Chapter 24: Demon Tide

“Demon Tide?”

Lin Mo asked curiously.

Seeing his young master’s confused expression, Shi Tou quickly spoke up:

“Young Master, the Demon Tide is actually a special spatial anomaly that appears in the wild zones.”

As he spoke, Shi Tou gestured with his hands:

“This anomaly draws in all monsters within hundreds of kilometers, forcing them to swarm wildly toward the epicenter.”

“And the closer they get to the center, the more frenzied and aggressive they become—their attack intent and attributes surge dramatically.”

At this, Shi Tou’s expression grew graver:

“Most critically, when the time comes, a wild BOSS will randomly spawn near the epicenter—so the Demon Tide always signifies extreme danger.”

Ah Hu now chimed in:

“That’s right, Young Master. Once monsters enter the ten-kilometer range, their power noticeably increases. For the safety of wild hunters, we impose military lockdowns on the surrounding ten-kilometer zone.”

Lin Mo nodded thoughtfully.

“I see.”

At that moment,

Ye Hongyu’s phone vibrated.

She glanced at the caller ID and swiftly pressed answer.

“Commander!”

“…”

“Understood! I’m heading there with my team right away!”

“Rest assured, Commander—we’ll complete the mission!”

After just a few brief sentences, Ye Hongyu hung up.

She turned, her gaze sweeping over everyone present, and said firmly:

“The Commander’s order: we break camp immediately and head to the Sunset Canyon lockdown zone—with the Young Master.”

“Huh? Take the Young Master too?”

Ah Hu and Shi Tou both froze, expressions shocked.

Shi Tou spoke with concern:

“Sister Ye, that’s a Demon Tide—monsters are frenzied and dense. Even though the Young Master has [Earth Flow Wall], it’s still a chaotic battlefield…”

“Yeah, Sister Ye, this is a bit too dangerous…”

Ah Hu also hesitated.

But Ye Hongyu shook her head.

“With me, with you two, and with the Special Forces—what danger could there be?”

“Just like last night: instruct everyone to weaken the monsters, then leave the finishing blows to the Young Master.”

“At this density, this kill rate… today, the Young Master might level up to 15 in one go.”

Hearing this analysis, Ah Hu and Shi Tou exchanged a glance and instantly understood.

“Holy shit! How did we forget this?!”

“Exactly! Where else would you find such a thing? This is basically a level-up paradise made just for the Young Master!”

The three instantly reached consensus.

After all, in this world, the higher the level, the harder leveling becomes.

Lin Mo is currently level 10—even with help luring monsters, under normal wild density, he can barely reach halfway to level 12 in a day—that’s already the limit.

But the Demon Tide is different.

If harvested properly, he might truly surge straight to level 15!

Ye Hongyu turned to Lin Mo and asked:

“Young Master, what do you think?”

Before Lin Mo could speak, the [Earth Shield Technique] on his panel trembled violently.

【[Earth Shield Technique] curled into a ball, desperately pleading: Demon Tide? The name alone sounds terrifying! Master, it’s too dangerous! Let’s not go?】

Before the words faded, another furious voice erupted:

【[Fireball Technique] exploded in rage: Shut up, you spineless coward!】

【[Fireball Technique]’s flames flared wildly, pointing at the [Earth Shield Technique] icon: All you ever do is hide! Don’t listen to this turtle shell—go! We must go! I want to burn everything to ashes! I’ll turn that place into a sea of fire!】

【[Earth Shield Technique] weakly retorted: You… you’re just reckless! The Master’s safety comes first…】

【[Fireball Technique]: Get lost! True Qiangzhe never hesitate! What kind of skill is fear? I say you just need a good burning!】

“Stop! Stop!” Lin Mo’s head throbbed—he shouted inwardly, “Enough! All of you, shut up! My brain’s buzzing!”

Lin Mo glanced at Ah Hu and Shi Tou, fully armed, then at Ye Hongyu, calm and composed.

This team, plus the Special Forces, plus his own [Wall of Sighs] and [Cannon].

What danger could there be?

Thinking this, Lin Mo shrugged, expression utterly indifferent:

“I’ll follow Sister Ye’s lead.”

“Good!”

Ye Hongyu turned to give the order to assemble.

Lin Mo suddenly added, dead serious:

“Also, bring the bed.”

“…”

The air fell silent.

He possessed a top-tier talent that countless others could only dream of—and yet he still brought a bed to level up…

Should one call him a genius who trains even while sleeping, or a spoiled brat too lazy to rise above comfort?

