Chapter 90: Chapter 89: Danger Approaching

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Encountering such danger just after entering the grassland was a considerable blow to these high-spirited individuals.

Shangguan Yutong and several dozen other teachers gathered in a circle to discuss their next move. In the past, every training expedition involved specifically selecting a few students who were at a bottleneck. Under the protection of their teachers, they would fight some Low-Tier Magical Beasts in the wild to facilitate a breakthrough. An outing on this scale was a first in the history of the Imperial Academy.

You couldn’t say this was Qiu Jianhua being selfish. Anyone in his position would have done the same. After all, the Mesopotamia Grassland wasn’t considered a particularly dangerous place. Mobilizing students to search for those herbs under the guise of a training expedition had a high chance of success. It was also very discreet, since students were always assigned tasks involving Magical Beasts and herbs during their expeditions. No one would ever know these particular herbs were for Grand Marshal Qiu Chen.

They just hadn’t expected a Tier Four Magical Beast to appear right on the edge of the Mesopotamia Grassland, a place renowned for its safety. If they went deeper, would they encounter even higher-tier Magical Beasts? No one could say for sure.

If they couldn’t guarantee the absolute safety of these noble students, not a single teacher here would dare risk leading them any deeper.

The tragic Teacher Long Xiang had "successfully" fainted and had already been sent back to Cameron Town by a few people to recuperate. Shangguan Yutong suggested to Xiao Lin, "What do you think? Should we have most of them return to Cameron Town and wait?"

Xiao Lin nodded, agreeing with Shangguan Yutong’s suggestion. The teachers from the other academies also expressed their approval, with no one raising any objections. Training could happen anytime, as long as safety was guaranteed. But now, probably no one dared to vouch for the safety of the Mesopotamia Grassland. After all, Long Xiang’s miserable example was right there for all to see.

The noble students were still gathered in small groups, discussing the incident. Long Xiang had thoroughly disgraced himself this time. For many nobles, especially Royal Family Members like Luo Tian, they would have probably preferred to be mauled to death rather than suffer such a great humiliation.

Thinking of Long Xiang’s fate, most of the teachers nodded with a shared sense of unease. And so, the students were gathered, and Xiao Lin announced the end of the expedition.

Although it was an anticlimactic end, almost everyone understood it was for their own safety. The appearance of the Tier Four Magical Beast had already cast a shadow over their hearts. So, despite a few isolated protests, the majority accepted this outcome.

In the end, only Xiao Lin, Su Embroidery, Shangguan Yutong, Ling Xiao, and a Tier Six Great Sword Master from the advanced class named Zhao Jie remained. Zhao Jie was a low-key and steady person. As the Empire’s most prestigious institution, people like Long Xiang were ultimately a minority.

Yisha had actually wanted to stay. Her knowledge of medicinal herbs surpassed that of any teacher present. In the end, however, Ling Xiao persuaded her to go back because her strength was too low.

By this point, Xiao Lin and Zhao Jie understood that this trip wasn’t a simple training expedition. There was clearly another mission. Otherwise, there would have been no reason for this small group to remain; they could have all just returned directly to Cameron Town.

They could have also chosen a safer place for the training. Killing some ferocious beasts would have been a valuable experience for these noble students, most of whom had never even seen blood!

Shangguan Yutong didn’t explain why these few had been asked to stay. They all knew that Shangguan Yutong seemed to have some sort of familial relationship with the Dean, as she was often seen visiting Marshal Qiu’s small villa. So, no one asked. If it was something she could talk about, she would have already said so.

The grassland grew quiet again, with only the chirping of insects in the grass audible. Shangguan Yutong looked at the others and said apologetically, "I’m sorry for asking you all to stay. I really do need your help."

Shangguan Yutong was already very popular at the academy. As soon as she said this, Xiao Lin, Su Embroidery, and Zhao Jie all said it was no problem. In truth, while the students wanted to gain experience from these expeditions, didn’t the teachers also hope to use them to raise their own strength to the next level?

So far, the one who had gained the most from this trip was probably Xiao Lin. He had leaped from a Tier Six Great Sword Master to a First-rank Mad Sword Master, bringing him one step closer to becoming one of the coveted Demon Swordsmen!

The most surprising one, of course, was Shangguan Yutong. Back at the academy, she had never displayed any powerful martial skills, leading many to believe the peerless beauty had only gotten into the Imperial Academy because she was a relative of the Dean. ’Thinking back on it now, what a naive idea. How could there be any mediocrities among the teachers at the Imperial Academy?’

’Even Long Xiang probably just bungled things because he was trying to show off in front of the person he liked, right? If he had been calmer, how could he have made so many mistakes?’

Su Embroidery seemed to be the truly genuine one, a very gentle woman. She said softly, "Yutong, don’t be so formal. Tell us, what exactly are we looking for this time?"

