Chapter 119: The Real Trouble is at Home
But A-Train didn't call him out. After all, people always had to progress; at least the current The Deep looked much more normal than before, or rather, had a bit of... fighting spirit?
Lin Mo casually said, "Went out to take care of some things."
"What things?"
Hearing this, The Deep instinctively asked again.
Meanwhile, A-Train, who was walking over from the side, looked practically dark in the face.
You're still asking?
He reached out directly, grabbed The Deep's shoulder, leaned down, and lowered his voice in The Deep's ear, "He has his own things to do. Why are you asking so clearly?"
The Deep, however, didn't care at all. He turned his head to look at A-Train.
"I'm just curious."
"Even if you're curious, don't ask about everything."
"Why?"
"..."
A-Train fell silent.
He suddenly felt that this question seemed impossible to explain. He couldn't just tell The Deep directly that it was because he had zero emotional intelligence like this.
Messed with by The Deep like this, A-Train had no choice but to phrase it differently.
"Everyone has privacy."
The Deep suddenly understood.
"Oh."
Then he looked at Lin Mo and silently added,
"Then I won't ask."
For a moment, Lin Mo didn't know whether to praise him or what, but at least he listened to advice.
Joanna beside them was already laughing uncontrollably. She suddenly found that this The Deep was quite interesting sometimes.
Just watching him act foolishly was very interesting.
Lin Mo didn't plan to tell them what he went to do today anyway. Vought would unify their narrative soon enough, and the school would naturally know an official version by then.
As for the real version, naturally, the fewer people who knew, the better.
A-Train obviously understood as well, so he didn't continue probing at all.
He just casually said, "You guys shouldn't have any more classes this afternoon, right?"
"None."
Lin Mo replied. How would he know if there were classes? Anyway, if he said there weren't, then there weren't.
A-Train nodded.
"We're getting ready to head back too."
The Deep immediately chimed in,
"Then let's go together?"
The smile on Joanna's face instantly reduced by half. She gave The Deep a deep look, a thought arising in her heart: Could it be that she had used too much force earlier, and fried The Deep's brain?
I mean, the places the two of us live aren't even on the same route at all. Did you seriously want to tag along?
The Deep completely failed to notice. He was still looking at Lin Mo with anticipation as he replied. A-Train, however, did notice, and his teeth instantly ached a bit—none of their ways were on the route, how on earth did The Deep manage to say those words?
A-Train sighed inwardly. He still had to step up as the good brother; he could faintly sense that both Lin Mo and Joanna were getting a bit impatient.
The next second, A-Train directly patted The Deep's shoulder and turned to look at Lin Mo.
"We still have some things to do."
The Deep was stunned; his brain hadn't caught up yet.
"What things do we have to do?"
"We do."
"What things?"
"..."
A-Train took a deep breath. Only at this moment did he realize how punchable The Deep was.
"I suddenly remembered there's something very important I need to tell you."
The Deep's face was filled with confusion.
"Can't you say it now?"
A-Train didn't want to explain anymore and directly dragged him towards the other side.
"Let's go."
"Huh?"
"Aren't we going back to the dorms?"
"Follow me first."
"What on earth is it?"
"We'll talk on the way."
Watching the two gradually walk away, Lin Mo fell silent for a moment and finally said,
"It looks like it's not easy for A-Train to be stuck with a good brother like this."
Joanna nodded in strong agreement.
"Mhm."
"Dragging along a thing like that is indeed quite tiring."
In the distance, The Deep, who had gradually walked far away, suddenly sneezed and rubbed his nose.
"Who's talking trash about me?"
A-Train expressionlessly urged The Deep.
"No one, just hurry up."
Over on Lin Mo's side, Joanna had already re-linked her arm through his, as if that little episode just now had never happened.
"Let's go."
"Home."
Lin Mo nodded.
"Mhm."
There were already enough things today; the rest could wait until tomorrow.
Anyway, right now, nothing mattered more than going home.
After returning, there weren't any more strange twists and turns. No Vought people suddenly came looking for trouble, and no school teacher cluelessly came over to ask why they skipped classes today.
Everything was pretty normal. Maybe he could have a good night's sleep, Lin Mo thought to himself blissfully, but he quickly realized.
He seemed to have rejoiced too early after all, because compared to those troubles outside, sometimes, the real trouble was right at home.
And this big trouble would even hug a blue blanket, stand at the door of your room, and look at you with a pitiful expression.
Lin Mo looked at Joanna at the doorway, then glanced at the blue blanket in her arms, covered his forehead with a helpless expression, and even felt a bit like laughing.
"What are you doing?"
Joanna blinked, her hands holding the blanket tightening forcefully, bunching the blanket up into a ball.
"Sleeping."
She said it with such absolute matter-of-factness.
Lin Mo reached out and directly pointed in the direction of her own room.
"Your room is over there."
"I know."
"Knowing that, you still came over?"
Joanna suddenly fell silent, just holding the blanket and standing there looking at him.
With that expression, anyone who didn't know would think Lin Mo had just done something that angered both gods and men.
Lin Mo got a headache from being looked at by her. When she ran over last night, at least there was a reason: Thomas's problem hadn't been resolved.
Her heart was unsettled, and she wanted to find someone to accompany her. Although Lin Mo seriously doubted how much of that was true, at least the reason barely passed muster.
But what about today?
Thomas had already been burned to carbon by her two bolts of Heat Vision.
Not even a corpse was left, and the underground base was taken over by Vought.
What danger could there possibly be now?
It couldn't be that Thomas would crawl out of his ashes in the middle of the night to knock on the door, right?
Therefore, today was no good—absolutely not. Lin Mo felt he had to be more serious, otherwise this girl might just default to moving in directly in the future.
"Go back."
Lin Mo said righteously,
"There's no reason today."
Joanna was slightly stunned, seemingly not expecting him to be so straightforward.
"I can't sleep."
"I don't believe it."
"I'm scared."
"Thomas was already burned away by you."
