High Martial Arts 2077: I Rely on Beast Taming to Cultivate While Lying Down

Chapter 97 A Dog-Skin Plaster - Guo Hao! Alien Demon - Abyss Demon Stone

8:20.

The school bus remained quietly in place, its engine not started, and the morning light slanted in through the windows.

"Pat-pat~ Pat-pat~"

Suddenly, footsteps came from the car door.

Zhang Yan was leaning against the back of her chair chatting with Jiang Yunxin when she heard the noise and jumped up from her seat.

"Sister Yuzuki is here!"

Because of her short stature, she could only stand on tiptoe and crane her neck to look towards the car door.

Then... her smile froze.

Guo Hao stepped out of the car.

Behind him followed Liu Xiangdong, then several boys from Class 5, and two students from other classes.

The group of nine people each carried a bulging equipment bag on their shoulders, clearly indicating that they were also on a training mission!

Guo Hao stepped onto the last step, looked up, and his gaze met Zhang Yan's, who was standing on the seat.

He paused for a moment, his brow furrowed slightly, but he didn't say anything.

Liu Xiangdong followed behind him, his gaze sweeping around the carriage, lingering on Su Chen for less than a second before moving away expressionlessly.

"Why is it them! They're like leeches!" Zhang Yan's face fell instantly. She plopped back into her seat, crossed her arms, and let out a heavy groan.

Su Chen leaned back in his chair, glanced at Guo Hao and the others indifferently, and said nothing more.

He then took out his phone and checked the time.

8:23

He exhaled softly and turned off his phone screen.

Guo Hao and his group found empty seats in the middle of the carriage and sat down.

After they sat down, Guo Hao whispered something to Liu Xiangdong, but Liu Xiangdong shook his head and didn't reply.

Time passed by, second by second.

The carriage gradually quieted down, with only the occasional sound of equipment bags zipping and hushed conversations.

At 8:27, five more people got on the bus.

The five men were dressed in matching dark gray combat uniforms with the Jiangling No. 1 Middle School emblem embroidered above their left breast pockets, but their demeanor was clearly different from that of the students.

The middle-aged man at the front was in his early forties, with a few gray hairs at his temples. His eyes were calm and sharp, and when he scanned the carriage, it was as if he were conducting a security check.

He was followed by four relatively young adults, between 25 and 30 years old, with wiry figures and brisk steps.

City Guard Security Team.

One Spirit Martial Realm cultivator and four Qi Condensation Realm cultivators!

The training missions are nothing like the on-campus combat assessments. Once you leave the city walls of the base, you enter the real wilderness and engage in real battles!

The 150-kilometer journey, though on a national highway, has checkpoints every three kilometers and stations every fifteen kilometers.

But... there's also the possibility of danger! Someone must be there to protect you.

Two minutes later, the driver's side door opened, and the driver got into the car.

He looked to be around forty years old, wearing a dark blue school-issue combat uniform with a mentor badge pinned to his left breast.

Spiritual Martial Realm!

He placed a thermos in the cup holder next to the driver's seat and turned to glance around the car.

"I counted the people, there are thirty-one in total. But the school gave us a list of thirty-two." His voice wasn't loud, but everyone in the carriage could hear him clearly. "Excuse me, which team is missing one person?"

Zhang Yan raised her hand, her voice filled with obvious resentment: "Lin Xiyue from Class Six didn't come."

"Are you sure you're not coming? Or should we wait a while?"

Zhang Yan bit her lip.

"In fusing the spirit orbs—" her voice lowered, "it's probably too late."

The driver nodded without saying anything more.

He turned around, turned the key, and the school bus engine emitted a deep roar.

"Alright! Let's get ready to go then."

The car shook slightly and slowly drove away from the parking area.

The camphor trees on both sides of the school road slowly receded outside the car window, and the morning light shone through the gaps in the branches and leaves.

Jiangling No.1 Middle School covers an area of ​​30,000 mu! There are many scenic spots on campus.

The school bus traveled smoothly along the main road, passing by Swan Lake covered with water lilies, where several black swans were gracefully gliding across the water.

We passed by the bamboo grove again... and the peach blossom grove, whose blooming season was over.

"What do we do if Sister Xiyue missed it?" Zhang Yan rested her chin on the back of the seat in front of her, looking like a deflated balloon. "We had agreed that Sister Yang Xin would come to our place to form a five-person team."

"And each team has a beast tamer, it's perfect! We're short one person now, but that person is a powerhouse!"

"What should we do?"

Su Chen leaned back in his chair and sighed softly. It did indeed conflict with his original plan.

"Sigh~ Without such a powerful ally, the dungeons are going to be tough..."

He's waiting for this big grind to get tons of dungeon rewards so he can better develop his team.

