Chapter 275: Invitation from a Great Power

The teacher's long-winded speech finally ended, and this mobilization assembly drew to a close amidst cheers of encouragement.

Time's up; the teams are deploying!

As Lu Ran moved forward with his squad, passing in front of the reviewing stand, he encountered an old acquaintance—Zhang Feng.

"Brother Zhang!"

"Good morning, Brother Zhang~" several people chimed in with greetings.

"Good morning." Zhang Feng smiled and nodded, his gaze sweeping over the crowd before finally landing on Lu Ran.

Zhang Feng still remembered that during the final exam of the first semester of Gao San, Rain Alley City had encountered the Straw Demon clan's "Night of a Thousand Ghosts."

That night, Lu Ran received a summons from his superiors, becoming an army of one to guard a region's peace.

When Lu Ran fought until dawn and returned to the shelter, floating behind him was a newly promoted divine weapon—the Xia Guang Dao.

Even back then, Zhang Feng had already held Lu Ran in high esteem.

He was certain that Lu Ran's future knew no bounds.

After that night, within the realm of Rain Alley City, people used four words to evaluate Lu Ran: "Unrivaled in Rain Alley."

Reality, however, dealt a heavy blow to the people of Rain Alley, Zhang Feng included.

Zhang Feng's eye for talent was accurate; Lu Ran was indeed rising fiercely.

But like everyone else, Zhang Feng could never have imagined that Lu Ran would grow to such heights!

Unrivaled in Rain Alley?

Too small.

He should be famous across the four seas; he ought to be a Great Summer Prodigy!

Looking at Lu Ran, Zhang Feng couldn't help but let out a long sigh in his heart.

It really felt like a dream.

"Let's go, Brother Zhang." Lu Ran smiled at the team leader soldier, lowering his voice. "Autographs and photos can wait until after the mission."

Zhang Feng: "."

Do I look like some kind of star-chaser?

I'm the team leader who watched you grow up; hmm, signing an autograph is fine, I suppose.

I'll take it back for my son; he should like it very much, right?

"Hehe~" Chang Ying couldn't help but laugh softly. "I want one too, I want one too!"

Lu Ran said with feigned annoyance, "What are you joining in for?"

Lu Ran and his teammates had shared weal and woe, willing to face life and death for each other.

And now you're asking me for an autograph?

"Move out!" Zhang Feng gave the order, leading the five-person group toward the school gate.

Outside the gate, several buses were already waiting.

Lu Ran boarded the bus with his team, and as he passed the third row of seats, a fair, tender hand suddenly reached out and grabbed his arm.

"Hmm?" Lu Ran turned his head to look and saw the Curse Master believer, Bai Bai Manni.

Jiangjiang Ruyi followed right behind Lu Ran; her eyes were deep and dark as her gaze landed on the young girl's hand.

Bai Bai Manni said nothing, merely lifting her eyes to look at Lu Ran and shaking her head gently.

Lu Ran's good mood instantly vanished without a trace.

"Thank you." Lu Ran nodded slightly and whispered, "Take care."

A trace of sorrow appeared on Bai Bai Manni's face as she whispered softly, "You too."

Classmate Bai, just like Chang Ying, had long become one of Lu Ran's advisors.

Every morning on the fifteenth, Lu Ran would always have Chang Ying cast a divination, and he would also ask Bai Bai Manni if her heart felt uneasy.

Compared to the charlatan Chang, the predictions of Curse Master Bai were more accurate.

After all, she didn't rely on calculation.

A powerful Spirit Talisman believer could achieve nine accurate divinations out of ten, so naturally, there would be one that was inaccurate!

Curse Master believers were different; they weren't involved in matters of probability but rather genuinely sensed impending crises.

The reason Bai Bai Manni's expression was sorrowful was that this graduation grand exam was different from ordinary nights of city defense.

The students were not guarding a single shelter as a collective class unit.

Instead, they would be assigned in squad units to various locations throughout Rain Alley City.

