was already sufficient, Damon's mental strength had been pitifully low. This lack of natural strength had slowed his progress considerably.

When Damon used the Stone of Will, his mental strength began to increase gradually, finally reaching the level required to properly control the space element. Only then was he able to truly progress in his spiritual attainment, reaching level two in a relatively short amount of time.

At this level of spiritual attainment, Damon's control over the space element had grown significantly. He could, in theory, lift up to ten tons with telekinesis at the end stage of this level, but doing so would require an enormous amount of mana. For a primary mage like Damon, such feats were beyond his current capabilities. His cultivation level was too low to sustain such a powerful spell.

Despite these limitations, Damon had made substantial gains. His concentration was stronger, allowing him to instantly cast even third-level primary spells. His control over the elements had improved, and his magic output had become more efficient. The benefits of his spiritual attainment were numerous, all contributing to his overall combat prowess.

As Damon emerged from his meditation, he observed the collective group of Squad One and Squad Three. They were all ready, their spirits high as they made their final preparations for the hunt.

"I may have chance of killing the beast alone but that would be revealing the existence of other elements within me.. I can't let that happen" The fight with beast would be monitored by the military and teachers and in front of them Damon don't have any plan to reveal his extra elements to anyone. Not now and not in future until he reached a considerable level atleast of forbidden mage.

Since Damon can't use his full powers he decided to rely on the class and teamwork to be able to defeat the summoned wolf.

Damon knew that the upcoming battle would be challenging, but with their combined strength, they had a chance—albeit a slim one—of emerging victorious.

***

1.46k words above.. those who are just for chapter please stop here below are just private notes.

Sigh I didn't planned on releasing the chapter but I did so because I want to tell you guys something and I don't like posting the empty notice type chapter like last one. It was first time I posted such chapter and you know.

This time I don't want to talk about case I was advertising but another matter.. you know look at this screenshots.

Similar to this many are harrassing me, as they think but I just find it amusing how just how rotten they are.

This is one of the creature here giving one star to all reviews thinking I would be affected.. dude seriously do you think tricks like this would affect me? This is just a fucking novel and do you think it's rating matter to me. And why he is saying this because I supported the woman of our country who was raped and murdered in this site.

Just look at his profile you may find a lot of things many deleted but even in his replies you would understand just what kind of creature he is.

And lastly for the man himself I want to say, I practice Hinduism and there was no day in my life as far as I recall when I didn't pray to lord shiva. I condemn such actions of his to make such remarks against other religions. Seriously how can you even make such remarks against anyone.