He still looks forward to using the vast resources to build a team.

Even hundreds...thousands of men, completely under their command, form their own regiments!

In such a chaotic world, he has so many powerful subordinates.

Just thinking about it makes me feel so good!

Just then, the phone screen lit up.

Su Chen glanced down at it, and then a slight smile appeared on his lips.

He put his phone back in his pocket, turned his head, and looked at Jiang Wei sitting in the back left row.

"Jiang Wei".

Jiang Wei was flipping through a booklet when she heard Su Chen call her. She looked up, her face bearing her usual gentle smile: "Hmm? What is it?"

"I just want to ask where your destination is?"

"Buffer City No. 16"

"Oh?" Su Chen raised an eyebrow slightly. "Could it be that you accepted mission number 027—the Red-Scaled Rat Extermination Order for Buffer City?"

"We've looked at that mission too, but we didn't accept it." Jiang Wei shook her head and closed the booklet in her hand. "We chose mission number 029 in the north of the city—the Abyss Magic Stone in the Alien Demon Zone."

"North of the city?" Su Chen frowned slightly. "That place is quite dangerous."

The northern area of ​​Buffer City No. 16 is the activity range of three high-risk groups: the Northern Nether Tiger Group, the Heart-Eating Sky Demon Ants, and the Alien Demons.

When Zhou Chengjie was explaining on the map just now, just by looking at the dense markings next to those red circles, you could tell that it wasn't a safe place.

"It is indeed quite dangerous!" Jiang Wei nodded, her tone still calm. "However, we have considered it carefully. This time, we have invited several teams from No. 2 Middle School to cooperate, so we should have enough people and combat strength."

"Oh, oh." Su Chen understood. So it was a team of big shots!

Jiang Wei was a top contender for first place in her grade at Jiangling No. 1 High School, and she was among the very best in the entire Jiangling City.

The top students from No. 2 High School who can team up with her are naturally quite capable.

He thought for a moment, then asked, "Did you know that Wu Junchao from No. 4 Middle School accepted Mission No. 104—The Corrupted Outpost?"

Upon hearing this question, Jiang Wei's expression became slightly more serious.

She paused for a moment, thought for a moment, and then said, "Yes, I do know about it."

"Wu Junchao is very strong and well-equipped. The Tianshan Demon Flame Tiger is also a mid-level warrior. However, getting involved with the Abyss Church is still very risky."

She paused, then turned her gaze from the window to Su Chen's face: "I don't want to get involved with the Abyss Church for the time being."

However, if this Abyss Magic Stone quest is also connected to the Abyss Church, then we will definitely continue our investigation.

Su Chen nodded.

Jiang Wei's considerations are very pragmatic; she's not afraid of trouble.

I just don't want to get involved rashly without being fully prepared.

He leaned back in his chair, his tone becoming more relaxed: "Haha, we're only in our final year of high school, so it's really inconvenient for us to deal with the Abyss Church. But if we do get involved, we can still try to put up a fight!"

"After all, the bounties for members of the Abyss Church are just too tempting! Even a low-level Fallen One can get a million-dollar bounty."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Wei couldn't help but smile, and her gentle eyes brightened slightly.

In her eyes, Su Chen's current improvement in strength was indeed quite exaggerated, yet he actually dared to dream of the Fallen Ones' bounty!

"That outpost mission is located in the Northern Plains Mountains region, north of Buffer City Sixteen."

She stopped laughing, and her tone became serious again: "And there are suspected Abyss Magic Stones appearing in the northern part of Buffer City. This is only the information we, as students, can superficially access."

"The Abyss Church might have already infiltrated Buffer City Sixteen, blending in with the adventurers and city hunters. Everyone should be extra careful when encountering strangers!"

Su Chen thought to himself: Tsk~! Now it seems that even if we choose the safest mission, we may not be able to completely avoid the tentacles of the Abyss Church.

He nodded seriously: "Yes, we will be careful."

After a few more brief words, the conversation naturally ended. Jiang Wei reopened the booklet in her hand, and Su Chen turned around as well.

As soon as he turned his head, he found Zhang Yan's head very close, her round eyes staring at him, her face full of gossip.

"Wow!" she whispered, her tone almost furtive, "You're not thinking of poaching people from Jiang Wei's team, are you?"

Su Chen rolled her eyes at her, her tone nonchalant: "We're not short any people!"

"???" Zhang Yan looked completely confused, her eyebrows furrowed. "Didn't Sister Xiyue not come?"

She wanted to ask more questions, but Su Chen had already turned her head away, letting the sunlight shine through the car window onto the receding scenery outside.

The school bus drove past the last patch of greenery, and the school gate was just ahead.

The massive stone school gate, inscribed with the six large characters "Jiangling No. 1 Middle School," gleamed with an ancient luster in the morning light.