"Then I'm afraid of the dark."
Lin Mo looked up at the room lights, then back at her.
"Your Heat Vision can be used as a searchlight, and you're afraid of the dark?"
Joanna instantly wore a dumbfounded look; this reason indeed didn't seem to work very well.
She fell silent immediately, but then reorganized her words.
"Then I..."
"I don't accept temporarily made-up reasons."
Lin Mo directly interrupted, anticipating her little thoughts. Joanna instantly stopped talking.
The next second, her entire temperament changed. Just now she had looked so righteous and confident.
Now she instantly lowered her head, clutching the blue blanket in her arms, her shoulders seemingly slumping down, looking as dejected as one could possibly be.
"Oh."
She softly acknowledged, then turned around and slowly walked toward her own room.
Walking two steps, stopping for a moment, walking another two steps, and stopping again.
Chapter 120: The Cold-Hearted Man
Even though she didn't turn her head to look at him, how could he not understand what she meant?
Lin Mo's eye twitched slightly. But seriously, could her acting be any faker?
Seeing that he hadn't called out to her for a long time, Joanna finally stood outside Lin Mo's bedroom door and let out a gentle, long sigh.
"As expected."
Lin Mo: "?"
"You don't love me anymore."
Lin Mo almost choked on his own saliva.
"Where on earth did you pull that conclusion from?"
With her back turned to him, Joanna said in a melancholic voice,
"You never used to drive me away before. Now that you've grown up, you find me annoying. Who knows, maybe there will be someone else in the future, and by then you won't even let me sleep in the room next door."
Lin Mo felt a headache coming on. She was just getting more and more ridiculous.
"Stop."
He quickly chimed in.
"Don't go slapping random labels on me."
Joanna turned her head back.
"Then let me sleep here."
"No."
"Look."
She immediately said, "You just don't love me anymore."
Lin Mo reached out and covered his face.
It was a real headache. Mainly because last night had already proven that this girl couldn't sleep quietly at all.
Calling it sleeping was basically her tossing and turning all night.
First she'd snuggle close, then she'd drape her arm over him. Lin Mo barely got any sleep last night.
After all, with someone like that lying next to him—someone he grew up with, and who was no longer a little kid anymore—it would be a miracle if his body didn't feel a thing.
But the more it was like this, the clearer Lin Mo became that some things couldn't be done blurrily—at least not now, or he'd get sanctioned.
Therefore, there was no room for discussion.
"Go back and sleep."
Lin Mo emphasized once more. Joanna stared at him for a long time, seemingly realizing that there really was no breakthrough today, and finally could only let out a soft huff.
"Fine, I'll go back."
Clutching her blanket, she turned and left, intentionally adding one more remark.
"The cold-hearted man."
Click.
The door closed.
Lin Mo stood in place for a few quiet seconds, then finally shook his head and chuckled.
What on earth was all that about? Still, she had finally quieted down.
Lying back down on the bed, he felt a rare sense of peace returning to the world.
No one making a fuss, no one tossing around, and no one acting out a tear-jerker tragedy for him—which he couldn't appreciate anyway. It was better to sunbathe, though there was no sun for him to bathe in right now.
At least he could finally get a good night's sleep tonight.
Lin Mo closed his eyes on the bed. Time ticked by, and the room grew quieter and quieter. Who knows how much time passed.
Outside the door, a very faint sound suddenly drifted over.
Click.
The bedroom door was pushed open bit by bit, and a figure peeked in from outside.
First looking left, then looking right, after confirming that Lin Mo seemed to have fallen asleep—
Joanna hugged her blue blanket and carefully crept in, her movements as light as they could possibly be.
If outsiders were to see this, they'd probably find it hard to believe that the usually fearless Homelander was now walking around like a thief.
Reaching the bedside, Joanna looked down at Lin Mo.
At this moment, Lin Mo had his back to her. His breathing was steady and unresponsive; it looked like he might actually be asleep.
Screw it. The corners of her mouth curled up in secret, and she then reached out to lift the blanket just a bit.
Slowly lying down, the entire process was unusually quiet for her.
A few seconds later, Joanna adjusted her posture.
Ah, comfortable.
As for whose room the one next door was? Whoever wanted to sleep there could sleep there; she certainly wasn't going to.
Meanwhile, Lin Mo, who had his back to her, actually had his eyes open the whole time. He had woken up the very first second the door was pushed open.
Or rather, given his sensory abilities, Joanna trying to sneak in without being detected was basically a pipe dream.
Lin Mo fell silent for a long time, but ultimately still didn't turn around.
Fine, whatever, there was nothing he could do.
Even if he threw her out once, she'd just run right back in the middle of the night.
Was he really going to weld the door shut? If he did, Lin Mo estimated his door would be gone by the next day.
Forget it. Just pretend not to see anything, as long as this girl behaved a bit better tonight.
However, no sooner had this thought popped into his head than the person behind him slowly edged closer, and those familiar sensations returned against his back.
He took a deep breath, still holding his temper.
Endure.
After a little while longer, Joanna's small hand quietly draped over him again, wandering who-knows-where.
Veins were practically bulging on Lin Mo's forehead. Did she call this sneaking over to sleep? This was clearly coming over to challenge his limits of patience!
Yet in the end, Lin Mo still didn't say anything, merely reaching out silently to bat her wandering hand back.
Accompanied by his movement, the space behind him fell quiet for a few seconds.
Afterwards, the corners of Joanna's mouth curved up secretly—didn't this say it all?
She knew it; Lin Mo simply couldn't bear to actually chase her away.
As for Lin Mo, at this moment there was only one thought left in his mind.
Tomorrow, he definitely needed to have a serious talk with her.
Definitely.
Yet it seemed he had thought the exact same thing last night.
Early the next morning, Lin Mo opened his eyes and propped himself up by the waist.
What he felt wasn't the invigoration of waking up well-rested, but rather... exhaustion, feeling as though he'd been through a grueling ordeal last night.
