[Reboot Volume] Chapter 218: A Grave Situation!

“Ice Pillars!”

A ring of icy spikes formed around Mo Xing, crashing down to freeze the demonized figure before him—more precisely, the monster. Yet, to his dismay, the black smoke began dissolving the ice pillars. The corrupted creature lunged forward again. Mo Xing quickly embraced Li Xiangcao and unleashed “Coldwater Spiral Storm” to create some distance.

The darkened beast attempted to charge once more but was suddenly restrained by a magnetic force, pinned in place. Turning around, Mo Xing saw Teachers Tianqi and Longlian stepping onto the arena to assist.

The crowd erupted into a commotion.

“What... what’s going on?”

“Why is that person emitting black smoke?”

“Even the mentors have joined the fight!”

“What happened here?”

A roar echoed from the corrupted monster, black smoke billowing from its mouth, defying the magnetic restraints.

“Rage Burst!”

Longlian, wielding a ruler, summoned fiery elements around him. Charging his ruler, he unleashed six streaks of azure flames into the air. The black smoke ignited, shrieking in terror.

“Ion Shield!”

Teacher Tianqi raised a cannon, firing a beam of ion energy that instantly formed a shield sphere of ions, encapsulating the burning smoke.

But the black smoke refused to be subdued, relentlessly battering against the ion shield.

“Mo Xing! Use your power to pin the black smoke in place!” Longlian shouted.

“Got it!” Mo Xing released Li Xiangcao and brandished his twin swords, invoking “Coldwater Grasp” to hold the ion shield steady.

Within the ion barrier, the burning black smoke revealed a ferocious visage, emitting a chilling howl:

“Our king, Karendis—”

Suddenly, thunder rumbled across the night sky. As the black smoke was consumed by the azure flames, it left behind a final ominous declaration:

“—will inevitably return!”

...

Watching the black smoke engulfed by the blue fire within the ion shield, Teachers Tianqi and Longlian finally exhaled in relief.

“So, what exactly was that black smoke?” Mo Xing approached and asked.

“A product of forbidden drugs,” Tianqi answered gravely.

“Forbidden drugs?” Mo Xing frowned in confusion.

“One of the seven forbidden concoctions developed by the Dark Sect that worships the Black Dragon God Karendis,” Longlian added. “It contains the pale green compound known as GUMI, which induces instantaneous rage.”

“Huh? What was that called?” Mo Xing asked, having missed the specific term as Longlian spoke too quickly.

“You’ll learn about it in your theory classes later,” Longlian said. “You two should step down from the arena first. The professionals will handle this.”

As his voice trailed off, an announcement crackled over the loudspeaker.

“This is the campus tournament broadcast. Today’s freshman assessment matches have concluded. Thank you to all spectators and special guests for attending. Please exit in an orderly fashion without lingering, as staff need to clear the arena.”

The audience stirred again.

“What was that black smoke exactly?”

“What happened on the arena just now?”

“Sounds like someone used forbidden drugs!”

“What? You mean that berserker?”

“Hey, don’t block the way! We’re leaving!”

“Everything will be reported in the school newspaper,” someone said.

“Hurry up, aren’t you going back?”

...

Mo Xing watched as many mentors and staff gathered around the arena, discussing the black smoke incident.

A freshman carrying forbidden drugs from the Dark Sect was certainly puzzling. Ordinarily, such villains would conceal themselves deeply, never slipping up. This freshman was likely a mere pawn; the true mastermind probably still lurked somewhere within the campus.

No wonder the soul entity Kaixin inside him had warned him to be vigilant of those around him. The Dragon God's perception was indeed formidable.

...

“Idol! Idol!”

Mo Xing snapped back to reality and saw Li Xiangcao waving at him.

“Uh, what is it?” Mo Xing asked.

“Well... what was that black smoke about?” Li Xiangcao inquired.

“I’m not entirely sure either. Let the teachers handle it; they’ll explain later,” Mo Xing replied.

“Okay... okay.” Li Xiangcao pouted. “By the way, my brother was supposed to pick me up, but he hasn’t shown up after waiting so long.”

“Mo Xing—”

Before Mo Xing could ask who her brother was, a familiar voice called out. Turning around, he saw Senior Brother Cai Hong running toward him.

“Senior Brother Cai Hong?”

“I had planned to come watch your freshman practical exam with Mianhua today, but I finished watching your match in the stands, and he never showed,” Cai Hong said.

“Maybe he couldn’t find the seat?” Mo Xing suggested.

“No way! I reserved two of the easiest-to-remember seats: one in Section Six, Row Six, Seat Five, and right beside me is Seat Six-Six-Six,” Cai Hong explained. “After sending you to the exam, I bought a bunch of snacks and came early to save the spots.”