The railings next to the guardhouse have been slowly raised, and a few school buses occasionally drive by on the main road outside the school gate.

Su Chen suddenly stood up and called out towards the driver's seat, "Teacher! Please stop the car at the school gate. Our teammates are waiting there."

"Okay!" the driver replied, gently applying the brakes, and the school bus gradually slowed down.

Zhang Yan paused for a moment, then leaned half her head out of the car window, her ponytail billowing high in the morning breeze.

A figure stood beside the stone pillar at the school gate.

Lin Xiyue was wearing a light green, thin sweatshirt, revealing a small section of her slender wrist.

She stood quietly beside the stone pillar, one hand gripping the shoulder strap of her backpack, the other hand slightly raised to shield her forehead from the somewhat dazzling morning light.

The morning breeze gently blew her wispy hair, and a few strands slipped down from behind her ears and fell to the side of her face.

"Sister Xiyue!!" Zhang Yan leaned half her body out of the car window and waved frantically.

When Lin Xiyue saw the school bus and Zhang Yan waving at her through the window, a bright smile spread across her face, and she waved back.

A moment later, Lin Xiyue got into the car.

Zhang Yan jumped up from her seat instantly, slapping the empty seat next to her: "Sister Xiyue! This seat has been saved for you!"

Lin Xiyue walked over and sat down, her smile still lingering.

Having just fused with the Spirit Pearl, her temperament did indeed undergo some subtle changes. It wasn't a dramatic transformation, but rather a very subtle, indescribable feeling.

"Wow!" As soon as Lin Xiyue sat down, Zhang Yan leaned over and sniffed hard. "Sister Xiyue, your skin is so fair! And you smell so good, you're so charming!"

Lin Xiyue felt a little embarrassed by what she said, and subconsciously reached out to touch her cheek, then lowered her head to sniff the collar of her clothes.

"Does it smell nice? I just finished fusing with the spirit pearl, and I checked the time—8:27. I figured I had to hurry to the school gate. I didn't have time to shower; I ran all the way here, and I'm still a little sweaty—"

Her voice was still soft and gentle, but there was a hint of embarrassment in it, and a very faint blush rose on her cheeks.

"Yes! It really is! It has a faint fragrance! If you don't believe me, let Sister Yang Xin and the others smell it!" Zhang Yan grabbed Lin Xiyue's sleeve and turned to Yang Xin in the back row, desperately trying to wink at her.

Yang Xin blinked her almond-shaped eyes twice, peeked out from the back row, and sniffed the air. Then her eyes lit up, and she nodded: "Hmm, it smells pretty good! It has a refreshing, herbal scent. Isn't it supposed to be a water-based formula... so why does it smell nice?"

"Xi Yue! You made it to the school bus, why didn't you send a message? I was so worried!" Zhang Yan snapped out of her daze and immediately began to interrogate her.

Lin Xiyue blinked, her voice still gentle and unhurried: "I...I sent a message to Su Chen."

He's the captain, isn't he?

"???"

Zhang Yan was stunned for a moment, then she understood.

"Hmph!" She turned her head sharply, baring her fangs at Su Chen. "He didn't even tell us! Just send it to me from now on!"

Su Chen was leaning back in his chair, pretending to look at the scenery outside the window. Upon hearing this, he lazily turned around.

He originally wanted to give Zhang Yan a piece of his mind, but when his gaze fell on Lin Xiyue, he couldn't help but pause for a moment.

Lin Xiyue's black hair was still flowing smoothly over her shoulders, with a few strands falling beside her face.

Her skin was indeed much fairer than before; martial artists don't have time for makeup or powder.

Overall, it has a warm, jade-like luster that shines from the inside out.

Those light brown eyes were still light and soft, but when they looked at people, there seemed to be a very faint water-blue halo in their eyes.

This is likely a trace of the natural overflow of water-related spiritual power from the rain god, Ji Meng.

"What are you looking at?!" Zhang Yan reached out and interrupted Su Chen's gaze.

Lin Xiyue felt a little embarrassed by Zhang Yan's shout.

A faint blush rose to her cheeks, and her fingers unconsciously gripped the hem of her clothes, but she didn't avoid his gaze, only blinking lightly and somewhat nervously.

Su Chen snapped out of his daze and casually rolled his eyes at Zhang Yan: "She really is quite fair-skinned! The higher the martial artist's cultivation level, the greater the change in appearance and temperament; some are even completely transformed. This shows that Xi Yue's fusion was very successful!"

He naturally steered the conversation towards the main topic, asking, "How does it feel after the fusion?"

Lin Xiyue's eyes lit up when she heard the question, and her tone revealed an undisguised joy: "It feels great!"

