Chapter 244: Chapter 149: A Quasi-Divine Artifact’s Erosion, Revenge Operation
As Yin Guang explained, Pei Ze began to understand the full story.
Yin Xue and her companions had been ordered to guard a resource point. Just yesterday, their tour of duty had ended. After handing things over to the Wizards who came to relieve them, they began their return journey to Red Maple City.
But on their way back, they were ambushed by the Witch Hunting Team.
The enemy force included two Fourth-Class Priests, whose strength far surpassed their own.
The Second-level Wizard leading the team sacrificed himself to hold off all the Winter Frost Priests, buying the others a chance to escape.
But even so, they still suffered heavy casualties, and Yin Xue was severely injured in the process.
By the time Yin Guang finished, Pei Ze’s expression had turned grim.
"Hasn’t the Witch Hunting Team always avoided us? Why would they set an ambush?"
Yin Guang shook his head, his expression dejected. "We don’t know either. We were always the ones chasing them. I guess they wanted to get back at us."
"The way they attacked was methodical. They must have been planning this for a long time, and they had already scouted our movements and strength."
Pei Ze fell silent and said no more.
They rushed to a stone house. More than ten Legendary Knights with formidable auras stood guard at the door; they were likely the followers of certain Wizards.
They clearly recognized Yin Guang. Seeing Pei Ze with him, they didn’t stop them and opened the door to let them both inside.
More than ten Wizards were in the spacious living room, some standing, some sitting. They all exuded the sharp aura of soldiers, and on their chests, they wore the unique black and red badge of the Witch Hunting Team. The badge’s design was two clasped, scarlet gloves.
Among them was a Second-level Wizard.
When the Second-level Wizard saw Yin Guang bring in a strange Wizard, his brow furrowed. He was just about to question him when a Female Witch beside him leaned in and whispered a few words in his ear.
The Second-level Wizard’s gaze sharpened. His look toward Pei Ze was now filled with surprise and scrutiny. He asked no further questions, simply waving his hand to usher them inside.
Led by Yin Guang, the two of them crossed the living room and went straight to the room at the very back.
Yin Guang stopped at the door. After a moment’s hesitation, he handed the healing potion to Pei Ze and said in a low voice, "You go in. I’ll wait out here."
Pei Ze glanced at him, took the potion, and gently pushed the door open to enter.
The room was quiet. The curtains were drawn, making the light dim.
Yin Xue lay quietly on the bed, her hair fanned out beside her. Her face was pale, and her exquisite features seemed almost transparent in the dim light.
She looked so fragile, as if she might shatter at the slightest touch. It was the first time Pei Ze had ever seen her like this.
In the past, Yin Xue always had the composed demeanor of an older sister, gentle yet exuding a confident strength.
Whenever he was with her, Pei Ze felt a sense of peace that came from deep within.
But now...
As if sensing someone by the bed, Yin Xue’s eyelids fluttered. Her eyes slowly opened, and when she saw Pei Ze standing by the window, a flash of surprise crossed her pale face before melting into a faint smile.
"Pei Ze, what are you doing here?"
The moment she saw Pei Ze, the young woman’s eyes seemed to brighten.
Pei Ze smiled gently. "I ran into Yin Guang on my way here. When he told me you were injured, I rushed over immediately."
Pei Ze sat down at her bedside and gently helped Yin Xue sit up, propping her against the headboard. He then uncorked the potion and brought it to her lips.
"Drink this first."
A gentle look appeared in Yin Xue’s eyes as she let Pei Ze help her slowly drink the potion.
As the potion took effect, some color returned to her face.
"It’s nothing serious, really. My Spirit is just overdrawn. I’ll be fine after some rest," Yin Xue said softly.
Pei Ze smiled faintly, his eyes glancing at Yin Xue’s right hand, which was hidden beneath the blanket.
He had sensed the strong fluctuations of divine grace emanating from that spot the moment he entered the room.
Yin Xue’s injuries were far from being as simple as she claimed.
For a Wizard, physical injuries were trivial; there were plenty of ways to heal them.
An overdrawn Spirit was more troublesome, but it could always be restored with time and care.
The truly serious issues were things like bloodline corruption, soul damage, or the corrosion of foreign energies.
If Yin Xue’s injuries were simple, Yin Guang wouldn’t have used the words "severely injured" to describe them.
Since Yin Xue didn’t want to say more, Pei Ze didn’t press the issue. He simply smiled and nodded. "Right. But you need to get some proper rest."
Pei Ze stayed and chatted with Yin Xue for a while longer, mostly telling her about his experiences since arriving in Red Maple City.
Even though she had already heard some stories from others, hearing them directly from Pei Ze himself still surprised Yin Xue, and she would occasionally cover her mouth with a soft gasp.
Her injury seemed to have lowered her guard, and she showed a more girlish side of herself to Pei Ze.
Only when he noticed a hint of fatigue on Yin Xue’s face did Pei Ze tell her to get some rest, before pushing the door open and leaving the room.
After closing the door, Pei Ze turned to meet Yin Guang’s questioning gaze. "She drank the potion and is asleep now," he said in a low voice.
Without waiting for Yin Guang’s reply, he walked straight into the living room. His gaze swept across the occupants as he asked in a heavy tone, "I want to know what’s really going on with my senior’s injuries."
The members of the Witch Hunting Team tended to have a sense of superiority when dealing with ordinary Wizards.
If any other Level 1 Wizard had asked that way, they might not have gotten angry, but they certainly wouldn’t have been pleased.
However, Pei Ze was no ordinary Wizard.
He wasn’t just the most brilliant genius Chenxi City had seen in nearly a century; he had also personally killed a Fourth-Class Priest. Furthermore, he was Yin Xue’s junior. By all rights, he was qualified to know the details of the situation.
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