“Lord Riel, they’ve departed.”
“Good.”
Hanging up, Monrose was slightly suspicious—why did the airport director call him directly, and not through his secretary?
“Well then, old man, shall we begin preparations?” The masked man emerged from the next room. “As for the Clown Gang members there, you’ve just briefed them. Do we need to get in touch again?”
“No need.”
The person sent to oversee today’s operation was the so-called Second Defense Master, Barf, whom Monrose recognized. It wasn’t because of any outstanding skill, but in this business, one eventually dealt with the Judicial Department over the years.
Barf had pulled many clever tricks but never committed any major crimes. The Judicial Department kept a close eye on him, until finally, the then Chief Adjudicator Monrose made the decision—
Restrict Barf’s movements; unless under special circumstances, he wasn’t allowed to leave his area.
Monrose still remembered that day—he was on the main dais, Barf at the witness stand, trembling in fear, not daring to speak or act out. So it was only natural that he came to pay respects now, body still shaking.
“Let’s go, then.”
“Wait.” Monrose pressed the bell on his desk. “Let me speak to Ji Shu, arrange something for her.”
Ji Shu had been by his side for more than ten years, ever since graduation. Now, as he was about to leave this frail shell, he wanted to say goodbye to his closest confidant.
But the masked man shook his head. “Old sir, so many people are coming and going today. I had her take the day off for your own good.”
True enough—the less she knew, the safer. Not bringing Ji Shu along meant less risk for her in the future.
Monrose nodded, stood up from his desk. “Let’s go.”
Planes must be able to fly, but the phone had no signal onboard.
Xu Chuyao didn’t really understand—before her rebirth, some planes supposedly had internet, but she never had a chance to try. Now, it simply didn’t work.
With nothing else to do, she started observing the others.
Xiao Si Nuo had gotten some materials from the Holmes Family’s library, converted to electronic files on his phone, and was reading intently. From his occasional outbursts like “Oh, amazing,” they must’ve been obscure secrets.
Her own girlfriend wasn’t using her phone, nor reading or doing anything else, just staring out the window in a daze. Xu Chuyao knew she did this a lot, as if there were some secret world reflected on the glass.
Suddenly, Shen Ning turned her head, locking eyes with the tall, striking girl.
“What are you looking at me for?”
“Nothing,” Xu Chuyao retorted. “Why are you looking at me?”
Shen Ning couldn’t say it—mainly because just now, she’d caught a glimpse of her own reflection and realized she’d been secretly staring, so she looked over almost subconsciously.
“You see, do unto others as you’d have them do unto you. If you can’t explain it yourself, don’t ask me.”
Xu Chuyao rendered her speechless, so Shen Ning just sat in her seat, grumbling and sipping her drink, finally looking away.
Wait, seriously, why hasn’t my account balance increased? With the way Xu Chuyao just teased her, it didn’t even make her mad.
Fine, just wait until we get back and I get my magic wand, you’ll see.
She looked at the others. Teacher Cheng Chen, whether from exhaustion or just because it was early, had fallen asleep the moment she sat down—maybe snoring, but the engine drowned it out.
As for homeroom teacher Yu Jing, Xu Chuyao noticed her face looked oddly pale—nothing much for a normal person, but for someone with strong Spirit Power, it meant she hadn’t slept well for days.
She kept putting her hand in and out of her coat pocket, like she was torn about something inside—wanting to use it, but hesitating. The pocket was soft, and Xu Chuyao saw it was a little bag of sand.
Could it be…?
“Teacher, homeroom—”
Yu Jing, still drowsy, was startled by Xu Chuyao and nearly jumped up from her seat.
“Ah?”
“It’s nothing, sorry for startling you, nothing happened.” Xu Chuyao quickly soothed her.
Yu Jing looked around. Everything was fine, so she calmed down.
“Teacher, I just wanted to ask about the group of mysterious people your squad encountered before. How strong were they?”
Hearing this, Yu Jing’s expression grew heavy again.
“Very strong. In our squad, including me, there was one who had just advanced to Third Rank, and two more Third Rank Spirit Power users. But they had more people, and one was at Four Stages… In front of a Four Stages, we barely stood a chance.”
