"Lu Ran?"
Jiang Ruyi had no Night Vision ability and could only call toward the direction where Lu Ran had vanished.
No wonder she was so nervous. The scene of Lu Ran being carried away by a Yanzhiren during Fifteen Rainy Nights was still vivid in her mind.
Yet the pitch-black wilderness lay deathly silent, without the slightest response.
"Brother Lu?" Deng Yutang also sensed that something was wrong and immediately shouted.
"I'm here, I'm here."
At last, Lu Ran's reply came from afar.
Jiang Ruyi immediately ordered, "Yutang, go meet him."
"Okay." Deng Yutang followed the direction of the voice and rushed over with his spear in hand.
Jiang Ruyi also started forward, her fingertips lightly tracing something.
"Huh?" Deng Yutang's delighted voice suddenly rang out from the darkness.
Jiang Ruyi asked, "What is it?"
Deng Yutang said, "Brother Lu is advancing!"
"Oh?" Jiang Ruyi was both startled and delighted. Was Lu Ran about to advance to Mist Realm, Fourth Stage?
Such a terrifying rate of advancement—he truly was gifted beyond measure!
"What about you, Sister Ruyi?" Tian Tian could not hide the worship in her eyes. She raised her dirty little face to look at Jiang Ruyi. "Are you advancing too?"
Jiang Ruyi sensed herself carefully for a moment before replying, "I still need a few more days."
"Mm, Sister Ruyi, use your Divine Power Bead to absorb the Dog Corpses. Take in more Divine Power," Tian Tian said softly.
"Hehe." Jiang Ruyi smiled, curled her fingers, and lightly tapped Tian Tian on the head.
You're the one looking after me now?
During this trip to Evil Dog Village, none of them had fallen behind in cultivation. Instead, they had progressed even faster than usual.
After all, energy was relatively abundant within the Demon Lair.
Though they were reluctant to absorb Magic Crystals, the Divine Power Beads could drain every dog corpse clean, turning them into nourishment for everyone's growth.
"Class Monitor." A voice called out.
The two women turned to look and saw Deng Yutang supporting a trembling Lu Ran as he strode back to the torch-lit path.
"You two go deal with the Vicious Hound corpses," Jiang Ruyi said softly. "I'll watch him."
"Oh."
"Okay." Deng Yutang helped Lu Ran sit down, then immediately went to collect the corpses.
As the believers' realms continued to rise, every breakthrough and advancement took longer than before.
Jiang Ruyi walked forward slowly and stood quietly beside Lu Ran, watching her two teammates work.
Suddenly, Lu Ran's body tilted, and his shoulder lightly rested against Beauty Jiang's leg.
Jiang Ruyi froze, lowering her head to look at someone.
Yet Lu Ran still had his eyes closed, as though he were concentrating wholeheartedly on advancing.
"You guy."
Jiang Ruyi hesitated, but after a moment's pause, she ultimately did not kick him away.
After all... after all, Lu Ran was advancing.
Better not disturb him.
Jiang Ruyi thought secretly. Yet for some reason, a faint blush quietly spread across her pretty face in the firelight.
Lu Ran was utterly comfortable!
Advancing was already intoxicating enough, and now Beauty Jiang's long legs were serving as his seatback?
Being a believer really was wonderful!
In my next life, I'll be one again~
"Puff puff puff~"
A black crow slowly flew down and landed in front of them.
Seeing that Teacher Dou had arrived, Jiang Ruyi's expression became a little unnatural, and she turned to look aside.
"A reminder," the black crow spoke in human words. "Today is the fifth day of the seventh lunar month. You are outside Southern No. 2 Stone City.
"I suggest you begin your return journey now and leave the Demon Lair before the tenth day of the lunar month."
Jiang Ruyi said, "Understood, Teacher Dou. Let Lu Ran focus on advancing first. We'll discuss it shortly."
Dou Zhiqiang said, "..."
Fine. I talked too much.
A strange sound suddenly came from nearby, as if something heavy were being dragged.
Jiang Ruyi turned her head to look, and the sight before her left her torn between laughter and tears.
Tian Tian—the girl who had always been gentle and frail, even somewhat timid—was dragging over a Vicious Hound corpse?
Her dirty little hand gripped the dog's tail as she trudged forward step by step, the corpse carving a long trail of blood across the ground.
Bloody. Horrifying!
"Just use your Divine Power Bead to absorb it," Jiang Ruyi said.
Tian Tian stopped, opening her mouth, but she did not dare object and thus did not dare make a sound.
Jiang Ruyi said gently, "Be good."
"Oh." Only then did Tian Tian release the dog's tail and crouch beside the corpse.
Cruel trials truly did make people grow.
At first, even Lu Ran could not help retching repeatedly when faced with Vicious Hound remains.
Now, the frailest member of the team dared to face the mangled corpse of an evil fiend head-on.
Jiang Ruyi watched Tian Tian's petite figure, a trace of gentleness passing through her eyes.
She had always believed that as long as Tian Tian was given enough respect and encouragement, the girl would surely develop confidence.
She would surely become a Sword Lotus Believer capable of both offense and defense—a loyal, dependable, powerful teammate.
