Chapter 30

The level of a spirit entity can occasionally mutate during the process of inheritance. For example, in the Lu family, the previous few generations all had B-grade sword spirit entities, but Lu Yang suddenly awakened an A-grade sword, which was certainly a cause for celebration.

In contrast, the Sun family, a family of high-level abilities, unexpectedly produced a C-grade descendant. This was a grandson who had been expected to achieve S-grade for the past sixteen years. One can imagine how disappointed, embarrassed, and guilty Sun Fushan must feel after awakening, unable to hold his head high in front of his family, classmates, and friends.

Xu Qiao began to understand why Sun Fushan stuttered and why he chose to be a librarian.

However, this secret that Sun Fushan candidly shared wouldn’t bring him negative repercussions; rather, it was more of an emotional confession to his two teammates.

Showing others the scars of one’s heart takes immense courage and requires enough trust—trust that teammates won’t change their attitudes towards him because of his background, that they won’t mock him for being the lowest among the many high-level turtles.

Xu Qiao privately messaged Meng Li: 【What do you think? 】

Meng Li: 【If it were just me, I wouldn’t mind bringing him along. 】

Xu Qiao: 【I’m willing to trust him as well, not only because of his displayed personality and sincerity but also because of the vice marshal factor.】

Without a doubt, the most powerful individual in the Southeast Base is Marshal Lin, with his S-grade phoenix spirit entity. Still, among the base’s residents, the most beloved and trusted is Vice Marshal Sun Dagui.

The two marshals are of similar age, both in their eighties this year, and are the third generation of the Southeast Base’s marshal and vice marshal.
—-
In the forty years of Sun Dagui’s service, the Southeast Base has faced two large-scale beast tide attacks. Although the guard troops and high-level ability mercenaries fought valiantly, the sheer number of mutated creatures was overwhelming. A portion of the beasts managed to break through the base’s walls and protective barriers, charging recklessly towards the residential area.

From the third ring to the central area, nearly ten million ordinary people lived there, along with E-grade and D-grade ability users, including all the children who were still minors.

In a critical moment, a gigantic turtle shell completely covered the entire third ring, its S-grade defensive power tightly blocking the beast tide’s onslaught.

This was Sun Dagui’s spirit entity.

The giant turtle stood immovable like a mountain, enduring the beast tide for as long as it lasted, until humanity turned the tide in their favor.

Marshal Lin and numerous frontline ability users were certainly the main combat force, but Sun Dagui’s S-grade protection was the assurance for the ten million residents of the base.

The second beast tide occurred when Xu Qiao was five years old. Her grandfather and father were both temporarily drafted into battle, and she was entrusted to Aunt Lu for care.

Aunt Lu sat by the balcony window, one hand holding the sleeping Lu Yang and the other around Xu Qiao, nervously observing the battle outside.

Being in the second ring, they could hear the roars of beasts outside the base, see the flying mutated creatures continuously crashing against the protective barrier in the air, and witness humanity’s counterattack.

As they watched, a massive black figure suddenly enveloped everything, as if night had fallen.

Xu Qiao, at the age of five, curled up in Aunt Lu’s embrace, frightened.

Aunt Lu smiled and comforted her, saying, “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid. Our vice marshal is here; with him around, no beast will get in.”

Almost all the children who experienced this beast tide had heard such words, and “The vice marshal will protect us” was deeply ingrained in their bones.

As Xu Qiao grew up, she learned more about the vice marshal through various reports. She found out that he was a person who was upright among the powerful and affluent while being friendly and approachable in front of ordinary people. The members of the Sun family had inherited the vice marshal’s temperament, adhering to the principles of defending the base and protecting the weak.

Meng Li: 【So, should we take him along?】

Xu Qiao: 【Maybe next time. I’ll ask Qin Chi for his opinion when he returns.】

If they brought Sun Fushan along this time, it might expose the secret of their spirit entities’ upgrades. Would Qin Chi think that they had also leaked his secret?

Though they were teammates, at this moment, Qin Chi held much more weight in Xu Qiao’s heart than Sun Fushan did. If Qin Chi opposed sharing secrets with Sun Fushan, she would comply.

