Chapter 63

After Su Luo, the Beast Master, defeated the Angry Rock Xuanwu, the survivors on the deserted island were sent to a nearby hospital, where they stayed for two days of observation before leaving one by one.

Among the few closest to the Angry Rock Xuanwu, except for Xiang Xun, who had taken precautions beforehand, everyone else experienced varying degrees of mental trauma, and their memories of the Angry Rock Xuanwu were disturbed.

It is said that everyone’s description after escaping the volcano’s crater was different.

Some believed they had indeed entered the volcanic island, some thought all the experiences were illusions or dreams, and others felt they had escaped from a secret realm.

Among them, Lin Fei and Chen Jiashu had more severe symptoms. Both still had burns from the high temperatures, requiring a longer stay in the hospital.

Mu Huiyue remembered the thunderous strike from the White Tiger Beast Master, and the disappearance of the Angry Rock Xuanwu.

After confirming with Xiang Xun, she was certain that her memory was not confused, only that her mind was still fatigued, much like the first time she crossed the Necromancer’s Secret Realm without any protection.

As for whether the mysterious Angry Rock Xuanwu was an unexpected appearance of a secret realm or a real ultimate creature, even the Bureau of Secret Affairs struggled to determine the truth.

However, due to such a major incident, the national ranking tournament had to end early. The deserted island, being a fusion-phase secret realm, was sealed off for investigation, and the results of the investigation have not yet been made public.

Considering the situation of the participants and their beasts, after careful deliberation, the Beast Master Association decided to cancel the remaining rounds of the top eight elimination matches. The final ranking of the tournament would be based on the standings at the end of the wilderness survival competition.

The five who survived the Angry Rock Xuanwu incident remained calm and composed after the accident. They continued to help each other in the face of dire circumstances, overcoming difficulties together and showcasing the proper demeanor of Da Yan Beast Masters. They were considered to have successfully defeated the Lord of the Secret Realm and each earned 2,000 points.

Ultimately, Mu Huiyue, with two consecutive days of ranking first on the leaderboard and her achievement of defeating the Lord of the Secret Realm, accumulated a total of 5,688 points and ranked first, becoming the champion of this national ranking tournament.

When she received the news of her final ranking, Mu Huiyue was staying at the temporary dormitory of the Capital Bureau of Secret Affairs.

Due to the sudden incident on the island, she hadn’t had time to find a place to stay and had temporarily lodged here after finishing her observation at the hospital.

Receiving the first-place ranking in the tournament, she felt less excitement than she had expected.

It’s a pity that the battle with Lin Fei was interrupted…

If the situation had continued as it was, Mu Huiyue was quite confident she could have won.

She really wished she could have continued to the subsequent elimination matches, but among the top eight ranked participants, five had experienced the turmoil of the Angry Rock Xuanwu incident.

People like Lin Fei and Chen Jiashu were still in the hospital and wouldn’t be able to fight for the short term.

Students selected for the national ranking tournament are all top performers from high schools around the country. As long as their theoretical scores aren’t disastrously low, they’re sure to make it into the Beast Master University.

Not to mention someone like Lin Fei, who had already been reserved as a seed candidate by Xingzhou University.

Mu Huiyue leaned back onto the soft bed, letting out a light breath.

When they meet again, she would definitely defeat Lin Fei in an official battle!

There was a soft knock on the dorm room door, and after a short while, a skeleton entered carrying a food tray.

It was Ellen, who had gone to get the food.

Her Beast Master had been lying down for most of the day, and it was time to get up and eat something.

Mu Huiyue took the tray, which contained mostly easy-to-digest foods, and Ellen remained as thoughtful as ever.

She recalled the time when she first emerged from the Undead Realm, staying in the dojo’s dormitory, and it was Ellen who came in with a food tray.

Back then, the little skeleton was barely larger than the tray, wobbling as it lifted it up. Now, Ellen could hold it in one hand and still help Mu Huiyue sit up properly.

Mu Huiyue smiled and looked at him. “Thanks, Ellen.”

“Click.”

The skeletal soldier placed his right hand over his chest and gracefully bowed.

The battle inside the Angry Rock Xuanwu had been very dangerous. When it was finally recalled to the Beast Master space, Ellen had suffered varying degrees of burns from the high temperatures. Fortunately, with the help of the “Resting Hut,” his injuries healed quickly.

After delivering the food tray, Ellen once again melted into the shadow of the Beast Master.

The scent of the food roused Baiya, who groggily whimpered and moved from the head of the bed to Mu Huiyue’s side, curling up with its tail wrapped around itself.

Mu Huiyue petted Baiya’s fluffy little head and finally had her first meal after sleeping the entire day.

Although the ranking assessment ended in an unexpected manner, upon careful reflection, there were still plenty of gains.

She had gained a lot of practical field experience, encountered powerful opponents with various attributes, and made some like-minded friends her age.

Baiya had also learned a new skill, the C-level Dark attribute status skill, Moon Shadow.

So far, no higher-tier skills had been discovered for Moon Shadow, but it was highly practical in all types of combat.

With Moon Shadow, the available tactics had increased exponentially, and as Baiya evolved, the number of Moon Shadows he could control would grow, further expanding the tactical possibilities.

Mu Huiyue was even considering using the abilities of the Smoke Luo Pages to see if Ellen could also learn Moon Shadow.

After all, having a smoky, interchangeable physical form that could swap positions with the main body was incredibly useful.

She would ask Ellen’s opinion later.

…

At this time, in the headquarters of the Bureau of Affairs, a special meeting was being held in a room on the 24th floor.

