Chapter 79: How Did They Split So Much?

Chapter 79: How Did They Split So Much?

The monkey mutants launched a frenzied attack, but the monkeys that rushed to this side were already dead, and their bodies piled up on the opposite riverbank. Although they continued to charge, the most intense wave had passed, and they could only reach the riverbank at most.

The noise of the battle with the monkeys was too loud, finally waking the little students who were still in deep sleep. The older students led them to hide behind the tents.

The students kept crying out in panic, but some wanted to rush forward, only to be held back by other students.

"Hong Wenzhi, don't run forward."

"I want to kill them!"

"You can't win, don't go. Liu Xiaozhuang also ran, quickly catch him back."

...

Chu Ya felt Shen Juanjuan's mental force withdraw from his mind. Turning his head, he saw the curtain of the small tent being lifted, and Shen Juanjuan peeking out cautiously.

"Quickly put on your clothes and stand with Lin Duozhi and the others. I'm fighting the mutants, it's fine. If I can't handle it, I'll call you, then use your mental attack to help me." Chu Ya shouted at Shen Juanjuan, preemptively blocking any questions he might have.

Shen Juanjuan opened his mouth, only managing to say, "Then hurry up." He then grabbed his padded jacket and corduroy pants and quickly rushed towards the group of little students hiding behind the tents.

The Black Wolf roamed around the small tent, biting to death any mutants that approached. Now it slowly adjusted its position, silently blocking in front of the group of little students.

Since Shen Juanjuan was awake, Chu Ya didn't dare to release his mental force without restraint, fearing that overuse would cause him to faint, which would delay their journey for another day.

Fortunately, the monkeys no longer dared to advance, staying in the forest behind the riverbank. Occasionally, a few would rush out, immediately being shot down. But they were reluctant to disperse, screeching shrilly from the forest toward this side.

"Ahhh!!! What's in the sky? Quick, take cover!"

Following a senior student's scream, everyone looked up and saw several dark shadows flying toward the center of the crowd.

Chu Ya immediately rushed over, lifting two dazed little students. Just as he took half a step, he heard two bangs behind him, and two stones hit the spot where the little students had been standing.

"These mutants are throwing stones at us!"

"Ah, here they come again, throwing more."

"Quick, quick, over there in the sky, take cover."

...

The river wasn't wide, and the riverbank was narrow. The forest wasn't far away. Seeing the mutants still throwing stones, Rong Chen hurriedly instructed the students to hide in the tents. But a stone also flew out from this side, hitting the forest across the river, eliciting a scream from the mutants.

"Haha! I hit one!" The senior student named Hong Wenzhi laughed, while Liu Xiaozhuang, who often fought with him, picked up a stone and threw it.

"Squeal!!" Another scream came from where the stone landed.

The students were stunned for a moment, then erupted into a frenzy: "We can throw, Hong Wenzhi and Liu Xiaozhuang are throwing at them! We can throw too! Throw! Throw!"

Stones were scattered everywhere in the grass, and the senior students picked them up and threw them at the forest across the river. The monkeys responded by throwing even more stones, filling the air with flying rocks. Chu Ya had to release a wave of mental force to shatter the incoming stones mid-air.

"Quick, quick, into the tent, into the tent."

The supervisors herded all the children into the nearest tents. The stones thrown from the other side landed on the sturdy tent roofs, making thudding sounds before rolling off the sloping tops.

"Supervisor, we can throw too, we can throw."

"Supervisor, do we have to go into the tent?"

"Are we just going to let them throw at us?"

Chu Ya controlled the consumption of his mental force, significantly weakening his attacks against the monkeys. Worried that these cunning mutant monkeys would soon see through his strategy and launch another assault, he noticed the tent roofs were solid and shared his thoughts with Rong Chen.

Rong Chen thought for a moment and immediately instructed the other supervisors, "Chu Ya said to pull up the coverings around the tents, leaving only the top canvas. Let's do it."

With a rustling sound, several tents were rolled up, leaving only the tops to block the falling stones. The senior students stood at the front, picking up stones and throwing them at the opposite forest, while the middle and little students continuously searched for stones on the ground and passed them along.

Although they were protected overhead, the senior students at the front were still at risk of being hit. The Black Wolf roamed between the tents, leaping up to knock away any stones that threatened to injure someone. Chu Ya occasionally released a thin thread of mental force to shatter any stones the Black Wolf missed.

