Chapter 24 – Is It Too Late for Me to Leave Now?

Time gradually slipped away.

Unconsciously, the sky began to pale yellow, with the setting sun painting the world in twilight hues.

Su Ming had left the Academy in the morning, but amid his frantic running around, evening had already descended.

“Seriously…”

Su Ming gasped for breath in the suburbs, watching the bees still hovering in the air, a wave of helplessness washing over him.

He had been chasing these bees all day.

Initially, Su Ming thought he had finally found some clues to track down those people, but who would have guessed it wouldn’t be as smooth as he imagined.

Led by the swarm, Su Ming rushed from one place to another, yet he couldn’t find any trace of the Suspicious Group.

Of course, Su Ming hadn’t come away completely empty-handed.

“Is this the eleventh one already?”

Su Ming caught his breath and scanned his surroundings.

The state of the environment around Su Ming was clearly off.

Some areas had obvious scorch marks.

Other spots seemed severely damaged, wrecked quite badly.

And there were places stained with blood, forming pools of bloodstains.

Undoubtedly, this had once been a battlefield.

Su Ming had already figured out what happened.

“After that night’s fierce battle, the Suspicious Group and the mysterious entity still hadn’t settled the score.”

Just like the previous forty days, the Suspicious Group clearly hadn’t captured the mysterious entity, continuously tracking and pursuing it.

Su Ming’s scout bees had detected the Spirit Power of a Sorcerer from the Suspicious Group at the sites of the fierce battles, leading them from one location to another. This resulted in Su Ming running around all day without spotting a single person, though he did uncover many unblocked battle zones.

As for the traces of the two sides in the fight, there were still no clues.

“Finding them really isn’t that easy.”

Su Ming felt somewhat helpless.

However, he wasn’t discouraged by this outcome.

“If this doesn’t work, I’ll just try another method.”

Su Ming had more than one way to find people.

Over the past year, continuously opening packages had given Su Ming dozens, if not hundreds, of items, some of which had very unique uses applicable to his current situation.

With such a hand to play, Su Ming wasn’t worried about being unable to find anyone—it was just a matter of how much effort and resources he’d need to expend.

If he were truly willing to spare no cost, Su Ming had methods to locate the other party immediately.

He wasn’t using them now simply because he didn’t think it was worth it.

“Anyway, I’m not in a hurry. I’ll take it slow.”

If there was one thing Su Ming had in abundance, it was patience.

After all, as a man determined to lie low until he was invincible, if he couldn’t endure boredom or withstand provocation, he would have long since revealed his weaknesses.

Thus, Su Ming decided to head back first and resume the search later.

“Hmm?”

Just as Su Ming was about to leave, suddenly, a glimmer of light caught the corner of his eye.

“Something there?”

A slight doubt arose in Su Ming’s mind, but his steps didn’t hesitate as he headed straight toward the source of the light.

Before long, Su Ming saw what was shining.

“A scale?”

Su Ming was surprised.

The source of the light was a damaged scale.Although the scale was damaged, its surface remained smooth as a mirror, reflecting the glaring brilliance of the setting sun in a way that evoked an unexpectedly aesthetic sensation.

Su Ming picked up the scale and examined it for a while before his brows furrowed.

“Is this a scale shed by a Phantom Demon?”

Ordinary animal scales wouldn’t possess such beauty, nor would they likely appear in such a place. Combined with the faint aura of Phantom Demon that Su Ming detected from it, the owner of this scale could only be a Phantom Demon.

After some thought, a sudden realization flashed through Su Ming’s mind.

“Could it be that the mysterious existence being hunted by that Suspicious Group is some kind of Phantom Demon?”

This possibility wasn’t entirely unlikely.

Though Su Ming couldn’t imagine what kind of Phantom Demon would require such covert hunting methods—creating disturbances repeatedly yet disappearing without trace each time, while also arousing the desire of some ambitious figure among the Base City’s higher-ups—the appearance of this scale still pointed toward the mysterious entity being a Phantom Demon.

“If that mysterious existence is indeed a Phantom Demon, what kind of Phantom Demon is it?”

Su Ming studied it for a long time before finally concluding that this scale didn’t belong to any lower-class Phantom Demon he knew of.

This made Su Ming’s frown deepen, and a growing sense of astonishment and doubt began to stir within him.

“Could it be that the Suspicious Group isn’t hunting a lower-class Phantom Demon, but an upper-class one?”

Su Ming was somewhat stunned by this realization.

An upper-class Phantom Demon.

That would be an extraordinarily formidable existence.

Within the Spirit Demon Abyss, Phantom Demons existed in vast numbers across numerous races.

Species like Screaming Demons and Black Heart Demons could be counted in the tens of millions, yet these two types were among the most insignificant among the myriad Phantom Demon races in the Spirit Demon Abyss.

However, all these swarming, locust-like Phantom Demons were merely lower-class specimens.

While lower-class Phantom Demons posed considerable threats to ordinary humans, within the Spirit Demon Abyss, they represented the weakest, most insignificant creatures.

