Chapter 55: Departure for Intensive Training

Su Yi had left, but Ye Yang remained completely frozen. Not knowing what to say, he managed to force a faint smile and stepped forward. "You... why are you here?"

"To say goodbye. Are you leaving tomorrow?" Chen Yun was still smiling.

"Yeah..."

Silence... for a long time...

"You still can't forget her, right? Even though she's gone, you still love her, don't you?" Chen Yun's voice trembled slightly. "Only... her, right?"

"I..." Ye Yang bit his lip hard, having no idea how to answer. Did he still love Yan Yaxin? Undoubtedly. Even after more than twenty years, even after experiencing so much, he still frequently dreamed of her, often waking up in a cold sweat from nightmares where she was in mortal danger, waiting for him to save her.

That he deeply loved Yan Yaxin was something Ye Yang could not deny at all. But what about Chen Yun?

In truth, Ye Yang didn't even know what his feelings for Chen Yun amounted to. They hadn't known each other long, and some affection seemed to have sparked during their internship, but they had never even acknowledged that relationship to each other. In fact, Ye Yang felt that his sensation toward Chen Yun was more about... wanting her than loving her...

"It's nothing, just asking. Look how nervous you got." Chen Yun suddenly let out a small laugh, reaching up to tuck back her hair. "Actually, my mom and dad wanted to invite you over for dinner to thank you, but since you're heading off for intensive training, forget it. Well... I won't see you off tomorrow. I'm afraid I won't be able to get up that early."

With that, the girl playfully made a funny face, waved, and wished him take care as she headed downstairs. She said nothing more, never looked back, and her expression had returned to normal.

Yet Ye Yang understood what Chen Yun meant. They had never made any promises. That was merely a hand held, an embrace shared, and nothing more... As for whether their relationship would develop further, the girl was likely rethinking it entirely.

"Bodyguard Number One, you're not allowed to let anyone steal you away."

Compared to Chen Yun, the things Qi Fang worried about were entirely offbeat. The moment Ye Yang saw her now, the moment he heard her speak, he immediately felt an urge to cough up blood.

Today was rather strange, though. Qi Fang didn't pester him or drag him into playing video games; instead, she bustled around the kitchen for ages. Could she be... up to something again?

"Relax, I didn't cook it. It's takeout from the restaurant downstairs, I just heated it up," Qi Fang said, pouting slightly. "I know you don't like my cooking. I know it tastes bad."

Ye Yang wiped the sweat from his brow. What was going on today? The more the girl acted like this, the colder he felt inside.

"I heard—Uncle Zheng said that the Continent region is very far away, and you can't get there on a motorcycle. And... and it seems even more dangerous over there than it is here..." The girl bit her lip, and Ye Yang instantly understood. She was worried about him.

"Relax, we're just going for training, it'll be fine," Ye Yang smiled.

"Yeah..." Nodding, Qi Fang didn't say anything more. She simply handed Ye Yang a pair of chopsticks and helped pour a cup of wine.

The meal was eaten very slowly, lasting nearly an hour, yet neither of them spoke again. Qi Fang said nothing, and Ye Yang didn't know what to say. He felt that going to training wasn't such a big deal—was all this really necessary?

"I'll wash the dishes." The moment she finished eating, Qi Fang snatched up the bowls and chopsticks. This was the first time she had ever actively volunteered to wash dishes. However, Ye Yang noticed that the girl's eyes were slightly red, as if holding back some unspeakable reluctance to part.

"Xiaofang, don't worry, it's just training, everything will be fine," Ye Yang smiled reassuringly.

"Yeah..." The girl nodded and silently walked into the kitchen. Would it really be fine? She seemed to have said the same thing last time—during that internship—yet Ye Yang had returned covered in scars and blood.

And that time in the abandoned city, the time in the small village, even when taking a routine test, Ye Yang could come back battered and bruised, spending several days in the hospital. Would it really be fine? Perhaps, but how could the girl ever truly stop worrying?

"Well... I'm going back to my room," Ye Yang said, finding the atmosphere a bit too heavy to bear. He scratched his head, stood up, and headed toward his room, only to be suddenly and tightly hugged from behind by a pair of small arms.

"You... you have to protect yourself, okay? I won't be there this time, and you're always so clumsy, always getting hurt, always..."

Ye Yang was left somewhere between laughter and tears. So in her eyes, he was just a clumsy idiot who always got hurt?

"You... you have to come back," Qi Fang murmured, suddenly letting out a choked sob. At that moment, Ye Yang's heart skipped a beat, and he suddenly understood.

Qi Fang had told him before: her father left the small village and never came back; her mother left and likewise never returned. Then came her grandfather's departure, and when she finally went back, she had lost her last remaining family member—her grandfather.

Farewells must be truly cruel to this girl, even if it was just a short, ordinary period of training.

To Qi Fang, he had long since become her ultimate source of reliance. It wasn't love, nor was it any ambiguous, heart-fluttering romance; it was simply the girl's most genuine, purest reliance born from the depths of her heart, nothing more.

"I will!" Ye Yang nodded firmly. "I swear, I'll definitely come back!"

Ye Yang didn't return to his room. That night, he stayed on the sofa, keeping the girl company, watching her play games and cracking jokes from time to time. Besides, he was no longer an ordinary person; pulling an all-nighter had long since become a habit.

"Xiaofang, do you want to be a Hunter?" Ye Yang suddenly asked.

"Huh? Can I?" Qi Fang was completely stunned. A Hunter? In her mind, Hunters were superhuman-level existences; how could she ever become one? She didn't even think Ye Yang was a superhuman yet, given how short a time he had been at it.

"Maybe? I don't really know either. If you're willing, when I get back, I can ask Uncle Lin to test your physical aptitude?"