The monkey mutants kept screeching, but the students grew bolder, and a few couldn't resist stepping out to throw, only to be quickly pulled back by those behind them.

"Throw at them, throw fast, their stones are fewer."

"They're running, throw, don't let them escape."

"This stone is too big, I can't lift it, who can help me throw it?"

"...Just change to a smaller one."

...

The students grew bolder, and the number of stones flying from the other side decreased, though the screeching continued. After a while, shadows moved in the forest, indicating the mutants were retreating.

"They're running, they're running, they can't beat us!"

"Quick, chase them, carry more stones and chase after them!"

Seeing no more stones coming from the other side, Rong Chen quickly called back the few students who had chased after them. Chu Ya released a thread of mental force and confirmed that the mutants were indeed fleeing deeper into the forest under the leadership of their leader.

Everyone looked at Chu Ya, who withdrew his mental force and nodded at them, "Yes, they've fled."

"Woohoo!!!! They were driven away by us, driven away by us."

The entire field echoed with the ecstatic screams of the students. Some jumped on the spot, some rolled on the lawn, and some charged to the river, throwing their stones: "Scram!"

Shen Juanjuan had been finding and passing stones all along. Now, holding two small stones in each hand, he quickly rushed to the river, raised his hands, and threw them with all his might. The stones plopped into the river: "I'll smash you, scram!"

Although the battle with the mutants lasted nearly an hour, it was still the middle of the night. After clearing the stones from the lawn, the supervisors urged them to continue sleeping. They needed to rest well to recover their strength for the journey the next day.

The students were too excited to sleep, even when they lay down in the tents, they were still making a lot of noise. It wasn't until the supervisors started waving their rulers that they finally quieted down, suppressing their excitement.

"I just picked up two stones—"

"Who's still talking?"

"My hands are sore—"

"A couple of ruler strikes will make them even more sore."

Finally, the tent fell silent. The supervisors, fearing that the monkey mutants would turn back, did not dare to let their guard down and added another person on night watch, all holding guns.

In the small tent, Shen Juanjuan lay beside Chu Ya, gesticulating in the dark: "I was picking up stones, just kept picking them up. Lin Duozhi was also picking them up next to me, but he used one hand and couldn't pick them up as fast as I did."

"I know you're good at it, now go to sleep. You can tell me more when you wake up."

"I'm really good at picking up stones. I picked one up and gave it to someone nearby, then picked up another and gave it to someone else—"

"Shen Juanjuan, are you still talking? Do you want to go to the punishment room?"

Outside the tent, Rong Chen's cold voice rang out, and Shen Juanjuan immediately shut his mouth, not daring to speak again after Rong Chen left. Chu Ya let out a slight sigh of relief, pulled the blanket over him, and closed his eyes.

Although Chu Ya could not probe his own mental domain, he could sense Shen Juanjuan's presence. He allowed Shen Juanjuan to stay in his mental domain, allowing him to create all sorts of commotion. These noises only made him feel reassured, helping him fall deeper into sleep.

But when he sensed a trace of unfamiliar guide mental energy trying to enter his mental domain, he suddenly opened his eyes, his body instantly on high alert. Before he could react, Shen Juanjuan's mental energy had already rushed over, fiercely driving away the unfamiliar mental energy that had not yet fully entered.

However, that guide mental energy was merely wandering aimlessly. After being driven away by Shen Juanjuan, it no longer attempted to enter Chu Ya's mental domain and quickly left the tent.

Chu Ya knew that besides Shen Juanjuan, three other students in the group had entered the differentiation phase. But Hong Wenzhi and Liu Xiaozhuang were both sentinels, and only Lin Duozhi was a guide. Since Lin Duozhi was not unfamiliar to him, he was sure that the unfamiliar guide mental energy was not Lin Duozhi.

Could another student be differentiating?

Chu Ya closed his eyes and released his mental energy, slowly spreading it throughout the camp. The superior senses of a sentinel allowed him to surprisingly detect that there was mental energy activity everywhere in the camp.

One was darting around in the forest, quietly approaching the tree mutant that had attacked them during the day, suddenly spinning and striking the trunk with a loud crack before fleeing quickly. Another was diving underwater, chasing fish up and down. A few others were surrounding the Black Wolf, clearly seeing a quantum creature for the first time, curiously watching it.

One, two, three...

