Chapter 227 - 226: A Bright Idea

Zhang Qin retracted his spiritual power. "They really didn’t follow. Maybe I scared them off."

He wanted to laugh out loud.

Yan Xu threw cold water on his excitement. "The Wolf Clan has developed all sorts of medicines. If they want to hide, they can be even stealthier than when we actively mask our presence."

Jian Yu could also mask her presence. The higher her Level, the stronger the effect.

She suspected her Level was higher than Ling Yanzhi’s and the others’ because when they masked their presence, she could still sense them.

But when she masked her own presence, there were several times Ling Yanzhi and the others couldn’t find her at all.

Jian Yu glanced in a certain direction.

Yan Ying jerked her head back.

’Was I discovered?’

’Impossible.’

’This medicine is extremely rare, with only two vials remaining. Until now, its effects had never been detected.’

’Just in case.’

Yan Ying stopped and waited for the others to get farther away before speaking. "We’ll stop following for now. Let’s take a shortcut."

Someone asked, "What if our paths don’t cross? Maybe we should just go back and tell the Family Head. We can let the Family Head get our stolen Beast Crystals back."

The team came to a stop.

Timidly, Zhao Jiangyou lagged behind.

’He’d tried to persuade her, but Yan Ying wouldn’t listen.’

Zhao Jiangyou hesitantly glanced at the giant forest behind them.

’There’s no cure for regret in this world, but you can always turn back.’

’I can’t let this mistake continue. I have to find a chance to get away.’

Yan Ying turned around, about to speak, and saw Zhao Jiangyou standing still.

She called out to him, "What are you spacing out for? Hurry up and follow!"

Zhao Jiangyou paused, then rejoined the group.

Yan Ying continued, "If our paths don’t cross, we’ll just have to make them. I have plenty of ways to make them take that path."

...

Jian Yu looked at the narrow path ahead, feeling it was dangerous.

"We can’t take this path," Sheng Yue said in a cold, hard voice. "Let’s leave this area first."

The group hurriedly changed their route.

Teacher Hu’s expression was grave. "How does the Yan Family have so much Forbidden Medicine?"

Yan Yi didn’t know.

Yan Xu was silent.

Lu Qi didn’t understand. "What Forbidden Medicine? Why can’t we go that way?"

Yan Xu explained, "If I’m not mistaken, the powder on the ground just now should be the Forbidden Medicine that caused that massive beast tide."

When Mutant Beasts go on a rampage, their strength is pushed to its absolute peak, making them comparable to Fierce Beasts.

Teacher Hu nodded. "But from the looks of it, the quantity wasn’t large. We should be fine as long as we take a different route and avoid it."

Sheng Yue placed a red marker on the map on his wristband, warning other teams to stay away.

Jian Yu’s gaze fell on the other path. "The Ultimate Eye is a vast place, but now that we’re here, we only have two options. We can’t take this path, and the other one is blocked by a river."

Wang Hu suggested, "We can’t get across, can we? Should we just turn back?"

Zhang Qin returned from scouting the path. "The way back is blocked. There’s a problem there, so we can’t retrace our steps."

’Turning back isn’t an option. We can’t just head all the way back to the academy, can we?’

Wang Hu looked at the last path. "Then our only option is the path by the river."

’Without a boat, that wide river is a death trap.’

"Chief, look over there!" Zhang Qin, with his sharp eyesight, pointed to an assault boat in the distance.

Jian Yu looked up.

It was a high-tech boat, and on it were three large red words—Beast Hunting Team.

Teacher Hu frowned. "I thought they weren’t allowing Beast Hunting Teams in this year?"

He walked over to talk with them.

He came back two minutes later.

"Chief, last night some Mutant Beasts broke out of the forest and caused trouble for the people nearby. They just got here today."

Teacher Hu added, "They’re military personnel. The captain is Lin Hai. They said they can give us a ride."

Sheng Yue knew Lin Hai, and after asking for everyone’s opinion, he didn’t refuse their kind offer.

One after another, they boarded the boat.

Jian Yu didn’t see Yan Ying, which gave her the feeling that something else was bound to happen.

Her eyelid twitched.

