30: Chapter 30 Su Qingyue has a very vivid imagination.

For the thousands of students of First High School in Zhongnan City who had just completed their class-change ceremonies, this night was destined to be a significant turning point in their lives. The air was thick with complex emotions. Some were ecstatic, celebrating all night long after obtaining a coveted high-tier class. Others tossed and turned, unable to sleep, planning their future paths in the darkness, their class-change results far from satisfactory.

For Ye Cheng, this should have been the most glorious and fortunate day of his life. Successfully changing his class to the A-rank [Fire Mage] instantly made him the center of attention in the entire school. It seemed as if a broad, flower-strewn road had unfurled beneath his feet. However, all the limelight and joy were completely overshadowed and took a sharp downturn, turning into the most humiliating and unbearable memory of his life, all because he had actively provoked that seemingly inconspicuous Summoner, Lin Muyang.

That video of him—his hair seeming to be stripped from his scalp by an invisible hand, leaving a bald pate exposed, as he fell to the ground in a humiliating heap right in front of Hongwu Mall, under the watchful eyes of the crowd—had long been recorded. It spread like a virus across major social platforms, video websites, and local chat groups. Despite his furious, frantic attempts to stop it by sending out hundreds of cease-and-desist letters, the speed of online dissemination far exceeded his control. Some private, small-scale sharing was simply beyond his ability to eradicate.

He could vividly imagine that starting tomorrow, whenever he stepped out of his house, the gazes directed at him would no longer be merely of envy and awe. More often, they would be pointing fingers and hushed whispers, barely suppressing laughter. 'Look, that's the A-rank mage who went bald in a second...' Similar remarks would haunt him like a nightmare. And in his view, the root of all this was, without a doubt, entirely thanks to Lin Muyang!

'Just you wait, Lin Muyang! Once I've developed my skills, leveled up, and my abilities are fully formed, I will make you pay a hundredfold for the humiliation I suffered today!' Ye Cheng clenched his fists, his nails almost digging into his palms, his eyes burning with flames of anger and resentment. His confidence wasn't completely shattered yet. After all, the potential of an A-rank class was right there—his greatest trump card for revenge.

Unfortunately, he was completely unaware that if he truly didn't know any better and provoked Lin Muyang again, what he would face would likely be far more than just losing face... There were some prices he might not be able to afford.

...

The next morning.

Sunlight dispelled the night's silence, bringing new vitality to Zhongnan City. At the entrance of Ziyun Mountain Villa, a high-end residential community located in a prime area of the city, renowned for its tranquil environment, tight security, and high-quality homes, a sleek red sedan came to a smooth stop.

The car door opened, and the first to step out was a young woman with a gentle and graceful demeanor. She wore an elegant, beige-white casual maxi dress, her jet-black long hair cascading softly over her shoulders. A pair of delicate black-rimmed glasses perched on the bridge of her nose, adding an air of intellect and competence. She was none other than Lin Muyang's homeroom teacher, Su Qingyue.

Next, emerging from the passenger seat was Lin Muyang himself. Today, he was dressed in clean casual clothes, his expression calm yet carrying a hint of consideration for what he was about to see.

He was here to look at a house.

Last night's experience had been rather trying. The Succubus Maiden Elabess's massage techniques were indeed exquisite and effective at relieving fatigue. However, with the Elf Princess Lilia also on the same bed, watching wide-eyed like a curious kitten, Lin Muyang found it inconvenient to take things any further. In the end, he could only sleep properly, holding Elabess, a nameless fire inexplicably pent up inside him, making it difficult to rest peacefully.

Therefore, first thing this morning, he had made up his mind: he must acquire a more independent and private space as soon as possible. He directly contacted his homeroom teacher, Su Qingyue, who seemed well-connected and trustworthy, asking where he could purchase a suitable villa. His reasoning was straightforward: that way, he could let the energetic and endlessly curious Lilia have her own room, or even arrange a separate adjacent cottage for her. Then, certain things would be much more convenient... at least there wouldn't be such a bright third wheel present.

'Ziyun Mountain Villa?'

However, when Lin Muyang got out of the car and looked up to see the four gilded characters at the community entrance, he couldn't help but pause. He had heard of this place—it was one of Zhongnan City's top luxury residential areas. He had originally just wanted to buy an ordinary villa with more rooms and a private courtyard. He hadn't expected Teacher Su to bring him directly here. The prices here, often running into tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of Alliance Credits, seemed genuinely expensive for him at the moment, as his funds mainly came from selling equipment for a bit of magic crystal.

But then again, Lin Muyang reconsidered. Being expensive didn't seem like an insurmountable problem. Given his Dungeon-clearing efficiency, his rate of earning magic crystals far exceeded the norm. Even if he couldn't pay the full amount immediately, he could pay a deposit to secure a property and then make up the balance in a couple of days when his funds were sufficient. The reasons he sought Su Qingyue's help were twofold: first, he genuinely had no other reliable connections in this city; second, dealing with ordinary agents inevitably raised concerns about lack of transparency or getting scammed.

From Su Qingyue's perspective, the situation was entirely different. Based on her understanding of Lin Muyang's family background, she believed he personally could absolutely not afford Ziyun Mountain Villa's prices. Therefore, his request to look at houses most likely indicated that the mysterious wealthy woman behind him, or her family, wanted to purchase a property, perhaps to facilitate Lin Muyang's residence and cultivation here? In that case, she naturally wanted to introduce the best, most status-appropriate location. Coincidentally, she herself lived in Ziyun Mountain Villa and knew that two homeowners within the community were currently listing their properties for sale. So, she took the opportunity to bring Lin Muyang for an on-site viewing to see if anything caught his eye.

