"Dean Lv, what's the matter?" Wang Qi looked at Lv Zhenglong, wondering what could shock such a Grandmaster expert.

"This girl... She's not dead!" Lv Zhenglong said before hurriedly laying Yao Yao down. After carefully checking her body and confirming his judgment, he nodded and said, "Indeed, she isn't dead."

This time it was Wang Qi's turn to be surprised.

Yuan Shisan had undoubtedly attacked Yao Yao with his full force just now. How could her mere Martial Artist's body withstand the blow of a Grandmaster expert?

Let alone Yao Yao, even Wang Qi herself wouldn't dare claim she could survive such an attack.

Lv Zhenglong elucidated, "This girl is in a state of faking death. Logically, she should be dead. It was probably the beast genes in her body that saved her life."

"Beast genes? Can Gene Potions achieve that level?" Wang Qi found it hard to believe.

She certainly knew about Gene Potions; this wasn't a secret. However, the Gene Potions in circulation were often extremely ineffective or caused severe side effects after ingestion. In severe cases, it wasn't impossible to die from them.

Additionally, after using Gene Potions, Martial Artists found it difficult to achieve breakthroughs through their own cultivation. They would have to rely on continuous use of Gene Potions, eventually leading to their self-destruction.

Therefore, Martial Artists from the academies always disdained using Gene Potions. They would only resort to them if they genuinely had no further potential for improvement.

Lv Zhenglong explained, "The Gene Potions of the original organization and those on the market are not the same... Actually, the Gene Potions on the Black Market are also released by the original organization, but those have undergone countless tests and are relatively reliable."

"As for this young girl..." Lv Zhenglong looked at Yao Yao, assessed her for a moment, and then smiled bitterly. "This young girl is clearly the latest test subject of the original organization. Nobody knows what Gene Potions the organization administered to her, but undoubtedly, she now possesses some innate abilities of beasts."

"Humans have inherited the innate abilities of beasts?"

"That should be the case. Otherwise, there's no way to explain her current state of faking death," Lv Zhenglong nodded. "A human coma is a type of faking death, but that's the body's self-preservation mechanism; vital signs like heartbeat and breathing do not cease."

"But her faking death is different; she truly seems dead. Even her heartbeat has become incredibly weakened. If I weren't a Grandmaster, I might not have even sensed it."

After a moment's thought, Lv Zhenglong said seriously, "Don't tell Wang Zhan about her not being dead. Nobody knows what this girl will become when she wakes up. It's best to keep him in the dark to avoid raising his hopes only for them to be dashed."

Upon hearing this, Wang Qi was silent for a moment, unsure how to respond.

If it were before, she would undoubtedly have agreed without hesitation. However, after witnessing Wang Zhan's heart-wrenching state before he fainted, she didn't know if she should make the choice for Wang Zhan this time.

After all... the current Wang Zhan was no longer the ignorant little kid from before. Even Wang Qi wouldn't easily disregard Wang Zhan's opinions anymore.

"There is no room for consideration in this matter. I'll send this girl to the Federation Research Institute. She still has high research value. Even if Wang Zhan found out she was alive, it would still be difficult for them to meet again."

"The Research Institute... yes, that should be the best place for her." Wang Qi nodded slightly.

The Federation Research Institute was different from the original organization; they certainly wouldn't conduct insane human experiments. If Yao Yao went there, her life would at least be guaranteed.

"I understand. I will keep this a secret from Wang Zhan." Wang Qi finally agreed.

Although this decision was unfair to Wang Zhan, and it seemed selfish, it was ultimately for his own good.

Moreover, when the time was right, Wang Qi would tell Wang Zhan everything as soon as possible.

"You should go back to the Academy with them," Lv Zhenglong pointed at Huang Fu and the others, saying, "Your mission for this operation is considered complete. Yuan Shisan has escaped, and all that's left is mopping up. There's no need for you to linger in the wilderness."

「...」

Things were just as Lv Zhenglong had said.

Yuan Shisan was considered quite high-level within the original organization. After all, he was a Grandmaster expert. Even for an organization with as profound a background as the original organization, deploying a Grandmaster to lead a plan was a significant move.

Previously, Sun Jian had exposed the original organization's beast-rearing base, which led to this major clean-up operation by the Military Martial Arts Academy.

Then, Lv Zhenglong directly defeated Yuan Shisan, forcing Yuan Shisan to flee in disgrace.

Additionally, the senior year students of the Military Martial Arts Academy, alongside their mentors, cleared the wilderness.

This operation could indeed be considered largely successful. Only a few scattered high-level beasts remained, which were then swarmed and completely wiped out by large groups of senior year students.

「...」

Traveling at full speed, Wang Qi returned to the Military Martial Arts Academy with Wang Zhan after a day.

