Chapter 76: Rain Falls

Jiang Jian stood by the riverbank.

The river water was clear, its chill piercing.

Yin Yin walked to his side and asked, “What possibility?”

Jiang Jian gazed silently at the river, saying nothing.

Not far away.

Shi Xuan strode over, his expression grim: “Jiang Jian, Yin Yin, we found nothing on our end.”

Jiang Jian turned around: “Let’s go back to the monitoring room.”

Shi Xuan sighed and asked, “What about here?”

“The forbidden array is functioning normally, and there’s nothing unusual in the river.”

Yin Yin glanced at Jiang Jian and whispered, “But Jiang Jian here seems to have found something.”

Jiang Jian shook his head: “I can’t confirm it yet.”

Walking across the pasture grass.

The girl suddenly stopped, standing with her skirt held, whispering, “My shoes are all wet.”

Shi Xuan laughed: “Yin Yin, you really are a spoiled young lady, so delicate.”

The white-dressed girl shook her head: “No, I didn’t step in any water.”

Jiang Jian turned his head, frowning slightly.

Beneath the girl’s lace white socks, the glossy leather shoes had somehow become covered in dewdrops.

Jiang Jian tore his gaze from her shoes and carefully examined the surrounding vegetation.

Moments later.

Jiang Jian keenly noticed something very strange.

The vegetation here was saturated with moisture.

This dampness was so intense that walking a few steps would soak your shoes.

But Jiang Jian and Shi Xuan wore the academy’s standard combat boots; even if slightly damp, it wasn’t obvious.

Girls care about appearance.

Yin Yin wasn’t wearing the uniform.

Her clothes and shoes were chosen by herself before leaving.

Any slight dampness would stand out sharply.

Outside the monitoring room.

Liu Tiezhu’s face was grim as he stared at Zhao Lei: “The backup surveillance files should have been uploaded to the academy—why weren’t they?”

He felt the intense aura of spiritual pressure.

Zhao Lei dared not evade, swallowing hard: “Weekly surveillance files are automatically backed up and uploaded to the academy.”

“I truly don’t know why last week’s files weren’t backed up.”

Zhao Lei pointed at the monitor, looking aggrieved: “But the surveillance system has been functioning normally, guarded by my soldiers—there’s absolutely no problem!”

Outside the monitoring room, more than a dozen soldiers stood in perfect formation.

They held their rifles, ignoring the argument inside, their faces cold and stern as statues.

For ordinary Earth citizens, the soldiers’ electro-optic rifles were extremely powerful.

But against students of the Divine Gift Academy,

even all these soldiers together could barely resist a single ordinary spell.

“If you still won’t tell the truth,”

Liu Tiezhu sneered, “I can directly conclude you’re the prime suspect in the White Jade Sheep’s disappearance.”

Hearing this,

Zhao Lei clenched his teeth and raised his voice: “I stand by the truth—if you frame an innocent man, I’ll report you to the academy’s administration, and I’m not afraid of you!”

“Well said.”

A calm voice came.

Jiang Jian stepped into the monitoring room, coldly fixing Zhao Lei with his gaze: “I already know the truth.”

Liu Tiezhu turned his head: “Jiang Jian, what’s going on?”

“Then tell us—what’s the truth?!”

Zhao Lei raised his identity device, unafraid: “If you’re framing an innocent man, I’m reporting you to the academy’s administration right now!”

Jiang Jian pointed outside: “These soldiers’ uniforms are half-damp.”

At these words,

Liu Tiezhu, Shan Ye, and Shi Xuan all turned to look outside.

The dozen soldiers stood there, their standard uniforms clearly damp.

Zhao Lei glanced over, equally surprised: “What does that prove? The weather’s been damp these past days.”

Jiang Jian said softly: “Perhaps you haven’t noticed—the soldiers’ dampness isn’t from the weather.”

As he spoke, Jiang Jian turned, drawing Han Guang Sword into his hand.

“It’s,”

“emanating from within.”

Jiang Jian stared at the soldiers outside, his expression icy: “These soldiers are made of water!”

Inside and outside the monitoring room, silence fell like death.

Liu Tiezhu’s body trembled as he immediately activated his Shen Que spiritual energy, sensing carefully.

The next instant,

his face turned ashen: “Danger!”

In a flash of lightning,

a freezing water arrow pierced through the wall, shooting straight for Zhao Lei’s head!