Of course, given his current physical constitution, let alone not sleeping for one night, even going several months without sleep probably wouldn't affect him much.
If he really wanted to recover his condition, going out to bask in the sun for a bit would be way more effective than sleeping.
But the problem was that mental torture was sometimes more troublesome than physical exhaustion.
As for who the source of the torture was? Did that even need to be asked?
Lin Mo lowered his head with a blank expression. Joannahad completely rolled into his arms at some point.
Even that blue blanket had long since been kicked off to god-knows-where, and one of her legs was naturally draped over him.
She looked completely comfortable sleeping like that, her messy hair spread across the pillow, showing not a shred of her usual proper demeanor.
Lin Mo: "..."
So, who was it last night who was swearing up and down that as long as this girl behaved a little, it would be fine?
He now felt that he was still far too naive. "I want to go home."
When has this girl ever behaved herself? Last night she started off just sneaking close.
Later, after realizing Lin Mo didn't drive her away, her boldness clearly grew, and eventually she completely stopped pretending.
Lin Mo even suspected that after falling asleep, she might have mistaken him for some kind of giant body pillow.
One with a built-in constant temperature function, at that.
Yet he couldn't actually throw her out.
Lin Mo looked down at her for a moment, then suddenly thought with fierce resentment that he should pull her little face wide apart so she wouldn't look so happy smiling.
Yet in the end, when he reached out, he merely pinched Joanna's face and gently pulled it to both sides.
"Wake up."
"Mm..."
Joanna frowned slightly, her eyes remaining closed, and instead shrank even further into his arms.
A vein pulsed on Lin Mo's forehead. Still playing dead with him, huh? Watch how I deal with you.
"Joanna."
"If you don't get up right now, I'm throwing you back to the next room."
This time it worked. Joanna's eyes instantly cracked open a slit.
"No."
Her voice still carried the fuzziness of just waking up.
Lin Mo was instantly speechless; her reaction was fast indeed.
"Then get up."
Joanna sluggishly raised her head.
First looking at Lin Mo, then looking at her current posture, she showed not a shred of embarrassment, and even casually slumped back down as if nothing was wrong.
"It's still early."
"Early, what early?"
Lin Mo reached out and pushed her head directly away.
"Class time."
Upon hearing the word "class".
Joanna was obviously a bit more energetic—not because she loved learning, but simply because she didn't want Lin Mo to find any more excuses to chase her back to her own room.
Chapter 121: Come, Listen to the Footsteps
A few minutes later, she finally got up reluctantly.
Lin Mo also got out of bed, washed up, and changed clothes. Throughout the entire process, he was actually still thinking about one thing in his mind.
Why on earth did he still need to sleep now?
Honestly speaking, given his current Krypton physical constitution, sunbathing could basically solve the vast majority of physical recovery issues.
Sleeping was more just a habit, as well as a psychological way of resting.
But if they slept like this every night...
Lin Mo glanced at Joanna without leaving a trace, suddenly feeling that it would be better to sleep a little less in the future, just in case something actually happened one day.
Coincidentally, Joanna, who was fixing her hair, happened to catch his gaze through the mirror.
Caught! Lin Mo secretly thought not good; it was a bit troublesome. He silently chose to look away, but Joanna's voice came directly.
"Why are you looking at me?"
"It's nothing."
Lin Mo shook his head.
"I just suddenly felt that I could go out to bask in the moonlight at night from now on."
Joanna: "?"
"Why would you bask in the moonlight?"
"For peace and quiet."
Joanna narrowed her eyes with a weird look; she felt that this sentence was targeting her, even though she had no evidence.
...
The two ate a little something simply, and then walked together toward the school's teaching building.
Before they even reached the teaching building, there were already more and more students, but Lin Mo quickly noticed in the crowd.
The atmosphere today seemed a bit different; why were people constantly peeking at the two of them?
Could this be a setup by the capitalists?
Walking on the road, Lin Mo's expression grew increasingly helpless. Being stared at like a monkey, who could handle this?
Although it couldn't be said to be peeking, strictly speaking, the frequency of the two of them being watched was higher than usual.
Although there was plenty before, after all, Joanna and he had recently become prominent figures in the school.
But today was obviously much more exaggerated.
Along the way, many students were secretly looking over at them, some were taking pictures with cameras, and murmurs could even be faintly heard.
Lin Mo raised an eyebrow. Too lazy to guess, he directly activated his Super Hearing.
Come, listen to the footsteps.
The next second, the sounds from all directions suddenly became much clearer, and the numerous pieces of information were filtered by his Super Brain to remove irrelevant noise.
"It's those two."
"I heard that yesterday they and Maeve smashed a secret experimental base together."
"It seems it was even illegal human experimentation."
"Really or fake?"
"Vought's official account posted it."
"I heard they saved a lot of people, and that criminal organization had existed for many years, but the three of them directly uprooted their lair."
"Then Lin Mo's ranking must have gone up now, right?"
"Just updated."
"Yeah, third."
"Joanna is second."
"These two rose way too fast."
"At this speed, this year's selection for The Seven..."
Lin Mo listened for a while and roughly understood.
Sure enough, it was similar to what he guessed yesterday.
Vought had already started handling public opinion regarding Thomas, the Odessa Project, and Compound V—things that truly couldn't see the light of day.
Vought didn't mention a single word about those, instead repackaging the whole matter completely.
Simply put, Lin Mo, Joanna, and Maeve, while acting off-campus, accidentally discovered a criminal organization that had long engaged in illegal human experimentation.
The three entered the tiger's den, successfully smashed the criminal den, rescued the victims, and prevented more innocent people from being harmed.
As for Thomas?
Naturally, he didn't exist anymore.
Anyway, the person had turned to ashes, and it was hard to want evidence, so in Vought's words, he never existed.
Lin Mo quietly listened to the surrounding students discussing and couldn't help wanting to laugh.
Honestly speaking, Vought's PR level was indeed competent. What happened yesterday, after being repackaged by them, instantly turned from an insider scandal exposé into a standard superhero deed.
