Chapter 184: City-wide Mobilization Order (1/2)

Chapter 184: City-wide Mobilization Order

Translator: YHEditor: Lis

Slightly surprised, Shi Xueman stared at the message tree.

She had no idea who Ai Hui was communicating with but didn’t pry. What astonished her was the message tree’s ability to communicate with someone who was outside of the city limits. Then again, this wasn’t some ordinary message tree but rather a specimen of the first generation.

Communication between Central Pine City and the outside world was nearly completely broken. The only message tree still fully active within the city was the one in the mayor’s residence. She had used it to communicate with her family after the outbreak of the blood disaster.

“May I use this message tree?” Shi Xueman suddenly asked.

Ai Hui waved his hand without looking and replied, “Go ahead.”

Shi Xueman found it laughable that a leaf from her own message tree was hanging on this one. Ai Hui would probably never guess that Shi Xueman was actually “a bad deal.”

A bad deal....

Shi Xueman’s amused expression became a grimace as she hung up a new leaf in place of the one she previously put up. She thought of her doting grandfather who must be racked with worry and came close to tears.

Reminding herself that she was much stronger than before, she kept her emotions in check and penned her message on the leaf.

Just as she finished writing, the dean flew into the alley.

The dean was shocked to see the completely transformed yard that was littered with the corpses of blood ants. Even more remarkable was the team, especially Ai Hui. It had only been a few days since the dean last saw him, yet already seven palaces were activated!

Was Ai Hui a genius that he had overlooked?

The dean was flabbergasted. In all his years as dean, he had never once met such a freak.

“Seems like the fight went well. And to think I was worried about your safety. Hmm, weren’t there more of you?” the dean asked as he noted the numbers that didn’t add up. He recalled Shi Xueman’s group had more members than just herself and Sang Zhijun.

“The blood ants….” Sang Zhijun replied in a sad tone.

Shi Xueman’s eyes were slightly bloodshot while Duanmu Huanghun quietly looked down.

Ai Hui stared fixedly at them. These guys had some top-notch acting skills…. Even someone as dumb as the ingrate could perform so well!

No matter their incompetence or mediocrity, pretense was indeed the natural ability of the younger generations of influential families. In the harsh and backstabbing world of the rich and influential, pretense was essential for survival.

Those at the top of the families existed above all other authority and rules, free to act as they pleased. But before they could reach such a level, the younger members could not escape the shackles of their environment.

The dean sighed deeply. A quick survey of the piles of blood ant corpses littering the ground was enough for him to visualize the bitter fight that must have taken place. Fortunately, Duanmu Huanghun and Shi Xueman were safe and sound…. The number of deaths he had witnessed had served to numb his emotions. After seeing a number of powerful teachers fall before him, what were a few students’ deaths?

Was he going to survive this catastrophe? The dean was deeply pessimistic of his chances.

He equally doubted their chances of surviving until reinforcements arrived.

But still he did not forget his duty as the dean. No matter his pessimism, he could not pass that feeling on to the students. The dean began to encourage and console them, “Let’s all perk up and not let our imaginations run wild. There are still battles to be fought.”

“How is the situation within the city?” Shi Xueman took the initiative to ask.

The dean hesitated for a moment before deciding not to sugarcoat it. “The situation is terrible. We have lost control of almost one-third of our land. What’s worse is that the blood ants have started to transform.”

“Transform?” Ai Hui and Duanmu Huanghun asked in unison.

“Yes, we suspect that elemental energy is what’s driving the blood fiends’ transformation.”

Ai Hui slightly trembled after hearing this. He understood more than his peers about the blood fiends. Back in the Garden of Life, he had drawn the same conclusions after observing their sensitivity to elemental energy. In other words, elemental energy was highly attractive to these blood fiends.

Blood of God; blood refinement; using elemental energy as food; transforming after devouring elementalists....

A chill ran up his spine. Was the Blood of God really trying to destroy the Avalon of Five Elements? Did they consider all other elementalists as prey?

Noting the shock and concern on his allies’ faces, he realized that telling them all he knew about the blood disaster would only serve to frighten them further.

He decided to keep every last word about it to himself.

Would revealing his knowledge help them in escaping from Central Pine City? Would it help them survive this danger? No.

On the contrary, he would be opening Pandora’s Box if he told them any more. Even if he managed to get out of this alive, there would be no end to his troubles and likely face incarceration and repeated interrogations. And since the higher-ups would not be satisfied with answers obtained via gentle questioning, they would definitely turn to crueler methods of torture to ease their worries.

Even if he somehow managed to survive all of that and become a hero, the Blood of God would most certainly seek revenge on him.

Truthfully speaking, between the Blood of God and the Avalon of Five Elements, Ai Hui regarded the former more highly. Despite their weak appearance, the plans they hatched were far beyond those of the Avalon of Five Elements. Even now, the Avalon of Five Elements had yet to fully comprehend the current situation.

When an underground organization with hundreds of years of deliberations finally decides to act, their preparations must surely be complete.