Things here weren't resolved when another incident happened.
A student hurried to the staff cafeteria, found no one there, heard sounds from the lounge, and quickly knocked on the door. After opening it, he said, "Ted Code was attacked."
Members of the Justice League immediately stood up. Wonder Woman, leading them, frowned and said, "How is he?"
"He's injured, but not severely. He's already been taken to the hospital."
"What about the Blue Beetle that's with him?"
"The Blue Beetle is fine, and it was actually the one that sounded the alarm and got Ted to the hospital."
Everyone quickly realized that this incident was another link in a series of planned events and was not as simple as it appeared.
But now, a tough choice lay before them.
It was very likely that this was a diversion created by the behind-the-scenes manipulator, aiming to have them leave Professor Shearer here, to control him when his mental state worsened.
But after all, the students were not aware of Professor Shearer's condition, yet Ted was injured in plain sight. It was indeed indecent for the professors not to show up.
Finally, Bruce decided on the plan of action. Clark and Lilith would stay here to take care of Shiller, while the others handled Ted's situation.
Bruce understood Shiller; in most cases, it would be difficult for anyone to deteriorate his mental state with external forces. Even if someone did take action, Shiller must have not resisted or went along with it for his reasons.
But Ted was just a naive boy, and his involvement in the plan posed real danger. Once he was in trouble, it would be like dominoes falling one after another, with no chance for recovery.
Thus, the main force had to be mobilized to deal with Ted's situation. Having Lilith in the psychic aspect and Clark in the physical aspect was deemed sufficient here.
After the group left, Clark looked at Shiller with concern, but he truly couldn't help. Lilith also dared not probe into Shiller's psychic battlefield anymore and went to the adjoining pantry to make three cups of coffee.
During this process, Shiller remained immersed in his own psychic battlefield, navigating through the vast rice paddy maze, trying to find clues beyond the gigantic female corpse.
He felt someone probing his psyche, but knowing they would retreat from the challenge, he didn't bother. But upon hearing of Ted's mishap, Shiller reluctantly detached his mind from the psychic world and refocused on reality.
Lilith and Clark were quietly discussing Ted's attack incident.
Even though they weren't conspirators, they understood the purpose behind the behind-the-scenes manipulator's actions.
Who was the prime suspect in Ted's attack?
Of course, any of the students were possible, but the most likely suspect was the Blue Beetle he carried with him.
Despite multiple protections, who knew if this mysterious alien device had other tricks up its sleeve? Last time it attacked Bono, and now with Ted injured, it was even more likely that it was responsible.
This would force the professors into a dilemma.
Two attacks were enough to cause panic among the students, and at this point, no fancy supervision methods could help. The professors had to make a stand and eliminate the danger from the students.
But Ted might not agree, as his actions showed; he would rather believe that the Blue Beetle was controlled.
Importantly, the Blue Beetle wouldn't agree either, prompted by the First Generation Blue Beetle; it stayed with Ted expressly to protect him. If it wasn't responsible for this incident and knowing that someone was eyeing Ted, it would be even less likely to agree to leave him.
But to ensure the students' safety, the professors had to act; if the Blue Beetle was unwilling to cooperate, they would inevitably have to resort to force.
At that time, whether the professors destroyed the Blue Beetle or the Blue Beetle injured the professors, Ted wouldn't be able to cope and was bound to be heartbroken.
Despite their short teaching tenure, the members of the Justice League had developed deep bonds with these talented and diligent students, and no professor wanted to see any of them hurt.
But failing to act would mean neglecting the safety of many students, and the behind-the-scenes manipulator's plot was indeed venomous.
While on their way to the scene, everyone was pondering this matter when suddenly, Bruce's phone rang. The others paused and looked at him as he answered.
"What's the matter? Clark, is there a problem with Professor Shearer?"
Knowing that it was Clark who called, everyone was on edge, but fortunately, Clark's tone was very steady as he explained.
"There's nothing wrong. He just woke up and wants to talk to you. I'm about to hand him the phone."
Shiller's slightly hoarse voice then came through on the other end.
"Ted's emotions are off, his mind might have been influenced by someone, and if you go to him now, it will escalate his emotions and make him completely lose control, possibly even attacking you."
On the other end of the phone, Shiller stared at the reflection on the surface of his coffee. He saw Ted lying unconscious in the hospital bed, caressing the Water Prison holding the Blue Beetle, his face expressionless and unreadable.
The ripples in the coffee echoed with Ted's hysterical roar in Shiller's ears.
"You all suspect it has something to do with me, right?! You all think I'm the killer, that I'm the type of person who would hurt my classmates! You think the relic left by the professor is a dangerous weapon, but I won't let you take it away!"
