Chapter 27 Chapter 27 "Are you going to take it off yourself, or should I...
The three of them had just desperately rushed out of the cave area that was about to collapse, and they saw a hellish scene in front of them at a glance.
"Iron Armor, Bull Charge!" Zhao Peng formed seals with his hands and gave orders quickly.
The huge body of the armored bull suddenly appeared in front of him, and the searchlight on its horns instantly burst out with a dazzling light. It trampled the ground with its four hooves, like a chariot out of control, and rushed towards the edge of the deep pool below with an indomitable momentum, trying to use its body to block the fatal blow.
The light armor on its body reflected a cold metallic luster under the strong light.
"Shadow, go save them." In comparison, Meng Yanlang's voice sounded much gentler.
A gray shadow swooped down along the rock wall like a ghost, at an extremely fast speed, aiming directly at the base of the thickest tentacles that were lashing towards Jiang Qing.
After the Undead Rat cleared the troublesome tentacles in front of it, Zhu Tianba's body returned to its original form and fell from a high altitude.
Jiang Qing took a step forward and caught its body steadily.
The undead rat bit Jiang Qing's backpack and quickly brought the man and the pig ashore.
Jiang Qing's face was pale and her eyes were tired. She lowered her head and glanced at Zhu Tianba in her arms, with an expression of relief after having lost him and finally got him back.
Zhu Tianba fell into a coma again at this moment.
When Li Xiu saw the shadow leeches crawling all over Jiang Qing's body, mixed with blood and unknown mucus, a look of heartache flashed across her face.
She summoned the "Cleaning Gloves" and went forward to brush off all the leeches on her body.
"Hurry up! My armor can't hold up anymore." Zhao Peng's voice sounded behind him.
He quickly turned around and rode on the armored bull, galloping towards the group, with dense and thick tentacles following behind him.
The Dark Valley lost its energy source and the speed of collapse was accelerating. More and more boulders fell, some of which fell on the main road, blocking the way of several people.
The entire body of the giant vine king seal behind him also floated to the surface of the water, and its soft and sticky tentacles continued to extend outward, trying to attack these "destroyers".
Zhao Peng's armored bull carried three people on its back. As it ran out, it used its horns to knock away the boulders blocking the road, clearing the way for them.
Meng Yanlang was responsible for defending everyone behind the scenes from the attacks of the Tengwang Giant Seal.
Phosphorescent moths, cave spiders, and other insects sensed the movement and became active collectively. The cave was filled with all kinds of flying insects and strange beasts. It was no exaggeration to say that the scene before them was the end of the world.
"Exit! I see the light...we're almost there." Li Xiu suddenly exclaimed.
At this moment, everyone seemed to see hope.
"Iron Armor, hurry!" Zhao Peng's tone revealed urgency and a hint of excitement.
......
"What's going on? Why are all these phosphorescent moths running outside?"
The Abnormal Investigation Team, who received the order from the academy and rushed to the Dark Valley, just arrived at the cave entrance and saw countless moths flying from inside the cave to outside.
"Look over there, there's someone!" One of the investigation team members pointed to the hole covered by weeds.
"Save people."
Following the captain's order, several searching spirit beasts immediately stepped forward and brought the people out.
The tentacles of the Vine King Giant Scorpion reached the cave entrance, on the verge of snatching Meng Yanlang away. In the nick of time, a long gray tail flickered through the air, leaving an afterimage. Then, a huge rock fell from above Meng Yanlang's head, abruptly blocking him from the tentacles and completely blocking the entrance to the Dark Valley.
After the Abnormal Investigation Team rescued the people, the four of them showed the same expression of surviving a disaster.
The captain of the Abnormal Investigation Team recognized Meng Yanlang and asked, "What on earth is going on?"
Meng Yanlang told him everything that happened in the cave, including the fact that Zhu Tianba absorbed the dark crystal energy.
The captain of the Abnormal Team turned to the girl holding the pig.
There was a lot of blood on her body, her lips were black and blue, and her black clothes were all soaked. Even when she walked in the sun, her body was shaking constantly.
His eyes finally fell on the pig. Apart from the slightly unusual color, he didn't see anything unusual.
Jiang Qing suddenly said, "Beast Taming Laboratory, has Professor Chen Ming returned? I want to see her."
The captain of the Abnormal Team was visibly taken aback: "No."