Moreover, the transmission speed was ridiculously fast; not only the school forum, but social media had also exploded.
Some related videos were competing to report online, and there were even interview previews.
Wait, why didn't he know there were interviews?
Lin Mo suddenly reacted, but then felt relieved. He almost forgot about Maeve; it should be impossible for this matter not to be told to him in advance.
Now there were also several so-called insider accounts online starting to analyze how dangerous the three of them were in this operation.
Of course, how much truth these insider accounts knew was only known by Vought itself; maybe they were raised by them in the first place.
Lin Mo listened casually for a bit longer.
Sure enough, their rankings had also changed.
Joanna became second.
He was third.
As for Maeve.
Originally she was already among the top upperclassmen, and now she directly became number one of that grade.
If the students who worked themselves to death shooting commercials every day and actively participated in superhero activities heard this, wouldn't they cry to death? They worked themselves to death and sometimes their rankings even dropped instead of rising, while Maeve at best just walked through the motions and was now directly number one.
"What's wrong?"
Joanna noticed the expression on Lin Mo's face.
Lin Mo glanced at her and couldn't be bothered to explain. Anyway, he remembered that Joanna didn't seem to care about these contents either.
"Listen for yourself."
Joanna was stunned for a moment, but quickly reacted, expanding her Super Hearing.
Not long after, she also listened and figured it out.
"Oh."
Her reaction was unsurprisingly very calm.
Lin Mo found it somewhat amusing.
"You're second."
"I know."
"No feeling?"
Joanna thought about it for a second, but didn't figure it out.
"What kind of feeling should there be?"
"Like happy?"
"Why should I be happy?"
Joanna said matter-of-factly, "I should have been number one in the first place."
Ah this... Fine, he yielded to her; he really couldn't find anything to refute.
These words were truly very Joanna.
"Then you're still second right now," Lin Mo said casually.
These words instantly stirred up Joanna's competitive spirit. She turned her head and leaned a little closer to him.
"Who is first?"
Joanna's tone was obviously different.
Lin Mo almost couldn't hold back his laughter; wasn't she indifferent just now?
"What?"
"Don't you not care about rankings?"
Joanna let out a hum.
"Rankings aren't important, but having someone pressing down on me is different."
Lin Mo was speechless for a moment, silently complaining in his heart: if you say these words to Vought, they will announce the first-place student's expulsion the next day, and Joanna will logically become number one.
However, Joanna didn't really take this matter to heart. After all, in her view, the so-called school ranking was at most something for students to play with. Truly speaking of strength, she didn't think all the people on that list combined were enough for her to fight, let alone with Lin Mo right beside her.
So after listening for a while, she quickly lost interest, hooked her arm back into Lin Mo's, and continued walking toward the teaching building.
This morning, they only had one class.
Crime Fighting.
Which was the one they had just skipped yesterday.
This time there was nothing unusual; the two of them came obediently—at least, superficially it seemed that way.
As soon as they walked into the classroom, Lin Mo spotted two acquaintances at a glance; it seemed those two were the only ones he knew in the same grade.
Chapter 122: Whatever You Want, Just Fill It In.
A-Train and The Deep.
The Deep was sitting there, talking to A-Train about something unknown.
Just as he raised his head, he subconsciously glanced outside the door.
Upon seeing Lin Mo, his eyes instantly lit up.
"Lin Mo!"
Following his line of sight, A-Train looked over and saw the two of them as well.
Afterwards, his expression suddenly turned somewhat complicated.
Yesterday, he had only vaguely guessed what Lin Mo and Joanna had gone out to do.
As a result, early this morning, as soon as Vought's official news came out,
he understood.
Sure enough, these two fellows weren't just skipping class normally yesterday; they went out to pull off a big stunt.
Looking again at The Deep beside him, after this guy saw the news this morning,
do you know what his very first reaction actually was?
A-Train recalled the scene of him browsing the forum that morning.
At that time, The Deep wore an annoyed expression and even blurted out, "What a pity I didn't get to go."
At the time, A-Train didn't even know how to comment on it.
He could only say that sometimes The Deep's thought process was truly different from normal people's; his brain really must have been flooded with water, making him think he was capable again.
Looking at how things were now, The Deep clearly couldn't hold it in anymore. As soon as Lin Mo and Joanna walked close, he immediately spoke up, "So you guys went to smash a criminal base yesterday!"
Hearing this, Lin Mo and Joanna exchanged a glance—wasn't this already common knowledge?
The Deep wore an excited expression.
"I knew you guys definitely had something important going on."
A-Train silently turned his face away.
Who was the one asking all the way yesterday about where they went? It's only been a day, how did it already turn into "I knew it all along"?
Lin Mo couldn't be bothered to expose him either, casually finding a spot to sit down, with Joanna naturally sitting beside him.
A-Train then turned his head and smiled at Lin Mo.
"Congratulations."
Lin Mo raised an eyebrow; what was this kid babbling about?
"What?"
"The rankings."
A-Train wore a look of surprise and said, "You didn't know yet? You're third."
"And Miss Joanna is second. It was just updated this morning."
Lin Mo nodded.
"I heard."
The Deep immediately leaned in closer.
"Can you two enter The Seven soon?"
Lin Mo glanced at him, but before he could answer, Joannabeside him propped up her chin and casually blurted out,
"The Seven?"
"Is it that great?"
The Deep and A-Train instantly fell silent.
Throughout Godolkin University, she was probably the only one who dared say something like that.
Before long, the class bell rang, and the previously somewhat noisy classroom gradually quieted down.
Today's class instructor was the professor for the Crime Fighting course, as well as the teacher from yesterday. When he walked in carrying his materials, his first sight caught Lin Mo and Joanna sitting below.
Then, he visibly froze for a moment.
They actually came? Yesterday, he had wanted to have Lin Mo go up on stage to share some experience, but the person directly vanished. He had already prepared himself mentally to continue acting like nothing happened today.
