FXDL V5C2

As introduced in this chapter, the characters will be travelling to various famous places around the world that exist in real life. I have had to do a ridiculous amount of research to cross-check my translations for these, but most of the descriptions (and names) of these famous landmarks, cities, and countries are true. You are welcome to Google them yourselves if you are interested – I will not be hyperlinking my sources as I usually do, because there are just too many.

Translated by: TaffyGirl13

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Chapter 2: Even during off-campus education, we must sleep together

At 7 PM, the final trace of the setting sun’s afterglow fell below the ocean’s horizon, pulling down the curtain of the night filled with glittering stars.

Pattaya, Thailand: the coastal city also referred to as Thailand’s Golden Coast. 

The streetlamps along the seaside path immediately lit up amidst the night sky. The ocean, beach, and thicke of tropical broad-leaved fauna created a strong, authentic Southeast-Asian aura.

There were brightly lit, peak-grade five-star villas located near the northern part of the coast. The differently styled buildings were like exquisite dwelling places, gorgeous and magnificent under the rays of light.

Tonight, this luxurious holiday village was boldly reserved—by Shalom Academy, which possessed a great amount of assets and many sponsors. This place would be the starting point for the summer school trip.

The students all began arriving one after another on the night of the eighteenth. By the time evening struck on the nineteenth, everyone had gathered. The students all wore their light and comfortable summer clothing. With excitement and high expectations, they gathered at the central plaza in the holiday village.

Bustling activity and noisy clamour reverberated through the plaza, as there were many rumours regarding this school trip. Before they’d headed over, various gossip had already spread among the student body. The alumni were all in tacit agreement, refusing to reveal any bit of information to their juniors, making the school trip even more mysterious.

“You’ll know when the time comes. Don’t cheat.” That had been He Fu Qing’s stony-faced response when Fu Xing had asked for information from his sister, who had graduated eight years ago.

I was just asking to mentally prepare myself, how does that count as cheating…Fu Xing resentfully thought.

At precisely 11 PM, Shalom’s staff and the school leader, Sanbi, appeared at the plaza. The students immediately recognised them and stopped their chatter, the noise instantly ceasing. Most of the instructors had also fittingly worn light summer clothes, though Sanbi wore his cream robe and gave off his usual solemn and dignified aura.

The other one wearing clothing that did not suit the season was Samukawa.

After much difficulty, Samukawa had finally restored his illusory spell and appeared as a middle-aged man with an eternally foul face. He stood in the staff area wearing a dark grey suit, sweeping his hawk-like gaze across the students below like a death god. It did not match with the holiday villa at all.

Seeing this Samukawa made Fu Xing reminisce about the cuter little shouta.

Sanbi walked towards the crowd and spoke in a tone that had a priest-like steadiness and calm. “Good evening. Congratulations and thank you to everyone for having stayed at Shalom for two years. This is the final summer break that starts the countdown before leaving school.”

Fu Xing received a shock from hearing these words.

Leaving school…

An urge to reject and fight against these words rose unbidden from his heart.

“After entering your third year, you will all become veteran members of the school, only second to the instructors. This school trip counts as your rite of maturity, tempering yourselves into seniors that have the ability to guide your juniors.”

Sanbi retreated to the side and allowed Professor Grey to stride forwards and begin explaining the rules.

Shalom’s summer trip covered the entire globe within its scope, with over two hundred bases set up. The duration was three weeks. Naturally, it wasn’t simply for the students to play around.

The students from the northern and southern campuses had split up into small groups, with “no limit” to group size. The two schools were split into separate paths: one to the east and one to the north. This was simply to scatter their numbers and prevent crowding.

Each person would receive a guidebook that included riddles that hinted at the base locations. They had to solve the riddles and sign-in at the bases by receiving a stamp in their booklets. Each group had to receive at least thirty-three stamps to pass. Otherwise, they would have to bear the burden of all their travel expenses. The winners would receive generous reward money.

It was extremely exciting.

“That is the general basis. You can find detailed rules inside your guidebooks.” Grey snapped his fingers, causing the brownies hiding in the corner to appear with large piles of guidebooks in their arms. They handed them out to the students with maximum efficiency.

The guidebooks were approximately thirty pages long. The dark blue covers had the words: The Guidebook for Shalom’s 324th School Trip delicately printed in gold.

Flipping through the pages, the first few were the event rules. The following dozens of pages were filled with diagrams mixed with hints to the bases.

East. The new century underground water temple to protect the city.

East. The city of the abandoned, the hill of the dead.

West. The hall of the beautiful virgin king.

West. The city of pastries.

East. The magnificent pavilion on the sea…

Fu Xing felt like he was reading a math textbook; he did not understand a thing.

The final page of the guidebook had: Sanctification Reward written in dark red letters as the sole subject on the paper. There was a triangle on the back with a red horizontal line that ran straight through the middle. The words below it read: Toppling the Court of Injustice. 

What does this mean?

Restless whispers began to stir through the air, and Fu Xing noticed that quite a few people had similarly flipped to the last page.

“I’m sure that several people have noticed the subject on the final page, and that most of you have figured out its meaning.” Grey explained in a timely manner, suppressing the suspicious unrest. 

