Chapter 98: Big Lamb Leg

The appearance of the tabby cat indeed brought Lu Ran much joy in his daily life.

When Lu Ran sat in meditation, it would hop into his arms on its own.

It would nuzzle against him or fall into deep sleep.

Whenever Lu Ran felt like petting it, the cat would instantly leap away and dodge at a distance.

Let’s be honest, Cat Sister still knows how to play hard to get~

This little trick to lure attention—no idea which trashy girl taught her.

Hmm. Or maybe it’s just an innate skill?

The only downside was that the little tabby hated using the litter box.

But under Lu Ran’s mix of soft persuasion and firm discipline, the tabby had no resistance and reluctantly complied.

The days of cultivation passed in the blink of an eye.

The time arrived at the Mid-Autumn Festival, early morning.

Lu Ran called and messaged his mother and sister, then grabbed three knives and hurried out the door.

“Huh~”

Standing at the entrance of the apartment building, Lu Ran exhaled slowly.

Late September, autumn growing cooler.

The trees in the compound showed signs of withering, their leaves dyed golden.

On this fifteenth day of the lunar month, Lu Ran walking through the compound naturally became the center of attention.

Behind windows in every household, residents kept glancing out.

This time, no one shouted for him to go home or scolded him.

At this point, Lu Ran had truly taken on the bearing of a martial cultivator!

Though dressed in his school uniform, he stood tall and dignified.

And in his hands, he carried three knives.

His seemingly youthful face carried a chilling aura of slaughter, perfectly matching the chill of autumn.

Fortunately, Lu Ran kept it low-key and didn’t blindfold himself in red cloth.

Otherwise, he’d be even cooler!

“Ssssh.”

Lu Ran stepped on dry leaves, listening to the crisp crunches, walking step by step out of this golden world.

The street outside the compound gate looked even more desolate and bleak.

Autumn wind rose, grass and trees turned yellow.

Dry leaves fluttered in the wind, swirling past Lu Ran’s eyes before falling to the ground.

“Crunch.”

Lu Ran crushed a leaf underfoot, muttering under his breath: “Feels like a damn send-off.”

He lifted his head, gazed for a long moment, then walked alone into this mournful autumn scene.

The only silver lining was that it wasn’t raining today.

The night moon on the horizon—finally visible now.

Twenty minutes later, Lu Ran arrived at Yuxiang City No. 1 High School.

The playground was already packed with people, just like on the fifteenth of June, with many Moonwatchers standing beside the podium.

Interestingly, as Lu Ran passed, the chattering students fell silent one by one.

People generally have herd mentality.

When one area grew quiet, students in other areas would glance over curiously, gradually falling silent too.

By the time Lu Ran reached his team, the entire playground was utterly silent.

The scene was bizarre!

Lu Ran kept his head lowered—not just students, but teachers and Moonwatchers were all watching him.

“Lu brother, did you advance?” Deng Yu asked, seeing Lu Ran rush over.

“Almost.” Lu Ran sighed helplessly.

Too bad,

this time he couldn’t pull out the plastic bag.

“No big deal,” Deng Yu encouraged. “After this fifteenth, let’s go kill some dogs! I guarantee it’ll push you over!”

Deng Yu didn’t know what deep grudge Lu Ran held against the skinny dogs.

But the evil dog clan was undoubtedly Lu Ran’s good luck charm!

Every time Lu Ran trained in the Evil Dog Village, his combat power and realm surged like a rocket.

“Time to check out a new demon lair and wreck some new demons,” Lu Ran said, looking at the group.

Jiang Ruyi raised an eyebrow teasingly: “Sure you don’t want to kill dogs?”

Tian Tian, serious-faced, whispered: “We can go with you.”

“Thanks,” Lu Ran smiled, grateful to have such teammates who indulged him.

The group had become believers—they needed to encounter as many types of demons as possible in the shortest time, gathering combat experience.

Just killing dogs all the time? What kind of practice is that?

Jiang Ruyi nodded slightly: “Alright, then let’s see where the school sends us next month.”

Lu Ran suddenly raised his hand.

Jiang Ruyi smiled at him: “Speak.”

Lu Ran suggested: “What if we go kill Soul-Tearing Demons?”

“Soul-Tearing Demons?” Deng Yu was surprised—he didn’t know why Lu Ran picked this type of demon.

Jiang Ruyi pondered: “Are there any Soul-Tearing Demon lairs in Wu Lie River Province?”

Lu Ran: “I checked specifically—there’s one just north of Jinmen!

Over three hundred kilometers from here, a high-speed train gets us there in an hour.”

Jiang Ruyi nodded slightly, then asked: “Why Soul-Tearing Demons?”

Lu Ran silently apologized, speaking half-truths: “On the night of the fifteenth of July, the first demon I encountered was a Soul-Tearing Demon.

That big brute was reckless and fierce—like a damn mad bull!

Soul-Tearing Demons, like Evil Dogs, are common on the fifteenth night—we’ll run into them eventually.

I thought, better to fight a few of them now and build up experience.”

He looked at his teammates.