That nightmare was something she never wanted to relive.
“So mostly Third Rank, plus one Four Stages.” Xu Chuyao calculated in a whisper. “After all these years, some of those Third Rank might’ve advanced to Four Stages, and that Four Stages is definitely stronger now.”
Her gentle voice was quiet, but Yu Jing heard every word, and her expression became even more somber.
Yes, the enemies were growing stronger, but she’d stagnated ever since that inner demon appeared—she didn’t even remember how long she’d been stuck at Third Rank. Maybe she’d never break through.
“It’s alright. We’ll catch up soon enough.” Xu Chuyao gave her a sweet smile. “Just Third and Fourth Rank, right? Give us some time, maybe next month Shen Ning will reach Four Stages—right, Shen Ning!”
She nudged her girlfriend’s leg.
The girl at the window was startled, turned and looked dazed for a second, then nodded after a few seconds: “Yes.”
In truth, Shen Ning hadn’t heard what Xu Chuyao said—it was the window’s reflection passing the message. After thinking about it, she checked her system’s cooldown and realized there was less than a month left, so she gave a definitive answer.
Strict, rational, objective.
“It’s possible for me, but next month might be tricky. Still, if luck’s on my side… Anyway, don’t be fooled by how they act like big shots—their progress is no faster than ours.”
Xu Chuyao patted the homeroom teacher’s shoulder, “Don’t worry, Teacher. Once we get back, I’ll show you just how fast we can improve.”
No need for an echo this time, since the person beside her was right there.
Yu Jing wiped her eyes, finally showing her first smile in days. “Thank you, Xu Chuyao.”
She never expected her own student would one day comfort her. For a moment, she almost couldn’t control her emotions.
“It’s nothing,” Xu Chuyao patted her own reliable shoulder, “I’m the type who values friendship—always happy to help.”
Teacher Yu was a good person. Xu Chuyao remembered clearly—all her suggestions regarding the Clown Gang, Teacher Yu had fully supported, including at the Commercial Plaza battle, where Teacher Yu agreed to let her arrive early to support the plan.
She had to help, no matter what.
Besides, the original plan was for Shen Biao to take care of it anyway.
Suddenly, the plane shook, causing a bit of turbulence in the cabin—enough to startle even Cheng Chen awake.
“What’s happening?”
“Please remain calm,” a flight attendant came over. “For everyone’s safety, we’ve been instructed to make a stop after each segment for maintenance checks at the airport, ensuring nothing goes wrong with the flight. The upcoming stop is at Brussels Airport. After landing, you can rest at the Service Area for up to an hour before we resume the journey.”
JJ6 checked the in-flight map for a while before finding it: “Brussels Airport, on the edge of Western Europe.”
Xu Chuyao didn’t need him to say it—she’d already guessed. It was in former Belgium. Judging from the flight path, it just meant the plane was flying slightly farther over the English Channel than usual.
“Isn’t this stop a bit short?” the girl frowned. “If you keep landing like this, we’ll have to stop more than a dozen times.”
The others looked at the attendant with her.
“You misunderstand. The reason for stopping at Brussels is that our company is affiliated with this airport, and for your comfort and experience, we decided on this arrangement. We won’t be stopping much in Eastern Europe or Central Asia.”
It sounded reasonable, but Xu Chuyao still felt something was off.
But the plane was already landing, so there was nothing more to say. Soon, the plane touched down on the runway.
“Let’s go rest for a bit,” Cheng Chen yawned, “maybe grab something to eat. I just woke up from a nap anyway.”
Xu Chuyao suddenly spoke up, halting the others.
“Wait.”
“Something’s wrong.”
Xu Chuyao didn’t have time to explain, just put away her phone and told them, “Xiao Si Nuo, stay with the group, don’t wander off, and keep your wits about you. Everyone else, stay alert and watch everyone around you.”
She’d just realized—her phone’s signal was still at zero, not even the faintest bar.
There was no WiFi or 5G coverage in the airport, and no signal booster either.
“I understand,” Yu Jing tensed up, “I’ll go in front. Cheng Chen, you bring up the rear.”