"You... let me explain." Lu Zhi finally experienced the feeling of being unable to explain himself. The moment Lu Zhi released Han Shuangyun's hand, Han Shuangyun was bewildered.
Lu Zhi recalled his own actions of holding Han Shuangyun's wrist and curiously stroking it just now. Fine, he admitted that to outsiders, it might have seemed a bit perverted, but he truly didn't have any ill intentions when he touched her; he was just curious...
Across the darkness of the night, Lu Zhi clearly saw Shen Qi's handsome lips tightly pursed, his silver-gray eyes holding a chilling gleam, like two bowls of ice-cold snow water. Under Lu Zhi's apprehensive gaze, Shen Qi turned his head away and stopped looking at him.
Lu Zhi: ...
He felt a chill in his heart, sensing that something big was about to happen.
Could this guy be jealous over such a minor misunderstanding?
Probably not, right?
Han Shuangyun followed Lu Zhi's gaze and looked up at the night sky, but saw nothing. Hearing Lu Zhi's 'let me explain,' she assumed he was going to explain touching her wrist and spoke first, "It's okay, I know you didn't mean anything else."
Lu Zhi noticed that Han Shuangyun couldn't see Shen Qi and thought that Shen Qi must have deliberately made himself invisible to anyone other than himself.
"Sorry, I was just momentarily curious and wanted to confirm the healing progress of the wound." Lu Zhi spoke his voice very loudly, a forceful declaration that touching Han Shuangyun's wrist meant nothing. He even secretly turned his head to glance at Shen Qi, who had his back to him.
Lu Zhi clicked his tongue. Was he really angry?
"Thank you," Han Shuangyun said solemnly.
Lu Zhi nodded distractedly, his eyes frequently glancing at Shen Qi's back.
"What are you looking at?" Yan Shao also looked up at the night sky, his tone calm. "It's almost time."
Lu Zhi subconsciously looked down at his terminal, startled to realize there were only three minutes left until midnight. He quickly asked, "What about me? What should I do next?"
"It's already confirmed that your treasure's healing ability is very strong. In the subsequent battles, I hope you can become our most solid support." Yan Shao sighed softly, looking at the sphere of light trapping Di Meila, and said earnestly, "This is a difficult struggle. I don't want anyone to die in this assessment, do you understand?"
Lu Zhi hadn't expected Yan Shao to want him to be a support role... Had he already predicted that there would be mass casualties among the students later?
If that were the case, his Manluo healing would indeed be very useful, and it was also Yan Shao's trust in him, entrusting the most crucial rescue work to him.
"I understand." Lu Zhi did not refuse. From Yan Shao's series of actions, it was clear that among the assessment personnel, Manluo's healing ability was the strongest.
Yan Shao suddenly said, "They're here."
Quiet surroundings were filled with the students' whispers.
"It's Shen Da Lao."
"Is it starting?"
"There's one minute left, Instructor Shen is approaching the sphere of light."
The atmosphere instantly tensed.
"Hide, be careful." Before leaving, Yan Shao said to Lu Zhi, "Believe in yourself."
Lu Zhi was stunned. Was Yan Shao afraid he would be too stressed and was encouraging him?
Shen Qi had already raised his hand and covered the sphere of light. Intense white light erupted, brighter and more piercing than daylight, expanding outwards from the origin until it covered the entire examination area. The light was so brilliant that the students had to raise their hands to shield their eyes.
Before the white light disappeared, Lu Zhi vaguely saw Shen Qi glance back, causing a strong sense of unease to surge within him.
But Lu Zhi didn't have much time to consider. The moment the white light vanished, Shen Qi also disappeared. The bright moonlight clearly illuminated the outline of the island in everyone's sight.
Of course, this also included Di Meila, the God of Lies, who was shrouded in black mist, small yet radiating a terrifying aura, within the disappearing sphere of light.
No one dared to move. The sense of deterrence, the oppressive pressure of power, made their limbs stiff with fear, rendering them immobile.