In other words, Bai Bai Manni's squad would likely not be in the same place as Lu Ran's squad.

Except for a very few trainees who were still in the Mist Realm, students at the Stream Realm and above were not permitted to station themselves inside shelters but had to perform operations outside buildings.

This made people very worried.

Believer trainees were humans first and examinees second.

Scores were indeed important, but life was more important!

And the two characters "Lu Ran" were a golden signboard for preserving one's life.

For the vast majority of people, the sense of security these two characters could bring far exceeded that of the three characters "Moon Gazer."

"Squad Leader Jiang." Bai Bai Manni seemed to sense something and immediately spoke to greet her.

It was easy to see that she had a hint of ingratiating intent, as if worried that Jiangjiang Ruyi might misunderstand.

Although Jiangjiang Ruyi was not listed among the prodigies, she possessed the substance of one.

Her aura was invisible, yet it allowed all surrounding beings to feel it vividly.

"Mm." Jiangjiang Ruyi, being quite generous and poised, patted Bai Bai Manni's shoulder as she passed. "Take care."

As the trainees settled in, the vehicles started up and headed east.

Class 3, Grade 12 had only five teams, totaling just over twenty people.

After arriving in Hedong, the vehicle stopped twice; three team leaders in total took three groups off the bus one after another.

On the bus, only Lu Ran's team and Bai Bai Manni's team remained.

"Will we be staying with Brother Ran?" Qian Hao gripped Little Fatty's hand, watching the street scenery outside the window with a face full of tension.

He was terrified the vehicle would stop again.

"We are going to..." Bai Bai Manni realized the vehicle was heading toward the city center.

Under the blue sky and white clouds, the towering Wu Lie Building, piercing the clouds, drew nearer and nearer to them.

Qian Hao scratched his head and looked at his team leader: "Don't tell us they want us to guard the command headquarters?"

Bai Bai Manni's eyes lit up.

As the location of the command center, the Wu Lie Building possessed incredibly powerful defensive forces!

If their team could take the exam here, the safety factor would naturally be much higher.

Moreover, on the very top floor of the Wu Lie Building, a great human expert was stationed!

Although great experts would not act lightly, they would certainly move if a special incident occurred.

Under Bai Bai Manni's prayers, the vehicle indeed stopped at the entrance of the Wu Lie Building.

"Let's go, get off!"

The two team leaders stood up simultaneously, making Qian Hao beam with joy; he jumped straight up: "Haha!"

Such behavior even amused the two Moon-Watching human team leaders.

They naturally knew what was on the students' minds.

Plus, the little fatty was naturally very comical, so the two Moon-Watching humans did not bother to scold him.

However, after getting off the bus, Qian Hao's face immediately fell.

The female team leader led them to the west side of the Wu Lie Building.

Zhang Feng, on the other hand, led Lu Ran and the others straight to the main entrance of the Wu Lie Building, also known as the North Gate.

Directly in front of the main gate lay a vast plaza with an extremely open view.

A bustling commercial street encircled the plaza.

It was not hard to imagine what a scene of flashing neon lights this urban nightscape would become once night fell.

"Brother Zhang." Deng Yutang gazed at the revolving doors of the Wu Lie Building, "Are we guarding this gate tonight?"

Including the main gate, soldiers standing guard could be seen everywhere around the entire building.

The Wu Lie Building was undoubtedly a critical stronghold!

Even on ordinary days, most floors inside the building were off-limits.

Around the fifteenth day of the lunar month, security here was even more stringent.

Did this place really need student teams?

Zhang Feng thought for a moment, then raised his hand and pointed forward: "There."

Following the direction of his finger, the several of them saw the vast plaza.

Tian Tian opened her little mouth slightly: "You want us to guard the plaza?"

The central plaza offered an extremely open view and connected to roads in all directions.

With the team members standing in the empty plaza, any fiends descending upon the surrounding areas would be spotted at a glance.

