The battle ended quickly. Many sea monkey creatures were killed, and many fled, but the Scarlet Rending Demons were all wiped out. Even if some of the sea monkeys escaped, it wouldn't make much difference, as they were just low-level servant monsters.
Without the Scarlet Rending Demons, a team of beginner mages from Feiniaoshi City could easily handle the situation. Besides, there were also intermediate mages in the city.
"We should head back to the ship now. Let Feiniaoshi City deal with the remaining sea monkeys," Zu Jiming suggested.
He was in the worst shape among them, with his arm slashed and still bleeding. If not for the ongoing battle, he would've already sought healing from Nan Rongni. Now, his arm was still bleeding heavily.
"Let's go. Back to the ship," Ai Jiangtu said, though he was still shocked by Mo Fan's strength. Once he saw Zu Jiming's condition, he snapped back to reality and led the group back to the ship. Turning to Mo Fan, he added, "I underestimated you."
Mo Fan had taken down a commander-level creature on his own, a feat that made Ai Jiangtu realize that Mo Fan's power was beyond that of an ordinary student. Even Ai Jiangtu himself, considered an outstanding talent among his peers, wasn't confident that he could single-handedly defeat the Crimson Split Demon. The best he could do was drive it away.
Mo Fan simply shrugged and said, "Don't overthink it. We've got plenty of time to get to know each other better."
Ai Jiangtu, however, was puzzled. "With your strength, why didn't you compete for the team leader position?"
The honor of being the National Team Captain was immense, but Mo Fan didn't even attempt to compete for it. Now, seeing Mo Fan's power, Ai Jiangtu felt as though Mo Fan had willingly given up the title to him.
Mo Fan waved it off. "Don't think too much. Being a leader doesn't come with extra resources. It just means you have to deal with a bunch of headaches. I'm not interested."
"..." Ai Jiangtu was speechless. Did Mo Fan not realize how prestigious it was to be the captain?
Once they returned to the ship, Nan Rongni saw Zu Jiming's bleeding arm and quickly cast healing magic.
Zhao Manyan, ever observant, nudged Mo Fan and whispered, "Have you noticed a pattern? Healing mages always seem to have large... um... assets!"
"Of course. You can't be in healing without being well-endowed," Mo Fan replied, but then fell silent, realizing that Xinxia didn't fit the pattern.
Though he had to admit, Nan Rongni, with her innocent demeanor, wasn't lacking in physical assets either. And he wondered if she had any hidden surprises as well.
Zu Jiming recovered quickly, but after such an intense battle, everyone was exhausted. Even though Mo Fan had taken care of a large number of sea monsters later on, the others had consumed significant amounts of their magical energy. Despite the challenges, they had resolved the immediate threat, allowing everyone to relax a bit.
Upon returning to Feiniaoshi City, the group was greeted by Captain Lin Junxian, who was ecstatic to hear that they had wiped out the Scarlet Rending Demons. He hadn't expected much—killing a few monsters would have been a success in his eyes—but these young mages had exceeded all expectations by eliminating even a commander-level Crimson Split Demon.
Ai Jiangtu, however, did not mention the issue with the missing infants, as it was still under investigation. He wanted to wait for Jiang Yu's report before discussing it further.
Back at their hotel, Jiang Yu and Mu Tingying arrived with disturbing news.
"You're saying that the city government here is deliberately allowing the sea monsters to thrive?" Ai Jiangtu stood up, his body radiating a murderous intent.
"I'm only speculating, but it's a fact that they've been covering up the disappearance and deaths of infants," Jiang Yu confirmed.
"Unbelievable! After all the blood and sweat we've put into fighting those sea monsters for them!" Nan Jue fumed.
"How many infants have gone missing?" Ai Jiangtu asked, trying to keep his composure.
"More than a hundred cases. It's particularly common in spring. I found this out by secretly looking into some of the city's departments," Jiang Yu explained.
Mu Tingying added more details, and after hearing it all, most of the group was furious. With the exception of Mo Fan and Zu Jiming, the others were ready to explode with anger.
Mo Fan wasn't indifferent, but he understood that Su Lu was behind this, and there was no way to trace it back to him. Even if they could find out the truth, what then? There was no chance of bringing him to justice. So what was the point of getting angry?
Even their mentors, if they knew about the missing infants, would be powerless to do anything. After all, they had only sent them here to deal with the Scarlet Rending Demons and were likely unaware of the other atrocities happening in the city.
Zu Jiming, on the other hand, was simply uninterested. He only cared about recovering from his injury.
"This city is a real disappointment!" Nan Jue spat angrily.
"I'm going to call my dad right now!" Jiang Shaoxu fumed, dropping her usual playful attitude.
But halfway through her sentence, she hesitated. The others were staring at her, making her realize she had slipped up.
"What? Can't I complain to my dad about something like this?" she snapped defensively.
"Miss Privileged, we're supposed to be staying incognito during this mission. We should handle this on our own," Mu Tingying reminded her.
Jiang Shaoxu fell silent, and Ai Jiangtu and the others began discussing how they could handle the situation themselves. They soon decided to confront Lin Junxian directly.
Mo Fan didn't join them, citing exhaustion. The others understood—after all, he had taken down a commander-level monster on his own. Whether the Crimson Split Demon had been weakened or not, it was still a formidable creature. Defeating such a monster was no small feat.
After the group left, Mo Fan quietly began to meditate. Rather than chase after something beyond their reach, he preferred to focus on recovering his strength.
A few days later, after hitting several dead ends, the group managed to expose a low-ranking official involved in the scandal. The matter was handed over to their mentors for further investigation. Though they were still frustrated, they couldn't stay in Feiniaoshi City forever.
Finally, they boarded Lin's Shipping Group's luxury cruise and set off across the Pacific, heading toward the Sakura Empire.
Feiniaoshi City had no heavy industry, so the sky and sea were a beautiful, clear blue. Now that they had left the Safe Zone, they could see the vast, endless expanse of the ocean stretching out before them, merging with the sky in the distance.
Of course, their good mood was also due to the fact that they believed the matter had been resolved. Everyone was in high spirits. Jiang Shaoxu even put on a sexy, revealing bikini, resuming her playful, carefree attitude.
(End of Chapter)