Ted's eyes were wide open, the red veins in his eyes looked like they could burst at any moment, and the Blue Beetle, panicked, scuttled around the Water Prison but couldn't escape. It didn't matter what it said—Ted seemed not to hear it at all.
The Golden Vanguards would have stepped forward to intervene, but this only stimulated Ted further, making him feel that even his closest friends didn't understand him. A fierce conflict erupted between the two. The professors had to join in to stop them, which made the situation increasingly uncontrollable.
Shiller slowly closed his eyes before the illusion dragged him back into the labyrinth. He saw Ted and the Golden Vanguard changing their faces; purple and golden flames collided, bursting into fierce flames.
"Have the base's smart butler send a message to the Blue Beetle, telling it someone is trying to control Ted and if it doesn't want Ted to get hurt, then let him become the real Blue Beetle. He'll know what to do."
After saying this, Shiller's consciousness could no longer stay in the real world and plunged back into the illusion.
Hanging up the communication, Bruce immediately sent a message to the smart butler, then said to Arthur, "Release the Water Prison holding the Blue Beetle, do it now!"
Though Arthur looked slightly hesitant, his actions were not slow. They had already rushed to the door of the hospital room. With a wave of his hand, the Water Prison holding the Blue Beetle disappeared.
By now, the Blue Beetle had received the message from the smart butler. It had long sensed something wrong with Ted but couldn't do anything about it while confined. Once it was free, its body emitted a glow that lit up the entire room.
The professors pushed open the door, and Ted collapsed to the floor. As they went to help him, a battlesuit of blue energy slowly emerged on Ted's body. He emitted a slightly painful moan but quickly got up from the ground.
Ted appeared confused but managed to stand firm after staggering slightly, holding his head as he looked at the professors rushing in.
"Ted, are you alright? How do you feel?"
Ted shook his head. Bruce saw the bandage wrapped around his shoulder, knowing it was his wound. Ted also realized something and touched his shoulder wound.
"Who attacked you?" asked Oliver.
Ted opened his mouth to speak but suddenly gasped, standing still and blinking, then said, "No, no one attacked me."
"What about the wound on your body?"
"I... did it to myself."
Diana stepped forward in utter disbelief, saying, "You don't have to lie, Ted. We're all here; we'll protect you."
"I'm telling the truth." Ted insisted, saying, "That day after I went home, I felt very scared, didn't sleep all night, and felt mentally unwell in the morning. I thought it was because I hadn't kept an eye on the Blue Beetle, causing Bono to be hurt..."
"I know she must be in pain, but I didn't do it on purpose. I feel very guilty, but there was nothing I could do, and then I saw an arrow in my roommate's equipment box, I... I secretly took one and stabbed it through my shoulder…"
"So you self-harmed?!" exclaimed Diana.
Ted nodded and said, "I'm sorry, but I really didn't mean to cause any trouble…"
"My God!" Oliver stepped forward, pulled him to sit on the bed, and said, "The attack on Bono has nothing to do with you! How can you blame yourself?"
Oliver's words diverted Ted's attention while others exchanged glances. They realized that what Shiller said might be true, someone had influenced Ted's mind, amplifying the guilt in his heart.
At that moment, Bruce's phone received a message from the Blue Beetle—"There was a moment when he wanted to say Bono had attacked him, but I stopped him."
Bruce didn't understand the exact mechanics of the Blue Beetle's possession, but it was clear, this alien artifact had its own magic, and when merged with the host, it could understand their thoughts.
Bruce quietly showed the message to the others, and they all breathed a sigh of relief. If Ted had indeed framed Bono, it could have caused a lot of trouble.
Just from the crowd of students gathered here without any clear explanation, one could tell that there were no witnesses to Ted's attack; otherwise, it would have caused an uproar.
In the absence of witnesses, whoever had the most motive naturally had the most suspicion. Bono had been killed once; although it was Zan who acted, the Blue Beetle had been behind the mischief at the back. It wasn't entirely unreasonable to speculate that Ted might be responsible for negligence, and Bono's desire for revenge against Ted was logical.
Moreover, everyone knew Bono's powerful water control abilities, and the wound on Ted's shoulder looked exactly like it was made by a waterjet; his choice of an arrow as a tool for self-harm had likely been influenced to make framing Bono easier.
If he had succeeded in framing him, the matter wouldn't have ended there. The students would surely split into two factions, one supporting Ted, the other supporting Bono, and no matter how the professors handled it, it would have pleased no one.
Fortunately, Shiller had seen through this scheme in advance. Taking a dangerous step by releasing the Blue Beetle, it directly controlled Ted, preventing him from saying something irrevocable.
This was also very risky. After all, if the Blue Beetle was still being controlled, it could have made Ted resist violently. If a fight had broken out in the hospital room, it would have been a complete disaster.