Tang Dynasty Demon Suppression Division

Thirteen figures in cyan robes quickly gathered in the clearing at the edge of the forest. Yu Ling'er raised her hand to signal, and the group immediately surrounded them, their eyes burning with anticipation.

"As planned yesterday, we will proceed in groups." Yu Ling'er lowered her voice and spoke rapidly. "Jin Duoduo and Zhou Mo will be the first group. We will depart according to the predetermined route."

"Understood!" Jin Duoduo nodded vigorously with a sly smile on his chubby face.

"Wu Yu and Cheng Zhao, this is the second group. Follow the first group to the side and behind, keep your distance, and act according to the situation."

"Yes."

The two responded in unison.

"Shen Lian and Chu Yunhe, this is the third group. We'll flank from the left. We can make a lot of noise to attract attention."

Shen Lian nodded expressionlessly, while Chu Yunhe yawned lazily: "Got it, it's bait."

"Li Yuan, you and I, with the rest of the men, will advance slowly from the right flank. Keep an eye out and be ready to provide support at any time," Yu Ling'er said to Li Yuan.

Li Yuan nodded calmly: "Okay."

"Remember, our primary objective is to reach the central safe zone, not to engage them in a direct confrontation. Use every means to weaken them, preserve ourselves, and move out!"

Yu Ling'er clenched her fist and shouted in a low voice.

"Yes!" the crowd responded in unison.

The next moment, the thirteen people scattered like birds and beasts, quickly splitting into four groups and disappearing into different directions behind the deep forest.

Shortly after they disappeared, several heads peeked out from behind a large tree not far away; they were the Human Realm students who had been lying in ambush in the forest.

Looking at the empty woods, he showed a puzzled expression.

"What happened?"

"Shouldn't they stick together for warmth? These newbies are pretty bold."

"Should we split up and pursue them separately, or concentrate our forces to block one route?"

"Something's not right...it seems like they have a plan?"

"What's there to be afraid of? It's better to separate them; we can take them down one by one!"

"Let's go, chase the group with the highest combat strength!"

One of the students, who seemed to be the leader, pointed.

The ambush men exchanged glances, leaving two to continue monitoring the area while the rest quickly chased after Shen Lian and his companion.

On the forest path, Jin Duoduo and Zhou Mo ran one after the other in a panic.

As Jin Duoduo ran, he kept looking back and asking, "Brother Zhou, hurry up! What if they catch up?"

Zhou Mo, leaning against a tree, gasped for breath: "Brother Jin, I... I can't run anymore..."

The two of them looked exactly like two pushovers who had fallen behind in the assessment.

Sure enough, just as they stopped to rest, two figures jumped out from behind a large tree ahead and blocked their way.

These are two students from the Humanity Class, one tall and thin, the other short and stocky, both with a playful, cat-and-mouse smile on their faces.

"Hey, aren't these the young geniuses of this year? Why are you all alone? Can't keep up?" The tall, thin student joked, arms crossed.

"Hand over your nameplates and admit defeat. That way, we won't have to do anything to you, and you won't have to suffer." The short, stocky student clenched his fists, making cracking sounds, and smiled maliciously.

Jin Duoduo trembled in fright and quickly waved his hands, forcing a fawning smile on his face: "Senior brothers, please, please don't hit me! Let's talk this out, let's talk this out."

As he spoke, he frantically rummaged through his pockets and pulled out a stack of silver notes.

He pulled out the two largest denomination bills, handed them over shakily, and wore a fawning smile on his face.

"Senior brother, please do us a favor. This is just a small token of our appreciation... Please pretend we were never here and let us through. It's just an assessment, why be so serious?"

The two trainees were taken aback at first, then burst into laughter.

"Hahaha... silver notes? Kid, where do you think you are? A vegetable market?"

"Exactly! The academy's assessments can't be bought with money! How naive!"

