To the south of the Blacksteel settlement was a strange forest densely populated with blue maple trees. All sorts of lifeforms lived in this curious habitat, and most hunters didn't dare to get anywhere close to the area.

Somewhere by the outskirts of the forest, on a plot of barren ground, an encampment consisting of a few tents had been hastily constructed. Of course, this was where the Yun and Chu clans had decided to construct a temporary training ground following Zhang Lie's request.

Both clans had supplied considerable manpower for this project, and by the time Zhang Lie, Chu Feng, and Yun Bing arrived at the area, it was already filled with hundreds of Yun and Chu elites.

In the tent in the very center were ten youths. The oldest among them seemed to be less than twenty years of age, and all of them had only been in the dimensional world for less than a month.  Most importantly, they were all at the tenth stage of their foundational framework, and had either yet to start studying any genetic techniques or had purged them from their framework decisively.

Among them were Yun Bing's sister, Yun Meng, as well as Chu Feng's brother, Chu Leng. Chu Feng's sister, Chu Xun, was also present, but she refused to believe in this so-called breakthrough. As a result, she stood to the side of the main ten-hunter party, rather than with them.

When the three of them walked up, however, she immediately strode forward and began to sniff them.

"Brother, is this the mysterious hunter you were talking about? He seems like a mysterious fellow, but he doesn't smell too old. He's in his early twenties, I'm sure of it! And he must recently have been in the Blackgold Inn, because I can smell the perfume that their female servants use! Are you sure he's not a fraud?"

The girl's words shocked Zhang Lie. How could she be able to tell how old he was with just a casual sniff? And to think that she would even be able to identify where he had been!

Was her nose really that sharp? Zhang Lie glanced at her with shining eyes.

Chu Feng laughed in embarrassment. "This is my sister. Please don't mind her, she's been coddled since she was young, so..."

"Haha, I don't mind! How astute her sense of smell must be!" 

He then spoke to Chu Xun directly. "It seems like you don't believe in the breakthrough I've discovered?"

Chu Xun shook her head. "It's been just about a century since the dimensional world was first discovered. How can something like this breakthrough not have been found even after so long?"

"In that case, shall we have a bet?"

Chu Xun frowned, then asked cautiously, "A bet? Why should I make a bet with you?"

Zhang Lie smiled. "You don't believe in my breakthrough, do you? In that case, let's bet the following: if I were to successfully induce a breakthrough in at least one person here, you'll have to help me sniff something out, but if I fail, then you can do whatever you want with me! What do you think?"

Chu Xun thought about the terms for a moment and then decisively shook her head. "No, I won't take this bet! If you were to lose, then my brother would destroy you anyway!"

Zhang Lie raised an eyebrow, not expecting that she would be so quick-witted. "In that case, let's do it this way. If you agree to help me sniff something out, I'll guarantee you a successful breakthrough. How about that?"

Yun Bing, Chu Feng, and the elites of the two clans all perked up. This fellow had said that he couldn't guarantee any measure of success! But now that he was interested in Chu Xun's nose, he had made her this guarantee...

It was likely that he had deliberately sought out the Yun and Chu clans for this venture as well, and it was very likely that there was still some critical piece of information regarding the breakthrough process that he hadn't divulged.

"Promise him!" Chu Feng nudged her.

As if sensing how serious her brother was, Chu Xun frowned and reluctantly said, "Fine. I wasn't going to accept the bet, but given my brother's request, I'll reluctantly go along with it. However, I'm telling you now: I won't sniff anything funny from you!"

Zhang Lie laughed. "Don't worry, Miss Chu, I have better uses for your talents."

Only after settling the agreement with Chu Xun did Zhang Lie turn to look at the ten gathered candidates. In front of each candidate was a pile of food. There were ten white-grub cores, half a pound of kelpfish roe, and half a pound of bluewater frog meat.

Of course, except for the white-grub cores, everything else was cooked.

Zhang Lie was very pleased by the clans' efficacy. Loudly, he proclaimed, "I believe all of you know the reason you were gathered here today! Your first task is simple: devour all the food in front of you!"

The candidates blinked, then turned skeptically to Yun Bing and Chu Feng.

After all, Zhang Lie, clad entirely in black, did not seem remotely like a trustworthy figure.

Yun Bing's sister, Yun Meng, even asked, "Sister, there's nothing special about any of this, so why are we consuming it? Isn't it just like junk food?"

Yun Bing grimaced. "Yun Meng, listen to him! You'll understand what it does in just a bit. You might not believe him, but you'll believe your sister, won't you?"

Yun Bing's admonishment and endorsement finally made the other candidates follow suit.

The food didn't taste too bad, but there was just so much of it… well, it wasn't as though they had any choice.

The moment several of the candidates finished eating everything, Zhang Lie had the Yun and Chu elites bring them into the training ground.

What awaited them would be a moment of life-threatening danger. Black-clad elites were already waiting in preparation surrounding the training ground.

The six candidates who had finished eating first entered through six separate entrances. Those hunters who led them there informed them that their goal was to reach the heart of the training ground. The first hunter to get there would be the first to experience a breakthrough, so the six candidates began rushing toward the center of the training ground immediately.

Chu Xiu was a little nervous: as a member of a branch family of the Chu clan, he was honored to have been selected for such important training. After all, he had been told that this supposed breakthrough would be a tremendous boon to both him and the clan at large.

Grateful for the opportunity, he promised to give the training his all. His skills were above average among the six candidates, so he was the first to reach the interior boundary.

As he darted by a small bush, Chu Xiu could see the flag planted at the center of the training ground. Just then, a dark shadow far faster than he was shot out of the bush, and a dagger flashed toward his jugular.

Adrenaline flooded Chu Xiu's body, and he reacted near-instinctively. He had no time to process why or how an assassin had managed to infiltrate this place. As genetic energy burst out of his body, he twisted his body just enough to avoid the blow.

It was at that moment that the will of the world spoke to him.