The surrounding Crimson war chariots had come to a halt. Fully armed Explorer Guards disembarked one after another, silently fanning out toward every corner of the camp. Their bodies were completely covered in crimson combat Armor.
"Tsk, Minister Zhou's reputation certainly precedes him," Yuan Chenyang remarked from the side, his tone dripping with sarcasm.
"Ahem..." Zhou Xian coughed dryly, glancing at the expressionless Zhang Hongbo.
Hu Xiang finally snapped back to reality. He hurriedly turned to Zhang Hongbo and asked respectfully, "City Lord, what brings you here?"
Zhang Hongbo's tone was placid. "I received a report that we've lost contact with the Fort Guards in Area A2. I was worried you might be in danger."
"Lost contact with the Fort Guards!" Hu Xiang's heart sank. "No wonder we were attacked twice in a row," he said, the realization dawning on him.
"You handled it well..." Zhang Hongbo said, now looking at the pile of corpses in the distance with a hint of surprise.
"A Cyan Scale Lion Group? Their leader must have been a Tier Two Mutant Species. Not only did you repel them, but you also inflicted such heavy casualties. Captain Hu, you've been hiding your true strength."
The others couldn't help but look toward the pile of bodies on one side of the camp. The expressions of both Yuan Chenyang and Zhou Xian shifted, a look of concern crossing their faces.
Hu Xiang's mind raced. He gave a wry smile. "You have a sharp eye, City Lord. The leader was indeed a Tier Two Mutant Species. But these bodies... we owe our thanks to the students from Southwind Academy, especially..."
"No need to be so modest," Zhang Hongbo interrupted with a wave of his hand, paying it no mind. He knew exactly what that group of students was capable of.
'I wanted to pique the City Lord's curiosity, then I could bring up Su Chen. That way, it would be harder for Zhou Xian to make a scene.'
But to his dismay, the City Lord seemed to have no interest in the details.
"What were the casualties?" Yuan Chenyang couldn't help but ask.
Hu Xiang replied resignedly, "Twelve with minor injuries, seven with major injuries... and one death."
"Sigh..." Zhang Hongbo sighed. "Make sure the family is properly consoled. They are all heroes of the City Patrol Guard."
"The one who died... wasn't a member of the City Patrol Guard," Hu Xiang said, his head bowed and his Adam's apple bobbing.
"Not a City Patrol Guard? A student?" Zhang Hongbo's gaze sharpened, but then he shook his head and sighed. "You can't be blamed. Losing contact with the Fort Guards was something no one could have predicted."
"Who was the student that died? I will personally go and console the family," he asked.
Only then did Hu Xiang slowly raise his head, his gaze traveling past Zhang Hongbo.
As Zhou Xian saw the man's gaze land on him, his heart skipped a beat. He was suddenly struck with a terrible premonition.
"It was... Zhou Zhong..." Hu Xiang forced out the name.
"What!?" Zhou Xian's pupils constricted. Blazing lightning erupted from his body as a clap of thunder boomed over the camp, illuminating his contorted features.
"What did you say!?" He stared daggers at Hu Xiang, his roar like crashing thunder. "My son was just one step away from becoming a Professional! He wasn't some ordinary person! How could so many who were weaker than him survive, while he's the only one who died?"
"Hu Xiang, did you do this on purpose!?"
The words had barely left his mouth when the sky lit up. A bolt of lightning, like an arrow from a Divine Spirit, tore through the mist and shot toward Hu Xiang.
"Stop!"
Zhang Hongbo appeared at Hu Xiang's side. With a simple lift of his hand, the lightning bolt vanished into his palm without a trace.
"City Lord!" Zhou Xian bellowed, his hair whipping about like the mane of a frenzied old lion, his eyes crackling with electrical arcs.
"I said, stop!" Zhang Hongbo's eyes were utterly calm.
In the end, reason prevailed. The electrical arcs surrounding Zhou Xian gradually dissipated. He panted heavily like an old bull, his pupils threaded with crimson.
Once he had calmed down, Zhang Hongbo's tone softened. "This matter will be explained. But if you kill Hu Xiang, how can he give you that explanation?"
Rustling sounds came from the surrounding tents as people began to emerge one by one. The commotion had awakened many, though some hadn't been asleep at all.
"Prin-Principal!?"
One of the students burst into tears on the spot, as if they had found their pillar of support.
"It's alright now," Zhang Hongbo soothed them gently. A wave of soft sobs spread through the crowd.
Zhou Xian's voice was hoarse. "Where is my son's body?"
With another mournful sigh, Hu Xiang pointed to a tent in the distance.