Chu Ya roughly counted, estimating that there were at least ten streams of mental energy active in this area of the camp.

Newly differentiated sentinels and guides cannot control their mental energy; if they are in a deep sleep, the mental energy will overflow from their mental domains and wander around. Especially after tonight's intense battle, their bodies were very tired, but their cerebral cortex remained highly excited, further stimulating the mental energy to wander.

Chu Ya hadn't expected so many students to have entered the differentiation phase. Before the trip, including Shen Juanjuan, there were only four. The sudden increase puzzled him, possibly due to the frequent dangers and shocks they had encountered in recent days.

After speculating for a while, Chu Ya closed his eyes and continued sleeping. The Black Wolf, which had been surrounded, had its ears pulled and fur stroked by some bold students. Even when it swatted them away with its paws, they would return after a short while. Annoyed, it finally crawled into the tent and plopped down at the feet of Chu Ya and Shen Juanjuan.

The next morning, as soon as dawn broke, the students were woken up and went to the river to wash. Smoke rose from the campsite, where several large pots were boiling fish soup, and by other fires, the supervisors rolled up their sleeves, flipping the mutant meat on the grills.

"What? At least ten? Why so many?"

Suddenly, Rong Chen's surprised shout broke the morning calm, and all the students washing up turned to look.

"What's going on? What is Chief Administrator Chen shouting about?"

"I don't know... Hey? Why are those two middle-class students fighting?"

"They're about to fall into the water, quick, pull them aside."

...

In the tent, Chu Ya said to the shocked Rong Chen: "Yes, at least ten students have entered the differentiation phase."

Rong Chen stood there in a daze for a moment, then muttered, "Although these children have been screened, previously, only one or two would differentiate every one or two months. Why so many this time?"

Chu Ya thought for a moment: "It might be due to the physical exhaustion and the numerous dangers they've faced recently, which may have prematurely triggered their differentiation. It could also be related to the food."

"Food?"

"Although the orphanage has eaten mutant meat before, the quantity was limited. Now, we've been eating nothing but mutant meat and some unknown fish from the river. Perhaps this has accelerated their differentiation."

"That's possible." Rong Chen nodded.

The tent flap was pushed aside, and Rong Chen and Chu Ya stepped out together.

"If it's related to the food, there's nothing we can do. We can only eat what we have—Hey, what's going on with you guys? Why is someone fighting?" Without waiting for Chu Ya to respond, Rong Chen stormed over to the river, lifting the two middle-class students who were rolling on the ground.

"Just test these two first," Rong Chen said.

Chu Ya released a thread of mental energy, and a few seconds later, he nodded at Rong Chen: "Both are sentinels."

Rong Chen handed the two children to the approaching supervisor and rubbed his face: "What should we do? Are we going to fight all the way to Linya City?"

Chu Ya comforted him: "Don't worry too much. After entering the differentiation phase, the duration of emotional fluctuations varies from person to person. Some last longer, some only half a month, and the intensity of reactions differs. For example, Lin Duozhi is very quiet."

"Even if the intensity of each person's reaction is different, and some are as quiet as Lin Duozhi, there will still be someone like Shen Juanjuan."

Chu Ya looked to the side in silence for a moment before saying, "Then we should make more punching bags."

"Alright."

Chu Ya walked towards the small tent to wake Shen Juanjuan. He had already walked a distance when he turned back and called out to Rong Chen: "Chief Administrator Chen."

Rong Chen turned, waiting for him to continue, but Chu Ya only said, "Shen Juanjuan has already passed through the emotional fluctuations of the differentiation phase."

"What?" Rong Chen looked bewildered.

Chu Ya said seriously, "He's not as irritable and angry anymore. His emotions are very stable."

"Shen Miaomiao! Why are you over there? I woke up and couldn't see you, and you didn't say anything!" Suddenly, Shen Juanjuan's angry roar came from behind, and both of them turned to see Shen Juanjuan standing at the entrance of the small tent, wearing a single shirt, his hair sticking up in two spikes, glaring at Chu Ya with a sullen expression.

Chu Ya looked back at Rong Chen: "There's just a little bit left, very little. It might happen when they first wake up."

"…I see."

After everyone finished breakfast, the caretakers began to dismantle the tents, and all the students stood on the open ground as instructed by Rong Chen.

"Ah!"

"Ouch!"

