Chapter 111 – He Really Is a Bad Senior!

The night quietly slipped away.

When daylight arrived again, the Huaming District, which had turned into a battlefield, was already in complete disarray, covered everywhere in blood and corpses.

Some of the land had turned into scorched earth.

Some terrain had been altered.

Buildings were left tattered and broken.

Ruins stood one after another, bearing witness to the intensity of the war.

Especially at the frontline closest to the Spirit Demon Abyss Entrance, the battle situation was particularly volatile, gripping the hearts of countless people.

Everyone was closely following the progress of this war, including people from surrounding Base Cities, who could occasionally catch glimpses of related reports, making this conflict the most talked-about current event.

Although Longyao City had suffered heavy casualties, with even many Upper-Rank Professionals falling, they had at least managed to prevent the Phantom Demon army from breaking out of Huaming District, keeping them largely confined there—except for a very small number that slipped through the net.

In this regard, even if Longyao City wanted to prevent it completely, they lacked the capacity.

In such a massive and intense war, it was inevitable that some would slip through.

These could only be dealt with later.

For now, the war itself remained the most critical matter.

Fortunately, the sealing of the Spirit Demon Abyss Entrance was progressing steadily.

According to the latest news, the Seal was nearing completion and would soon be successfully established.

Once that happened, the Phantom Demons would lose their source of reinforcements and new combatants. Surrounded by Longyao City’s Professionals, they would eventually be eradicated.

The higher-ups solemnly announced this news and outlook, allowing the many Professionals fighting on the frontline to maintain hope despite their exhaustion, and to continue battling with courage.

Su Ming’s situation was similar—the defense line operations continued uninterrupted.

Under the shift system, both Lei Hao and Ye Bai had returned once. Though neither sustained serious injuries, they had numerous minor wounds, causing them to gulp down restorative alchemical potions as soon as they returned before collapsing from exhaustion, unable to get up again.

Su Ming and the others didn’t disturb their rest. When it was their squad’s turn to head to the frontline again, Su Ming went with another person, while the remaining one stayed behind to care for Jiang Wanyu and also keep an eye on Lei Hao and Ye Bai.

It’s worth noting that the person who teamed up with Su Ming to go to the frontline wasn’t An Zijin, who usually stuck to him, but Yao Beibei.

The reason was simple.

“A Hunter and Sorcerer combination is easier to coordinate in combat. If both are the same profession, efficiency actually decreases.”

This wasn’t something Su Ming said—it was a common understanding.

And it was true.

If both deployed were Hunters, lacking effective means to deal significant damage to Phantom Demons, they would undoubtedly expend great effort to subdue them, wasting both time and energy.

If both deployed were Sorcerers, while their offensive power would be sufficient, they would lack a vanguard to hold off enemies at the front. Without the resilient physique of Hunters, Sorcerers could easily fall prey to ambushes from Phantom Demons like Shadow Demons, quickly losing composure and disrupting their formation.

Therefore, in situations requiring two-person teams, having different professions allowed for the highest combat efficiency.On the night when Su Ming and Xu Qianqian attacked the Warehouse Street where the Underground Mercenary Group was located, they faced Yi Junchuan with one holding the front line against the enemy while the other fully concentrated on unleashing Spirit Art from the rear. This combination allowed them to achieve maximum restraint and suppression against their opponent.

Had Yi Junchuan not used the demonization potion mid-battle to enter a state of Demonization, he would have been defeated by Su Ming and Xu Qianqian’s coordinated efforts.

This demonstrates how crucial team composition and Professional role allocation are during missions.

The fact that Lei Hao and Ye Bai returned with only minor injuries might very well be attributed to this factor.

Considering this, it would be best to separate Su Ming and An Zijin, both being Sorcerers.

Although An Zijin expressed some dissatisfaction with this arrangement, and Su Ming silently grumbled to himself about already being a Dual Professional—thus negating any Professional compatibility issues—both ultimately accepted the decision.

Consequently, Su Ming teamed up with Yao Beibei for a frontline mission.

However, Yao Beibei was clearly still preoccupied with concerns about Jiang Wanyu, and coupled with her relative lack of experience, her performance could only be described as barely satisfactory.

Fortunately, Su Ming’s heightened spiritual awareness allowed him to seize critical moments during crises, using Spirit Art to support Yao Beibei repeatedly. Otherwise, she might have ended up injured.

This left the young girl visibly dispirited throughout the return journey after their shift ended.

“Alright, don’t be so downcast,” Su Ming said with a wry smile, observing Yao Beibei’s state. “If Zijin sees you like this, she’ll probably start worrying too, won’t she?”

“But…” Yao Beibei still wore a dejected expression.

Seeing this, Su Ming couldn’t help but reach out and pat the girl’s head.

“Don’t forget, you’re just a first-year student. It hasn’t been long since you enrolled, and performing like this is already quite impressive.”

This wasn’t mere consolation—it was the truth.