Wang Zhan was still unconscious. After the school doctor examined him, he was diagnosed with severe distress having caused his collapse. It wasn't life-threatening, but his awakening would depend on the right moment.

Wang Qi wasn't disappointed by this. She simply moved into Wang Zhan's dormitory to take care of him.

Fortunately, Wang Zhan's dormitory had a small private room, which spared them the awkwardness of the siblings sharing a bed or Wang Qi having to sleep on the floor.

Days went by.

On the third day after Wang Qi returned to the Academy, large numbers of students who had participated in the clean-up operation also began to return.

Most of the students, although completely disheveled, had faces alight with excitement and enthusiasm. After all, it had been many years since the Military Martial Arts Academy had organized an operation of this magnitude.

Hunting high-level beasts in groups—beasts they normally wouldn't stand a chance against—provided combat experience that was absolutely invaluable for the students.

Of course, with gains came losses.

Next to the school's playground, a white sign was erected. A long list of names was meticulously written on it, and the list grew longer each day.

Whenever the students saw Liu Zhenfeng approaching the announcement board, they knew that another student would never return.

Although most of the Academy's instructors had been deployed to ensure the students' safety, even instructors had their limits; they weren't omnipotent.

The challenge of ensuring students experienced enough danger without it becoming lethal, based on such ambiguous standards, meant accidents were bound to happen.

The joy of the successful clean-up was considerably dampened by this somber atmosphere.

「...」

After being unconscious for a week, Wang Zhan finally woke up.

When he opened his eyes, he found himself looking at the familiar ceiling of his bedroom. Wang Zhan didn't speak; his mind was entirely filled with the events that had transpired.

Wang Qi, who was by his side, felt a pang in her heart at the sight.

"Yao Yao..." Wang Zhan muttered, and then weakly asked, "Sis, how long have I been asleep?"

"You've been asleep for a week." Wang Qi breathed a sigh of relief. Wang Zhan's awakening finally lifted the large boulder from her heart.

Wang Qi's answer made Wang Zhan freeze for a moment.

He couldn't help but ask, "She..."

Wang Qi shook her head slightly.

Wang Zhan's expression dimmed. "I see."

Seeing this, Wang Qi didn't know what to do. Wang Qi knew all too well how utterly inadequate words of comfort were at such a moment.

"Wang Zhan! You don't just have Yao Yao; you have me, and Mom! Wang Zhan, you've never been alone."

Upon hearing these words, Wang Zhan unconsciously looked at Wang Qi.

"Sis, you..."

"If you were still that same clueless, idle kid from before, I would have protected you fiercely, ensuring not a single harm came to you," Wang Qi said with a bitter smile. "But you personally pushed my protection away. You insisted on entering the world of Martial Artists. From the moment you entered the Military Martial Arts Academy, you should have foreseen this day.

This won't be the only time. In the future, you might have to face the deaths of your comrades-in-arms, your fellow soldiers, even my own death! Are you going to be this despondent every single time? I've said what I needed to say. You think it over carefully."

With that, Wang Qi stood up and walked out. "Since you're awake, I'll leave. Oh, right. Teacher Duan said to notify him when you woke up. He should be over shortly."

After speaking, Wang Qi left Wang Zhan's dormitory without any hesitation, leaving Wang Zhan alone. He climbed out of bed, his expression unreadable, and sat on the edge.

It won't just happen once... Yes, what I'm facing now are just trivial skirmishes. Even Sis is in the same boat! We can't even handle soldier-level beasts, and soldier-level beasts are merely equivalent to Warriors.

I used to practice martial arts to gain fame at a young age, to become renowned throughout the world, to be majestic and awe-inspiring, Wang Zhan thought. Such ridiculous thoughts. The purpose of practicing martial arts should never be like that.

The purpose of practicing martial arts is to protect. To have enough strength to protect your family and friends, to protect the one you love! When you become stronger, you protect a town, a city, and eventually, the entire Human Race.

Thinking this, the light in Wang Zhan's eyes slowly started to rekindle.

Yao Yao's death was an undeniable fact. But he was still alive, and he couldn't afford to stagnate.

If Yao Yao's death caused him to fall into despair and never recover, that would truly be a waste of his own Talent and the golden finger bestowed upon him by Heaven.

Wang Zhan looked out the window. The sunlight was dazzling.

Yao Yao, I will carry your spirit forward with me. From now on, you won't have to chase after me anymore.

Wang Zhan pressed his right hand to his heart. You will remain here forever, always! From now on, we will advance side by side. I will show you everything I see, and together, we will reach the pinnacle of martial arts.

His inner turmoil resolved, Wang Zhan took a deep, cleansing breath.

No amount of brooding could make him stronger. His past cultivation hadn't been diligent enough; he needed to strive even harder in the future.

Just then, Duan Kun happened to push the door open, his eyes meeting Wang Zhan's.

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