Zhao Lei stood frozen, pupils shrinking violently, face as pale as paper!

Whoosh!

A jade-green energy barrier appeared—the water arrow shattered into a spray of droplets!

Shi Xuan activated his Spirit-Holder Bracelet and saved Zhao Lei in an instant!

A chilling voice echoed: “I’d planned to use this fool Zhao Lei to buy more time for development.”

“Didn’t expect to be uncovered so quickly.”

The voice was unnerving, reverberating through the building as if coming from every soldier’s mouth.

“So it’s a demon!”

Shi Xuan retracted his Spirit-Holder Bracelet and drew his blade in a cold slash!

The blade’s light blazed, tearing through the bodies of more than a dozen soldiers.

A torrent of water exploded everywhere!

The monitoring room collapsed, stones shattered, dust flew!

“Where did the demon go?”

Shi Xuan stood with his blade drawn, frowning in confusion.

No one spoke.

Jiang Jian’s gaze grew heavy as he looked upward.

Shan Ye screamed out: “What is that thing!”

A terrifying sound of rushing water filled their ears.

Shi Xuan’s body shuddered as he slowly turned around.

Several hundred meters away,

a monstrous, unimaginable creature surged up from churning water with a thunderous roar!

Its face had no mouth or nose—only two eyes.

Its arms, wielding water whips, numbered dozens.

Demon aura surged into the sky!

“Has the river become a demon?!”

Shi Xuan stepped back half a pace, voice filled with horror.

Jiang Jian nodded: “The academy’s Spirit-Blocking Array seals both ends, trapping it here.”

“That’s why it can greedily absorb the water veins of Shaoshuizhou without any backlash.”

“The forbidden array is protecting it.”

Liu Tiezhu sensed briefly, then said grimly: “This thing’s demonic power is immense—we may not be able to defeat it.”

As he spoke,

a water whip dozens of meters long whipped through the air toward them!

Boom!

A faint energy barrier flickered around Liu Tiezhu—he was flung backward dozens of meters by the blow!

At the same time,

dozens of water whips lashed down indiscriminately!

“Such strong demonic power!”

Jiang Jian activated his Shenque spiritual energy, summoning a blood-red barrier around him that took the whip’s blow head-on.

Splash!

Crack!

The water whip shattered, spraying water everywhere.

The blood-red barrier was also riddled with cracks, trembling as if it would collapse at any moment.

His Shenque spiritual energy drained rapidly—already down by a full ten percent!

Jiang Jian stood behind the barrier, his expression grim.

The next instant.

Leaves and petals drifted gently past.

Jiang Jian realized his Shenque spiritual energy was recovering quickly.

He turned his head.

Shan Ye, dodging the water whips, was activating his talent “Endless Vitality.”

It restored the spiritual energy of several of them, barely holding back the depletion.

“Damn thing!”

Shi Xuan’s aura surged violently; he shifted his body, leaping off the water’s surface to deliver a brutal slash at the demon’s waist!

Splash!

Water surged outward—the blade’s light never reached his body, its force utterly drained before impact.

At the same time, the water whip disintegrated.

Shi Xuan lost his footing, losing balance and tumbling toward the grass below!

A stream of blood-red energy swept over, catching Shi Xuan and hurling him onto the ground.

Jiang Jian passed through the water curtain, barely dodging another water whip, then turned to Yin Yin: “Go to the far end of the enclosure—shatter the array!”

“Got it!”

Hearing Jiang Jian’s order, Yin Yin didn’t hesitate a moment.

Clenching her teeth, she focused her mind—and her body instantly dissolved!

The next instant.

The white-robed girl, wreathed in frost flowers, appeared beside the academy’s forbidden array.

She activated her Shenque spiritual energy, summoning a sharp blade in her hand, and hurled it with all her strength at the array!

Yin Yin’s second talent was precisely a close-combat martial art!

Crack!

A shattering sound rang out.

Cracks appeared one after another across the array’s glowing flow.

“Die!”

The demon’s mountain-like body froze, letting out a pained roar, then whirled around—its cold gaze locking onto Yin Yin!

Boom!

Two water columns shot from the demon’s eyes, swift as lightning, tearing through the air and slamming directly into Yin Yin!

The white-robed girl spat blood, her frail form flung into the river—unconscious, Shengsibuzhi .

“Stasis!”