At that moment, Qin Chi surprisingly messaged her: 【You can take him. If Meng Li gets entangled with a beast, the captain can handle the defenses around you.】

Xu Qiao: 【Are you back at the base?】

He had just left this morning and said he would be gone for three days.

Qin Chi: 【The second school is quite wealthy. They installed temporary signal devices in the danger zones, which makes it easier for students to support each other and ensures that instructors can contact the base for support in case of emergencies. 】

Even C-grade danger zones could have S-grade beasts, and the environment in A-grade danger zones was even more complicated. The military school had to be prepared for all aspects.

Xu Qiao: 【But aren’t you afraid he might inadvertently let it slip?】

Qin Chi: 【Don’t forget, I also have connections with S-grade powerhouses. You just focus on practicing your abilities and stay safe. 】

Xu Qiao smiled and took a screenshot of his message to send to Meng Li.

Meng Li: 【Okay. 】

With Sun Fushan around, Xu Qiao’s safety was more assured, especially since her B-grade healing ability could not be used in combat.

The base had implemented daylight saving time since May, with the aircraft scheduled to take off at five in the morning and leave the danger zone at five in the afternoon.

Sun Fushan cherished this opportunity to go with his teammates to “earn extra,” and he left the central area early. He first went to the eastern district to pick up Meng Li and then drove all the way to Ping An Community, parking the SUV in front of Building Five at four o’clock.

Xu Qiao had just finished washing her face and messaged her teammates in the car to wait for her for three minutes. She hurriedly changed into her C-grade combat uniform.

As she walked out of her bedroom, Lu Yang stood gloomily on one side of the corridor.

Xu Qiao said as she walked outside, “Once you’ve gone through the systematic ability training, you can join us for practice during the military school’s winter and summer breaks. If you go now, even though you are an A-grade ability user, you’ll only create trouble for us.”

Lu Yang understood this, so he couldn’t insist and could only send her off with a sullen face.

Xu Qiao: “Don’t worry, I can still act like an older sister in front of you for now. Once you really get your winter break, you might not even want to go to the C-grade danger zone we are visiting.”

Many military school students would form their own teams for practice, and Xu Qiao believed that Lu Yang would meet more suitable temporary or long-term teammates at the second school.

Lu Yang: “Wherever you go, I go. I can do A-grade tasks with other teammates and then accompany you to do C-grade tasks separately.”

Xu Qiao smiled, “Alright, see you in the evening, future A-grade bodyguard.”

After closing the door, Xu Qiao walked briskly to meet her teammates.

Sun Fushan was driving, and Meng Li sat in the backseat.

As soon as Xu Qiao got on, Sun Fushan handed her a boxed meal: “Breakfast.”

While she had been excitedly typing and sharing her feelings in the group chat, seeing Sun Fushan now, his chubby white face turned red again, just like when he picked up Meng Li last time.

Xu Qiao smiled and said, “I drank some nutrient solution before leaving, so let’s save this for lunch. By the way, is your family okay with you going out to do tasks again so soon?”

From the high-grade armor and weapons that Sun Fushan casually pulled out, it was clear that even though he was the lowest-ranked turtle spirit in the Sun family, they still cared for this little turtle and didn’t seem to think of him as inferior or give up on him.

Sun Fushan looked down at his wristband and quickly typed: “At first, I wasn’t very at ease, but then my grandpa said to let me figure things out for myself and see what I could come up with.”

The descendants of the Sun family, like those of the Lin family, went directly into the military after graduation. He was allowed to find his own job due to his unique personality; otherwise, even though he was a C-grade, he would still have to serve in the military.

Xu Qiao said, “Well, let’s get the car started, and we can chat once we find our seats.”

Sun Fushan let out a sigh of relief.

The three of them left early, boarding the aircraft half an hour ahead of time, and still chose seats close to the cabin door.

Some older and arrogant mercenaries saw their youthful faces and immediately recognized them as rookies, rudely telling them to switch places.

