Friend or Foe?

The undercurrent surged through the pitch-black lake bed. A figure paddled all four limbs, propelled by cascading layers of water currents, closing in like an underwater missile. The newcomer wore heavy armor and a dark-iron mask; concealed beneath the plate, there was no telling from the silhouette whether it was a man or a woman. If Zhang Yuanqing's swimming could be compared to a speedboat, this iron-clad figure's speed was akin to an underwater missile, churning the undercurrents with a rumbling roar. *So fast. Either a Plague God or someone with a Saint-grade water-manipulation item...* Remaining in his Night Wandering state, Zhang Yuanqing frowned deeply. The arrival of this uninvited guest had completely derailed his plans. *They probably aren't after me. Before diving into the water, I scouted the surroundings and wasn't followed. Making my way here in my Night Wandering state, it would be even more impossible to spot me. Unless they're a Dominator, no one can see through my stealth, and there are no Dominators at Qinfeng Academy.* *Then... are they after the stone gate on Hundred Beasts Island?* *That's impossible...* Zhang Yuanqing muttered inwardly. The armored figure soon arrived at Hundred Beasts Island. Just like Zhang Yuanqing, they swam halfway around the "isolated cliff" before stopping in front of the stone gate. At this point, the two were roughly twenty meters apart. If it had been daytime, a mere turn of the head would have brought them face-to-face. Yet this was the pitch-black lake bed, and Zhang Yuanqing was in Night Wandering. As long as he did not initiate an attack, he would not be discovered. The armored figure examined the stone gate, pushing at it with force at times, feeling the surrounding cliff face for mechanisms at others. Finally, hovering in front of the gate, they stared at the circular hole between the door seam, seeming to understand something. *They really are here for Qinfeng Academy's hidden quest...* Watching this unfold, Zhang Yuanqing's heart sank. He couldn't help weighing whether he should ambush the armored figure, unmask them to see their true identity, and interrogate them on where they obtained intelligence on the stone gate. The thought had only just flashed through his mind when it was forcibly suppressed—because off in the distance, he saw a group of lithe jiaoren rapidly swimming toward them through the lake water. Leading them was an exquisitely beautiful female jiaoren. Her features were sculpted and striking; in terms of beauty, she surpassed every woman he had ever seen. Nor was she frail. Her radiant face brimmed with wildness and courage, like an ever-valiant female warrior. Her figure was slender yet powerful, its fluid curves brimming with immense strength. She was larger than ordinary jiaoren, equivalent to a human standing 1.9 meters tall. This was a valkyrie-like Jiaoren Queen. The jiaoren had human upper bodies and fish tails. Holding spears in hand, with bandeau tops woven from aquatic grass covering their chests, they flexed their fish tails with supple strength, swiftly closing in on Hundred Beasts Island. *Why did this attract the jiaoren? Did that armored figure make too much noise?* Zhang Yuanqing frowned secretly, sensing something was off. Jiaoren Lake was enormous. If one was merely manipulating water to sneak around, even making a bit of noise shouldn't draw an entire pack of jiaoren. Moreover, looking at their aggressive, menacing posture, they looked ready to fight to the death against an enemy army. A thought suddenly struck Zhang Yuanqing: *Since the giant tiger on Hundred Beasts Island was placed by Grand Elder Baihui to guard the stone gate, why couldn't the jiaoren be doing the same?* Back then, the location where Fu Qingyang took part in rescuing Lingjun was also Hundred Beasts Island. *Could it really be such a coincidence?* *Could it be that Lingjun lusted after the Jiaoren Queen's beauty and sneaked into the lake, only to be detected by the jiaoren near Hundred Beasts Island? Thinking he was a thief targeting the stone gate, the jiaoren swarmed him to kill him...* *That matches the current situation perfectly.* By now, the armored figure had also spotted the school of jiaoren swimming over. Without any hesitation, they kicked off the stone gate with both legs, turning into an underwater missile and roaring away. Seeing this, the Jiaoren Queen immediately accelerated into a sprint. Her body rippled as she reared up abruptly and hurled the spear in her hand with vicious force. Propelled by the swirling current, the spear shot forward like lightning, catching up to the armored figure in an instant and striking their waist. *Clang!