“There is no need to worry. This subject is a bonus one. After all, one of the objectives behind the establishment of Shalom is to protect special animate beings.” A face of cruel reality was secretly hidden amidst the harmonious school life. 

“We will not insist on you to complete this task. But if any courageous ones wish to take up the challenge, the academy will pay you with the highest respect—on the premise that you are able to return.”

An unusual silence fell upon the plaza following Grey’s speech. Quite a few people wore determined expressions, as though they had resolved to do something.

Sanbi strode up to the stage again. “We hope that everyone is able to have an enriching journey and display the true value of this school trip. Because it is training, it has its challenges and dangers; but it is also a trip, so it has its leisure and pleasure. It is up to you all to decide how you wish to approach it.”

Sanbi declared solemnly, “I now formally announce the official start of the school trip. Before it ends on August 9th, gather at Greenwich at 11 PM.” 

Then he paused for a second before showing a rarely seen smile. “Have fun.”

Excited cheers rang out like a sudden clap of thunder. The students swiftly dispersed to discuss their action plans with their teams.

Fu Xing’s group casually strolled back to their room. On the way, they saw some people already running to bases with their luggage on their backs. 

Do we need to be in that much of a rush?

Fu Xing began to worry as he saw how proactive the other students were compared to his carefree teammates. 

Rocort was now laying on a long bamboo chair, happily drinking his nth cup of a juice that was special to Southeast Asia; Leon sat by the open French window, reading a profound book while enjoying the evening breeze; Taeharu and Momiji were seated on the wooden floor and enjoying the spoils of war they had recently bought from the Royal Garden Plaza Shopping Centre and Bangkok’s Amphawa Market; Emerald was holding a calculator to settle accounts for the past few days’ expenses. 

Zhu Yue, who had changed into a swimsuit under her one-piece dress, seemed eager to swim in the neon-lit pool; Brad, who had accidentally eaten papaya shrimp at dinner, sported a complexion as green as the kiwi slice on Rocort’s cup. Despite this, his gaze remained firmly locked onto Zhu Yue, clearly enjoying himself; Flora was sitting not too far from Brad, seemingly in deep thought. Yet her eyes were focused steadfastly on Brad’s chest under his unbuttoned collar—the three of them basically formed a food chain.

“What should we do next?” Fu Xing anxiously asked, “People have left already. Should we—”

“There’s still three weeks, no?”

“Let’s go slow.”

“But,” Fu Xing flipped open the guidebook, his brows knight together. “But these hints are so hard. Solving them will take quite a bit of time, won’t it…”

“Kukuku!” A strange, insufferably arrogant laugh came from Dan Juan, which drew everyone’s attention towards him. 

“Little spider, is your ass itching to spit out silk?” Momiji chuckled.

“Shut up, you vulgar woman!” Dan Juan snapped back, then grinned smugly. “Usually, everyone looks down on my wisdom and foresight, on the power of knowledge. This time, everyone of you can bow down to my intelligence! I’ve already solved ⅔ of these riddles!”

“We’ve never looked down on you,” Zhu Yue hurriedly comforted.

“It’s just that you’re kind of noisy and kind of annoying,” Brad lazily roasted.

“Hmph!” Dan Juan angrily shot them a glare. “Then you can figure things out on your own!” He spun on his heel to head upstairs to the bedroom.

Upon seeing their sole pocket of knowledge sulkily leave, Fu Xing grew frantic.

“What do we do?”

“I can bet you that he’ll come down on his own within ten minutes,” Emerald quietly muttered to Fu Xing.

Indeed, before even three minutes had passed, Dan Juan came back down with a grumpy expression.

“Forget it, I don’t want to cause my name to be listed as part of a failed group.” He heaved a long sigh, seemingly extremely reluctant. “Since we’re teammates, I have the obligation to cover for the weaker ones…”

“Yes, yes, yes, Dan Juan is the most capable person that does the most work. Those who are more capable have greater responsibility!” Fu Xing rushed to respectfully ask Dan Juan to take a seat to lead the discussion before returning to his own seat.

“This is the reason I insisted on staying as his roommate. You have to admit that despite his fussiness and horridness, this guy really does have a few tricks up his sleeve in certain bizarre situations.” Emerald quietly sniggered, “Ten dollars.”

“What? It’s not like I agreed to bet with you!”

“But you didn’t disagree either.”

Fu Xing resentfully pulled out his wallet. This damned, evil elf!

“Oho, I pretty much know where this one is.” Momiji was looking at the booklet. “Does Fu Xing want to go to Japan?”

“Oh, sure!”

“We’re the eastern group, which means we’re travelling from west to east. In that case, we should first get the East Asian ones done with, then head to the Americas and then Europe.”

“The closest base to us should be this one: The magnificent pavilion on the sea, which is another name for Shanghai. As for the sign-in point…” In the margin, he drew a circle and then a line running through it, an image that resembled a skewer. “It should be Shanghai’s landmark: Oriental Pearl Tower.”

“Alright, let’s head there first then.”

“Can we leave tomorrow afternoon? I still want to explore Siam Paragon!” Momiji sported an eager expression, as though impatient to feed her hunger for shopping. 

