Chapter 69

Wild Wolf Valley is located about 70 kilometers west of Black Flame City. For Zhang Tie and his companions, walking 70 kilometers in one day was not originally a difficult task. As long as they gritted their teeth, most people could endure it. However, if each person had to carry several dozen kilograms of luggage, this journey would undoubtedly be a daunting challenge for everyone.

The scenery outside Black Flame City was vastly different from that inside. Within a 10-kilometer radius of the city, the cultivable land was divided into patches of fields, where farmers could be seen working. At regular intervals, watchtowers were set up in the fields. These watchtowers served two purposes: to sound the alarm and to provide a place for farmers to take refuge in case of emergencies, as dangerous creatures could attack at any time outside the city.

After walking one kilometer from the city, Zhang Tie and his companions passed through the first small farming town on their route. Compared to the 30-meter-high city walls of Black Flame City, the walls of this farming town were only about five meters high, making them seem very thin. This height was no obstacle for many monsters and dangerous creatures. The town's area was also small, estimated to be less than one square kilometer. Outside the town were fields where many people were working during the daytime. When the farmers saw Zhang Tie's group passing by, many of them stopped their work.

"Which school are you from?" a farmer in his thirties shouted from a wheat field.

"Seventh High School!" someone in the group replied.

"Ha... Ha... I graduated from Tenth High School. Boys, try to kill as many beasts as you can. There are more and more beasts outside the city these days..."

"We will..."

"Try to come back alive, and don't relieve yourselves in the woods..." the farmer continued loudly.

"What..."

"Don't expose your bare butts to the air..."

"Psycho!" the voice that had been talking to the farmer cursed, and the group continued on. Zhang Tie looked at the farmer, whose face was tanned by the sun, and was moved. He silently remembered the farmer's words.

The farther they got from Black Flame City, the smaller the towns and villages became, and the lower the walls of the towns. By the time they were 10 kilometers from the city, the last town's wall had become a wooden fence about three meters high. As they passed through the town, a sudden, urgent bell rang from a wooden watchtower outside. Upon hearing the bell, the farmers in the fields quickly ran into the town, and a fully armed group of soldiers rushed out.

"Defend the area!" Captain Colin shouted, then he charged forward with a spear in hand, like a galloping warhorse. Many people in the school had never seen Captain Colin in action until today.

"Wow, Captain Colin's speed is at least 20 meters per second..." everyone exclaimed, watching Captain Colin's performance.

In just a few breaths, Captain Colin had charged over a hundred meters ahead of the group. Then, in everyone's eyes, a huge blood scorpion totem appeared behind him.

"Battle aura, that's Captain Colin's battle aura. Captain Colin is a Blood Scorpion Warrior..." more people shouted. As the group gasped, Captain Colin, with the blood scorpion totem, leaped like an eagle. At the highest point of his leap, he threw his spear like a bolt of lightning. At that moment, everyone was captivated by Captain Colin's heroic figure, and for many years to come, Zhang Tie would remember the man who leaped like an eagle and threw his spear.

The moment Captain Colin threw his spear, the sound of the spear breaking through the air reached them, followed by a deafening roar from an unknown beast. Then everything came to a sudden stop...

The group resumed their journey.

After advancing another 200 meters, everyone saw the result of Captain Colin's spear. A fifth-stage mutated leopard, nearly two meters long without its tail, had been impaled on the ground like a shrimp by the spear, which had penetrated the ground to a depth of three feet, with only half of the spear shaft visible.

Captain Colin spoke briefly with the soldiers who had rushed out from the town, then turned back, pulled the spear from the beast, and continued leading the group.

When Captain Colin returned, he had become a hero in everyone's eyes. No matter how terrifying the one-eyed man was in school, everyone realized how reassuring it was to have such a one-eyed man by their side outside the city. The dead leopard, with its body and blood, reminded everyone that this was just the beginning.

"Did you hear the explosion in the air when Captain Colin threw his spear?" Baghdad asked the group.

Zhang Tie and the others nodded.

"Of course, how could we not hear it!" the fat, exhausted Bari replied, "I didn't expect the one-eyed man to be so powerful?"

"You don't understand what I mean!" Baghdad scratched his head, trying to explain, "What did you see from Captain Colin's throw?"

"Very good, very powerful!" Doug said bluntly, making Baghdad roll his eyes.

"Are you saying Captain Colin's throw was special?" Light asked, turning his eyes.

"Of course, if I'm not mistaken, Captain Colin's throw reached the level of a sonic strike!"

"Sonic strike? What's that?" Savage asked curiously.

"A sonic strike is a term I heard in the battle hall. It means that when a master's attack speed exceeds the speed of sound, it breaks through an invisible barrier in the air, called the sound barrier. When this barrier is broken, a loud explosion is heard. Such an attack is called a sonic strike, a hallmark of a master!"

"You mean..." Bari looked at Baghdad in disbelief.

"Exactly, I think when Captain Colin threw the spear, its speed exceeded 340 meters per second, breaking the sound barrier, which is why we heard the loud explosion!" Baghdad said, looking at the tall, one-eyed man's back with admiration, "Captain Colin is really a very powerful man!"

"Is it hard to achieve a sonic strike?" Zhang Tie asked curiously.

"Hard? It's more than just hard!" Baghdad shook his head. "I heard that in Black Flame City, the easiest to achieve a sonic strike are the archers with strong physical strength who can operate ultra-heavy war bows. As long as their strength and physical condition are sufficient, those who can operate such war bows can use the bow's characteristics to achieve a sonic strike. However, in the entire Black Flame City, even for this simplest form of war bow sonic strike, there are fewer than 50 people who can do it. Anyone who can achieve a sonic strike with an ultra-heavy war bow will be immediately granted the rank of second lieutenant by the Black Flame City military and enjoy officer benefits. The military has long wanted to form a 'Eagle Strike Formation' using ultra-heavy war bows for long-range attacks to complement the three elite spear formations, but they have never been able to do so. This skill's value is evident, and Captain Colin achieving a sonic strike with a throw is even more difficult than using a war bow!"

After Baghdad's explanation, everyone understood the value of a sonic strike and was deeply impressed by Captain Colin's strength.

By the time the morning was over, the students from Seventh High School, panting and struggling with their heavy backpacks, had covered 30 kilometers and were about to feel like slow-moving turtles. They finally reached their resting place for the noon break, a small train station near the Granite Iron Mine in the northwest of Black Flame City. This was the farthest train station to the west of Black Flame City. Beyond this station, the railway gradually extended north to the Granite Iron Mine. Trains traveling between Black Flame City and the mine were responsible for transporting iron ore from the mine to the steel mills in Black Flame City, supporting the city's prosperity. The Granite Iron Mine was a famous super iron mine with a reserve of 60 billion tons, the largest in the entire Andaman Alliance and one of the top three in the Blackson Human Corridor. Half of Black Flame City's prosperity was built on this super iron mine.

While resting near the train station, Zhang Tie and his companions saw their fellow students from the Second National High School of Black Flame City, who arrived 20 minutes after them. Then, the girls from the Fourth and Eleventh High Schools of Black Flame City also got off at this small station. Seeing the groups of girls, all carrying backpacks, the boys sitting by the roadside were immediately captivated, their mouths watering as they ate.