Xiao Lin nodded as well, then looked at Ling Xiao with a smile. "Ling Xiao, speaking of which, I have you to thank. If I hadn’t gained some insight from watching your performance that day, I wouldn’t have been able to break through to the rank of Mad Sword Master! I’ve been meaning to tell you, but I never got the chance."

After Xiao Lin finished speaking, Zhao Jie, who had maintained a steady expression, couldn’t help but glance at Ling Xiao a few more times. He had heard many stories about Ling Xiao on their journey: how his luck was off the charts, how he had soundly defeated Wulan Tuo. He had disappeared for over a month and then reappeared, seemingly having mastered advanced sword techniques and a Cultivation Technique overnight. With the strength of a mere Tier Five Sword Attendant, he had toyed with a Tier Six Sword Master, beating the man to a pulp. Most bizarrely, on the way to this expedition, he had apparently scared a Tier Three Demon Swordsman so badly that the man dropped his sword and became Ling Xiao’s follower...

All of this made even someone like Zhao Jie feel a bit curious about Ling Xiao. Hearing what Xiao Lin said now gave him an even better impression of the young man. At the same time, he felt that the previous rumors about Ling Xiao had been too unfair. ’That Xie Xiaoyan must be regretting letting Ling Xiao go by now, right?’

Shangguan Yutong took out pictures of the several herbs and handed them to the group. "Our main task this time is to find these herbs," she said. "However, I must ask all of you teachers to keep this a secret. This order came directly from the Dean."

Hearing this, the expressions of Xiao Lin, Zhao Jie, and Su Embroidery immediately turned serious. A matter personally overseen by Dean Qiu... if one handled it well, would they ever need to worry about their future at the Imperial Academy? They couldn’t help but feel a surge of gratitude toward Shangguan Yutong for choosing to keep them here.

With everyone being experienced, the search now proceeded much more quickly. Shangguan Yutong and Ling Xiao walked together, while the other three formed another group. Ling Xiao said softly, "Teacher Shangguan, I can’t help but feel that something is wrong."

Shangguan Yutong glanced at Ling Xiao with a smile. "We’re not at the academy. You can just call me Sister Yutong. I feel like something is off, too. Logically, the highest-tier Magical Beast in the Mesopotamia Grassland should be something like this Tier Four one. So why would it suddenly appear at the edge of the grassland? If this were a common occurrence, large Mercenary Corps would have swarmed this place long ago. A Tier Four Magical Beast is nothing to fear for those large corps!"

Ling Xiao nodded and mused, "And that Blast Flame Lion today... it didn’t feel like it really wanted to attack us. There are usually only two explanations for that. First, it wasn’t hungry. A beast that has just eaten generally has no interest in attacking something that doesn’t pose a major threat to it. Second, this isn’t its territory at all! It doesn’t need to use violence to drive off intruders!"

Shangguan Yutong’s fine brows knitted together. She said, troubled, "Then why did it act that way?"

In truth, there was something else Ling Xiao hadn’t said. His understanding of the nature of Magical Beasts was far superior to Yisha’s. People from the Cultivation Realm, in particular, had an almost intuitive perception of such emotional shifts.

Today, Ling Xiao had sensed that the Tier Four Blast Flame Lion was deeply anxious! It seemed to be worried or afraid of something.

’Whatever can make a powerful Tier Four Magical Beast afraid is obviously not weaker than it. And on this vast grassland, a Tier Four Magical Beast is practically a king. Could a more powerful Magical Beast have suddenly appeared?’

In the end, this was just a doubt in Ling Xiao’s mind. There was no point in voicing it. Besides, his most pressing task at the moment was to find the Stone Bamboo Grass!

By evening, the group had traveled deep into the grassland. Before the sun vanished below the horizon, they found a lake. Shangguan Yutong took several tents out of her Space Ring. After they set up camp and lit a bonfire, they took a moment to appreciate the tranquility of the grassland as night fell. Xiao Lin said with a laugh, "In a place like this, even without fighting, improving your strength is faster than at the academy!"

Zhao Jie nodded. "Indeed. This is a real place for Cultivation!"

Although Su Embroidery didn’t speak, she also had a fond feeling for this peaceful place, a look of longing on her face.

Shangguan Yutong looked at her two colleagues, who had clearly never spent much time adventuring, and laughed to herself. ’If I made you live the life of an Adventurer year-round, you probably wouldn’t last a month. How could you even talk about Cultivation then?’

Suddenly, the expressions of all five people in the camp changed. Shangguan Yutong immediately kicked apart the bonfire in front of them. Ling Xiao, Xiao Lin, and Zhao Jie doused it with water. With a loud SIZZLE, plumes of smoke rose into the air.

The ground beneath their feet began to tremble as if in an earthquake... THUMP... THUMP... THUMP.