“Once we get to Shanghai, you can shop until you regret it. There’s a flight at 1 AM on the 20th, we can make it before sunrise.” Dan Juan harrumphed in a somewhat arrogant manner.

“Why not just leave now then, and you’ll be just in time for the period when those special businesses are active? Will that make you happy?” Momiji retorted in annoyance.

“Digusting! How am I the type of person that would go to that kind of place?!”

“Yes, yes, after all, they have the right to choose their clients. You’re still better off training those nimble fingers of yours in the airplane bathroom.” Momiji lazily yawned. Before Dan Jaun could begin shouting, she pointed at the world map on the table.

“If we choose Shanghai as the first stop, then we can continue flying north to Henan as the second stop, then from there move onto Tokyo, Japan. Although China contains many base locations, they don’t form a smooth path. If we want to tour as many countries as possible in the shortest amount of time, we can’t stay too long in any specific area.”

“Why Henan?”

“Page 7, the sixth one from the bottom. East. Capital relocated five times. Underground city. City of Shang spiritualists. City of good drinkers. Palace of the king. Hall of buried sacrifices. 20060713.” Momiji tapped the guidebook with her nails. “This should refer to the Ruins of Yin in Anyang, Henan.”

The Shang had moved their capital five times, with the final move to Yin during Pan Geng’s reign. Being spiritualists and drinking wine were both traits of Yin people. 

20060713 was July 13, 2006: the day that the Ruins of Yin was officially registered as a World Heritage Site. 

“How did you know?” Dan Juan asked in astonishment.

“A few years back, I dated a guy that studied archaeology and I visited the place before it became a World Heritage Site.” Momiji flashed a dazzling smile. “He was from University of Tokyo~ hehe.”

Flabbergasted, Dan Juan stared at Momiji. While he was unwilling to show it, he could not conceal the obvious praise in his eyes. 

“The Ruins of Yin cover a total of 71 hectares of land, you know.” Searching the entire area would only result in becoming a part of ruins. “Palace of the king, hall of buried sacrifices refers to the ruins of the king’s tomb. The king’s tomb traditionally has human sacrifices with it; it was mostly beheaded Qiang captives buried along with the deceased monarch.”

“Wow, so amazing, little spider.” Momiji rubbed Dan Juan’s head as though placating a child.

Dan Juan lightly pushed Momiji’s hand away and smirked. “This is common knowledge.”

Emerald was slightly astonished at Dan Juan’s reaction. As a fussy person with extreme mysophobia, Dan Juan hated bodily contact with others.

“Who knows what kind of bacteria they’re carrying? They might have even been relieving themselves in their rooms. I have no desire to be touched by hands that could be contaminated by sperm or urine.” —Those had been Dan Juan’s words.

Since when has the arrogant and narcissistic spider spirit started to become so “friendly”?

Emerald rubbed his chin as he pondered over the people inside the room.

Dan Juan was not the only one who had changed.

The Emerald from two years ago would have never imagined attending a school trip with these people in a team. He figured that they wouldn’t have thought of such a thing either.

Leon, Brad, Momiji, Taeharu, Rocort, and Zhu Yue had all changed quite a bit. Even Emerald himself had. Each one of them had changed in different ways, but shared a common point—they had become more people-oriented, more human-like.

Special animate beings did not have any significant fluctuations in their moods. Their feelings and sense of judgment remained unaffected, and the most frequently expressed emotions were anger and vengeance. While each person had a race or group they belonged to, they basically lived as independent individuals. Any interactions with others were built on simple and succinct relationships for personal benefits. 

Yet these traits had gradually transformed. Their emotions had started being influenced by others and they grew deeply concerned with those unrelated to them.

The sole unchanging point was the source of what caused all these changes.

Only He Fu Xing remained unchanging.

Emerald did not know if these shifts were good or bad.

Having too many emotions would be a hindrance in critical moments.

However, reverting to his past self…

Would be very difficult. And he really did not want to.

“Where is the Tokyo base?” Fu Xing flipped through the booklet with absolutely no clue. “If we go to Tokyo, can we stay for a bit? I want to buy some things.”

“East. The new century underground water temple to protect the city. The location referenced here is in northern Tokyo: the 22-stories deep Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel underneath Saitama Prefecture. It’s an underground reservoir that acts as flood control and water storage. Quite a few distinguished films were taken there,” Momiji confidently stated.

For a moment, no one knew how to react. This erudite Momiji was way too different from her usual playful and teasing image.

“Oho? What, everyone dumbstruck? Did you think I was only an expert in shopping and sexual matters?” Momiji chuckled. “Rather than prattling every day to proclaim my knowledgeability, I prefer using my mouth in other ways.”

“In what ways?” Fu Xing naively asked. 

Momiji smirked. “Want me to teach you?”

“Dan Juan probably needs it more,” Taeharu suddenly chimed in innocently. “But Emerald can teach him. Brad can too.”

Emerald, who was drinking some special juice blend, suddenly choked and began to cough.

In tacit understanding, the crowd turned to look at the originator of the issue.

Flora indifferently waved her fan while gazing upwards. “Are you blaming me? The box of manhua in the closet isn’t mine…”

Huh?

