CHAPTER 423: CHAPTER 423: OPENING OF DIFFERENT DIMENSIONAL SPACE

The pitch-black, trench coat-style military uniform—could even Yu Ruoyun deny how handsome Wang Lan looked in it? Of course, if you didn’t think it was handsome enough, he wouldn’t mind you putting on the Phoenix Saint Cloth, spreading your wings, and descending from the sky for the airport pickup; that would be even cooler.

Originally, wearing a military uniform to pick someone up at the airport seemed too solemn. But who could blame Wang Lan? He had fainted immediately after a battle and woke up with little time to spare.

So, the slim and cool military uniform stood out conspicuously among the crowd. After about half an hour, a group of students dressed in Modu City Star Martial Academy uniforms streamed out of the airport.

Each pulled a suitcase, forming the most eye-catching sight at the airport. Soon, Wang Lan spotted Jiang Xinyu among the crowd, laughing and chatting with several female classmates.

Suddenly, as if by telepathic impulse, Jiang Xinyu turned her head sharply and saw Wang Lan’s striking figure from afar.

The school didn’t arrange an airport welcome for students returning from overseas aid missions. The welcome ceremony would be held at the school, and according to a third-year senior, it was nothing more than a formality. So, Jiang Xinyu hadn’t expected Wang Lan to show up here at all.

They had been apart for more than three months. Although Jiang Xinyu had spent most of that time moving from one battlefield to another, not a single day had passed without her thinking of Wang Lan. Women feel this sentiment more intensely than men. Men can at least distract themselves to mitigate the longing, but it’s much harder for women.

The moment she saw Wang Lan, three months of pent-up yearning surged through her like a bursting dam.

In an instant, Jiang Xinyu’s figure flashed like a streak of light, appearing before Wang Lan, and then she flung herself into his tight embrace.

"Oh my god, Xinyu... Who is that man?"

"Doesn’t Xinyu have a boyfriend? Could it be... No way, Wang Lan is so outstanding, Xinyu wouldn’t cheat, right? That man is a soldier..."

Murmurs erupted instantly. It wasn’t surprising that the third-year students didn’t recognize Wang Lan immediately; in his military uniform, the most eye-catching thing about him wasn’t Wang Lan himself, but the uniform he wore.

As he walked over holding Jiang Xinyu’s hand, everyone realized that Jiang Xinyu’s boyfriend had actually come to pick her up.

"I’m so envious of Xinyu, having such a considerate and talented boyfriend."

"I told you! Xinyu wouldn’t let such a good boyfriend go for someone else’s benefit. Wait a second, aren’t we focusing on the wrong thing here?"

"Right, isn’t that military uniform from the Tianjian Bureau?"

"Definitely from the Tianjian Bureau. My dad is the Director of the Tianjian Bureau, and only those with an officer-level rank can wear black uniforms... Is Wang Lan a school-level officer of the Tianjian Bureau?"

"What’s the big deal? Isn’t it possible? Wang Lan is so talented; even if he joined the Tianjian Bureau, he should have been directly promoted to school-level, right?"

"You don’t know how difficult it is to get promoted within the Tianjian Bureau. Anyone who climbs the ranks step by step in the Tianjian Bureau must have done so through solid, tangible achievements. There’s no such thing as extraordinary promotion in the Tianjian Bureau..."

With Wang Lan there to pick her up, Jiang Xinyu naturally wouldn’t take the bus to the school with everyone else. Since Wang Lan had driven, she got into his car, and her turbulent emotions gradually calmed.

Jiang Xinyu’s temperament was generally subdued; she seldom experienced drastic emotional swings. Throwing herself into Wang Lan’s arms in front of so many people this time was already an extreme display of emotion for her. If Xie Sisi were in the same emotional state, she might have publicly started making out with him right there.

"Why did you wear your military uniform to pick me up? You don’t usually wear it, do you?"

"The uniform looks cool!"

"Tell me the truth."

"Isn’t saying it’s cool the truth? Alright, I just finished a mission and didn’t have time to change before rushing over."

"I guessed as much. I called you before I boarded the plane, but even though the call went through, no one answered. I figured you must be busy. Are you done now?"

"Yep, all done. Let’s not go to school first. I have something to give you. Come to my place."

Hearing this, Jiang Xinyu’s ears suddenly turned red. "That’s... not appropriate, is it? We should go back to school first. There’s still the welcome ceremony later..."

"Forget it; it’s just a formality. Trust me. Besides, after roughing it for over three months, you definitely need to recover properly. Let’s go out for lamb chops tonight, and don’t bother going back to school..."

Wang Lan rattled on with his plans, completely oblivious to Jiang Xinyu’s ears growing progressively redder...

"The battlefield truly is a place that forges people." Jiang Xinyu nestled in Wang Lan’s embrace, recounting some unforgettable events from her three-month support assignment. "I’ve been to trial spaces before, but the Exotic Beasts there are like docile kittens compared to those in a truly chaotic Different Dimensional Space.

"Exotic Beasts from Different Dimensional Spaces are highly aggressive; any lapse in vigilance can lead to a surprise attack. During my first support mission, I was in the reserve group. That feeling... it’s something you could never experience even by going to a trial space numerous times.

"In the Middle East, there’s a small town called Kelsier. The people there mainly produce military uniforms, boots, and also refine steel. We received a mission because a Different Dimensional Space had opened nearby. I led twelve people to rescue the town’s residents.

"It took us only an hour from receiving our orders to reach the destination. But in that hour, I didn’t see rampaging Exotic Beasts, nor any cowering townspeople.

