Mo Fan returned to the church. As soon as he entered, before he could react, Bai Tingting suddenly stood up from her seat, ran to Mo Fan's side, and, as if she had suffered some great injustice, threw herself into Mo Fan's arms.

  The soft, voluptuous body was presented to him, and although Mo Fan wasn't surprised, he still felt as if he had fallen into a sea of ??cotton.

  Everyone was stunned when they saw this.

  Although Bai Tingting is willing to be with Mo Fan, it's said that it's only because Mo Fan saved her life. But haven't they developed that kind of retionship yet?

  "What's wrong?" Mo Fan asked.

  "Please don't leave." Bai Tingting's eyes were a little red, and she looked pitiful, as if Mo Fan was the only person she could trust.

  "Okay." Mo Fan nodded in agreement.

  "The guy who said he'd complete the survey independently is back. How was it? What did he get?" Liao Mingxuan said in his usual quirky tone.

  "Are you asking for a beating again?"

  As soon as Mo Fan spoke, Liao Mingxuan immediately stopped barking.

  Mo Fan comforted Bai Tingting for a while, then took out two survey devices that had turned green from his pocket and tossed them to Mu Ningxue, who was in charge of keeping them safe.

  "Two survey points?" Mu Ningxue said with some surprise.

  "Holy crap, Mo Fan, how did you do that? We almost got wiped out just completing one survey point!" Peng Liang excimed in surprise.

  Although they knew Mo Fan was very strong, their whole team couldn't even collect as much as he could by himself alone.

  Although Liao Mingxuan really wanted to bark like a dog, he knew very well that he was no match for Mo Fan.

  Coincidentally, Lu Zhenghe's sudden fawning gave Liao Mingxuan an opening: "Who do you think you are, the boss here? Are you the captain, bossing everyone around? Having Commander Wei Fang as your older brother makes you so great? Always acting like you're the only one who matters at the Imperial Academy. What business is it of yours who I'm with? You fawn over Mu Ningxue like a pdog, but you act all high and mighty like some big brother to us!"

  “.”

  While everyone was making noise, Mu Ningxue gestured for Mo Fan to go outside.

  After they came out, Mu Ningxue asked, "Did you find anything?"

  Mo Fan said dismissively, "It's nothing more than some things in everyone's heart being magnified and amplified."

  “Bai Tingting, you and she probably haven’t developed that kind of retionship, yet she hugged you in front of so many people. I don’t think she’s that fragile,” Mu Ningxue continued.

  "She's had a crush on me for a long time, that's normal. You were the same way back then, everything was fine, and then suddenly you told me you wanted to run away from home with me," Mo Fan said with a smile.

  "I was ignorant back then," Mu Ningxue said calmly.

  "oh."

  "I'm sorry..." Mu Ningxue's expression darkened slightly. She knew that this incident had dealt a severe blow to Mo Fan's family.

  "You don't need to apologize to me. Even if you told me right now that you wanted to leave the Mu family, I would still agree," Mo Fan said with a smile.

  "We're all adults, so don't make jokes like that."

  Thinking about Mu Ningxue's current situation, talking to her about love and romance would be a waste of breath.

  Damn, as expected, this woman is beautiful, which makes it easy for people to have unwanted thoughts about her.

  Mo Fan wasn't interested in listening anyway, and waved his hand, saying, "Don't get sidetracked. You called me out because you wanted to say there's something wrong with them. If I'm not mistaken, they've probably been bewitched by a mind demon."

  Mu Ningxue paused upon hearing this. She had only found it strange before, but she didn't expect Mo Fan to be so certain.

  Mo Fan hadn't originally intended for them to continue fighting amongst themselves. After all, while some of these people deserved to die, others didn't, and it would be a shame for them to perish here in vain.

  They are all talented young people. Perhaps they don't have any spiritual products at the moment, but at least they still have magical tools and artifacts.

  It was precisely because of excessive internal strife that they were ruthlessly sughtered by Lu Nian and his group. If everyone had possessed magical artifacts, the outcome would have been entirely different.

  "I'll go ask Bai Tingting." With that, Mo Fan went inside.