While everyone was still trying to make heads or tails of this, Zhu Yue suddenly stood and exclaimed in an unnaturally cheerful tone, “Momiji is too amazing! A truly hidden beauty combined with intelligence! Oh, it’s already past nine, should we start packing and prepare to head to the airport?” 

Exactly what kind of manhua is it? Fu Xing curiously pondered this the entire way to the airport, but his most basic instincts and subconscious told him: Don’t ask, you’ll be scared to know.

5 AM. Shanghai, Pudong International Airport. The dark night sky had gradually brightened during their flight and was now a dusky blue-grey.

After alighting the plan, they swiftly took an airport bus to head towards a top hotel in downtown. There were several hours left until the official check-in time, but this trivial issue was easily solved with the fox spirit’s hypnosis.

White-hot sunlight slowly spilled in from the hotel courtyard. With a windbreaker, hat, and sunglasses, Leon looked quite calm and indifferent. After entering the room, he had no need to worry about the sun’s rays. Moreover, with complete sunproofing, being under the sun for short durations did not significantly affect darkbloods.

“One four-person room with an extra bed, two double rooms, one single room. Here are your keys.” The concierge staff spread out the magnetic key cards. 

Fu Xing instantly nabbed one of the cards, then grabbed his luggage and pulled Leon towards the elevator.

“What’s he doing?” Rocort curiously asked while watching Fu Xing leave.

“Probably excited to have alone time with Leon,” Taeharu replied in a profound tone. “The youth controlled by burning desire craves loving assault.”

“Oh, I see.” Rocort nodded in feigned comprehension.

“Wow, you remember such a long and bizarre line!” Flora’s eyebrows shot up in admiration.

Taeharu looked proud. “I know lots of Chinese words!”

“Flora,” Momiji furrowed her brows. “Don’t teach Taeharu weird things!”

“Blaming me again?” Flora’s gaze swept over to Zhu Yue. “Want to explain?”

“Fu Xing’s likely just concerned about Leon being burned by the sun. Alright, alright, let’s go, let’s go. We should hurry back to our rooms and rest as well!” Zhu Yue flashed another excessively bright smile as she urged everyone to get moving.

Fu Xing dragged Leon into the room and yanked down the heavy curtains right before the sky bared its white face.

“Safe! Crisis averted!”

There’s no crisis at all.

Leon originally wanted to retort, but upon seeing Fu Xing’s face of satisfaction and relief, he swallowed his words.

Forget it.

Besides, being cared for so carefully…doesn’t feel bad.

Leon removed his sunglasses, hat, and coat. Right as he turned to organise his luggage, his pale and handsome face stiffened.

“…This is a double.”

“Is there a problem with that?” Fu Xing asked in confusion.

“I wanted a single.”

“Oh, sorry, I just grabbed a key and left. I didn’t pay much attention…” Fu Xing scratched his head. “Is staying with me a bad thing? We’ve already roomed together for two years.”

Leon took a deep breath. “I can accept a double room.” His eyes swept towards the bed area that was further inside. “But, a double bed…”

“Ah, it really is.” Hm, that does seem a bit inappropriate. “I-I’ll go ask about it for you.”

Fu Xing picked up the phone to dial the room extensions. He chattered into the receiver for a while before finally putting down the phone with an awkward smile. 

“Um…the single seems to have been taken by Taeharu and Momiji. The other double is occupied by Flora and Zhu Yue, but they seem to be very against switching.”

Especially Zhu Yue. For some reason, she had seemed a bit hesitant in the beginning, but her stance had immediately become firm after hearing that Fu Xing and Leon had a double bed.

“Er, and the front desk said they currently only have the presidential suites left…”

Leon heaved a long sigh.

“I-I’ll sleep on the sofa! This sofa looks pretty nice!” Fu Xing walked over to the soft sofa and gave it two forceful pats. “It seems more comfortable than my bed at home!”

“Do whatever you want…”

In any case, he slept during the day and was only active in the night, so this didn’t affect much.

A few minutes later, the room telephone rang. Fu Xing answered, then happily agreed.

“Momiji and the others said they’re going out to the Bund.”

“Mn.” So?

Fu Xing hesitated for a beat. “But, you’ll be alone—”

“It’s my resting time right now, I do not wish to be distrubed,” Leon coldly cut off Fu Xing’s hesitation and concern.

“Is that so…Then I’ll head out with them. Don’t worry, I’ll bring back local souvenirs!”

Leon did not respond and simply carried his luggage into the bed area. Then he switched off the lights, and the room fell into darkness.

With furrowed brows, Fu Xing stared in the direction Leon had walked towards. After standing there for a while, he lightly sighed, picked up his backpack, and left to meet up with his companions.

The door closed, the electronic lock emitting a clear click.

Leon relaxed in relief.

Laying in bed, he gazed at the darkness that surrounded him, the darkness that gave him a sense of familiarity and peace. The wide double bed was extremely soft, but that made him feel less at ease.

It had turned into a mess again.

The reason he’d originally requested a single room was not only to secure a personal space, but also to avoid affecting his travel companions.

Darkbloods’ physiological clocks were different from other daytime beings. They had time restrictions that made moving in groups disadvantageous. Most darkbloods participating in activities chose to be in the same group with their own race and were adept at traveling through the countries in the southern hemisphere where it was currently winter season with longer nights and shorter days.

