Chapter 678: Chapter 534: Hospital
After learning about the existence of this mysterious "bodyguard," Yang Xiao ate well, slept well, and even entertained a half-baked idea, looking forward to either the Mirror Ghost or the enemies from the Yu Yuan Sect showing up, preferably all together in a group.
Days flew by swiftly, and during this period, everything was calm without disturbances. The assassin lurking within the higher echelons of the Academy seemed to have sensed the danger and had decided not to make a move on Yang Xiao.
After several days of rest, the day of the competition finally arrived. In the early morning, Yang Xiao packed his backpack and stepped out of his apartment into the night. If all went well, this would be his last competition.
Of course, if things went poorly, it would still be the last.
But this time, he was not going to fight alone. He had already contacted Qu Muzhi, and once they successfully met up during the mission, together with this Demon Rakshasa, even the encounter of a You Level expert could lead to a battle.
The only condition was not to encounter some freakishly powerful opponent. If they ran into someone as bizarre as the silver-haired captain from the last fight, the two of them might not even have a chance to escape.
Lu Wencheng, also known as Yang Cha’s senior brother, had commented that the silver-haired captain was a tough fighter even among the You Level experts—with a silver spear and a pocket watch, he had easily defeated Lu Wencheng with only a few effortless moves. Boosted by his good sister’s protection, he could even withstand the breakthrough-sealed Daoist robe old ghost.
Yang Xiao wondered whether the Provincial Office’s top expert possessed the same skill as the silver-haired captain as he walked, soon reaching a dim building enveloped by the night. The surroundings were empty, and the Contemplation Pavilion under the illumination of a few lanterns looked eerily terrifying.
A gust of wind blew, causing Yang Xiao to wrap his coat tightly around him and quicken his pace to step through the door with the ’甲’ wooden sign hanging on it.
Truth be told, the complexity of the covert competition hosted by the Ru Lin Academy exceeded Yang Xiao’s expectations. Four individuals from Rongcheng had attended, none of whom were pushovers. Among them, Dragon No.243, who he had eliminated, belonged to the Xiu Sect of the Yu Yuan Sect, and possessed skill slightly above the Upper Level of Severe. Another competitor, Qu Muzhi, also known as the Captain of Rongcheng’s No.1 team, was Sky No.97.
The last one, Prisoner No.44, had an unclear identity, but according to Qu Muzhi, the person was also an Evil Cultivator, and likely had connections with the Yu Yuan Sect.
Moreover, the person was very strong. Qu Muzhi had said that he might not be able to handle him alone. Conservatively speaking, the person’s strength also reached the Upper Level of Severe or even the Peak of Fierce Level. All Yang Xiao could do was to meet up with Qu Muzhi as quickly as possible once the mission started.
"I wonder what sort of mission this will be, but hopefully, everything goes smoothly..."
After making all the necessary preparations, Yang Xiao pushed open the door at the end of the tunnel. Accompanied by an eerie feeling of weightlessness, his consciousness gradually faded.
He didn’t know how much time had passed when Yang Xiao woke up, feeling groggy. He sat on a chair with a backrest, in front of him was a white table, and the walls were painted a light blue.
Soft and even lighting cascaded from above, and several white lamps were arranged under the room’s ceiling.
The entire room was painted light blue, giving a very comforting feeling, like being in a calm bay. The soft light cast upon it brought a profound sense of peace inside.
The table was empty, devoid of any items, not even the simplest of decorations. The entire room wasn’t very large, about twenty square meters, and contained a table, a storage cabinet against the wall, two chairs, a tightly drawn curtain, and a foldable light blue screen. Besides these, there were no superfluous things.
Of course, there were also two doors, a wooden one and an iron one.
The wooden door was located behind the light blue screen and seemed to lead to another small room, while the iron door could only be opened from the inside—outside it, presumably, lay the hospital corridors.
Gently standing up, Yang Xiao tried not to make any sound. The oddity of the room was immediately apparent; the table and chairs couldn’t be moved, as they were welded to the ground. Sharp points on the table corners and chair armrests were tightly wrapped with white gauze.
Walking quietly to the curtain, he slowly pulled it open. In the next second, Yang Xiao’s brows furrowed tightly—a painted window appeared on the wall in front of him.
Lack of windows, clear and simple spatial layout, overall harmonious color tones, slip-resistant flooring, soundproofed walls, gentle lighting without blind spots, furniture not easily movableless, and a complete absence of any potentially harmful sharp angles... Based on all these features, only two places came to Yang Xiao’s mind: first, a police custody room, and second, a psychiatric hospital for special patients.
After further investigation, he quickly ruled out the first option because he found straps to bind arms behind the chair, still bearing the old brownish blood stains.
He was locked in a special ward of a psychiatric hospital—not a good sign at all. Yang Xiao worried that at any moment, several burly orderlies might rush in, pin him down, strap him to the chair, pry his mouth open, and force-feed him medication that he wouldn’t be able to refuse.
If there had been internet access here, Yang Xiao would have searched for advice on how to prove he was a healthy person after mistakenly entering a psychiatric hospital.
Starting as a mental patient—how was he supposed to play this game?
Before he could immerse himself in his role, the next second, a bell abruptly rang, gratingly loud in the quiet environment.
The sound came from inside the room, emanating from behind the light blue screen and through that wooden door. Yang Xiao quickly approached it, and his attention was caught by the plastic tag hanging on the door handle.
