Chapter 44: Meeting of the Unlucky Couple

Night had fallen, and the sky of the mountain city was shrouded in darkness and a blanket of bright stars.

An airplane flying from the capital to the mountain city landed, and a remarkably handsome man and woman walked out of the airport with backpacks on their shoulders.

They maintained a distance of half a meter between them, their relationship looking far from intimate, somewhat resembling corporate colleagues traveling together on business.

And clearly, the company that dispatched them on this trip had substantial resources, even providing a pick-up service.

Time was tight and the task was pressing; bento boxes were provided in the commercial van, and the two simply made do with a quick meal before setting off toward the Wuxia Gorge.

After driving at high speed for the better part of the night, they arrived at Wushan County, where someone was already waiting for them in a hotel booked in advance.

"Class of 2004 Assistant Investigators, Ye Sheng / Yaguang Aki."

The person waiting stated their names; they were none of the others than the two eccentric examiners who had previously interviewed Lu Mingfei.

"Class of 2004 Assistant Investigator, Gao Mi." The young man, who exuded the aura of a top-tier scholar, reached out to shake hands with Ye Sheng. "Ye Sheng and Yaguang Aki, the legendary ace duo of the Execution Bureau. I've heard so much about you."

"What are you playing at with me, kid?" Ye Sheng grasped Gao Mi's hand and gave it a firm shake. "The mathematical little prince of the Alchemical Machinery Department, the only person in Cassell who might possibly outdo Finger in the field of mathematics—it's I who have looked forward to meeting you."

"Hehe, you flatter me, you flatter me."

"Class of 2005 Intern Investigator, Wan Boqian." A young girl whose appearance could only be described as pretty but lacking in distinctive features shook hands with Yaguang Aki. "Please guide me, Senior Sister Aki."

"Please guide me." Yaguang Aki actually enjoyed a very good reputation at Cassell College, always taking good care of her junior fellow students.

"How did Professor Scheneder ever think of sending you two? I recall that neither of you is particularly adept at swimming, if I'm not mistaken," Ye Sheng asked curiously.

Cassell College was only so big, the student body was small, and they were all Chinese, so they actually knew each other privately.

"Our mission this time is primarily conducted on land; unless necessary, underwater operations won't be required. And as it happens, both Boqian's and my Spiritual Disciplines are very well-suited for searching out those dangerous objects."

The mission of Gao Mi and his execution team, ostensibly to investigate Wuxia Gorge and eliminate potential threats, was actually patching up the loopholes for the Gorges Project.

Therefore, the Execution Bureau had not required them to keep the mission contents confidential, even telling them that in case of emergency, they could ask the Gorges Operation Team for help.

Hearing Gao Mi's account, Ye Sheng and Yaguang Aki couldn't help exchanging glances, shock visible in each other's eyes.

Originally, they had thought Lu Mingfei's ability to experience spiritual vision in a dream was just Professor Gurdian talking nonsense, but it turned out to be true, even alerting the Headmaster.

The Coffin Mountain of Wuxia Gorge, Dragons Spitting Water.

Wuxia Gorge was not far from the Three Gorges, and the local area indeed had the phenomenon of hanging burials. Ye Sheng had previously taken a boat through Wuxia Gorge with Yaguang Aki and had seen numerous coffins suspended on the cliff faces.

If some danger truly lurked there, it could indeed spell a devastating disaster for the Gorges Operation Team.

Just imagine: they carry out their diving plans as usual under the assumption that they are safe, and then the "dragons" hidden within the Coffin Mountain of Wuxia Gorge pour out in full force...

Even if all of them were rounded up and wrapped into dumplings, it probably wouldn't be enough for a single bite.

No wonder Professor Mans wanted them to suspend their training and come to Wuxia Gorge first to assist Gao Mi's team in completing the preliminary search work.

With such a major hidden hazard present, it would be fine if their underwater operations yielded nothing, but if they really managed to find something down there, the dozens of miles of the Yangtze River's surface would probably boil instantly.

The two of them were Professor Mans's best students after all, and he certainly wouldn't bear to let them take such risks.

As the night grew deeper and dawn was almost breaking, Gao Mi and Wan Boqian were exhausted from travel and needed rest, otherwise, tomorrow's work might be delayed.

A portion of the "Wuxia Gorge Coffin Mountain" was a 4A-level scenic spot. If they wanted to avoid disturbing the authorities or causing destruction, they had to rely on Gao Mi and Wan Boqian's abilities to probe whether hidden dangers lurked within.