"Really? Wow! I can be a Hunter too?" Qi Fang squealed and jumped up and down with excitement, causing Ye Yang to break into a smile as well.

Could she really do it? Actually, the requirements for becoming a Hunter weren't that high. If it was just an ordinary tier without demanding top-tier strength, most people could manage it. Of course, most people would only reach Lin Tian's level.

The reason the Chinese Alliance didn't have an overwhelming number of Hunters was that Level 1 tiers were practically useless in combat, and having too many would simply cause chaos. Moreover, some people refused to accept the profession because it was far too dangerous. True, superpowers were amazing, but who wanted to spend every single day fighting monsters for real? Video games were one thing, but reality was...

Qi Fang was different. Her time as a Wanderer had been extremely perilous, yet the girl had thoroughly enjoyed it. Besides, even if her physique wasn't naturally suited for evolution, Ye Yang figured that given his relationship with Lin Tian, getting hold of an evolutionary cell definitely wouldn't be a problem.

"Bodyguard Number One, do you think if I get a superpower, what kind will it be?" the girl asked happily, her eyes shining.

"How would I know? I don't even have a superpower myself," Ye Yang said, half-amused and half-exasperated. Even as a Hunter, one had to wait a period of time after the evolutionary cell was implanted before the general direction of their superpower could be detected.

"Do you think there's a superpower that can make yourself bigger?" Qi Fang suddenly asked, her eyes wide.

"Bigger? Are you very small?" Ye Yang asked in astonishment. Turn into a giant? What kind of girl wants to turn herself into a giant?

Her face turning red, Qi Fang bit her lip and muttered, "I meant... I mean *there*, I noticed Uncle Zheng and the others like girls who are big *there*, and mine is so tiny..."

"Pfft." Ye Yang coughed up a mouthful of blood metaphorically, collapsing onto the sofa and rolling his eyes. This girl wanted to use a superpower for a breast augmentation? What kind of bizarre thought process was that? Besides, she wasn't even that small—32B? For her age, she definitely had some substance to her.

Of course... compared to Chen Yun, she was far behind.

Still, you didn't need to become a Hunter just to get a breast enlargement; you could just chant the "Great Compassion" (Cup) mantra instead!

Perhaps because they had stayed up too late gaming, when Ye Yang left in the morning, Qi Fang was still snoring away. He decided not to wake her up, sparing her from worrying about his safety and potentially throwing a tantrum to tag along.

Early in the morning, Lin Tian and Wang Feng were already waiting for them at the zoo. Well... or perhaps they were just there to see the pandas.

"Here, these are dumplings your aunt made, they taste way better than sandwiches. And here, some brewed soup, plus a few scallion pancakes. Oh, and here's your mercury gun, I've topped off your ammo."

Lin Tian rambled on like an eighty-year-old grandmother. While Ye Yang was touched, he was truly starting to find him a bit overwhelming. However, when he turned his head, he grew even more depressed.

"Hand them all over, you're not going on a vacation!" Wang Feng gritted his teeth.

Ye Yang wanted to cry. Lin Tian stood on his left, shoving packages of food into his arms, while Wang Feng stood on his right, stealthily confiscating them one by one. What on earth were these two playing at? Were they acting out a comedy sketch?

"Morning, Brother Ye! Hello, Brother Ye! Hard work, Brother Ye!"

The moment they stepped into the academy, those two troublemakers Tang Xiaobao and Lin Xiaotian lunged forward, latching onto Ye Yang in an overly clingy embrace that almost made him gag. While having fans was certainly interesting, having fans like this was probably better kept to a minimum.

"No need to say it! I understand!" Ye Yang ground his teeth. "Anxin and Anjing—pick whichever one you want. Let me know when you've chosen, and I'll introduce you!"

"Long live Brother Ye..." The two utterly shameless fans instantly burst into jubilation. Ye Yang shook his head and walked away. Fortunately there were only two of them; if a third one showed up, he wouldn't even have anyone left to introduce, since besides Chen Yun, those were the only girls he knew in Class C.

Wang Feng was truly a man of decisive action. Without even a departure speech, he unceremoniously booted everyone off to the airport to get lost quickly. The so-called Yanjing Airport was entirely different from the ones of the past. Setting aside its geographical location, just the sheer land area alone... calling this an airport was a joke; it was basically a soccer field.

"Well... technology has advanced, so we don't need such long runways anymore, plus not many people take airplanes nowadays," Lin Tian explained. "What's the point of running planes when there are only two cities left anyway? Besides, the danger index of flying exceeds what ordinary people can bear."

"Dangerous? Why is it dangerous?" Ye Yang was taken aback. Was flying really that hazardous?

"Of course it's dangerous. First off, plenty of demons can fly; if one of them spits on you in the sky, you're going down. Second, the earth's climate has changed drastically. You can barely feel it inside the city, but outside? In the sky? There are air turbulence zones everywhere."

Ye Yang was speechless. Could he request a refund? What if he decided he didn't want to go anymore? He might be a Hunter, and getting killed by demons would at least be a fitting end, but dying in a plane crash caused by atmospheric turbulence... that was something he truly couldn't handle!

"Stop flapping your gums! Everyone get your asses on the plane right now! Even if you factor in all the variables of demons, weather, and distance, the crash rate is only about 10%. What's there to be scared of?!" Wang Feng gave Ye Yang a swift kick straight onto the aircraft.

"Ten percent?" Ye Yang's jaw hit the floor. What kind of horrifying crash rate was that? That made it several times more dangerous than a wealthy playboy driving drunk!

"Relax, relax, there are parachutes," Lin Tian comforted. Ye Yang felt not an ounce of security; he suddenly suspected he had developed severe aviophobia! Help... how does one cure this?