* The armor's defensive power was surprisingly astonishing. The spear bounced off, producing a somewhat muffled metallic clang underwater. Behind the Jiaoren Queen, several dozen female jiaoren undulated in an acceleration, rearing up in unison, and hurled their spears at the armored figure in synchronized motion. For a moment, dense clanging rang incessantly. Like a fallen leaf in water, the armored figure was buffeted adrift by the piercing force of the spears. Yet they quickly stabilized their form and darted off like an underwater missile, leaving behind an undulating trail of thick bubbles. The Jiaoren Queen led her kin in pursuit, leaving six or seven jiaoren swimming nearby to patrol Hundred Beasts Island. *Time to get out of here. Tonight isn't the night to enter the stone gate...* Remaining in Night Wandering, Zhang Yuanqing manipulated the water, circling around to the other side of Hundred Beasts Island. Giving the jiaoren a wide berth, he controlled the current and swam quickly toward the shore. He was confident he could take care of the jiaoren left behind, but he worried about being trapped inside by the Jiaoren Queen. Moreover, with such a commotion, if the academy instructors came running, then even if he retrieved the treasure behind the stone gate, the matter couldn't be kept quiet. And the consequence of not keeping it quiet would be Baihui stepping in, forcing the young official champion, Yuanshi Tianzun, to hand over the treasure in exchange for merit points and wealth. That was not what he wanted. Half an hour later, Zhang Yuanqing returned to shore. Poking his head out first to scan the surroundings, he confirmed no one was around before stepping onto the bank. In Room 404, a haze of dreamy starlight rose, condensing into the handsome, upright young man. "You're back?" Sitting by the table, Commandery Princess Yinyao transmitted a voice that only a Night Walker could hear. Beside her stood Blood Rose, ramrod straight. "Yeah. Ran into an unexpected hitch midway..." As Zhang Yuanqing spoke, he stripped off his school uniform and draped on the Yin-Yang Robe. Utilizing a Fire Specialist's flame-control ability, he quickly dried the uniform, hung it back in the wardrobe, changed into the complimentary pajamas, and slipped under the covers. "That's roughly what happened," Zhang Yuanqing said, finishing his explanation just as he lay down. Commandery Princess Yinyao gave an "Mm" of understanding and asked no further questions. *With the princess acting as a third wheel, even if I wanted things to accidentally spark with Teacher Song Man, it'd be pretty tough...* Glancing at Commandery Princess Yinyao sitting upright, Zhang Yuanqing mused inwardly. Pushing aside these stray thoughts, he began pondering what he had seen underwater. *Just who was that?* *Most likely a trainee. If it were one of the academy instructors, they wouldn't have waited until now.* *A trainee who also knows the secret of Qinfeng Academy's hidden dungeon... there won't be many like that. First, narrow it down to the few with prominent family backgrounds...* Zhang Yuanqing realized he had to figure out one key question: was the armored figure friend or foe? *Unless I can convince myself to share it with them, they're definitely an enemy. I need to smoke out that armored figure.* *There's no way they have the key to Takamagahara. What was the point of sneaking into the lake tonight—just satisfying some curiosity sparked by rumors from their elders?* Zhang Yuanqing was completely puzzled. *If the jiaoren's mission is to guard the stone gate, then the commotion tonight will definitely reach the academy instructors. They'll certainly investigate thoroughly to see who dived into Jiaoren Lake. Maybe I can glean some clues from the instructors...* *There are no surveillance cameras in the dorm corridor. I entered Night Wandering in the corridor, so the plants outside the dorm didn't "see" me. The curtains were drawn too. I should still be clear...* *** Linlang Library, meeting room. The white-haired dean held a thermal mug, silently listening to the Jiaoren Lake administrator's report: "The Jiaoren Queen said someone dived into the lake tonight and lingered in front of the stone gate on Hundred Beasts Island for quite a while. That person wore heavy armor with astonishing defense. She led her clan in pursuit, but couldn't catch up and the intruder escaped. Dean, we must be vigilant about this." Li Yanxi's face was hazy behind the curling steam. Pondering for a moment, he looked toward the instructors gathered around the table and sighed. "Song Man told me there are quite a few troublemakers in this batch of trainees. There are also more trainees with extraordinary backgrounds than in previous years. Regarding this incident at Jiaoren Lake, what are your thoughts?" "The intruder is definitely that Brother Red Chicken. He acts rashly and arrogantly, ignoring rules. Only he would do something so absurd." Song Man clearly had a strong grievance against Brother Red Chicken. "If it were him, he wouldn't have bothered concealing himself so thoroughly. Pity there are no surveillance cameras in the academy," said Lin Su, an intellectual, fair-faced female instructor. "Not many know about the hidden quest. It's likely one of those with