Chapter 26
Chapter 26
Luan Zimo did not interrupt.
Her expression shifted slightly as she reevaluated Qin Lan beside her.
At first glance, she had taken him for an ordinary novice Anomaly Hunter.
He wore no badge, but his presence revealed enough for her to make an educated guess.
Yet how could someone worthy of befriending the famous Han Chan of the Central Region possibly be ordinary?
Had she misjudged him?
Luan Zimo could not help speculating.
Nearly every member of the Central Region’s elite circle of young geniuses knew Han Chan’s name.
A Talent beyond A-rank. A rare special class. Multiple escapes from unsolvable instances. The youngest 4-Star Anomaly Hunter in the United Government’s records…
Each of those distinctions alone was enough to make anyone who considered themselves a “genius” despair.
Lu Xingshan also possessed an A-rank Talent, but only after years of study and growth had he officially joined the Anomaly Hunter Bureau in his thirties.
Reaching 4-Star in a mere seven years was astonishing in its own right.
But compared with Han Chan, who had reached the same height at twenty-two, the difference was as vast as heaven and earth.
Some even suspected that Han Chan had already become a legendary 5-Star Anomaly Hunter and simply had not made any qualifying combat record public.
“After Xue returned, he told us about an interesting person he met in Safe Zone 088.”
“He gave us a rather embellished account of what happened in that 3-Star instance too.”
Han Chan’s gaze resembled a tranquil lake. Looking into his eyes, Qin Lan sensed nothing but warmth and serenity.
“That made me curious about you.”
“I didn’t expect… that you would be even more unusual than I imagined.”
As he held Qin Lan’s hand, faint ripples seemed to pass through the lake in Han Chan’s eyes, as though he had seen something.
Then he released Qin Lan’s hand and nodded politely.
“My name is Han Chan. I’m from Shanhai Pavilion and am Xue Chuan’s senior brother.”
“If you’re interested, Shanhai Pavilion would welcome you.”
Qin Lan did not react, but Luan Zimo was stunned.
As someone from the Central Region herself, how could she not understand the weight carried by the name Shanhai Pavilion?
The Top Three Institutes, the Middle Five Halls, and the Lower Nine Academies–everyone in the Central Region knew the academic hierarchy.
There was already an enormous gap between prestigious universities and ordinary ones. Even among prestigious universities, however, differences remained. That was the basis of the Top Three, Middle Five, and Lower Nine.
The three universities with the deepest foundations used “Institute” in their names. The next five used “Hall,” while only the final nine retained the conventional designation of “Academy.”
Luan Zimo attended Tianming Academy, one of the Top Three Institutes. From the very start, she stood above countless geniuses, a prodigy whom other prodigies could only admire.
Su Xiaoyue, thanks to her A-rank Talent, had received an offer from one of the Lower Nine Academies.
But neither the Middle Five Halls nor the Top Three Institutes had extended an invitation.
An A-rank Talent was nothing unusual to schools of that caliber.
Only the very best among A-rank Talents–prodigies who stood above ten thousand others–could attract their attention.
Then what about Shanhai Pavilion?
Strictly speaking, although Shanhai Pavilion was a university, it possessed no license to operate as one.
Its president and teachers were all “unlicensed personnel” whose licenses and qualifications had been revoked. If the United Government wished, it could arrest them at any moment for “operating an unauthorized school” and “conducting business without a license.”
For certain reasons, however, the United Government had chosen to look the other way.
The school had pitifully few students as well.
It took no part in the rankings of the Top Three, Middle Five, and Lower Nine. Instead, it remained outside their disputes and quietly searched the Safe Zones for the sort of… ahem… “special talent” it favored.
What qualified as special talent?
An A-rank Talent?
Very good. They would recommend applying to one of the Middle Five Halls.
Overwhelming combat ability paired with exceptional mental flexibility?
One could try for the Top Three Institutes.
Able to kill a 1-Star anomaly alone immediately after enrollment and fight evenly with a 2-Star anomaly?
The Anomaly Hunter Bureau would welcome such a person. They might even become a branch director one day.
But what if, in the middle of a fight, they might pull either a basketball or an out-of-control 4-Star cursed artifact from their pocket–the latter wiping out their entire team?
Shanhai Pavilion eagerly awaited their enrollment.
According to reliable sources, the stranger an ability was, the more Shanhai Pavilion wanted to collect its owner.
It was practically a fetish.
“Shanhai Pavilion wants him, and even Han Chan is treating him warmly… Could he be another unconventional genius?”
Luan Zimo’s thoughts grew unsettled.
One Han Chan was already enough to suffocate the Central Region’s geniuses. What would they do if another appeared?
She swiftly committed Qin Lan’s face and voice to memory, deciding to investigate him thoroughly once she left the instance.
“Oh, so you’re Han! I’ve heard so much about you.”
Qin Lan changed his tune in an instant.
