Chapter 37

Among the forty-three ordinary people brought back by the Cloud Soarers, three had become hosts for the insects. These insects were not hard for ability users to eliminate, but after the teenagers finished destroying them, their faces remained grave.

Yu Tianming asked Ryan to help him examine the three corpses. Ryan grimaced in disgust as he poked at the variously mangled human and insect remains on the ground.

"The insects parasitizing these three bodies are all different. Some are small black insects packed into the skin, others are large ones half a person's height. I suspect the latter reside in the body in egg form; otherwise, they could not maintain a normal external appearance."

After Yu Tianming raised this possibility, everyone's expressions changed. The atmosphere grew silent and tense.

Pei Xi turned to look at the shelter door in the distance, brows tightly furrowed.

If they were egg-laying parasites, he could no longer bring these people into the shelter. If another sudden outbreak occurred like before, with the shelter's crowd density, the situation would become irreparable.

Soon, an even worse thought surfaced in his mind. Were the people already inside the shelter truly all normal?

No matter how he thought about it, this seemed like a dead end. An outbreak inside the shelter already felt inevitable...

"The Divine Academy is here too."

Ye Zheng's voice broke the silence. "Bai Muqing's ability might be able to identify the parasitized."

"Troublesome."

A crisp, cold female voice suddenly rang out. Immediately after, screams rose from the crowd. Several people collapsed to the ground, convulsing before going completely still, as if dead.

Pei Xi's gaze turned icy as he stared at the suddenly appeared Divine Academy team. "You killed them?"

The five members of the Divine Academy had distinct auras. The white-haired, white-pupiled girl stood out most. She wore pure white like Ye Zheng, but unlike Ye Zheng's gentle and pure temperament, Bai Muqing was excessively pale. From head to toe, not a trace of color could be seen, making her seem like the harshest wind and snow of midwinter, extinguishing all vitality.

Kyle hurried to check on those people and breathed a sigh of relief. "They seem to just be unconscious."

Only then did Yinkong, who loved watching drama, leisurely explain for Bai Muqing. "Within the Divine Domain, everything is Muqing's territory. She can even 'see' clearly the dirty little secrets in your souls. Parasitic insects are nothing to her."

"Let them stay unconscious. Ye Zheng can extract them. They are parasitizing the chest cavity."

Bai Muqing finally spoke. Her white pupils turned in a certain direction, unfocused as if nothing in the world registered in her eyes.

A soft sigh drifted through the air. Ye Zheng emerged from an inconspicuous corner and examined the condition of the parasitized people.

Yu Tianming's glasses glinted slightly, hiding his probing eyes. "I thought the saintess's ability was only healing. I did not expect she could also extract things from human bodies."

Bai Muqing's lips pressed together slightly in displeasure as she stared at the bespectacled man.

Ye Zheng did not look up. She somehow produced a small knife and made a tiny incision in one parasitized person's chest. Thin streams of water surged in like flexible snakes.

"Opening up the belly is quite common for doctors. If your stomach ever feels unwell one day, I can guarantee the same: in and out, and your stomach will be fine."

A bloodied white egg was tossed to the ground. The wound on the parasitized person's chest quickly healed under the water stream, returning to normal. For some reason, Yu Tianming felt a phantom pain in his own chest as he watched.

He remembered a flashy junior at the Royal Academy whose ability involved vines that could attack, heal, and poison. Today, it seemed Ye Zheng's ability was quite similar. No wonder Ye Di was S-class while Ye Zheng was only A-class.

Unfortunately, the offensive power of water streams could not even directly pierce human skin.

 Ye Zheng extracted all the insect eggs and held one in her palm. She could still feel its activity.

Pei Xi walked over and crouched beside her. "Give them to me. I will destroy these things completely."

"Hm, let me keep two. I want to observe them."

How did these eggs enter the human body? What were the hatching conditions? Only by understanding this information could humans stop being so passive against these insects.

Pei Xi gazed at the girl's serious profile, concerned. "If these eggs suddenly hatch, you will be in danger."

"It's fine. I can handle it. Do not worry about me."

Pei Xi could only nod. "Then how about this: I will watch them with you..."

"Ye Zheng."

A gorgeous, low voice interrupted their conversation. Ye Zheng looked up. Sykes was watching them with a dark expression.

"Do not delay my competition."

At these words, Pei Xi's expression shifted slightly. He seemed to realize something only now. Ye Zheng was not part of the Cloud Soarers; they had only met a few times. Speaking to her so familiarly just now might have made her uncomfortable.

He watched the saintess give him a polite smile before walking toward the arrogant and violent crown prince. A chaotic feeling filled his heart, as if some established fact had been reversed.

Sykes saw Ye Zheng obediently approach, and his mood improved somewhat. They had wasted enough time here. He no longer wanted to endure this wretched weather; he just wanted to finish quickly and return.

"Your Highness, please allow me to stay."

Ye Zheng stopped in front of him.

"...What are you saying?"

"There must still be people in the shelter harboring insects. I need to deal with the hidden threat."

Even if the aberrant realm was destroyed, the damage it caused to human bodies would not heal. If these ordinary people returned to reality carrying eggs, the insects could multiply and parasitize en masse in the lower district...

"Ha, with so many people in the shelter, do you plan to handle them one by one like just now?"

"Would Your Highness allow such a potential catastrophe to go unchecked?"

Ye Zheng countered calmly.