In this team, perhaps Lu Ran was the strongest.
But Tian Tian was undoubtedly the one who had improved the most. Compared to others, she had overcome far too much.
"Teacher Dou." Deng Yutang returned in large strides, holding two bloodstained Magic Crystals as he looked at the black crow standing on the ground.
During this trial, Deng Yutang had also regained his former brilliance.
With Divine Art: Red Turban Soul in hand, he had swept away the gloom of the past and become once more that high-spirited rich young master.
The Red Turban Ancestor was truly extraordinary!
The only flaw of this Divine Art was that it consumed too much Divine Power and stamina.
Even though Deng Yutang was brimming with vigor, he could not keep inviting the Patriarch to possess him. Otherwise, he would easily become a soft-legged shrimp.
The black crow did not respond, and Deng Yutang did not continue. He faced north and stood guard.
A full seven or eight minutes later, the energy fluctuations around Lu Ran grew increasingly intense.
An extremely satisfied sound also escaped his nose:
"Mm~"
Jiang Ruyi was still thin-skinned after all, and she sidestepped away.
The instructor was still watching!
She had already been considerate enough not to move earlier, but now...
What kind of weird noise was that?
"Huh?" Lu Ran braced one hand on the ground and looked up at Beauty Jiang through wisps of mist.
Why did my backrest grow legs and run away?
"Congratulations." Jiang Ruyi did not look at Lu Ran, merely reaching out to take the Magic Crystal Tian Tian handed over.
"Congratulations, Brother Lu!" Deng Yutang walked over with a grin and hauled Lu Ran to his feet.
"Just luck, just luck~"
Lu Ran had only just been pulled up when he crouched back down again, looking at the black crow. "Teacher Dou, you said we should start our return journey now?"
The black crow said, "After the tenth, the Demon Lair will be sealed. You won't be able to get out."
"Understood." Lu Ran turned to Jiang Ruyi. "Our mission should be nearly complete too, right?"
Jiang Ruyi said, "Counting this haul, we now have 133 Stream Realm Magic Crystals and 326 Mist Realm Magic Crystals."
You never realized it until you heard it—then the revelation nearly made you jump!
The four-person team had actually slaughtered so many Skinny Dogs...
Twelve days ago, Tian Tian and Deng Yutang had advanced one after another. From then on, the team had rushed straight to Southern No. 2 Stone City and devoted themselves entirely to fighting Stream Realm Vicious Hounds.
The process of obtaining those 133 Stream Realm Magic Crystals had not been a matter of earning an average amount each day. Instead, it had risen in steps.
The more time passed, the more adept they became at killing Stream Realm Vicious Hounds, and the more they gained!
Naturally, they would not carry so many Magic Crystals on them. Every time they returned to Stone City No. 2 to rest and recuperate, they turned in their harvest.
"Let me calculate." Lu Ran fiddled with his fingers. "We already have enough to exchange for a River-grade Divine Power Bead. But if we want to upgrade our weapons, we're still short."
Jiang Ruyi said evenly, "Thirty-four Stream Realm Magic Crystals and four Mist Realm Magic Crystals."
The summer homework assigned by the school did not need to be counted. It could be included in the weapon-upgrade mission.
"Gotta hand it to the top student!" Lu Ran slapped his forehead. "We've been killing for over half a month, and you still remember your addition and subtraction."
Jiang Ruyi said, "..."
The black crow flapped its wings and soared high, its voice drifting back from afar. "Don't forget to deduct the board and lodging fees for these days."
Lu Ran smiled at the top student. "See? I told you, anyone who killed day and night for half a month would end up muddleheaded."
Jiang Ruyi watched the black crow fly away. Only after the instructor vanished into the darkness did she say softly, "They've already been deducted.
"The board and lodging fees are five Mist Realm Magic Crystals per day for two people per room."
At those words, Lu Ran had no time to worry about his face hurting.
Because his heart hurt!
Even though the board and lodging fees were already at student rates, the four of them really could have stayed in one stone room.
But men and women were different, and sleeping and bathing were rather inconvenient, so they could only grit their teeth and pay.
That said, bathing alone was worth five Mist Realm Magic Crystals.
Otherwise, with the bloody smell on them, they would probably scare even themselves when they caught a whiff.
"We still have five days." Deng Yutang was brimming with confidence. "Slaughtering thirty-four or thirty-five Stream Realm Vicious Hounds—if we work hard, it'll definitely be no problem!"
"Mm." Jiang Ruyi raised a hand to her neck, her fingertips gently rubbing the Divine Power Bead.
After exchanging it for a River-grade Divine Power Bead, she would not need to worry about lacking Divine Power for quite a long time to come.
And there was also her weapon...
Jiang Ruyi lowered her head to look at the Banjushi Sword in her hand.
Though she often cast spells at range and rarely fought in melee combat, battlefields changed in the blink of an eye. There would inevitably be times for close combat.
Beyond Banjushi, there were two relatively precious and uncommon Demon Lair ores for upgrades.
One was Baihong Stone, and the other was Caiduan Stone.
Which should she choose?
Before you continue