"Student, you'd better go to the treatment room first." He suggested seriously.
Upon hearing this, Li Xiu immediately nodded in agreement: "Yes, Qingqing, I haven't asked you how serious your injury is or whether it hurts."
She didn't feel anything at that time, but now, standing in the sun, the wounds and pains on her body began to slowly crawl up along her spine, and the bone-gnawing pain spread throughout her body.
"It hurts..." Jiang Qing cried out in grievance.
Li Xiu immediately felt distressed.
"Let's go back without delay. Your injury really needs treatment immediately," said Zhao Peng.
The captain said, "You go back first. We still need to stay and investigate the situation in Dark Valley."
"Senior, there is a fairy-level giant vine king seal inside. It is the thing that attacked us just now. You must be careful." Meng Yanlang warned seriously.
"Okay, thanks for letting me know." The captain nodded and waved to the people behind him. "Let's go!"
......
The four people who returned to the academy and Jiang Qing all came to the treatment room.
"Hi, little classmate, it's you again!" The familiar doctor greeted Jiang Qing.
The doctor's surname was Xu, and he was the one who treated her on the first day she came here.
"Doctor Xu, now isn't the time to reminisce about the past." Jiang Qing said with a sad face, "Save me."
After the crisis was over, she found that she still valued her life.
Doctor Xu covered his mouth and chuckled when he heard this: "Right away."
A gentle green light swept over her body. Doctor Xu suddenly looked up and said to Meng Yanlang and Zhao Peng, "You guys go out first. She still has some shadow leeches on her body that haven't been cleaned off. She needs to undress and clean them. It's not convenient for you to stay here."
Doctor Xu brought Jiang Qing to the bed near the bathroom and closed the curtains. "Tell me, do you want to take it off yourself, or do you want me to help you?"
Jiang Qing: “…”
A hundred stories about domineering CEOs forcing love flashed through her mind.
Jiang Qing said seriously, "Doctor Xu, please don't talk like that. It can easily cause unnecessary misunderstandings."
"What's going on in your head, little classmate? Come on, are you waiting for me to help you if you don't take it off?"
Jiang Qing: “…”
The sense of déjà vu was even stronger, as if she was going to be...
She suppressed the wild thoughts in her mind and began to take off her clothes quietly.
"Take this off too." Dr. Xu pointed at her small vest.
"Huh?" Jiang Qing blinked, as if frightened by this. A rare blush appeared on her face. "Do I have to take it off too?"
She suddenly... seemed to understand why Zhu Tianba didn't let her touch him.
This time it was Doctor Xu's turn to be speechless. She glanced at Jiang Qing and said, "Don't you feel any discomfort in your chest? There's a shadow leech stuck down there."
"Oh." Jiang Qing only then realized that there was indeed a slight tingling sensation in his chest, but because there were too many painful areas on his body, this little tingling was directly ignored by his body.
In the following time, Dr. Xu carefully cleaned the leeches on Jiang Qing's body, disinfected every part over and over again, and then applied a healing patch.
"Okay." Doctor Xu said, "Feel your body again. Is there any discomfort anywhere else?"
After she finished speaking, Jiang Qing jumped off the bed, stretched his limbs, and showed a look of surprise on his face: "It's all healed, you are really a miracle doctor, Doctor Xu!"
"You're welcome." Doctor Xu smiled and said after a moment's hesitation, "How about you put on your clothes first?"
Jiang Qing looked down at himself, feeling the coolness on his body, and his face quickly turned red.
This is the first time I feel so embarrassed!
After she changed, Doctor Xu suddenly praised her, "Your physique is quite good. With so many shadow leeches clinging to you, you should have been sucked dry, or at least dizzy from anemia. But when you returned to the treatment room, aside from feeling a little weak and exhausted, none of your indicators had dropped to critical levels."
Jiang Qing listened silently, and she thought to herself: She is not weak at all!
But at the same time, she knew in her heart that the reason why she did not have any major health problems was mostly because of Zhu Tianba.
Thinking of this, Jiang Qing suddenly summoned Zhu Tianba, who had just woken up from his slumber, and said to Doctor Xu, "Doctor, can you help him take a look? Is he injured?"
Dr. Xu glanced at Zhu Tianba, nodded, and summoned her spirit beast at the same time.
It is a kitten with green furry ears.
