Chapter 1231: Disaster Siege

On this day, all afternoon classes at the Fusion Faction were canceled.

Chen Ling and Sun Bumian sat on the stairs of the Fusion Faction, looking through the tree hole at the dim sunset of the Gray Realm... Although there were no classes today, the students didn't seem very active. As they passed by, they always looked toward the medical team and the door of the underground laboratory, their expressions uneasy.

After an unknown amount of time, the door to the medical team finally opened.

"How is the Holy Son??"

"Xiao Tao, Xiao Tao, how is the Holy Son?"

“……”

Numerous figures immediately crowded around. Xiao Tao's expression was a bit exhausted, but she still spoke patiently:

"Don't worry, the Holy Son has a special constitution; there's nothing major."

Everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The Holy Son was out of danger, but the door to the underground laboratory hadn't opened yet. The students sat outside the door, clutching their books and homework, waiting anxiously for the results of Teacher Ye's rescue while distractedly reading and studying...

Chen Ling walked straight toward Xiao Tao: "What's the situation with Zhao Yi's injuries?"

"Brother Chen Ling," Xiao Tao replied obediently. "Most of the Holy Son's injuries are from collisions and bites... It should have been caused by a disaster."

"A disaster... How could a disaster attack a Fusionist?" Chen Ling's brow furrowed tightly.

"I'm not sure either, but the Holy Son should be able to wake up in a while. We can ask him then."

"Mm, thank you for your hard work."

Xiao Tao took off her blood-stained gloves, her eyes full of exhaustion. It was clear that the treatment just now hadn't been easy for the petite girl, but what made her even more uneasy was the cause of Zhao Yi's injuries, as well as the increasingly heavy atmosphere in the Fusion Faction. Her small face was extremely serious.

"I didn't expect Teacher Xiao Tao to be able to heal, that's amazing..."

Sun Bumian leaned over slightly, resting his hands on his knees, looking at Xiao Tao with a smile. As if by magic, he produced a candied haw. "Here, have a candied haw to fill your stomach."

Xiao Tao was startled, and the gloom on her face was chased away by the amusement. She smiled with her eyes curved:

"Thank you, Brother Sun!"

Sun Bumian liked the children of the Fusion Faction very much, and Xiao Tao was also his and Chen Ling's tutor... Sun Bumian was like a failing student who never studied; even when he participated in tutoring, he would just sleep on the side, often making Xiao Tao so angry she wanted to hit him with a teaching pointer.

Of course, their relationship in private was quite good.

Just as they were talking,

the door to the underground laboratory slowly opened.

The students waiting at the door stood up immediately. They were about to ask something, but the next moment, they froze in place...

They watched in a daze as two stretchers covered with white sheets were silently carried out. The students standing on both sides of the corridor stared blankly at the silhouettes under the white sheets; even with their keen hearing, they couldn't hear the sound of a heartbeat.

"They... they..." a younger student began, their voice trembling.

The older member carrying the stretcher shook their head helplessly:

"Only Old Wolf was resuscitated... The two of them were too severely injured; even Teacher Ye couldn't do anything."

The entire corridor fell into a deathly silence.

It had been a long time since anyone in the Fusion Faction had died. The two white sheets before them undoubtedly dealt the children a severe psychological blow... After all, many of them had been brought back by these two older seniors during their travels.

A moment later, Teacher Ye’s weary figure emerged from underground.

"Everyone, go back and rest," Teacher Ye said, his gaze sweeping across the area. "Where is Zhao Yi? Is he awake?"

Just as the others were about to answer, Xiao Tao’s voice came from the room above:

"He’s awake! The Holy Son is awake!"

"Good. He Chengxuan, Mi Bo, come with me..." Teacher Ye walked up the stairs. Seeing Chen Ling and Sun Bumian out of the corner of his eye, he hesitated for a moment before adding, "You two come as well."

Chen Ling nodded slightly and followed behind Teacher Ye.

……

Once the named individuals entered the room, Teacher Ye closed the door behind him.

Zhao Yi, covered in bandages, was lying on the bed. Seeing Teacher Ye arrive, he tried to sit up, but was gently pressed back down...

"Even if your injuries are the lightest, you can't move around recklessly. Get some proper rest for a while," Teacher Ye said earnestly.

Zhao Yi immediately asked, "How are Old Wolf and the others??"

After a brief silence, Mi Bo spoke slowly:

"Only Old Wolf was resuscitated..."

He Chengxuan and Mi Bo were both high-level combatants of the Fusion Faction. They were among those Zhao Yi had taken to the Wuji Domain to rescue Chen Ling—older, powerful, and reliable, they were the role models the younger children looked up to.

Hearing this, Zhao Yi was struck as if by lightning, staring blankly at the bed...

"Zhao Yi, what exactly happened?" Chen Ling asked. "Weren't you all going to the Tianchu Domain to procure supplies?"

The Fusion Faction was located deep within the Gray World, where resources were scarce. But Teacher Ye didn't want the children to live in hardship, so every month he sent people to infiltrate human domains to procure large quantities of supplies, including food, clothing, accessories, toys, and books...

While those in the Jiangtian Sect’s branch, also in the Gray World, lived like primitive people, the children of the Fusion Faction ate delicious food, wore pretty clothes, sported cute hair clips, and had all sorts of interesting extracurricular books, just like children living inside the domains. This was the result of the collective efforts of Teacher Ye and all the Fusionists.

Since joining the Fusion Faction, Zhao Yi had participated in almost every supply run. Partly because he wanted to play in the human domains, and partly because he lacked long ears, tails, or other obvious signs of Calamity-based physical mutation. As long as he dressed warmly and turned the curse marks on his face into tattoos, he could move safely within the domains.

There had never been any mishaps in all those supply runs, but this time, there were casualties.

Zhao Yi remained silent for a long time before speaking bitterly:

"At first, everything went smoothly... We crossed the Gray World, successfully infiltrated the Tianchu Domain, and procured a large batch of supplies. But just as we were preparing to leave, the accident happened..."

"The Sighing Wilderness surrounded the Tianchu Domain."

At these words, everyone was stunned.

"The Sighing Wilderness?" Mi Bo frowned deeply. "How is that possible... Although the Sighing Wilderness is located between the Tianchu and Nanhai domains, it’s still some distance away from Tianchu. How could it suddenly appear there?"

"I don't know... But the Gray World land around the Tianchu Domain was covered in bones under the Calamity territory of the Calamity of Breath. Countless Calamities were charging and roaring outside the domain. They trampled the earth, and the tremors caused wave after wave of earthquakes within the Tianchu Domain, followed by the shrill sound of alarms..."