Ye Hongyu took a deep breath and spoke calmly:

“Young Master, don’t worry—not just the bed, you can bring your whole house! Ah Hu, arrange the vehicle and pack the Young Master’s belongings. Shi Tou, assemble the troops.”

“Yes!”

…

…

Two hours later.

A steel tide surged into the outer zone of Sunset Canyon.

The sky above Sunset Canyon now glowed a strange, blood-soaked crimson.

Large numbers of city defense troops had already set up cordons at every entrance.

Lin Mo’s extended luxury car slowly entered the lockdown zone.

No sooner had he stepped out than a clear voice rang out from afar:

“Young Master Lin?”

Lin Mo turned.

There, not far off, Xia Qingyue stood waving at him.

The next moment,

Xia Qingyue ran over.

“Young Master Lin, are you here to join this defense mission?”

Lin Mo paused, then said:

“Uh… sort of. What are you doing here?”

Xia Qingyue smiled bitterly:

“We were leveling inside the canyon when the Demon Tide alert came—got kicked out.”

Lin Mo nodded:

“Oh, I see. Stay safe.”

He had no intention of letting Xia Qingyue tag along for his XP.

After all, he barely knew her.

Besides, there were plenty of other places suitable for her leveling—no need to stick here.

Seeing Lin Mo made no invitation, Xia Qingyue felt no disappointment—this was normal.

She thought for a moment, leaned closer to him, and lowered her voice:

“By the way… Young Master Lin, Zhao’s people contacted me last night.”

“Zhao?” Lin Mo raised an eyebrow. “Zhao Yu’s father, the Commander? What did they want?”

Xia Qingyue nodded, candidly:

“They tried to bribe me.”

“They said if I slack off in tomorrow’s exam and hand the City Top Graduate title to Zhao Yu, they’ll pay me three million Dragon Nation credits.”

“Did you agree?”

Lin Mo asked curiously.

Xia Qingyue shook her head, a flash of resolve in her eyes:

“I refused.”

“Why? Too little money?”

Lin Mo was slightly surprised.

Xia Qingyue glanced at Lin Mo, then sneered with clear distaste:

“It’s not about the money. I just can’t stand Zhao family’s haughty attitude—especially Zhao Yu, who has little ability but a huge temper.”

At this, Xia Qingyue took a deep breath, her tone turning serious:

“More importantly, I know exactly who the real Qiangzhe is.”

“Young Master Lin, rather than groveling for Zhao family’s money, I’d rather stand by you—even if it’s just a show of support.”

She was smart.

She didn’t want to get involved in the noble families’ struggles, but if she had to pick a side, having seen Lin Mo’s strength, she chose Lin family without hesitation.

If she took Zhao family’s money now and made Young Master Lin think she was a money-grubbing traitor ready to stab allies in the back, it would be a terrible mistake.

The air fell silent for several seconds.

“Pfft—”

Lin Mo couldn’t hold back and burst out laughing.

He reached over and poked Xia Qingyue’s forehead:

“What… are you stupid? You won’t take free money? Or do you think you can actually win Top Graduate with your full strength?”

“Huh?”

Xia Qingyue blinked, stunned by the poke.

Lin Mo shook his head, clicking his tongue:

What’s wrong with Zhao family’s brains? What’s the point of bribing you? Do they really think you led the team through last night’s Abyss dungeon?

“This…”

Xia Qingyue opened her mouth, her face flushing red.

Though blunt and painful, the words were utterly true.

The Zhao family was willing to pay big to bribe her only because she was an A-rank genius and had cleared the Abyss dungeon last night—they assumed she’d led the team.

“Enough with this ‘this’ and ‘that.’”

Lin Mo waved his hand, as if it were obvious:

“If they’re willing to be fools, let them be fools.”

“Take their money, take the exam as usual—so long as I don’t hold back, Top Graduate is out of the question for both of you.”

Watching Lin Mo’s casual demeanor, Xia Qingyue’s last lingering doubt vanished.

“I understand, Young Master Lin!”

She nodded firmly, then pulled out her phone and left.

Watching Xia Qingyue’s retreating back, Lin Mo nodded in satisfaction.

That’s more like it.

Never fight against money.

At that moment,

an aide hurried over.

He saluted Lin Mo first, then turned to Ye Hongyu and lowered his voice:

“Captain Ye, Zhao Commander’s forces have arrived too. Their Captain Zhang says he needs to speak with you.”

“Captain Zhang?”

Ye Hongyu frowned slightly. “Zhang Chao?”