The kitten sniffed around Zhu Tianba, its long slender tail swaying with its movements. It released a warm ball of light from its mouth, completely wrapping Zhu Tianba in it.
As the ball of light took effect, all the large and small injuries on Zhu Tianba's body were healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.
"Maomao can only treat external injuries. There are only a handful of therapists who can treat internal injuries of spiritual beasts. I'm sorry." Doctor Xu touched the kitten's head and said to Jiang Qing.
"Yeah." Jiang Qing's voice also became a little lower. She didn't say anything more, carried the treated Zhu Tianba back, said goodbye to Dr. Xu, and left the treatment room.
Meng Yanlang, Zhao Peng and Li Xiu were still waiting outside. When they saw her come out, they immediately surrounded her.
The three of them tacitly didn't ask what happened between her and Zhu Tianba in the cave at that time.
"The Dark Valley has completely collapsed. We must be prepared for the academy to question us at any time." When Meng Yanlang said this, his eyes glanced towards Jiang Qing.
Perhaps the other two did not see it carefully, but he clearly saw how Zhu Tianba absorbed and converted the energy contained in the dark crystal.
That pig was indeed unusual.
Moreover, Jiang Qing's ability is beyond imagination. She can influence the qualitative changes of the entire dark crystal.
He had never seen her use this ability before. According to the information he had gathered about Jiang Qing, her only talent for taming beasts was the "Golden Light Shield", which was just a defensive skill.
"I made some inquiries during your treatment, and it seems that the teacher Chen Ming you were looking for came back early," said Zhao Peng.
"Really?" Jiang Qing's eyes lit up instantly, and he immediately prepared to rush to the Beast Taming Laboratory.
The three of them looked at each other in bewilderment. Finally, Li Xiu said, "We'll follow suit. Abnormal energy nodes must also be submitted to the Beast Taming Laboratory."
......
On the second floor of the Beast Taming Laboratory, the door of Professor Chen Ming's room was wide open, and Jiang Qing could catch a glimpse of the scene inside at a glance.
Only Zhou Qi and another assistant were working in the laboratory.
Jiang Qing walked into the laboratory, and Zhou Qi, who was slacking off, noticed her presence immediately.
"Classmate Jiang Qing?" His tone was a little more cheerful. "I didn't expect you'd still be thinking about me on the weekend!"
Zhou Qi: "What are we going to learn this time? Energy operation principles or field training techniques?"
Jiang Qing shook his head and asked, "Is Teacher Chen Ming here?"
Zhou Qi's expression paused noticeably, and then a familiar sharp cry sounded behind Jiang Qing.
"What do you want from Chen Ming?" Director Bird flew in from the doorway and stopped right on the screen in front of Jiang Qing, acting like the master of his own house.
"I have something to say, it's about Zhu Tianba..." Jiang Qing didn't finish the second half of the sentence.
Chen Ming also walked into the laboratory at the same time. She spoke in a calm tone, taking the upper hand: "It just so happens that I also want to talk to you."
"I've been to the edge of the Giant Tree Swamp you mentioned, and carefully examined the remains of the sow. The sow species is recorded in the "Endangered Species of Exotic Beasts". The bad news is that it does belong to the Artiodactyla - Suidae exotic beast, a mutated white-haired scaly pig. From the perspective of exotic beasts, its rank is between the first and second levels of the ordinary rank, so it is not considered a domestic pig. However, due to its character and habits, it is usually not considered an exotic beast." Chen Ming said.
"?" Jiang Qing's mind took a moment to react.
Chen Ming's voice continued: "After verification, this sow did enter the examination room accidentally. This is a dereliction of duty on our part."
Then?
Jiang Qing pricked up his ears and listened.
Chen Ming: "But the good news is that after sampling and comparison, there are some subtle differences in the genetic samples between the sow and the pig Tianba. In other words, the sow and the pig Tianba may not be the same species."
Wait a minute... Her mind was a little confused now, and Chen Ming's words kept impacting her cognition.
She clearly delivered Zhu Tianba from the sow's belly with her own hands. Is it possible that their genetic species are different?
How is this possible?
This is like a monkey being born from a human's belly.
Chen Ming understood Jiang Qing's confusion as soon as she saw her expression, but as a research scholar, she believed that data was more important than logic.
Jiang Qing reacted for a moment, then shook her head and said, "No...that's not what I'm asking."
