Chapter 56: Reunion

The owl, scared out of its wits, twisted around and fled, flying back to perch on a tree by the academy walls. From there, it peered into the distance.

The sky was dark, but it had seen clearly earlier. Those gray wisps, like smoke and dust, were particles from the Element River.

To be precise, they were dead elemental particles, highly susceptible to adsorption by the miasma fog.

These dead magic elements couldn’t nourish the miasma fog, so the fragile carrier would soon collapse, causing the fog to spread.

Even without nutrients, the spreading miasma fog shouldn’t expand too much in theory. But since the timing was unpredictable, failing to respond in time could lead to greater disaster.

The Element River formed naturally and was hard to dispel or control. It usually appeared in remote mountains and forests, far from human habitation.

Now, it was emanating from beneath Central City…

Most likely, long ago, Central City had been deliberately built in a place rich with natural magic elements, with part of the Element River buried underground.

But then the heavenly disaster struck, and the miasma fog had first devoured those natural magic elemental particles.

It seemed the people of Central City had no idea there was an Element River beneath their feet.

The owl grew anxious and worried for a moment. It turned its head toward the academy.

At this hour, the humans were all asleep.

As a magical beast, it knew full well the danger of the Element River. If the adsorbed miasma fog erupted, the academy was likely to be the first to suffer.

It glanced at the defensive magic outside the academy walls, then back at the direction of the Element River. After some hesitation, the owl decided to fly closer for another look.

It approached cautiously, flying slowly and observing carefully.

The gray mist formed by the elemental particles drifted out from a gap beneath a brick, hovering in the air without being stirred by the wind. No miasma fog had adsorbed onto it yet.

Satisfied with its observations, the owl didn’t linger. It beat its wings and turned back.

Reaching the academy walls, it didn’t slow down. With a flap of its wings, it unleashed wind blades in an attack, aiming to break straight through.

The scale of the Element River was unknown. Every second of delay brought potential danger closer.

Little Dragon was still inside. It had to go warn him!

This was a huge matter, and it was the only one who knew. It was the only one who could handle it.

The owl’s eyes were serious. It had forgotten all its petty daytime grudges, focused solely on protecting Little Dragon.

The moment the defensive magic was breached, alarms rang out in the guard room, for the patrol team, the on-duty instructors, Herl, Xiang Lun… and even for Taro Ball, the barrier beast.

The defensive magic automatically shifted to targeting attacks. Golden ropes like those from a magic array locked onto the owl’s form and lashed out swiftly.

The owl dodged with ease, utterly unafraid. Another flap of its wings sent wind blades slicing a hole in the magic array, and it darted inside.

Such defensive magic posed no challenge to it at all. It had only held back from forcing its way in earlier to avoid trouble, contenting itself with peeking from afar using Thousand-Mile Vision.

Once inside the academy, the beast tamer from the guard room arrived first.

“Who’s there?!”

“A flying magical beast? Wind system!”

“Capture it!”

Wild magical beasts rarely intruded into the academy. They instinctively assumed the owl had an owner and scanned their surroundings warily, searching for the beast tamer.

But inside and outside the walls, there was no one—only the owl, moving at blinding speed. It didn’t attack anyone, just fled toward the courtyard.

Halfway there, the patrol team’s beast tamer arrived, along with two on-duty instructors of no low rank.

The owl cursed inwardly and considered the odds of communicating with the opposing beast tamer’s magical beasts.

But few magical beasts could understand other beast tongues and converse. The owl hooted a few times at a colorful marten, only to get pelted with a big mud ball that nearly smacked it in the face.

The owl held back its strength, not wanting to hurt anyone, dodging everywhere and gradually falling at a disadvantage.

Just as a metal array was about to pin it in place, Xiang Lun arrived right on time with Taro Ball.

“Hold it!” he ordered everyone to stop.

Snow Fox leaped forward, enveloping the owl in space magic and teleporting it straight to his side.

Spotting the owl, Taro Ball called out happily: “Woo woo!”

The owl settled down too, folding its wings and landing on the ground.

