“I can’t do this anymore. I’m exhausted! I need to rest!” Ye Chengcheng plopped down on the ground, no longer caring if her clothes got dirty. Panting heavily, she pulled food from her storage device and began eating as if no one else existed.
“I say, Miss Ye!” Qing Yi glared at her impatiently. “How many times has this been already? Do you even want to finish the mission?”
“We’ve still got ten days. What’s the rush?” Ye Chengcheng rolled her eyes with a snort. “You think everyone is as useless as you people? Only trash like you would need the full ten days to finish such an easy mission.”
“Trash?” Lan Qi sneered. “Even if we’re trash, at least we don’t stop every few minutes to rest. If we’re trash, then you’re worse than trash.”
“You…” Ye Chengcheng glared.
“Senior Ji.” Knowing she couldn’t outargue Qing Yi’s group, Ye Chengcheng turned to Ji Renlin with a pitiful expression. “I’m really tired. It’s not an urgent mission anyway. Can’t we rest for a while?”
“There are still at least three hours until dawn.” Before Ji Renlin could answer, Feng Qingyang cut him off. “According to the map, we’ve already reached the middle section of the forest. If you want to die, don’t drag the rest of us down with you.”
“If you’re scared of dying, just admit it.” Ye Chengcheng scoffed. “Besides, we’ve got Senior Ji. He’s so powerful—he’ll definitely protect me. Right, Senior?”
“…Yes.” Ji Renlin suppressed the disgust in his heart and nodded gently.
“See?” With Ji Renlin’s affirmation, Ye Chengcheng became even more smug.
Idiot.
Too lazy to argue with her any further, Qing Yi’s group collectively rolled their eyes before turning to Lian Qiguang.
“Captain, what should we do?” Qing Yi asked.
“We’ve been walking for so long. Everyone’s tired. Why don’t we take a break?” Zhang Qi suggested—not as a question, but as a command.
“Our mission is to collect one hundred different plant species. Divided among ten people, that’s only ten species each. We have ten days. There’s no need to rush.” Seeing that Ye Chengcheng had no intention of getting up, Zuo Jing also spoke.
Expressionless, Lian Qiguang surveyed the pitch-black forest around them before casting an obscure glance at Qiu Limo beside him.
You sensed it too?
Receiving Lian Qiguang’s look, Qiu Limo—who had been silently following him like a shadow with his arms crossed—gave an almost imperceptible nod.
It wasn’t my imagination.
“Move.”
Without giving anyone a chance to object, Lian Qiguang dropped the single word and continued walking.
Qiu Limo followed without hesitation.
Qing Yi’s group shrugged and quickly caught up.
“You useless piece of trash! Stop right there!” Seeing Lian Qiguang set off again, Ye Chengcheng’s expression changed as she shrieked.
“Shut up!” Ji Renlin barked, his face darkening. “Do you want to attract those things?”
“Young Master Ji.” Zhang Qi stepped forward and lowered his voice. “Are we really going to follow that brat’s orders?”
“Young Master Ji.” Zuo Jing also spoke, his face full of dissatisfaction. “Just give the word, and we’ll support you as captain.”
“Enough.” Ji Renlin frowned, deliberately lowering his voice to conceal the irritation beneath it. “Now isn’t the time. Keep moving.”
“Senior…” Ye Chengcheng rubbed her aching feet, looking aggrieved.
Suppressing the anger in his heart, Ji Renlin forced his voice to soften.
“Chengcheng.” He looked at her gently. “Don’t blame Xiao Guang. This is his first field training. There are still many things he doesn’t understand.”
“Then why is he the captain?” Ye Chengcheng became even angrier.
“Chengcheng, you know how Xiao Guang is…” Ji Renlin trailed off, looking lonely and dejected.
“Please, for my sake… don’t make things difficult for Xiao Guang.”
“Senior…” Looking at Ji Renlin, Ye Chengcheng’s heart ached for him, while her hatred toward Lian Qiguang deepened even further.
“Let’s go.” Ji Renlin forced a reluctant smile. “The forest is very dangerous at night.”
“Okay!” Ye Chengcheng nodded quickly and hurried after them, determined not to trouble Ji Renlin any further. Yet every glance she cast at Lian Qiguang’s back was filled with venom.
“I really want to rip them apart.” Qing Yi ground her teeth as she looked meaningfully at the dense canopy overhead.
“They’re all insane. Just stay away from them.” Feng Qingyang patted her shoulder sympathetically.
“Be careful.”
Lian Qiguang’s calm voice interrupted their banter.
Drawing Qianming, he lowered his stance slightly like a wolf preparing to pounce, his expression unreadable as he watched the darkness around them.
Beside him, Qiu Limo remained with his arms folded, but the wind had already begun swirling around him. His black coat fluttered faintly, radiating killing intent.
Seeing the two of them instantly enter battle stance, Qing Yi’s group wasted no time and immediately became alert.
“Hey, trash!” Ye Chengcheng ignored the tense atmosphere completely. “Didn’t you say we were leaving? Why’d you stop? What, are you tired too?”
Ji Renlin watched Lian Qiguang and Qiu Limo, his brows knitting together as water-element energy slowly gathered in his hand.
“Xiao Guang,” Ji Renlin asked softly as he approached, “did you discover something?”
Lian Qiguang ignored him entirely and looked toward Qiu Limo.
Receiving the signal, Qiu Limo nodded slightly.