Zhang Hongbo nodded to himself. 'At least Hu Xiang had the decency to arrange a separate tent for the body.'
His face a mask of grief, Zhou Xian walked inside.
But moments later, he stormed back out, his face trembling. He glared at Hu Xiang, his eyes wide with fury, and snarled through gritted teeth, "Wh-whose tent is this!"
But deep in his eyes, there was a flicker of well-hidden panic.
'It's full of personal belongings. It's clearly not a tent set aside for a body.'
Zhang Hongbo glanced at Hu Xiang, the corner of his eye twitching.
The students who had emerged from their tents exchanged uncertain glances.
"It's mine." A clear voice rang out, and Zhou Xian's gaze instantly locked onto its source.
"It's you!" Zhou Xian roared.
Su Chen was slightly taken aback. 'He knows me? Even if I had a small run-in with his son, a man of his stature wouldn't normally pay attention to something like that.'
Yuan Chenyang raised an eyebrow. 'It's this kid. I remember him.'
He couldn't make sense of the situation, so he didn't speak rashly. It was already strange for the body to be in this kid's tent.
'Wait, if this is his tent, then whose tent did he just come out of?'
'Wait a minute!'
Yuan Chenyang's eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw Bai Fengxi emerge from the same tent right behind Su Chen.
"Xiao Bai!?" His eyes widened, and he shot Su Chen a hostile glare.
"Teacher!"
However, before Yuan Chenyang could process his thoughts, the boy turned to him with a solemn expression.
'Teacher? Who? Who's his teacher?'
Yuan Chenyang glanced around. It seemed he was the only one it could be.
'This kid... is he trying to drag me into his mess?'
Being as shrewd as he was, Yuan Chenyang immediately saw through the boy's scheme, and whatever slight favorable impression he'd had of him vanished into thin air.
He sneered inwardly. 'You may be able to fool Xiao Bai, but you think you can fool me?'
"He's one of your people!?" Zhou Xian demanded, facing Yuan Chenyang with suppressed fury, while Zhang Hongbo watched with a suspicious gaze.
The rebuke Yuan Chenyang was about to utter caught in his throat. The boy before him had just produced a thin metal slate that emitted a faint glow, covered in countless flowing symbols. Holding it up, Su Chen said in a solemn voice, "Fortunately, I have not failed the mission!"
Zhang Hongbo's gaze suddenly deepened, and Zhou Xian's body went rigid.
"The Holy Word Stone!" Yuan Chenyang's face changed dramatically as he stared intently at the object in the boy's hands.
That was the very item stolen from Southwind Academy—the Holy Word Stone! The one they couldn't find even after dicing the thief into mincemeat!
"On your orders, I conducted a secret investigation among the City Patrol Guard. I have not failed your trust. I have finally found it."
Su Chen's voice was loud, ensuring everyone could hear him. Internally, he thought, 'So this thing is called the Holy Word Stone? It doesn't look like a stone at all.'
Hu Xiang blinked, completely baffled. 'Does that guy, Qi Chuan, know about this?'
The other students stared, their minds reeling. 'Su Chen is one of the Principal's students too? No wonder, no wonder...'
The words "Who are you calling teacher?" were stuck in Yuan Chenyang's throat, refusing to come out.
The importance of this object to him was self-evident. With this, he would have something to show Ying Feng.
Su Chen's words were also remarkably clever. This reframed the narrative: Yuan Chenyang hadn't been made a fool of by a thief, but was instead a shrewd and patient strategist who had long since detected an anomaly and laid an intricate, long-term plan.
The price, of course, was bearing the brunt of Zhou Xian's fury.
He looked at the young man before him, his gaze flicking past him to Bai Fengxi. She gave an imperceptible nod.
"Clever boy," Yuan Chenyang suddenly boomed with laughter. He strode forward, gripped Su Chen's shoulder hard, and declared, "You truly are... my student!"
Su Chen's lips twitched. It felt like his bones were about to crack.
'This kid's physique... it's impressive. Is he already a Professional?' Yuan Chenyang was quite surprised.
"Well done, Chenyang. Such an intricate plan. You truly are worthy of the title of Minister of Inspection for our Southwind City," Zhang Hongbo praised, pulling his gaze away from the Holy Word Stone.
"What does this have to do with my son's body being in your tent!" Zhou Xian said coldly. However, everyone could see that his fury had already subsided considerably.
"Because this was found on Zhou Zhong," Su Chen said, his voice quiet, yet it landed like a thunderclap.
Yuan Chenyang, who had been examining the object's authenticity, snapped his head up to stare at Su Chen. The sharp glint in his eyes was practically piercing. "You can't make baseless accusations about something like this."