At the time, quite a few darkblood clans had attempted to rope him into their teams, but he had silently and coldly rejected them.

Leon chuckled.

He had unknowingly become what his clanspeople called an irregularity….I wonder what Lia would think if she saw me like this?

The Bund was located in the foreigners district, and was the starting point of Shanghai’s modernization and development. The advanced city was densely packed with skyscrapers, commerce buildings, and enormous mansions. The brand-new modern-style architecture that included various European-type houses mixed together with classical Eastern buildings, creating a collection of artifacts from different times. It was beautiful in a clashing yet harmonious way.

“It’s been a while since I was here; it’s changed quite a lot.” Dan Juan lamented as he walked and swept his eyes around the streets. “There are more humans now.”

“Indeed.” Zhu Yue softly sighed as she gazed at the rippling jade river in the distance. “It’s too busy to stay for long. The members of the jiao clan that have lived here for a long time should have relocated to Yungui in the southwest.”

“Northeast China isn’t bad. Most of the mountain areas have been preserved well, so some of the clans there haven’t changed at all. In the past few years, many of those that had originally moved away have returned, and there are a few clans that have relocated there from the outskirts of cities. The air and water there are clean and it’s a comfortable place to live in. It’s just a bit too remote.” Dan Juan paused before continuing, “But they recently set up networks, so it’s much more convenient now.”

“Sounds great.” Zhu Yue said with a smile, “Seems like I will just move there in the future. When the time comes, I’ll be under your care!”

Brad, who had been quietly drinking green tea with a tight expression abruptly let out forced coughs.

Fu Xing cast an exasperated glance at Brad and softly muttered, “It’s been two years already, it’s about time to change your moves…”

Brad shot Fu Xing an irritated glare before speaking to Zhu Yue, “California…is nice too. The natural ecosystems are completely preserved, and it’s quite convenient.” He paused for a second before adding, “Of course, it’s also very well-suited for living long-term….”

Brad’s voice progressively quieted as he spoke. Fu Xing, Momiji, and Emerald exchanged looks with each other and covered their mouths to conceal their sniggers.

“Oh, I’ve never gone. If we get the chance to go later, I’ll have to ask Brad to take the lead!”

“There will be a chance.” Brad pulled out the booklet and flipped to one of the pages. “West. Killer Valley. City of natives. Snow-white bride. 1890. This refers to the Yosemite National Park in midwest California. Yosemite is the language of the local Ahwahneechee tribe, and it translates to ‘killer’. 95% of the park is the original wilderness. 1890 is when it was established as a national park. As for the snow-white bride, I figure it’s talking about the Bridalveil Fall.”

“How did you know?” Fu Xing was extremely astonished.

“How truly unexpected.” Dan Juan sincerely praised, “I thought your brain was just muscle; I didn’t think it could display its rightful function! Not bad, not bad, this is great! Good luck!” Dan Juan gave Brad a gratified pat on the shoulder as though he was a teacher that was seeing his student go back onto the right path. 

“Want me to kill you with a single punch, you damn spider?” A tight smile was on Brad’s face as he cracked his knuckles.

“Brad is amazing and knows so much.” Zhu Yue gave Brad a reverent look. “We can head there after Japan then. We’ll have to trouble you to be a guide.”

“Mhm…” Brad faintly responded and continued walking away with his ears clearly flushed red.

After a bus ride, the group walked around, stopping every so often and wandering wherever they pleased. 

It was almost noon by the time they arrived at Chenyi Square. Once they grabbed lunch at a random fast food chain nearby, they directly took a train through the Bund Sightseeing Tunnel. They enjoyed the multicoloured displays, where light and shadow intertwined to form a dazzling spectacle. Combined with distinct music, it felt like they were in a fantasy world. 

The 646-metre tunnel did not take much time to cross and they arrived at the final stop. The moment they exited the station, they spotted their first base.

The Pearl Tower stood tall, its spherical head reflecting the sunlight to form a gorgeous golden glow.

“This is the first stop, Pearl Tower.” Emerald flipped through the booklet. “I wonder where the sign-in point is? In any case, let’s head inside to look around.”

“Ah, wait.”

“What’s the matter?” The others turned towards Fu Xing.

“Do we need to go get the stamp now?” He just had the feeling that this wasn’t the best thing to do. “Leon…isn’t here.”

“He can sign-in himself at night.”

“Is that so…” Fu Xing scratched his head. “Ahem, I think…that it’s better if we still go together. We’re in the same team, so we should move as one.”

“Since when have the two of you gotten along so well?” Momiji smiled as she poked Fu Xing’s cheek. “It makes others feel a bit jealous.”

“We’ve always gotten along very well…Er, actually, what I want to say is that it’s not just Leon: I want everyone to stay together. If it were anyone else here, I would have suggested the same.” Fu Xing paused for a beat before earnestly declaring, “I really like everyone — really really like.”

They exchanged looks with one another, somewhat at a loss on how to respond.

Such frankness was difficult to resist.

“Anything is fine as long as you’re happy.”

“Great. Let’s go stroll elsewhere then. We can explore around and then come again with Leon at night!” Fu Xing happily took the lead. “There’s a snack vendor there, Rocort!”

“Coming!” Rocort immediately followed suit.

