No one questioned Luo Wei's divinations—she was the one who pulled double credits in Astrology.

Jack lifted his wand, buzzing with energy. "Great! Let's hurry. This time we beat the others for sure!"

Hol pointed toward a patch of woods on the left. "Northeast—should be there, right?"

Luo Wei nodded. "Move."

"We—move!" Gladys, hunting addict, blurted, too eager to wait.

Axina said nothing, but her feet were already angling that way.

The five slipped into the dense growth, heading for the cluster of small magic beasts.

A kilometer wasn't far—five minutes. Nearing the site, Luo Wei raised a hand; they halted.

A rank stench drifted down from a river slope ahead. Gladys sniffed and whispered, "Rats."

The slope was littered with exposed rock. Riotous wild grass had overgrown last year's yellowed blades and wrapped the stones in thick green. In the tangle lay flattened tracks—channels crisscrossing where bodies had pushed through.

They edged closer. Thirty meters ahead, a dark hole yawned beneath a rock. Its diameter was wide; a slim person could crawl straight in.

A sharp ammonia reek soaked the grass. They covered their noses.

After examining the tracks and gray hairs scraped loose at the entrance, Luo Wei said decisively, "Needle-Spined Rodents."

Low-level magic beasts—aggressive. Their coats were set with stiff, thornlike hair; when angered they bristled, spikes jutting to attack. Tough hide, fast diggers—annoying to hunt.

And it was daytime. They'd be holed up dozens of meters below. To kill them, you first had to drag them out.

Hol looked at her. "Use fire?"

"No." Luo Wei shook her head. "Tunnels are too deep. Fire would drain too much mana."

Each was worth one point. If they burned to death inside and couldn't be retrieved, it was a waste.

After a beat of thought she said, "Hol, Jack—cut some damp wood that smokes easily. We'll smoke them out."

"Yes, Captain."

The two left.

Luo Wei turned to Gladys and Axina. "We'll pick flat stones and carve Wind Runes. We'll toss them at the burrow mouth."

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"Okay."

They gathered a pile of thin, flat stones and sat to carve.

Gladys—exactly the type Professor Mike complained about—only copied lines rigidly. Without proportion sense she ruined stone after stone; in the end she succeeded with three.

Axina did better: five.

Swish, swish, swish—

Hearing the rapid scraping, both looked up; eyes widened at Luo Wei's hands.

Stone grit sprayed. Her rune-carving moved like an assembly line—blink, and a new pattern was done. A rough count: over twenty.

"Luo Wei, y-you're amazing!" Gladys gaped.

A muscle in Axina's face twitched. The opponent was too strong; she couldn't even force a smile.

It's fine. It's fine, she consoled herself. So what if Luo Wei carved runes fast—her elemental affinity couldn't match her own.

Just as they finished, Hol and Jack returned hugging a collection of… peculiar items.

A powerful stench hit Luo Wei. She saw what they carried and involuntarily stepped back. "I told you to cut branches. Where did you find—that?"

Hol set down a colossal dung ball nearly a meter across. "Got lucky. Found a gray wolf den in the trees over there. Lots of wolf dung around. We added water, kneaded a ball, and brought it back."

"Since what we need is smoke—wet wolf dung smokes better than wood, right?"

Jack patted the dung sphere, nodding hard. "Exactly! Might even suffocate the rodents!"

Wolves swallow prey fur along with meat; their dung is full of hair. Burn it damp and it produces thick smoke.

Luo Wei's mouth twitched. "You didn't run into any of the wolves while collecting it?"

"No," Jack said. "Looks like something ate the wolves."

Luo Wei frowned. A beast big enough to consume a pack—what size?

She cross-checked the mental map. No large beast recorded nearby. Had one wandered over to hunt?

"Okay." Hol rolled up his sleeves. "Let's break it into smaller balls; light them and toss them down the burrow."

Axina pinched her nose and retreated, face pale. "Handle it yourselves. I'm not touching that."

Gladys grimaced too. "Cow dung—fine. Wolf dung—no."

She was a werewolf. Picking up wolf dung felt… personal.

Luo Wei drew a deep breath. "You two shape them. I'll grab pine branches. We'll burn them mixed."

Wolf dung alone wouldn't give enough density; adding fresh, oily pine needles would.

"I'm coming," Axina blurted, following fast.

She wasn't helping—she just refused the stench.

Gladys looked between sides, then edged toward Luo Wei. "I'm coming. Branches."

Hol was already wrist-deep in muck. He'd kneaded mud before; speed brisk—no help needed.

"Go on then—hurry back."

"Right." Luo Wei scanned the area, then led Axina and Gladys into the trees.

They needed speed. Half an hour gone—still zero points.

Ten minutes later the team was finally ready. Luo Wei assigned tasks.

"Hol, Jack—you toss the dung balls into the burrow. Make sure each is lit first. After tossing, get to the top of the slope on the downwind side—don't let the rodents bolt out above."

"Gladys—you hold the lower slope. Block the upwind mouth. There's water below—if they jump in, hit them with lightning."

"Axina, you take east; I take west. Split the rune stones. Activate and plant them at the mouth so the smoke doesn't blow out and blind us."

"I know," Axina said coldly.

"All right—go."

At Luo Wei's word they moved.

Jack lit the dung balls with fire magic; Hol flung them in rapid succession.

Gladys—wand in left hand, sword in right—sprinted to the foot of the slope. She pivoted, icy blue eyes hard, blade throwing a shard of light.

Luo Wei and Axina split, gliding through grass, hurling rune stones at the burrow entrance. The stones drove into soil and held.

Pine-needle–laden dung balls burned hot as they rolled deeper. Wisps of smoke leaked out—only to be shoved back by the Wind Runes, piling into a dense white barrier.

The ground trembled. Panicked squeals rose from the depths.

"Heads up—magic beasts coming out!" Luo Wei shouted.

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