Versatile Mage

Translated by XephiZ

Edited by Aelryinth

The students were not pleased with Mu Bai’s words. Someone immediately stepped forward and argued, “The cultivation of your Sound Element is stronger. Of course you can hear the demon creature. You’re a teacher, after all!”

“Who told you Lecturer Mu Han is a Sound Mage?” Zhao Manyan interjected.

“If he isn’t a Sound Mage, how did he know there was a Mountain Ridge Beast five hundred meters away?” Sunny blurted out in astonishment.

Mu Bai did not answer the question. He led the group further ahead.

Words alone were not enough to convince the students. When they approached the shrub, Mu Bai immediately froze it with an Icebound Coffin and turned the Mountain Ridge Beast into an ice statue before it could attack.

Most of the students were still unaware of the Mountain Ridge Beast’s existence. They stepped closer and saw a seven-meter-long Mountain Ridge Beast concealed in the bushes. It was crouched on the ground with a confused look on its face. It did not understand how the humans knew it was hiding there.

The students fell silent after seeing the Mountain Ridge Beast. They were already so close to it, yet they had failed to notice its presence. Wouldn’t they have been ambushed if they were on their own?

“I’m not a Sound Mage, nor did I hear its heartbeats. However, there are other ways to learn if there are demon creatures nearby…” Mu Bai pointed at the nearby shrubs and said, “The feces of demon creatures are like fertilizers for plants. When you see patches of vegetation scattered across the area like this, you should realize there have been one or more demon creatures actively roaming in this area for a long time.”

“That’s right, Lecturer Mu Han already told us this in his class. We can determine if we have stepped into a demon creature’s territory by observing the distribution of vegetation. We can also estimate the creature’s size based on the size of the vegetation!” one of the students blurted out.

The amount of bodily waste was proportional to the nutrients it provided for the plants. Plants would cover the ground the feces was scattered on after a rain.

It was an old technique that Hunters relied on. Students might think it was disgusting to experiment on the feces of demon creatures, but it was surprisingly effective against most demon creatures that had lived in the same area for a long time.

“When we first entered this area, there wasn’t much vegetation around, but as we went deeper, I noticed the number of shrubs increasing, meaning that we were getting closer to the territory of demon creatures,” Mu Bai explained.

“But wasn’t it just mere speculation?” Sunny asked in confusion.

“It’s enough if you can learn there’s a huge creature active in the area. You will stay on alert and be more cautious when you observe your surroundings. It might save your life,” Mu Bai corrected him.

“That’s true!”

“Yeah, we are scared of being ambushed by demon creatures. We won’t have time to use our magic when something appears out of nowhere. I heard that when some of our seniors died, it was because they were ambushed,” Boleyn agreed quickly.

“Lecturer Mu Han, I apologize for not taking your class seriously. However, I’m still curious how you found out its exact location without the Sound Element,” Sunny said sincerely.

 Sharjah, who had stayed quiet for a long time, finally spoke up softly. “The bugs!”

“Yes, the bugs! Every shrub has bugs gathered around it. If you observe where the bugs are and take note of the shrubs that do not have bugs nearby, it’s very likely you’ll find a demon creature hiding in them,” Mu Bai confirmed.

The students had gathered around Mu Bai. They were stunned after hearing Mu Bai’s explanation.

No wonder!

“Even Basic Mages and Intermediate Mages can easily observe the brush and the insects. As a matter of fact, even normal people can do it. If you can master these techniques, you can protect yourself better when you’re in the wild,” Mu Bai emphasized firmly.

The eyes of the students were brimming with admiration, as if Mu Bai was shining as brightly as a reliable lecturer. Even the Sound Element-using Sunny was ashamed of himself.

Mo Fan clenched his teeth when he saw Mu Bai’s image growing in the eyes of the students!

Damn it, he was already a Seven Star Hunter Master! He could easily impress the students if he was teaching the class, yet Mu Bai ended up getting all the credit!

——

Mu Bai and Zhao Manyan took turns sharing their knowledge. The students began to have more faith in them, and started taking notes seriously.

Meanwhile, Mo Fan was painstakingly working as a security guard. He could only chat with Miyamoto Shin while he was bored.

Miyamoto Shin had tagged along to maintain security. He claimed he was here to earn some quick money, but the truth was, he only came because he was worried about leaving the students in the hands of three younger lecturers.

“Let’s go this way, we are almost done with the Mountain Ridge Beasts, but there’s still some time left. Why don’t we teach the students something else? Consider it a bonus for the class,” Mo Fan proposed.

“Lecturer Mo Yifan, you shouldn’t go that way. We will be entering the Mountain Men’s territory after crossing that gully. The students have already learned a lot from the class. They will provide the school with positive feedback if we go back now…” Miyamoto Shin advised.

“Ah? Are we going to cross Earthworm Gully?”

“I’ve never crossed the boundary before, but I heard from my seniors that they have gone past it under the lead of their lecturers.”

“There are Mountain Men on the other side. I heard they are quite scary!”

Earthworm Gully served as a boundary. Only a quarter of the students of the school had crossed it before.

Normally, an excursion that went beyond Earthworm Gully would cost more than three hundred gold. The lecturers who did so would only allow high-achievers to join the group, so ordinary students like them never had the chance to go to the other side.

“Mm, we are planning to go take a look. We are ashamed of only teaching our students about the Mountain Ridge Beasts, knowing our levels. Oh, each of you will have to make the decision yourself. If you are willing to keep going, just stay in formation. For those who don’t want to go, you may follow Miyamoto Shin back to the school,” Mu Bai spoke up calmly.

Miyamoto Shin’s face darkened.

He knew these Chinese lecturers were not going to behave themselves!

“I must remind you that if you are going to bring the students to a more dangerous area than you planned at first, you will have to bring more security personnel. However, the school won’t stop you if you insist on going. That being said, you will have to take full responsibility if something happens!” Miyamoto Shin warned them sternly.

“We will take full responsibility,” Mu Bai agreed easily.

“If the demon creatures want to kill our students, they will have to step over my… Lecturer Zhao Yanzu’s body first!” Mo Fan said on behalf of Zhao Manyan.

Zhao Manyan was on the verge of cursing Mo Fan again.

Why am I always everyone’s nanny!?