Chapter 126: The Meeting

A sharp, piercing killing intent surged forth, only to vanish in an instant as if it were a mere illusion, leaving those nearby completely unaware.

Charles, seemingly oblivious to his companion's somber expression, took a sip of the pale red wine and continued, "Thank you for your help earlier. It allowed me to become Mr. Garfield's student, and through that, to meet Mr. Bean and join the Enforcement Squad. You have been a great help to me; if there is anything I can do for you, just say the word."

"It's nothing. I was merely repaying the debt I owe you for saving my life. By the way, I just remembered I have other matters to attend to, so I'll be going now." Leslie rose hurriedly and departed before Charles could respond.

Charles did not mind. He remained seated, sipping his wine with measured calm, his gaze wandering lazily over his surroundings.

Soft, amber light spilled across the room; evening had arrived. Many people, weary from their day, had come here to unwind. This tavern was somewhat similar to the bars on Water Blue Star, offering impeccable service and an array of rare, exquisite wines. Most were brewed with precious medicinal herbs, intended to nourish the drinker's body. There were also far more expensive medicinal wines capable of amplifying mental power, though their astronomical costs kept most people at a distance.

Since his transmigration, Charles had grown increasingly fond of abstaining from alcohol. To him, spirits dulled the senses, and as a Spirit Master pursuing grand ambitions, he preferred to keep such things as purely occasional indulgences.

After leaving the tavern, Charles walked slowly along a path that cut through a small grove.

*Buzz!*

The sound of beating wings emerged as a moth the size of a fingernail descended from the air, landing on his hand. Upon closer inspection, the insect resembled an ordinary grey moth, yet its entire body was transparent, even its blood a translucent, iridescent hue. Had it not landed right before his eyes, he would never have spotted it.

This was a new type of totem creature he had cultivated. By taking the hereditary factors of a certain transparent fish from the sea and grafting them onto a species of moth, he had refined it into its current form. Drawing upon his accumulated experience and knowledge, he had successfully structured them into a colony similar to that of bees, where a single queen bred all offspring and controlled their actions.

Creatures with psychic abilities were not common, but they were obtainable. The biggest drawback to such totems was the immense cost of cultivation, a burden most Spirit Masters could not sustain. Furthermore, before reaching their ultimate evolution, the combat disparity between psychic totems and others was not particularly significant, as many totems could defend against their attacks.

Charles named his creation the "Stealth Moth." He had specifically bred them as spies to gather intelligence, capable of trailing a Tier-3 powerhouse from a distance without being detected. They usually nested in the trees of the academy, feeding on the tender buds of leaves—a cost-effective endeavor, all things considered.

The disadvantage was equally obvious: they could not record in real-time like a security camera, only transmitting fragmented visual data. After all, they carried only a miniaturized version of the "Shared Eye"; that they could share even this much without collapsing was a stroke of immense luck.

However, what they lacked in quality, they made up for in quantity. He had cultivated thousands of them, scattering them densely into every corner of the academy. When he needed to track something, he would tap into the formidable mental power of Firefly and Kerrigan to augment his own. This turned his brain into a high-efficiency processor, allowing him to aggregate and analyze tens of thousands of images to find exactly what he needed.

For a Spirit Master, mental strength was the equivalent of a computer's CPU—the core used for processing all calculations and control. Under the amplification of his two psychic totems, his mental strength could temporarily exceed 20 points, allowing him to process vast amounts of visual data with extreme efficiency. Through his previous observations, Charles had identified several testing sites for the "Absolute Warrior Evolution Project," and from these, he had inferred the sequence of their experiments, allowing him to set a series of plans in motion.

...

In the eastern part of the academy, an ordinary hilly region was overgrown with dense, wild grasses and shrubs, some reaching two or three meters in height, filled with the buzzing of insects.

A moment later, a robust, burly man arrived. He moved through the thorny thickets as if they weren't there; when he emerged, he didn't have a single scratch, as though he had merely walked through thin air. He moved with great speed, carving a path through the wilderness until, following an inexplicable intuition, he reached the bottom of a valley.

Yet, nothing remained. It was merely a chaotic battlefield scarred by devastation, as if some gargantuan beast had fought a life-or-death struggle here. A few splatters of blood stained the ground, but nothing else. He crouched, took out a glass vial to carefully collect the blood, and then searched the area with meticulous detail. Finding nothing further, he returned the way he came.

On his way back, he saw a familiar group of figures passing by in a small Totoro-cart. He strode forward and blocked their path. "Stop!"

*Meow!*

The Totoro, sensing the formidable aura emanating from him, instantly transformed into an ordinary little cat, letting out a fawning cry and crouching low to the ground with submissive eyes, as if waiting for him to pet it.

"Mr. Leslie, is there something you need?" A man in a black robe stepped down, looking at him with an indifferent gaze.

"What mission are you executing?" Leslie asked flatly.

"I'm sorry, you have no right to ask."

Leslie said coldly, "I am one of the council members. I possess the authority to inquire into the academy's affairs. Are you telling me I have no right to ask?"

"I apologize, but we report directly to the Board of Directors. You have no authority over our operations. If you have questions, please address them to Mr. Bean, Mr. George, or the other elders." The man did not yield in the slightest. Despite Leslie’s escalating, sharp pressure, he remained calm and completely unfazed by his threats.

"Very well. I will go and find out the truth!" Leslie gritted his teeth, suppressing the urge to strike. He let them leave, his brow furrowed.

He had sensed an inexplicable aura earlier that had triggered a visceral, instinctive trembling in his heart, which was why he had intercepted them without a second thought. However, he did not currently have the standing to oppose the Board of Directors. Without absolute certainty, he would not act rashly.

*What on earth was that?*

Leslie couldn't quite describe the feeling. It was as if it were something intimate—a sense of closeness stemming from his very bloodline that made him yearn to draw near.

He paused for a moment, then turned and headed toward the academy's south gate.

Half an hour later, on a street outside the academy, a familiar, petite figure appeared, waving at him incessantly from the roadside. "Over here! Over here!"

A hint of softness appeared on his rugged face as he walked toward her—she was the only person who could make him smile.

"Let's go. I have some time now, I'll keep you company for a while." He reached out to take her small hand, and as he began to walk away, a Totoro-cart drove past. Leslie froze in his tracks, his eyes locked onto a figure in the cart!

That person looked exactly like him!