Yan Ying and her group rushed out. "Wait! We want to get on too!"

Zhang Qin said, "No way!"

He briefly explained the situation to Captain Lin. "If people like her get on, they’re definitely going to cause trouble."

Yan Ying said arrogantly, "Captain Lin, you should know who my grandfather is, right?"

She pointed at Jian Yu. "If a woman like this who has made no contribution whatsoever to the Alliance can get on, why can’t I? I’m Admiral Yan’s granddaughter."

Captain Lin had heard of Admiral Yan’s great name and achievements, but he wasn’t the Admiral’s peer.

Compared to Admiral Yan, he was more inclined to listen to Sheng Yue’s orders.

Outsiders might not know it, but the status of Sheng Yue and his people in the Alliance Military District had long been comparable to Admiral Yan’s.

They were young, and unlike Admiral Yan’s family, they weren’t interested in self-promotion. Otherwise, completely overshadowing the Admiral would have been effortless.

Captain Lin asked deferentially, "Commander Sheng?"

Sheng Yue opened his mouth, about to tell them to leave.

For a rare change, Yin Jiu was vicious. ’Master, let her on. I’ll find a chance to get rid of her secretly later. That way she won’t keep running to her grandpa for every little thing. When we get back, you’ll be the one who suffers.’

"Captain Lin, do us a favor." Yan Ying tossed over a bag of Beast Crystals, smiling brazenly.

Sheng Yue frowned but didn’t say anything, which amounted to tacit approval.

There were constant problems along the way.

After fending off several Mutant Beasts from the river, Yan Ying stared at Jian Yu and started railing at her, "Just standing there like a wooden post, not even helping. Are you trying to watch us all die?"

Jian Yu didn’t say a word. A surge of Purple Fog wrapped around Yan Ying’s throat.

It delivered a dozen slaps to each of her cheeks.

Zhang Qin retracted his foot.

Furious, he had kicked out at her. "You just keep yapping, acting like you helped!"

Yan Ying slammed into something, and when she opened her mouth, she spat out a tooth.

She scrambled up, teary-eyed, and went to hide at the stern of the boat.

Thoroughly rebuffed, she stomped her foot in anger but didn’t dare to provoke them further.

’Yan Ying cursed them up and down in her head.’

The current was rapid, and a huge splash erupted from the water’s surface.

The boat lurched, and Yan Ying screamed, grabbing Zhao Jiangyou’s hand in terror.

She grumbled and cursed, "Are they doing this on purpose? Bringing us to this godforsaken place!"

Zhao Jiangyou shrugged her off. "Weren’t you the one who brought us here?"

Yan Ying fell to the deck.

The first thing she did upon getting up was to try and slap Zhao Jiangyou.

Zhao Jiangyou took two steps back.

Yan Ying chased after him to hit him.

’Psycho.’ Jian Yu averted her gaze.

Sheng Yue activated his Soul Beast Cover.

A blue and white halo enveloped the boat, and the tottering hull instantly stabilized, as if it were tightly protected by an invisible barrier.

In the chaos, several mutant crocodiles attacked.

Jian Yu cut them down one by one.

Yan Ying watched, dumbfounded, so jealous her eyes nearly popped out of her head. "She... since when could she do that?"

A rebellious streak suddenly flared up in Zhao Jiangyou. "Have you forgotten how she beat you yesterday?"

Yan Ying froze.

’Wasn’t it Sheng Yue who beat me?’

’That Fierce Beast-like pressure... that was clearly something only a 3S Awakener possessed. How could it have been...?’

"Idiot." Zhao Jiangyou hadn’t been rebellious in so long that he was suddenly being unbelievably defiant. "Jian Yu has always been a 3S Awakener. If she couldn’t fight, do you think Chief Sheng would have brought her along just for the scenery?"

Yan Ying’s expression turned ugly.

’She had always thought Jian Yu was just a burden who got in through connections.’

Several dark shadows shot out from under the water, stirring up waves and bringing with them a thick, foul stench.

Yan Ying watched the others defending for their lives, and a sudden idea struck her. "Throw Jian Yu overboard! The crocodiles are after her! Throwing her in will lure them away!"