17: The gap between people

"It's a flare! There's an emergency!"

The Great Xia Spirit Guards, whom Guo Linshan had called undisciplined, moved in perfect unison at that moment. Their expressions became resolute as they waited for Guo Linshan's orders, even those in the reserve team.

But if one looked closely, they would notice one person was consistently half a beat slow, his face drenched in sweat.

"Reserve team, notify all students that the exam is over and gather at the formation entrance! Everyone else, follow me to North Sector 57!" Guo Linshan commanded loudly.

"Yes, sir!"

Everyone's movements were synchronized. The reserve team quickly detached from the group and scattered to find the students throughout the testing grounds.

Fortunately, they had a special way to track the students' locations: the Beast Tamer badges.

This was one of the reasons candidates were required to wear them.

The others followed Guo Linshan and rushed toward North Sector 57.

They were all Beast Tamers above level twenty. Although they couldn't fly yet, they had mastered the technique of Beast Spirit Armorization. With the boost from their beast taming armor, they increased their speed and quickly reached North Sector 57.

The first to arrive was naturally the strongest, Guo Linshan, who was flying in the air. At a glance, he saw Sun Hao lying on the ground along with two familiar figures beside him.

The two were Xu Yao and Wang Zi. All three looked somewhat disheveled. Sun Hao's arms were gone, and Wang Zi was holding a spent flare. Su Ze, however, was not there.

"Why is it you?! What happened here? Where is Su Ze?!" Guo Linshan frowned as he landed and began checking the fallen Sun Hao. Logically, the three of them shouldn't have split up.

Fortunately, although Sun Hao was in a miserable state having lost both arms, his life was preserved.

Xu Yao, still looking somewhat shaken, said, "Su Ze and we heard the sound of intense fighting nearby. When we rushed over, we saw a group of people in black clothes besieging this Spirit Guard brother."

By now, the other Great Xia Spirit Guards were arriving one after another. Listening to their account and seeing their companion's tragic state, their expressions were a mix of grief and determination.

"It must be those damn Fusang Dark Guards. They found some way to sneak in!"

Xu Yao continued, "Those people are very strong. The Spirit Guard brother was completely overwhelmed. We hid nearby and didn't dare make a sound."

"And it was as if those people knew exactly where he hid his flare; they struck it out of his arms before he could use it."

"But luckily, they seemed to be in a great hurry. After dealing a fatal blow from a distance, they turned and left immediately. Su Ze took that chance to jump in front of the Spirit Guard brother and used his beast's innate skill to block the aftershocks of the attack."

"The Spirit Guard brother was already heavily injured, but he forced himself to guide us in firing the flare. After that, Su Ze followed them alone..."

In reality, the scene at the time was far more brutal than Xu Yao described.

The men in black had not only accurately knocked away the hidden flare, but when they failed to kill Sun Hao instantly during the exchange, they decisively cut off his hands just in case.

Then, they left behind a continuous damage skill similar to a tornado blade, intending to let Sun Hao slowly bleed to death before they hurried away, as if they were racing against time.

Su Ze only appeared to block the remaining power of the skill as they were leaving; he wouldn't have been able to withstand the full force of it either.

Afterward, he used the Void Spirit Turtle's Minor Healing skill to do everything he could to treat Sun Hao's injuries, which was what saved his life.

Then, he told Xu Yao and the other to stay and wait for the Great Xia Spirit Guards while he headed toward the volcano alone, though it appeared as if he were chasing the Fusang Dark Guards.

Guo Linshan frowned deeply upon hearing this and said, "Nonsense! With his strength, what good could he do even if he caught up?!"

He thought Su Ze wanted to stop the Fusang Dark Guards alone. While moved by his spirit, he couldn't help but worry for Su Ze's safety.

"However, he does not fear sacrifice and is willing to be the first to face death. This kid is practically a born Great Xia Spirit Guard!"

Little did he know that Su Ze had simply found a convenient excuse to rush to the volcano to hatch his egg, hoping to avoid any complications.

Even Su Ze didn't know that his destination overlapped with that of the Fusang Dark Guards.

