Chapter 7

Twenty-three steps, turn left, run straight, and escape the obstacles...

Under the dim starlight, Morin's run did not slow down at all. He could see everything clearly and was extremely familiar with the route. The footsteps behind him, however, were stumbling, with legs and feet rubbing violently against the grass and flowers, causing Morin to feel physical pain for Mosen.

Despite this, the distance between them was constantly closing. Although Morin could see clearly and run steadily, he could not run very fast. The person behind, although running clumsily, had a full burst of energy.

But all of this was within Morin's calculations. His contingency plan was designed for such unexpected situations.

Listening to the footsteps behind him, Morin began to count silently in his heart.

Five, four, three, two, one...

This is it!

Whoosh!

The figure chasing behind him suddenly sank, clearly falling into a trap. Morin had set this trap here long ago. This was his contingency plan, a strategy that could both attack and defend.

"Ha ha." Morin laughed happily and turned around. After a careful look, he confirmed that this was the Lu Ping that Mosen had mentioned. This trap was clearly not just a pit; rather, it was more like a swamp, a loose quicksand. As soon as Lu Ping ran to this spot, he immediately sank deep into it. At this moment, only his head remained above the ground, unable to move at all.

"Amazing, isn't it?" Morin approached, crouching in front of Lu Ping's head, pointing to a plant beside his face: "This is called earthworm grass. Its roots make the soil abnormally soft during growth. But what you see now is a specially cultivated variety. They grow faster and reproduce more strongly. I planted them this afternoon. Look, they've already grown into such a large patch, with both width and depth. In a while, your head will also sink. Do you have anything to say? Hurry up!"

"Do you really think this can trap me?" Lu Ping said.

"Ha, what else? Who do you think you are?" Morin said.

"Who do you think I am?" Lu Ping asked.

"Rest assured, I haven't mistaken you. Lu Ping, a student who failed the two major exams at Zhaifeng Academy and is now on probation. You don't strive for progress, yet you parasitize on others' lives. Am I right?" Morin said.

Lu Ping was silent for a moment, then looked at Morin and said, "You are not from our academy."

"Yes, I'm not. So what?" Morin said.

"Who sent you?" Lu Ping asked.

"You don't need to know that." Morin said.

"Alright!" Lu Ping nodded, which seemed to be the only action he could take at this moment.

"What?" Morin was puzzled by Lu Ping's actions.

"There was a little misunderstanding just now." Lu Ping said.

"Ha, are you planning to beg for mercy?" Morin laughed.

"No, I mean, I had a misunderstanding about you." Lu Ping said.

"Really? What did you misunderstand?" Morin was still laughing.

"You don't need to know that." Lu Ping repeated Morin's words verbatim.

"Oh, then what?" Morin said.

"Then I'm going back to sleep." As soon as Lu Ping finished speaking, he saw the mud and sand rise, and his arms were already pulled out of the ground. Before Morin could react, he used his hands to push on both sides, and his entire body was pulled out of the ground. Then, as if climbing steps, he stepped on the hard soil and walked up. The whole process was effortless, and his movements were so natural.

"I'm going back to sleep." Lu Ping carefully brushed off the mud on his body, not even glancing at Morin.

"You should clean this up; it's too dangerous." After saying this, he turned and walked away, leaving Morin staring at the large pit left by Lu Ping, his face full of disbelief.

"This... what's going on?" By the time he spoke, Lu Ping had already disappeared into the night. Morin looked at the large pit, still in disbelief.

This was his contingency plan, a strategy that could both attack and defend, meaning that in unfavorable situations, this was his means of self-preservation.

Given its importance, its reliability was beyond question. The improved earthworm grass had always been regarded by Morin as a secret weapon. He was fully aware of the strong adsorption capacity of the soil after planting such a patch of earthworm grass. Perceivers below the third level of the Force Spirit would not be able to escape from it, let alone an ordinary person.

"What's going on?" Morin was still muttering.

"Could there be something special about the soil?" Morin picked up a handful of the loose soil loosened by the earthworm grass, even putting it in his mouth to taste it.

"There's nothing wrong... " This inspection had been done before Morin planted the earthworm grass in the afternoon, and now he was just confirming it again.