Meng Li shot a cold glance at the other party and directly released part of her spirit entity, which took the form of a fire scorpion tail, sharp and blackened to a shine.

Sun Fushan, trying to leverage her presence, warned with a fierce face: “The stinger is poisonous!”
—-
The older mercenary, intimidated by the sharp tail now facing him, took a few steps back, his lips trembling, and ultimately dared not make any threats. He obediently went with his teammates to choose another seat.

Meng Li didn’t like trouble, so she didn’t retract her stinger. It stood high as if it had grown from her back, and every time a mercenary walked past, the red-black tip of the stinger aimed at them until they hurried away.

Sun Fushan was envious: “So, so cool!”

In response to the compliment, the stinger actually turned away from him.

Xu Qiao waved her hand to redirect Sun Fushan’s attention and sent him a message: 【Did you mention us to your family after the last mission?】

Sun Fushan replied: 【When we first teamed up, my brother briefly checked your records. After I got back safely, I asked him for help exchanging for materials for the mother lizard, and he casually praised that you were quite capable. He didn’t ask anything else.】

Xu Qiao teased him, “Our most capable teammate, Qin, isn’t here; aren’t you afraid of getting into danger and not being able to come back?”

Although the fire element is known for its strong offensive capabilities, which are generally considered superior to wind abilities of the same level, Qin Chi’s application of his abilities was simply extraordinary, even making Meng Li feel inferior.

Sun Fushan replied, “If you all dare, then I dare too.”

He wanted to join the army and hoped to overcome his psychological barriers, being able to confidently showcase his C-grade abilities in front of everyone who knew his identity.

Xu Qiao smiled and shook his hand.

Sun Fushan asked, “By the way, what is the big secret you mentioned?”

Xu Qiao replied, “You’ll find out when we get there.”
—-
At exactly five o’clock, the aircraft took off and landed an hour later in a C-grade safety zone to the west of the Southeast Base.

Numerous safety zones of different levels radiate outward from the Southeast Base.

Recently, it was graduation season, and various military academies had booked some safety zones for practical training, prohibiting mercenaries from entering. This made other open safety zones much more crowded than usual.

When too many ability users gather, it often means an increased chance of trouble. Last night, Sun Fushan carefully selected an open safety zone that was not favored by mercenaries. He casually accepted a small team mission, aiming to kill enough targets to exchange for contribution points and scores. If he didn’t manage to kill enough, it was no big deal; after all, the three of them were here to improve their strength.

Avoiding other ability users who had landed around the same time, Sun Fushan released the off-road vehicle and pointed to a mountainous area on the map, saying, “This way?”

Both teammates nodded.

When they got in the car, Xu Qiao sat in the passenger seat, helping Sun Fushan observe the road conditions.

Meng Li sat in the back, ready to respond promptly to any attacks from behind or the sides.

They had only been driving for about ten minutes when a C-grade mutated cat suddenly lunged at the off-road vehicle from behind a collapsed wall.

Sun Fushan was well aware of Meng Li’s strength and continued driving unaffected.

But then he heard Xu Qiao say, “I’ll handle this.”

Sun Fushan turned his head just in time to see a water arrow fly in from directly above the mutated cat, piercing through its neck.

With a “thud,” the mutated cat fell by the roadside.

Sun Fushan was still in shock at Xu Qiao’s water ability when a wind blade appeared and viciously struck the mutated cat’s head.

Sun Fushan was speechless.

If it weren’t for the gruesome blood splattering from the wind blade, he would have thought that Qin was also there!

If it wasn’t Qin Chi, was someone trying to snatch the loot?

Sun Fushan quickly slammed on the brakes. When he did, Meng Li lost her balance, and the wind blade wavered, scattering upon hitting the ground.

Glancing at their vigilant captain, Meng Li expressionlessly pushed open the car door, allowing a dagger to fall from her sleeve, which she twirled lightly in her palm.

As she extracted the crystal core, and with no other mercenaries appearing around, Sun Fushan looked at Xu Qiao in confusion and asked, “Whose wind was that?”

Xu Qiao smiled brightly, “It was Meng Li’s; this is our secret.”