Chapter 426: There’s Big Trouble

Li Xiaofei glanced at Lin Wan. Sometimes, you had to admit a woman’s intuition was uncanny. But it didn’t matter even if she suspected something. As long as he didn’t admit anything, no one would believe her.

“Not bad. Thanks for asking,” Li Xiaofei replied coolly, leaning back against the side of the carriage.

Lin Wan listened intently to every note in his voice, trying to pick up any hint of resemblance to the masked man.

“Hey, what kind of attitude is that?” Ding Rong couldn’t hold back and scolded, “Little Wan is showing concern for you. You’re just like a dog biting Lü Dongbin[1]. How completely ungrateful.”

Li Xiaofei glanced at the eldest of the seven sisters. “None of your business.”

“You...” Ding Rong shot to her feet, visibly agitated.

Li Junjie glared at her, “What do you want?”

Ding Rong was furious, gritting her teeth as she reluctantly sat down again.

Lin Wan gently squeezed Ding Rong’s hand, calming her, then turned back to Li Xiaofei. “Classmate Li, what did you encounter in the wilderness? How did you manage to evade those high-grade zombies?”

“Yes, I encountered quite a lot,” Li Xiaofei replied, leaning against the side of the carriage. “But they were no match for me. I casually killed a few thousand of them.”

“Pfft.”

“Ha...”

Many in the carriage couldn’t hold back and burst out laughing. Even Ding Yifeng couldn’t suppress a chuckle. There was a limit to bragging. If he had claimed he’d been lucky and managed to kill four or five low-grade zombies, maybe some would’ve believed him.

But casually killing thousands of high-grade zombies? That was pure nonsense. He didn’t even know how to tell a convincing lie.

Only Lin Wan didn’t laugh. If Li Xiaofei really was the masked man, then the number of zombies he’d killed wouldn’t just be a few thousand; it could easily be tens of thousands.

Beside her, Xuan Huang watched Lin Wan carefully. Her time with the masked man had been brief, but Lin Wan’s behavior had given Xuan Huang a faint sense that there might be something to her suspicions.

Meanwhile, Li Junjie remarked in his usual fashion, “For someone like him, killing a few thousand zombies would indeed be no big deal.”

Ding Rong, Song Lingge, and others helplessly covered their faces. Li Junjie was admirable in many ways but his one flaw was his blind loyalty to Li Xiaofei. Ironically, his exaggerated support only made Li Xiaofei seem like an even bigger joke. A person’s strength should speak for itself. It shouldn’t need others to hype it up.

Li Xiaofei seemed unfazed by the reactions around him. Most of his attention was focused on the senior student named Su Wanqing. She looked like a character straight out of a comic. Her short black hair had a distinctly androgynous style; her large, clear eyes were framed by bold, arched eyebrows; and her nose was straight and well-defined. Her lips were full and rosy, and her delicate features were perfectly balanced on her fair, almond-shaped face.

Her figure boasted striking curves. Her long legs were subtly apparent even beneath her green academy robe. She was like a classic beauty from a traditional Chinese comic brought to life. When she noticed Li Xiaofei’s gaze, Su Wanqing responded with a polite smile. However, when his eyes lingered on her for a bit too long, she frowned slightly, retracting her gaze and looking elsewhere.

Her gestures and expressions were completely natural. Li Xiaofei chuckled to himself, closed his eyes, and pretended to doze.

The carriage sped on. Twenty minutes later, they finally arrived back at White Deer Academy.

The elderly headmaster had been informed of their return and was standing at the academy gates to greet them. He was especially attentive toward Li Junjie as he asked about his well-being. It was only after seeing the academy’s most talented student return unscathed that he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He then warmly welcomed Xuan Huang and her companion from the Dragon Group. The two Dragon Group members were promptly escorted to a special training room to recuperate, with additional resources provided for their recovery. The other students were directed to undergo standard academy examinations.

These included checks for bodily radiation levels and screenings of personal belongings, particularly after their exposure to the zombie energy storm. Afterward, they would receive herbal medicine prescriptions and be given herbal baths and internal treatments as needed.

These were all medicines developed by White Deer Academy itself. They were simple and effective, but most importantly, affordable. Li Xiaofei received a packet of herbs along with an instruction manual, then headed back to his dormitory. This recent trial had turned out quite lucky for him.

The zombie horde he encountered allowed him to collect more than enough star cores above grade five to last him for a while. Sensing the distant aura of the Supreme Corpse Emperor had made Li Xiaofei acutely aware, once again, of the urgency to strengthen himself. Strength was the only real truth.

𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

If a true calamity were to descend, he would need overwhelming strength to protect both himself and his family. He couldn’t keep relying on the power of Elder Liu Shaji. It wasn’t fair to trouble the elder so often.

Perhaps he would find a chance to talk with him properly. Hopefully, Elder Liu might grant him a few more chances to borrow his strength, especially given all the times he’d assisted the elder.

Li Xiaofei sat down, took out the high-grade star cores, and began circulating the Nine Yang Divine Art to absorb their energy.

Time passed as Li Xiaofei immersed himself in cultivation. Directly absorbing the energy within the star cores was a unique feature of the Nine Yang Divine Art, allowing him to bypass the use of a starforce absorption device.

Over four hours later...

"Ah... Meridian Expanding Realm, first meridian of the twelve principal meridians, fully expanded."

A satisfied expression appeared on his face. The term meridian expanding spoke for itself; it meant to widen and develop the body's meridians. The Acupoint Opening Realm had focused on refining and stabilizing all acupoints within his body. This process was akin to setting fixed anchors within his body, establishing essential coordinates.

In the Meridian Expanding Realm, he was now using those coordinates to connect his meridians, further unlocking the mysteries of the human body. The purpose of these meridians and acupoints lay in their ability to enhance different effects when cultivating various martial arts techniques.

The power of a technique depended on its flow and circulation path. These paths were determined by the arrangement of meridians and acupoints. Li Xiaofei continued expanding the twelve principal meridians and the eight extraordinary meridians through his Dual Saint Body of Blade and Sword. However, he had yet to settle on additional meridian-expanding techniques for the later stages.

"Once I finish expanding the twelve principal meridians and the eight extraordinary meridians, I’ll look into other meridian-expanding techniques. I imagine I'll end up using techniques from the Dragon Group. Saving Xuan Huang this time should count as a credit for me," Li Xiaofei mused to himself.

At that moment, an alarm suddenly sounded within his dormitory cave. Then, a message arrived. White Deer Academy was initiating a three-day lockdown.

Lockdown?

Li Xiaofei was surprised by the announcement.

From what he knew, White Deer Academy imposed strict conditions for a lockdown. This wasn’t merely a restriction; it was a full containment. The academy would spare no resources and activate protective formations that would shield the entire campus. Outsiders couldn’t enter, and no one inside could leave.

Internally, even stricter measures would be enforced. This included heightened patrols, a fully mobilized student security team, and a tiered confidentiality protocol. Access to high-security areas within the academy would be restricted, with only the headmaster’s office able to authorize entry. Neither regular students nor instructors were allowed to move between areas without permission.

The last lockdown at White Deer Academy had been fifty-eight years ago when the Supreme Corpse Emperor had launched an assault on Xiajing City. The zombie army had nearly breached the metal walls, and White Deer Academy, positioned closest to the gap in the wall, had activated its protective formations and gone into lockdown.

The academy’s reserve resources had been nearly depleted in just fifteen days. Already struggling financially, White Deer Academy had been pushed to the brink of bankruptcy at the time and were nearly unable to enroll students.

So what could have happened this time? Has the headmaster lost his mind?

Li Xiaofei felt a wave of confusion. On his way back from the cafeteria, someone stopped him.

"Mind if we chat?" It was Xuan Huang, the captain of the Dragon Group’s Super A-rank special operations team. Dressed in a sleek black modern combat suit, she stood out sharply against the academy’s traditional robes.

"Sure," Li Xiaofei nodded.

They walked side by side.

"Should I address you as President Li or as Jade Emperor?" Xuan Huang asked with a smile.

"Whichever you prefer," Li Xiaofei replied, his expression unchanged.

He knew that as soon as he revealed his codename, his true identity would no longer be hidden from his own organization. Anyone in the Dragon Group could simply look up his information through the internal network.

"So, you really are the Jade Emperor," Xuan Huang said, a look of excitement flashing across her face.

Li Xiaofei was a bit surprised.

Was she bluffing?

Xuan Huang continued, "I know what you’re surprised about, but the truth is, I couldn’t actually verify your information on the Dragon Group network. White Deer Academy can’t even access it right now."

"That can’t be," Li Xiaofei replied.

Although White Deer Academy didn’t encourage students to use the network frequently, it was still accessible.

Xuan Huang’s expression grew serious.

"The network in this area has been completely blocked, and there’s a mechanical army surrounding us. White Deer Academy is now secretly encircled... Jade Emperor, something serious is happening."

Li Xiaofei could hardly believe his ears.

Could such a situation actually be happening within the city?

"What exactly is going on?" he pressed. "Does this have to do with the Corpse Emperor's Sacred Crystal?"

1. to ill reward a person's kindness ☜