At the same moment, Naimuer emerged from the cave, his expression somewhat grave. "It's the two of them?"
It was already time for him to take over his shift, but the noise outside instantly woke him up.
He didn't need to think much to guess who it might be.
"I don't know," Cynthia replied calmly, "I just felt something was off, so I shouted it out randomly."
Naimuer's expression wasn't good, and he nodded with some doubt. "Then you're quite remarkable. I'm afraid you wouldn't be able to do it for me."
He was an outstanding martial arts prospect among his peers and had always been quite confident.
The abilities displayed by the young man from Jin had already made him feel very unbalanced.
If this female student were also better than him, he'd probably develop a psychological trauma from holding it in.
His mood improved somewhat, but Cynthia's heart was far from calm.
After handing over her shift, she pondered for a moment, then turned and walked towards the cave where Wu Youren was...
On the other side of the hill, two dark figures quickly disappeared.
After walking for a while, the burly figure finally let out a soft snort, "These young people nowadays, they're something else."
The slightly thinner one was a bit indignant, "We need a safe place at night anyway, why should we leave?"
In his opinion, even if they were discovered, they could shamelessly stay there.
"They already said there are traps," the burly figure replied. "Do you want to get burned too?"
"Those three weaklings?" The thin figure scoffed disdainfully. "Even if they had the guts to make a move, did they have the ability?"
"That girl is already very capable," the burly man replied, "But I have a feeling..."
After a while, the slightly thin man finally spoke up in a muffled voice, "Yeah, that skinny guy gave me a really bad feeling!"
The following morning, Red Pine, as usual, contacted Cynthia to confirm that they were still holding their ground.
Cynthia immediately reported what had happened yesterday, and even described the two people's appearances.
"Ignore their summons," the Martial Academy instructors said confidently, as expected.
"You are a crucial part of the Red Pine Scheme, and you should ignore the military's blackmail!"
"The main problem is we're running out of supplies, otherwise we could hold on," Cynthia complained, seizing the opportunity to lament, "Since the military scouts were able to infiltrate..."
The instructor opposite remained silent for a while before replying, "Just hang in there for two more days."
The Martial Academy is not the military, whose duty is to risk their lives. The instructors live a relatively comfortable life and there are not many daredevils.
However, as it turns out, you really can't just plant a flag anywhere, not even Red Pine's instructors.
Later that day, it rained again in the mountains, intermittently, in bursts, and judging from the clouds, it wouldn't stop anytime soon.
As the rain continued, Wu Youren, who was on duty, suddenly shouted a warning, "Something's Weird Qi!"
The two had just finished lunch and were taking a nap when they heard this, and they were instantly awakened.
The light rain was still falling, and in this light condition, you couldn't see very far.
However, they could still vaguely see the mountains across the road, with what appeared to be swirling black mist at their waists.
"Is it confirmed to be Weird Qi?" Naimuer was determined to challenge Wu Youren, questioning everything he did.
Cynthia spoke with a grave expression, "I don't feel well, I think."
Her intuition might not have been very strong, but subconsciously, she was willing to believe the young man from Jin.
Naimuer was stunned. "Then isn't that... the Weird Race?"
The three were not afraid of a single Weird Race, even one at the Knight level, which they had killed a couple of days ago.
But a group of Weird Race would be difficult to deal with. Even if they were the weakest of the Weird Race, their sheer number would be overwhelming.
During the battle, it is also easy to attract Knight- level Weird Race.
If they attract multiple Knight Weird, they should be thankful if the three of them can escape safely.
"Keep quiet for now," Wu Youren suggested this time.
He spoke softly, "If we can get away with it, that would be best."
That was as good as saying nothing at all... Naimuer thought to himself, but he didn't have the guts to say it out loud.
He might banter with the people of Jin normally, but it's best not to provoke them in situations like this.
If you anger someone, and then hesitate to offer even a little bit of effort at a crucial moment, they might end up dead!
Cynthia asked softly, "So now, shall we prepare for evacuation?"
"Hmm," Wu Youren nodded slightly, "Take all your valuables with you, and remember to conceal your presence."
Naimuer couldn't help but speak up, though his voice was very low, "Could I wear a raincoat?"
The tarpaulin is very waterproof, but when rain hits it, it makes a louder noise than raindrops hitting leaves, and it's nowhere near as loud as raindrops hitting the ground.
However, getting soaked without a raincoat can be quite inconvenient.
"Do as you please," Wu Youren wouldn't offer this guy any advice—he'd been acting sarcastic and unpredictable these past few days; did he really think he had no temper?
Anyway, he has absolutely no interest in stopping anyone who wants to court death.
Then he went into the cave, took out a cloak woven from small branches and leaves, and draped it over himself.
"This thing... is quite unique," Cynthia said, glancing at it sideways.
She knew that Wu Youren had made it himself, and it really could block out most of the rainwater.
