Chapter 103
Chapter 103
In the principal’s office, Wu Rendi stared at his computer screen with shining eyes.
He had recently gone to considerable trouble to obtain several new pieces of premium, uncensored, ultra-high-definition foreign-language study material.
The moment he finished handling the school’s affairs, he had rushed back to his office and begun his research in earnest.
As the saying went, diligence was the path up the mountain of books, and hard work the boat across the boundless sea of learning. Principal Wu’s dedication to the study of foreign cultures was truly worthy of everyone’s appreciation.
More moving still, Wu Rendi never skipped a single moment of plot.
In Principal Wu’s own words, “Only by appreciating the scenes no one else cares about can you claim to have truly watched the work.”
No matter how long the early buildup lasted, he patiently watched every second.
The progress bar had finally reached the one-third mark. Onscreen, the two teachers had begun removing their jackets because the air conditioner was making the room too hot. Wu Rendi rubbed his hands together in excitement.
Rumble!
A violent tremor shook the office. The monitor lurched, tugging its cable free, and the screen went black.
Wu Rendi stared blankly.
Then he let out a heartbroken scream.
“Nooo!”
Howling, he shot to his feet and kicked the door open.
“What fucking renovation crew is making that racket?!”
“Didn’t I say no construction during the lunch bre–”
His voice stopped dead.
On the athletic field not far away, a huge, twisted fissure hung in the air, black as pitch and radiating an icy, malevolent aura.
Powerful curse energy poured from within.
…
Inside a hospital room, Han Yifan opened a lunch box. The freshly prepared four dishes and a soup released a mouthwatering aroma.
The girl in the bed brightened, her eyelashes fluttering.
“That smells so good…”
“Dad, if you keep feeding me like this, I’ll be a little pig by the time they discharge me.”
She pouted in feigned complaint, but happiness filled her eyes.
Han Yifan smiled indulgently and stroked her hair. “Nonsense… The doctor said you need good nutrition while you’re recovering. You’ll heal faster that way.”
The girl stuck out her tongue. “How much longer until I can leave? I feel almost completely better!”
“Look how nimble I am!”
As she spoke, she wiggled her feet. A hiss of pain immediately escaped her.
Although she had escaped the fate of having her heart replaced, the injuries from being struck by the car had been entirely real.
Only now had she recovered from most of them.
Han Yifan had put his work aside during this period to stay with his daughter and care for her.
Qin Lan had visited once as well.
At the time, however, United Government investigators had still been monitoring him. He had only stayed long enough to offer a few words of comfort before leaving.
“Once you’re better, we need to find your big brother Qin Lan and thank him properly…” Han Yifan sighed. “He’s the reason you’re alive.”
“I don’t even want to imagine what would’ve happened without him…”
Xiao Ran nodded obediently. “I know.”
Han Yifan was about to continue when he felt an unnatural shaking.
“Careful!”
He immediately pulled his daughter into his arms and shielded her beneath him.
The tremor did not last long. Soon, everything went still again.
Han Yifan raised his head uncertainly and looked around.
“What happened? Was that an earthquake?”
“Why would there suddenly be an earthquake…”
The daughter in his arms spoke in a trembling voice and pointed toward the window.
“Dad… what’s that?”
Han Yifan followed her finger.
His blood turned to ice. His entire body went rigid.
Outside the window hung a savage black fissure.
And an enormous, horrifying monster was about to crawl out.
…
Luo Yue’s face went deathly pale.
“Fifteen fissures?”
“And every one of them is producing anomalies?!”
She had received Lu Xingshan’s message immediately, yet she could barely believe her ears.
The first five fissures had appeared one after another, so almost everyone assumed the pattern would continue.
No one expected ten new fissures to open simultaneously all across Safe Zone 088. They had been caught completely off guard.
Worse, reports indicated that 3-Star anomalies had already begun appearing from several of them.
Hearing Luo Yue’s cry, Qin Lan also grasped the severity of the situation.
Safe Zone 088 did not have many 3-Star Anomaly Hunters.
Even counting Qin Lan and Dong Haoran, there were fewer than ten.
If all fifteen fissures continued expanding and began producing 3-Star anomalies…
It would be an unprecedented disaster.
Safe Zone 088 might meet the same fate as the destroyed Safe Zone in the archives and be wiped from existence.
“Weren’t reinforcements coming?”
Qin Lan stared into Luo Yue’s eyes. “Director Lu said several nearby Safe Zones would send Anomaly Hunters, and even headquarters–”
Luo Yue slowly shook her head.
Qin Lan’s heart sank at the sight.
“There won’t be any reinforcements.” Luo Yue’s throat was dry. “It isn’t just our Safe Zone. Fissures have begun appearing in the nearby Safe Zones too…”
“The news just came in.”
“They can’t make it.”
It was enough to drive anyone to despair.
Silence fell. Every Anomaly Hunter who heard her lowered their voice at once.
They did not possess power like Qin Lan or Dong Haoran.
For these people, even the licensing exam had been a brush with death. Some had struggled for years, even decades, only to reach 2-Star.
Against the danger now facing Safe Zone 088, they had almost no chance of survival.
Every one of them knew it.
“Everyone…” Luo Yue took a deep breath, her voice solemn. “I’ve sent the exact coordinates and live status of every fissure to your communicators.”
“We have nowhere left to retreat. We fight until we die.”
“If we fall, tens of thousands of people will die at the hands of anomalies.”
“I’m asking every one of you to give this everything you have.”
Her words drew different reactions.
Some looked terrified and guiltily avoided her gaze, already wondering what excuse they might use to slip away.
Others stared ahead with determination, never saying a word.
Still others were white-faced and trembling with fear, yet clenched their fists without wavering.
Tang Qingqing looked nervously at Qin Lan, waiting for him to speak.
She might have survived more than a dozen battles by now, but she was still only a child. A disaster this sudden had left her panicked and lost.
Qin Lan, however, remained perfectly calm.
“Leave these seven fissures to me.”
His voice was steady and powerful, ringing like a bell that settled every heart around him.
As Qin Lan spoke, the coordinates of seven fissures lit up green on the map.
“I’m fast enough to guard these neighboring fissures.”
There was no panic in his voice, nor the grim resolve of someone marching to his death. He simply stated the facts.
“The other 3-Star Anomaly Hunters will help you defend the remaining fissures.”
“No matter what horrors emerge from them, we will drive them back.”
“We will win this battle.”
“Humanity will win.”