The patrol team captain said, “Vice Dean, this magical beast broke into the academy and damaged the defensive magic…”

“It’s fine. It’s a wild magical beast. I… cough, I think I know it,” Xiang Lun said, eyeing the owl. “You’re Little Shuang’s friend, aren’t you?”

It was Taro Ball’s barrier sense that had detected the familiar wind magic, guessing it might be the owl, so they had come together.

Seeing this, the patrol captain had nothing more to say. He directed the others to repair the defensive array.

The owl nodded: “Hoo…”

It had no time for greetings. First, it reported what it had discovered about the elemental particles.

Taro Ball and Snow Fox widened their eyes at once, both tensing up.

Xiang Lun couldn’t understand, but he sensed Snow Fox’s mood. His brows furrowed. “Something urgent? Come with me back to the courtyard first.”

~~~

Half a quarter-hour later, the owl was escorted back to the courtyard.

Ming Shuang had thrown a coat over his sleepwear. Seeing the owl, he grew thrilled and hugged it tightly. “Mochi! I’ve missed you so much… but why break in in the middle of the night?”

Xiang Lun hadn’t wanted to disturb Ming Shuang at first. He figured calling Yan Si to translate would suffice. But Ming Shuang was sharp and had noticed the commotion outside.

He had Ivan fetch a thicker robe, meanwhile unable to resist glancing at Xuzhi behind him.

Hadn’t Ming Shuang been in his juvenile form before bed tonight?

Perhaps Ming Shuang had guessed something and shapeshifted to communicate with the owl more easily.

If Ming Shuang had shapeshifted into human form, Xiang Lun probably wouldn’t allow him to sleep with Xuzhi. They were both men, yet bound by a marriage contract…

In any case, Ming Shuang had only just come of age. Better to focus on recuperating first.

The owl was quietly sizing up Xuzhi too, feeling oddly awkward.

It hadn’t returned with Xuzhi during the day, and now it was forcing its way in…

But this wasn’t the time for that. The owl rallied: “Hoo hoo!”

Ming Shuang blinked. “What… There’s an Element River outside the academy?”

Xiang Lun’s face changed drastically. He pulled out his communication device to contact Herl.

By the time Herl reached the courtyard, the owl had described the location and state of the elemental particles in full. Ming Shuang relayed it all to Xiang Lun.

“I’ll go take a look myself,” Xiang Lun said.

Ming Shuang stood at once. “I’ll come too!”

“No need. Your ice magic can’t dispel elemental particles.” Xiang Lun pressed him back down. “Go rest first. If anything happens, I’ll notify Xuzhi.”

“Alright…” Ming Shuang conceded. “Be careful, Grandpa.”

Tomato volunteered to accompany Xiang Lun. Before leaving, it patted the owl with its wing: “Cheep!”

Hmph, wasn’t it saying it wouldn’t come back?

The owl pretended not to hear, turning to chat with Taro Ball instead—and with Coal Ball, squatting nearby.

It was around three in the morning now. After Xiang Lun left with Ivan, Herl stayed in the courtyard.

He looked worried. “If we can’t dispel the Element River, the academy will probably have to close temporarily or relocate to the old campus.”

But Ming Shuang said, “Don’t worry, Grandpa Herl. If any miasma fog appears, I can clean it up!”

Herl paused, then softened. He nodded. “Good child.”

The owl, half-sprawled in Ming Shuang’s arms, finally relaxed a bit.

It glanced around discreetly.

After so many years apart, new faces had appeared around Little Dragon. From its daily peeping, it had long guessed Ming Shuang’s relationship with Xiang Lun.

A few fluffy balls were munching on midnight snacks in the yard, their gazes clear and innocent when they looked over.

Good thing there were still just them around Ming Shuang—no new magical beasts.

The owl kept looking this way and that while chatting with Ming Shuang about the places it had been these years.

It had always been the strongest and the cleverest. No matter where it went, it never ran into real danger.

“That’s good,” Ming Shuang said, stroking its feathers. “Don’t leave this time… Stay. Taro Ball and the others are all here.”

The owl didn’t reply, as if tacitly agreeing.

Just then, Coal Ball sidled up and muttered a few words, spilling the beans about Ming Shuang and Xuzhi’s new relationship.

The owl’s eyes bulged: “Hoo?!”

What!

The owl whipped around to glare at Xuzhi in the distance, ready to charge and beat him up.

Ming Shuang, close by, had overheard. He hugged it tight. “Th-this… I’ll explain later…”

Xuzhi met the owl’s gaze, ignoring its fierce expression. He set some snacks and cut fruit on the table.

Casually, he fed Ming Shuang a piece of soft cake. “Shall we go inside?”

Ming Shuang bit into the soft cake, mumbling, “I’ll wait for Grandpa’s update first.”

The owl eyed Xuzhi’s hand, itching to sink its beak in and draw blood. But Ming Shuang held it fast, barely able to move.

Xuzhi murmured agreement and fed Ming Shuang the whole piece—what looked like pure provocation in the owl’s eyes.

Ming Shuang rubbed the owl’s head to soothe it. “There, there… Not tonight.”

Soon, Xiang Lun’s message came through.

He contacted Herl: “It’s only been this short while, and already a segment of elemental band has formed. I’ve sealed off the area with space magic, including the entire exterior of the academy.”

Herl nodded. “Good as long as it’s contained for now. We’ll notify the students to evacuate come morning.”

Xiang Lun had brought others too, instructing them to take turns guarding. Any changes were to be reported at once.

“Good thing we discovered it in time… Is Little Shuang still there? Have him go rest,” he continued. His tone suddenly shifted. “Hmm? Why is someone coming over…”

Herl hurriedly asked, “Who?”

The communication channel was open externally with the volume on, so Ming Shuang heard the noisy commotion from Xiang Lun’s side.

Soon after, Xiang Lun said coldly, “It’s the Miasma-Clearing Team.”

