Calamity

Ricardo swept his gaze across the students' expressions with a sinister grin. "Moreover, you cannot take the main road; you must climb the mountain! Alright, form your groups immediately! You have three minutes to prepare!"

The moment his words fell, the students instantly sprang into action.

Groups consisted of five individuals. Without a doubt, Steve and Charles were in Du Chen's group. Additionally, Sem, the Xino Dwarf, who had been sharing beef jerky with Du Chen and his brothers recently and developed a good rapport, also joined them.

When only one spot remained, the Demoness Helen stood before Steve, the group leader. Before she could utter a word, Steve eagerly nodded repeatedly. "Beautiful lady, rest assured, ensuring your safe acquisition of food is my undeniable responsibility!"

Du Chen hastily pulled Steve aside, whispering, "Big Brother, why did you let her join our group?"

Steve chuckled mischievously. "My dear little brother, Big Brother is doing this for your own good. This lass clearly has an interest in you, isn't Big Brother creating an opportunity for you two?"

"I have no interest in her!" Du Chen stated helplessly.

"Alright, let's leave it at that!" Steve said with a laugh, patting Du Chen's shoulder.

After the grouping concluded, all the students, carrying crates weighing over a hundred jin, stood poised at the mountain's foot. At this moment, the Black-faced Devil Ricardo let out a chilling sneer and roared, "Finally, to truly unleash your potential, I shall provide you with a small 'incentive'!" Following Ricardo's words, instructors carried numerous iron cages to the students' rear. Inside the cages, countless pythons writhed!

"By the Battle Gods!" The students' complexions drastically paled.

Du Chen clicked his tongue, gazing at the pythons behind them. "Big Brother, Ricardo truly lives up to his moniker, the Black-faced Devil!" he exclaimed.

"Indeed!" Steve's face was also somewhat pale, while Charles merely glanced at the snake cages before disdainfully turning his head away, fixing his gaze towards the mountain peak.

Helen had kept her head down, but as she saw the snake cages, she subtly raised her gaze, a flicker of brightness glinting within her Azure Eyes.

"Alright, in three minutes, these pythons will begin their pursuit. Little ones, commence!"

With the allure of food ahead and the pursuit of pythons behind, the students' potential was indeed ignited. As Ricardo gave the command, they lifted their crates and sprinted towards the mountain peak.

Scarcely had they taken a few steps when Ricardo's voice resonated once more, "Finally, I must warn you, the academy's Water Element teachers will be creating a *tiny* bit of trouble!"

Du Chen and his companions traversed a narrow path winding through the mountain forest, flanked by ancient pines and verdant cypresses. Looking up, the mist emanating from the Hot Spring Mountain's summit appeared dreamlike and ethereal, with a faint crimson glow seemingly guiding their way.

Alas, the heavens were uncooperative. After Du Chen and his group covered half the distance, a torrential downpour began near Hot Spring Mountain — this was precisely the "trouble" engineered by the Water Element teachers.

Fortunately, these individuals had been well-fed and full of vigor for the past three days. Listening to the patter of rain on leaves and treading through the muddy path, they covered most of the journey in just half a day.

As they drew closer to the summit, the standing water on the ground increased, with some puddles even reaching knee-height.

Trudging laboriously, Steve grumbled, "Damn it, these teachers are going too far! With such heavy rain, aren't they afraid of a mudslide!?"

Du Chen chuckled. "Come on, Big Brother, this is Hot Spring Mountain, teeming with countless High-level Battle Gods. How could a mudslide possibly erupt here? Oh, heavens, poor Brother Sem has fallen into a puddle! Quickly, go save him!"

For humans, the deepest puddle might only reach their knees, but for our Xino Dwarf Sem, it was already neck-deep. His foot slipped, and he accidentally tumbled into a puddle, leaving only his dark, large head visible, grumpily staring with wide eyes, awaiting rescue.

"Damn it, is there any medicine that can make me grow taller? I'll buy it no matter the cost!"

The others burst into laughter at his antics. Du Chen pulled Sem out of the puddle and placed him atop the crate. "The path is difficult, you can sit on this!"