It's absolutely perfect! I... I think I've mastered at least four spiritual arts by now.

"What?!" Zhang Yan's eyes widened, almost jumping out of her seat. "Four? That many? For an ordinary Qi Refining Realm cultivator, learning four spiritual techniques would take at least half a year!"

The voice was so loud that the other passengers in the carriage naturally heard it as well.

Jiang Wei couldn't help but look over as well.

Jiang Yunxin was leaning back in her chair, adjusting her backpack straps. Hearing Lin Xiyue's words, she paused, looked up, and exclaimed in amazement, "Four spiritual techniques—Xiyue, your compatibility is definitely close to 90%! Use them well; our joint entrance exam depends on you to bring glory!"

Liu Xiangdong and Guo Hao, who were sitting in the middle of the carriage, also looked over at the same time.

Liu Xiangdong's expression stiffened slightly; he had no idea that Lin Xiyue had fused with the Spirit Pearl.

He didn't see Lin Xiyue during yesterday's strength assessment, and he thought it was just a normal absence.

When the driver said Lin Xiyue hadn't arrived, he didn't think much of it, assuming something had happened.

Only now did he understand the problem!

They overcame that hurdle, and with four spiritual techniques at once!!!

He's only barely mastered one and a half of it.

He turned his head and exchanged a glance with Guo Hao, and the two fell silent.

"It's because there's so much knowledge pouring in that it's taken so long," Lin Xiyue explained softly.

Su Chen smiled, very excited.

This is fantastic news!

With Yuuki, we can pull off something big!

"Haha! You're now our team's ultimate trump card! We'll have to rely on you for this training."

Lin Xiyue chuckled at his exaggerated tone, but quickly regained her serious expression.

"Yes! I will try my best!"

Before Su Chen could continue speaking, Zhang Yan had already grabbed Lin Xiyue's sleeve, her face full of impatience.

"Sister Xiyue! There was such a fantastic show last night, it's such a shame you couldn't come!"

"Hmm? What big show?" Lin Xiyue tilted her head slightly.

"Well..." Zhang Yan took a deep breath and said in one breath, "Last night's strength test, the whole gymnasium exploded! Qian Youliang scored 917, Jiang Wei 932, and I..."

She pointed to the tip of her nose, her face beaming with pride, "928! Only one time!"

"Wow! Xiaoyan, you're that amazing?" Lin Xiyue's eyes widened slightly.

"Of course! But the most insane one isn't me! It's Su Chen! Do you know how many he hit?"

Lin Xiyue's gaze unconsciously shifted towards Su Chen, and she asked curiously, "How much?"

"735!"

Lin Xiyue was stunned.

Her light brown eyes fell on Su Chen.

735 kg!

Two weeks ago it weighed less than 400 kilograms!

"this..."

Lin Xiyue didn't know what to say.

Su Chen was leaning back in his chair, his face turned towards the window.

He seemed to be intently looking at the scenery outside the window, but Lin Xiyue noticed that the corners of his mouth were slightly upturned.

Her lips moved slightly, as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she only gently curved the corners of her mouth and her eyes softened.

Zhang Yan waited for a long time, then pouted and said, "Sister Xiyue is biased!"

She grinned, revealing her fangs, and continued, "I've improved so much, and you haven't even reacted!"

"Huh? I did react." Lin Xiyue blinked, looking innocent. "I clearly said it was amazing."

"But...but when Sister Xiyue heard that Su Chen's strength was so high, her reaction was clearly..."

Before Zhang Yan could finish speaking, Lin Xiyue hurriedly reached out and covered her mouth.

Lin Xiyue's cheeks flushed a light pink at a visible speed, spreading from the tips of her ears all the way down to her neck, making her look as if someone had pressed some strange switch.

"Waaah—look—when I say this—um," Zhang Yan struggled to continue speaking under her hand, her voice muffled.

The two remained locked in a stalemate for a moment.

Su Chen leaned back in his chair, watching this scene. He reached up and pushed some hair away from his forehead, sighing, "Ah~ sometimes being too outstanding and too charming is a sin!"

"Snapped!"

A slap landed precisely on the back of Su Chen's head.

The force wasn't strong, but it produced a dull thud.

"Shameless!" Zhang Yan withdrew her hand, baring her fangs, looking like she was doing a public service.

Su Chen turned around, cursing, "Damn it! Just you wait! One to five, then five percent daily interest."

"???" Zhang Yan's canine teeth instantly retracted, and her voice cracked, "Loan sharks!!"

Lin Xiyue watched the two bickering and covered her mouth, letting out a soft laugh.

The vehicle quickly drove out of the campus...Jiangling City...suburban road...and entered the national highway.

The scenery along the national highway is completely different.

Both sides were filled with sandstorms, and... weathered skeletons!