Chance Encounter with an Instructor
"Mm."
"Where is he now?"
"I don't know. I told him to make his own way to the Safety Barrier." Lin Yuxin said.
Hearing that the Earth Sacred Spring hadn't fallen into the Black Church's hands, Yang Zuohe's face flooded with visible relief — only for that relief to drain away just as quickly when he learned the spring was in the hands of a student whose fate was entirely unknown.
"Mr. Yang, why does the Black Church want the Earth Sacred Spring? And what are they actually trying to accomplish by unleashing this Demon-Beast horde on Bo City?" Lin Yuxin asked.
"Their ultimate goal in destroying Bo City remains unclear to us. But their reason for wanting the Earth Sacred Spring — that we know. They intend to use it for a thorough massacre." Yang Zuohe's voice carried a note of fury.
"Why?"
"The Earth Sacred Spring is a natural treasure thousands of years in the making. Even Commander-class Demon-Beasts cannot resist its pull. The Black Church has already triggered this catastrophe by slaughtering Wing-Azure Wolf cubs and unleashing the Storm of Fury upon the city. But a single Wing-Azure Wolf Commander isn't enough to destroy Bo City. So they plan to release the spring's vast aura into the open, to lure several more Demon-Beast Commanders into attacking the city at once. Demon-Beasts are instinctively drawn to anything that can massively amplify their power — it's wired into their nature. Once that aura spreads, Commander-class Demon-Beasts within a hundred kilometers will catch the scent. Bo City's defensive line is already on the brink of collapse. Those Commanders with enough intelligence to reason will absolutely seize the opportunity to pile on — and at that point, Bo City becomes hell on earth." Yang Zuohe said.
A chill swept through Lin Yuxin.
The Black Church had lost all sanity. Summoning one Wing-Azure Wolf Commander and its entire pack was catastrophic enough — but they wanted to draw in even more Demon-Beast Commanders on top of that? They meant to turn Bo City into a city of corpses.
"We need to find the student named Mo Fan before the Black Church does." Yang Zuohe said, his expression grave.
"I'm sorry. I had no idea the Earth Sacred Spring would carry consequences of this scale..."
"You made the right call. At least while it's with that student, it means the spring hasn't fallen into the Black Church's hands." Yang Zuohe could only pray silently — *please don't let them find Mo Fan.*
"The situation isn't encouraging. The Black Church has most likely figured out that I passed the spring to Mo Fan. They've probably already deployed people to scour the entire city for him." Lin Yuxin said, her voice calm and steady.
"Then there's no time to waste. We find Mo Fan."
Lin Yuxin paused a moment. "If he gets eaten by a Demon-Beast... and the spring ends up with the Demon-Beasts rather than the Black Church — that would still be the better outcome, wouldn't it?"
Yang Zuohe stared at her.
"Well... when you put it that way..."
**"ACHOO!!!"**
Mo Fan let out an unguarded sneeze as he walked through Mingyuan Residential Complex.
He rubbed his nose, puzzled. *Why did that come out of nowhere? Maybe someone's thinking about me.*
The appearance of the Battle-General-class Bone-Spike Dire Wolf had brought the squad to a grinding halt. Everyone had held their position, barely daring to breathe, until that terrifying creature lumbered far enough away for them to summon the nerve to press on.
Along the way they ran into a One-Eyed Demon Wolf — but the nine of them struck fast and hard, cutting it down before it could kick up enough noise to draw unwanted attention.
Xu Zhaoting, as the squad's Lightning Element mage, opened with Lightning Seal: Frenzied Lash and locked the creature in place. The others unleashed a concentrated magical barrage from every angle. Then, just as the Demon Wolf began to gather itself for a counterattack, Mo Fan drove in with Lightning Seal: Furious Strike. The creature never got a single shot off. It collapsed where it stood — scorched black on the outside and cooked clean through.
Having two Lightning-type mages in one squad really did make for terrifying firepower. As long as they weren't caught flat-footed, they could keep danger to an absolute minimum.