A minute ago, he had never even heard the names Han Chan or Shanhai Pavilion. Now he acted as though he saw them on the nightly news every day.
“Han, the pressure in a 5-Star instance is just too much. We’ll have to rely on experts like you to carry us.”
“I took pretty good care of Xue Chuan in that instance. As they say, a drop of kindness should be repaid with a fountain… Ahem… Think you could protect me this time?”
Shamelessly, Qin Lan latched on to his powerful new connection.
He had no choice. This was a 5-Star instance, and Death had singled him out for special attention.
One careless mistake could kill him on the spot. All he could do was hope these two 4-Star Anomaly Hunters would absorb some of the pressure.
Han Chan gave Qin Lan a meaningful look, then smiled and nodded.
“If you need it… I’ll help.”
“When it comes to fighting, though, Luan Zimo may be more dependable than I am.”
Han Chan pointed toward the girl beside Qin Lan and winked.
“Don’t let her beauty fool you. She’s frighteningly fierce.”
Qin Lan glanced at Luan Zimo.
A single indifferent look from those golden eyes made his back prickle.
“Never mind, Han… I think you’re more dependable,” Qin Lan said weakly.
Han Chan merely smiled.
Outside, the rain grew even heavier. The view through the windshield was a blur, with only the red taillights ahead visible through the downpour.
The impatient driver lit a cigarette and cracked open his window.
Cold, damp air instantly poured inside, rousing many of the passengers from their drowsy sleep.
At almost the exact same moment, a passenger near the front abruptly leaped to his feet and cried out in terror.
“Dead! Everyone died!”
“No… I died too… Why am I still alive?”
The back of his shirt was soaked with cold sweat. Terror covered his face, mingled with bewilderment.
Without a moment’s hesitation, he rushed madly to the door and pounded on it.
“Open the door! Let me off!”
“We have to… We have to get away! Otherwise, everyone here is going to die!”
“Open it!”
Every passenger on the bus was frightened by his hysterical shouting, none of them knowing what was wrong with him.
Qin Lan, Han Chan, and Luan Zimo immediately realized that danger was approaching.
If impending death usually came with subtle omens, this one was practically slapping all three of them across the face.
The driver refused to open the door. Instead, he unleashed a stream of curses in an obscure dialect.
Apart from a few time-honored nouns and verbs common to profanity everywhere, Qin Lan understood none of it.
No matter how the driver berated him, however, the passenger remained determined to get off.
He even began ramming the door with his shoulder.
Bang…
Bang…
“What do you think the odds are that I can outcurse the driver and convince him to open the door?”
“It doesn’t sound that hard…”
Qin Lan stroked his chin thoughtfully.
“Try it yourself. I can’t even be bothered to consider something that stupid,” Luan Zimo said coldly as she turned and grabbed the emergency hammer beside the window.
The emergency hammer transformed instantly in her hand.
Its shape shifted into that of a small, black metal hammer wreathed in fire. Ghostly blue flames danced across its heavy metallic surface.
“Holy crap! Straight out of a bargain-bin fantasy game!” Qin Lan exclaimed.
With those gaudy effects, the hammer looked like a weapon from the sort of cheap browser game that promised “999 damage in one hit” and begged players to join their friends in hacking away.
Luan Zimo’s movement stiffened. She glared at Qin Lan in annoyance.
“What kind of garbage description is that? If you don’t understand it, shut up!”
A-rank Talent: [Myriad-Form Divine Artificer].
Effect: The user can imbue any item they possess with a curse, greatly enhancing its effects and granting it additional functions.
The true power of this Talent was that it could enhance cursed artifacts as well.
In Luan Zimo’s hands, an ordinary 2-Star cursed artifact could be empowered by her Talent to rival a 3-Star or even 4-Star cursed artifact.
And what if she already possessed a 4-Star cursed artifact?
That was why Han Chan had said she was the more dependable one in a fight.
Luan Zimo brought her hammer down without hesitation.
The reinforced window exploded as if struck by an artillery shell, releasing a deafening blast.
“That swing was worth at least the six-dollar starter pack.”
Qin Lan bestowed the highest possible praise upon the blow.
Then a jagged shard of glass shot toward him, rapidly expanding in his vision.
With his attributes suppressed, Qin Lan’s reactions and movements had slowed dramatically. Even though he saw the danger, he could not evade in time.
Shnk.
Coldness brushed his neck. Then scalding blood began spurting from the wound.
Luan Zimo spun around in shock, never having expected such an accident.
When she struck the window, her movement had clearly gone awry for an instant, causing her control over the force to deviate.
“Why is friendly fire enabled…?” Those were Qin Lan’s last words.
He gave Luan Zimo a resentful look and silently mouthed, “Fuck you.” One hand clamped over his neck, but it could not stop the torrent of blood. He collapsed, twitched twice, and went still.
[You popped champagne with your neck. Killer: (Death)]
[Speed permanently increased by 2.5.]