Deng Yu, as always, was direct: “If Lu brother wants it, we do it!

What’s the difference which demon we kill? Just a matter of sooner or later.”

Tian Tian had no objections either—more accurately, she followed Jiang Ruyi.

Jiang Ruyi thought for a moment, then, under Lu Ran’s expectant gaze, softly said: “Don’t swear.”

Lu Ran: “...”

Seeing Lu Ran’s expression, Jiang Ruyi couldn’t help but smile sweetly.

Jiang Meiren suddenly showing this mischievous side, laughing and chatting with Lu Ran—made the other students green with envy!

“Everyone, line up by class!”

A teacher’s voice rang out from the podium.

The four-member team quickly found Class 4, Senior 3, and stood at the end of the line.

“Tonight, on this fifteenth, your twelve classes, totaling ninety-six teams, will be assigned to twelve shelters.”

Yuxiang No. 1 High School once had one hundred teams, one of which had only three members due to incomplete roster.

After the summer break, students who transferred or were reassigned have all been settled.

“This year’s team rankings will be based on class, but individual rankings remain unchanged!”

“You must unite, support each other, fight together, and obey the Moonwatchers without question!”

“Otherwise, don’t blame the school for deducting your believer points and expelling you from school! Understood?”

“Understood!”

“Understood!” The students’ responses thundered.

Compared to two months ago, the students now had made significant progress and naturally felt more confident.

“Good!” The male teacher nodded approvingly. “Before we depart, there’s one more matter!”

He unfolded a document: “On behalf of the Yunshan City Divine People’s Bureau, the school hereby honors a student.”

This time, no name needed to be spoken—everyone knew who had received this honor.

The teacher read: “Class 4, Senior 3, Lu Ran, Xiang Xianyang Believer!”

The last four words, the teacher emphasized clearly, so everyone heard them distinctly.

“This student, on the night of the fifteenth of the seventh lunar month, accompanied the Moonwatcher patrol and successfully completed the city defense mission.”

“Courageous and exemplary in performance; after comprehensive evaluation, we award thirty believer points.”

Before he finished speaking, the playground erupted in uproar.

“Thirty believer points?!”

“Holy shit, is that the max?!”

“I’ve heard of bonuses of 21 or 22 points, even 10 or 8—but can you really get 30?”

No way! Why on earth?

“I spent ages in the Demon Den, risking my life, and got only six summer assignment points—he earns 30 in one night?”

“Stop blabbing! My brother Lu Ran survived—that alone is worth more than six points! That was July 15th!”

“Silence!!” The male teacher’s sharp cry silenced the entire noisy courtyard.

He picked up where he left off: “Thirty believer points, and a Black Obsidian Knife, as recognition.”

“Keep up the momentum, students—press on!”

“Also, always be ready: on every fifteenth night, if the mission demands it, our bureau may summon you to join the team!”

When the male teacher finished speaking, he gazed far off toward the squad at the end of the line.

The courtyard fell silent; students wore varied, striking expressions.

Everyone knew how rare and precious Black Obsidian was.

But it was merely an external possession.

What was truly astonishing was

the Divine People’s Bureau explicitly stating: they might summon Lu Ran at any time if the mission required it?

The Moonwatchers were all tougher than one another!

What right did Lu Ran, a nobody, have to help the Moonwatchers team?

This was a joke, wasn’t it?

“Let me remind you,” the male teacher said gravely. “Lu Ran’s personal believer points have reached 82.”

“Evaluation at Evil Dog Village: top on both lists—20 points.”

“Defense of the city on June 15th: top on both lists—20 points.”

“Six points from summer assignments, six points from post-senior-year training assignments.”

“Add today’s bonus of 30 points—that totals 82!”

The male teacher recited them like a master listing family treasures, pausing after each point, determined every student hear clearly.

The students were numb; Lu Ran himself was numb!

What’s the point?

Do you really need to read this out loud?

If you want to mock me, I’ll get up on stage and bleat like a goat myself, okay?

The male teacher said solemnly: “Our school’s second-highest individual score is 44—Gao Zhonglin!”

For a moment, Gao Zhonglin’s expression was a spectacle.

He didn’t know whether to be happy or miserable.

Jiang Ruyi shook her head with a smile—her believer points were 43, still behind the Greedy Wolf believers.

Though she’d climbed steadily with her squad, her personal rank in the first evaluation had been abysmal—only the base 3 points.

From another angle, even after one failed test, she was still just one point behind the second-place finisher!

Lu Ran was indeed a juicy, fragrant lamb leg.

And a surefire way to rack up points!

Jiang Ruyi smiled and shook her head, while others felt their cheeks burn.

Among the crowd, Ma Tianchuan lowered his head, silent.

The former golden boy didn’t even merit a mention by name.

Since everyone became believers, all these random newcomers had stepped right over his head.

“Don’t lose heart.”

“What?” Ma Tianchuan turned to his teammate.

Wu Shanshan, usually so cheerful, now wore a blank expression and said coolly: “There’s still a long road ahead.”

(End of Chapter)