The wind gathering around him grew stronger and stronger, gradually forming a vortex that enveloped his body.
“Trash! I’m talking to you!” Furious that Lian Qiguang ignored her, Ye Chengcheng stormed forward.
Suddenly, Qiu Limo raised his head.
A sharp glint flashed through his black eyes.
The vortex surrounding him exploded into thousands of wind blades that shot in every direction.
“AHHHHHH!”
The incoming blades terrified Ye Chengcheng. Forgetting all dignity, she hugged her head and rolled across the ground.
The blades vanished silently into the surrounding darkness.
Qing Yi’s group exchanged bewildered looks.
“Trash!” Ye Chengcheng scrambled to her feet in a miserable state, pointing accusingly at Lian Qiguang. “You did that on purpose!”
“Chengcheng!” Ji Renlin frowned, secretly regretting ever bringing this idiot along. Not only was she useless, she caused trouble everywhere she went.
“Senior!” She looked at him with tearful grievance before glaring hatefully at Lian Qiguang. “It’s all because of them! They’re always picking on me! I think they’re trying to kill me!”
At those last words, Lian Qiguang, who had ignored her until now, turned his head slightly.
The blocked gears in his mind suddenly clicked into place.
She actually guessed right.
“Get down.”
Qiu Limo spoke coldly.
He grabbed Lian Qiguang by the shoulder.
A chill flashed through Lian Qiguang’s eyes. Twisting his arm, he drove his elbow hard into Qiu Limo’s chest.
Qiu Limo let out a muffled grunt but didn’t let go.
Instead, he forced Lian Qiguang down with him.
At that very instant—
Countless thick green vines burst from every direction.
Each vine was as thick as an adult’s wrist, its surface covered with uneven bumps and coated in sticky slime.
“Get down!”
“Fatty! Watch out!”
…
The sudden appearance of the vines instantly threw everyone into chaos.
“AAAAAHHH!”
The scream came from none other than Ye Chengcheng.
A thick vine had wrapped tightly around her body and hoisted her into the air.
The constricting vine squeezed harder and harder, making it difficult for her to breathe. Her face quickly turned pale blue.
Slash!
A wind blade cleanly severed three incoming vines.
Qiu Limo stood firmly before Lian Qiguang, protecting him within the safe zone behind him.
Qing Yi continuously hurled fireballs. Though they weren’t especially effective, they were enough to keep the vines from approaching her.
“It’s Ghost Vines!” Zhang Qi shouted after burning away another attacking vine.
“Senior! Save me! Senior!” Suspended helplessly by the vines, Ye Chengcheng screamed hysterically.
Ji Renlin cursed inwardly.
He had originally wanted this stupid woman to simply die.
But with everyone’s eyes on him—and the academy’s surveillance recording everything—he could only suppress both his annoyance and disgust, pretending to fight desperately.
“Chengcheng! Use your ability! Cut the vine!”
“No! Senior! I’m scared!” Ye Chengcheng burst into tears.
Idiot.
A vicious gleam flashed through Ji Renlin’s eyes.
“Don’t be afraid, Chengcheng.” After “struggling” to cut through another vine, he forced a reassuring smile. “Didn’t you do very well during academy training? Come on. You can do it. I believe in you.”
“But… the academy didn’t have monsters like this!” Looking at the constantly wriggling, slime-covered vines wrapped around her, Ye Chengcheng nearly vomited.
“Idiot!”
Driven to the brink by her endless screaming, Qing Yi rolled away from another attack and roared impatiently,
“Just pretend it’s one of the academy practice targets! If you keep babbling, I’ll kill you myself!”
A practice target…
Through tear-filled eyes, Ye Chengcheng stared at the vine wrapped around her.
Grinding her teeth, she shut her eyes tightly.
Gathering earth-element energy, she condensed the soil into a blade.
With a desperate swing, she slashed downward.
Splurt!
Sticky fluid splashed all over her face.
The vine loosened instantly.
Her body dropped.
“AAAAAHHH! Help!”
Seeing Ye Chengcheng falling, Ji Renlin felt only disgust.
He let out a frantic shout and reached toward her—but a vine conveniently “entangled” him, preventing him from moving.
All he could do was watch as she crashed heavily onto the ground and lost consciousness.
“Let go.”
Looking at the hand gripping his shoulder, Lian Qiguang spoke expressionlessly.
With a wave of his hand, Qiu Limo’s wind blades sliced through another cluster of writhing vines.
Meeting Lian Qiguang’s calm gaze, he silently released him.
“This won’t work!” Zuo Jing rushed to the unconscious Ye Chengcheng’s side, continuously launching ice blades to fend off the surrounding vines.
“Ghost Vines can only be killed by destroying their main root! Otherwise they’ll never die! With how fast they regenerate, we’ll all collapse from exhaustion sooner or later!”
“You all stay here.”
“I’m going to find the main root.”
Without waiting for objections, Lian Qiguang leaped into the darkness.
His small figure darted effortlessly between the trees like a nimble wildcat.
Everywhere he passed, a pale green glow spread around him.
The green vines it touched withered instantly and never regenerated.
Watching the scene unfold, everyone stared in stunned disbelief.
Is an S-rank wood ability really this powerful?
Watching Lian Qiguang’s departing figure, ambition blazed within Ji Renlin’s eyes, mixed with fierce determination.
Once Lian Qiguang becomes my partner…
With his power supporting me…
What could possibly remain beyond my reach?
At that point…
What would the Ji family amount to?