Chen Shu had barely arrived at the battlefield before a single act from him left the Dragon Guards crying bloody murder.
"Hold the line! There's only the one Silver Lord -- wait for Wang Xuanyang to come back as reinforcement!"
Another Dragon Guard spoke up. "Also, what the fuck kind of metaphor was that?! I am NOT a piece of shit!"
The two Dragon Guards fought side by side, holding the line. Their mission was simple: keep the beast horde from breaking out of the mountain range.
If the two of them had only needed to face the Silver Lord alone, they would've had a real shot at winning.
Unfortunately, there were several hundred Black Iron-rank underlings below, and that kind of firepower couldn't just be ignored.
While the two sides were locked in their grinding battle, Chen Shu and Fang Si had already slipped successfully into the mountains.
...
"Chen Pi, are you deliberately trying to get me fired?"
Fang Si rubbed her forehead. She'd known from the start that bringing Chen Shu along was a mistake.
"Sis Fang Si, hear me out -- let me... rationalize-- I mean, explain."
Chen Shu cleared his throat. "That Silver Lord? One look and you can tell it's incredibly cunning. The fight might look evenly matched on the surface, but it's definitely scheming something."
"By igniting the beast horde's fury now, I disrupted its plan ahead of schedule!"
"Everything is under my control!"
Chen Shu spoke with complete righteousness and ironclad logic, utterly unassailable!
Fang Si's eyes held a scrutinizing look. "Really? That's why you provoked the entire beast horde?"
"Of course!"
Chen Shu nodded, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
But internally, he was already drafting his next boast:
A Rank 9 Slime, relying on nothing but sheer might, proactively challenged the Silver Lord -- the two battled for eight hundred rounds before it coolly and calmly emerged unscathed!
The two of them looked down from above the peaks. Below, trees had been toppled flat, clear evidence that a beast horde had steamrolled through.
The Mutant Thunderbird followed the trail of destruction all the way deep into the mountain forest.
Deep in the forest, a dense fog hung over everything, making it impossible to see what lay within.
The fog was the telltale signature of a Space Corridor.
Dragon Guard Wang Xuanyang stood atop an all-gold bird, his gaze fixed on the fog ahead.
ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!
Terrifying bellows echoed from inside the fog. Clearly, fierce beasts were continuously arriving on Blue Star.
A young man couldn't help but ask, "Brother Wang, Fang Si still isn't here yet?"
Wang Xuanyang's expression was grave. "Hold on a bit longer. She should be here soon!"
Just then, a young man standing atop a Black Giant Eagle, wearing black-framed glasses, spoke up.
"The genius of Huaxia Academy... wouldn't be scared, would she?"
He was a prodigy from Magic City Academy. It wasn't quite on the level of Huaxia Academy, but it was still one of the nation's top-tier Beast Taming universities.
Qin Chuan spoke up. "Xue Ziming, you'd better watch your mouth!"
He was from Huaxia Academy. And Fang Si's intimidation factor was no joke.
If this guy kept provoking her like that, he was going to get the living shit beaten out of him today.
Xue Ziming shook his head and laughed. "Come on, Qin Chuan -- you've got a Super S-rank contract spirit. Are you really that afraid of her?"
A Super S-rank contract spirit was an S-rank spirit that had undergone one bloodline evolution. It couldn't match SS-rank, but it was a clear step above ordinary S-rank -- the same tier as Fang Si's Scarlet Flame Dragon.
Qin Chuan sighed. "People are different..."
There were plenty of S-rank contract spirit owners at Huaxia Academy. But how many of them hadn't been beaten up by Fang Si?
"Enough! Quit talking! Focus on holding back the beasts!"
Wang Xuanyang cut in, his eyes locked dead ahead on the fog.
Once the beast numbers built up past a certain threshold, they'd come surging out of the fog. That was when the group would strike and wipe them out.
So far, the three of them had already eliminated three waves of beasts.
Just as they waited, a Mutant Thunderbird descended from above, its butt waggling as it landed.
"Fang Si, you made it?"
Wang Xuanyang let out a breath of relief. With three of them working together, they could at least hold back the Beast Tide for now.
He needed to go reinforce the other two Dragon Guards. Only by taking out the Silver Lord first could they devote their full strength to suppressing the Space Corridor.