But there was nothing wrong with either the soil or the earthworm grass. So the problem must lie with Lu Ping. An ordinary person's body, with the strength of the third level of the Force Spirit?

That was impossible.

There were some people who were born with extraordinary strength, but such people could be detected through perception, as their so-called innate strength actually came from the Force Spirit. They were born perceivers, naturally perceiving the Force Spirit, and some were even born at the first level.

People who could naturally perceive the Force Spirit were called Awakeners. Their innate perception of the Force Spirit was unusually sharp and strong. They could improve the level of this Force Spirit more quickly, and after the sixth level, the connection with the Hero Spirit would be smoother and more stable. The abilities they produced were often more powerful, usually at level five or higher. Like Mosen's inspection and Luo Wei's透视 (X-ray vision), although they had different uses, they did not have actual combat power and were rated at level two.

But no matter what, there had never been an Awakener born with the third level of the Force Spirit. Moreover, even Awakeners could not hide their Force Spirit. From the information provided by Mosen and his own observations, Morin could not detect any Force Spirit from Lu Ping.

"What's going on?" Morin muttered again, having to clean up the earthworm grass as Lu Ping had instructed.

After finishing this task, Morin had analyzed the situation countless times in his mind but still could not figure it out. He dared not easily test again. He could no longer gauge the depth of Lu Ping's abilities.

In the morning, with the sun shining, a new day began.

When Lu Ping pushed open the window, he saw Mosen busy in the flower bed outside.

"Teacher Mosen, so early!" Lu Ping greeted him.

Mosen nodded, his expression extremely complex.

Around three in the morning, his nephew Morin had sneaked into his room, scaring him half to death. But this was far less shocking than the story Morin told him afterward. It took three rounds of confirmation to verify the details.

Unbelievable!

The uncle and nephew analyzed the situation until dawn, but still had no clue. As a Perceiver of the Momentum Spirit, Mosen's eyes were bloodshot, clearly not just from fatigue.

He ran out early to tend the flower bed, but his mind could not calm down this time.

Until now, when Lu Ping opened the window and, as usual, climbed out of it.

"I didn't step on anything!" Lu Ping raised his hands and said to Mosen.

Mosen nodded with difficulty, then saw Lu Ping searching in the flower bed and pointed in a certain direction: "It's over there."

"Thanks." Lu Ping happily walked over, picked up the watering hose, and washed up.

Everything was as usual, except for Mosen. Lu Ping's actions that would normally make him furious were met with unexpected cooperation today. Lu Ping, however, showed no surprise at Mosen's abnormal attitude, as if he had expected it.

"Who are you really?" The question that had troubled Mosen all night was finally asked.

"I'm Lu Ping!" Lu Ping smiled.

Mosen couldn't see through him, couldn't understand him, and the other party clearly had no intention of revealing anything. Mosen watched as Lu Ping left. His nephew Morin, after Lu Ping left, emerged from the densest part of the flower bed.

The uncle and nephew looked at each other, Lu Ping's nonchalant attitude making them even more puzzled. Whether it was the poison needles or the earthworm grass, Morin's clear intent to kill was evident, yet this guy just let it go? No thoughts of revenge at all?

"This is not scientific..." Morin muttered. As an assassin, he was more accustomed to bloody and violent affairs. Not receiving any retaliation in this situation was almost a miracle.

"I want to try him again," Morin said.

"Don't mess around!" Mosen said. Lu Ping made him feel somewhat unfathomable, but more importantly, after the incident at the pavilion yesterday, he already felt some regret. Being woken up by Morin in the middle of the night and learning of his failure, he was surprised, but deep down, he felt a bit relieved.

"I won't mess around. I'll be very careful, just a test. Uncle, you don't really want him dead, right?" Morin said.

Mosen was silent.

"Also," Morin glanced at the flower bed, "What's with your Fire Lotus? I saw you take the flower bud off yesterday, but now it looks like you're trying to make it bloom again?"

"What's wrong with that?" Mosen was puzzled.

"The Fire Lotus has a very strong fiery nature. When it blooms, it will absorb a large amount of water, so it's suitable to grow in water. On land, when it blooms, it will cause a small area of drought, and plants within a two-meter radius may wither. Didn't you remove the flower bud for this reason?"

"What are you saying?" Mosen was shocked.

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