“Know yourself and your enemy, and every victory will be yours.” Scouting for information was one of the most important tasks in a battle for survival. Each alliance camp would have different means of gathering intelligence. Generally speaking, all the advantages an alliance camp had should be combined to maximize the results of a scout operation.

The camp on Fire Peak, which was represented by No. 60 High, basically obtained a natural advantage when it came to scouting for intelligence after South Sea Sky High joined them. Nan Yixiu was proficient in the “study of perception.” Furthermore, he knew how to use some of the power of nature, and with the survival battle taking place in this natural environment, he was completely in his element.

After approaching Mist Peak’s border, Nan Yixiu, Wang Zhen, Super Chen and Four Eyes hid themselves. The wild pheasant which they had caught en route would play a critical role at that moment.

Nan Yixiu cast a spell as he looked into the pheasant’s eyes. “Mental Assimilation Spell!”

“What’s this?” Super Chen was puzzled.

“This is the spell Senior Brother Nan is best in. He can assimilate mentally with a living creature and control its brainwaves, ultimately sharing their sight, hearing, and sense of smell. The bird’s brain is now completely connected with Senior Brother Nan’s,” Four Eyes said as he pushed up his glasses.

“I see.” Super Chen nodded. He finally realized that Nan Yixiu’s purpose for catching the pheasant wasn’t to eat it.

But why a pheasant?

Super Chen was still puzzled.

“Pheasants are the least eye-catching. If you choose an insect, most of them have very unusual vision, and it isn’t easy to learn about the enemy through them. On the other hand, high-ranking creatures are too big to capture and control,” Four Eyes continued.

So, to summarize, the pheasant was indeed the most ideal target for assimilation in the current environment. Furthermore, this sort of wild pheasant which lived on Nine Dragon Mountain wasn’t any ordinary bird. They had spirit qi and excellent vision, almost as good as a hawk’s, and could see far into the distance.

At that moment, Nan Yixiu was controlling the pheasant. He had it fly onto a branch overhead as it stared at a distant location.

But then something unexpected happened. A sharp arrow shot out through the clouds from the summit of Mist Peak and directly pierced the pheasant! The pheasant had barely flown into the tree when it was torn apart by an arrow on the spot and turned into minced meat.

Nan Yixiu was unable to react in time to such a horrifying scene, and his Mental Assimilation Spell was interrupted, leaving him deathly white and drenched in sweat, which were the repercussions of the spell. Nan Yixiu would usually stop the spell right away once he knew it was dangerous, but what happened just now was so sudden that the dying pheasant’s pain was also transmitted to him, making it hard to bear for a moment.

“They have pretty quick reflexes.” Super Chen was also petrified at this scene. It had been no more than ten seconds after the pheasant was sent up, when an arrow had been launched from the distance to kill the pheasant with pinpoint precision.

Super Chen examined the arrow. It had a simple, self-made wooden arrowhead coated with some deadly poison. If a person was shot, the golden talisman would determine right away that they were about to “die,” and burst forth with a shield of golden light.

But this couldn’t be the power of a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

It had to be pointed out that they were at least five li away from Mist Peak!

In the absence of bow-like magic weapons, a self-made wooden arrow could actually be launched over such a far distance… This was practically impossible!

At that moment, Wang Zhen said, “Terrain advantage.”

At these words, Super Chen immediately reacted. “So, it’s the terrain!”

If it had to do with the terrain, this super long-distance shot was indeed possible!

Mist Peak was the most difficult mountain peak to reach. The peak could generate invisible drafts of wind that would blow away any living thing that tried to get to the top. Combining this terrain’s unusual wind pressure with good archery skills, a long-distance shot wouldn’t be difficult. Conversely, the wind pressure was the lowest on the top of the mountain.

At that moment, Nan Yixiu came back to his senses after his fluster. Everything had happened so suddenly that he hadn’t been able to react for one moment.

But he was already doing his best to adjust his mood. “Gao Tianming chose Mist Peak since it’s easy to defend and difficult to attack, and basically has a natural advantage. The problem, however, is replenishing resources. They can’t stay on top of the mountain the whole time; they also need to send out supply teams to gather resources. We can ambush these small teams.”

But just as Nan Yixiu was done speaking, Super Chen detected new movement.

Super Chen noticed that someone on the top of Mist Peak had actually released what looked like kites… Buoyed by the air pressure at the top of Mist Peak, these kites flew in various directions. Tied to each kite was a flat puppet with a bamboo basket on its back. When each puppet opened its mouth, a long, thin tube with a long hook on the end of a silk thread extended outward.

“He’s actually taking advantage of the terrain, and using a fishing method to collect the spirit fruits and plants nearby…” Nan Yixiu was deeply astonished when he looked at this scene. He already felt that Gao Tianming would be difficult to deal with, but he hadn’t expected him to even go so far as to use puppets to collect resources. If that was the case, then their camp was utterly self-sufficient, and no one needed to be sent down from the mountaintop to look for resources at all!

Super Chen had thought that No. 60 High was already well fortified; who would have thought that there would be someone even better than them at laying low.

“What should we do?” Four Eyes was sweating and also felt despair. They didn’t normally feel this sense of bewilderment; it was just that based on their typical exchanges with No. 1 Devil-Subduing High, this was clearly the most difficult encounter yet. Gao Tianming had gained abundant experience through numerous battles, and he was still constantly learning and growing. Now, he had finally reached a jaw-dropping point in battle tactics.

Nan Yixiu clenched his teeth, unwilling to accept the situation. Just like how No. 60 High and No. 59 High were enemies, there was also an intense feud between South Sea Sky High and No. 1 Devil-Subduing High. From the moment Nan Yixiu came to know Gao Tianming, this was their third confrontation. Their previous two clashes had ended in a draw, but this time, Nan Yixiu felt that he was at a clear disadvantage.

“Let’s switch locations first. I’m afraid they might have already detected us.” Nan Yixiu frowned. These kite puppets that had been released from the top of the mountain to collect resources could also be used to monitor the surroundings. Nan Yixiu wasn’t sure if Gao Tianming had noticed that it was him, but what was clear from that arrow earlier was that their position had been exposed.

“They brought in these kite puppets, didn’t they?” Wang Zhen asked.

Nan Yixiu nodded. “Definitely. These kite puppets are equipped with hooks on long strings… there’s no way they could finish making these puppets in just a few days.”

At that moment, Wang Zhen suddenly said, “How about this? I’ll lure them in as bait, and the rest of you think of a way to cut the strings. Cut as many as you can.”

The other three students were horrified. “You’re going to be bait?”

Wang Zhen smiled helplessly. “Relax, don’t look at me like that. I’ve been taking beatings since I was a child – I’m very sturdy…”