Then she told Chen Ming everything that happened in the Dark Valley, focusing on describing the process of Zhu Tianba absorbing the dark crystal energy.
In fact, this is a bit like the scene when it absorbed the Star Orchid, but the energy contained in the dark crystal is dozens of times higher than that of the Star Orchid.
"Dark Valley?" Chen Ming pinched his chin and thought.
She knew about the abnormal energy in the Dark Valley that came from the exotic meteorite, but this was not the project research she was responsible for, so she knew very little about the energy analysis of the Dark Valley.
Now that Zhu Tianba was linked to abnormal energy conservation, she had to start researching it.
Jiang Qing nodded vigorously and hugged Zhu Tianba tighter in his arms.
It was still sleeping, breathing weakly, its small body slightly hot, like a fire that could go out at any time.
Chen Ming was silent for a few seconds, and the atmosphere in the entire laboratory froze.
Director Bird was also unusually silent. He tilted his head and stared at Zhu Tianba in Jiang Qing's arms with his big eyes.
Zhou Qi even held his breath, his face filled with shock.
"Give me Zhu Tianba." Chen Ming's voice left no doubt. She strode to the front of the experimental table and quickly started several sophisticated instruments. Complex parameters and scanning light waves appeared on the screen.
She put on special analytical gloves and carefully took the Zhu Tianba handed to her by Jiang Qing.
The piglet was placed in a transparent observation cabin covered with a soft energy-sensing mat.
Chen Ming's fingers quickly entered commands on the operation panel, and several scanning beams of different colors enveloped Zhu Tianba's small body.
Chen Ming whispered as he operated, his brow furrowed. "The high-purity 'Beast Core Crystal' released from the KDOG core fragments has violent energy and extremely unique properties. The beasts in the cave cannot directly absorb its energy. At most, they are affected by it, and their energy structure is strengthened. In the meantime, KDOG has achieved a strange balance with the ecosystem within the cave..."
On the screen, the curve representing Zhu Tianba's vital signs was weak but steady, but the graph representing the energy reaction was a mess.
Countless lines representing different energy frequencies jumped, entangled, and conflicted wildly, forming an almost impossible to decipher tangled mess. At its core, there was an unusually bright and constantly pulsating light spot, which was the violent core left after the huge dark crystal energy was forcibly interrupted.
"Totally out of control." Zhou Qi leaned closer to the screen and exclaimed, "It's like... like a miniature starburst is going on inside it."
"That's not all," Chen Ming's eyes were as sharp as an eagle, pointing at some extremely subtle, almost imperceptible fluctuations at the edge of the diagram. "Look here, and here, these frequencies are very similar to the energy characteristics of the 'Dark Crystal' itself. During the absorption process, it seems to also be synchronously converted, and even resonates with some of the underlying fluctuations of the source crystal. This is simply... incredible!"
"What a shame." Chen Ming sighed, "It would be great if there were a sample of the dark crystal structure."
Just as she finished speaking, the trio who had been eavesdropping at the door for a long time suddenly rushed in.
Meng Yanlang took out the abnormal energy node he had collected but hadn't yet handed in from his backpack and handed it to Chen Ming. "Before the Dark Valley collapsed, a few of us collected a dark crystal. Although it's a fractional crystal, the energy inside it can't compare to the main crystal core."
Chen Ming adjusted his glasses and glanced at the three people who suddenly appeared.
Li Xiu immediately explained, "We are all Jiang Qing's friends. We are going to the Dark Valley together this time."
Chen Ming nodded, took the dark crystal from the hands of several people and began to study it.
Chen Ming was immersed in work and was completely focused. Director Niao was there to assist her in her analysis and research.
Zhou Qi understood and said to the remaining people, "You should go back first. The experiment won't be completed that quickly. Once the teacher has the results of his research, he will naturally inform you."
The four people who were kicked out were invited back as soon as they walked out of the door of the Beast Taming Laboratory.
The interrogation that Meng Yanlang mentioned came so quickly.
Jiang Qing was invited into a bright office and several people were forced to separate.
She looked around. The overall layout here was similar to Chen Ming's office upstairs, except that the office desks in the interrogation room were single seats.
It was different from what one might imagine, being locked up in a small dark room and violently interrogated.
The light in the interrogation room was bright and soft, dispelling the chill brought by the dark valley.