Sem felt a warmth in his heart, yet he stubbornly declared, "No, Annie is a girl, and she's still carrying the crate. How can I sit while she works? The dignity of a Xino Dwarf cannot be defiled!" He adjusted the Golden Circlet on his head and suddenly asked, "Annie, are you feeling unwell? I've noticed you covering your mouth frequently throughout this journey!"

Annie, who was Helen, covered her mouth with one hand while carrying the crate with the other, smiling. "It's nothing, just been eating beef jerky for a few days, giving me heartburn and a bit of nausea."

Indeed, consuming too much beef could cause stomach discomfort, so the others didn't give it much thought. However, concealed by the back of her hand, Helen's captivating crimson lips curved into a peculiar arc.

"Hiss!" A strange, serpentine sound, akin to a snake seeking its path, emanated from her mouth. Yet, the sound was so faint that even Du Chen, with his exceptional hearing, failed to perceive it despite being at close proximity.

The group continued for a short distance, with victory seemingly within reach. Suddenly, Du Chen felt the ground beneath his feet tremble. Immediately after, his footing gave way, and his body began to spin.

At that moment, students ahead of them cried out, "Disaster! Mudslide! Run!"

The students training across the entire Hot Spring Mountain instantly plunged into chaos.

The calamity struck too swiftly; in an instant, Du Chen and his companions were swept away by the mudslide. As Steve circulated his battle qi to search for his younger brother, his vision was met with utter chaos, Du Chen's figure nowhere to be seen.

The Black-faced Devil Ricardo's roar arrived belatedly: "Training canceled! All students may use their battle qi to evade the disaster!"

In the split second the disaster arrived, Du Chen was startled. Driven purely by survival instinct, he immediately channeled his Lotus Internal Force to protect himself, then leaped onto an ancient tree with a thick trunk.

Damn it, Hot Spring Mountain was guarded by countless High-level Battle Gods; how could a disaster possibly occur? If it did, it must be the work of a High-level Battle God!

He hoped Big Brother and the others were safe.

As Du Chen was worrying, Helen suddenly descended from the sky, landing on the same tree. She used her battle qi to stabilize the ancient tree, which was trembling amidst the mudslide, and smiled. "Francis, your leap onto the tree just now was incredibly swift. I doubt even a Heaven-Bestowed Hydro-Body constitution could possess such ability, could it?"

Could this mudslide have been caused by *that* Demoness?

She's an absolute scoundrel! Doesn't she care about other people's safety at all?

"Annie, my physique is exceptional. What's so surprising about unleashing potential in a life-or-death situation? Besides, in these three days, I've learned a lot from Vice Dean Philip, see!" He struck a pose. "I can already meditate and manipulate Water Elements."

"Philip?" Helen was taken aback.

"Yes, Vice Dean Philip is my mentor!" Du Chen suddenly noticed Helen's expression turn very strange.

"It seems you are quite safe, Francis. I must go help the other students now, farewell!" Helen tossed out these words and hurriedly departed.

What exactly is this Demoness up to?

Amidst the chaos, Helen arrived at a secluded mountain hollow. Like many other students, she activated her battle qi shield and took cover, allowing the cascading mudslide to engulf both her and her shield.

Beneath the earth, Helen simultaneously maintained her shield and emitted a "hissing" sound.

A small golden snake slithered out from the soil. "Miss, I have handled everything; no one will suspect us."

Helen slightly furrowed her brows. "Sulan, I only told you to create chaos, but how did your 'friends' cause such a massive commotion!"

"I didn't anticipate such an outcome either!" The golden snake sighed in a remarkably human-like manner. "But fortunately, while the academy teachers are busy suppressing the mudslide and rescuing students, all our objectives have been achieved."

Helen nodded. "Mm, the other objectives aren't urgent; you follow up on them later. However, Philip's Alchemy Laboratory must be thoroughly investigated!"

"Several of my kin have already infiltrated his laboratory, but I've just received news that Philip's experiment also possesses the ability to alter human talent. Many people are now targeting him. Even the Lionheart King's grandson has arrived here, accompanied by one of Reno's Nine Battle Gods."

"Our task has become more difficult, hasn't it? Regardless, if Francis isn't that Battle God, or if he is but unwilling to help, then we can only rely on Philip to save Father!"