After a chorus of pain, the students who fell on the grass stood up straight, their expressions both bewildered and confused. They were familiar with this feeling; it was a crucial step when Cloud Peak came to select people. But now they weren't at the orphanage, and there were no officers from Cloud Peak to lead them. Why were they doing this?

Chu Ya pointed at the crowd with his finger, and for each one he pointed to, Rong Chen loudly called out the student's name.

"Wang Duofa."

"Lin Baise."

"Wu Xiaopang."

...

Twelve students stood outside the line, mostly from the senior class, with two from the intermediate class. They didn't know why they had been selected, and their expressions were inevitably anxious.

"The five on the left are guides, and the seven on the right are sentinels," Chu Ya whispered, turning his head.

Rong Chen sized up the twelve students and then said to Chu Ya, "When we march, we'll separate them and place them in the formation."

"No, there are two more sentinels." Chu Ya looked at the crowd ahead, his gaze landing on Wang Chengcai and Liu Zhen's faces. "And these two."

"Oh, Wang Chengcai, Liu Zhen, you two come out too." Rong Chen called out Liu Zhen and Wang Chengcai.

Liu Zhen realized she was entering the differentiation phase, her expression a mix of excitement and agitation, but Wang Chengcai's face was dark, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

Rong Chen announced directly to all the children, "Everyone knows that Chu Ya is a sentinel. He just examined you, and those who have been called out are sentinels and guides who have entered the differentiation phase."

"Wow!!!!"

Except for the puzzled junior class students, the senior and intermediate class students were exclaiming in surprise, and the students who stepped out of line were jumping with excitement.

Envious discussions broke out among the other senior and intermediate class students.

"Once we return to the orphanage, they can be taken away by Cloud Peak."

"Maybe what Brother Chu Ya chose is different from what others would choose?"

"How could it be different? This is how it's always done. After so many selections, don't you know that Cloud Peak selects sentinels and guides?"

The junior class students were also whispering to each other.

Shen Juanjuan frowned, shaking her head, "They're talking about sentinels and guides, look how happy they are. We're all sentinels and guides. I used to be a sentinel, my brother says I'm a guide, so now I'm a guide."

Lin Duozhi nodded repeatedly, "Yes, I am a guide."

Tang Yuanyuan: "I am a sentinel."

Chen Hongliang: "I am also a sentinel, psychic attack!"

"What are they laughing about? What are they laughing about?" Wang Xiaoxi asked, puzzled.

Yu Datou: "They're stupid."

Liu Zhen was also cheering, rushing into the crowd to lift Liu Sijin and spin her around. She heard the mention of Cloud Peak and scoffed, "What do you know? I'm not excited because of Cloud Peak; it's not a good place. I'm excited because I've become a sentinel, and I can protect my sister."

The lawn was a noisy scene, but Wang Chengcai quietly turned and walked alone toward the river. His steps were quick, and once out of sight, he ran along the river until he reached the nearest dense forest, where he finally stopped.

He leaned against a large tree, panting, then fell to his knees weakly, lying down in the thick grass, curling himself into a ball.

He lay there motionless, as a series of footsteps approached, entered the woods, and stopped beside him.

"The team is about to set off. You have ten more minutes here at most."

Chu Ya spoke calmly, then went to sit by the edge of the forest. He didn't disturb Wang Chengcai, only plucked a blade of grass at his feet, twisting it in his hand while looking at the nearby river.

All around was quiet, with only faint voices from the campsite and the rustling of water and wind through the treetops.

After about ten minutes, footsteps sounded behind him. He turned his head and saw Wang Chengcai approaching, so he stood up and followed the river back to the campsite.

After walking a short distance, Wang Chengcai's hoarse voice spoke, "I hate entering the differentiation phase... Why must there be sentinels and guides in the world? Wouldn't it be better if they didn't exist?"

"Let what has happened pass, and learn to accept what exists," Chu Ya said, his head lowered, continuing to twist the grass in his hand. "You hate entering the differentiation phase, but it is a powerful ability that allows you to protect those you want to protect, and to avoid the pain you once experienced."

Wang Chengcai said nothing more, only gazed at the river with his red eyes. When they reached the campsite, he murmured a low thank you.

He knew Chu Ya had followed him out of concern for his safety and had waited by the forest for ten minutes.

Chu Ya waved his hand, noticing Shen Juanjuan standing in front of a small tent, looking around. He strode over.