However, the shielding effect is definitely not as good as a tarpaulin, and it will definitely get soaked after a while.
At the time, she was simply surprised that the young man from Jin seemed to know everything, yet he hadn't heeded advice and had fabricated such a story himself.
It's not that I don't trust the other party, it's just that the effect seems mediocre—if I wanted to avoid the rain, couldn't I just use a tarpaulin or hide in a cave?
Of course, it's a bit ugly, so it's unlikely she'll take it with her when she leaves. Otherwise, if someone sees it, wouldn't she be laughed at to death?
This is just a potentially useful, temporary item with a narrow scope of application; why would she bother?
But now, she's starting to regret it; this kind of thing is perfect for this situation.
In the end, no one is blind! She sighed softly, then couldn't help asking again, "You only made one?"
"There's one more piece, but it's not finished yet," Wu Youren gestured towards the cave with his chin, "If you don't mind..."
The next moment, Cynthia rushed into the cave and took out half of a leaf and branch cloak.
This cloak was made by Wu Youren based on the principle of a straw raincoat, with one layer covering another.
However, this is a half-finished product, and it's particularly ugly.
Cynthia frowned and handed half of a raincoat to Naimuer. "Put this on, don't delay everyone's business."
Then she lifted Wu Youren's "raincoat" and crawled inside, saying, "This one will do for both of us."
A youthful, girlish aura wafted over me.
Wu Youren glanced at her sideways and said calmly, "That's what I left for you."
"We can use this one," Cynthia replied without hesitation. "Since you left it to me, I have the right to dispose of it, don't I?"
As a woman, she could sense a deep incompatibility between her two male companions.
So she kept trying to mediate, saying, "The more fighting force we retain, the better our chances of withdrawal."
"Understood," Wu Youren nodded calmly. "No need to say more."
Cynthia's lips curled up in a genuine smile of joy, but she said, "It was indeed my fault; I should have asked you."
"It doesn't matter," Wu Youren replied in a low voice, but inwardly he was scoffing: This half-finished product was a spare he had kept for himself!
But they've already made the decision; if he says anything more, it will only make him seem petty.
"Very valuable?" Naimuer, who also had a temper, retorted, "You could buy ten of these things for a single silver dollar!"
"Then why did you come back!" Wu Youren suddenly raised his voice, "Did I give you too much face?"
As soon as he spoke, the black mist on the opposite mountain changed, showing a faint tendency to move in this direction.
"Are you crazy?" Naimuer glared at him and growled in a low voice.
"Give it back!" Wu Youren looked at him calmly, "Otherwise I would have shouted it out loud!"
"Alright, Youren, it's my fault," Cynthia quickly stepped in to smooth things over, "I'll be more careful next time."
"Give it back!" Wu Youren was truly determined this time, staring intently at the female warrior. "Otherwise, I'm leaving right now!"
He was really fed up with that guy. He had a broken arm, yet he kept nagging and complaining, and the worst part was, he just wouldn't stop!
With his current strength, he could take on five of these guys by himself.
Now that they are going their separate ways, he will not hesitate for a moment.
Cynthia and Naimuer are both from the Mirage Sea Alliance, and they might leave him behind, but it really doesn't matter.
When Instructor Kaili came to him, he knew nothing about her background and didn't bother to inquire; he simply chose to report her!
He may have harmed someone, but if the other party hadn't come looking for him, would he have had this opportunity?
--You come to me, but you have no ability to make me willingly believe in you, so is that my problem?
The three of them parted ways, but he was actually freed, with more opportunities to try different things.
Of course, he wouldn't try to escape Liang; after undergoing various tests, he would eventually return to the Martial Academy.
The consequences of breaching the contract are too heavy for him to bear!
But he couldn't accept being bullied by petty people every day, so he figured it was better to part ways and wish each other well!
"Here you go!" Naimuer couldn't stand it anymore, tearing off half of his raincoat. "You leave now, leave, leave!"
"There's Weird Qi ahead!" Cynthia was nearly going crazy. "Are you two looking to die?"
The black mist from the opposite mountain is drifting towards us, though not very fast, so we don't need to go down to the road in the valley.
It floated over so smoothly, from mountainside to mountainside.
"This has nothing to do with me," Naimuer felt wronged. "He was targeting me from the very beginning!"
Wu Youren was speechless. When the hell did I ever target you?
He simply maintained a certain level of vigilance towards everyone around him, and on the surface, his attitude might seem somewhat indifferent.
But was it wrong of him to just want to survive?
For a moment, he felt a little bored. "Alright then, you two stay here. I'll go check out Suotu Town."
Since we're going our separate ways, let's go our separate ways. I wish you all a bright future.
"Don't leave!" Cynthia couldn't hold back any longer. "We have to go back to Red Pine together to turn in the quest."
(Updated, please read on and vote.)