Chapter 340: Fate, No Martial Virtue

He opened his mouth, wanting to shout for help, but the words died at his lips.

Although the scene before him was shocking enough, he hadn't forgotten that what they were doing now was an illegal operation.

He just stared fixedly at the screen, at that number, one second, two seconds, three seconds...

Although the speed was slow, the numbers were indeed dropping.

80.

79.

The security guard's hand began to tremble.

Not because he was afraid, but because—

Damn it, that kid is actually saving people?!

He fell silent for a long time, eventually just lighting a cigarette and staring blankly at the ceiling.

Forget it.

Whatever.

Anyway, this world has already gone crazy.

——————————————————

Ying Duo crouched by the pool, tying the reinforced and modified rope he had prepared onto the small robot.

Suddenly, a familiar pop-up window appeared before his eyes.

【Fang Zhiyan: We've arrived at Tianmian City.】

Ying Duo blinked.

【Fang Zhiyan: Someone will be responsible for drawing the Supervision Bureau's attention; once their main forces are lured away, we'll go raid the Supervision Bureau prison.】

Ying Duo looked at these messages, his golden eyes showing no ripple.

He withdrew his gaze and looked again at the jade stone in the pool, already wrapped layer after layer with rope by him.

Ying Duo's fingers traced a gesture in midair.

The small robot began to move, shifting the jade stone bit by bit away from that dark mass.

Although he couldn't find a truly safe spot, moving Luo Jinyou to shallower water, away from the dark mass, was definitely the right choice.

Fang Zhiyan had said that Luo Jinyou's value lay in the "fragments" inside his body.

He had gathered some scattered textual information; just knowing that these fragments were related to that so-called "god" already told him it would be troublesome.

Being able to get a little farther away is better than nothing.

The jade stone was slowly dragged to the shallow water, after which Ying Duo began trying to detach himself from Luo Jinyou's consciousness space.

——————————————

Meanwhile, at Mitra Academy, Shen Zexi was briskly walking down the corridor, his brows furrowed.

Although Ying Duo had been thrown from his hand, he really did turn himself in to the Supervision Bureau, and the Chen family hadn't pursued him at all.

Turning himself in.

He still couldn't fully digest those two words to this day.

The key point is that Ying Duo went in—could it be they actually intend to break him out of prison?

No, he had to think of a way—at least... at least go inquire about a visit? Ask about the situation.

Speaking of which, does the Supervision Bureau's prison allow visits? What procedures are needed? Who needs to act as guarantor?

He was thinking about that when, not watching his step, he bumped into someone at the corner.

"Pa—"

A stack of documents scattered on the ground; Shen Zexi instinctively stepped back, apologizing repeatedly, after all he had indeed been walking in a hurry just moments before.

"Shen Zexi?"

Shen Zexi froze for a moment, then immediately recognized the other person.

The girl he had bumped into wore a school uniform, with a red armband of the Disciplinary Committee on her arm, and was now looking at him in surprise.

Shen Zexi knew her; she was a senior from the Disciplinary Committee, and in the rune elective class earlier, she had led them in a group project, leaving him the impression of someone reliable.

"Senior." Shen Zexi nodded in greeting, though he had no intention of stopping, "Sorry, I have something urgent to attend to—"

"Wait."

The senior called out to him, her gaze falling on his hurried expression, her brows slightly furrowed.

"You don't look right," she said, her tone concerned, "What's wrong? Is there anything I can help with?"

Shen Zexi's steps paused slightly.

He looked at her clear eyes, then shook his head.

For ordinary students, the Disciplinary Committee is undoubtedly a reliable presence, but their troubles are not something that so-called student officials can resolve.

"It's fine, senior, no need to worry," Shen Zexi said gently, "I just have some personal matters to take care of."

He said this, bending down to help pick up the scattered documents on the floor, which were likely knocked over by the senior just moments before.

The senior also crouched down, picking up items while speaking.

"You always do this, shouldering everything yourself; last time's group project was the same—obviously you'd finished most of it, yet you insisted it was a joint effort."

Shen Zexi smiled, but didn't respond.

His gaze fell on a document.

That sheet of paper was pressed under several pages of materials, only a corner showing.

In the signature there, he seemed to see a familiar name.

Shen Zexi's motion froze.

He reached out and pulled that sheet out.

【Mu Linxiao】

The three characters were neatly written in the signature field.

Shen Zexi's gaze fixed on that name.

The senior sister saw him staring blankly at the paper, leaned over and glanced at it.

"Senior sister, where did this document come from?"

His tone was a bit urgent; the senior sister was only momentarily stunned, then replied casually.

"I found it in an old journal of a cousin; you know, our family is a somewhat renowned Rune master lineage in Tianmian City..."

"My brother said their experiment was only completed with this senior sister's help, so they added her name. I heard she's extremely talented but very low‑key; after working at the Church's research institute she rarely appears publicly."

She paused, a bit curious.

"What? Do you know this senior sister?"

Shen Zexi lifted his head.

A gentle smile still graced his face, but deep in his eyes something flickered faintly.

Senior sister...

"No," he shook his head, "just... a little curious."

After returning the paper to the senior sister, he brushed the dust off his hem, which had been stained when he crouched earlier.

"Senior sister, I'm leaving now; let's talk again if we get another chance."

Having said that, he turned and walked away quickly.

The senior sister stayed where she was, watching Shen Zexi's silhouette fade at the end of the corridor, tilting her head in puzzled confusion.

"... Strange," she murmured softly, "why is everyone so mysterious today?"

She lowered her head to glance at the document in her hand; the name on it glimmered faintly in the sunlight.

Mu Lingxiao.

She shrugged, cradling the document as she continued forward.

At the corridor's end, Shen Zexi's steps grew faster.

Surname Mu...

But the given name oddly coincides with another famous person.

Shen Zexi knew this name warranted his extra attention.

Normally, he might have dismissed it as a mere accident or coincidence.

But fate sometimes shows no sense of fairness; even the most scheming cannot outrun its favor, and what he needs always arrives by unreasonable means.

The question is, how should he make use of fate's gift?