Chapter 98

Chapter 98

As Qin Chi had predicted, Sun Fushan naturally accepted him as an S-rank teammate, showing enthusiasm only for the fire dragon, to the extent that the fire dragon would rather return to its crystal core. Meng Li was only startled for a few seconds when she first saw the fire dragon but soon regained her composure.

After a brief reunion with them, Sun Fushan drove home by himself, while Xu Qiao and the other two returned to the same residential area.

After Xu Qiao had dinner, Sun Fushan sent her one private message after another. He was concerned about whether she had been mistreated at Lin Kunshan's place and shared more gossip about Lin Kunshan, none of which were illegal, but rather some undignified actions due to his obsession with appearances.

Sun Fushan: "Do you know why Zhou Cheng just got healed, and he urgently asked you to come over?"

Xu Qiao: "Why?"

Now that she thought about it, Lin Kunshan's "invitation" was indeed overly urgent. Since he had already kept Lin Wengui locked up for ten years, he could have waited until the attention around Xu Qiao had died down before making a move.

Sun Fushan: "Because the person who had kept so many secrets from the Yuan family for so long would certainly want Second Uncle Lin to recover quickly and then accompany Aunt Yuan Yue to wish the old man a happy 100th birthday."

Xu Qiao: "You always know the most details."

Sun Fushan: "Of course, I basically know all the gossip about the major families in our base. Just ask me if you need to know anything."

Xu Qiao smiled and chatted with Sun Fushan for a bit longer, realizing that Lin Wenguì and Meng Qiuyan’s past relationship was well concealed, even from someone as well-connected as Sun Fushan.

Sun Xuan was in charge of their security and probably guessed the truth from Lin Shixin's actions to pick up Meng Qiuyan, but Sun Xuan obviously wouldn't divulge such secrets to his younger brother.

Thinking of Meng Li, Xu Qiao changed into her sportswear around 8 PM and greeted Qin Chi before heading out. She jogged slowly along the roads within the residential area.

Passing by the Meng family's villa, Xu Qiao messaged Meng Li: "I’m running. Want to join?"

Meng Li: "Sure, meet at the south gate?"

Xu Qiao replied with a smiley face.

Two minutes later, Meng Li opened the door and looked up to see Xu Qiao standing at her doorstep.

Meng Li paused for a moment, then smiled.

After jogging side by side for a while, Meng Li glanced at her teammate and said, "I’ve heard about the Lin family’s situation, but I’m not sure if I should apologize. She believed she had no direct connection to the Lin family, but she did share half of the Lin family’s bloodline."

Xu Qiao slowed down and finally stopped in front of Meng Li, facing this teammate who seemed aloof but occasionally acted a bit silly. She said, "I didn’t ask you to come out so I could hear you apologize. It’s not related to you."

Meng Li let it go and asked, "Do you have something to talk about?"

Xu Qiao smiled and said, "I wasn’t sure if I should ask you to come out. I just thought that if you wanted to talk, I might be the most suitable person. If you don’t want to talk, we can just keep running."

There was a streetlamp nearby, and its dim yellow light enveloped both teammates, one smiling gently, the other pausing for a few seconds in the smile.

Then, Meng Li lowered her lashes and said in a low voice, "No need to worry about me. My mother has already let it go. The Lin family are now strangers to me. I won’t waste my time on them."

Xu Qiao nodded and said, "I figured as much."

She came out in case Meng Li wanted to talk.

Meng Li understood. She stepped forward and gently hugged Xu Qiao's shoulder. "Thank you. Although it doesn’t matter to me, my mood was affected a little. But now that you’re here, I feel better."

The small fire scorpion emerged, sitting on Meng Li's shoulder, its black eyes quietly watching Xu Qiao.

Xu Qiao smiled and poked one of the scorpion's claws.

After managing to comfort her friend a bit, Xu Qiao returned to the villa in high spirits.

Qin Chi was still sitting on the sofa, engrossed in a book.

Xu Qiao said, "I'm heading to my room. Should I take the fire dragon upstairs?"

It was nearly 9 o'clock, the time Lotus would put the fire dragon to sleep.

Qin Chi put down his book and said, "I'll bring him up."

The two walked up the spiral staircase together. Xu Qiao had only run for an hour, but she was sweating. She suspected her hair was a bit messy, so she walked quickly.

Qin Chi deliberately stayed a step behind, and each time he glanced at her, he noticed a strand of hair sticking to her cheek.

The fire dragon climbed onto his shoulder and gently sent a breeze toward that strand of Xu Qiao's hair.

Xu Qiao stiffened, turning her head back in disbelief.

Qin Chi said, "...I didn't do anything."

Fire Dragon: "Your hair is wet, I'll dry it for you." Qinchi is so clumsy, just looking won't help!

Misunderstanding Qinchi's breath near her ear, Xu Qiao turned red and said, "Thanks, but it's okay. I'm going to wash my hair later."

Fire Dragon: "Do you want me to dry your hair? I'll be quick."

Lotus Flower stretched out a leaf and said, "We haven't reached that stage yet. Without Xu Qiao's permission, neither of you can enter our bedroom."

Qinchi nodded and stored Fire Dragon.

On the third floor, Xu Qiao stopped at the secondary bedroom door. She watched Lotus Flower settle into the blue vat before quickly heading to the master bedroom.

Qinchi locked Fire Dragon in the cage, bowed his head, and said to Lotus Flower, "Goodnight."

Lotus Flower shook her leaves in response.

After Qinchi left and the guest room door was closed, Fire Dragon, finally alone with his partner, lay down on the golden lotus platform, eagerly staring at the lotus outside the cage, stirred the water and said, "It's great that we're a couple now."

Lotus Flower: "Not companions, but a couple. It's still uncertain if we can become partners."