A-level investigator Guan Yu brought back the latest investigation report regarding the exam site accident.

The report was being reviewed by Su Luo, the Deputy Minister in charge of secret realm investigations, and Xin Wei, the Minister of the National Bureau of Secret Realm Affairs.

“…All participants received timely medical treatment, and there were no casualties in this incident.”

“….”

“…In summary, we found no trace of the existence of the Furious Rock Tortoise at the scene. Most of the burning vegetation was caused by Minister Su Luo’s skills.”

Guan Yu’s voice paused, and even he found it hard to believe.

At the moment the Furious Rock Tortoise appeared, all recording terminals on the island lost signal, and the Bureau of Affairs launched an emergency rescue. He was one of the first investigators to arrive at the scene.

He had witnessed with his own eyes the colossal, almost unbelievable ultimate extraordinary creature that resembled a moving active volcano.

Originally, he had agreed to supervise the exam just to watch the children’s battles and perhaps take it easy.

But he never expected such a massive, unexpected incident to occur. Perhaps he was just destined for a life of labor, and wherever he went, incidents involving secret realms would occur.

“What about the possibility of a collective hallucination?” Minister Xin Wei spoke up.

“Absolutely impossible. I personally struck the Furious Rock Tortoise.”

Su Luo shook his head firmly. “Even if you don’t believe my senses, Little Bai’s abilities are never wrong. I couldn’t have been deceived by a hallucination. At least, at the moment the skill landed, the Furious Rock Tortoise was absolutely real.”

The White Tiger possessed traits of integrity, purity, and perseverance, making it immune to all mental effects. It would never waver in its sense of self, and so would Su Luo, who fused with it.

Even if it were a collective hallucination, Su Luo would be the only one unaffected.

However, the investigation results showing no trace left on the island were also real.

Minister Xin Wei pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration.

She was no longer young, and she did not rely on the feedback from her beastmaster contract to maintain a youthful appearance.

The wrinkles on her skin did not detract from the minister’s authority. Her shoulder-length hair was carefully dyed black, and her eyes were bright and sharp, showing no sign of the decay that typically comes with age.

In contrast, Su Luo, who appeared unnervingly young, had a head of snow-white hair.

Guan Yu glanced at the two of them.

It was said that Minister Xin Wei and Deputy Minister Su Luo were the same age. They were classmates in university, once hailed as the twin pillars of Jingzhou University, and had been close friends since then.

Later, Su Luo rose to become a Beastmaster, leading the White Tiger to sweep through the world competition, while Minister Xin Wei became an investigator, advancing to her current position.

The fact that the Bureau could acquire a Beastmaster of the White Tiger’s level was also due to Minister Xin Wei’s personal connection.

“A Luo, what do you think of this incident?” Minister Xin Wei turned to her long-time friend.

When solid evidence was lacking, it was often Su Luo’s beast-like intuition that could pierce through the fog and hit the truth with precision.

“I think… it’s very strange,” Su Luo said, furrowing his brow as if organizing his thoughts.

“Why would the Angry Lava Tortoise appear at that specific time and place, in that form?”

“The B-level Secret Realm ‘Xuan Volcano’ was investigated under my leadership twenty years ago, and the Angry Lava Tortoise was personally killed by me.”

“After the disappearance of the Secret Realm’s master and core, ‘Xuan Volcano’ quickly entered its fusion phase, and now it’s hardly any different from an ordinary island.”

“This time, the Beastmaster Association only brought in a Fire Flame Tortoise from another location as the Secret Realm’s master for the assessment.”

“But when I struck the Angry Lava Tortoise, I had this strange sense of déjà vu…”

Su Luo lowered his gaze and looked at the hand that had held the knife. “It felt like a hypothetical possibility becoming reality. If I hadn’t killed the master of the ‘Xuan Volcano’ Secret Realm back then, and if the Fire Flame Tortoise with the skill ‘Flame Absorption’ had evolved into the Angry Lava Tortoise after twenty years…”

“Then it should look like it does now.”

Upon hearing this, Guan Yu couldn’t help but shiver.

Even though Su Luo was only describing her feelings, the possibilities contained within her words were enough to send a chill down anyone’s spine.

Xin Wei’s expression showed deep thought.

This could be one of the most troublesome and dangerous anomalies triggered by all the secret realms.

The disturbance of the laws of space and time.

Unfortunately, the current information was too sparse. Apart from the sudden appearance and swift defeat of the Angry Lava Tortoise, they knew nothing else.

“…I understand,” Minister Xin Wei spoke up. “Adjust the relevant secret realm to S-level priority and expedite the collection of information.”

“The highest authority over the related secret realm should be given to me, Xiao Wei,” the white-haired young woman said, looking at Xin Wei.

Su Luo, who had voiced this terrifying hypothesis, now appeared eager, her eyes gleaming with anticipation.

If a Beastmaster had spent decades searching for something, even mobilizing national-level forces, exploring both heaven and earth, yet finding no clue…

Could it be that what she was searching for had vanished due to the disturbance of space-time laws?

Having worked alongside Su Luo for many years, Xin Wei understood her train of thought.

“I understand. This was one of the conditions that made you agree to join the Bureau in the first place,” Xin Wei nodded, looking at her old friend, unchanged after all these years. “…I just need you to promise me one thing, Alo.”

There was no need for her to say much more; Su Luo understood her friend’s thoughts perfectly.

She nodded slightly, “Dayan is also my homeland. Every decision and action I take will be based on ensuring the safety and security of Dayan.”