The Monkey-faced Mutant moved with terrifying speed, catching up to the fleeing Cream-uniformed Female Mage in the blink of an eye.
Whoosh!
The air rang with a piercing whistle.
Lin Yu Xin instinctively turned around, only to see a blade right before her eyes.
"Extreme Cold—Ice Lock—Ice Chains!"
At that moment, several Extreme Cold ice chains formed from linked clasps flew over and tightly bound the blade.
Crack! Crack!
Terrifying frost climbed along the ice chains. In mere moments, it froze the Black Beast Demon into an ice sculpture.
Lin Yu Xin turned back again and saw that the other Black Beast Demon had also been frozen into an ice sculpture. It had already shattered across the ground, pieces scattered here and there.
"Are you all right?"
A familiar, gentle voice reached her.
Lin Yu Xin looked over. Her haggard expression instinctively relaxed, but shock quickly appeared on her face. "You're already an Intermediate Level mage!"
"Mm."
Qin Yuan nodded slightly, dismounted from the Blaze Wolf, and walked over to Lin Yu Xin. "Your wound isn't too serious, is it?"
"I'm fine." Lin Yu Xin shook her head, then revealed an inexplicable smile. "Qin Yuan, you saved me again."
"Again?"
Qin Yuan was slightly stunned.
Lin Yu Xin merely smiled without explaining.
Looking at the Black Beast Demon scattered across the ground, she said, "They're Black Beast Demons, the Dark Creatures the Black Vatican likes to command most."
"This disaster in Bocheng was caused by the Black Vatican."
"Mm, I already knew." Qin Yuan nodded.
Seeing this,
Lin Yu Xin was immediately surprised, but she did not ask further.
"I'm heading to Tianlan Magic High School. Are you going to the Safe Barrier alone, or are you coming with me?" Qin Yuan asked.
"...I'll go with you."
"The Black Vatican's target is the Earth Sacred Spring. Earlier, in order to draw their attention, I gave the Earth Sacred Spring to Mo Fan for safekeeping."
"However, the Black Vatican has special methods for locating the Earth Sacred Spring. After discovering it wasn't on me, they sent Black Beast Demons to hunt me down."
"They may very well have already found Mo Fan by now."
Lin Yu Xin spoke.
As the Deputy Guard Leader, she had to protect the Earth Sacred Spring and ensure it did not fall into the Black Vatican's hands.
"Your arm..."
Qin Yuan pointed at Lin Yu Xin's badly injured arm.
However, Lin Yu Xin shook her head. "It's just a flesh wound. It didn't reach the bone, so it's not a big problem."
As she spoke, Lin Yu Xin gave herself a simple bandage.
Though she was a woman, she handled matters decisively, without the slightest hesitation or unnecessary fuss.
"All right, then let Xiao Yan carry you."
Qin Yuan waved a hand and had the Blaze Wolf crouch down.
Lin Yu Xin instinctively waved her hands in refusal, saying repeatedly, "N-No... there's no need, I can..."
Before she could finish,
Qin Yuan grabbed her other uninjured arm and pulled her onto the Blaze Wolf's back.
She had assumed Qin Yuan would sit behind her.
Who would have thought that a pair of silver-and-black Winged Magic Tools would unfold from Qin Yuan's back?
Whoosh!
Qin Yuan soared into the air and swept toward the distance.
Awoo!
The Blaze Wolf let out a roar and followed close behind.
Lin Yu Xin instinctively clenched a tuft of the Blaze Wolf's fur, her eyes fixed on the figure flying through the air.
For so long, she had immersed herself in work without the slightest thought of romance.
But now, it seemed she had it. She seemed to understand what those young people meant by "different feelings."
"Ah."
Lin Yu Xin sighed and shook her head, casting the "fantasy" in her heart aside.
Right now, the Earth Sacred Spring was more important.
Yet even as she thought that, her gaze remained fixed on that figure.
Splash, splash, splash...
The heavy rain mixed with the Fountain of Ferocity had fallen for nearly an hour. The rain gradually weakened, leaving the roads slick and covered in puddles.
Awoo!
Roar! Roar! Roar!
Gurgle! Gurgle! Gurgle!
Even though Military mages had sealed several Demon Caves, there were still undiscovered Demon Caves within Bocheng.
Countless demons entered Bocheng through these caves.
Although the Blood Alert had been sounded in time, many people were still outside the Safe Barrier.
These people would become a "self-service feast" for the demons.
The streets were a complete mess. Countless vehicles lay overturned, while the shops on both sides had been heavily damaged, as though they had been ransacked clean.
Buzz.
Magic aura rippled faintly as a black shadow darted past and slipped into a corner.
Behind the corner crouched a group of young mages. Their faces were still youthful, but their gazes were incomparably resolute, without a trace of fear.
Mo Fan, Mu Bai, Zhou Min, Zhang Xiao Hou, Xu Zhaoting, Wang San Pang... all of them were talented mages from the Elite Class. Even the weakest among them had mastered Elementary Level Two magic.
They were Tianlan Magic High School's Vanguard Squad. Their main task was to help the Thousand Man Regiment behind them find a safe route to the barrier.
Darkness wriggled as Tang Yue slowly emerged.
"Teacher Tang Yue, how is the situation ahead?" Xue Musheng asked softly.
"There are no demons for the moment." Tang Yue shook her head, though her brows remained tightly furrowed. "But the street is rather open, with hardly any cover. It'll be very easy to expose our position."
"Our target is small, so we can get through safely. But the Thousand Man Regiment behind us could easily run into trouble. One mistake might attract hordes of demons."
A squad of around ten people made very little noise and moved quickly, so there were usually no major issues.
But a team of a thousand had far too many unstable factors. It was difficult for them to remain completely silent, and the chances of an accident were far too high.
One or two demons would not be much of a problem, since the main force had teachers protecting them. What they feared was attracting hordes of demons.
At that point, the so-called "main force" would become the demons' "all-you-can-eat feast."
After hearing Tang Yue's explanation, everyone frowned.
As the Vanguard Squad, they naturally had to consider matters from the main force's perspective.
"There are only two options in this situation."
"First, have the main force wait where they are. Once we reach the Safe Barrier, we can ask the Military mages for help and have them come escort them. However, the main force may be attacked by demons while waiting there."
"Second, the main force takes the risk and passes through. They may also encounter demon attacks, and once that happens, they are very likely to attract a large number of demons."
After explaining the two plans, Tang Yue looked at Teacher Xue. "Teacher Xue, tell the main force behind us about these two choices and let them decide."
"As for us, we'll quickly cross this street first."
"Mm, that's all we can do for now." Xue Musheng nodded.
Under Tang Yue's protection and guidance, the Vanguard Squad and the main force had not encountered much danger along the way, but how could everything remain smooth sailing forever?
Now, the main force faced a difficult choice.
All their Vanguard Squad could do was reach the Safe Barrier as quickly as possible and ask the Military mages for help.
"Everyone, remember this: remain absolutely quiet. No matter what you see or hear, do not leave the group out of curiosity."
Tang Yue gave them another warning.
After receiving their replies, Xue Musheng and Mo Fan took the lead as the group slowly crossed the street.
Tang Yue remained at the rear of the group, constantly watching for movement.
Before you continue