Fire Dragon: "Doesn't Xu Qiao really like Qinchi?"

Lotus Flower: "She likes him, but they haven't had an intimate moment yet. Maybe after they do, she won't like him anymore. Like I don't want you to touch me at all."

Fire Dragon: "If you don't like it, I won't touch you. Just being able to see you makes me happy."

Lotus Flower could feel the sincerity in Fire Dragon's eyes. "Actually, you're pretty good. If you were a Water Dragon, I would let you touch my leaf."

Fire Dragon glanced at Lotus Flower, then at the water in the blue vat, and suddenly thought of an idea. "I can wet myself with the water first, then touch you. Do you want to try?"

Lotus Flower agreed.

Fire Dragon flew out of the cage, transformed to about 40 to 50 centimeters long, swam a few laps in the blue vat, then extended his head and touched a lotus leaf.

Water was still dripping from his face, and Lotus Flower felt a cool sensation.

Fire Dragon: "Are you hot?"

Lotus Flower: "No, I'm not."

The fire dragon's tail, still submerged in the water, coiled around the stems and stalks of the lotus.

Lotus: "It's too itchy. Let go."

The fire dragon immediately let go but remained in the tank, swimming for a while before pressing its face against the lotus leaves.

This was the first time the lotus had played with another spiritual entity. It wasn't until the fire dragon tried again to coil around its flower stem that the lotus finally sent it back to the cage and began hypnosis.

The fire dragon, enveloped in the fragrance of the flowers, fell into a deep sleep and returned to Qinchi's side at 5 AM.

The fire dragon rarely relayed its conversations with the lotus to Qinchi, but this time, it felt it necessary to warn him: "Xu Qiao might not like having physical contact with you. You'd better not touch her again."

Qinchi, wanting to sleep a little longer, said, "...Did the Lotus tell you that? Show me the exact words."

The fire dragon shared the section about how intimate relationships could impact partner dynamics.

After reading the message, Qinchi went back to sleep.

After breakfast, Qinchi accompanied Xu Qiao and Meng Li to Professor Lu's lab. Sun Fushan, Chen Min, and Yang Bainian were also there, with Sun Fushan bringing Deputy Marshal Sun Dagui along.

Sun Dagui smiled at Xu Qiao, "Don't be nervous. I just want to hear Professor Lu's summary of the training outcomes this time."

Then, turning to Qinchi, he asked, "Teacher Qin doesn't have classes today?"

Qinchi smiled, "My class is at 10 AM. I can leave a bit later."

Xu Qiao quietly stood next to Meng Li.

Unaware of Qinchi's true identity, Professor Lu led them to her office and presented the mental power data collected daily over the past week from Sun Fushan and the others. She summarized, "When it comes to killing mutated beasts, the threat level from these mutated beasts correlates positively with the rate of your mental power growth. This is also why the training within the base has been ineffective."

The base was too safe, whereas the past experiences of military academy life and performing basic missions outside had exposed the four to enough danger that high-intensity training alone no longer provided much of a challenge or mental stimulation.

Xu Qiao examined the data reports for the four individuals carefully and noticed that they had each increased their mental power by five to six hundred points over the week. The largest increases occurred in the last two days, which also happened to be the days they were most severely injured.

As for Xu Qiao, the eight treatments she provided to Zhou Cheng increased her mental power by over a thousand points.

Sun Fushan looked envious.

Professor Lu smiled, "Xu Qiao is a Healer. The method she used for enhancement isn't applicable to you. Moreover, even an A-grade beastized patient would still be dangerous for her. I don't recommend taking such a risky shortcut."

Sun Dagui: "Yes, the beastification treatment is too demanding in terms of mutual trust. It's not worth Xu Qiao risking it. It's safer to train outside the base. When you encounter mutated beasts, just kill them without hesitation."

Sun Fushan looked surprised, while Meng Li stood silently with her eyes lowered. Xu Qiao guessed, "Do you have a new training plan for us?"

Sun Dagui said with a smile, "Come on, let's talk elsewhere so we don't disturb Professor Lu's work."

Lu Chun reminded, "Safety first, take it step by step."

Sun Dagui: "Don't worry, I value these golden eggs even more than you do."

Having temporarily commandeered a small meeting room, Sun Dagui had Xu Qiao, Meng Li, and Sun Fushan sit in the chairs on the left side, while Chen Min and Yang Bainian sat on the right.

Glancing at Qinchi standing by the door, Sun Dagui raised an eyebrow and asked, "Would you like to come in and listen too?"

Qinchi thanked him and, as Teacher Qin, pulled up a chair and sat outside the conference table.

After closing the door, Sun Dagui sat down and addressed Xu Qiao and the two others, "You all know about the A-level danger zone in Jing City, right?"

The three nodded.

Sun Dagui: "Previously, the Second School conducted their graduation exercises there. Now, not many A-level beasts remain in Jing City. The base is preparing to send a guard force to clean it up. The mission is to eliminate all A-level beasts and reduce the number of B-level beasts to a certain level. Once the mission is completed, Jing City will be downgraded to a B-level danger zone."

"The guard force will include ten A-level soldiers and sixty B-level soldiers. I’m assigning you to join them. Are you ready to go?"

Sun Fushan turned to observe his teammates' reactions, while Xu Qiao and Meng Li nodded directly.

Sun Fushan quickly nodded as well, "Sure!"

Sun Dagui smirked, "I’ll arrange for Sun Xuan to protect you, but rest assured, even if you lose an arm or leg to a mutated beast, as long as you’re still alive, he won't intervene."

Sun Fushan: "No, I want Brother Qin, not Sun Xuan."

Sun Dagui: "In your dreams."

The three of them knew that Qinchi was an S-level now. With an S-level companion, how could they feel threatened?