The rain had finally stopped.
At Ling Awakening Academy—perhaps the safest place in the eyes of the Central District’s citizens—the outlines of the buildings had become hazy after days of winter rain.
A business sedan slowly pulled up to the academy gates. The mayor and his secretary, Xiao Zheng, had arrived early in the morning due to the large-scale attack that had occurred several days ago.
SampleStringWith😃Emojis🚀ForTestingPurpose[Huge Victory! Ling Awakening Academy’s 7-Student Squad Lured the Enemy Deep, Coordinated With Staff, and Annihilated 108 Bandits!]
That was the front-page headline of Central City Daily. Secretary Xiao Zheng held the newspaper with a conflicted heart. At thirty years old and full of ambition, this young man viewed this as a funeral dressed up as a celebration.
The attack had resulted in numerous civilian casualties and extensive property damage. Nearly half the businesses had shut down afterward, and many employees had left. Foot traffic in the plaza had plummeted.
Compared to the previous two incidents, the damage to civilians was severe. The first shopping mall attack had only one front desk staffer killed, with minimal injuries. The second incident had no casualties at all.
“We’re here, Xiao Zheng. Let’s go.”
The academy gates were shut tight—entry required an escort. After taking the academy’s internal transport to the administrative building, they were guided upstairs into a large conference room.
Many of the academy’s leaders were already present: the respected Principal Lü, Teacher Yu Jing who had fought on-site, and… a beautiful, well-endowed young girl.
Xiao Zheng’s eyes flicked to the girl’s chest with a complicated mix of emotions.
“Mayor He, you’re here,” Principal Lu greeted warmly. “We’ve been waiting several days. Originally, we intended to throw a celebration for our great victory at the commercial plaza, but we’ve held off announcing anything until you arrived so we could formally conclude the matter.”
“…A celebration?” Xiao Zheng couldn’t help himself. “Do you really think this is something worth celebrating?”
Everyone in the room turned to look at him.
“Isn’t it?” a male teacher whom Xiao Zheng didn’t recognize asked. “Our students wiped out over a hundred elite members of the Joker Gang without suffering a single casualty. Isn’t that worth celebrating?”
But what about the civilians?
Xiao Zheng was just about to speak when the mayor patted her on the shoulder and stepped forward. “It is worth celebrating. However, remnants of the Joker Gang remain, and this incident revealed their potential for enormous damage to society. I hope the academy can help eliminate this threat for the good of our citizens.”
Everyone looked at Principal Lü, who in turn looked to Xu Chuyao and asked softly, “Well? Can we go from defense to offense now?”
Noticing the puzzled looks on the mayor and his secretary’s faces, he added an explanation: “This is Xu Chuyao, a third-year student at our academy and the chief commander in every response to the Joker Gang so far. None of us here can match her in this field.”
Since returning from the commercial plaza, there had been no further doubt about Xu Chuyao within the academy. In the eyes of leadership, this kid was practically divine. First mission—just three students, yet they wiped out the enemy. Second mission—a full-scale assault with teacher support, and the Joker Gang had taken the bait completely.
If she weren’t such a squeaky-clean student who had spent years on campus with not even a summer vacation, people might’ve suspected she was actually leading the Joker Gang.
Under everyone’s watchful gaze, Xu Chuyao thought for a moment, then held her head high and answered, “Yes. But I need a few things from you first.”
She spoke directly to the mayor.
“Please go ahead, Student Xu Chuyao.”
“First, temporarily restrict the movement of people in and out of the city. Otherwise, they’ll just transfer resources or reinforcements freely—making our efforts pointless.”
The mayor paused in thought, then nodded. “That can be done.”
“Second,” she continued, walking to the side and picking up a small spray canister from the table, “this is what the Joker Gang uses during combat. On the market, it’s sold under the name Inspiration 100. The manufacturer is a sub-brand of Vitality Health, which is wholly owned by the Chen family. I need you to contact them and get a list of major distributors and storage facilities within the city.”
This stuff acted like a mix of cigarettes and coffee for energy users—but the concentration in this canister was clearly off the charts.
As for the Chen family, yes, that Chen family—one of the three mining giants.
The mayor, who had agreed to the lockdown almost without hesitation, now took a much longer moment to consider. After some deliberation, he solemnly nodded. “I’ll do my best.”
“Great. Then we investigate first. That’s all,” Xu Chuyao concluded.
This time, no one voiced a single objection.
After leaving Ling Awakening Academy, the mayor and his secretary returned to their car for the trip back.
Seeing Xiao Zheng sitting in silence, Mayor He sighed. “Xiao Zheng, are you wondering why I stopped you from speaking earlier?”
“Maybe I said something I shouldn’t have.”
A classic evasive answer—I don’t know what I did wrong, but I know I was wrong.
The mayor paused for a few seconds, then abruptly changed the topic. “Xiao Zheng, do you have children?”
Xiao Zheng blinked. “Mayor, I don’t plan to have kids for now.”
“Do you think having children is something that requires a lot of preparation?”
The question stumped Xiao Zheng. After a long pause, he tentatively answered, “I’m not sure… Is it?”
“It can be.”
Of course it requires preparation—but the mayor’s wording implied: it doesn’t have to be.
The car was silent for a while.
Once they reached the elevated highway, the mayor continued, “You know, humanity’s lowest population point was only forty-some years ago. During the midpoint of the war, once we initiated population recovery strategies, it took just a few decades for society to return to prosperous numbers.”
Xiao Zheng understood—and didn’t speak again for a long time.
—
Back in the administrative building, Principal Lu double-checked whether Xu Chuyao had any concerns, emphasizing that no one would force her into anything. Everyone believed in her abilities.
The successful commercial plaza operation had drastically altered their view of Xu Chuyao. What they once saw as a clever student now seemed like an absolute genius.
“No problem. This battle alone has already wiped out the Joker Gang’s core forces in the Central District. If they want to replenish members quickly, they’ll be forced to ramp up recruitment—and that’s when they’ll expose themselves. As the saying goes: ‘Strike while the iron is hot. Pursue the enemy while they’re on the run.’ This is our opportunity.”
A well-educated one, too.
Principal Lu then announced a celebration banquet would be held in a few days to reward the team members, and ordered an escort to see them out.
Standing at the window, watching the girls walk away, Principal Lü felt a deep sense of admiration. If the Joker Gang is truly destroyed by Xu Chuyao’s hand, this school is going to be famous.
He couldn’t help but think of a certain school administrator who hadn’t been promoted in thirty years. With a sigh, he muttered:
“Old Luo… keeping students disciplined and accident-free is merely avoiding mistakes. But nurturing a talent like this? That’s true merit.”
But what he didn’t know was: the biggest reason Luo Kangsheng hadn’t been promoted in decades… was because of issues with his identity before joining the academy.
—
Meanwhile, after leaving the admin building, Xu Chuyao went to find her roommate as usual. But Mi Xiaolu looked surprised when she saw her.
“You’re back already?”
Xu Chuyao blinked. “Should I not be?”
“I mean—didn’t you run into Shen Ning?” Mi Xiaolu told her, “She’s been looking for you all day, asking around everywhere.”