Jin Duoduo panicked and pulled out two more silver notes, handing them over along with the previous ones, his face contorted with grief.

"Senior brother, please be lenient with us. This is all our wealth. Look at this amount... it's enough for you two to live comfortably for quite some time."

The tall, thin student glanced casually at the denomination of the silver note, his smile froze, and his eyes widened suddenly. Seeing this, the short, stocky student also came over to take a look and couldn't help but gasp.

One thousand taels!

One bill is worth one thousand taels, four bills are worth four thousand taels!

Who is this chubby kid? He just casually pulled out four thousand taels to buy passage?

The two exchanged a shocked glance, both seeing...greed in each other's eyes.

They came from ordinary families, and resources were scarce at the academy. Four thousand taels of silver was enough for them to exchange for a lot of cultivation materials, and even to buy a few decent low-level magic weapons.

The temptation... is just too great.

"Ahem..." The tall, thin student coughed twice, his expression somewhat unnatural, but his eyes were fixed on the stack of silver notes. "This... is a rule of the academy..."

"Rules are rules, but people are flexible," Jin Duoduo hurriedly interjected, then gritted his teeth and pulled out the last two bills. "Senior brother, this is all we have left. You can have them all."

"I only beg my two senior brothers to show mercy."

Six sheets! Six thousand taels!

Their breathing became heavy, and after a moment of struggle, greed ultimately prevailed.

The tall, thin student grabbed the silver notes, quickly stuffed them into his pocket, and whispered, "You're smart to know what's good for you! Get lost! Don't let us see you again!"

"Thank you, senior brother! Thank you, senior brother!" Jin Duoduo felt like he had been granted a pardon. He grabbed Zhou Mo and, bowing and scraping, tried to slip past the two of them.

The short, stocky trainee even brandished his fist menacingly and shouted, "Get lost!"

Jin Duoduo and Zhou Mo panicked and ran past the two of them.

Suddenly, Jin Duoduo tripped and stumbled forward, letting out a short cry of surprise.

Two students from the Human World Class were quickly drawn in and turned to look in their direction.

"Hiss!"

Two soft whooshing sounds rang out.

The two felt a slight numbness on the back of their necks, like being bitten by a mosquito, and then a strong numbing sensation spread throughout their bodies.

Before they could even react, everything went black, their legs gave way, and with two thuds, they collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

Even now, their faces still showed surprise, completely unaware of what had happened.

Two figures darted out from the bushes beside them; they were Wu Yu and Cheng Zhao, who had been lying in ambush.

After confirming that they were only unconscious, Wu Yu nodded to Cheng Zhao.

Cheng Zhao immediately untied the ropes he had prepared from behind. The two worked together seamlessly and quickly tied the people up like dumplings, also taking their name tags with them.

"Well done!"

Wu Yu gave Jin Duoduo a thumbs up as he got up from the ground. He hadn't expected the plan to go so smoothly.

Jin Duoduo patted the dirt off his clothes and smiled smugly: "No problem, no problem."

As he spoke, he walked over, took the silver notes from the tall man's arms, slapped them in his hand twice, and then shoved them back into his arms with a smile.

"The next ambush point is seventy feet northeast, at the bend in the stream. Based on yesterday's observations, there's likely another two-person team there," Zhou Mo said calmly.

"Walk!"

Wu Yu waved his hand, and the four of them quickly cleaned up the traces at the scene before running off in the direction Zhou Mo had indicated.

The same scene played out repeatedly in the outer area of ​​the woods over the next half hour.

With her superb acting skills and financial power, Jin Duoduo successfully resolved the issues of three more groups of students in the Human World Class.

Most of these students were at the early stage of the Qi Refining stage, came from ordinary backgrounds, and were not particularly determined. Faced with enormous wealth, they all fell for the trap.

At this moment, the Human World Class has lost eight members, leaving only twelve. In terms of numbers, it has lost its previous overwhelming advantage.