Su Ming had noticed that although Yao Beibei tended to be cautious during combat, her intuition was remarkably sharp. She often responded promptly to sudden developments, and her reaction speed and adaptability even surprised him.

Her innate ability to sense impending dangers and detect enemy movements ahead of time was truly rare and valuable.

Thus, Su Ming held high expectations for Yao Beibei’s future, rating her potential even above Jiang Wanyu’s.

“With your innate qualities and potential, if you work hard, it’s not impossible for you to become an Upper-Rank Professional someday,” Su Ming painted an ambitious picture for her while adding, “Right now, you just lack experience and time. Don’t push yourself too hard.”

As he spoke, Su Ming suddenly noticed Yao Beibei had fallen silent.

“Why aren’t you saying anything?”

Su Ming found it strange, then realized Yao Beibei’s face was flushed, and her body had stiffened, as if she were extremely embarrassed.

The reason for her shyness was, naturally, Su Ming’s head-patting.

Only then did Su Ming realize he had acted somewhat intimately toward Yao Beibei.

“Sorry, sorry,” Su Ming quickly withdrew his hand and chuckled awkwardly. “It’s become a habit.”

Since he often did this with An Zijin, facing a junior who was both the same age and shared a dorm with her, Su Ming had unconsciously repeated the gesture.

Thinking it over carefully now, his relationship with Yao Beibei wasn’t particularly close, and such an action might come across as overly familiar.More importantly, Su Ming had indeed acted inappropriately toward Yao Beibei before.

After all, when she and Jiang Wanyu had sneaked into his room earlier, he had accidentally measured her impressive curves with his hands.

Yao Beibei seemed to recall that incident as well, her face flushing so red it seemed to emit steam.

Yet she still lifted her gaze slightly, looking at Su Ming with a bashful expression as she murmured,

“Senior seems quite accustomed to such gestures. Is it because of little Zijin?”

It appeared her attention was beginning to shift.

“Something like that,” Su Ming replied, not minding the change of topic. He cleared his throat and said,

“Since we grew up together as childhood friends and I’m the only child in my family, Zijin feels like a real younger sister to me.”

Although real-life sisters could never be as adorable as those in anime, Su Ming was fortunate—his neighbor-turned-sister was excessively cute, and he doted on her all the same.

Yao Beibei, however, clearly thought differently.

“A real sister?” she muttered, forgetting her shyness as she stared intently at Su Ming. “But little Zijin doesn’t seem to see you only as a brother.”

“Ah, well…” Su Ming was at a loss for words.

He wasn’t foolish—how could he not notice that An Zijin’s attitude toward him was clearly unusual?

What kind of normal younger sister would ask her brother, “When are we getting married?”

Not to mention how her pupils would occasionally lose their light, her eyes turning dull, as if her entire character had collapsed. If that were considered normal, then no one in the world would be considered unusual.

Thinking of this, Su Ming found himself speechless.

In contrast, Yao Beibei, usually timid, suddenly became unusually talkative.

“What do you really think of little Zijin?” she pressed in a hushed voice. “She’s so adorable—surely you must have some thoughts about her?”

Ah, this again…

Su Ming scratched his cheek helplessly. “What thoughts could I possibly have?”

He truly had none.

For Su Ming, his current priority was his own growth plan. Women who could hinder his progress were better ignored.

The problem was, Yao Beibei didn’t believe him.

“How could you not have any thoughts about someone as cute as little Zijin?” she retorted, clearly dissatisfied. “Don’t think you can fool me just because I seem easy to bully. Even girls can’t ignore her charm—I refuse to believe boys would remain indifferent.”

As she spoke, she tugged at the corner of Su Ming’s shirt, as if she had caught him red-handed.

“Senior, be honest with me—what are your feelings toward little Zijin?”

She had asked the most direct question.

“I…”

Su Ming stammered, about to say something instinctively when he suddenly realized something.

He looked directly at Yao Beibei.

“Wait, are you trying to trick me into saying something?” he asked, eyeing her suspiciously.

“H-How could that be?”

Yao Beibei froze instantly, her confident tone vanishing as she began to stammer.

“So that’s it…”

Su Ming narrowed his eyes.

This girl seemed honest and straightforward, but it turned out she had her own sly tricks up her sleeve.”Speaking of which, you and Jiang Wanyu still owe me an explanation.” Su Ming crossed his arms, looking down at Yao Beibei as he said, “Last time, why did the two of you sneak into my room?”

“This… this…” Yao Beibei panicked.

Damn it, this matter had finally been put to rest, but now Su Ming had been given an opportunity to bring it up again.

“You’d better confess honestly, my dear junior Yao.” Su Ming smiled like a villain, speaking with feigned sincerity, “If you don’t explain properly, I’ll tell Sister Zijing what happened that time. Guess whether she’ll condemn you or not?”

Hearing this, Yao Beibei went numb.

Clearly, you were the one who took advantage, so why are you using this to threaten me instead?

You really are a bad senior! ~~o(>_<)o ~~

(End of Chapter)