  Approaching Bai Tingting, he took out the Mind-Concentrating Artifact and pced it in her palm. A peculiar ripple spread out once more, causing Bai Tingting to tremble involuntarily. As her pupils refocused, her eyes became much clearer and brighter.

  Thinking back on her previous behavior, Bai Tingting's cheeks flushed red, and she didn't even dare to look Mo Fan in the eye.

  "It's okay. It's normal for someone as outstanding as me to have a crush on me. I asked you to get back to normal so I could ask you if that idiot went anywhere?" Mo Fan inquired.

  Bai Tingting was initially quite shy, but upon hearing what Mo Fan said, she rolled her eyes in embarrassment and indignation. However, she still told Mo Fan the exact location where Ming Cong had gone.

  When Mingcong returned with the water, he still had something to say.

  Mo Fan nodded in agreement, then stood up and looked at the group of people sitting there silently, saying, "In this area, there is a mind-controlling demon. I don't know its exact strength. However, it should be able to amplify some hidden things deep within our minds. I will now exorcise the demon. You should try to stabilize your minds and avoid fighting among yourselves."

  "A bewitching demon?"

  Everyone was taken aback when they heard what Mo Fan said.

  Mingcong seemed to have found a chance to save himself and hurriedly said, "Yes, I was bewitched."

  "It's true that you've been bewitched, but it's also true that your intentions are impure." Mo Fan naturally wouldn't tolerate someone who contradicted him like this.

  Mingcong:...

  Liao Mingxuan's expression also turned somewhat unpleasant. After all, he would never have said those words when he was in a rational state of mind.

  But what could he do? He could only suppress his displeasure and endure it.

  “I’ll go with you,” Zhao Manyan said.

  "Do you have any magical artifacts that can resist mind-based sorcery?" Mo Fan countered.

  "Yes." Zhao Manyan nodded.

  He's the son of the richest family in the country, after all; he must have all sorts of magical tools and artifacts.

  "Let's go then."

  Immediately afterwards, Mo Fan and Zhao Manyan left the pce.

  When Zhao Manyan came out, he saw that Mu Ningxue was also there.

  "Goddess Mu, are you going too?" Zhao Manyan asked.

  "I have no other thoughts but to solve the immediate problem. Even if I am bewitched, it doesn't matter," Mu Ningxue said directly, having already learned about the demon's situation.

  Mo Fan was fully aware of this.

  Some netizens from ter generations commented that Mu Ningxue had feelings for Mo Fan at this time.

  There's a J hair!

  It's fair to say that if Mo Fan hadn't risked his life to save him, Mu Ningxue, Mu Nujiao, and even Bai Tingting would have only considered him a friend at most.

  Saving them from the jaws of a demon is a different story. But compared to Mu Nujiao and Bai Tingting, Mu Ningxue is spoiled. She just acts like she has no interest in you whatsoever.

  Meanwhile

  Drizzles were common in this season. Tiny raindrops fell from the mountain shrouded in a thick mist. The terrain was wet and muddy, and even the rivers were flowing with a stronger current. The sound of the waves could be heard from a great distance away.

  The grey sky was boundless, nor was there a visible end to the mountain range. Curtains of rain hung between the sky and the ground.

  In the midst of the cold rain, snowy white wings appeared out of nowhere, maintaining a certain distance from the ground as they glided through the sky.

  The wings belonged to the Heavenly Eagles, the trademark tamed beasts of the Chinese military. They were mostly used as mounts, and were rarely involved in any kind of battles.

  The Heavenly Eagles were one of the rare kind of Beasts that could be tamed using the Psychic Element. During the many battles between humanity and the demon beasts, humans had somehow discovered this rare species. They were willing to be affiliated with the humans, but they were not willing to fight for them.

  More snowy white figures appeared. They were moving in an orderly fashion, with a hint of aura that could only be seen on Battlemages.

  A man with an army coat draping over his shoulders on one of the Heavenly Eagles said, “Remember, from now on, you’re no longer carrying the identity of a soldier. Everything that you do is no longer tied to the North China Military.” The man had two small tufts of mustache and an ancient tobacco pipe in his hand. He would take a smoke every time he finished a sentence, just like normal breathing.