Wasn't this just making them into sitting ducks?

Zhang Feng spoke: "We will be stationed in the area in front of the gate."

If fiends appear in the plaza, it is naturally our duty to go and clear them out."

Deng Yutang weighed the Heavenly Dust Spear in his hand: "At this rate, we won't be able to avoid getting high scores even if we wanted to."

Everyone: "."

"Brother Lu, if I recall correctly, wasn't that where you slaughtered the Fiend Lord?" Deng Yutang raised his spear, pointing toward the eastern area of the plaza.

"Yes, yes, yes!" Chang Ying nodded repeatedly, "Right there! When Baby Ran slashed down, that dog head flew so high!"

Lu Ran's first-person perspective could not capture the full scope of the battlefield.

But this was the city center; cameras were everywhere, presenting Lu Ran's combat to the world in a comprehensive, dead-angle-free manner.

"What a pity." Lu Ran let out a sigh, "The demon crystal of the Jiang Jing Fierce Hound belongs to the Moon-Watching human troops."

If I could have retrieved it, it would have been great to help you break through and advance."

Zhang Feng: "."

The teammates merely smiled, feeling warmth in their hearts; being able to accompany Lu Ran was undoubtedly a tremendous fortune.

They knew Lu Ran well and understood that he was not joking; he would truly have given it to them.

"Little Lu wants that Jiang Pin demon crystal?" Suddenly, a middle-aged man's voice came from behind.

Everyone turned to look; Zhang Feng immediately stood at attention and saluted.

Captain Ge Bin pressed his hand down, his gaze sweeping over the group of young people.

"Captain Ge." Lu Ran smiled awkwardly, "I was just saying that; I understand the rules."

By using this title, he naturally regarded himself as a member of Patrol Team 004.

The others stood properly in line, not daring to make a sound.

Captain Ge Bin was of medium build and ordinary appearance, looking very plain.

But he had appeared on Lu Ran's camera; everyone knew this man was a Jiang Jing great expert, the very pillar holding up the sky who guarded Yu Lane!

Captain Ge Bin nodded: "Come up with me for a chat?"

"Ah?" Lu Ran was somewhat stunned.

Lu Ran considered himself a team member, but Captain Ge Bin did not treat Lu Ran as a subordinate.

Captain Ge Bin merely smiled and asked, "Do you have time?"

"I do." Lu Ran agreed immediately.

It was currently morning, still far from nightfall, so of course Lu Ran had time.

Moreover, when a great human expert personally came downstairs to invite him, Lu Ran could hardly refuse and cause them to lose face.

Captain Ge Bin glanced at Jiangjiang Ruyi beside him and said, "Come along as well."

"Alright." Jiangjiang Ruyi nodded gently; ever since returning from the Pilgrimage, she had joined the patrol team on missions every fifteenth day of the month.

She counted as half a team member.

Captain Ge Bin nodded to Zhang Feng, not as stern as one might expect, and smiled, saying, "I'm borrowing your people; I'll return them shortly."

"Yes!" Zhang Feng stood with his spine straight, his voice loud and clear.

Setting aside Captain Ge Bin's status as a great human expert, he was the Deputy Squadron Leader of the Moon-Watching Branch under the Divine-Human Bureau of Yunshan City.

Zhang Feng, meanwhile, was a team member of the Moon-Watching Brigade under the Divine-Human Bureau of Deng Yuxiang City.

The two parties genuinely held a formal superior-subordinate relationship.

"Let's go." Captain Ge Bin turned and walked toward the revolving door, making a hand gesture to the standing guards beside the entrance to signal permission for passage.

Lu Ran let his right hand hang naturally at his side and gave a slight wiggle of his fingers.

Jiangjiang Ruyi cast a mild, reproachful glance at Lu Ran.

Yet she still reached out, allowing Lu Ran to take her hand, and they walked into the landmark building of Deng Yuxiang City—the Wu Lie Building.

(End of Chapter)