Chapter 70: Fleeing in Different Directions

Tian Sheng had never imagined that he, a law-abiding hobbyist of folk magic arts who never actively courted danger, would one day encounter a terrorist attack by a gray magic organization.

As an ordinary caregiver at the Fang Ting City First Fuli Academy, he was currently using a technique to conceal his presence, hiding alone in the utility room of the nursing building.

He had chosen to work at this Fuli Academy for two reasons: first, the environment was stable and the pay was good; second, it was convenient for him to study magic arts in his spare time.

He had been a caregiver here for five years, and his level of research into magic arts could be considered barely introductory; he had recently been considering whether to change jobs and try to test into the local Bureau of Strange Strategy.

But as luck would have it, the very next day after he had this thought, the Fuli Academy encountered a terrorist attack.

The intruders were well-trained, bypassing and disabling the alarms with great proficiency, controlling the vast majority of ordinary people, and killing those who dared to resist, using bloody methods to plunge the entire nursing home into silence.

Realizing that something was wrong, Tian Sheng’s first thought was to protect himself and sneak away, only to discover that the entire block had been sealed off by a large-scale magic barrier. To get out, not to mention that he had no time to analyze the structure of the barrier, it would be impossible to break through with his pathetic magic power intensity.

This further proved that those who had come to carry out the terrorist attack were no ordinary thugs; they were very likely a gray magic organization that made folk mages turn pale at the mere mention of their name.

A gray magic organization is a general term used to refer to collectives of mages who engage in illegal activities. Most of these groups are dens of iniquity, gathering all sorts of villains who conduct illegal research and criminal activities; to put it more bluntly, they are criminal gangs that have mastered the power of magic arts.

Such organizations are actually not rare, and every member is a complete villain to ordinary people; even someone like Tian Sheng, who also studies arts, would not want to deal with them.

In any case, the Bureau of Strange Strategy in the city is responsible for maintaining order, destroying several dens and arresting a large number of mage criminals every year. Such people would be arrested sooner or later, and he just needed to stay far away.

He had always believed this, and the facts were indeed so.

It was just that he never expected there to be such an arrogant group of people who would, in broad daylight, collectively attack a public service institution operated by the municipal government.

The enemy had come abruptly, and their strength clearly overwhelmed his own, so he could only hide by himself.

Regarding the level of skill in using arts, although he had already entered the door, he was still far from being an expert, and could not even be called a "mage." In terms of the quantity and intensity of the arts he had mastered, he was also pitifully lacking; if he were to challenge their entire team alone, he would likely die without even knowing how.

Fortunately, his remaining magic power was still sufficient, and continuing to use a technique to conceal his breathing and magic fluctuations was not a problem; he did not need to worry about being discovered for a short time.

He had already made up his mind to stay put and wait until the Bureau of Strange Strategy came to the rescue, acting as a coward for the time being.

But after hiding in the utility room for a while, the sounds coming from the corridor caught his attention.

It seemed someone was passing by, he judged. Ultimately unable to hold onto the resolve he had only just made, he secretly pushed the door open a crack and peered out.

Immediately after, he saw a somewhat familiar figure.

Bai Jingxuan was unable to return to her room as usual.

Because just as she quickened her pace, attempting to return to her room, she saw several black-robed people wearing masks.

Although she did not know what these people were here for, just from the silent state of the Fuli Academy and the menacing posture of these people, Bai Jingxuan could feel that she should not be exposed to their sight.

So she hid.

Continuing to walk in the corridor was undoubtedly dangerous, and returning to her room offered no guarantee that these people wouldn't come looking for her, so Bai Jingxuan could only turn back and run in the direction she had come from.

According to her thinking, she hadn't encountered these uninvited guests on the way she came, so the courtyard should still be safe.

But this expectation was destined to be disappointed as well.

Because before she could even walk out of the nursing building's porch, she heard voices coming from ahead:

"Still haven't found her?"

"We've searched everywhere in this open space where someone could hide, nothing."

"Damn it, where could a little girl hide? Could the location be marked wrong?"

"Impossible, the information provided by the informant has always been accurate. After that incident at the Xizhao People's Heart Hospital, the whereabouts of all witnesses were recorded, and that child was undoubtedly sent here."

"Wasn't she adopted by anyone?"

"The previous information said no, we are currently verifying with the people here."

"Then where could she be? She couldn't have been hidden by someone, could she?"

"That possibility cannot be ruled out. In any case, pass the results here to Bing Chu San first; he will decide whether to search room by room."

After the two had this conversation, they stopped speaking. Before long, noisy footsteps sounded, and they gradually approached the direction where Bai Jingxuan was.

Bai Jingxuan was a bit confused by the content of their conversation, and could only judge from fragments like "Xizhao People's Heart Hospital" and "little girl" that they seemed to be talking about her.

Because, three years ago, the place where she and her parents met with disaster was precisely the Xizhao People's Heart Hospital, and after that, she was the only orphan from the scene sent to this Fuli Academy.

Realizing that she might be the target, many guesses arose in Bai Jingxuan's mind, but she quickly shook her head, realizing that now was not the time for wild thoughts; she had to find another direction to leave.

These people had come with such ill intent, and finding her was likely nothing good; it was better to hide.

Bai Jingxuan was a child with strong initiative; she did what she thought of, then slowly retreated along the base of the wall, lightening her footsteps as she turned to leave. She wanted to escape before the others walked into this corridor and she was exposed to their view.

There were staircases on the left and right at both ends of the corridor, which could be used to go up to the second floor; although she didn't know how many of them were on the second floor, it seemed to be her only direction for escape.

Bai Jingxuan walked up the stairs on tiptoe, but before she had taken many steps, she heard the sound of footsteps at the entrance of the corridor change in tone. That sound clearly meant that someone had stepped from the concrete ground outside the building into the building and onto the floor tiles.

Those people had arrived.

Listening to the footsteps getting closer behind her and feeling her heartbeat gradually accelerating, Bai Jingxuan pursed her lips, subconsciously holding her breath, and moved toward the upper floor at the fastest speed possible in this state.

Because the stairs were very long, to completely avoid their sight, she had to step onto the second floor before they reached the entrance of the stairs.

The two groups of people in the corridor were moving with completely different mindsets; seeing the target getting closer and closer, with the corner of the second floor already in sight, Bai Jingxuan felt as if she could already see the scene of her successful escape.

But just at this moment, she suddenly felt her lower leg lose all sensation, and immediately after, she lost control of it.

Her leg could no longer exert force, nor could it cross the steps; it was like a malfunctioning mechanical part, no longer possessing vitality. Unable to stop her own forward momentum, Bai Jingxuan's body slumped forward, and she fell onto the stairs just like that.

Clatter.

The sound of clothing and torso colliding with the stairs rang out abruptly in the corridor.