Emerald stowed the booklet away and smiled bitterly. “Tch, an extra trip means paying for another train fare.”

“But even though I’m proposing this, I don’t know if Leon will get mad…When I forced him to be roommates earlier, he seemed a bit displeased…” Fu Xing’s strides turned somewhat hesitant.

“Don’t worry, let me tell you a secret…” Zhu Yue smiled and cupped a hand around her mouth as she leaned in to quietly speak into Fu Xing’s ear.

“There wasn’t a white colour among the rainbow candies.”

Zhu Yue then winked at Fu Xing before turning to catch up with Flora in the front.

Fu Xing stood frozen in place, momentarily unable to understand Zhu Yue’s words.

There wasn’t a white colour among the rainbow candies? What does that mean—ah!

He abruptly recalled the evening when everyone had visited his home.

When deciding who would catch a ride with Fu Xing, everyone had drawn a candy. Leon had looked at the candies in everyone’s hands and immediately spoken up.

“I got white.” Then he had quickly tossed the candy into his mouth.

No one knew what colour the candy in Leon’s hand had been, and no one had questioned it.

Could Leon have eaten the nonexistent white candy because he was afraid I would feel bad?

A wave of warmth rushed through his heart.

“Hehehe….” Fu Xing’s lips curled upwards into a grin and he couldn’t contain his foolish laughter.

“What are you laughing at?”

“Can you not make yourself look even dumber?”

“Hehehe…” Fu Xing continued laughing to himself.

Zhu Yue smiled when she saw Fu Xing’s reaction.

Oh Fu Xing, I hope you can maintain this innocence forever.

As the curtain of night descended, the magnificent city was ablaze with glittering lights that flickered on one after another. They were brighter and much more diverse than the monotonous lights during the day, and they transformed the ground into a gorgeous heaven of sparkling stars.

After sunset came the active period of the nocturnal darkblood race.

Leon awoke on the enormous double bed from his physiological clock, fuzzily transitioning out from his long slumber. He glanced at the clock on the wall which indicated it was 7 PM. This was later than his usual timing; traveling around was truly exhausting—

“Hu…hu…”

He heard faint breathing next to him. Leon alertly turned his head, and a familiar face appeared before him.

He froze.

Fu Xing lay on the bed, sleeping on his side next to Leon. His mouth was slightly open, and there were some traces of dried-up drool next to his mouth.

Leon’s brows arched up. He slowly moved, only to feel something abnormal pressing down on his stomach. When he lowered his head, he saw that one of Fu Xing’s legs was unrestrainedly resting atop his body.

What the hell is this! When did Fu Xing return? Why is he sleeping next to me? Why….

Why didn’t I sense it at all?!

I can’t believe my senses are so dulled. If it had been White Triangle to have snuck in today, I would’ve died without even knowing!

Angry at himself for his reckless negligence, Leon frowned and bit his lip.

As though blowing on Leon’s fiery rage, Fu Xing flipped over and retracted his leg.

Leon stared at Fu Xing’s sleeping face. In the darkness, his short dark hair covered his face that appeared much younger than his real age.

A bit like Lia…

This thought formed in Leon’s mind. His anger slightly died down.

Like Lia, pure and innocent, completely defenseless, and needs to be pampered—

Suddenly, Fu Xing’s long arm swung around to rest right over Leon’s waist. His slim body wriggled around and slowly inched upwards to move closer, the other hand reaching out to land on top of Leon’s head.

Just like that, Leon was helplessly pulled into Fu Xing’s embrace. 

Leon’s brows shot up once again.

“Wake up, He Fu Xing.”

The hand on Leon’s head began to stroke his thick, pitch-black hair.

“He Fu Xing!”

“Be good, Ah Wang….” The sleeping Fu Xing mumbled, “I’ll give you a bone later…”

Leon felt a surge of irritation. He directly stood up and slammed the switch of the bedside lamp on.

The blinding light shocked Fu Xing awake from his peaceful rest, and he sleepily sat up.

“Ehhhh! I’m awake, I’m awake!” He furiously rubbed his eyes and his vision focused. “Ah? Leon, you’re awake?”

Leon did not speak, merely pointing a frosty glare at the other.

Fu Xing immediately understood. He awkwardly smiled and automatically explained, “Sorry, I was a bit tired after coming back in the afternoon but I didn’t want to disturb your rest. Since the bed is very large, I just directly fell asleep on it. Hehehe…”

Seeing the simple-minded expression on Fu Xing’s face, Leon took a deep breath and slowly released it back out. “Did you find the sign-in point?”

“We checked it out, but we haven’t signed in yet. We’ll do it later.”

“Why?”

“Because you weren’t there.” Fu Xing said matter-of-factly, “We’re companions, so we naturally have to advance together.”

“I don’t need companions,” Leon coldly replied.

He had always moved independently. When necessary, he was able to collaborate with others, but he did not need companions. He did not want others to drag him down, nor did he want to drag others down.

Moving with others as a team this time was already the most he could give into.

“Eh, why are you saying such foolish things again.” Fu Xing got out of the bed and patted Leon’s shoulder. “I originally thought that I could live without eating vegetables, but then my excrement was as hard as granite and living became worse than death.”