prominent family backgrounds. Dean, how do you wish to handle this?" Stargazer asked. Li Yanxi pondered for a moment. "The mission of Qinfeng Academy has already begun. Before the main quest is completed, no one can leave, and no one can enter. Since someone knows about the hidden quest and has shown interest in it, we must find a way to ferret them out. We cannot let this slide. In a moment, I will summon the students. "Song Man, ask the plants and animals outside the dormitories to see who went out." *** Xiahou Aotian sat by his desk, staring at the bill before him. Even his habitually arrogant face couldn't help revealing a trace of heaviness. The most expensive juice was 1,000 yuan. Twenty-two people had consumed fifty glasses in total, averaging 2.2 glasses each, totaling fifty thousand yuan. Naturally, this sum wasn't significant by itself, but Xiahou Aotian was currently saddled with eighty million yuan in debt that he was paying off in installments. On his very first day at the academy, he had already burned fifty thousand. What about going forward? His already strained wallet was suffering insult upon injury. *That bastard Yuanshi Tianzun. I saw it clear as day—he drank four glasses, a full four thousand yuan! I definitely have to find a chance to screw him over, or make a quick buck off him.* Xiahou Aotian swore under his breath. Just then, he heard a sharp ringing, almost making him think he was back in middle school. Immediately following, Dean Li Yanxi's gentle, benevolent call echoed throughout Qinfeng Academy: "All trainees, gather at Linlang Academy immediately." The voice seemed to carry some magical power, compelling those who heard it to obey involuntarily, instinctively rising and leaving their rooms. Xiahou Aotian rushed out of his room in his slippers. Zhang Yuanqing had just fallen asleep when Dean Li Yanxi's call jolted him awake. *Tsk, investigating so soon? The academy instructors take Hundred Beasts Island much more seriously than I thought...* Zhang Yuanqing threw off the quilt, changed into his school uniform, and walked straight out of the room. It was nine o'clock at night. The trainees had not yet gone to sleep; upon hearing the broadcast, they promptly dashed out of their rooms and hurried toward Linlang Library. Before long, the trainees arrived one after another, back in the "church" from earlier that day. "What's going on?" "A surprise training drill?" "Good thing, too. Evenings are boring anyway. Heh, time for some fun." "Yeah, this dump doesn't have phones or computers. If there's no entertainment, it'd be painfully dull." The trainees whispered among themselves. Li Yanxi swept his gaze over the crowd. Seeing that all trainees of this term were present, he raised the megaphone and said in a grave voice: "As the dean, I am very disappointed in you." Hearing this, the chattering trainees quieted down and turned bewildered gazes toward the podium. "What's there to be disappointed about? We haven't even had a single class yet," Brother Red Chicken hollered loudly. Ignoring him, the dean continued: "Just moments ago, someone among you sneaked into Jiaoren Lake and provoked the wrath of the jiaoren. In order to clean up after one of you, the academy instructors paid a heavy price. "Now, will that trainee step forward voluntarily and accept punishment." *He plans to use violating school rules as a pretext to flush out the intruder?* Zhang Yuanqing turned his head, glancing at the trainees behind him. They were looking left and right in equal astonishment. After waiting a moment and seeing that no one stepped forward to confess, Li Yanxi said, "I will say this once more. Please step forward on your own. Settle this matter quickly, and you can all return to rest early." Still, no one stepped forward of their own accord. The dean's expression darkened slightly. "In that case, we can only resort to mandatory measures. Now, male trainees stand on the left, female trainees on the right. No one is permitted to wear items. Please take them off voluntarily." With that, he looked toward Lin Su and Stargazer. The two instructors understood tacitly. Lin Su headed to the right while Stargazer headed to the left. After a round of searches, all of the female trainees' accessories were removed, while the male trainees had nothing on them except their clothes. Li Yanxi put away the megaphone, stepped down from the podium, and stopped in front of the first row on the left. With a deep, sharp gaze, he stared intently at Zhao Chenghuang and asked in a low voice: "Did you dive into Jiaoren Lake tonight?" Zhao Chenghuang shook his head. "Not me." Li Yanxi stared at him for several seconds, then gave a slight nod. *The dean is a Swordsman? Without items, a Swordsman's Insight really is a potent tool for detecting lies. They're looking for the armored figure, but I also sneaked into Jiaoren Lake...* Zhang Yuanqing inwardly gritted his teeth. Just then, Li Yanxi looked over and asked: "Did you dive into Jiaoren Lake?"