Jiang Qing sat in a comfortable chair, facing a gentle female teacher. She was wearing the uniform of an academy instructor, her hair half tied into a low bun, and an exquisite kite badge on her chest.
"Student, don't be nervous," the teacher's voice was like a spring flowing over pebbles, carrying a soothing power. She smiled gently and comforted him, "We are just making a routine inquiry. We need to keep a record of it in the file. Generally, it does not involve punishment.
"I won't be punished?" Jiang Qing's tense nerves relaxed a little after hearing that. He leaned forward slightly and asked for confirmation.
"No," the female teacher said firmly, "The Fifth Beastmaster Academy advocates the spirit of adventure. We understand and support the unexpected events and efforts students make during their practical explorations, as long as they comply with regulations."
"Of course." The female teacher changed the subject, "If students encounter any problems outside, please handle them on your own. Just don't expose the Fifth Beastmaster Academy at this critical moment."
Jiang Qing: “…”
This sounds like Principal Ji's style.
Jiang Qing answered whatever the female teacher asked next.
Almost all the questions were about the strange beasts and changes in energy nodes in the Dark Valley.
Jiang Qing told the truth about everything, especially the repetitive questions about "Why did your spirit beast suddenly jump to the dark crystal?", which the female teacher asked several times.
Only after she confirmed that Jiang Qing really couldn't answer it did she move on to the next question.
The interrogation, which lasted an hour, finally concluded. The female teacher capped her pen, her eyes becoming complicated. "Based on your description and the preliminary testimony of the remaining three students, your team essentially followed safety procedures throughout the exploration. Encountering the Giant Seal of the Vine King was an unforeseen and extreme risk, not something you proactively provoked or caused through gross negligence."
"As for the core event, the actions of your contracted beast, Zhu Tianba, and its consequences..." the female teacher paused, as if weighing her words. "This is truly unique. Actively absorbing and triggering a rampage of KDOG's core energy is unprecedented in the academy's recorded abnormal node events. Furthermore, the changes that occurred after the crystal came into contact with your blood are even more difficult to explain using existing theories."
"But the lack of precedent doesn't mean there's no chance of it happening." She sighed deeply. "That's all for today's news. You can go back now. Your friends should be waiting for you at the door."
"Thank you, teacher." After saying that, she walked out of the interrogation room and saw the concerned faces of Meng Yanlang, Zhao Peng and Li Xiu. Her tense nerves finally relaxed and a huge feeling of fatigue swept over her.
Looking at the three of them now, they all had tired looks on their faces, with a lot of dried mud stuck to their skin on their faces and heads, and their bodies were wet and dry.
A trace of guilt flashed through Jiang Qing's heart. She lowered her head and whispered, "I'm sorry."
"It's okay. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't know I had such great abilities." Li Xiu said, touching his nose.
Jiang Qing hummed, as if remembering something. She said to Zhao Peng beside her, "Let's postpone the sparring for a few more days."
"Of course." Zhao Peng looked at her strangely. "Do I have to pull that pig out of the lab and force it to fight my armor?"
"By the way, your pig has great potential. It even dares to fight against the giant seal of the Immortal-level Vine King. You should train it well in the future and stop doing nothing." Zhao Peng said.
Jiang Qing rolled his eyes at him and said, "Of course my Zhu Tianba is gifted and has unlimited potential!"
The depressing atmosphere gradually eased, and at the end of the conversation, everyone said goodbye and returned to the dormitory.
In the Beast Taming Research Laboratory, Chen Ming was still working late at night.
Chen Ming and Director Bird were concentrating on surrounding the experimental table. Zhu Tianba was lying on a special energy sensing pad, connected to a dense network of pipes.
Next to it was the secondary dark crystal sample collected by Meng Yanlang and his team.
On the screen, next to the tangled diagram representing the energy in Zhu Tianba's body, there is an additional comparison window, showing the energy structure model of the secondary dark crystal.
Chen Ming's fingers danced quickly on the virtual keyboard, constantly adjusting parameters and performing complex frequency comparison and source tracing analysis.
"Something's wrong, very wrong!" Director Bird suddenly poked an extremely tiny waveform on the main screen with the tip of his wing.
"Something's wrong." Chen Ming's voice was filled with disbelief and shock. She turned her head sharply and looked at the comatose Zhu Tianba. A guess came to her mind, "Zhu Tianba and KDOG might come from the same place..."
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