The moonlight slowly illuminated Di Meila's figure, and Lu Zhi's dark pupils involuntarily contracted tightly.
Although Lu Zhi was surprised that Di Meila was not the猥琐 (wěi suǒ - vulgar, lewd) middle-aged man in Han Shuangyun's drawing, he remembered that the physical bodies of deities were merely puppets for their descent into reality, and their appearances were different each time they manifested. However, their strength would never weaken just because their bodies were those of children.
Di Meila opened his scarlet eyes, filled with rage, and shot a sinister glance at the surrounding students. He then roared in hatred, "Shen Qi, I will kill you! How dare you insult me like this, I will kill you, I must kill you!"
The power of Di Meila's furious roar was like invisible sound waves, creating hurricane-like tides in all directions. The entire island trembled madly in unison. The ground centered on Di Meila caved in and cracked with a rumbling sound. Di Meila's figure then vanished from his spot.
Lu Zhi, who had been keeping a tense watch on Di Meila, suddenly contracted his pupils and shouted at the stunned students, "Be careful!"
Di Meila silently appeared behind a student, a ferocious and cruel smile on his lips. He fiercely swung a claw at three students standing together. Just as the three students were about to be cut into pieces by the sharp claws, Lu Zhi heard Yan Shao shout, "Cancel!"
The three claws, just before touching the students, vanished with a swish.
The three students who had narrowly escaped collapsed to the ground in terror.
"Hmm? Verbal Spell?" Di Meila's gaze turned cold as he looked in Yan Shao's direction.
"President, be careful!" He Qun suddenly pushed Yan Shao aside, spreading his five fingers. Silver silk threads erected a large net between the two of them. Di Meila's fingers, like eagle's talons, scraped across the silk threads, emitting a piercing sound of iron striking iron.
Di Meila's eyes were sinister and venomous. A flash of light flickered in his gaze, and both He Qun and Yan Shao's expressions changed drastically. They simultaneously shouted, "Dodge!"
The two of them leaped away from their positions at extreme speed. With a clang, sharp black silk threads shot out from underground, and the solid ground crumbled, being cut into countless pieces like tofu.
Lu Zhi, watching from a distance, had his pupils suddenly contract. Di Meila's ability: Replication!
Di Meila was actually able to replicate He Qun's abilities. The silver silk threads intertwined with the black silk threads that blended into the night. The two clashed, emitting sounds like metal hitting metal, sparking bright fire. Wherever the silk threads fell, whether it was thick tree roots or collapsed houses, they were cut apart like thin paper.
The surrounding students immediately retreated. Students with long-range attack abilities assisted from the side. The expected scene occurred: any extraordinary power used once was immediately replicated by Di Meila and used to counter them with the same abilities.
For a moment, the scene became dazzling. In the dark night, flames and various abilities flickered like fireworks falling to the ground, interspersed with rumbling sounds and clanging noises.
Seeing the injured students, Lu Zhi rushed forward at the first opportunity, allowing vines to pull them behind him for treatment.
Perhaps it was the heat of battle, or perhaps seeing Yan Shao directing the collective firepower against Di Meila, which gave the students hope, they went from initial fear and cautiousness to excited exhilaration upon seeing hope.
The students whose arm wounds Lu Zhi had just healed rushed back into the fray en masse.
Suddenly, someone shouted in terror, "Get down!"
Lu Zhi threw himself to the ground without thinking. *Whoosh*—
Silver wind scythe blades, centered on Di Meila, attacked indiscriminately, shredding trees and houses wherever they passed. Two of them even grazed Lu Zhi's hairline and slammed into the rocks beside him with a loud boom.
Lu Zhi turned his head, his heart pounding with lingering fear, towards Di Meila, whose figure was blurred by rolling dust. Without warning, Lu Zhi's heart leaped violently. Di Meila was now suspended in mid-air, raising one hand. A dazzling, scorching giant fireball illuminated the entire dark land, also illuminating the terror in everyone's eyes.
Di Meila grinned ferociously, looking down condescendingly and mockingly, "A bunch of insignificant ants, all of you die—"