"Ah, you speak of Cangliu? There is indeed a reason for that," Mo Ziye sighed, spreading his hands with a touch of regret. "It's actually unavoidable. Only one person from the Sea Kingdom can ascend to the land every three thousand years. Although they are prodigies, they face many restrictions."
"Such as?" Bai Cha's curiosity was piqued.
"First, if they break the law, they are repatriated to the Sea Kingdom. This is quite severe," Mo Ziye said seriously. "The land changes drastically over three thousand years. If the person from the Sea Kingdom is repatriated, it's equivalent to cutting off their information link with the continent for three millennia."
"...That is indeed serious," Bai Cha nodded thoughtfully. If they were really repatriated, they would be severely behind and unable to keep up with the times. It would be like an ancient person suddenly time-traveling to the present, which would be terrifying.
"Aren't you going to resist?" Bai Cha asked, not understanding. "Don't you have a strong sense of justice? Why not help him?"
"It's not that I don't help. Every time I do, it backfires, and those people become even more hostile towards Cangliu," Mo Ziye said with some embarrassment. "Merfolk have the same powerful physical functions as dragons. We sometimes can't control our strength when we act, making casualties easy to occur. In the past, when merfolk resisted, there were three injured and two dead, and they were repatriated."
So after a few instances of taking the lead, Cangliu became even more targeted. Mo Ziye had no choice but to stop his attempts to help. And Cangliu certainly couldn't act; if he accidentally caused a death, he would be directly repatriated.
"Is that so..." Bai Cha swirled her teacup, lost in thought.
Mo Ziye was still watching the arrogant group by the back door. Beside him, Bai Cha had already stood up, holding her golden silk teacup, and walked step by step towards the group surrounding Cangliu.
"Hey, hey? Bai Cha?" Mo Ziye, startled, tried to stand up and stop her, but Lucifer placed a hand on his shoulder.
Lucifer's eyes held a subtle hint of hostility, yet his expression remained gentle. "Please do not disturb my master when they are making a decision. Perhaps you should calm down, Young Master Mo."
"Huh?" Mo Ziye was provoked by Lucifer again. He heard Lucifer add, "My master dislikes people who talk too much," Lucifer said with a smile. "They find it bothersome."
Hearing this, Mo Ziye immediately shut his mouth. However, this reaction made Lucifer even more displeased.
"Hey, move aside! Why use the back door when the front door is open!" One person, upon seeing Bai Cha approaching with her teacup, was taken aback. This woman looked somewhat familiar, so uniquely beautiful that he felt a strong sense of recognition.
"You're Bai Cha?" another person recognized her. "Aren't you the one Mo Ziye is pursuing?"
"What, you don't fancy the top rank and are now trying to flirt with this pretty boy?" a man sneered. This man was older, probably having awakened later, and was clearly several years older than the others.
The sudden appearance of the beautiful young woman caused a momentary chaos. Some tried to stop Bai Cha from interfering, while others made snide remarks. For a brief moment, no one had the time to pay attention to Cangliu's plight.
Cangliu, wrapped in his black cloak, with a strand of azure hair obscuring his left eye, quietly watched Bai Cha. His pure eyes showed no ripples of surprise. The crimson tea in the golden silk teacup reflected the light from outside like a red crystal. Bai Cha's long and beautiful hands held the delicate white porcelain handle. With an elegant raise of her hand, she gently tossed the orange-red liquid onto the person who had been stomping on Cangliu the hardest, drenching the person before her and stunning them.
"Ah... the water spilled," Bai Cha chuckled, a mischievous, slightly wicked smile curving her lips. She extended the empty golden silk teacup forward, like a villain, saying, "Go, pour me another one."
"Damn, are you looking for trouble!" Two people, clearly hot-tempered, immediately charged forward.
"Chen Ju! Shen Fei! Wait! This person is..." Another person became anxious and was about to step forward to stop them. However, Chen Ju was already pinned to the ground. With a "bang," he was forced to kneel, his knees cracking the granite floor. This happened almost instantaneously. Chen Ju was ranked twenty-seventh and was definitely not weak, possessing a fiery temper. Judging by the cracks in the floor, the surrounding people could not believe Chen Ju had knelt voluntarily.
Shen Fei, standing beside him, had no chance to resist. Bai Cha pinned his shoulders, smashing his face into the ground. Both of them were sweating profusely from the pain, groaning on the ground.
"Now that's more like it," Bai Cha nodded with satisfaction. She handed the teacup behind her, which was naturally caught by Lucifer, who had followed her and stood behind her, refilling Bai Cha's cup with crimson tea.
"Whoosh—" As soon as she received the tea, Bai Cha poured the scalding crimson tea onto Shen Fei's face again. Chen Ju's knees were crushed by Bai Cha's hold. As for Shen Fei, Bai Cha had been gentler, only fracturing his shoulder and nasal bone. Shen Fei was already terrified. Dazed from being slammed, he was instantly awakened by the splash. Seeing Bai Cha smiling as she handed him the teacup, Shen Fei scrambled over, grabbed the teacup from Bai Cha, and on his knees, went to Lucifer to pour a cup of water, which he then shakily handed to Bai Cha. The arrogant demeanor he had displayed while bullying others was completely gone.
"So obedient," Bai Cha chuckled. This time, she didn't spill it again but took a satisfied sip.
