Lord Black Whale!!

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the two of them.

It lingered a moment longer on Qin Yan in particular. "You killed the alien race cleanly and decisively, displaying the bearing a human Prodigy ought to possess.

"Especially you, Qin Yan. Your True Qi is exceptionally pure, far surpassing that of your peers. Wangshu as well.

"Your foundations are solid.

"Very good. Excellent."

Such praise, if delivered during a formal daytime occasion, might have been encouraging.

But here and now, far from the safe zone, in the depths of night, alone before a high-level Martial Artist amid such an eerie atmosphere—

It only sent chills down their spines.

Qin Yan forcibly suppressed the unease in his heart, maintaining a calm expression as he cupped his hands. "Captain Canghai, you overpraise us. Killing Sea Clan invaders is simply the duty of martial artists like us. It is not worth mentioning."

Then he shifted the subject, his gaze seemingly casually sweeping across the empty depression. "Captain Canghai, where are the other students who came to provide support?

"Since this is a unified lesson in battlefield common sense, surely it cannot be just the two of us? Why have we not seen them?"

As he spoke, Qin Yan's right hand silently dropped to his side, his fingers slightly curled. The Five Elements Seed within him trembled faintly as his Blood Qi and True Qi began circulating soundlessly at an accelerating pace.

Xiao Wangshu, standing slightly behind and to his side, said nothing, but the cool aura around her quietly became more substantial.

Canghai seemed not to notice their covert tension and continued smiling. "Them? Perhaps they were delayed on the way, or perhaps they came by another route.

"The terrain here is complicated, and travel at night is difficult. Arriving a little later