Zhang Xiaohou climbed a utility pole and called down to the group, breathless with excitement. "Almost there, almost there! Do you see it? That barrier light curtain rising up like a city wall — right there!"
Three kilometers of death, and they were still on their feet. For students who hadn't even graduated, that was an ordeal beyond words. The sight of the safe zone within reach was enough to make their hearts soar.
"Don't let your guard down," Mo Fan said. "We still have over six hundred meters."
The nine pressed on. Ahead lay a foul-smelling city canal.
The canal wasn't particularly wide. Willow trees lined both banks, and the rows of parasol-shaded café tables that had once given the area its lazy, bohemian charm now lay strewn in wreckage.
One or two Giant-Eyed Ape-Rats moved through the murky water below — but they didn't linger, swimming off into the distance without so much as a glance at the squad.
The nine crossed the bridge with deliberate, cautious steps. The structure bore obvious battle damage; some mage had clearly fought a Demon-Beast here. Dying embers still smoldered along the base of the bridge.
"De — Demon-Beast!"
Just as they reached the midpoint of the bridge, a deep-blue wolf-like creature appeared on the far side.
Unlike the One-Eyed Demon Wolf's semi-upright stance, this creature moved on all fours. The fur along its crown bristled in sharp spikes that extended all the way down the back of its neck to its shoulders — unmistakably different from the savage One-Eyed Demon Wolves they had faced before.
Everyone tensed. Then they looked more carefully — and saw the man sitting astride the creature's back. Alarm dissolved into undeniable relief and delight, especially among the students.
"Instructor Baiyang! Isn't that Instructor Baiyang?!"
"Thank goodness." Xue Musheng exhaled. "Running into someone from the military here of all places."
Mo Fan looked and immediately recognized the figure on the Gloom Wolf Beast: Baiyang, one of the instructors from the Field Expedition. He was also the special Summoning Element mage whose own Gloom Wolf Beast Mo Fan had killed during that same expedition.
It appeared Baiyang had more than one Gloom Wolf Beast — though this one was marginally inferior in both size and presence to the one Mo Fan had put down.
"How did you all end up here? Didn't you evacuate at the first opportunity?" Baiyang rode his Gloom Wolf Beast forward toward the group.
Wang Sanpang, Xu Zhaoting, He Yu, and the others watched Baiyang's commanding figure astride the wolf with barely concealed admiration on their faces.
Summoning Element mages really were something else — they could ride Demon-Beasts as mounts. In a city where every form of transportation had ground to a complete halt, an agile Gloom Wolf Beast that could thread through rubble and wreckage was worth more than anything.
"Tianlan Magic High School wasn't able to evacuate immediately — the sheer number of people made it impossible. The main group is roughly a kilometer behind us. They're following our Vanguard Squad along this route toward the Quarantine Safe Zone." Xue Musheng explained.
"Understood. I'll notify the commander to send reinforcements to protect them." Baiyang removed his military cap, revealing a warm, easy smile. "For now, wait here with me — there are a few Demon-Beasts up ahead that aren't easy to handle."
Wang Sanpang immediately couldn't hold his tongue. "Instructor Baiyang, you have no idea how much we went through getting here. Zhang Yinglu was killed — it's a real tragedy. If it weren't for Mo Fan's experience dealing with Demon-Beasts, honestly, we might not have made it."
With an instructor beside them, everyone could finally breathe. This Summoning Element mage's combat power alone eclipsed any single Demon-Beast they'd faced. With more Summoned Beasts at his disposal, he could probably handle several at once.
"Oh? Mo Fan!" Something shifted in Baiyang's expression. His gaze snapped directly to Mo Fan.
Mo Fan frowned. *What is he staring at me like that for?*
Baiyang swung down from the Gloom Wolf Beast and crossed to Mo Fan in a few quick strides, eyes fixed on him — steady, intent.
"Everyone has been looking for you."