Chapter 6: Got What He Came For
Bai Zhouyun froze.
Then he immediately began looking around nervously.
This wasn't a joke.
Nan Yu was his fiancé, and even more importantly, the treasured jewel of the Nan family.
If he really lost Nan Yu in Black Night Forest, the Nan family would never let him off.
Not only the Nan family—even the elders of the Bai family would severely punish him.
More importantly, however, Bai Zhouyun didn't want to lose a Mid-Tier Mental Power User who was this talented at such a young age.
That fact alone represented enormous value to him.
There was no way he would give up on Nan Yu now.
“How could he just leave without saying anything? Doesn't he know this place is dangerous? He's really too willful...”
Yun Feiyu said, “Alright, Zhouyun. Classmate Nan Yu definitely didn't do it on purpose. Maybe he saw how well we were getting along and didn't want to interrupt us?”
Yun Feiqiao added, “He probably went that way. We were planning to head in that direction anyway. Let's hurry over and take a look. If something really happened to him, we'd be in serious trouble.”
Yun Feiqiao was right.
A strange light flickered through Yun Feiyu's eyes after hearing that.
He stopped making excuses to delay them.
“Then let's hurry. It wouldn't be good if he got hurt...”
Bai Zhouyun frowned slightly.
“He's really too immature. If he wanted to go farther in, he could've told me. It's not like I wouldn't have accompanied him. He could've stayed and chatted with us too. It wouldn't have wasted much time.”
Because of the Bai family's unique position, Bai Zhouyun had genuinely never suffered much hardship since childhood.
The greatest grievance he'd ever experienced was people mocking him for still being only a Mid-Tier Ability User.
And in his mind, Nan Yu would inevitably belong to him.
As a result, he never treated Nan Yu with the same caution and politeness that other people did.
He was casual.
If he was angry, he showed it.
If he wanted to criticize Nan Yu, he did.
When dissatisfied, he expressed it directly.
Because Nan Yu had never cared much about this attitude in the past, Bai Zhouyun had gradually become accustomed to it.
Only when facing the rest of the Nan family would he restrain himself considerably.
That was why the other members of the Nan family still hadn't noticed anything unusual.
Meanwhile, Nan Yu had already found the Nianshen Grass he was searching for.
The plant was tiny, barely the size of his finger.
Its appearance was nearly identical to the weeds surrounding it.
Nan Yu took out a small flowerpot from his spatial button.
The pot was only about the size of his palm.
The soil inside had been specially prepared beforehand, mixed with various nutrients ideally suited for cultivating Nianshen Grass.
Carefully, he transplanted the Nianshen Grass into the tiny flowerpot.
Then he quietly admired it.
Extending a finger, he gently tapped one of the tender leaves.
For a moment, it felt as though something had softly brushed against his Mental Power.
“It really is it...”
Before he could fully celebrate, he heard approaching footsteps behind him.
Thinking Bai Zhouyun and the others had caught up, he immediately stored the flowerpot back into his spatial button.
Then he stood and turned around.
What surprised him was that the people he saw were not Bai Zhouyun and the others.
Instead, it was someone rather unexpected.
The newcomer was equally surprised to find a Mental Power User here.
“You're a Mental Power User, aren't you? Why are you here alone?”
The person was actually Li Liandong, the grade director of the Mental Power User Division at the Royal Military Academy of the Capital Star.
And because of Nan Yu's outstanding talent, Li Liandong was quite familiar with him.
“Director?”
Nan Yu smiled.
“I came here looking for medicinal herbs needed for my next class.”
“Then why are you by yourself?”
“No, I'm not alone. I came with Bai Zhouyun. We ran into some classmates along the way. They seemed to be having a great conversation, so I wandered off to take a look around nearby. Before I knew it, I ended up a little farther away than intended.”
After speaking, he gave a slightly mischievous smile.
Li Liandong rubbed his forehead helplessly.
“You child... Forget it. I'll take you back first. Don't be so reckless again in the future, understand?”
Li Liandong had heard that Bai Zhouyun came along as protection.
Yet Bai Zhouyun had become so engrossed in chatting with classmates that he didn't even notice Nan Yu wandering this far away.
Just how engrossed had they been?
For someone as outstanding as Nan Yu to end up paired with an Ability User who was both incompetent and incapable of appreciating him was truly frustrating.
However, just as they started walking back, three figures appeared ahead of them.
Naturally, Bai Zhouyun and the others immediately noticed Li Liandong as well.
“D-Director Li!”
Li Liandong glanced past Yun Feiyu without acknowledging him.
Instead, his gaze settled on Bai Zhouyun and Yun Feiqiao.
Two Mid-Tier Ability Users.
For most Mid-Tier Mental Power Users, Ability Users of their level probably wouldn't even earn a glance.
It was only because Nan Yu had such a good temperament.
“Bai Zhouyun, what exactly were you doing?”
Li Liandong's expression turned stern.
“Since you brought Nan Yu into Black Night Forest to protect him, you should have remained at his side every step of the way. But look at what you've done.”
“You chatted with other people until you completely forgot about Nan Yu. How impressive. Being this irresponsible toward your own Mental Power User—be careful. If the Mental Power User Association gets hold of evidence, you'll be condemned by everyone.”
Because of Old Master Bai's contributions, people generally wouldn't target Bai Zhouyun proactively.
But if Bai Zhouyun handed others evidence of his own mistakes, that was another matter entirely.
Those mistakes would be his responsibility.
The Emperor might protect the Bai family, but he would never protect them blindly.
If they made mistakes, they would bear the consequences themselves.
Bai Zhouyun clearly understood this.
“I'm sorry, Director Li. This was my fault.”
Yun Feiyu quickly spoke up.
“Director Li, please don't blame Zhouyun. I was the one who kept talking to him. That's why we neglected classmate Nan Yu. We were probably just so absorbed in the conversation that none of us noticed he left without saying anything...”
Li Liandong frowned slightly.
What kind of wording was that?
It almost sounded as though they bore no responsibility at all, and the entire situation was Nan Yu's fault for leaving without informing them.
Although Li Liandong couldn't prove that was what Yun Feiyu intended, he nevertheless found himself developing a slight dislike for him.
“Enough.”
Li Liandong waved a hand dismissively.
“I'll take Nan Yu back myself. You three continue chatting.”
“Since your conversation is clearly so enjoyable that you didn't even notice someone beside you leaving, it must be very important.”
“I'll take Nan Yu away so we don't disturb your discussion.”
Nan Yu stood quietly behind Li Liandong the entire time.
He hadn't said a single word.
Only when Li Liandong stated that he would take Nan Yu away and leave Bai Zhouyun and the others behind to continue chatting did Nan Yu slightly raise his head and glance at Bai Zhouyun.
Bai Zhouyun noticed the look.
Then he shot Nan Yu an angry glare.
Nan Yu rolled his eyes internally.
When an Ability User brought a Mental Power User alone into a place like this, it was practically common sense that the Ability User would protect them carefully.
Their attention would remain focused on the Mental Power User the entire time.
Only Bai Zhouyun seemed to have developed the habit of constantly ignoring Nan Yu.
And somehow, he still acted as though it was Nan Yu's fault.
What a freak.
How had he ever fallen for someone like this in his previous life?
He must have been blind.