Yet when a Phantom Demon consumed sufficient blood and accumulated enough power, it would break away from its original race and evolve into a completely new individual.

Such Phantom Demons would no longer be the insignificant creatures they once were alongside their kin. Their power would become unprecedentedly strong, creating a difference as vast as heaven and earth compared to their pre-evolution state—utterly incomparable.

These evolved individuals were what people referred to as upper-class Phantom Demons.

Upon their emergence, they typically became Kings of their former races, ruling over entire populations and establishing themselves as territorial lords within the Spirit Demon Abyss.

The threat these upper-class Phantom Demons posed to humanity far exceeded that of lower-class ones—they simply operated on completely different scales.

A single lower-class Phantom Demon, unless it possessed particularly unusual characteristics, could be easily handled by a team of three trainees like Su Ming, Lei Hao, and Ye Bai working together.

If Su Ming employed his true capabilities, he could hunt multiple lower-class Phantom Demons alone without difficulty.

The same applied to professional-level Hunters and Sorcerers. Even freshly graduated, newly initiated Hunters and Sorcerers—provided they held professional licenses—could hunt several lower-class Phantom Demons solo without issue. Some could even single-handedly take down dozens of them.However, once they encounter an Advanced Phantom Demon, these newly graduated Hunters and Sorcerers would only become targets of slaughter.

To put it this way.

In this world, whether they are Hunters or Sorcerers, once they obtain their license and become professional Hunters and Sorcerers, they begin to receive a Star Rank.

Newly debuted professional Hunters and Sorcerers are all One-Star Hunters and One-Star Sorcerers.

Afterward, as professional Hunters and Sorcerers continuously grow, improve, and refine their strength, they can increase their Star Rank and be assigned the corresponding stars.

The highest Star Rank achievable is Seven-Star.

As for Advanced Phantom Demons, even the weakest one requires at least a Four-Star Hunter and Sorcerer to deal with.

From this, one can see how vast the gap is between Advanced and lower-level Phantom Demons.

Not to mention, there are also Ranks among Advanced Phantom Demons. The strongest among them, though not quite capable of destroying heaven and earth with a mere gesture, can still accomplish feats like filling seas and moving mountains, making them difficult for even the highest-level Seven-Star Hunters and Seven-Star Sorcerers to handle.

If the target being pursued by that Suspicious Group is indeed an Advanced Phantom Demon…

“Then this matter isn’t something that can be easily resolved.”

Su Ming gripped the scale in his hand, his emotions somewhat stirred.

“It seems I need to have another talk with Young Miss Xu.”

Su Ming took a deep breath and stored the scale in his backpack.

Afterward, Su Ming searched the surrounding area once more but found nothing else before heading back.

As for the search drones, Su Ming did not recall them, instead letting them continue the search.

Perhaps they might find something later; it wasn’t impossible.

……

That night, Su Ming did not return to the Dormitory.

He knew that if he went back, the rough guys in the Dormitory would surely pester him endlessly.

So, Su Ming simply booked a room at a hotel outside and sent a message to Xu Qianqian.

“I’ve booked a room at a nearby hotel. Come over.”

Su Ming included the address and sent it to Xu Qianqian.

However, Xu Qianqian’s reply was later than Su Ming had expected, and its content nearly made him spit blood.

“You’re the first person who dares to directly invite me to a hotel like this.”

When Su Ming saw this message, he didn’t react at first, but once he did, he felt like spitting blood.

Thinking about it carefully, the content he had sent did seem a bit… improper?

The corner of Su Ming’s mouth twitched.

Immediately, Su Ming hurried to explain.

“I have something to discuss with you.”

Su Ming sent this over.

This time, Xu Qianqian’s reply was even later.

Just as Su Ming was growing puzzled by this, Xu Qianqian’s reply finally arrived, delayed.

“After I told my butler about this, he not only got angry but also scolded you harshly, saying your excuse for tricking a girl into getting a room is really lame.”

Such a reply made Su Ming bang his head against the pillow, wishing he could knock himself out.

In the end, Su Ming simply replied.

“Come or not, it’s up to you.”

After throwing out this message, Su Ming tossed his phone aside and ignored everyone else.

He wanted to lie down and sleep but realized that after a day of running around, he carried the dust of travel and a heavy smell of sweat.

“I’ll take a bath before sleeping.”As a refined and delicate boy, Su Ming couldn’t bear to simply lie down and sleep directly. He immediately rushed to the bathroom and took a comfortable shower.

Just as Su Ming emerged from the bathroom feeling refreshed, a knocking sound came from outside the door.

“I’m here.”

Xu Qianqian stood at the doorway, staring at Su Ming who was only wearing a bathrobe, and pondered for a long while.

Then, Xu Qianqian said one sentence.

“Is it too late for me to leave now?”

The moment she finished speaking, Xu Qianqian was dragged into the room by Su Ming.

(End of Chapter)