Hopefully, the Chinese Branch had already finished their meeting and could send people tomorrow to assist with the investigation.

Otherwise, relying solely on the four of them to inspect the entire Coffin Mountain would probably exhaust them to death.

The two parties temporarily parted ways—two to wash up, and two to rest.

Wan Boqian held her clothes, glanced back at the suite where Ye Sheng and the others were staying, and asked curiously, "Senior Ye Sheng and Senior Sister Aki... are they dating? I always feel like the distance between them is a bit ambiguous."

Upon hearing this, Gao Mi pushed up his glasses, which had suddenly begun to glare, and spoke in a flat, straightforward tone like an ultimate straight-laced guy: "Look not at what is contrary to propriety; listen not to what is contrary to propriety; guess not what is contrary to propriety."

"I'll give you a punch." The female college student from the Mechanics Department reached out and hit him.

It was neither heavy nor light, feeling somewhat like coquettish flirting.

And the exact same conversation was taking place over on Ye Sheng and Yaguang Aki's side. The former rubbed his chin and stated with certainty:

"That kid Gao Mi isn't right; he's definitely set his sights on that little junior sister just now. Guard against fire, theft, and senior brothers—that is an eternal, unchanging truth."

"It's not that exaggerated." Yaguang Aki had actually noticed that the two of them gave off the impression of deliberately keeping a distance, but she was thin-skinned and too embarrassed to say it out loud.

"Speaking of which, that little girl Nono actually managed to mess things up one day. That really is an unexpected result."

Ye Sheng suddenly sighed with emotion. Gao Mi had just brought another piece of news: the mission to recruit Lu Mingfei had failed, and Nono had returned to the college alone.

"I thought that with her cleverness, she'd surely be able to win Lu Mingfei over."

Yaguang Aki shrugged. "Nothing to be done, she's still just a little girl after all."

"Yeah, another little girl snatched away by a scoundrel senior brother." Ye Sheng shrugged in imitation.

"What, do you also want to have a junior sister as a girlfriend?" Yaguang Aki smiled, her temperament instantly shifting from a traditional Japanese Yamato Nadeshiko to a monster character from an anime—slitted, smiling eyes:

"If Ye-kun wants one, I can introduce a few pretty junior sisters to you too. There happen to be a few younger ones who admire you quite a bit~"

Hearing this, Ye Sheng broke out in a cold sweat on the spot and hurriedly shook his head in denial: "Excuse me, my heart right now only holds my mission, no romance."

...

...

The night passed without incident, but not without dreams.

Whether it was some kind of karmic retribution, Lu Mingfei had bluffed Gurdian in reality, only to be paid back in kind within his dreams.

All last night, he spent his dreams battling guide locusts and coffin bugs; these things were far more disgusting than the Zerg from StarCraft.

After all, bugs in a game wouldn't fly out of the screen, but these two creatures in a dream could genuinely cost you your life, and they were utterly repulsive!

"Mingfei, good news, super great news."

Just as he finished a high-difficulty set of Wudang Eight-Section Brocade and worked up a sweat, Gurdian's knocking sounded at the door again.

This little old man always liked to make a fuss and suffered from intermittent fits of extreme excitement. Clearly, he had been howling in bittersweet agony while throwing javelins yesterday, yet now he was bouncing around full of life again.

"What is it? Are potato chips at the supermarket next door half-price?"

Holding a towel to wipe away his sweat, he opened the door, hoping Gurdian would give him a reasonable explanation, otherwise, he would treat him to extra-spicy tofu pudding later.

"The Headmaster, the Headmaster has replied!" Gurdian squeezed excitedly into the room, holding up his phone to show Lu Mingfei:

"Headmaster Anjou said he will fly to China tomorrow to meet you!"

The little German old man was as happy as if mustache had just won Season 2, grabbing Lu Mingfei's shoulders and shaking them vigorously:

"Mingfei, do you know how great an honor this is? At Cassell College, everyone considers it an honor to be able to share afternoon tea with the Headmaster, and you are the very first student in history to be personally recruited into the college by the Headmaster himself! I dare say, once you enroll, you will definitely become a role model that everyone chases after!"

Lu Mingfei looked at Gurdian's fanatical expression and couldn't help twitching the corner of his mouth:

"Are you sure I won't become the target they hunt down?"