The grass in the valley showed no signs of being trampled, indicating the absence of magical beasts nearby, or at least none had passed through recently.
This environment could be considered neither good nor bad; exploring the unknown wilderness carried too high a risk.
Fortunately, Lu Heng possessed high-tech equipment. He took out a helmet with thermal imaging and put it on his head.
Activating the helmet's control device, Lu Heng began scanning the valley ahead. If magical beasts appeared nearby, the screen on the helmet would provide a warning, preventing Lu Heng and his companions from being ambushed.
Lu Bai cleared the path ahead. It could control plants, clearing the vegetation in their path. This way, Lu Heng and the others wouldn't accidentally step into traps. After they passed, Lu Bai would meticulously restore the vegetation, leaving no trace of their passage.
"Wait a moment, the thermal imaging is showing something ahead."
Throughout the journey, Lu Heng and his companions communicated telepathically. Lu Heng had also instructed the blood wolves and the others not to make any beastly sounds. These two creatures were inherently capable of ambushing other species, so they moved through the forest as silently as ghosts.
The thermal imaging ahead indicated the presence of over ten magical beasts, and they appeared to be of considerable size.
"There are six magical beasts at the eleven o'clock position. There are two more, each acting alone, about five meters behind them at ten o'clock, one o'clock, and eleven o'clock."
The use of human clock time to denote directions was something Lu Heng had specifically trained them in after forming contracts with them. This allowed them to accurately pinpoint enemy locations and cooperate more effectively in combat.
With so many magical beasts, and Lu Heng unable to ascertain their levels, the danger increased. Fortunately, he had contracted various animals. Lu Heng gathered several of his contracted animals, who had been observing the proceedings from within his spatial dimension, and gave them instructions.
"Don't make a sound, and don't you dare roar at them the moment you appear, or you'll give away our position."
It was also time for them to gain some practical combat experience. Cooped up in the spatial dimension all day, they were becoming useless.
He released the black bear, the antelope, the black panther, the leopard, and Xiao Liu. Along with the blood wolf and Lu Bai, who were already outside, he now had seven combat-ready animals.
As for the golden eagle, it was not suited for ground combat, and the branches in the valley would hinder its fighting capabilities. Lu Heng did not release it.
The Director, the turtle, and the emu were also not suitable for combat, so Lu Heng did not release them from his spatial dimension.
The contracted animals had telepathic communication with each other. Upon hearing Lu Heng's telepathic notification of the prey's location, they dispersed, finding suitable positions for their attacks to ensure they could incapacitate their targets with a single blow.
Lu Heng's objective in coming here was not to hunt magical beasts but to increase the number of his contracted pets and enhance their overall combat strength.
Only by controlling the magical beasts could Lu Heng decide which ones to contract.
Upon being released, Xiao Liu immediately began to burrow into the ground, heading downwards.
The magical beasts in this forest were generally of a high level. Lu Heng had initially hesitated to release Xiao Liu from his spatial dimension, as its low level made it vulnerable to exposure in battles here.
Currently, apart from the Director, who could not level up due to the lack of mental-type magic crystals or high-level crystals, and Xiao Liu, who had just contracted metal abilities, most of the other animals had leveled up along with Lu Heng, reaching the eleventh level of human cultivation.
However, Xiao Liu claimed that as long as it didn't expose itself and burrowed deeper, the ground would provide sufficient cover, and ordinary magical beasts wouldn't detect the giant rat underground.
Moreover, Xiao Liu mentioned that there were also families of ground rats in this forest, and it could try to contact them first to gather information about the forest.
Since Xiao Liu wasn't heading towards the magical beasts ahead, Lu Heng let it be. There weren't many creatures that lived underground, so these ground rats were distributed throughout various forests, making them the rulers of their respective domains.
The black bear emerged and stood on all fours in front of Lu Heng. If danger arose, it could serve as a shield to protect the other animals behind it.
The light-footed leopard concealed its aura and circled behind the last magical beast in the front, preventing any escape towards that direction if the other magical beasts were alerted.
Although the black panther was fast, it lacked area-of-effect skills. It could only position itself beside the leopard, ready to intercept any magical beasts attempting to flee in their direction.
The blood wolf, Lu Bai, and the antelope, being animals capable of large-scale attacks, fanned out and began to encircle the front in a fan-shaped formation.
Lu Heng could accurately track the movements of the magical beasts using thermal imaging. If the magical beasts moved in a particular direction, he could immediately telepathically notify Lu Bai and the others.
"Begin."
At Lu Heng's command, Lu Bai and the others initiated their actions.
The black panther and the others moved swiftly towards their designated targets. Soon, the leisurely magical beasts realized the danger around them. They quickly converged, forming a defensive perimeter in other directions.
Seeing this situation through the thermal imaging, Lu Heng immediately instructed telepathically, "Antelope, at the eleven o'clock position, fifteen meters away from you, quickly use vines to trap them. They've gathered together!"
While speaking, Lu Heng was not idle. This was their first cooperative mission in the wild, and he feared there might be missteps in their coordination. Therefore, he also controlled vines to move towards the magical beasts.
The vines rapidly extended across the ground, kicking up soil with their fine branches and instantly uprooting weeds and grass.
"Blood wolf, at ten meters in front of you, build a semi-circular earth wall. Make it tall!"
Before he knew what kind of magical beasts they were, Lu Heng feared they might be able to climb and escape.
"Awooo—!"
Since they had already been discovered by the enemy, the blood wolf and the others no longer concealed their sounds. From various directions, they let out high-pitched roars, attempting to disrupt the enemy through their vocalizations.
"Roar!"
The black bear also let out a mighty roar, its limbs moving rapidly across the ground. Although it wasn't a speed-type ability, the black bear's running speed was not slow, and its physical capabilities had also improved after gaining its abilities.
At this moment, its heavy bear claws pounded the ground, the sound of the trembling earth accompanying its roar, exuding immense deterrence.
"Awooo—"
"Awooo—Awooo."
When the blood wolf let out its first howl, the magical beasts, now the prey, responded with similar roars. They were confused by the wolf's calls from another direction, assuming that other wolf packs were attacking them.
Although they were of the same species, wolves also had packs, and clashes between them occasionally occurred.