Xu Yao then added, "Oh, and if I saw correctly, a candidate named Lin He was captured by those men in black and taken with them."

"Lin He?" That name sounded familiar to Guo Linshan.

Someone nearby reminded him, "Detachment Commander, there is someone in the reserve team named Lin Jiang. He is Lin He's older brother."

"Lin Jiang... Lin He. It seems there's a logical explanation for how the enemy could act so decisively the moment we gathered and find exactly where we kept our flares!"

Clearly, he had guessed that Lin Jiang was compromised. As much as he had admired Su Ze just now, he now despised the Lin brothers.

But stopping the Fusang Dark Guards' plot was the priority. As for Lin Jiang, he would be dealt with by military law later!

"Hmph! Sometimes the gap between people is wider than the gap between humans and dogs!" Guo Linshan snorted coldly. "Even though we're currently at a disadvantage, they've made a huge mistake by taking a candidate with them!"

Sure enough, they immediately detected that Lin He's badge was moving rapidly and constantly approaching the volcano!

Guo Linshan also noticed that Su Ze's badge was likewise on the path from here to the volcano.

"I hope nothing happens to this kid..." Guo Linshan's admiration for Su Ze was growing, and he didn't want any accidents to befall him.

"Those Fusang bastards really are targeting the volcano... You few, take these two children back first."

"The rest of you, move out with me!"

The group quickly pursued toward the volcano, while the few left behind were responsible for escorting Xu Yao and the other back to the formation entrance.

On the way, the two kept looking back with worried faces, anxious for Su Ze's safety, yet they knew that with their strength, going back would only cause trouble.

"Don't worry, Captain Guo took so many people with him. There are only a few of those Fusang people; it'll be fine."

"I hope so..."

..."Captain, a brat just helped that Great Xia Spirit Guard block the final attack and let him live. Why didn't you let me go and kill them all?" Not far from Tianyun Volcano, a Fusang Dark Guard couldn't help but ask.

Although they had left in a hurry, their levels were much higher than Su Ze's, so they were perfectly aware of what happened at the moment they departed.

"Running into that Great Xia Spirit Guard was already an accident that delayed us. If everything hadn't gone smoothly afterward, I would have suspected that kid of sacrificing his own brother's safety to plot against us!"

"Besides, sometimes an injured person can tie up more people for longer than a dead one. There's no need to waste more time for one insignificant brat."

"But... Captain, that brat actually mastered Beast Spirit Weaponization at his age and even blocked my attack. Even if it was just the aftershock, it means his beast is likely Gold-rank. Leaving such a genius alive is a real threat."

The captain said dismissively, "Remember, as long as our plan succeeds, no amount of talent will matter!"

"Yes, Captain!"

At this point, Lin He, who had been carried by the dark guard captain, began to squirm. He turned back and said excitedly, "Was the person you just mentioned thin and tall, reasonably... good-looking, and his Beast Spirit Weaponization was a shield?"

The captain didn't answer immediately but raised an eyebrow. "You can understand our language?"

Lin He replied, "I've been interested in Fusang culture since I was a kid, so I taught myself some..."

The captain seemed quite pleased to hear this. "Very good! And yes, you're right; that person was exactly as you described."

Lin He's face immediately contorted as he said, "It's him, Su Ze! Captain, you promised me you'd help me kill him. Why did you let him go just now?!" He seemed to have forgotten that even his own life was still in their hands.

"Bastard, how dare you speak to our captain like that?! It was your brother who gave us the wrong directions, and now you want us to help..."

Before he could finish, the captain held up a hand to stop him. "Now, now, don't say that. Although there was a small hiccup, we wouldn't have been this successful without the brothers."

He then set Lin He down and said, "I will naturally do what I promised. But don't you think it would be more interesting if you killed him yourself?"

"But he's much stronger than me... Captain, do you mean you can help me do it?" Lin He realized the implication and spoke expectantly.

"Of course. Here, look at this."

He took the yata no kagami from his robes—the same one used to break the formation and send them in—and had Lin He stare at it.

Beams of dazzling light bored into his eyes, causing his gaze to gradually grow vacant...