“Maybe something came up, or he overslept during his weekend nap in the dorm,” Mo Xing said, though he found the idea of sleeping so late a bit exaggerated.

“That’s just asking for a beating,” Cai Hong shook his head, noticing Li Xiangcao watching them quietly.

“Who’s this girl next to you?”

“Uh, she’s my—” Mo Xing began.

“I’m his number one fan!” Li Xiangcao interrupted eagerly. “I really like him!”

“Oh, I see,” Cai Hong nodded and leaned close to Mo Xing, whispering, “You’ve got quite the charm with the ladies, huh?”

“No, no! Absolutely not!” Mo Xing blushed and quickly denied.

“The idol saved me twice just now and even signed my sleeve. He’s super nice!” Li Xiangcao showed off the signature on her sleeve, her face lighting up with a happy dimple.

“Interesting, a love triangle then. You’re chasing after little sister Shiyan, and another girl’s chasing you,” Cai Hong chuckled.

“Senior Brother, don’t say nonsense!” Mo Xing paused, then suddenly realized something. “Right! I need to visit Shiyan at the hospital!”

Before he finished, Mo Xing dashed toward the exit.

“Hey, wait for me!” Cai Hong turned to Li Xiangcao and said, “Sorry, he’s got a lot going on. We’ll head out first!”

With that, Cai Hong hurried after Mo Xing.

“The idol is like a hero, helping me with this exam and now rushing off to save others,” Li Xiangcao said, beaming with happiness.

...

“Li Xiangcao, you should head back to the dorm. Staff need to deal with the scene here,” a voice called out.

“Teacher Su?” Li Xiangcao turned to see Teacher Su standing behind her, a gentle smile on his face. Even in the night, he radiated a subtle warmth like sunshine.

“But... my brother hasn’t come to pick me up,” Li Xiangcao said.

“He has something to attend to tonight and can’t come. Take this oil-paper umbrella and head back yourself,” Teacher Su handed her a patterned oil-paper umbrella.

“Is he on a mission?” Li Xiangcao accepted the umbrella thoughtfully.

She and her brother had grown up at Twin Moon Cliff but lost their family in a war when they were seven. Since that day, her brother vowed to become stronger.

Teacher Su, an old acquaintance, recommended they study at the Royal Sanctum Academy and personally taught them. Due to her age, she only recently qualified for enrollment. Teacher Su had been instructing the practical classes this past week, and her brother usually accompanied her back to the dorm.

Her brother, as Teacher Su’s student, had reached the Blue Depths rank, granting him priority in many missions. He was ambitious and often took on school assignments to earn credits and scholarships.

“Yes, he has a mission tonight,” Teacher Su smiled. “You’re growing up now; some paths you’ll have to walk alone.”

“Okay, Teacher Su, I’ll go now!”

Li Xiangcao opened the oil-paper umbrella and hopped away.

Teacher Su watched her disappear into the distance, shaking his head. What he really meant was:

“Your brother may never have the chance to escort you back again.”

...

Rain pelted down in a relentless torrent, blanketing the road in white.

Mo Xing wrapped his coat around his head and hurried through the rain, finally arriving at the campus hospital entrance.

Inside the hospital lobby, many queued at the registration desk. Nearby, a nurse pushed a cart laden with medicines and vials, busily attending to things alongside the overhead call announcements.

Mo Xing sneezed, still damp from the rain and slightly chilled. He suddenly realized he didn’t know which room Shiyan was in.

Scanning around, he spotted a figure holding an umbrella in the rainy night.

“Told you to wait for me. I even had an umbrella,” Senior Brother Cai Hong said, entering the lobby and storing the umbrella in his storage ring. “But you dashed off, and I was shouting your name while chasing after you, yet you never looked back.”

“Sorry, Senior Brother,” Mo Xing scratched the back of his head. “The rain was too loud; I just couldn’t hear.”

“I figured you were worried about Shiyan,” Cai Hong smiled. “By the way, how did your little sister Shiyan end up in the hospital all of a sudden?”

“I heard from the student council earlier that Shiyan was poisoned and sent here,” Mo Xing said. “But I don’t know which ward she’s in.”

“Got it,” Cai Hong patted his chest. “This kind of thing is easy. Leave it to me!”

...

Five minutes later.

On the third-floor corridor of the campus hospital.

“Senior Brother Cai is amazing, finding the room so quickly,” Mo Xing said.

“No big deal,” Cai Hong chuckled. “I’ve got connections here. I know a few friends in the hospital. Just asked around a bit.”

They walked to the end of the corridor and saw Chen Anye and several student council members sitting on chairs, their expressions grim.

An inexplicable sense of unease radiated from their direction...