But the moment his gaze landed on the person beside Fang Si, his expression jolted.
"Holy shit, it's YOU?!"
Chen Shu had also spotted Wang Xuanyang. One eyebrow went up. "You owe me ten million -- when are you paying up?"
"???"
Wang Xuanyang's eyes bulged. When the fuck did I ever owe you money?!
Chen Shu spoke with complete righteousness and ironclad logic. "Last time, I killed the Iron-Wing Beast Lord for you, and you never paid!"
Fang Si frantically tugged at Chen Shu's sleeve. "Stop talking, please!"
The corner of Wang Xuanyang's mouth twitched. He felt like his brain was short-circuiting.
What the fuck kind of world is this? A student is actually trying to extort a Dragon Guard?
"Sorry, sorry -- it's not ten million. I got the number wrong..."
Chen Shu suddenly shook his head, his face full of self-reproach and apology.
Wang Xuanyang spoke up. "And here I was actually thinking you had the balls--"
"It's eleven million now. I forgot to add the compound interest."
"..."
"..."
"..."
That single sentence plunged the entire scene into dead silence. Even the beast roars in the fog seemed to get quieter...
"What the fuck?! Extortion doesn't have to follow the rules now?!"[1]
Wang Xuanyang held it in for a long moment before finally squeezing out a response.
Not only was this kid extorting him, but the interest rate was insane. What was this, a loan shark operation?!
Everyone exchanged glances. Well... if it followed the rules, it wouldn't BE extortion...
"Kid, I can't be bothered with you! Fang Si -- you take them and hold this position. If anything happens, report immediately!"
Wang Xuanyang rubbed his forehead. He had zero desire to stand around and bicker with Chen Shu.
With that, he rode off on his golden bird. Though his contract spirit cut a magnificent figure, his retreating back somehow looked like he was in a sorry state.
Chen Shu shouted after him. "This is compound interest! I'm warning you -- pay up sooner rather than later!"
Wang Xuanyang stumbled mid-flight and nearly pitched right off the bird's back.
This fucking kid has gone TOO far!
He shot Chen Shu one last deep look. Boy, don't let me catch you breaking the law. Because the second I do, I'm arresting you personally!
What kind of bullshit was this? Owing ten million out of thin air?
"You really don't value your life, do you?"
Fang Si nudged Chen Shu, declaring it utterly absurd.
Chen Shu was already this terrifying as an apprentice-level Beast Tamer. If he actually made Black Iron, Silver, or even King rank...
Then there really wouldn't be a safe place left on all of Blue Star.
"So you're Fang Si? I hear you're quite strong. I'm a bit interested!"
Xue Ziming's gaze swept over, battle intent gleaming in his eyes.
When geniuses met, the competitive spirit was inevitable.
"Who the hell are you?"
Fang Si hadn't even opened her mouth yet before Chen Shu cut in.
Then his gaze drifted down to the Black Giant Eagle beneath Xue Ziming's feet, and he couldn't help swallowing. A hawk that size... wouldn't fit in a single pot...
"Wh... what?"
Xue Ziming stared blankly, having no clue what the guy was talking about.
ROAR!
At that moment, a ferocious howl echoed through the air, sounding like it was right on top of them.
"Watch out! Everyone guard your sector!"
Fang Si's expression turned serious. She ignored Xue Ziming entirely and shifted into combat-ready mode in an instant.
With Wang Xuanyang gone, she'd naturally taken over his position -- meaning she bore the heaviest pressure. That alone showed how much Wang Xuanyang trusted Fang Si's combat ability.
Chen Shu asked, "Sis Fang Si, what should I do?"
"Staying put is the most helpful thing you can do!"
Chen Shu had already recalled his Slime, and it needed a cooldown period before it could be summoned again.
"Also, do NOT use that potion!"
Fang Si added another reminder. That bomb's destructive power was massive.
The civilians' temporary evacuation camp wasn't too far away. If it detonated, there was a very real chance of collateral damage.
Besides, this was Blue Star. Who could accept having a nuclear crater where they lived?
"Oh..."
Chen Shu nodded with visible disappointment. Something felt a bit stifled inside him...