Chapter 668: Chapter 668 - Taming the Fifth Year: 1st Gathering Exam - 6

Ren allowed his thoughts to wander briefly toward Luna.

How was she doing?

Would she be okay in her own exam right now, dealing with her own challenges? Facing whatever tests the evaluators had designed for her team?

Would she think of him, even for a second?

The question hurt more than he wanted to admit.

Probably not.

Luna had made it clear he was an obstacle.

That she needed distance.

And Ren had respected that, as difficult as it had been. Had stayed away, had given her the space she’d demanded, had forced himself not to reach out even when every instinct screamed at him to help.

But that didn’t mean he’d stopped worrying.

That he’d stopped wondering what the hell was really happening.

That he’d stopped wanting to help, no matter what she said.

The concern was always there.

♢♢♢♢

"Ren?"

Liu’s voice pulled him from his thoughts.

"Mm?"

"I asked if you’re going to create wolverine eggs," Liu repeated, looking at him with concern. "With all these materials, you could..."

"Probably," Ren responded, forcing his mind to return to the present. "The materials to create them are abundant in our loot. They’re not my objective, but..." he shrugged, the gesture casual, "it would be foolish to waste the opportunity to make more nests."

"Wolverines are popular," Fan 2 commented. "Especially now that more people can reach gold rank. Rich families will pay fortunes for specific eggs."

Supply and demand. The eternal dance of economics.

"But even so, they’re not my priority," Ren said, shaking his head slightly. "Too much competition in the materials market already. The vines, on the other hand..."

"You don’t need more people buying the materials when most already have plants," Kade completed, and now he definitely sounded impressed. "And few know that the next step in evolution is the vines. So you can even control the price."

"Nah... I can be reasonable with the price," Ren corrected, his tone firm. "There’s a difference between taking advantage of an opportunity and being greedy."

A line he wouldn’t cross. His parents ethics that money couldn’t buy.

Zhao let out a short laugh.

"Wise for your age," he commented, genuine respect in his voice. "Greed destroys more businesses than it builds. Especially when you’re dealing with cultivators with fewer resources. And maybe later, when they’re stronger and can generate more resources... they’ll even thank you for it."

They were in the plains now.

The dense forest had given way to rolling grasslands dotted with occasional trees. The landscape opening up, breathing room after hours in the claustrophobic green maze.

In the distance, they could already see the first houses on the city’s outskirts. Civilization returning gradually, like wading from deep water into shallows.

♢♢♢♢

The sun was at its highest point when the group crossed through the academy gates.

Midday. When most teams would still be deep in the forest, still working on their second day’s collection.

The evaluation building was empty of students.

Two evaluators yawned behind their desks, with nothing to do. The boredom of a job that the first two days consisted mostly of waiting. One of them straightened upon seeing them enter, his expression shifting from drowsiness to confusion.

Blinking like he’d been startled awake from a pleasant dream.

"Patinder?" he blinked, checking his registry. Running his finger down the list of team assignments, double-checking what his eyes were telling him. "But... it’s barely the second day. You have more than a full day left."

"A day and a half exactly," Zhao corrected, entering behind the group with that satisfied smile that hadn’t left his face since they’d departed.

"Did you have problems?" the other evaluator asked, concerned that students had been injured. "Was anyone hurt? Do you need...?"

"We’ll make a second trip," Ren interrupted simply, dropping his backpack on the evaluation table with a dull thud that made the desk tremble.

The words hung in the air... Not quite making sense yet.

The evaluators looked at him as if he’d spoken in another language.

"Second...?"

"Trip," Liu repeated, dropping his own backpack beside Ren’s. His smile was so wide it practically glowed. Beaming with the joy of being part of something exceptional. "We need to leave this here and return."

"That’s..." the first evaluator searched for words, his brain struggling to catch up with what he was hearing, "that’s not... nobody does that."

Because it was insane. Because three days was barely enough time for one thorough collection run. Because students were supposed to return exhausted and proud with whatever they’d managed to gather.

Not fresh and planning a second trip.

"They do now," Fan 1 dropped her backpack with a grunt of effort. The weight significant even for her beast-enhanced strength.

Fan 2 did the same, followed by Kade who, to his credit, no longer looked resentful. Just exhausted.

The evaluators looked at each other, then opened the backpacks with the practiced movements of people who’d seen thousands of collections.

And then they stopped.

Froze mid-motion, hands hovering over materials they couldn’t quite process.

"This is..."

"A lot," the second evaluator completed, pulling out segments of gold-rank vine of exceptional quality. His hands trembling slightly, whether from excitement or disbelief. "This is... this is what two complete teams would bring after the full three days, and they’d be silver-rank materials not Gold. You..."

"We’re not finished yet," Ren moved toward his Wolverine, which had remained carrying bags on its back. With a gesture, the beast opened its mouth completely, revealing the interior of its dimensional space.

And began vomiting materials.

There was no other way to describe it...

Coiled vines the size of tree trunks. Elemental crystals that glowed with enormous power. Rare moss, special roots, even some parts and bones from wolverines that had decided not to cooperate.

Mountains.

Literally mountains of materials began piling up on the evaluation building’s floor.

Spreading like an avalanche in slow motion. Covering space, climbing higher, defying reasonable expectations about what five students could possibly gather.

"By all the..." the first evaluator dropped his tea, the liquid splashing without anyone noticing. His eyes fixed on the growing pile, unable to look away. "How much... how...?"

"Ren’s wolverine is special," Liu explained with pride, as if he’d personally thought of the strategy. Basking in reflected glory. "It can carry dozens of tons more than others of the same rank without problem."

"This is going to take hours to count," the second evaluator murmured, looking at the growing mountain with something close to horror. Already calculating the overtime, the paperwork, the exhaustion ahead.

"That’s why we returned early," Ren closed his Wolverine’s mouth once the last material fell. "To give you time to process this before we bring the rest."

"The rest?" the first evaluator sounded almost hysterical. His voice cracking, pitch rising with each word.

Because surely this was it. Surely there couldn’t be more.

"Second trip," Liu repeated, clearly enjoying the situation. Relishing the shock on their faces. "I suggest you start counting. You won’t want to be here all night when this monster returns with another load and the other students bring theirs."

The students were already leaving, their backpacks now empty bouncing lightly against their backs. Even Kade, who’d been complaining of tiredness during the entire return trip, seemed suddenly full of energy.

There was something liberating about walking without weight.

About having completed an impossible task and knowing you were about to do it again.

"Wait," the first evaluator called, still processing. His mind struggling to accept what was happening. "You’re going to... you’re going to go back there? Now?"

"Now," Ren confirmed, the word simple and final.

And they left, leaving the evaluators staring at the mountain of materials that would have to be catalogued, weighed, evaluated.

Each item logged. Each quality graded. Each value calculated.

Hours of work.

"I’m going to need more tea," one murmured, staring at the pile like it might attack him.

"I’m going to need something stronger than tea," the other responded.