Investigation Results

Qian Renxue left this place of trouble without looking back. The cold wind blew against her face, yet it could not disperse the inexplicable heat rising in her heart. Her eyes felt as if they had been stung by something, and she felt an indescribable sense of awkwardness.

What kind of medicine was being sold in this gourd? The truth of the matter remained shrouded in mist, and she had wasted so much time for nothing, even... even witnessing such an unsightly scene.

Qian Renxue's mind was a mess. She could only reach the simplest and crudest conclusion: there were no conspiracies or schemes; it was purely that woman Hu Liena acting out of lust and making a fool of herself.

When she returned to Spirit Academy, the sky had already darkened. Qian Renxue did not return to her own quarters, but walked straight toward the dormitory building where Xiao Wu and the others lived.

In a secluded corner of the academy, she intercepted Xiao Wu, who had just returned from outside. The dim light of the streetlamp stretched both their shadows long.

Qian Renxue decided to interrogate her directly.

"Xiao Wu." Qian Renxue's voice was as cold as ever, revealing neither joy nor anger. "I heard that in just one day, your soul power level rose from level 62 to level 70. Is this true?"

Xiao Wu's heart skipped a beat, but she remained composed on the surface and nodded generously. "That's right, it is true. What's the matter, President? Does this violate any of the academy's rules?"

Qian Renxue's gaze was as sharp as a knife, as if she wanted to see right through Xiao Wu. "Did you and the others in your dormitory collude with outside forces?"

"Collude with outside forces?" Xiao Wu laughed, as if she had heard the greatest joke in the world. "President, you're pinning a massive label on us. What, did those soft-hearted losers like Tang San go running to you to tattle because they couldn't beat us?"

Qian Renxue did not answer, simply watching her quietly, waiting for an explanation.

"Hmph, I knew it was them! When they were bullying us, why didn't the academy step in? Now that they can't win, they run off to make false accusations. It's truly disgusting!"

Qian Renxue's brows furrowed imperceptibly. "Answer my question first."

"How could we possibly collude with outside forces? I, Xiao Wu, swear to the heavens, if we have colluded with any shady characters, may I never become a Douluo for the rest of my life!" Xiao Wu raised three fingers, swearing solemnly.

"Very well." Qian Renxue tentatively believed her. "Then how do you explain why your strength underwent such a massive change in just one day?"

Xiao Wu's eyes darted around as she quickly organized her thoughts. She remembered the contents of the Confidentiality Agreement clearly; she absolutely could not reveal it to any male, but as for females... although it wasn't forbidden, the fewer people who knew, the better.

"What's so strange about that?" Xiao Wu tilted her head, saying with an innocent expression, "Before level 70, it's not exactly rare for levels to rise quickly. You are well-traveled, President; you must have heard that some disciples of great families occasionally obtain rare treasures, elixirs, or absorb high-year soul rings, causing their levels to jump several ranks at once. Isn't that normal?"

This explanation was reasonable, and Qian Renxue could not find any fault with it for the moment.

She herself had experienced something similar back then. At level 64, it was precisely because she obtained a rare treasure and received personal guidance from her teacher, Bibi Dong, that she broke through the bottleneck and jumped straight to a level 70 Soul Saint.

"In any case, we did not collude with outside forces." Xiao Wu spread her hands, looking righteous. "As for how we became stronger, that is our own privacy and good fortune. We have the right not to say, don't we?"

Qian Renxue stared at Xiao Wu for a long time, unable to find any flaws on her face. She nodded, her tone softening. "Fine, as long as there is no collusion with outside forces. You know Dean Bibi Dong's temper; she hates that kind of thing the most."

Changing the subject, Qian Renxue added as if by chance, "Let me ask one more thing: does your increase in strength have anything to do with the owner of the Claw Machine Shop at the school gate, Qin Chuan?"

Xiao Wu's heart gave a violent jolt, missing a beat. Why would she suddenly ask about Brother Chuan? Could she have discovered something?

"Huh?" Xiao Wu let out an exaggerated laugh, trying to hide her guilty conscience. "President, what kind of joke is that? He's a mortal without even a shred of soul power; what could he possibly have to do with us getting stronger? My sisters and I just think the dolls in his shop are cute and go there to catch a few occasionally. It's purely for entertainment."

"Is that really so?" Qian Renxue's gaze turned sharp again; she had caught the fleeting panic in Xiao Wu's eyes.

"Of course it's true! If you don't believe me, you can send someone to investigate." Xiao Wu puffed out her chest, simply kicking the ball back. "It would be best to arrange for Tang San and his group to go; let them search until they find nothing, and see what kind of tricks they can come up with!"

Qian Renxue fell silent. She had indeed planned to arrange for someone to investigate, but the small shop didn't open on weekends, and she hadn't had the chance to act yet.

"Fine, let's leave it at that." Qian Renxue withdrew her gaze and turned to leave.

Watching Qian Renxue's retreating figure, Xiao Wu let out a long sigh of relief, her back already soaked in a layer of cold sweat. That was close; she had almost given the game away.

On the other side, Qian Renxue went straight to the Dean's office to report her findings to Bibi Dong in detail.

In the end, the official investigation conclusion given by the academy was: the increase in strength of Xiao Wu and the others was a matter of personal fortune and had nothing to do with outside forces. As for the specific content of that fortune, it was the student's personal privacy, and the academy had no right to inquire.

Flender had also retrieved the soul guidance device surveillance from all over the campus and similarly found no footage of them interacting with any suspicious individuals.

A storm stirred up by Tang San and the others thus ended in nothing.

On Sunday morning, when Dai Mubai, Tang San, Oscar, and Ma Hongjun received the investigation results personally signed by Vice Dean Flender, all four of their faces turned green.

The investigation results stated clearly:

Xiao Wu: Due to obtaining a special opportunity, soul power increased by 8 levels, reaching a level 70 Soul Saint. The student chose to keep the specific content of the opportunity confidential, and the academy respects this.

Ning Rongrong: Upon investigation, the "Flying Mushroom Sausage" consumed by student Oscar that day underwent a mutation, which was purely accidental. Student Oscar himself has poor dental health and mistook a stone for a sausage; this has nothing to do with student Ning Rongrong.

Zhu Zhuqing: After verification, she recently consumed a certain elixir capable of stimulating potential for a short time, leading to a surge in speed; no violation occurred.

Bai Chenxiang: Verified through multiple channels, student Bai Chenxiang's soul ring configuration is normal, and there is no ten-thousand-year soul ring. Student Ma Hongjun was startled and experienced hallucinations, misseeing the situation.

"What... what kind of bullsh*t is this!" Dai Mubai slammed his hand on the table, trembling with rage.

"Calling this a hallucination? I was so scared I nearly pissed myself, and you call that a hallucination?" Ma Hongjun's face flushed red as he roared in agitation.

Oscar clutched his wobbly false tooth, wanting to cry but having no tears. "My tooth was shattered; you call that an accident?"

Tang San's expression was the gloomiest. He said nothing, only clutching the investigation report so tightly that the edges of the paper began to deform.

This result was clearly biased! It was a cover-up!

The academy didn't want to deal with them at all, or rather, the academy was deliberately shielding those four girls!

An unprecedented sense of humiliation and fury burned fiercely in the hearts of the four.