"When we arrived, there was nothing. Besides the bloodstains spread throughout the entire town, we didn’t find a single living person.

"The battlefield quickly made me tougher, braver, and also stronger..."

Using her own words, every day after officially joining the support mission could have been memorable, but because there were so many such days, she had grown accustomed to it.

"How many of the Soul Bead grenades I gave you did you use?"

"Not many of the others, but I used quite a few of the Medical Attribute ones. Not for myself, but for my classmates and teachers.

"I know you’re most concerned about my safety, but in reality... as long as my strength progresses fast enough, danger can’t catch up to me. A month after arriving in the Middle East, I broke through to the Galaxy Stage.

"After that, there were battles every day, and I absorbed Soul Beads daily. Coupled with the Immortal Cloud Mysterious Green Record Qi Cultivation Chapter you gave me, my strength grew constantly. By now, I’ve faintly reached the mid-Galaxy Stage. What about you? Last time on the phone, you said you’d also broken through to the Galaxy Stage?"

"Yes, mid-Galaxy Stage too." Wang Lan’s mind, however, wasn’t entirely on the conversation, his hand continually stroking Jiang Xinyu’s shoulder.

"Stop it!" Jiang Xinyu warned. "It seems the gap between us will only grow larger... Mmm... Don’t mess around! Didn’t you say you had something good for me? Is it just your restless hands? If you keep this up, I’m really going back to the school dorm tonight!"

"Alright, alright! I’ll stop! It’s mainly because I used points some time ago to redeem a Star Martial Skill for you. I’ll transmit it to you now." Saying this, he pressed two fingers, sword-like, to Jiang Xinyu’s brow.

"Snow God Domain? Where did this come from? Did you get it from the Kingdom of Ice and Snow?"

"No, didn’t I just tell you? I redeemed it with points from the school’s Star Martial Arts Museum."

"I searched the school’s Star Martial Arts Museum long ago; it wasn’t there."

"Don’t even get me started on that; it makes my blood boil just thinking about it! You know I developed the Star Martial Toxin Vaccine, right? Now the country is using the Star Martial Toxin Vaccine to trade for Star Martial Skills. And I still have to use my points to buy the skills they obtained through trade... They’re totally fleecing me!"

Watching Wang Lan’s antics, Jiang Xinyu rolled her eyes at him.

"By the way, how can you cultivate an Ice Attribute Star Martial Skill? Don’t tell me you’ve already fused an Ice Attribute?"

"Xinyu, you’re forcing me to brag!" Wang Lan declared, his body language becoming theatrical. "Never mind the Ice Attribute; I now possess the Storm Attribute, Flame Attribute, Melt Attribute, another Melt Attribute, and so on..."

BEEP BEEP BEEP—

Just as Wang Lan was about to take things further, his phone suddenly rang.

Wang Lan took out his phone, and his expression changed dramatically.

"What’s wrong?"

"A Tianjian Bureau distress signal..."

BOOM— Before Wang Lan could even finish getting dressed, a loud explosion erupted outside, followed by cries of alarm. Instantly, Wang Lan was on the balcony. Looking down, his expression changed drastically once more.

In Phoenix Plaza, a dozen Exotic Beasts had appeared and were frantically chasing the citizens. Phoenix Plaza, located in Modu City’s Fanghua District, typically hosted tens of thousands of people at night. An attack like this could cause massive casualties within minutes.

In a flash, Wang Lan’s figure vanished, reappearing moments later in the middle of Phoenix Plaza.

"Zanpakuto!"

In such a densely populated environment, the Zanpakuto was the most effective means of attack. The moment it was in his hand, Wang Lan’s form dissolved into a flurry of colorful butterflies.

"Help! Somebody help!" An Exotic Beast’s tongue ensnared a young girl’s foot, rapidly dragging her towards its gaping maw. Although some people nearby wanted to help, the terrifying sight of the Exotic Beast paralyzed them with fear.

Panicked people rushed into nearby shops, slamming doors shut, while many more sprinted desperately out of the plaza.

The girl despaired, staring blankly at the beast’s blood-red maw before her, seemingly petrified into stillness, her struggles ceasing. Suddenly, a butterfly appeared eerily above the Exotic Beast’s head, and then, a figure flashed past.

SPLURT— Green blood sprayed out, splattering the girl’s skirt. She felt a pair of arms lift her, and her vision blurred; suddenly, she was dozens of meters away.

And in that same instant, the dozen or so Exotic Beasts that had been chasing citizens in the plaza were all decapitated.

"Are you okay? Do you know where the Exotic Beasts came from?" Wang Lan urgently asked.

The girl, however, was stunned, staring blankly at Wang Lan. Did this soldier just save me? He’s so handsome... Am I not going to die? As awareness slowly returned, the sheer terror of the preceding moments overshadowed any thoughts of Wang Lan’s handsomeness, which vanished from her mind.

She turned and ran towards the exit of Phoenix Plaza.

At the rear of the plaza, in a flowerbed, another dozen or so Exotic Beasts were feasting. The area around the flowerbed was spattered with blood; several people who hadn’t managed to escape had been killed there by the Exotic Beasts.

A burning rage filled Wang Lan. His form transformed into Nether Butterflies, and in the blink of an eye, he had slain all dozen-plus Exotic Beasts. Beside the flowerbed, the fluctuations of a Star Martial Skill also emanated.

Wang Lan’s figure flashed, and he rejoined Jiang Xinyu. In the area where she stood, dozens of Exotic Beasts already lay dead. Before Jiang Xinyu, a distorted spatial rift pulsed, resembling the baleful, opening eye of a Demon.