Chapter 163 - 96: The Four-Year Pact
Lin Yi moved as fast as the wind.
He became nothing but a blurry afterimage.
He sprinted toward Yang City No. 1 High School, moving like a lightning bolt.
Each step left shallow dents in the hard pavement.
A clear sign of the anxiety churning within him.
’Please don’t let anything have gone wrong!’
Alarm bells were screaming in his mind.
A heavy sense of foreboding weighed on his heart.
The principal, his homeroom teacher, Zhang Quan, and even that kid Luo Qian—they had all sent a flurry of texts. The messages came one after another like summons from the reaper, their content surprisingly consistent: get back to school immediately.
’This kind of reception... It had to be for something monumental!’
As he sprinted, Lin Yi didn’t stay idle.
His fingers were flying across his communicator, practically about to strike sparks.
He dialed the principal, his homeroom teacher, Zhang Quan, and Luo Qian in rotation.
But all he heard from the other end was the same cold, mechanical voice: "The user you are dialing is busy. Please try again later..."
Lin Yi was so angry he nearly crushed his communicator.
"Dammit! If you have time to send a text, why not just call and explain things? You have to leave a guy hanging and guessing wildly!"
He couldn’t help but curse under his breath.
This feeling of being left in suspense was almost worse than taking a punch.
When the familiar gates of Yang City No. 1 High School finally appeared in the distance,
Lin Yi skidded to a halt, his muscles tensing as he prepared to face all manner of chaos.
However,
the tense standoff and utter mess he had anticipated were nowhere to be found.
The sight that greeted his eyes caused him, who had been bracing for a great enemy, to instantly turn to stone, his mouth slightly agape, his expression dumbfounded.
A massive, brand-new banner billowed in the wind above the school gate.
The outer walls of every floor of the main school building were hung with dazzling red lanterns and colorful streamers.
Even the roadside lampposts were wrapped in festive silk flowers.
The air was filled with the jubilant atmosphere of a festival or celebration.
He could even faintly hear the sound of a distant ceremonial music rehearsal.
Where was the slightest hint of tension that an enemy was at the gates?
’What... in the world is going on?’
Lin Yi was completely baffled.
He subconsciously glanced up at the massive electronic display by the school entrance.
Scarlet text scrolled across it:
"A warm welcome to Mr. Wei He of the Huaxia Science Academy Spirit Research Institute, gracing our school with his guidance and presence!"
Just then,
his communicator rang.
Seeing it was Luo Qian,
Lin Yi answered immediately, barking into it without preamble:
"Why weren’t you picking up your calls? I thought you were dead!"
Luo Qian’s breathless reply came from the other end of the communicator, interspersed with a strange, sticky, wet noise:
"Whoa, my dear Brother Yi! You’ve got it all wrong! I wanted to answer, I really did, but my hand... my hand isn’t cooperating! I’m on the roof of the Martial Arts Tower. Hurry and find me... Hey! Don’t lick that! I said you can’t lick there! It’s dirty!"
Before he could finish his sentence,
a burst of CRACKLING static erupted,
and the call was abruptly disconnected.
Lin Yi let out a long sigh.
Since the school wasn’t in any trouble,
it was all a misunderstanding. He had worried for nothing.
With that, he finally relaxed completely.
’As long as there are no enemies, we’re good.’
He wasted no more time. With a flicker of his body, he moved through the noisy campus like a ghost.
In just a few leaps, he reached the base of the Martial Arts Tower.
He bounded up the stairs and pushed open the heavy iron door to the roof.
The scene before him...
Even though Lin Yi had been somewhat prepared,
he almost laughed out loud.
On the spacious rooftop,
a massive, hill-sized dark figure was sprawled out on its back.
It was none other than the Fifth Grade Tomb-Guarding Corpse General brought back from the ancient tomb at Wangwu Mountain!
And poor Luo Qian, who currently resembled a human-sized body pillow, was clutched tightly in the Corpse General’s two thick arms.
The Corpse General’s head was pressed against Luo Qian’s face, its long, scarlet tongue darting out—SLURP! SLURP!—energetically licking him and smearing his face with foul-smelling slime.
Luo Qian thrashed his head about—the only part of him that could move—in a futile attempt to dodge, looking absolutely miserable.
Lin Yi understood instantly.
’The principal must have been worried these two would cause a campus-wide panic, so he had them moved up to the roof for isolation.’
"So, you see now?"
Luo Qian struggled to turn his head, revealing a face that screamed ’life is not worth living.’ He gave Lin Yi a helpless eye roll.
"It’s not that I didn’t want to answer your call, bro. This fella here wouldn’t let me! I can’t even pull a single finger free!"
Lin Yi suppressed his laughter, nodded, and asked:
"Alright, let’s get down to business. Why did everyone call me back in such a rush? What’s going on?"
Hearing this, Luo Qian’s eyes lit up instantly. He didn’t even bother to wipe the slime off his face as he said excitedly:
"It’s big! It’s huge, amazing news! The Huaxia Science Academy! A big shot from there is coming to inspect our school! It’s that Mr. Wei He from the electronic screen!"
"A big shot like him, someone who can make the entire Huaxia Martial Dao world tremble just by stomping his foot, is coming to Yang City. The principal is so excited he’s practically renovating the whole school! With an eye-opening, horizon-expanding opportunity like this, how could I forget about you, my brother?"
It all clicked for Lin Yi.
No wonder he couldn’t get through to the principal and the teachers.
’They must be so busy they haven’t had a moment’s rest, preparing the highest-level reception.’
He looked at Luo Qian.
"So, a VIP from the Science Academy is coming in person. Is it because there’s been some progress with Senior Wang Yiming?"
Luo Qian nodded.
"Word is, after Senior Wang returned from the ancient tomb at Wangwu Mountain, he wrote a hell of a paper that stunned a lot of people at the Science Academy! This visit is specifically to evaluate him! Whether he can ascend to the heavens in a single bound, a carp leaping the dragon’s gate, it all depends on this interview!"
"I hope Senior Wang can seize this opportunity and soar," Lin Yi said sincerely.
Then,
his gaze fell back on Luo Qian and his inseparable Corpse General, his eyes glinting with amusement.