Chapter 348 - 323: Everyone’s Gifts (2)

Chapter 348: Chapter 323: Everyone’s Gifts (2)

Seeing this, the others got the vague impression that the two were much more familiar with each other, interacting with a sense of complete ease.

Silver Fox narrowed her eyes. ’Their relationship really is closer,’ she thought. The most obvious sign, she felt, was that Guan Tong had taken Shi Jingyi’s gift without even thanking her. That spoke volumes.

After receiving the gifts, Guan Tong cut a slice of cake for everyone.

After they finished, Silver Fox was the first to get up and leave.

"I’m heading back to the base. I had to take leave to come out today, so I can’t stay out too long."

The same went for Wang Yan and Chen Na. They were now Ascenders affiliated with the research lab. While they received generous benefits and treatment, they also had to strictly abide by the lab’s rules and regulations.

As Guan Tong saw the three of them off, he made a point of thanking Chen Na again.

If it weren’t for her urging—for her telling him that you have to find moments of happiness, especially in difficult times—he certainly wouldn’t have celebrated his birthday, let alone thrown a party.

Now that he had, he realized Chen Na had been absolutely right.

He hadn’t had a day as relaxing as this in a very long time.

Once the three of them left, Xu Xiaotian said his goodbyes as well.

Before he left, he didn’t forget to add, "Tong, I know you’re powerful, but the thing is, the places you go and the enemies you face are just as dangerous... You have to be careful!"

"I will. Don’t worry."

"Okay, I’m heading out. Let’s keep in touch!"

After Xu Xiaotian left, only Guan Tong and Shi Jingyi remained.

Guan Tong helped her tidy up the yard, then asked, "Are you worried about the Parasites?"

He had noticed earlier, during the meal, that Shi Jingyi’s expression had turned grave when everyone was discussing the Parasites.

Guan Tong figured that with her frank and forthright personality, she wouldn’t have worn such an expression unless it was something that affected her personally.

Shi Jingyi was taken aback by his question.

After a moment of silence, she nodded. "I’m worried about my students."

"Students? Have some of them become Parasites?"

Although the academy was a high-priority prevention zone, with so many students, it wasn’t impossible for some to be unable to resist the temptation of the spores.

"We can’t be certain yet, but we can tell they’ve developed an addiction," Shi Jingyi said. "In the day or two after the rule ended, a total of five students went missing... The academy held a meeting and concluded they had either turned into Parasites or, due to their addiction, were forced to leave the academy to find a source for the spores."

"...That’s not something you teachers can control," Guan Tong consoled her. "Worrying is one thing, but you don’t need to blame yourself."

"I know..."

Shi Jingyi sighed.

"Do you remember a student named Lu City?"

"Lu City..." Guan Tong thought for a moment before it clicked. "I remember him. During the few months I was substitute teaching, his performance was excellent. He was one of my best students."

"Yes, that’s him. He’s one of the five who are missing... The truth is, I noticed he had a problem with spore addiction before he disappeared, but I failed to intervene effectively. I’ve been thinking about it these past two days. Maybe I’m not a qualified lecturer. If I had performed better, maybe he would have turned to me for help and wouldn’t have ended up in this situation."

"Don’t say that. The students’ support for you is proof enough of your performance. If you’re not qualified, then nobody is," Guan Tong said. "Besides, with this spore rule, it ultimately comes down to one’s own determination to resist. No one else can really help with that."

"...Thanks. Guan Tong, where do you think those students might have gone?"

"I don’t know. But if they’re addicted to the spores, they’ll go to the place where the spores are most abundant. Hmm... The Black Banner Country?"

Shi Jingyi froze. Guan Tong’s casual comment might just be the key, she realized.

The Black Banner Country had been taken over by Parasites. It was said they had established a new Parasite nation, the "Seri Divine Kingdom," and were openly calling for Parasites from all over the world to migrate there. They were clearly trying to fashion it into a holy land, much like the Christian holy city of Jerusalem on Guan Tong’s home world, Earth.