~~~

At the same time, on a remote side area of the academy.

Xiang Lun looked at the team of Beast Tamers before him and snorted coldly. “Coming here in the middle of the night—what business do you have?”

A flash of embarrassment crossed the face of the Captain at their head. He didn’t respond right away.

The Miasma-Clearing Team had noticed the activity here and wanted to sneak over for a look.

They had originally planned to come in the morning but worried they might arrive too late and let Xuzhi slip away, so they mobilized under cover of night.

The White-Haired Elder had instructed them to focus on inquiries and avoid conflicts. But with a suspected God Clan member right there in the academy, the Miasma-Clearing Team had no choice but to stay on high alert.

This ad hoc team had been carefully assembled from strong, trustworthy members. If they uncovered anything, they wouldn’t go blabbing about it everywhere.

What they hadn’t expected was to find Xiang Lun here.

“Dean Xiang, we’re patrolling the area on orders,” the Captain said, choosing his words with care. He asked, “What are you doing here? And this is…?”

He glanced at the region enveloped in Space Magic. He couldn’t probe what lay inside.

Xiang Lun frowned but didn’t hide anything. “We discovered an Element River overflowing from underground here. I’ve already handled it for now and was planning to inform the Miasma-Clearing Team. Didn’t expect you to show up so quickly.”

The Captain started. “An Element River? For real?”

He stepped into the Space Magic to inspect it himself. Sure enough, there was the Element River, condensed into a band about half the size of a wall.

Everyone grew even more tense. They immediately reported the discovery.

But right after that, clear wariness entered the Captain’s gaze as he looked at Xiang Lun.

Xiang Lun caught it and demanded bluntly, “What kind of look is that?”

“Don’t you think this is all a bit too convenient, Dean Xiang?” The Captain met his eyes squarely. “Lately, you’ve been tangled up with the Miasma Fog every single time.”

Xiang Lun’s frown deepened. The Snow Fox sensed trouble and fixed its gaze intently on everyone present.

Suddenly, against the pitch-black horizon, a flock of over twenty Flying Magic Beasts appeared.

Each Magical Beast carried a Beast Tamer on its back. Xiang Lun peered closely—they were from the Miasma-Clearing Team too.

“And that certain someone you personally brought into the academy… doesn’t he have some unusual bloodline?” The Captain didn’t spell it out. He simply raised a hand and ordered his subordinates, “Seal off Lobe Academy.”

~~~