After all, these two students were truly not ordinary students.
But now it was different.
Lin Mo was here, and Joanna was here too. An idea instantly flashed through the teacher's mind.
Last night, Vought had specifically notified the school regarding the promotional campaign for Lin Mo, Joanna, and Maeve.
Simply put, it was to have the school heavily promote this incident, raise their visibility, and incidentally boost the influence of Godolkin University.
Moreover, the evaluation of several individuals in the notice was exceptionally high—things like outstanding student representatives, role models for young superheroes, and the backbone of the future superhero industry.
It made him feel somewhat emotional; these two students truly didn't belong to the same world as ordinary students.
However, since they were here, what better promotional method could there be than having the people themselves recount it?
Whatever you want, just fill it in.
Thinking of this, the teacher's eyes lit up.
"Lin Mo."
"Come up here for a moment."
Lin Mo, who was sitting below, raised his head and looked towards the podium.
"Me?"
The teacher nodded.
"Yes."
"I originally wanted you to share yesterday, and today is a great chance. Tell everyone about the general situation of your operation yesterday."
The classroom instantly quieted down, and everyone's gaze turned towards Lin Mo.
The Deep's eyes shone even brighter. He loved this kind of segment because, in his view, someone like Lin Mo was naturally meant to stand on stage.
A-Train was slightly more rational; barring any accidents, this was definitely not a simple classroom sharing session—Vought's intentions were certainly behind it.
However, this was also normal.
The impact caused by yesterday's incident was too huge; Vought couldn't possibly leave it alone.
Lin Mo didn't refuse either. Anyway, as for what should be said, Vought had long ago sent a standard draft to the school.
A copy was also sent to his mobile email inbox, and he had glanced over it roughly.
The content was very simple: it was just packaging the matter as a righteous operation.
Discovering an illegal human experimentation organization, conducting an in-depth investigation, successfully rescuing victims, and preventing further crimes—there wasn't any problem with that.
Moreover, regarding the incident itself, Lin Mo felt that altering the facts really couldn't be considered a bad thing.
At least from the result, Thomas's experimental base, which had been hidden for so many years, was destroyed.
For ordinary people and for Supes, it was a good thing. As for those unspeakable things in the middle, since Vought was willing to help handle them,
Lin Mo couldn't be bothered to expose it either. He wasn't so idle as to insist on letting the whole world know the truth about Compound V ahead of time.
Mainly because if Compound V was known in advance, the energy points he would obtain were actually very few, and he looked down on them. According to the original plot, this was also an inevitable outcome, and making it happen early wasn't of much use.
Therefore, Lin Mo walked up to the podium, picked up the microphone, and began speaking simply.
"Actually, there wasn't anything particularly special. The matter happened rather suddenly; while investigating some abnormal situations, we discovered a hidden underground research facility."
"There were some illegal human experiments inside. Afterward, we conducted an investigation and stopped the relevant personnel from continuing their experiments."
The students below listened extremely attentively.
After all, this kind of thing was much more thrilling than the case studies in textbooks.
Lin Mo continued, "We did encounter some danger along the way, but it was resolved quite smoothly in the end, mainly because Joanna handled it rather quickly."
Speaking to this point, Lin Mo paused slightly, and then very naturally added a sentence.
"The person in charge behind the scenes was also dealt with by her."
The whole class instantly went quiet.
Then, gazes turned uniformly towards Joanna.
Sitting there, Joanna had originally maintained an indifferent appearance. Bored, she had been watching Lin Mo boast up there, but upon hearing this, she immediately straightened up a bit, and the corners of her mouth couldn't help but curve upward.
Although she didn't care about any rankings or promotions,
this was Lin Mo praising her in person! That made it completely different.
"See."
She muttered softly.
"You're still the one who understands me."
Although he was far away, he could still hear it clearly, and simply couldn't be bothered to respond.
Chapter 123: The Deep Plays to His Strengths
The professor listened very intently. He had no choice; working stiffs have their own hardships.
After Lin Mo finished his brief summary, the professor originally wanted to invite Joanna up to say a few words as well.
After all, this was the highlight of the promotion, and Lin Mo had said it himself that the boss was taken care of by Joanna.
Just as he was about to speak, Lin Mo suddenly turned sideways and lowered his voice.
"Professor."
"Hmm?"
"You'd better not call on her."
The professor was taken aback.
"Why?"
Lin Mo glanced back at Joanna and found that although she was sitting down, her eyes were locked onto him without blinking.
"Because if she comes up here—"
"It probably won't be as simple as just saying a few words."
Professor: "?"
Lin Mo continued, "And..."
"If she gets tired of waiting,"
"Even I might not be able to save you."
Professor: "..."
The air grew quiet for a second.
The professor suddenly felt a chill down his spine. Although he hadn't seen firsthand how terrifying Joannawas, based on the rumors around the school—
This young lady was in no way inferior to Lin Mo.
He was just an ordinary professor with no superpowers, no enhanced physique, and certainly no super regenerative abilities.
If she really got provoked, he probably wouldn't even get a chance to explain himself.
Thus, the professor made a very decisive move.
"Ahem."
"Um."
"Student Lin Mo gave a great presentation."
"Everyone can use it as a reference in the future."
"Alright."
"You can go back to your seat."
Changing your face so fast, Professor, you're quite the smooth operator. Weren't you just about to call on Joanna?
Even Lin Mo, who was watching from the side, was stunned for a moment, but too lazy to think much of it, he walked straight back to his seat.
As soon as he sat down, The Deep immediately leaned over.
"That was so cool."
"Seriously, so cool."
"I want to do that in the future too."
Lin Mo glanced at him, feeling a bit speechless.
"You should learn to speak normally first."
The Deep felt like he'd been struck down again, prompting A-Train nearby to let out a chuckle.
It had to be said that although The Deep often had screws loose in his head, he genuinely knew how to compliment people, and he did it with absolute sincerity.