Sometimes one assumed they were so capable, that they could cover up situations even without following conventions. But later, reality would mercilessly slap them in the face, teaching a silent but painful lesson.

“So?” Leon did not understand what kind of huge lesson this bizarre anecdote was supposed to express.

“So,” Fu Xing put on his coat and grabbed his backpack. “Everyone is waiting in the lobby on the first floor. Let’s head out! Get the stamp! And eat a late-night meal! Momiji said she wanted to take a look at the nightclubs on Huashan Road or South Maoming Road. Plus I haven’t been to a nightclub before!”

Leon stared at Fu Xing, then let out another soft sigh. He picked up his own bag and followed Fu Xing out.

After eating dinner at Xintiandi, they went to Hengshan Road and wandered around Pudong New District. The city was a mix of Western and Eastern styles and was filled with magically bewitching colours in the night.

12 AM. The evening noise had come to an end, as only the shops in the underground passageways remained active in their own hidden and subtle way. 

The Pearl Tower was up above. A cool breeze blew over the surface of the river and passed through the tower.

“Now that it’s so late, it looks like we can only sneak in.” Fu Xing peered at the firmly locked doors and muttered in distress, “We shouldn’t have toured around for so long…”

“Sneaking in was the only option in the first place.” Dan Juan gazed up at the top of the tower. “And coming at night was the right decision. I looked into it earlier and it would’ve been really troublesome if we had tried going to the sign-in point during the day.”

“What?”

“The previous group should be heading down soon.”

They all took a step back in tacit agreement. Fu Xing had no idea what was going on, but he retreated as well.

Three seconds later, four figures dropped straight through the air like lightning.

“Ahhh!” Fu Xing cried out in shock. When he looked more closely, he recognised two members of the other team as people from his year’s Class A. Another person was a senior that had graduated last year. He did not recognise the last member, but they did not appear to be a student from the same year.

“How is it up there?” Emerald inquired.

“The nightview is quite nice.” A red-haired boy smiled. “Beyond easy.”

“Is that so?

“Too simple. We’ll be going to find some more difficult challenges later.” A black-haired girl scanned Fu Xing’s group. While she wore a smile, her tone carried a warning tone. “Find your own prey.”

“Of course, that’s only natural.” Emerald smiled back in response as he politely replied and then waved farewell.

Once the other team had left, Fu Xing blurted out, “That group just now…seemed to have a few people that weren’t third years?”

“Yeah. Only two are from 3-A. The other is a wereleopard from last year’s Class B, and the other is a second-year water elf.”

“How can they do that! Isn’t that cheating?!”

“It’s not. Because the guidebook says ‘no team member restrictions’, which means completely no limitations in number, plus the members can be students from other grades or even helpers outside the school.” Dan Juan pushed his glasses. “Shalom’s learning style values strength. The ability to mobilise personnel is a type of strength as well. Provided it’s within a reasonable scope, one wouldn’t even have to move a finger as long as the objective is achieved.”

“How do you know this?” My sis wouldn’t even let me ask her questions before! So nitpicky.

“Information must be gathered individually, using any means possible.” Flora smirked. “All data was inaccessible until the activity started and people were finally able to publicly ask questions. But some capable people can find clues even without asking others.”

“It doesn’t make a difference, we already found a helper anyways.”

“Is that so?” Fine then, I won’t blame Sis. “Who’s the helper?”

“You’ll know when we get to the next stop. We’ve arranged to meet at the Zhengzhou Airport.”

“How do we go up now? Sneak into the elevator?”

“The sign-in point is on the roof, which is just as it sounds – it’s at the top level of the tower.”

Fu Xing tilted his head back to stare up at the tall building through the clouds. “The top?! Isn’t that too hard? How do we get up?!”

“That’s the principle of the game. The more obvious the clue or the easier it is to reach the location, the harder it is to reach the sign-in point. And vice versa – the harder it is to guess to arrive at the location, the easier the sign-in point will be to spot. So—” Emerald’s glittering smile was sinister. “We can only go through the air. A wind charm is twenty euros.”

“Just keep it for yourself.” Momiji chuckled and scooped up Taeharu. “We’ll be going first.”

The moment she finished speaking, a ball of flames lit up by her feet with a burst of noise, followed by a series of explosion sounds. Momiji continuously jumped upwards using the momentum from the bursting fireballs as though she was leaping off of springs.

Leon took a deep breath and materialised enormous crimson wings of blood on his back, then swept them downwards to soar up into the air.

Fu Xing was dumbstruck as he watched the two figures vanish with wide eyes.

“Is that alright? Isn’t it too conspicuous?!” What if they’re seen?!

Flora shot Fu Xing a look. “The school rings have illusory spells that create wards when you use special abilities outside Shalom. It impairs people’s ability to focus on us. Even cameras and surveillance monitors cannot capture our appearances clearly.”

“So useful!”

After Leon and Momiji left, Emerald focused on everyone else.

“Dan Juan, you can’t say I’m treating you badly with a friendship discounted price of nineteen euros.”

“Our friendship is worth only one euro?” Dan Juan snorted.

“Good point. Friendship can’t be measured with money, so I’ll sell it at the original price.”