The surroundings were silent. The onlookers, who had been watching, were so scared they held their breath. Those who had bullied Cangliu and even resorted to physical violence now had trembling knees, their faces pale with fear.
"Miss Bai, this is our matter. Please do not interfere," a girl said, seemingly displeased, her expression somewhat ugly.
"Are you referring to bullying?" Bai Cha looked at the girl, who appeared quite polite, with amusement.
"Then you don't need to meddle, do you?" a short boy interjected, but his eyes darted away, clearly lacking confidence.
"I'm not interfering," Bai Cha said, raising her teacup. "I'm just picking a fight with you all on my own. Who cares about you? You can bully others, can't I bully you?"
Everyone was left speechless.
Looking at Bai Cha, Cangliu had an illusion. He felt as if Bai Cha wasn't looking at him, but through him, at someone else. Ripples of unspoken sadness flowed through his usually placid pupils.
"Some people are beyond saving. They stand in hell and want to drag clean souls down with them," Bai Cha said dazedly, looking at Cangliu. She seemed to have finally come back to her senses. She toyed with a silver dagger in her hand, and through the intricate carvings on its blade, she could see a faint orange-red glow within. This was a power capable of killing dragons, a weapon crafted from a special mineral that even dragons could not withstand.
"What do you mean! He always acts high and mighty, not saying a word. It's our business to exclude him, why are you interfering?" another person couldn't help but complain.
"Exactly. We were just making a joke, we didn't do anything to him."
"We can't even beat him, so we can't even say a few words about him?"
"..."
Humans are like this. Once someone starts, there will be followers to defend them. They became their own lawyers, and Bai Cha, in turn, became the defendant in their exclusion.
"Humans are truly laughable," Lucifer chuckled softly. His deep voice carried a strong mockery that made Mo Ziye's face turn green and white, yet he could not retort.
A dozen people gradually surrounded Bai Cha and Cangliu. The crowd's fervor grew, accusing Cangliu of being "high and mighty" and Bai Cha of "meddling." Soon, they were speaking of Cangliu's coldness and Bai Cha's cruelty. Bai Cha merely smiled and listened silently. She thought of the person who had left him back then. Was Bai Ze like this too, bathed in pre-avalanche snowflakes, immersed in these words? Their voices were louder than anyone else's, their emotions a hundred times more agitated than Bai Cha and Cangliu's. They vehemently accused the two in the center, as if they were the true victims.
"Will you follow me?"
Amidst the righteous and noisy accusations, Cangliu lowered his head. A dagger was thrown before him. The dagger's carvings were orange-red, emitting a burning glow, as if to melt away even the frost from the sea, along with him.
"I can relieve you of your worries," Bai Cha's expression was utterly cold. A chilling wind began to blow, and the air seemed to thicken. The surrounding light dimmed, distorting with faint electrical currents.
"There are people who exploit loopholes in laws and rules, who use harsh words to hurt the innocent, who arbitrarily use rumors and public opinion to try and kill others, and who seek empathy with righteous indignation." Black mist billowed from her hands, making everyone gasp for breath. Bai Cha stood amidst it, like a crowned Satan. "They deserve to be like you, to apologize. They need to suffer more than you, to accept your apology. What do you think?"
Bai Cha smiled, surveying the now silent crowd. Their ages varied, the youngest only twelve or thirteen, while the oldest were over twenty. After all, this academy was special, with years determined by the time of their contracted dragons. Why were they afraid to speak now? They were so brave moments ago, accusing others of faults, standing in the light to point fingers. Why did they now only wish to flee? Well, she hadn't understood these things when she was younger, otherwise her brother wouldn't have died. Thinking about it, she felt a bit like she was speaking too late. Bai Cha's smile was somewhat cold, but when she saw Lucifer, she couldn't help but pause.
Bright moon, clear breeze, like stars, like jade. His brows furrowed almost imperceptibly. In his pure black peach blossom eyes, so similar to her own, Bai Cha actually read worry.
Unconsciously, the black mist in Bai Cha's hands gradually receded, and the surroundings returned to normal. The light became clear again. Their eyes met, and Lucifer then noticed his own lapse in composure, lowering his gaze elsewhere.
"Sigh, forget it. You handle it," Bai Cha sighed, her earlier enthusiasm vanishing without a trace. She turned around, and this time, the crowd scrambled out of her way, parting like a tide.
Bai Cha did not retract her dagger. Her interest had been interrupted. While Lucifer didn't make her feel disappointed, she had lost the interest to deal with scum. She was now more inclined to eat something.
"Lucifer, Mo Ziye, let's go. I'm hungry."
"Yes, my master." She was hungry now and wanted to eat.
"Xiao Bai? What happened just now? Your voice was so small, I didn't hear you..." Mo Ziye scratched his head, still completely oblivious and confused. "Wait for me, Xiao Bai. I've already asked Michael to reserve seats in the cafeteria. Let's go together! Together!"
The three quickly exited the classroom. The crowd gradually began to react, their gazes towards Cangliu filled with more anger, while some, like Bai Cha, had lost interest.
"It's this kid again, causing trouble. Why does someone help him so many times?"
"I don't believe it. Let's see how many more people are willing to help him! And he killed us? He's gotten bold!"
The crowd stirred again, but no one noticed that on Cangliu's pale face, hidden by his hood, a hint of a smile appeared. He tightly gripped the dagger in his hand, as if it were warmth.