Or rather, he didn't use his brain at all when complimenting, but unlike many others who praised you with their mouths while plotting goodness knows what inside,
The Deep genuinely thought Lin Mo was awesome and even held a bit of worship for him.
Watching this scene, A-Train suddenly thought of the old The Deep. Back then, The Deep also craved validation, but he was quite lost overall. Ever since meeting Lin Mo, for some reason, he seemed to have suddenly found a direction.
Although he was still a bit foolish now, at least he was much better than before. In a sense, that could also be considered progress.
His bro had been watching all of this.
"However,"
The Deep suddenly said seriously,
"You guys were really in too much danger yesterday. If it were me, I definitely would've helped."
A-Train immediately coughed. Wait, I was just about to compliment you, how are you starting up again?
The Deep began to display his unique traits.
Lin Mo chuckled.
"Are you sure?"
The Deep didn't hesitate to reply,
"Sure."
"Why?" Now it was Lin Mo's turn to be surprised. Was he really this devout? Too bad it was useless.
The Deep thought about it and answered very seriously, "Because you're Lin Mo."
"Whatever you do has to be right."
This sentence left Lin Mo slightly stunned.
A-Train also fell silent for a moment. Although The Deep was indeed outrageous at times, he had to admit that he was truly genuine when it came to friends.
In the original work, Homelander didn't kill him directly in the end; to some extent, that was related to The Deep's long-standing trust in him. This guy might have low emotional intelligence and a somewhat dim wit, but his loyalty was real.
Although that loyalty might have been mixed with fear given Homelander's strength in the original text, the fact was he didn't choose to run away in the end.
Lin Mo looked at him and finally just managed to squeeze out a smile. No matter how much flattery he threw his way, it was useless—he didn't need it.
"Fine, I'll let you help out next time."
The Deep's eyes lit up instantly.
"Really?"
A-Train instantly felt a bad omen.
He had a premonition that his bro was about to start doing things that gave him a headache again.
Meanwhile, Joanna leaned back in her chair, looking at Lin Mo beside her with a hint of a smile in her eyes.
However, this hint of a smile didn't last long.
Because she quickly noticed that ever since Lin Mo came back, he had been talking continuously with The Deep and A-Train.
Furthermore, these two guys looked happier and happier the more they talked, causing the slightly excited expression on Joanna's face to slowly fade away.
She didn't actually mind Lin Mo making friends.
Really, she had previously read methods from people online about giving boyfriends some personal space and not stopping them from making other friends.
But after seeing Lin Mo talking to others, she genuinely felt a bit uncomfortable inside.
However, she could still endure it a bit; as long as those people knew their boundaries and didn't affect her staying with Lin Mo, she could even reluctantly accept it.
But the problem was that this guy The Deep had been leaning in very close since just now, with an inexplicable kind of worship in his eyes.
A-Train wasn't much better; although he didn't speak much, it was obvious he kept his ears perked up listening.
Joanna suddenly felt that these two guys really didn't know their boundaries.
The Deep originally wanted to continue saying something, but for some reason, he suddenly felt the surrounding temperature rise a bit.
As someone with marine powers and gills, he was naturally sensitive to external temperatures.
He subconsciously turned his head and happened to see Joanna sitting there, quietly looking at him.
She wasn't speaking, nor did she have any particular expression, but for some reason, The Deep suddenly felt a chill run through his heart.
He subconsciously swallowed hard and abruptly stopped talking.
"What's wrong?"
A-Train noticed that The Deep's state was off and asked in a low voice.
The Deep stammered, not even daring to glance at Lin Moanymore.
"N-nothing."
A-Train followed his gaze and instantly fell silent himself.
Now he could vaguely understand The Deep's fear of Joanna. For some reason, A-Train suddenly glanced at Lin Mo and felt that having Joanna watching over him actually made Lin Mo a bit unfree.
If he ever got a partner in the future, he must never find one like Joanna; her desire for control was way too strong, and his fragile little heart couldn't take it.
Besides, if she were really unhappy, probably not many people here would survive finishing the class.
Fortunately, right at that moment, the bell for the end of class rang.
The professor on the podium packed up his things almost immediately.
"That's all for today, class dismissed."
With that, he hugged his teaching materials and walked out directly, moving so fast that it didn't seem like an ordinary human being.
He actually didn't drag on the class! The Deep and A-Trainexchanged a glance and stood up almost simultaneously.
"Um, Lin Mo."
A-Train coughed.
"I suddenly remembered I have training."
The Deep immediately nodded.
"Me too."
"I still have to go... feed the fish."
Chapter 124: Got Goosebumps
A-Train felt a wave of speechlessness. What kind of fish are you feeding at school?
But at a time like this, he didn't have the heart to complain.
"Yes."
"He wants to feed the fish, and I'll go with him."
The Deep looked touched.
"A-Train, you're so nice."
A-Train's mouth twitched.
Nice my ass, he simply didn't want to stay here any longer.
Chat a few more words with Lin Mo, and if that young lady beside him suddenly flipped out, the two of them probably wouldn't even have a chance to run.
"Then we'll be leaving first."
After speaking, A-Train directly dragged The Deep away, and The Deep didn't forget to turn back and wave.
"Lin Mo, see you next time! I'll wait for you to call me!"
Lin Mo watched the two of them run out of the classroom as if fleeing, feeling somewhat speechless.
Joanna stood up at this moment as well. She walked over to Lin Mo, hooked her arm through his, and watched their retreating figures fleeing in panic.
"They ran pretty fast."
"Maybe they really have something to do."
Lin Mo casually said, and Joanna glanced at him.
"Do you believe it?"
"Don't believe it."
"Then why are you speaking up for them?"
"There's no need to bicker with them."
Joanna let out a soft huff, but upon hearing Lin Mo say this, she didn't pursue the matter further either.
After all, people like The Deep and A-Train weren't considered any threat in her eyes at all; at most, they were just a bit annoying.
Furthermore, Lin Mo indeed had other arrangements today. Since he had decided to find the original compound v for Joanna in advance, there was no time like the present. They would make a trip to Vought Headquarters today to check it out.