  Not many people actually smoked with a pipe in this era, but it was just a habit that Lu Nian had gotten used to. His back was once torn apart by a Commander-level beast, leaving a giant wound which he could still feel a dull pain from. He had visited many experienced Healers, but none of them had proved to be useful. In the end, he could only rely on a special type of tobacco to slightly numb himself...

  “Commander Lu, we are three hundred kilometers away from Jinlin City. There’s a group of Blood-Puncture Vultures living close to Jinlin City. Should we engage?” The Advising Officer was a female Battlemage. Her eyebrows were almost joined in a straight line, not a good-looking woman.

  “There’s no need for that. We will travel on foot once we are close to their territory,” Lu Nian said.

  “Acknowledged!”

  “Remember, only success is allowed for this mission!”

  “Affirmative!”

  ——-

  In a rather unique bamboo pavilion to the south of the Imperial College, Song He, who was a fan of Chrysanthemum tea, was sitting on a futon and enjoying the pleasant scent from the teapot in front of him.

  Suddenly, the door was push open with great might. The door made of bamboo swayed wildly, as if it were going to colpse.

  “Who’s there? Where’s the manner at?” Dean Song He wore a frown.

  “It’s me, old man.”

  “Zhan Kong?” Song He raised his eyelids and stared at the not-so-young-anymore man in front of him in surprise.

  Song He took a closer look and saw five fresh scars around the man’s neck and chest. Only parts of the scars were revealed above his colr, it was difficult to tell how far the scars extended.

  “Your wounds, if they were an inch higher on your neck, you might be dead now!” Dean Song He said with a slightly distressed look.

  “I’m alive, that’s all it matters. Unfortunately, they did ruin my perfect body.” Zhan Kong tried to let out a rexing smile.

  “They must be from the Darkwing Wolf. Their cws were very sharp and have the ability to corrupt their target’s blood. You will need a very long time to fully recover from the wounds,” Dean Song He told.

  “I’ll sy that Darkwing Wolf with my bare hands one day... but I’m here for another matter.” Zhan Kong had a stern look.

  “What is it, don’t tell me the South Military is interested in the kid with Double Innate Elements?” Song He smiled as he came up with the answer fairly quickly.

  “What do you mean, if we’re interested?! He’s my sworn little brother! I was looking after him back in Bo City! I was worried about something when he exposed his Double Innate Elements a while ago...”

  “Don’t worry. Old Xiao and Qiu Yuhua were against it. Lu Nian did pay me a visit privately,” Dean Song He informed him.

  “That’s exactly why I’m here. I’ve received news from an old friend in the North Military. A bunch of soldiers who were reporting to Lu Nian was discharged all of a sudden. Even Lu Nian himself seemed to have the intention to quit his position,” Zhan Kong said.

  “It’s true that Commander Lu has been acting strange tely. Perhaps he’s trying to find another path, as he could not get any higher in the military?” Dean Song He proposed.

  “Hey, have you lost your edge because of your age? Lu Nian is doing this because he can then do something crazy without being restricted!” Zhan Kong said.

  Dean Song He was startled, before he recalled something as he gathered his thoughts.

  “Are you really suggesting he’ll go that far?” Dean Song He inquired.

  “And you’re telling me it’s impossible? Hurry up and tell me where the kid’s at!” Zhan Kong shot back.

  “He’s with the training group!” Dean Song He replied.

  “Does Lu Nian know about it?”

  “He does!” the Dean answered helplessly.

  “...” Zhan Kong was left speechless. He then blurted out, “Is your brain rusted? Lu Nian’s subordinates are a bunch of maniacs who would do anything to achieve their goals. Why wouldn’t you think that Lu Nian would do something crazy, even if it would cost him everything? They were all expelled so if they commit a serious offense, they won’t necessarily bring shame to the Bck Tortoise Regiment!”

  “I never thought they would go that far! Quick, we can’t waste any more time. We have to head to the Jinlin City at once. We can’t let him do such a terrifying thing.” Dean Song He excimed.

  “Save some breath, old man, I’ll go myself.” Zhan Kong said.

  “Yao Nan, the hunter in charge of that incident is here in the capital, too. I’ll ask him to go with you. He has a Wing Magical Equipment. He can travel there fairly quickly.” Dean Song He said.

  “It’s decided!”