Campus Turmoil

As the crowd gradually dispersed, the lingering rays of the setting sun stretched everyone's shadows long. Along the way, they received countless rounds of applause and smiles. That goodwill was like warm sunlight, melting away the barrier between them and this world.

Since they had come to this world, they needed to arrange new identities and fit in. Aside from Ashley, Li Stark had arranged for everyone else from the Resident Evil universe to become teachers at the school. After all, they were all adults except Ashley, and none of them were particularly young. No one would question them being new teachers.

Over the next week, campus life gradually settled into a routine. Li Stark rode his anti-gravity skateboard through the school every day, like a moving focal point of technology. During physics class, when the teacher explained the law of conservation of energy, he directly used a portable holographic projector to display a rotating miniature perpetual-motion device model in the center of the classroom. Amid the intertwining light and shadows, the energy conversion process within the device was clearly visible. The students gasped in amazement, and even the teacher pushed up his glasses and praised him. "Little Stark, your creativity makes traditional teaching pale in comparison." After class, he would be surrounded by a group of students firing questions about the device's principles. He always answered patiently, his eyes shining with excitement.

As the motorcycle club's teacher, Claire turned the garage into a classroom brimming with passion. She taught the students how to disassemble and assemble engines step by step, and the oil covering her hands did nothing to dampen her enthusiasm. "Listen," she said, pressing her ear to the engine and motioning for the students to imitate her. "A normally running engine sounds steady. Once there's an odd noise, it's like a beast growling. That means something's wrong." During breaks, she would sit on a motorcycle and tell them stories of battling harsh weather on deserted highways. Once, she vividly described riding through a blizzard, when her motorcycle chain had nearly frozen solid. She had escaped danger through sheer determination and skilled repair work, leaving the students fired up. Li Stark would always come over to discuss how new energy technology could be applied to motorcycles. Their heated debates often drew crowds of students, and sometimes even members of other clubs came over, curiously listening to their professional yet entertaining conversations.

In the fighting arena, Jill's training was full of challenges and surprises. She set up simulated combat stages, using holographic projections to create virtual opponents. "In real combat, the enemy won't wait for you to get ready!" she shouted, nimbly dodging the virtual opponent's attacks while continuing to instruct the students. "Watch their shift in balance—that's their opening!" Li Stark would occasionally join the training wearing specially made protective gear. During sparring matches with Jill, he tried integrating his armor's attack modes into his fighting techniques. Although Jill often suppressed him, he gained new inspiration every time. After one training session, Jill even tailored a training plan specifically for Li Stark, combining technological equipment with martial arts. Li Stark carefully noted down the key points, his eyes full of gratitude and anticipation.

Ada Wong's drama club presented another scene of elegance. Holding a folding fan, she analyzed each character in the script word by word. "This line needs three parts restraint and seven parts unwillingness. Let it slowly emerge from the depths of your throat." As she demonstrated, her gaze instantly shifted from gentle to sharp, astonishing the students. During one rehearsal, to portray a character's struggle in adversity, she improvised a tense sequence of body movements. Combined with the changing stage lights, it felt as though she had transported everyone into another world. Her focus deeply affected the drama club students, making them even more eager for the new play.

Ashley was unquestionably the core of the technology club. She and Li Stark often stayed in the laboratory for an entire day. The two endlessly argued over energy conversion efficiency. Ashley insisted on optimizing traditional materials, while Li Stark advocated introducing alien technological elements. "That's completely absurd!" Ashley said, her face flushed, though she could not help carefully studying the materials Li Stark had brought. After one experiment failed, Ashley sat on the floor in dejection. Li Stark walked over and gently patted her shoulder. "Failure is the mother of success. Let's try another approach." In the end, through their joint efforts, they successfully developed a small device capable of regulating its own energy consumption. The moment the device tested successfully, the entire laboratory erupted. Ashley excitedly hugged Li Stark, and proud smiles filled both their faces.

Gwen Stacy was busy beyond belief every day. Not only did she have to keep up with her studies, but she also ran her own campus livestream channel. She often held up her phone as she moved through every corner of the school, capturing interesting moments. During motorcycle club training, she set up her camera and livestreamed Claire teaching students how to drift. During drama club rehearsals, she secretly recorded clips of Ada Wong's lessons, adding humorous commentary that attracted huge numbers of followers. During one livestream, wanting to give viewers a more thrilling angle, she risked climbing up high to film a motorcycle stunt performance. She nearly fell by accident, but Claire reacted quickly and pulled her back. Though it ended without incident, the experience sent her livestream's popularity soaring. Her fans flooded the comments telling her to stay safe, and she smiled as she replied that she would bring them even more exciting content. "Look, everyone, this mysterious Teacher Ada Wong makes even guiding students look like she's filming a movie!" She winked at the camera, and the comments immediately began flying across the screen. Many viewers also asked about Ada Wong's background, but Gwen played coy, saying they would have to keep following her livestream to learn more.

