143: Amulet (Fourth Update)

After Fang Yuan sent the message, "a permanent solution to nip the problem in the bud," there was a brief pause in the group chat.

Liu Lian and Han Li, who had been bickering earlier, fell silent.

Everyone understood the suppressed rage behind those words.

A few seconds later, Xie Wangsheng's message popped up.

"After the finals are over, I'll go with you."

"These thorns hidden in the dark must be uprooted."

His words were few but carried an undeniable decisiveness.

Liu Lian immediately jumped in.

"Count me in! Damn it, daring to target the families of our Kunlun Academy students? They must be tired of living!"

"Fang Yuan, don't worry. When the time comes, we brothers will back you up! We'll make sure that grandson named Zhao Peng gets what's coming to him!"

Han Li also sent a string of cleaver emojis.

"Right! We must teach him a lesson! Let him know why flowers are so red!"

Watching the messages scroll across the screen, the surging fury in Fang Yuan's chest subsided considerably.

He wasn't fighting alone.

He had a group of classmates around him whom he could trust implicitly.

As long as his parents were with him, within the absolute safety zone of Kunlun Academy, no one could harm them.

Just then, a female avatar, belonging to a student who usually didn't speak much in the group, flickered.

It was Li Ziyuan, who chose all subjects.

"Um... fellow students, I might have something that can help everyone."

Liu Lian: "Huh? Sister Ziyuan? What is it? Tell us quickly!"

Li Ziyuan seemed a bit embarrassed and sent a string of ellipses.

..."Well, I've been researching that fully automatic Pill Furnace, right?"

"During this process, I also teamed up with a few classmates from the Artifact Refining Department, Formation Department, and Talisman Department to tinker with a little something."

"A... well... an amulet that our family members can use."

When this message appeared, the entire freshman group instantly exploded.

"Holy crap?! An amulet?"

"Is it real? Can it defend against evil Cultivators?"

"Senior Ziyuan! Do you still need a hanger-on?! The kind that can shout 666!"

The students' emotions were instantly ignited.

Fang Yuan's situation had sounded the alarm for everyone.

They might not care about themselves, but their families were everyone's weakness.

If the enemies truly resorted to such despicable methods, they, being far away at the Academy, would be completely defenseless.

Li Ziyuan's message was nothing short of a shot in the arm.

Facing the barrage of questions, Li Ziyuan sent another block of text.

"In terms of function, it mainly provides early warning and defense."

"It has a built-in miniature Spirit Gathering Formation and defensive runes, capable of withstanding a full-force attack from a Qi Condensation Stage Cultivator. Once attacked or if it senses strong malice, it will immediately activate, simultaneously sending an alarm and location through special spiritual energy fluctuations to our student tokens."

"This way, we'll know immediately if something happens to our families, and we'll also know their exact location."

"Damn! That's awesome?!"

Liu Lian sent a voice message directly, his voice cracking with excitement.

"Ziyuan! You are my goddess! When can this thing be made? I'm pre-ordering a hundred of them!"

Han Li: "Count me in! All my relatives need to be set up with one!"

Watching the group chat instantly derail, Li Ziyuan sent an exasperated emoji.

"It's still in the final debugging stage; there are some compatibility issues with spiritual energy conduction that haven't been resolved."

"After the finals are over, I will submit the finished product to the Principal for inspection. If the Principal deems it qualified, we can find a way to mass-produce it, and then every student will be able to get one."

"That's great!"

"Senior Ziyuan is mighty!"

"From today on, you are my beloved sister, not by blood!"

The atmosphere in the group chat instantly shifted from shared indignation to joyous exhilaration.

Fang Yuan looked at his phone screen, his tense body completely relaxed.

He let out a long breath.

Li Ziyuan's invention solved everyone's worries.

"Son, it's time to board. What are you spacing out for?"

Mother Fang's urging came.

Fang Yuan put away his phone, stood up, and a smile reappeared on his face.

"Coming."

He proactively took the luggage from his parents' hands and strode towards the boarding gate.

The gloom in his heart had already been swept away... Meanwhile.

At the Peak of Kunlun, in the Principals Office.

A large water mirror floated before Li Heng, clearly displaying all the chat records from the freshman group.

He watched the students go from anger to discussing countermeasures, then to cheering for Li Ziyuan's invention, and a satisfied expression appeared on his face.

Not bad.

These students were finally no longer the clueless rookies they had been two months ago.

They began to think, to collaborate, and to use what they had learned to solve practical problems.

This was the true essence of an Cultivator.

The path of cultivation was never just about meditating, cultivating Qi, and comprehending the Dao.

A meticulous mind and a resilient Dao Heart were both indispensable.

Li Heng lightly tapped his finger, and the image in the water mirror dissipated.

He mused.

After the live broadcast of the finals three days later, the reputation of Kunlun Cultivation Academy would surely resound throughout the world.

By then, the points rewarded by the System should be enough for him to exchange for Soul Transformation Stage cultivation.

He had a premonition.

Time was running out before the Ancient Demons, who had been sealed, would be completely unsealed.

Before this catastrophe, which would engulf all of human civilization, arrived, he had to increase his strength as much as possible.

Not only his own strength, but also the strength of these two hundred students.

They were the sparks.

They were the only barrier protecting ordinary people in a future world overrun by demons.

Li Heng stood up and walked to the huge floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the cloud-shrouded mountains below.

The shadow of war had quietly fallen.