Chapter 185: The Underground Plaza

Because of her work, Jing Xin had bought a house in Yinshuang City. It was a large house, though she usually lived there alone.

Lin Xinyan had visited many times before and was quite familiar with the place. 

At the moment, the two of them were sitting near a flowing water feature, casually chatting.

Jing Xin was lounging in a relaxed posture, as was her habit. Lin Xinyan sat much more composed, maintaining her usual serious demeanor.

Jing Xin was very pleased with Lin Xinyan as her student. In her words, Lin Xinyan was one of her most outstanding students, and that constant affirmation was what kept Lin Xinyan motivated.

To be honest, Jing Xin wasn’t thrilled about inviting Shi Ji over. If it weren’t for Lin Xinyan constantly singing his praises and making her feel bad about opposing it, she wouldn’t have agreed so easily. Letting Shi Ji into her house was a favor she wasn’t exactly keen on giving.

Just thinking about Shi Ji got her worked up. Sure, he had some redeeming qualities, but his faults far outweighed them—like his blatant disrespect toward her, always calling her little girl or kiddo.

Jing Xin had overheard Lin Xinyan’s call with Shi Ji earlier. Judging by his tone, she could already guess what kind of mess he was in.

With an exasperated sigh, Jing Xin muttered, “That idiot is probably causing trouble somewhere again.”

Lin Xinyan smiled but kept quiet.

At this point, even she felt a bit awkward defending Shi Ji since her thoughts about him weren’t all that different from Jing Xin’s.

Taking a sip of water, Jing Xin glanced at Lin Xinyan and asked, “He only just transferred over from Star Hero Academy. I’m honestly surprised that someone with your temperament managed to get along with him so quickly. I don’t see what’s so great about him.”

Jing Xin knew Rin Xinyan’s personality well. Before Shi Ji arrived at Yinshuang Academy, Rin Xinyan had always been the type to go about her business alone. Of course, she had friends, but none like Shi Ji—someone she seemed to be in constant contact with every day. Shi Ji was the first.

Rin Xinyan nodded and answered softly, “To be honest, at first, I thought he was just an ordinary guy. But over time, the more I got to know him, the more I realized how unique he is. Sure, he might look like he’s always causing trouble, but the things he does are often the ones we overlook or wouldn’t think to do ourselves.”

There was, of course, another reason Rin Xinyan had grown close to Shi Ji. His worldview was different. He once told her that he didn’t fight for the world or for everyone. He fought only for the people he cared about. And Shi Ji had mentioned more than once that he wanted to protect her. That left a deep impact on Rin Xinyan.

To say she had developed romantic feelings for Shi Ji? 

Rin Xinyan would quickly shake her head. Right now, she only felt a certain fondness for him. After all, he was the first person in years to say something like that to her.

What Rin Xinyan was explaining was, in fact, the same quality Jing Xin saw in Shi Ji—his only redeeming trait. But this strength came hand-in-hand with his flaws. He always wanted to fix things, but in doing so, he often caused more problems.

Sigh… Jing Xin let out a long breath. 

“Alright, enough about him. Let’s talk about something else, something that hasn’t been made public yet.”

Rin Xinyan immediately honed in on the phrase “hasn’t been made public” and her demeanor grew more serious.

Jing Xin, noticing this, shook her head helplessly.

“Relax. It’s not that serious. And don’t worry, it’s got nothing to do with the aberrations.”

At that, Rin Xinyan loosened up again.

“Master, what is this thing you’re talking about?” Rin Xinyan asked.

Jing Xin smiled. “Next month, we’re going to…”

***

The mysterious energy had all but vanished, leaving Yinshuang City eerily quiet. Although a few people ventured outside, the stillness that hung over the city was unsettling, especially for a place of its size.

Most citizens remained hidden under their roofs, too frightened to step out. The deep-rooted fear in their hearts hadn’t faded much, even though the monsters had retreated.

The atmosphere created by the aberration threat lingered, turning Yinshuang into a ghost town.

While the surface was silent, the underground was even more unnervingly quiet.

Beneath Yinshuang City, no one knew there was a secret passage leading deep into the earth.

The passage sloped downward, forming a gentle incline. It was wide and roughly circular, measuring four or five meters across at its widest point. Though it appeared rudimentary, with rough stone walls and dirt, there was a strange contrast—lighting tubes hanging along the stone walls and a path beneath, worn smooth from long use, gave it an odd sense of grandeur. But this grandeur was exaggerated and unsettling.

Something—or someone—had been using this passage for a long time.

At that moment, footsteps echoed from the upper end of the sloping tunnel. A tall man was walking down, and as he drew closer, it became clear that this was the same man who had attacked Shi Ji earlier.

The man was now shirtless, revealing his muscular frame. His hat and mask were discarded as well.

His exposed face was grotesque—most notably the part of his skull that had been sliced off, giving him a frightening appearance. His face was riddled with scars, and these marks of violence weren’t limited to his face. His upper body, now visible, was also covered in them.

With a stern expression, the man continued his descent into the tunnel.

After about ten minutes, the sloping path finally leveled out, marking the end of the incline.

At this moment, strange, chaotic sounds echoed from up ahead. Despite the noise, it was clear that the sounds came from aberrations. 

The reason for the commotion? There were a lot of them.

After about a minute, the man stopped. What unfolded before him was an enormous plaza. All around, there were shadows of modern machinery, giving the area a highly advanced look. It truly resembled an underground square.

This plaza was packed with countless mutants of varying shapes and forms. Their levels ranged from human-grade to nether-grade, showcasing a wide spectrum of power.

The space was vast, spanning roughly 100,000 square meters. Judging by the size and number of aberrations, there were easily more than 3,000 gathered here.

In the center of the plaza, a broad road stretched forward, leading to another path deeper within.

As the man entered the plaza, the aberrations quickly noticed his presence.

“Doctor! You’ve returned!”

“Doctor!”

“Doctor!”

A chorus of voices greeted him, as thousands of aberrations respectfully acknowledged his arrival.

It was clear that this man held an extremely high status among them.

It was hard to imagine—a human, yet here he was, having such a close relationship with so many aberrations.

The man continued walking down the central road, casually greeting the mutants as he passed by. After a while, he reached the end of the main road and entered an inner passageway, stepping into a room that resembled a conference hall.

Inside, there were a few more aberrations. Upon seeing the man enter, they hurriedly stood up to greet him.

“Doctor, you’re back.”

Interestingly, all of these aberrations were of Spirit rank.