Wanda was like an elf on campus. She often appeared during breaks, using magic to give the students little surprises. Sometimes she made books turn their pages on their own; other times, she conjured gorgeous flowers in the air. In the technology club, she used magic to help Ashley and Li Stark calibrate equipment. Whenever there was a problem with the circuitry, she only had to wave her hand lightly, and the current obediently returned to its proper course. But she had troubles of her own. Once in the cafeteria, she accidentally used magic to knock over a tray. Just as she was feeling embarrassed, Li Stark came over and used one of his little inventions to instantly clean up the mess. Smiling, he said, "Wanda, it looks like we need to develop a magic stabilizer."

From then on, Wanda began trying to combine magic and technology to create practical little tools, such as a magical storage box that could automatically organize items. Of course, plenty of accidents occurred along the way—for instance, the storage box would suddenly suck things in and refuse to spit them back out—but she never grew discouraged and constantly improved her magical creations.

Meanwhile, Natasha returned to S.H.I.E.L.D. and threw herself back into intense intelligence analysis work. She stared at massive screens flashing with data and images. Though she had left Midtown High School, she still kept an eye on what was happening there. When she discovered unidentified signal fluctuations around the campus, she immediately frowned, her fingers flying across the keyboard as she began a deeper investigation. She pulled up all recent satellite imagery and carefully compared every detail. She also contacted S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in the surrounding area, ordering them to closely monitor anything unusual. Deep down, she worried that those at Midtown High School might encounter danger.

That morning, a thin mist still shrouded the campus. Li Stark rode his anti-gravity skateboard to school, and he had just parked it when he saw Claire rushing toward him with an anxious expression, clutching half of a motorcycle chain that had been snapped into two pieces. "Stark! Take a look at this. I serviced the club's motorcycles just yesterday. How could the chain suddenly break like this?" Claire's voice was filled with anxiety and confusion. Li Stark took the chain and scanned it with the miniature scanner he carried with him. His brow furrowed slightly. "There are traces of high-frequency vibration on it. This doesn't look like normal wear and tear. It looks more like deliberate sabotage."

Claire immediately became alert at those words. She rubbed the holster at her waist, her eyes sharp. "Someone is targeting me? Or the club?" As they spoke, the principal's urgent voice suddenly came over the broadcast system. "Attention, all teachers and students! Important experimental equipment from the technology club has been stolen. Please gather on the athletic field immediately!"

Li Stark and Claire exchanged a glance, then took off running toward the technology club. When they pushed open the door, they found a complete mess. Ashley was crouched on the floor, her eyes red, beside a pried-open safe. "Those were the Energy Core models that the club members and I spent three months researching. Without them, the entire project will come to a standstill!" As she spoke, she could not stop herself from crying. Li Stark walked over and gently patted her back. "Don't worry. We'll definitely get them back."

Jill and Ada Wong arrived quickly as well. Jill looked around, then pointed at a strange trail of footprints on the ground. "I've never seen patterns like these before. They weren't left by ordinary shoes." Ada Wong picked up a faintly glowing metal fragment from the corner. After examining it closely, she said, "This material is unusual. It resembles some kind of military-grade alloy, but this manufacturing process has never appeared on the market."

Just then, Gwen rushed in with her phone raised. "I just found an anonymous post on the campus forum. It said, 'Certain outsiders shouldn't get too cocky. This is only a small warning.'" Her voice trembled slightly with agitation. "And I checked the forum IP. It was sent from a cell tower somewhere outside the school!" Li Stark stared at the phone screen, a cold smile curling across his lips. "Looks like we've made trouble for ourselves while enjoying campus life. But if they want to play with us, they'll need a lot more practice."

Wanda stood in the corner, Scarlet Magic flickering faintly at her fingertips. "I can sense an unfamiliar energy fluctuation lingering here. It's completely different from my magic." She closed her eyes and focused. "This energy is cold and sinister. It carries malice." She tried using magic to trace the energy back to its source, but it was like a cunning loach—it vanished the moment she touched it. Wanda frowned, silently resolving that she would find a clue.

Li Stark turned to the others. "Claire and Jill, check the surveillance footage around the campus and see whether there were any suspicious people. Ada Wong, investigate the school's recent visitor records. Ashley and Gwen, inspect the laboratory together and see if there are any overlooked clues. Wanda, use your magic to trace the source of that energy." After assigning their tasks, he pulled a compact robot from his backpack. Once activated, it immediately began crawling across the floor, collecting residual biological and chemical traces.

The atmosphere on campus grew tense. Students whispered among themselves, all wondering who was causing trouble behind the scenes. Li Stark stood in the middle of the laboratory, knowing that their hard-won stable life was about to be shattered again.