Versatile Mage: Get the Desert Emperor clone at the start

Chapter 187 Zu Jiming, the poison mage, poisoned himself?
Mu Ningxue's gaze narrowed slightly, a hint of shock flashing in her icy blue pupils.

She clearly remembered that during her training in the desolate city, Mu Nujiao's strength was slightly inferior to hers, but now, the other party had reached such a level—a high-level mage who could even easily penetrate defensive magical artifacts!
The gap has widened so much without anyone noticing.

However, despite her shock, Mu Ningxue's lips curled into a faint smile.

She and Mu Nujiao had gone through thick and thin together, and seeing how much her strength had improved, she congratulated her in her heart.

At the same time, I made up my mind to work harder in my spiritual practice.

The outcome was decided. A mentor on the sidelines quickly leaped onto the stage, a healing spell in his hand. Soft white light enveloped Mu Tingying, and the blood hole in her shoulder blade slowly healed.

However, physical wounds can heal, but the humiliation in one's heart can never be erased.

Mu Tingying bit her lower lip hard, her nails digging deep into her palms until her knuckles turned white.

She lowered her head, not daring to look up at anyone.

She could even feel the gazes upon her—a gaze of pity, a gaze of mockery, a gaze of schadenfreude…

In the stands, Guan Yu, Zu Jiming, and others looked grim and no longer dared to speak rudely as before.

They originally thought that Mu Nujiao only got the substitute position because of connections, but now that they have witnessed her strength, how dare they say anything more?

Guan Yu swallowed hard and whispered, "How...how did this woman cultivate?"

Zu Jiming's face was gloomy, and he did not answer.

Meanwhile, Jiang Shaoxu's gaze turned to Qin Xiaonan with great interest.

Her red lips curved slightly, and her eyes gleamed with a sly light.

"If someone with Mu Nujiao's skill level only got a substitute position because of Qin Xiaonan's connections..."

"What about Qin Xiaonan's strength?"

Thinking of this, she gently tossed her long hair and gave Qin Xiaonan a flirtatious wink, her eyes sparkling with charm.

Qin Xiaonan was focused on the arena when she suddenly noticed a burning gaze.

She glanced to the side and met Jiang Shaoxu's alluring fox-like eyes.

"..."

Qin Xiaonan raised an eyebrow, her heart skipping a beat for no apparent reason.

Jiang Shaoxu, known as "Jiang the Fox," is famous for her sexy and charming personality.

Today she was wearing a close-fitting dark red dress with the neckline slightly open, revealing a section of her snow-white collarbone. She sat with her long legs crossed, her posture both languid and dangerous.

At this moment, she was looking at Qin Xiaonan with a half-smile, her red lips slightly parted, silently making a mouth shape—

"interesting."

Qin Xiaonan: "..."

He felt he was being teased.

Dean Songhe stood on the high platform. The battle between Mu Nujiao and Mu Tingying had shown everyone the true strength of this substitute member, and no one dared to underestimate her anymore.

"Everyone has witnessed Mu Nujiao's strength."

"I hope that in the trials to come, you will be able to work together as a team and not let personal grudges affect the team."

His gaze swept around, his expression suggestive.

Mu Tingying kept her head down, her face still looking grim.

"Dismissed! We'll officially depart first thing tomorrow morning!"

The next morning, as the sky began to lighten in the east, a light mist enveloped the college square.

The trainees arrived at the assembly point in twos and threes, and the air was filled with a mixture of excitement and tension.

The instructor's gaze swept across the crowd, then his brow furrowed suddenly: "Where's Zu Jiming?"

There were whispers in the group, but no one answered.

"I'll go take a look," another instructor said in a deep voice, turning around as his black robe billowed and he strode quickly towards the student dormitories. About fifteen minutes later, he reappeared at the entrance of the plaza.

He walked hurriedly, his usually composed face now clouded with worry: "Something's happened! Zu Jiming has been poisoned! His condition is very serious!"

"What?!"

“How could that be?”

"Moreover, the symptoms are very strange; I've never seen such a poison before."

The area is now surrounded by people.

Before Zu Jiming's bedside, three healing instructors were taking turns casting healing spells.

The pale light stood out starkly in the dim room, yet it couldn't illuminate the solemn faces of the group.

Zu Jiming lay curled up like a shrimp on the bed, his once healthy bronze skin now tinged with a terrifying bluish-gray.

His lips were an unnatural purplish-black, and his fingers were gripping the sheets spasmodically, his knuckles white from excessive force.

What was most alarming was the bulging veins on his neck, which had a strange, dark green hue.

"Ugh—" Another violent spasm, and Zujiming suddenly spat out a mouthful of black blood, which splattered onto the snow-white sheets, a shocking sight.

"Hold him down!" the chief healer shouted, a dazzling golden light emanating from his hand.

However, when the light entered Zujiming's body, it was like a mud ox sinking into the sea, having no effect whatsoever.

“That’s impossible.”

"My Holy Light Purification was completely ineffective?"

Instructor Feng Li slammed his fist on the doorframe, sending splinters flying: "Damn it! This has happened before the team has even set off!"

He whirled around, his sharp gaze sweeping over everyone present. "Investigate! Investigate thoroughly! This is definitely not ordinary poisoning!"

Qin Xiaonan remained calm amidst the crowd.

She was the one who arranged for the poisoning.

The Sand Scorpion is a monarch-level demon in the Sahara Desert, skilled in stealth and possessing a strange and potent venom that even high-level healing mages find difficult to neutralize.

This sand scorpion had been lurking around Mu Nujiao, secretly protecting her safety.

Last night, it silently planted the poison in Zujiming.

Zu Jiming, a relative of the Zu family, is mediocre in ability but is arrogant and disdainful of others because of his family background.

More importantly, Qin Xiaonan clearly remembered that in the original work, this guy was a coward who would run away at the first sign of danger, and even abandoned his teammates to escape alone, which almost caused Jiang Shaoxu to lose his life.

Qin Xiaonan didn't want to keep someone like that in the team. He would come out and annoy her every now and then, so she got rid of him as soon as possible.

Faced with such a difficult situation, the entire medical team was at a loss.

After examining the patient himself, Dean Songhe's eyes showed a rare hint of seriousness.

He slowly straightened up, finally letting out a long sigh: "Zujiming will stay and continue treatment; the rest of you—depart as planned!"

As the morning mist dissipated, the bugle call to march finally sounded; their first stop was Japan.

Just before they were about to leave, the instructor suddenly confiscated everyone's identification documents and communication devices.

He then explained to the confused trainees, "This training will be kept completely confidential, and your identities will be kept by the academy."

"Remember, from now on, you are just a group of ordinary travelers. Complete the mission step by step under these conditions. If your whereabouts are exposed, or if you can't persevere, you will be eliminated, and someone will take your place."

"The journey is still long. Only a few members of the National Government team will be able to participate in the finals. You'd better take care of yourselves."

The mentor left them in a small fishing village not far from Asuka City and then departed.

And Qin Xiaonan's "global trip" has officially begun.

(End of this chapter)