Just as the two were about to enter the community gates, a white luxury family sedan approached from the distance, smoothly turning towards the entrance. However, the car slowed to a stop just before entering, even reversing a few meters to park steadily beside them. The window rolled down, revealing a stunningly beautiful face marked by obvious fatigue.

'Lin Muyang? Teacher Su? What a coincidence, what brings you here?'

The voice was clear and melodious, tinged with surprise. Sitting in the car was Shen Muyao, the one who had shone brightly during yesterday's class-change ceremony, hailed as the school's Ice Queen and possessor of an s-rank talent.

However, the Shen Muyao at this moment bore none of yesterday's radiant energy. Clear, dark circles hung under her originally bright and clear eyes, her complexion was somewhat pale, and she exuded a strong sense of exhaustion. It was obvious she hadn't rested well last night, perhaps even hardly at all.

'I'm bringing him to look at a house,' Su Qingyue replied, unsurprised by Shen Muyao's appearance. They lived in the same community and were already acquainted. She was more concerned about Shen Muyao's condition and couldn't help but frown slightly, asking, 'Mu Yao, you last night...?'

'I was running Dungeons all night,' Shen Muyao sighed helplessly, rubbing her temples which felt a bit swollen. 'Just got back, planning to catch up on sleep. If I don't rest, I feel like my mana is going to be completely depleted.'

Hearing this, Lin Muyang felt a subtle twinge of awkwardness. Could it be that his overly efficient clearing of those bronze-tier instance dungeons yesterday, snatching the first-clear rewards she likely had planned, had spurred on this competitive school belle, driving her to push herself so hard? Looking at this usually refined and aloof beauty now speaking with great effort, sporting a pair of panda eyes, gave off a different kind of Contrast Moe (contrasting cuteness)... it was rather adorable, even a bit laughable.

'By the way, Teacher Su... so, Lin Muyang, you're going to live in this community from now on?' Shen Muyao turned her gaze to Lin Muyang, a hint of barely perceptible expectation in her eyes. She automatically interpreted Su Qingyue's 'bringing him to look at a house' as Lin Muyang intending to rent here. She absolutely didn't look down on him; it was just common sense. How could a student who just changed classes afford to buy property in Ziyun Mountain Villa?

She even found a reasonable explanation for Lin Muyang in her mind: Perhaps Teacher Su, kind-hearted as a homeroom teacher wanting to look after him given his ordinary family background, was using her own homeowner status to help him find a place with more favorable rent. After all, raising summoned creatures, buying equipment and skill books for a Summoner was indeed a massive expense.

'Not necessarily, I'll decide after checking out the environment and seeing if any layouts catch my eye,' Lin Muyang didn't commit fully, as he genuinely needed to weigh the cost-effectiveness.

'Have you found a fixed leveling party yet?' Shen Muyao blinked her somewhat dry eyes and proactively extended an invitation, her tone much softer than usual. 'If you're interested, my party is always open to you~' The members of her party came from good families and had excellent talents; it was a team many people fought tooth and nail to join.

'Thank you for the offer, but I already have a fixed party,' Lin Muyang declined politely and decisively. The members of his party, though few in number, were of unimaginable quality and absolutely loyal and reliable.

'Alright...' A flicker of disappointment passed through Shen Muyao's eyes, but she quickly adjusted her emotions and offered Lin Muyang an encouraging smile. 'Then do your best, Lin Muyang! If you ever need to challenge a large-scale team raid and are short on people, feel free to ask me for help~ You have my contact number, right?'

Raids were different from ordinary four-person limited Dungeons. They typically required at least eight, and could even accommodate up to fifty people to enter cooperatively. Their difficulty, scale, and the strength of the monsters far surpassed ordinary Dungeons, often requiring tight coordination between multiple classes to conquer.

Lin Muyang nodded slightly in acknowledgment but didn't elaborate. He had his own plans. With the various God-Tier Auras he possessed, even a small-scale raid might not be beyond his ability to attempt solo. Of course, for those super-large fifty-person raids, where elite monsters and final bosses had terrifyingly high HP and attack power, his current attributes and number of summoned creatures might still be a bit lacking. But what about the future? Once he leveled up, summoned more otherworldly beauties, and could activate increasingly powerful Aura effects simultaneously, what raid would be beyond his ability to steamroll?

'Today's plan is to finalize the house first, then go all out to level up, aiming straight for level 20!' Lin Muyang planned in his heart. 'Reaching level 20 will allow me to activate five Auras simultaneously, bringing a qualitative leap in strength. Plus, then I can summon the third otherworldly beauty... Just thinking about it is exciting!'

Seeing that Lin Muyang didn't seem inclined for further conversation, Shen Muyao tactfully didn't press, bid farewell, and drove into the depths of the community.

Su Qingyue watched all this, shaking her head inwardly. This child Shen Muyao, whether in terms of family background, appearance, or talent, was among the best in Zhongnan City, a true 'white, rich, and beautiful' girl in the eyes of many. However, if she wanted to win Lin Muyang's favor, it probably wouldn't be that easy. After all, the mysterious wealthy woman standing behind Lin Muyang likely possessed power and means far beyond what the Shen family could imagine.

Not to mention anything else, just the storage bracelet on Lin Muyang's wrist, with its enormous internal space, was priceless. It could probably easily trade for several villas in Ziyun Mountain Villa. And that wasn't even considering the fact that the young lady had dispatched a powerful individual, skilled in some bizarre 'curse' ability, to secretly protect Lin Muyang.

Thinking of this, Su Qingyue's attitude towards Lin Muyang became even more cautious and respectful.

However, if Lin Muyang were to learn of these reasonable conclusions she had jumped to based on limited information, it would probably leave him dumbfounded and torn between laughter and tears. Wasn't this power of association a bit too rich? What mysterious wealthy woman backing him? He had no such thing!