Chapter 185: Master, Run!

Su Yan ran all the way to the southeast corner of the playground, which was also the place where she had suppressed the evil entity before.

"Su Yan, what happened?" Ma Chulong's speed was not slow either, and he quickly caught up to her.

Su Yan did not answer him. In truth, there was no need to answer; following the direction she was heading, Ma Chulong immediately saw an extremely weak ghostly shadow.

Ordinary soul bodies rarely appeared in broad daylight; he hadn't expected to find one here.

However, what surprised Ma Chulong even more was that Su Yan hadn't come here to subdue it.

Because at this very moment, he saw a look of agitation on Su Yan's face.

"Ghost Shadow, how are you?"

Su Yan rushed to the front of the ghost shadow. Seeing it so weakened, her entire being seemed shrouded in a shadow of gloom.

The ghost shadow had stayed by her side for so many years and had long since become her most cherished companion, but now...

"Master, Ghost Shadow has finally... finally returned... Master, dan... danger... run fast..."

The ghost shadow's voice was intermittent, as if it might dissipate at any moment.

Su Yan grew anxious, continuously using talismans that could restore its energy. But no matter how hard she tried, the ghost shadow's weakness continued to intensify, until it could no longer even speak.

She had never cared so much about the disappearance of a companion. Just as she was prepared to stake everything on using the power within her dual pupils, Ma Chulong grabbed her wrist.

"Let me do it."

"You have a way?" Su Yan's voice was incredibly suppressed.

Ma Chulong nodded and reached directly into his portable bag to pull out a quite ancient-looking copper bottle.

"What are you going to do?" Su Yan was visibly nervous.

Ma Chulong immediately explained, "Our Ma family has a special soul-nurturing method; perhaps we can try it."

Although Su Yan was still uneasy, seeing that the ghost shadow could not hold on any longer, she agreed.

Soon, the ghost shadow was drawn into the copper bottle.

"This copper bottle is also one of our Ma family's dharma treasures; a soul body can recuperate inside it." This was the first time Ma Chulong had seen Su Yan lose her composure, and he knew this ghost shadow must be extremely important to her.

Su Yan continued to press him, "About how long will it take to show results?"

"Don't be anxious. Its injuries are too heavy; it will take at least a month to fully recover, but I will do my best." Ma Chulong's tone was very certain, which allowed Su Yan to feel slightly more at ease.

"It calls you Master, so is it your attendant? Did you hear clearly what it said just now?"

Ma Chulong's expression turned solemn. He had heard very clearly that the ghost shadow told her to run fast, that there was danger.

Something capable of injuring the ghost shadow and making it fear for its master's safety was likely an extremely dangerous existence.

If he could think of this, Su Yan certainly could as well.

The ghost shadow knew her strength, yet it had risked its life to return and notify her. So, what exactly had it encountered?

"I haven't been here long and have no social connections. I'll have to wait until the ghost shadow recovers a bit to ask clearly."

Su Yan's answer was unexpected to Ma Chulong, but it caused him even more worry.

"In other words, there is a danger currently existing that even you are unaware of."

That was the most critical part.

Su Yan did not refute him; the ghost shadow would not make a mistake in such matters.

"Then do you need to make any preparations?" Ma Chulong cared for her safety from the bottom of his heart.

"No need." Su Yan did not hesitate. The enemy was in the dark while she was in the light; aside from letting things take their natural course, anything she did would be in vain.

"Su Yan, don't worry. If there really is danger, my younger sister and I will help you."

Ma Chulong's decision was not made on a whim; rather, he believed in Su Yan's potential. In the future, Su Yan would surely become an existence that everyone would struggle to catch up to.

"However, I am actually worried about something else right now."

Under the oppressive atmosphere, he took the initiative to change the subject.

Su Yan asked, "What else?"

Ma Chulong spoke with great seriousness, "We just ran out of the classroom like that, and we've made Zhou Fang's nose tilt with rage. I expect we'll be called in for a lecture once we get back."

Su Yan's tense face finally relaxed a little, knowing he was intentionally trying to ease her emotions.

"Are you actually afraid of being criticized by a teacher?"

"It's not that I'm afraid, it's just that at my age and with my status, no one dares to lecture me except for my father," Ma Chulong spoke the truth.

"Is your Ma family's status very high?" Su Yan had seen it long ago; the Ma family seemed to hold great prestige in their circle. Even someone of Yuan Jing's status treated the siblings differently than others.

If anyone else had asked this, Ma Chulong would have answered with a look of contempt. But hearing these words from Su Yan's mouth truly left him caught between laughter and tears.

"Sometimes I wonder if the experts who taught you your skills ever told you about the outside world."

"Is that necessary?"

Su Yan actually derived quite a bit of information from his words. As long as they didn't interfere with one another, no matter how powerful the Ma family was, it would have nothing to do with her.

"It is necessary. When we walk out in the world, we encounter all sorts of people, and we might unintentionally offend someone. Besides, not everyone is like you, able to get along peacefully with people like me and Master Cao."

Ma Chulong felt that Su Yan was very capable, but she was quite lacking in interpersonal relationships, which was why he was reminding her so earnestly.

Su Yan thought about it, but she still wasn't very interested in what he said.

Why do people live such tiring lives?

"Ma Chulong, Su Yan, follow me to the office right now!"

As they spoke, the two arrived at the corridor outside the classroom. Sure enough, Zhou Fang didn't even wait for them to enter the classroom before storming out in a rage.

Ma Chulong's face was full of helplessness; he had predicted exactly this.

Inside the office.

Zhou Fang waited for their explanation and dropped a threat.

If they could not satisfy him, he would call their parents.

Only then did Su Yan look him straight in the eye and say very calmly, "Stomach ache, went to the toilet."

Zhou Fang:...

Ma Chulong:...

This lie was worse than not telling one at all.

"Why didn't you ask for permission?" Zhou Fang was fuming.

Su Yan continued, "There wasn't time."

Zhou Fang felt like hitting someone; his angry gaze fell upon Ma Chulong.

"And you?"

"I... me too?" Ma Chulong actually responded with a rhetorical question.

He had never imagined that one day, as the successor of the Ma family, he would face such an embarrassing moment.

Zhou Fang could no longer endure it; he gripped his ruler directly in his hand.

One had turned in a blank exam paper, and the other had only scored 26 points, yet they were still this insolent. They simply had no respect for him as a teacher.

Seeing that the situation was turning bad, Ma Chulong had to use some special means.

In the next second, Zhou Fang felt an intense itchiness all over his body, and his whole person began to twist.

He wanted to scratch, but Ma Chulong was watching him with a dead serious expression; to maintain his image as a teacher, he couldn't care about anything else.

"I will forgive you both just this once, but don't let it happen again. Get out!"

Ma Chulong suppressed his laughter. "Thank you, Teacher Zhou."

Su Yan hadn't expected that the seemingly upright Ma Chulong actually had a side like this. Truly, one cannot judge a person by their appearance.

(End of Chapter)