Chapter Ninety-Three: I Have Come to Bring You Your Little Sister! (Part Two)

At the very first glance of Viss, Catherine wanted to laugh. But because the woman before her was the Archmage she most revered, she forced herself to hold it in with all her might. Ling Mo, however, had no such scruples. He snorted out a laugh, then burst into unrestrained, merciless laughter.

There was simply no helping it. Viss was dressed in a way that was far too comical. She wore a pure black mage robe that covered her from neck to heel, cut in a sacklike shape, with childish stars, moons, and what looked suspiciously like a crooked hexagram magic circle drawn across it, as though by a grade school child. The hat on her head was black as well, a towering pointed mage’s hat with a wide brim. The funniest part was the round sun painted on the front, done at the level of a kindergartener doodling on a chalkboard. The huge sun had even been colored bright red with crayons, perched on her head like a tomato, so eye-catching it was almost painful to look at.

Seeing Ling Mo laugh until he could barely breathe, Viss, within the luminous screen, looked extremely embarrassed as well. She clearly knew how ridiculous her outfit was. She awkwardly gathered her robe together, trying to use the folds of the cloth to cover the stars and moons and whatever else, but because her chest was too large, it only pushed the fabric upward and made the attempt fail.

When Ling Mo finally managed to stop laughing, he thumped his chest to catch his breath and asked, "Viss, are you dressed like this to cosplay as a medieval church wizard? I don’t often enter modern society, but even I know this getup has been obsolete for ages, right?"

"Don’t say any more! I know this outfit is shameful enough as it is!" Viss’s face was faintly red. She struggled to fix her expression, trying to look a little fiercer. But though she was a grand Archmage, her aura was simply too much like that of a girl next door, leaving not a trace of awe in anyone’s heart. Seeing that she could not intimidate Ling Mo, she could only sigh helplessly and say, "Mr. Ling... no, Teacher Ling, please stop laughing. As promised, I’ve brought you my younger sister so she can study martial arts under you."

"Just call me Mr. Ling. It feels odd enough already to have an Archmage calling me Teacher Ling," Ling Mo said, waving a hand toward the screen. "How did this happen so quickly? It hasn’t even been a few hours, has it? Is your sister really that obedient? She agreed to come to the Beast Rainforest and live like a savage in such a short time? You really do command respect as an older sister!"

"No, she didn’t agree. As soon as she heard she was going to suffer in the rainforest, she immediately started crying and making a scene, refusing to go," Viss said, shaking her head. Then a smile appeared on her face. "But I certainly wouldn’t take her wishes into account for something like this. In a moment, I’ll just tie her up and send her over to you by force."

"...That violent? You really are excellent at selling out your own sister."

"I’m ashamed. I’ve only done a tiny bit of work," Viss said modestly at first, but then her expression became serious. "Still, there are a few things I need to discuss with you in advance. My sister doesn’t have much magical talent, and her mental power is weak, but she is a powerful alchemist and carries all sorts of bizarre things on her person. Her combat ability is not insignificant. I watched the livestream, and although I know you are extremely powerful, Teacher Ling, you still mustn’t be careless. If she slips through your fingers and escapes by accident, I’m afraid it will reflect very badly on you..."

Ling Mo smiled with lofty confidence. "In this rainforest, no one can escape my grasp! I’ll even allow her to run first."

"..." Viss couldn’t quite follow Ling Mo’s line of thought, but she did not continue on that subject. Instead, she went on, "Everything has already been arranged. Once I send my sister over, I and the 'Council of Archmages' to which I belong will issue a statement to the entire continent confirming that my sister has gone to study martial arts under you. At the latest by tomorrow morning, the governments of every country and all the major media outlets will publicize the news. I believe this will be of great help to you in promoting martial arts. At the same time, I also ask that you teach her carefully, so she can gain as much personal strength as possible. After all, no matter how marvelous an alchemical creation may be, it is still something external in the end."

"Relax. If I teach your sister well, then with her as a billboard, won’t my martial arts be even easier to promote?" Ling Mo agreed readily. "As for the rest, we’ll do as you said. Are you going to send her over now?"

"Yes. I’ve already observed the environment around you, and it’s very suitable for transcendent spatial transfer," Viss said. Turning and walking backward, she revealed the true form of a complicated magic circle behind her. Layer upon layer of magical runes and formations interwove there, dizzying to look at. Standing at the center of the circle, Viss touched several key nodes with her fingers. Seeing the magic circle begin to glow faintly, she let out a breath of relief and turned back to Ling Mo. "I will use you as the transfer point. Please do not move from where you are."

Ling Mo nodded, then suddenly asked, "Earlier, when my disciple transferred over a magic-eye spirit about the size of a fist, it cost more than seventy thousand gold coins. If you transfer a living person over like this, how much would it cost?"

Viss blinked. "The magical power I expend is all mobilized by myself. I only borrowed a coordinate from the Sky Net, so it should only charge a handling fee, right? Why do you ask?"

"Just curious."

"Oh." Viss nodded. Then her long green hair began to drift without any wind, and her substantial mental power condensed into specks of starlight that fell from the tips of her hair onto the magic circle beneath her feet, causing every delicate line in the array to light up. Amid the ever-brightening radiance, Viss suddenly remembered something and hurriedly said to Ling Mo, "I almost forgot, Teacher Ling. My younger sister’s name is Vyn."

Before Ling Mo could answer, she slowly knelt at the very center of the array, pulled out from nowhere a length of rope gleaming with orange light, and under the bizarre gazes of Ling Mo and Catherine, set to work tying herself up with great vigor.

Her technique was practiced, and with the help of mental power, it took only a few seconds for her to bind herself until she could not move at all. Even her kneeling posture was no longer sustainable, and she tipped over onto her side. Being tightly bound was one thing, but what was even rarer was how ornate the binding looked: her legs were slightly bent, her hands tied behind her back, and the knot at her chest was even made into a bow. Her entire body took on a strikingly voluptuous silhouette, with an unexpected artistic flair. Finally, she used mental power to tear off two strips of adhesive tape and slapped them over her mouth in an X.

What in the world was this supposed to be? What happened to your sister?!

Ling Mo and Catherine stared, dumbfounded and utterly baffled, before either of them could ask anything, when the magic circle on the ground erupted with an incomparably brilliant white light, completely enveloping the bound Viss. Then, just like that, Viss disappeared from the screen, and on the stone before Ling Mo and Catherine there appeared a writhing little caterpillar.

Ling Mo took two steps forward and looked down from above at the tightly bound "caterpillar." The girl trapped within the ropes had her delicate brows raised in anger, tears glimmering in her eyes. Seeing Ling Mo approach, she lifted her head to meet his gaze, while beneath the tape sealing her mouth, she desperately tried to make muffled cries of protest.