Chapter 336 - 44: Level 3 Wizard’s Reward (Part 2)

Chapter 336: Chapter 44: Level 3 Wizard’s Reward (Part 2)

She stood there, crestfallen, for two seconds, then gave the order as guild leader: "Everyone, let’s head back!"

Most of the Adventurer’s Guild members had no objection. In fact, many were secretly overjoyed.

They had only joined the Adventurer’s Guild in obedience to the Royal Family’s command. For them, avoiding an expedition into the perilous ruins was actually a good thing.

The blind Apprentice stared in the direction Mo Ning had disappeared, his pupils flashing with immense shock.

He lowered his head, concealing the astonishment in his eyes. Something seemed to be slowly writhing within his blind sockets.

He thought to himself in disbelief, ’How can a First Level Apprentice possess such immense combat strength?’

Using a hidden Secret Technique, he had assessed the Black Robed Arbiter’s actual Spiritual Strength to be less than 4 points.

This was, without a doubt, the level of a First Level Apprentice.

Normally, an Apprentice with this level of Spiritual Strength would be relegated to menial tasks at the academy. Even on field missions, they would be tasked with logistics more than anything else.

But the problem was, the combat power he’d displayed was suffocatingly strong. Even he, a Second Level Apprentice, was terrified by it.

*****

「Cabin in the Woods.」

Mo Ning had just finished a Meditation session, a lingering daze still visible in his eyes.

This was normal.

It was common for many Apprentices to need a good ten minutes to regain their senses after leaving the Meditation World, which was nearly indistinguishable from reality.

Lately, fantastical elements had been appearing more and more frequently in Mo Ning’s Meditation World.

To describe it using a term from novels—it was a Spiritual Energy Revival!

Wild animals were mutating, and the whole world was becoming grotesque and bizarre.

News of rats larger than cats, with mouths full of sharp teeth that could easily snap steel cables, exploded across the internet.

There were also tabby cats that could scale sheer walls, walking straight up 90-degree surfaces to the top floor, completely defying all common sense.

There were even loggers who were attacked by mutated woodpeckers in the forest. After just a few pecks, their skulls were left with two holes bored straight through them.

However, such videos rarely stayed up for long before mysteriously disappearing.

Still, a strong sense of panic spread among the populace. Countless people began hoarding supplies to prepare for what they believed was an impending disaster.

Troops were being stationed in cities all over the country, which was another alarming signal to the public.

Meanwhile, Mo Ning’s university studies within the Meditation World had rapidly progressed to the first semester of his sophomore year.

That morning, he was in class in one of the academic buildings.

Halfway through the class, something bizarre happened.

"CAW—CAW—"

The cawing of numerous crows suddenly erupted, seeming to come from the roof of the academic building.

Before, no one would have given it a second thought, assuming it was just a flock of crows resting on the roof.

But times had changed. Now, any anomaly was enough to put everyone on high alert.

The lecturer, who had been rattling on at the front of the class, said uneasily, "Everyone, just read your books for a moment," before rushing out to see what was happening.

A minute later, the lecturer returned to the classroom, his face pale. He announced in a panicked voice:

"Class, there’s been a minor incident in the building. It’s about to be sealed off. Class is canceled for today. I’ll schedule a make-up session at a later time."

The classroom erupted in an uproar.

Even a fool could see it was far from a "minor incident"; otherwise, the lecturer wouldn’t have been so terrified.

The students quickly packed their things and hurried out of the classroom.

It wasn’t just their class. All the other classes had been dismissed as well. A tide of people poured from the classrooms, converging on the stairwells.

That was when something horrifying happened.

"CAW—CAW—"

The cawing of the crows suddenly grew louder.

The crows took flight, circling above the academic building and dropping bloody objects.

Mo Ning had been severely nearsighted in high school, but his vision had gradually recovered since the appearance of the Phantom Carving. Now, his eyesight was as sharp as a hawk’s.

He stood at the edge of the corridor and craned his neck to look up. His expression changed after just one glance. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Each crow was several times larger than normal, its beak and talons a vivid red, as if drenched in blood.

And the objects being dropped from the sky were, horrifyingly, blood-drenched, mangled limbs.

Mo Ning even spotted a rat’s head. Judging by its size, these rats were also much larger than normal.

It wasn’t hard to deduce that the flock of crows had just collectively hunted a group of rats and, for some reason, decided to hold a "picnic" on the roof of the academic building.

By all accounts, while crows are omnivores that will prey on small vertebrates like voles, they have never been known to hunt in packs.

Just then, an exceptionally loud caw rang out. The sound was so piercing it instantly filled the entire academic building.

Mo Ning’s gaze followed the sound, and he immediately spotted a crow of "giant" proportions.

Its wingspan was an incredible two meters.

This was undoubtedly the "alpha" of the flock.

The hundreds of crows that had been flying away from the school suddenly wheeled around in unison, as if on command. They swooped down toward the students packed into the stairwells.

"CAW CAW—CAW CAW—"

The cawing grew more urgent, laced with the excitement of spotting prey.

Mo Ning’s heart sank. ’This is bad,’ he thought.

This flock of crows seemed to be a mutated breed. Their talons were incredibly sharp; a single scratch would not only tear through clothing but also leave wounds that bled profusely.

Worse still, with so many people crowded into the stairwells, an attack by the flock would inevitably trigger mass chaos, followed by a horrifying stampede.