If Vought really still kept samples of the original compound v or had related information, it was at least worth taking a look.
The things in the system mall were too expensive. Since they could get things from Vought's hands, there was naturally no need to waste energy points in vain.
"Let's go."
Lin Mo said.
"To Vought Headquarters."
Joanna's eyes lit up; this meant she could go hang out with Lin Mo again, but she still asked a question beforehand.
"Going to look for Edgar?"
"Mhm."
"That's perfect."
Joanna smiled.
"I also have a few things I want to ask him."
Lin Mo glanced at her with some surprise.
"What are you trying to do again?"
"Nothing."
Joanna's expression was very innocent.
"Just asking if he's arranged any messy things for you again recently."
"If there are."
"I can help him cancel it in advance."
Lin Mo: "..."
He could roughly guess that Joanna's so-called cancellation was probably not quite normal.
But before the two of them could leave the classroom, a figure suddenly appeared at the doorway.
Maeve was standing there, and her condition indeed looked quite poor.
There was a hint of exhaustion under her eyes, her hair wasn't as neat as usual, and there was even a bit of uncleaned dust remaining on her clothes.
Yesterday, Lin Mo and Joanna directly upended the underground base. The people were dealt with by them, but all the trouble was left to Vought and Maeve.
Including the subsequent site lockdown, victim resettlement, data recovery, media trends, and those dirty things that might involve Vought—Maeve probably had to stay busy all night by herself.
Lin Mo stopped in his tracks. Seeming to have thought of something, he smiled mysteriously and called out to greet Maeve.
"Senior Shaw."
Maeve immediately stood straight. She glanced at him incredulously, then looked at Joanna, who was hugging his arm beside him.
This form of address was quite reasonable, and judging by age, it was indeed true. However, after experiencing those things before yesterday, hearing this address again still gave her a bit of goosebumps.
But she didn't care about these; or rather, she currently had no energy to care about them.
Joanna, on the other hand, tilted her head and rolled her eyes at Lin Mo. He could even play around with this; Maeve really had a hard life.
"Are you guys getting ready to leave?"
"Mhm."
Lin Mo nodded.
"Got some things to do."
Maeve was silent for a moment. She originally didn't want to come find Lin Mo, but that group of people in Vought's PR department were simply too good at shirking responsibility.
Yesterday on the phone, they kept calling it a heroic action, talking about the positive image of young heroes.
As a result, this morning, they directly dumped the matter of media interviews into her hands.
Saying something like Maeve was closer to Lin Mo and asking her to go talk to Lin Mo about this matter. But how many times had she and Lin Mo even met in total? And they wanted her to run errands.
"It's like this."
Maeve began to speak.
"Regarding yesterday's underground experimental base matter, Vought wants to arrange an external interview."
"Mainly to explain the course of the action and incidentally stabilize external public opinion."
After listening, Lin Mo's expression didn't change at all.
Just as he thought, Vought's specialty was always packaging. An underground experimental base hidden for who knows how many years, conducting illegal human experiments inside—if all the matters were truly exposed, Vought definitely couldn't absolve itself of blame.
Therefore, the best method was to package this matter as a hero action discovered by accident.
Lin Mo and the others discovered a criminal organization, so Vought naturally wanted them to accept interviews, and having Maeve bring this up was also for the maximization of profits.
As for why the experimental base existed, who was behind the scenes, and why Vought took over the scene so quickly—naturally, no one would ask these questions. Even if someone did ask, Vought's PR department would make these questions disappear.
"The interview won't be necessary."
Lin Mo's tone was very calm.
"I have things to do today."
Maeve slightly frowned and asked tentatively.
"Is it very important?"
"Sort of."
Lin Mo didn't explain too much. Maeve looked at him, her eyes burning with even greater interest. Last night, when Vought's higher-ups held a meeting about this matter, she was also present.
She had seen with her own eyes those usually aloof people turn exceptionally cautious in tone whenever Lin Mo's name was mentioned. Edgar had even personally stated not to try to control Lin Mo.
But now, she suddenly understood a little: Lin Mo was the one who was truly cut from the same cloth as her—not striving for fame, but becoming a true hero.
As for the fame given by Vought, Lin Mo didn't care how the media reported it. Coming to Godolkin University and joining The Seven was never for those things from the very beginning.
The reality might really not be what she thought, but regardless, she still chose to hug his thighs tightly first.
"Then where are you going?"
Maeve suddenly asked.
Lin Mo looked at her. He certainly didn't know that so many thoughts were spinning in Maeve's head just now; if he had known about those, he probably couldn't help but laugh—when did he ever say he wanted to become a real superhero?
If it weren't for energy points or Joanna, he wouldn't even bother wasting that effort.
"Vought Headquarters." Lin Mo didn't hide it either; there was simply no need to.
Maeve was stunned for a moment.
"Looking for Edgar?"
"Mhm."
"There are some things I want to ask him."
Maeve's gaze shifted slightly. Yesterday's matter had just ended, and today Lin Mo was going to look for Edgar.
Could it be that he discovered something? Or was there some hidden story behind the underground experimental base?
Maeve didn't continue probing. She knew that asking too much about certain things was counterproductive instead. However, deep down, her curiosity about Lin Mo grew a bit deeper.
Meanwhile, Joanna stared at Maeve for a moment.
She always felt that this woman seemed a bit too interested in Lin Mo.
"Then can I tag along?"
Chapter 125
Joanna immediately became alert; just now she was hugging Lin Mo's arm, but now she turned her body slightly, blocking Lin Mo a bit behind her.
"What are you following for?"
Maeve looked at her and explained.
"I just want to go together."
"Why?"
Joanna stared at her, venting her previous dissatisfaction with The Deep along with it.
"Do you have any designs on Lin Mo?"
As soon as these words came out, the air suddenly quieted down.
Lin Mo stood right beside them, looking left and right, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly.
No, wasn't this question asked a bit too directly?