Dan Juan shot Emerald a glare and shook his head. Then he stretched out his index and pinky finger to shoot long, thin, silvery-white spider silk that stuck onto the tall building. With a jump, he swung himself upwards.

Fu Xing watched Dan Juan smoothly leap up onto the building with a strong sense of deja vu. “Huh, that move seems to be in a certain film…”

“Hmph, yeah. He was obsessed with Hollywood movies over summer break.” Emerald furrowed his brows at Dan Juan’s back. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he suddenly started wearing a skintight suit one day.”

“Doesn’t sound like a very pretty image.”

“So, Zhu Yue, how about you?”

“Thank you, there’s no need.” Zhu Yue smiled thinly as a gentle night breeze blew a few strands of her hair in front of her face. “This place is very close to the river, so it’s very easy to summon a water dragon.”

Zhu Yue pulled out a bottle of spring water from her backpack and twisted open the cap before tilting it down. Under the moonlight, the stream of water was like liquid mercury as it continuously dripped onto the ground, far surpassing the capacity of the bottle. 

The water spun around on the ground to form a whirling spiral that kept expanding until it formed a gigantic sphere roughly two metres tall. A crack opened in the sphere, and it reclosed after Flora and Zhu Yue each stepped inside.

Zhu Yue looked at the others outside the water sphere and hesitated for a second before asking, “Does Brad want to come along too?”

“Ah!” Brad was at a loss and overwhelmed by the sudden invitation. “Er, um, I…”

“Just go! What are you acting all shy for?” Fu Xing forcefully gave Brad a push from behind.

Brad stumbled into the water sphere, causing him to get drenched. After regaining balance, he whipped his head around to glare at Fu Xing with extreme viciousness.

“You’re dead!” Brad mouthed threateningly with gritted teeth.

“Ah, Fu Xing is too much.” Zhu Yue pulled out a handkerchief and automatically reached out to wipe away the droplets on Brad’s face. “You’re soaked through. What happens if you catch a cold?”

Brad’s entire face flushed red and his ferocity instantly vanished without a trace.

“I think he looks pretty heated,” Fu Xing sniggered. “The water’s basically evaporating off.”

Brad stammered as he took the handkerchief. “Um, I-I can do it myself…”

“No no no, it’s fine, no need to be so reserved.” Zhu Yue took the handkerchief back and gently pressed it down on the water on Brad’s neck. The corners of her lips curved upwards. “Your collarbone is beautiful.”

“His collarbone isn’t the only part that’s beautiful. His other parts are very worth seeing as well,” Flora commented on the side.

“Really?” Zhu Yue grinned as she replied, “Then we’ll have to see them later.” Then she snapped her fingers and a gigantic large pillar of water erupted from the ground to push the sphere up through the air.

Only Fu Xing, Emerald, and Rocort were left.

“Now what?”

“Forget it.” Seeing that there were no profits to be earned, Emerald simply let it go and summoned whirlwinds onto the bodies of Fu Xing and Rocort. “Now your bodies have become very light and aren’t under the pressure of gravity. If you just take an upwards step and aim your jump, you can reach the top.” 

Fu Xing tactfully declined, “There’s no need, I can just transform wings and directly fly up.” It was a rare chance to show off; he did not want to rely on others’ help every single time.

“Even if you can partially transform to have wings, your clothes will be ripped and you won’t have hands to hold a pen. It’ll be inconvenient when you land back down. There isn’t much space to stand on at the top, so it’s best to take precautions.”

“Huh?” He could understand the clothes ripping part, but why wouldn’t he have hands to hold a pen? “Why would there be a problem if it’s transforming like Leon did?”

“I’m guessing you haven’t transformed in ages since your dumb mistake last time? And you didn’t choose Grod’s class on Special Animate Being Biology.” Emerald explained in exasperation, “A jingguai derived from four-legged creatures will transform their front limbs into hands and their back limbs into feet; for winged types, their wings change into hands and their legs become feet; as for the aquatic fish types, they change into the appropriate form based on their number of fins.”

“Er, and so?”

Emerald wrinkled his brow as he stated impatiently, “You’re a bat spirit. If you partially transform, your hands will turn into wings rather than the wings that grow out from a darkblood’s back. Got it?”

Fu Xing nodded blankly.

But…he had materialised wings before…Two black bat wings had sprouted from his back just like Leon’s during the new student trials in their first year.

“What kind of monster is he? A jingguai? Those wings look like a bat’s.”

“But bats don’t have four limbs.”

He recalled the strange words Dean and Alec had exchanged on the Forbidden Tower. While he had been confused about it back then, he had forgotten about the matter since his consciousness had been hazy at the time, plus too many things had happened afterwards.

An uncomfortable chill rose up his spine.

Am I…not normal?

I don’t seem to have what I should have, yet I have abilities that I shouldn’t have.

In that case, what exactly am I?

Fu Xing shook his head to clear the worries and fear from his mind.

Maybe the textbooks only talk about the majority. There might be exceptions that just aren’t mainstream. Or maybe Emerald remembered incorrectly. It’s no big deal.

He tried to cheer himself up to face the school trip with a joyful mood. However, a faint thought deep down inside him continued to remind him like a sharp thorn:

…Must not…be found out…

What kind of monster are you, Fu Xing…?

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