On the grass, Liu Tiezhu’s eyes were icy as he formed hand seals.

Spiritual energy surged behind him like roaring flames, plunging straight into the demon’s eyes.

No words were needed.

Shan Ye leapt into the river to search for Yin Yin.

“Purify Spirit!”

Jiang Jian seized the opening—his Shenque spiritual energy roared as he pushed the technique to its limit!

A blinding stream of blood-red energy surged across the grass, scattering countless glowing sparks as it raced toward the damaged array!

The demon thrashed wildly, but was held fast by Liu Tiezhu’s stasis—unable to move!

The remaining dozen water whips all turned in unison.

Half, filled with murderous rage, lashed toward Jiang Jian.

The other half surged forward to intercept Jiang Jian’s Purify Spirit technique!

A deadly sense of crisis surged.

Even Jiang Jian’s scalp prickled with dread.

“Body Shield!”

Jiang Jian frantically channeled his spiritual energy; his Shenque essence emitted a silent roar as layer upon layer of blood-red barriers erupted before him!

Boom!

Boom!

In an instant, the water whips struck with full force!

Crack!

The outermost barrier shattered violently!

Jiang Jian’s thick spiritual energy had been pushed to its absolute limit—for the first time.

Before him, mere inches away, layer upon layer of blood-red barriers stacked like nested boxes, shielding him!

Crack!

Another dozen barriers shattered!

Jiang Jian’s spiritual energy was nearly exhausted!

Yet several water whips remained!

If the demon’s full-force strike landed directly on him, he’d be killed instantly!

“Gather Spirit!”

Shan Ye’s voice sounded like celestial music.

Jiang Jian’s Shenque spiritual energy surged back dramatically!

Boom!

Blood-red barriers reappeared—the remaining force of the whips had faded, dissolving completely.

Jiang Jian loosened his grip slightly on Hanguang.

Just now,

he had intended to use the wooden sword’s storage capacity to block the whips.

Hanguang, fully charged, was immensely powerful.

Meanwhile,

dozens of meters away, Shi Xuan continuously slashed out blade auras, forcing the other water whips off course.

Jiang Jian’s Purify Spirit technique, spanning a hundred meters, struck its target dead center!

The blood-red energy roared across, obliterating the array, already riddled with cracks!

Crack!

The glowing flow scattered!

The demon let out a hideous shriek, its towering body collapsing inward!

The Spirit-Blocking Array was destroyed.

The vast energy of the Shaoshuizhou water vein surged in, instantly engulfing the demon’s core!

Countless waves of water erupted.

Rain began to fall over the pasture.

Liu Tiezhu, pale-faced, walked up to Jiang Jian: “This thing’s demonic power is at least half that of a Divine Grant realm!”

“We’d never stand a chance against it in direct combat!”

Shan Ye helped Yin Yin sit down on the grass.

Endless Vitality—falling leaves, drifting petals.

Their Shenque spiritual energy recovered once more.

“Yin Yin, are you alright?”

Shan Ye wiped the blood from the girl’s lips with his sleeve, asking with concern.

The white-robed girl’s breath was weak; she whispered, “Luckily I had a protective technique—I only broke a few ribs. Otherwise, I’d be dead.”

Jiang Jian pulled out a box of medicine and handed some to each of them: “Take these first.”

It was Wu Hai’s “Hemostatic and Bruise-Relief Oral Tablets.”

After taking the medicine,

their complexions improved slightly.

Liu Tiezhu spoke grimly: “This training mission is dangerously risky!”

“It nearly got us killed!”

“I’ll upload the footage immediately and report this to Professor Zhang of our department!”

"If compensation isn't provided, I won't let this go!"

Shi Xuan walked over, his expression equally grim: "This level of danger is far beyond what we can handle."

Even Shan Ye, after taking medicine to steady his breathing, agreed: "This kind of demon, even second-year students coming here would just be offering themselves as food."

"Its demonic power is half that of a Divine Bestowal realm."

"Its hide is thick and tough—hard to kill."

Shan Ye looked at Jiang Jian: "Luckily, its birth conditions were unique—Jiang Jian shattered the forbidden array, causing its origin to be directly swallowed by Shaoshuizhou."

"Otherwise we'd be in serious danger."

In the distance.

Zhao Lei crept over quietly.

"You guys... are you alright?"

Zhao Lei glanced around, his face awkward.

(End of Chapter)