Chapter 198 - 195: Raising the Alert Level Again

Qin Xiaoxia thought, 'Given the Demon Eye's naive personality, it probably wouldn't be too hard to trick it into swallowing a timed nuke.'

Yes, what Brown saw as dangerous mental derangement was, in Qin Xiaoxia's eyes, just one word: "naive."

For a monster that had lived so long and was born so powerful to end up in such a miserable state... well, there was definitely a reason for it.

Even the Red Demoness felt that while the precautions Qin Xiaoxia had taken out of caution weren't entirely superfluous, the truth was, even if the Association's power was insufficient to suppress the Eye of Void, that thing would never be able to stir up any trouble as long as Qin Xiaoxia was alive.

'Oh, right. It's called the Eye of Dawn now.'

...

"Mentor and Sister Hong are out!"

Su Su immediately sensed their magic power fluctuations and cried out happily.

Seeing Qin Xiaoxia and the Red Demoness return, everyone around them gathered excitedly.

After the Secret Realm Chain was withdrawn, the entrance to the Magic Mirror closed on its own. The mirror returned to its normal size and was bound in mid-air by the chains, leaving only a small opening in case the Demon Eye needed to communicate.

After the initial wave of excitement passed, all the members of the French Branch fell silent and consciously formed a line.

Brown, in particular, was extremely ashamed.

Their first exorcism mission had required such a massive effort just to wrap up. Forget comparing themselves to the Los Angeles Branch; they had simply brought shame upon the Dawn Association.

Qin Xiaoxia looked at them expressionlessly, his gaze sweeping over the ravaged ground. He even spotted a half-eaten bag of Golden Fertilizer. 'Mumu didn't eat that, did she?'

"This incident is a lesson, and a wake-up call. Do you know where you went wrong?"

Brown and Philier exchanged a look. The former answered, breathing heavily.

"We weren't careful enough, not cautious enough. We didn't observe the situation thoroughly before..."

"Wrong!"

Qin Xiaoxia cut him off with a single word, his expression turning incredibly serious.

"There is only one reason! You are weak!"

"It's not just a weakness of power, but of spirit! I admit the Demon Eye's power exceeded your ability to handle it, but in the end, it was still because you are weak! And it's not just you; the Dawn Association as a whole has this problem right now!"

He let out a soft sigh.

"We are weak. We can't rely on past glories, propping ourselves up with memories. True strength is having the foundation to eradicate all evil."

"So, put away that vanity you've been carrying. Joining the Dawn Association is indeed something to be proud of, but you must understand! Maintaining that pride is not easy!"

His words weren't a loud reprimand, nor did they seem particularly harsh, but to everyone listening, they carried immense pressure.

Qin Xiaoxia didn't want this group to lose their confidence and become overly timid because of one failed mission.

"However, this is also a precious asset for you!"

As he spoke, a smile spread across Qin Xiaoxia's face.

"The fact that you were able to fully experience this failure will be a boon to you on your path forward. You should know, since ancient times, most members of Dawn have only learned from failure by observing others. It is very rare to experience such a failure firsthand."

'His words sounded strange. Is it because Dawn's predecessors were too strong? That's why it was hard to experience failure like this?'

Although Master Sage was smiling, there was no mirth in his eyes.

Only Brown understood what Master Sage meant. His own personal experience had revealed the answer, and he felt it was his duty to make his comrades in the French Branch understand as well.

"What Master Sage means is that for the predecessors of Dawn, to encounter failure most likely meant... death!"

The completely opposite meaning left everyone stunned, unsure whether to feel relieved and frightened in hindsight, or simply heavy-hearted.

"Cheer up. Grow up. Don't be scared by a little difficulty. From now on, you have an advantage over many of Dawn's predecessors, don't you? Especially you, Brown~"

Qin Xiaoxia suddenly smiled at them, his light and humorous tone shattering the heavy atmosphere.

"Alright, rest here for a bit, then you should head back. The branch office can't be left empty, and this little girl needs to be returned to her parents."

A wave of fatigue washed over him. Clearly, his time in the Broken Origin World had consumed a great deal of both his Magic Power and stamina.

Before leaving, Qin Xiaoxia gave the group of young people a meaningful look.

