Chapter 357: Chapter 347: Setting Off for Home

"Qiao Jin, what’s going on?"

This scene startled Qi Jiaming, and for a moment he was too scared to even move.

"Shut up and get over here."

Tang Mo grabbed Qi Jiaming, and the two of them moved into the crowd. She just wanted to get out of here as fast as possible. Now wasn’t a good time to be the one sticking her neck out.

"Principal, what’s wrong? What in the world is going on?"

Once everyone had gathered, they all looked up at the principal, who was standing on the steps.

Even Director Yan and the other teachers were looking at him with the same questioning gaze.

Director Yan was the principal’s most capable assistant, but even he hadn’t known about this. The principal had notified everyone directly, which showed just how serious the situation was.

"I want to announce something today. The rescue team still hasn’t arrived, and there’s been no news whatsoever. However, the exit leading to the other side of the mountain has been opened. I’ve decided to lead everyone home, and I’d like to hear all of your opinions."

The moment the principal finished speaking, the crowd below fell silent.

They had been trapped here for so long that they had grown accustomed to this life. To be suddenly told they could go home left them feeling a bit lost.

Still, being able to go home was what everyone ultimately wanted.

"It’s so far away, and we don’t have any transportation. Are we supposed to walk all the way back?"

Everyone wanted to go home, but there were many practical problems they had to consider.

"That’s right. We’ll walk. We’ll take it one step at a time."

They had been brought here, and there wasn’t any transportation even on the other side of the mountain. They couldn’t contact anyone now, either. For the time being, walking was their only option.

"But how far is that...? We don’t have enough food, do we?"

"It’s not enough. But if we stay here, we won’t have enough food either. It’s better to head out. We might be able to find more food along the way."

The principal had already considered these problems. The journey home would be hard, certainly, but not harder than being trapped here to die.

"What about those monsters outside? If we run into them, we’re finished."

Everyone still remembered the letter from Qiao Jin’s father. The terrifying, man-eating monsters left them all filled with dread.

"We’ll just have to do our best to avoid them, or find weapons to protect ourselves. Now that there’s an exit, even if we don’t leave, those monsters will get in. We’d be in an even more vulnerable position then."

This was the issue Tang Mo had reminded the principal about, and he had, of course, considered it carefully.

’He’s right. The exit is open now. This place isn’t safe anymore.’

"Maybe... maybe we should just wait for the rescue team."

A trembling voice came from the crowd. The journey home was simply too daunting; they were truly afraid.

But...

"We’ve already waited so long," another girl in the crowd said. "No one is coming to save us. Even if they were, we can’t wait any longer."

After she spoke, the crowd once again fell silent.

Everyone had been living on hope day after day, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t recognize the truth.

As for whether the rescue team would ever arrive, and when, everyone had already found the answer in their hearts during the long, repetitive wait. They just weren’t willing to admit it.

Amid the silence, someone suddenly started to cry.

The first cry was followed by a second. Soon, a wave of crying spread through the crowd. Everyone—boys, girls, and even the teachers—began to sob.

They couldn’t move forward, and they couldn’t stay put.

They would die if they stayed, but they likely wouldn’t survive the journey out. It was as if fate was treating them like lab rats, where struggling was futile. Everyone began to despair.

Even though Qi Jiaming knew he would be leaving with Boss Qiao, and he wasn’t afraid since he had his Strength Attribute, the atmosphere still made his eyes well up.

The only clear-headed person in the crowd was Tang Mo.

"Qiao Jin, why don’t we all leave together? You can come with your classmates, how about it?"

The principal looked toward Qiao Jin, who was hidden in the crowd, and spoke in a slow, sincere tone.

At the principal’s words, everyone’s gaze shifted to Qiao Jin.

They weren’t fools. While they hadn’t deliberately concerned themselves with how the tunnel was opened, that didn’t mean they didn’t have their suspicions.

All signs pointed to Qiao Jin. The principal’s words, especially, confirmed that Qiao Jin was by no means an ordinary person.

’Maybe since she was brave enough to open the tunnel, she has a way to get home safely?’

Their sobs subsided as they all looked at Qiao Jin, hoping for an answer from her.

They were in desperate need of a leader, someone who could clearly promise to protect them and get them home safely.

Tang Mo watched as everyone’s eyes gradually fixed on her, saw the principal’s pleading gaze, and she understood.

’No wonder. So that’s why the principal called everyone out without taking any time to think.’

’It was all for me.’

’The principal still wanted to make me stay. He wanted to use my sympathy, compassion, and my feelings for my classmates and teachers to keep me here.’

The principal wanted to lead everyone home safely, but now he was pinning all his hopes on her.

Everyone thought that since she could open a tunnel, she must be incredibly capable and would definitely be able to protect them.

’Is this... moral blackmail?’

Tang Mo looked at the familiar faces around her, at their pitiful and eager eyes, but she felt not a single ripple in her heart.

’Moral blackmail?’

’Too bad. You can’t blackmail someone who has no morals.’

"Sorry, I’m in a hurry to get home."

***

"Qi Jiaming, why are you looking at me like that?"

Tang Mo sat cross-legged in the small boat made of spiritual power, resting with her eyes closed.

High up in the sky, there didn’t seem to be much to do besides rest with her eyes closed.

But she couldn’t stand Qi Jiaming constantly sneaking glances at her. Finally, Tang Mo couldn’t take it anymore and spoke up.

"I was just wondering if you’re a human or a god."

Qi Jiaming blurted out the truest thought on his mind.

After they came out of the tunnel, when Qiao Jin told him they were going to fly back, he thought she was just overjoyed and joking with him for the first time.

But when a flying ship shimmering with golden light appeared before his eyes, Qi Jiaming felt like the whole world had gone crazy.

Even though he had long since accepted the existence of superpower attributes, riding in a flying ship was still unbelievably incredible.

He pinched himself hard. ’Could it be that this has all been a dream, from the very first day we were trapped until now?’

Even after flying in the sky on this boat for nearly half an hour, he was still having a hard time accepting it.

He was starting to seriously wonder if Boss Qiao was even human. ’Could she be a god?’

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