Facing Joanna's challenge, Maeve was clearly stunned for a moment, but she quickly pulled herself together.
She secretly cheered herself up, thinking that she was a prominent figure in her second year at Godolkin University, a superhero currently being heavily cultivated by Vought, and the reporters, fans, and troubles she had faced were probably more than all the people present combined.
With this thought, she quickly regained her composure.
"No designs."
Maeve glanced at Lin Mo and then turned to Joanna.
"It's just that for yesterday's matter, I didn't actually help much."
"The underground base was discovered by you two, the people were dealt with by you, and even the real danger at the end was handled by you."
"I was just responsible for cleaning up the mess."
Joanna didn't speak, and Maeve continued.
"So, I want to see if I can do my part."
"If I really can't help, it doesn't matter. And if you guys cause any trouble in the future, I can continue to help clean up your messes."
At the end, Maeve added in a very calm, but inexplicably sincere tone.
"Please."
She also wanted to save the world, dammit.
Joanna and Lin Mo exchanged glances, a trace of surprise flashing in their eyes. Was Maeve's contrast before and after so huge? She didn't look like a senior student at all, but rather like a child who saw adults going out and wanted to tag along.
Wondering whether they should say yes or yes?
Joanna suddenly didn't know how to phrase the words of interrogation she had prepared.
She stared at Maeve for a long time and found that the exhaustion in the other person's eyes really didn't look fake.
That whole night yesterday probably really put her through the wringer, and she already said she would continue to help clean up messes in the future.
Although these words sounded a bit weird, Joanna thought about it carefully and it seemed there was no problem.
Lin Mo and she were indeed not very good at dealing with those troublesome matters.
Especially Lin Mo; given his personality, when he encountered trouble, his usual first reaction was to directly solve the trouble itself. As for what was left around after the solution, that was none of his business.
Joanna finally let out a soft hum, "You'd better really think that way."
Seeing that Joanna relented, Maeve breathed a sigh of relief and nodded quickly.
"Of course."
Immediately afterward, Maeve cast her gaze toward Lin Mo, her eyes burning. Now only his attitude was left. If he didn't agree, then Maeve couldn't go either.
Lin Mo beside her felt a bit sweaty, but seeing Maeve resolve the atmosphere so quickly, Lin Mo couldn't help but look at her with new respect.
At least Maeve was indeed quite smart, easily dissolving Joanna's hostility. No wonder she was bisexual in the original work.
"Fine."
Lin Mo spoke up and finally agreed to her.
"Let's go together."
Maeve's eyes lit up slightly.
"Really?"
"Mm."
"Anyway, it's nothing shameful."
Lin Mo said very casually. He was going to find Edgar to ask about original compound v; even if Maeve followed, she wouldn't understand much.
Moreover, there was no harm in bringing her along. What's more, she also contributed to his daily energy point income. People inside Vought didn't dare to do anything overtly to him now. No matter how weak Maeve was, self-preservation was not a problem.
Otherwise, he would definitely be too lazy to drag along a dead weight, and didn't she say she wanted to go clean up his mess?
Although Joanna was a bit unhappy, since Lin Mo had agreed, she didn't continue to stop her. In the end, she just hummed and turned her head away, refusing to look at her anymore.
"Then let's go."
The three of them left the classroom.
Along the way, quite a few students saw them, and their expressions were somewhat strange.
Needless to say about Lin Mo and Joanna, right now the Godolkin University forum was almost entirely filled with news about the two of them.
Maeve was likewise a celebrity in the school.
As a result, now, three top-ranking people with direct ties to Vought were actually walking together on campus. This scene looked somewhat abnormal no matter how one looked at it.
But when the students thought of their exploits of destroying the basement together yesterday, they suddenly stopped feeling strange. Maybe the three of them going out together now was to do some big deal again.
Toward the frequent prying eyes from around them, Lin Moand the others were already long used to it.
After walking out of the school gate, Maeve suddenly stopped. She thought of something now.
"How are we getting there?"
Lin Mo glanced at her. How else could they get there? Could it be that Edgar was going to pick them up?
"What do you mean?"
"Take a cab?"
Maeve suddenly felt a bit embarrassed. She thought of the situation yesterday when Lin Mo carried her, and then naturally added a sentence.
"Or... fly over?"
Her meaning was already very obvious, since both Lin Moand Joanna could fly.
From Godolkin University to New York actually didn't take long at all, and taking a cab nowadays was actually very troublesome.
Just as Maeve finished speaking, Joanna's expression on the side changed. She also thought of Lin Mo actively carrying Maeve yesterday. Although the time was very short, she was very unhappy.
"No."
Maeve was stunned, somewhat puzzled. Wasn't flying faster?
"What?"
"You can't fly with us."
Joanna said it very decisively, without any room for negotiation. Her thoughts were not on the same channel as Maeve's. Wanting her Lin Mo to carry you flying? Keep dreaming.
Maeve: "..."
Lin Mo was also somewhat helpless. Of course he knew why Joanna reacted so strongly.
Previously, he had taken the initiative to carry Maeve to fly once. Although Joanna was not very happy in the end, she still tacitly accepted it.
But now it was different. Now Maeve was clearly fine, and she even took the initiative to ask to fly together. How could Joanna possibly agree?
"Why?"
Maeve still asked subconsciously.
Joanna looked at her and shook her head straight.
"No why, anyway it's just no. You go take a cab."
Take a cab from here to New York?
This young miss was truly completely unreasonable.
Lin Mo originally wanted to say something, but Joanna had already grabbed his arm tightly, as if she was afraid he would suddenly agree.
"We'll fly over, and you go by yourself. We'll rendezvous near Vought Headquarters."
Maeve was silent for two seconds. She looked at Joanna, then glanced at Lin Mo, and finally could only sigh.
"Fine then."
She didn't insist on bumming this Flight experience; she just wanted to save some time.
But with Joanna's attitude like this, if she insisted further, she would probably really be regarded as someone with ulterior motives.