"I believe that since you have an advantage over our predecessors, you will surely surpass their achievements. Confidence is forged in battle!"

Only time would tell what the true effect of his morale boost would be, but for now, at least, it seemed to be working.

This incident had come to a temporary close. As for the Demon Eye's value, that would have to be developed later. Although he had many ideas, it was best not to make frequent contact. At the very least, he needed to rest first.

...

In contrast to the great commotion with little consequence at the Dawn Association, the police in Paris, France, and the Super Research Department were incredibly busy.

The Ruby Couple's ghostly appearance was enough for them to star in a haunted house without any makeup. And according to the police officers' descriptions, they hadn't even noticed it at first.

In the subsequent investigation, the Paris police discovered that the Ruby Couple's case was not a simple supernatural incident. Not only did it involve an unimaginable number of people, but they had also encountered a mysterious group.

As the case was reported up the chain of command, it immediately caught the full attention of the Super Research Team.

The Ruby Couple had experienced something extraordinary, and the mysterious group was very likely the same one from before—quite possibly the "Dawn Association" they had been investigating all this time.

The mirror that was the source of the problem had been taken by the mysterious organization. Through continuous investigation, they discovered the fate of the mirror's original owner and, furthermore, found that anyone who had seen the mirror, or even a photo of it, had suffered from varying degrees of weight loss, listlessness, and poor sleep.

The total number of affected people was in the hundreds.

Among the most severe cases, aside from the few already confirmed dead, the worst off among the living were the Ruby Couple, who had, after all, placed the mirror in their own bedroom.

This bizarre and terrifying situation left the investigators of the Super Research Team deeply unnerved.

This time, the people at the Super Research Team could only come up with a few hypothetical solutions.

For example, isolating the mirror with layers of rubber, lead plates, and other radiation-proof materials, or violently destroying it through burning or pulverization.

But all of these were predicated on finding it first.

All signs indicated that the mirror's true danger lay in its ability to prevent others from sensing the threat. If the mysterious organization hadn't intervened, there was no telling how bad the situation might have become.

Furthermore, what was inside the mirror and whether it could be dealt with remained a mystery.

After a day of headaches, the Super Research Team received news: Luna was back.

The little girl had taken a taxi home from Central Paris, bringing with her 50,000 Euros for home repairs.

Personnel from the Super Research Department picked her up immediately and took her to an advanced research and medical center that had been commandeered, so she could see the Ruby Couple.

Aside from telling her not to reveal anything about the Demon Eye, Brown, and the others, Qin Xiaoxia hadn't placed many confidentiality requirements on the little girl. He was even happy to let Luna "leak" some of what she had seen and heard.

...

The Super Research Department, Kodell's office.

Vernix arrived with a grave expression to report on the situation so far.

A little over ten minutes later, nearly all of the elite-level personnel from the Super Research Department's headquarters had gathered in the main conference room for an emergency meeting.

"Behind that Magic Mirror... is another world!"

"Terrifying, withered creatures, bat-like Giant Monsters flying through the air, and a massive monster hiding in the darkness."

Kodell paused the slideshow on an image of the dead bodies, which had been almost completely drained dry.

"The crisis we're facing has far exceeded our highest contingency plan. I plan to submit a request tomorrow to raise the preset alert level to 'Apocalypse'."

Someone below raised a question.

"How credible is the word of a little girl?"

Vernix answered on Kodell's behalf.

"It's not just because of what Luna said. It's also the result of our repeated deliberations during this period. Our allies in the United States and Hua Country have already raised their security alert levels to this same tier."

"Moreover, this little girl is very likely an Evolver—an Evolver who has had contact with that mysterious organization!"

Vernix held up a child's crayon drawing, a piece Luna had created just two hours earlier.

Unfolding it revealed a poorly drawn circle with some messy lines on top.

"Does this drawing look familiar to any of you?"

The sense of familiarity immediately led nearly everyone in the room to the key connection.

"The ones who rescued Luna from another world are none other than the Dawn Association we've been struggling to investigate."

It was impossible for Luna to have come into contact with the secrets of the Dawn Association. So, for her to be able to create this drawing, if one were to discount some extreme conspiracy theories, the facts pointed to only one possibility.