Sykes fell silent, his golden eyes fixed on her. Finally, he relented. "Do as you wish."

The tension eased, but Yu Tianming pushed up his glasses and stepped forward.

"Wait, do you all know? Ability usage inside the shelter is heavily suppressed!"

Yu Tianming looked at Ye Zheng disapprovingly.

The ore used to build shelters blocked the power of aberrant realms, which was why shelters could remain in their original state within the aberrant space.

Ability users' powers originated from the same source as aberrant realms, so their strength too would be suppressed inside.

"Your ability will be greatly reduced inside the shelter. If you bring everyone out for treatment, you cannot guarantee their safety. Moreover, you cannot control those eggs."

Yu Tianming pushed up his glasses again and suggested, "It would be better if we destroy the aberrant realm as soon as possible, then leave the residents here to the church for handling. With so many healers in the church, they will surely manage it safely and efficiently."

Pei Xi listened from the side, his expression softening. Yu Tianming made sense. When it involved large-scale parasitism like this, it was already beyond what they could handle.

The black-haired, blue-eyed teenager clenched his fists. Perhaps finding and eliminating the aberrant realm core as quickly as possible, then letting the church and imperial family send people to deal with it, was what he should focus on now.

『Ah! This plot point is here.』

The system hurriedly reviewed the original plot. This segment had not appeared in the manga spoilers given to Ye Zheng, so it had almost forgotten about it.

In the original plot, Ye Zheng, as a member of the Cloud Soarers, heard Yu Tianming's suggestion but still insisted on staying to care for the ordinary people. However, as a healing type, she could not defeat the parasitized insect-humans. For her safety, Lu Qi and Bai Muqing stayed behind with her.

Bai Muqing staying effectively removed a powerful combatant, making the protagonist team and Divine Academy very passive during the boss fight. Many readers were dissatisfied with this. Moreover, Ye Zheng remaining in the shelter failed to prevent a massive insect outbreak, making her actions seem like serious hindrances.

【I absolutely hate saintess types who drag everyone else down!】

【I'm done. Staying in the shelter is completely useless. Her strength is already mediocre, and once suppressed, she's even more worthless.】

【Aaaah, I was looking forward to Bai Muqing finally showing her real power. Why does she get dumbed down the moment she gets involved with Ye Zheng?!】

【This is so unlucky. Can she stay far away from my fave...】

The system hurriedly prompted Ye Zheng in her mind.

『Quick, use action points to change this plot segment! Go fight the boss with Sykes and the others. If you insist on staying, you'll get flamed horribly! 』

The system assumed the plot thread had temporarily taken control of Ye Zheng, and perhaps she had not reacted yet.

In its view, the author did not intend to showcase Ye Zheng's kindness here. It was simply to bench Bai Muqing.

Her ability heavily countered the boss. If she were present, it would create problems for the spotlight moments of the popular characters Pei Xi and Yinkong. At the same time, to heighten drama, the insect outbreak in the shelter was unavoidable. Therefore, the author made Ye Zheng's insistence utterly pointless.

One could say that in this plot segment, Ye Zheng was nothing but an ultimate tool character!

Ye Zheng turned a deaf ear. When she heard Yu Tianming mention the church, the corner of her mouth curved into a slightly cold arc. She murmured softly, "Wait for the church to come and treat them... ha."

Her eyes were extremely deep and dark as she stared at the few people in front of her.

"I am staying."

Pei Xi could not help taking a step forward. "It is too dangerous for you to stay. If an outbreak happens inside the shelter—"

His words suddenly stopped. At some unknown point, a swaying figure had appeared behind Ye Zheng. Its mouth split open in a bloody gash, extending an insect mouthpart.

"Watch out!"

『Watch out!』

The system could not help screaming a warning as well.

Though it knew Ye Zheng would be saved by Pei Xi, and after being saved, she would still stubbornly insist on staying alone in the original plot, getting heavily mocked by readers...

Ye Zheng glanced sideways and caught sight of the figure to her left rear. Her dark eyes remained indifferent.

At this distance, it was worth a try.

Pei Xi's sharp sword slashed through the air toward it, but faster than his blade was a black trajectory.

Bang!

Just as the mouthpart was about to cover the girl's calm face, Ye Zheng stepped back. She raised the gun she had prepared long ago, pressed it against the insect-human's neck, and pulled the trigger. Blood immediately sprayed out. The insect-human fell backward with its neck half severed.

"Not bad power." Teacher Qin's new product was indeed something. All those times she had rubbed Ye Zheng's head were not in vain.

Ye Zheng slowly turned around. Her fair cheeks were splattered with specks of blood, but she seemed completely unaware. As usual, she maintained an elegant posture and curved her lips into a gentle smile.

"I said, there is no need to worry about me."

"I must stay."

Pei Xi stared in stunned silence as he reverted his bladed hand to normal. The Royal team members not far away also showed varying degrees of shock.

"I will stay too."

In the momentarily silent atmosphere, another clear, cold female voice that had been quiet for a long time echoed in agreement.

Ye Zheng raised her delicate brows. Her eyes held a smiling welcome for the new companion. Her pure white figure was now stained with mottled scarlet blood, like a blood-stained statue of the Holy Mother.

"Please leave it to us with peace of mind. Everyone will be saved."

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Authors Note

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In the next chapter update, Ye Zheng's fanbase is about to expand significantly...