Chapter 96

It really was Duoji! Luckily we came down, otherwise he would have been caught and sold to a pet shop, which would have been a real problem.

Mel immediately cast a spell to dispel his own curse, and with a "poof," a...

Huh?

It must be fake!

I was stunned again!

Where did Duoji's big belly go? The little old man lying on the ground looks to be of average build, with only a slightly protruding belly, but he's not fat at all! This not-fat Five-Star Old Man even looks kind of handsome!

... Sure enough, no wonder Moli and the others always say that boys should never be fat, because a little belly is the killer of all male gods.

I couldn't help but think of Mel's abs... Hmm... Even though he's a mage, Mel still has a V-line! They feel amazing to touch! I couldn't help but savor the feeling of my fingers touching his abs, and my ears started to heat up... Suddenly, Mel leaned closer, and I saw his ears were red too. Sure enough, Mel whispered in my ear, "Xipei, can I touch your abs properly next time? I think the lines of your waist and abdomen are especially beautiful!"

Of course! I nodded decisively, so Mel chuckled, looking a little silly, which made me want to reach out and pinch his cheek.

The Five-Star Old Man struggled to his feet. I turned around and met his dizzy eyes. Surprisingly, even in his dazed Five-Star Old Man, he still recognized me at a glance. He immediately jumped up, pointing at me and yelling as usual, "Ciprins! You... you... you, what are you doing here, you piece of trash! Don't you know there are Machine Zealots here? You lousy mage, are you here to die?!"

Then I heard the reporters gasp as they landed, as if a witch had stuffed a frog down their throats and blocked their tracheas. They then collapsed to the ground with a series of cracking sounds, looking quite miserable. Many of them were groaning and crying out as their jetpacks hit them.

Hmm... I feel a bit sorry for the Five-Star Old Man. He's been a mage for so long, but his magic is still at this level, and his vision is lacking. He's really pitiful.

Chapter 96

So I didn't take it seriously at all, but Mel got angry immediately. He raised his hand, but I grabbed it just in time. Luckily, I reacted quickly, otherwise Mel might have turned the Five-Star Old Man into some strange thing again!

Green slimes are disgusting enough, but please don't send in any more green goblins or similar monsters, or I'll really throw up!

I still don't understand, Mel, where did you see such a disgusting green color?!

"Hmph! Don't think that just because you've found powerful backers, you can be so arrogant and dare to climb over my head! What do you have left without your backers? Every day you pretend to be researching some useless junk, making the research institute a mess..." The Five-Star Old Man waved his fingers... his fingers, no longer thick but still not long, waving in front of my eyes.

Speaking of sugar daddies...

I glanced at Mel and noticed he didn't seem angry anymore. I was sure his mind was completely filled with the word "sugar daddy." Sigh... that's what you call getting addicted to pleasure. We two respectable mages actually became so obsessed with... sigh, with that kind of life-harmony exercise that we couldn't extricate ourselves. It's so embarrassing to admit it. Besides, what we did was a complete waste of time. No matter how much we exercised, we couldn't possibly create a new life. What else could it be but a waste of time!

... but...

I can't quit! I... I love the feeling of being held in Mel's arms so much. It truly, truly makes me feel a warmth I've never felt before. It makes me know with absolute clarity that in this world, besides enemies and Black Magic, I still have Mel, I still have someone willing to fight alongside me, someone happy to share all my knowledge with me. Although saying this probably sounds incredibly cheesy, I still feel it from the bottom of my heart: Mel has truly brought the bloodthirsty dark mage Ciprins into the sunlight. Now, I can freely cast undead and Hellfire without any reservations. I no longer worry about becoming addicted to this dangerous and evil power--

Because my face will definitely turn red... because the feeling of hugging Mel is even more intoxicating!

"Ciprins!"

With a roar, I looked at the Five-Star Old Man in confusion... him...

!!!

Oh no, there's one who slipped through the net!

The instant I turned around, I happened to see a Machine Zealots whose mech was already half-damaged leap up. Everyone had their backs to that direction, and all the reporters were looking at me on camera, so they hadn't noticed this guy lying in the grass at all! His concealment was really good. If he hadn't suddenly jumped up and swung the cannon at the Five-Star Old Man's head, I wouldn't have noticed him at all!

So, I reached out and first used an Air Shield to bounce the Five-Star Old Man behind us. He cried out and fell to the ground. Then I unleashed Hellfire, the simplest and most convenient spell. The mech's outer shell was already damaged, probably from being knocked off the cliff by the Dragon Emperor, so Hellfire could penetrate the mech and directly burn the mech inside. His mech twitched in mid-air and crashed down in front of me, turning into a large, cold, black fireball.

The reporters were snapping photos, and the noise almost shook me.

"Xipulin --Gah!"

Behind me, the Five-Star Old Man made that gurgling sound again, as if he was speaking too fast and choking on his own words. I had to turn around to look at him and check if I had thrown him too hard earlier.

"Vice Dean Duoji," I said, "Excuse me, did the kidnappers torture you?"

However, after asking, I felt there was no need to ask. Although the vice dean of the Magic Research Institute is a high-ranking official with many secrets, slimes don't have vocal organs!

So, this is just symbolic—wait, I'm not dead yet!

I turned around in surprise and saw that the mech warrior, whose body was burned and bruised, still jumped out of the cockpit, wielding an electronic sword for close combat, and slashed at Mel, who was closest to him!

--How audacious! It's one thing to be a brain-dead Machine Zealots, but to actually lay a hand on Mel?

I immediately waved my hand, and my second teacher tore through space, appearing in front of Mel. The Hellfire in my hand condensed once more into that enormous scythe. I swung the scythe fiercely, and my teacher followed swiftly, extending his claws. I sliced through the fanatic's soul, while my teacher tore his flesh apart, ensuring he would never have another chance to attack Mel!

Even having that thought is unacceptable!

... Sigh, I finished cutting down his soul with a sense of lingering satisfaction, and then I secretly reflected on myself: Mel is also an archmage, he's not Anna or Moli who need my protection. I've been getting more and more impulsive lately, which makes me feel somewhat ashamed.

Mel watched me with a smile the whole time, but then again...

Well?

My thoughts froze, horrified by what I glimpsed out of the corner of my eye—had the kidnappers poisoned Duoji? Why were his eyes rolling back? And why was he convulsing and foaming at the mouth?!

... Reporters, reporters, please stop filming! Who has a cell phone? Call an ambulance! Can't you see he's already dying? You don't even need magic detection; you can tell just by looking! He's foaming at the mouth, his eyes are all white, and his face is bluish-purple—even worse than Damala's! Ugh! The foam he's spewing is forming huge bubbles!

But he was perfectly fine just now, and he was so confident when he was yelling at me! How come he's about to die from poison just from killing one fanatic?

But no matter how anxious I was, the reporters remained unmoved. One reporter was even ecstatic, practically dancing with joy. He squeezed next to me, blocking my view, so I tried to stand on tiptoe to see if the Five-Star Old Man could still be saved. But he wouldn't give up, continuing to thrust the microphone in front of me—