Since the missing students were desperate for spores, it was perfectly logical for them to make it their destination.

"If those students really go there, they’ll be in danger."

"That’s not something you can prevent, either," Guan Tong said. "All you can do is report it to the authorities and have the personnel stationed along the routes keep an eye out."

Shi Jingyi nodded. Just as Guan Tong said, that was all she could do.

"You mentioned testing the Mind Martial Technique earlier. How about we test it in the next few days? I happen to have some free time," Guan Tong suggested.

"Didn’t you say you wanted to rest? Besides, the new rule will be announced soon. Aren’t you going to take some time to prepare for it?"

"This counts as rest for me. Besides, testing it won’t interfere with my preparations."

"Alright. In that case, I’ll contact you tomorrow after my classes."

"Okay."

After leaving Shi Jingyi’s residence, Guan Tong went directly to the valley in Pinglu where he used to live, planning to spend the night there.

He summoned his shelter. The moment the door opened, Coal Ball shot out.

It immediately began leaping around excitedly, happy to be back. It probably considered this place its territory. No wonder, really. It had spent several months in these mountains and had already become the king of the local wildlife.

"Come here, let me have a look."

Guan Tong inspected Coal Ball, and after confirming there were no abnormalities, he let it run wild.

Since Coal Ball had eaten one of Mizusawa Chun’s heads, Guan Tong had been worried about potential negative side effects. Now that a full day and night had passed with no changes, he figured it was fine.

Watching Coal Ball disappear into the woods to run wild, Guan Tong pulled himself out of the relaxed mood of the birthday party and began to think about recent events and his plans moving forward.

His experience fighting Mizusawa Chun had made him realize that his combat abilities still had weaknesses and that his offensive methods were too one-dimensional.

Against ordinary enemies, Shadow was sufficient. But against powerful foes, Shadow’s lethality needed to be improved.

Though he possessed the nearly unstoppable instant-kill combo of Body Shifting plus the Small Space’s devour, if he encountered an enemy with multiple lives like Mizusawa Chun, he would fail to secure the kill while also exposing the secret of his technique.

’An organization... it’s really important,’ Guan Tong thought.

Now, with Shangyuan Zi’s addition, he had two distinctly different types of combat power at his disposal.

The next time he faced an enemy, he could analyze the situation and decide whether to fight himself, send Shangyuan Zi, or simply have them attack together.

If the organization could recruit more members, the potential combinations of different fighting styles would grow exponentially, which was crucial when facing powerful enemies.

However, he couldn’t focus all his attention on combat.

Uncovering secrets and pursuing the truth was Guan Tong’s original goal. Combat was just a secondary means of resolving conflict; he couldn’t put the cart before the horse.

’After I deal with Yelena’s brother and Lucifer, I should shift my focus to investigating the rules and the Fire Thief... As for the next few days, I’ll start by testing the Mind Martial Technique with Shi Jingyi, and I need to keep an eye on the Parasite situation.’

As a member of the human race, Guan Tong didn’t want to see human territory get back-doored by the Parasites.

If the Human Federation couldn’t resolve the situation in the Black Banner Country soon, they would likely call upon all Ascenders to lend their aid. When that time came, he would certainly have to contribute as well.

「The night passed quietly.」

Early the next morning, Shangyuan Zi contacted Guan Tong. She told him she had met with Suzuki and felt something was off about her. Suzuki had kept asking about him.

"I get the feeling she’s very eager to meet you," Shangyuan Zi said.

"Meet with me? Why?"

"I’m not sure. But I think she was acting strange." Shangyuan Zi paused. "I suspect it might be related to the spores."

"I was thinking the same thing," Guan Tong said. "She’s either addicted to the spores or she’s a latent Parasite."

"So, are you going to meet her?"

"Of course."

After his conversation with Shi Jingyi the previous night, Guan Tong was already paying close attention to spore addicts and Parasites. He wasn’t about to pass up an opportunity to examine a potential case firsthand.