"Sir, your coffee..."
Mo Chuan watched in stunned silence as Xin Lei fell from the podium, completely oblivious to the breakfast he had scattered on the floor.
He could even feel the strength belonging to Xin Lei slowly growing within him. (Mo Chuan had signed a [Death Contract] with Xin Lei)
Good.
As expected, hatred was often a person's greatest motivation.
Now, Mo Chuan walked back to the waiting area in a daze, his dull eyes flickering with a hint of killing intent. His mind was clear of any other thoughts, with only a simple objective: kill Sui Ren and avenge Xin Lei and Cha Zhu.
But soon, he suppressed this killing intent.
Xin Lei hadn't done all this for Mo Chuan to exact revenge for him.
He wanted to awaken the citizens who were living in a stupor in the world of supernatural abilities. If he truly wanted him to die with purpose, then he should change this country.
However... Sui Ren was already on Mo Chuan's list. His soul had already been reserved for the lantern.
When Mo Chuan calmed down, the abnormal behavior of Luo Ni and Tang Jing Jing led them to find him. Seeing the palpable killing intent emanating from Mo Chuan, both women had guessed some of what had happened and chose to wait for Mo Chuan to calm down on his own.
So, when Mo Chuan came back to his senses, he saw Luo Ni pouting and mumbling about wanting to eat something.
"Sorry..." Mo Chuan patted the heads of the two, one big and one small, and said, "Let's go find Sister Lan Xin to buy some food together. Our car should be here soon..."
...
Five hours later, Luo Yi.
Mo Chuan saw the university built on the hillside from afar, feeling a bit confused and curious. In this world of Spiritual Energy Resurgence, this was one of the few advanced academies built outside the outer city… almost right on the outskirts of Luo Yi City.
And strangely, at the foot of this mountain, there were still villages and fields.
Mo Chuan and the other three walked across the fields, looking at the land frozen hard by the cold autumn and winter wind and the dry tree branches.
Unknowingly, it was already mid-November... winter was coming...
Perhaps because the sun was particularly good today, some elders were by the entrance of their small courtyards, turning over the grains spread on straw mats, waiting for these supplies to dry and become more storable.
An elder, who looked like a professor, was chatting with a young man and an old farmer. The old professor even picked out a couple of kernels from the drying corn, observed them closely against the sunlight, then brought them closer to smell them. Finally, he threw them into his mouth and chewed them slowly. Afterwards, he turned and instructed the young man on something.
As Mo Chuan and the others ventured deeper, they saw more novel sights:
A super-powered individual, likely of the strength-type, was helping a few old farmers carry three or four loads of firewood into the village; a person dressed as a Taoist priest was leading some children and students in practicing Tai Chi; a few students were arguing heatedly on a large rock, their topic surprisingly being how to improve the spiritual energy transmission device of a tractor; several students in white lab coats had set up a free health check-up station in the center of the village, examining people for free and even giving some candy and eggs to malnourished children and the elderly.
If Mo Chuan hadn't seen the magnificent Luochuan Academy situated on the mountainside, he might have thought he had returned to Southwest Associated University in the 1930s or 1940s of his past life.
As Mo Chuan walked, he observed the place surrounded by mountains and water, with the posture of a dragon coiled and a tiger crouching. The people were prosperous, everyone lived and worked in peace and contentment, they were eager to learn and progress, and the academic atmosphere was strong. It was truly difficult to imagine that this place was in the center of a war.
To be honest, Mo Chuan was increasingly looking forward to meeting Xuanyuan Qi and Lian Shanrang.
Because the people here possessed something that Mo Chuan had not seen in others elsewhere – especially those he had seen since the recent outbreak of war – vitality, a hopeful vitality.
Xuanyuan Qi was likely the person Senior Xin Lei wanted to find.
Compared to Mo Chuan, He Lanxin was more focused on contemplating Xuanyuan Qi's policies; Tang Jing Jing looked at the peaceful scene with longing; Luo Ni was contemplating whether the grains looked tasty.
With their different thoughts, the four of them walked up the mountain path. Just as they were halfway up, several children ran towards them, flying kites as they ran.
"Faster! Faster!"
"Wow! It's flying higher!"
"Wait for me!"
The child in the lead was clearly a leader. The children behind him were a bit older, leading the way with kite strings, and the younger children were chasing behind.
"Brother Yu, run slower—Ah!!"
A little girl behind her missed a step, stumbled, and actually fell towards the cliff below.
"Little sister!" The child in front heard the scream, immediately looked back, and seeing the danger, he dropped the kite string and lunged towards the little girl.
Fortunately, the little boy managed to grab the little girl's leg.
Unfortunately, the little boy had nothing else to hold onto, causing them both to fall off the cliff.
Just as the remaining children were stunned, the sound of iron chains rang out. A grappling hook extended and hooked the back collar of the little boy's shirt. Then, Mo Chuan exerted force, flinging them both into the air. (Pulling directly with force would cause them to hit the mountainside, so they were flung upwards.)
He Lanxin and Tang Jing Jing leaped successively, each grabbing a child. Finally, they landed safely on the ground, stepping on the shield of Luo Ni's Yellow Sand Guard.
"Are you two alright?" He Lanxin placed the little boy on the ground, patting the dust off him as she asked with concern, while Tang Jing Jing gently blew on the little girl's scraped arm, comforting her.
Meanwhile, Mo Chuan retracted the iron chain and looked at the man who had just landed.
"Thank you for your assistance! Xuanyuan Qi thanks you all on behalf of their families!" Xuanyuan Qi sheathed his Xuanyuan Sword, cupped his fists, and said.
"It's a small matter, nothing worth mentioning." Mo Chuan returned the bow. "You are Xuanyuan Qi?"
"Indeed... May I ask who you are..."
"I am Mo Chuan, invited by you to take a look."
...
At the same time, the Cross Alliance.
The Hero chopped a twisted body to the ground, enduring the pain of his own flesh and blood mutating, and said, "Lilith! Open the spatial portal! Send out as many as you can!"
"Okay..." The Church Saintess casually set up several magic circles. Moments later, a spatial rift appeared behind them.
"You all go quickly! I'll cover the rear!" The Hero pushed down a "person" wearing the armor of the Holy Flame Knights, then cut down a wooden beam nearby with his sword, causing the entire burning farmhouse to collapse instantly.
The Elf Priestess Alokana, supporting the Saintess who was extremely weak due to spiritual energy depletion, slowly walked into the spatial rift.
Suddenly, the tall commander of the Knight Order burst out of the sea of fire and grabbed the Saintess's hand.
"Lilith!"
"Go!" The pain gave the Saintess a brief burst of strength. She shoved Alokana into the rift and then stopped her magic.
Alokana lost consciousness amidst the gradually distorting and darkening vision...