novelraw Chapter 326: The Agreement
Chapter 326: The Agreement
Su Zhan silently shook his head in his heart.
If they only knew how he had spent these past two-plus years...
How he had survived for over a year in the Mist World and returned to Blue Star...
How, in the Uninhabited Zone of the northwestern Gobi, like a wild man, risking discovery by the Transcendence Society time and again, he summoned the Mist and fought all sorts of bizarre Mist Creatures, all just to absorb that little bit of Life Essence.
If they knew how he had spent each day in hiding and evasion.
How he had disguised himself and begged like a rat in the gutter.
How he had constantly been on guard against the pursuit of the Aberrant Purge Division and the Transcendence Society.
How he had struggled to survive in despair...
This kind of shortcut...
This kind of luck...Would you... really want it?
Su Zhan pushed these thoughts back into the depths of his heart, maintaining that faint smile on his face.
Liu Ziming got excited on his own and began to fantasize: "Hey, if we could have Captain Su's rate of improvement, wouldn't we be able to walk sideways? By then, no matter if it's Qin Bai or the Transcendence Society, we'd flatten them all!"
Xu Hao helplessly reminded him: "Ziming, watch your words. We're still in Black City, and our situation isn't safe."
Feng Jue also shot Liu Ziming a cold glance, making him instantly rein himself in considerably.
The gloom in Su Zhan's heart seemed to lighten a bit.
At least at this moment, in this shabby yet safe rental room, he was no longer alone.
Su Zhan showed a concerned expression: "Teacher Wang... how has he been these years?"
"Hey, Teacher Wang is doing great."
Liu Ziming rushed to answer, his face animated: "He's just busier than before. You have no idea, he's now Dean Ye Hongyu's chief secretary.
Tsk tsk, that's a genuine deputy to the dean, with real authority!
You know Dean Ye's personality—spirited and direct, with zero patience for trivial administrative work.
Now it's great, she just dumps a huge pile of matters on Teacher Wang.
Last time I went back to the academy to submit a report, passing by the dean's office building, wow, I saw the light in Teacher Wang's office on until the wee hours, documents piled on his desk like a small mountain."
Liu Ziming imitated Ye Hongyu's tone, waving a hand grandly: "Mingyuan, just handle these documents as you see fit. Grasp the principles, you decide the details!
And then our Dean Ye would just disappear to who-knows-where.
Hahahaha!"
He laughed heartlessly.
Xu Hao, however, shook his head and added helplessly: "Ziming exaggerated a bit, but Teacher Wang is indeed extremely busy.
Many of the academy's affairs, big and small, need his review, coordination, and proposals first.
Dean Ye sets the major direction, and Teacher Wang is the key person ensuring that direction can be implemented on the ground. It's not easy."
Feng Jue commented: "Teacher Wang carries a heavy burden."
Su Zhan listened quietly, his mind conjuring an image of Teacher Wang Mingyuan wearing gold-rimmed glasses, bent over his desk under a lamp, writing swiftly, sometimes frowning in thought, sometimes communicating gently with various parties.
He could imagine the weight of that work.
Teacher... still got pulled into the academy's administrative affairs.
Su Zhan felt somewhat complicated inside.
He knew Wang Mingyuan's ambition lay in teaching students and that he might not enjoy these complicated administrative tasks, but given Teacher Wang's capabilities, since he had taken it on, he would definitely do his best.
"Dean Ye... sure knows how to slack off."
Su Zhan's tone was teasing.
He remembered that energetic and decisive dean of Vermilion Bird Academy.
"Exactly!"
Liu Ziming immediately agreed: "But having said that, Dean Ye has sharp eyes, being able to dig out a treasure like Teacher Wang to take the front line.
With Teacher Wang handling daily operations, the academy has actually run more smoothly these past few years than before."
Xu Hao nodded: "Mm, although Teacher Wang is very busy, the academy's teaching quality and order have indeed improved a lot, with many details handled better."
Even though Su Zhan could no longer return, knowing that everything there was generally well gave him a sliver of comfort.
Liu Ziming stopped scratching his head, his voice lowering: "Captain Su, what are your plans next...? You can't... just keep holed up in this little broken room forever, right?"
He looked around the dim, dilapidated rental room. The thought of Su Zhan possibly having to hide long-term in such a place made his heart feel stifled.
Su Zhan's gaze slowly swept over his three close friends, taking in their concern.
He tugged the corner of his mouth, revealing a smile that wasn't exactly relaxed:
"Black City is where I'll be staying next. This place is a mix of fish and dragons, with its own rules. For me now, it's actually the safest sanctuary.
I need to establish a foothold here, look for opportunities, and improve my strength.
The outside world... I can't go back.
The academy is even more impossible."
Feng Jue and the other two understood clearly that from the moment Su Zhan's Aberrant identity was exposed, or rather, from the moment he chose to save them in that way, that path back into the sunlight had been completely severed.
The clear sound of reading in the academy, the sweat shed on the training grounds, those once-shared daily routines had all become an unreachable past.
Deep in Feng Jue's eyes was complexity: "We will stay at the academy."
Xu Hao took over: "The academy can provide us with the systematic resources, guidance, and relatively stable growth environment we most need at this stage.
We must use all of that to become stronger as quickly as possible."
His gaze met Liu Ziming's and Feng Jue's. In the eyes of all three was identical determination.
They needed power, not just for themselves, but for the ability to change something, someday in the future.
Liu Ziming lifted his head, his eyes slightly red: "Captain Su, don't worry. Your secret, your matter, the three of us will absolutely keep it buried in our guts! We'd rather die than utter half a word! I, Liu Ziming, swear to heaven! If..."
"Enough."
Su Zhan gently interrupted him: "No need to swear. I believe you."
All guarantees seemed superfluous at this moment.
Feng Jue and the others didn't seem to be in a good mood.
They all knew that this brief reunion after narrowly escaping death was like stolen time and would soon end.
They were about to part ways again, heading toward completely different paths.
"Black City is my battlefield. I will survive here, survive at all costs, and then become stronger, strong enough to control my own destiny!"
Su Zhan's eyes were filled with defiance as his gaze fell on each of their three faces in turn.
That gaze held entrustment and expectation: "You at the academy must cultivate well too. Don't fall too far behind me."
This wasn't boasting, but a kind of motivation, a kind of promise.
Liu Ziming nodded vigorously, flames of inspiration burning in his eyes: "Absolutely! Captain, you make a big name for yourself in Black City, and we absolutely cannot slack off at the academy.
When we all become top-tier powerhouses who can make the earth tremble with a stomp, let's see who would dare force us to hide and skulk like we do now, even having to meet secretly!"
Xu Hao nodded silently, his gaze firm.
Feng Jue uttered two words with extreme gravity: "Promise."
They had chosen different paths.
One hidden in the chaotic darkness, fighting and growing amidst blood and crisis.
Three walking within the ivory tower of light, accumulating strength within order.
All for the same distant yet inevitable destination.
Possessing power sufficient to contend with the entire world.
Until that day when they could stand side by side under the sun again, without needing to hide or have any reservations.
The temporary separation was for a more powerful reunion in the future.