Chapter 174 The Watchman's Great God

A week later, the quartet emerged from the Desperate Lair right on schedule, strictly adhering to the time constraints and causing no trouble for any other teams.

The Desperate Lair wasn't a place one could simply enter at will. Since the Pioneers and the Guardians had a prior agreement, it was best for this small team to avoid any unnecessary issues.

This journey had also been incredibly lucrative for the quartet. The spoils were divided into four equal shares, but Han Jiangxue, having no need for such Star Beads, naturally gave her portion to Jiang Xiao.

Xia Yan had already learned the corresponding Desperate Weapon and Desperate Blade Star Techniques. After a bit of trading, Jiang Xiao, with two portions of spoils in hand, possessed a total of 29 Desperate Ghost Star Beads and 29 Desperate Walker Star Beads.

Xia Yan kept 8 Desperate Ghost Star Beads and 21 Desperate Walker Star Beads for herself, while Song Chunxi had 15 and 14 Desperate-series creature Star Beads, respectively.

Although reaching the Star Sea Realm seemed distant for Song Chunxi, it was always good to be prepared.

For a full seven days, the group fought relentlessly. On average, 16 or 17 Desperate-series creatures died at their hands each day. Keep in mind, these were Platinum-ranked creatures! Yet, with the quartet's seamless teamwork, they managed to navigate the journey with minimal danger.

Jiang Xiao's presence not only made him the first line of defense for the team but also ensured its overall endurance.

Song Chunxi once again experienced the power of a world-class medical support.

Her teammate, He Xu, could also be considered a world-class medical Star Warrior, but he was clearly a pure support.

The situation was different with Jiu Xing Du Nai. Shouldn't the medical support be the one protected by the team? In this team, it felt more like the medical support was protecting everyone else.

The overall math was incredible!

Not only did they gain a "敏战 (min zhan, agile warrior)" out of nowhere, but this "敏战 (min zhan)" also possessed medical Star Techniques. Who could withstand that?

The group quickly returned to the Imperial Capital Star Warrior University, and Song Chunxi began her career as a teaching assistant.

Jiang Xiao and the other second-year students finally got back on track and resumed their studies.

Compared to the first year, the second-year courses were less demanding but very compact. All the academic subjects were concentrated on Mondays to Wednesdays, while Thursdays to Sundays were reserved for rest, allowing the practical training teachers to develop training plans and arrange field experiences.

As first-term Pioneers, Jiang Xiao and the others didn't have practical training teachers. Their instructor was Qin Wangchuan.

Naturally, Jiang Xiao and the others became free labor, directly replacing a group of Pioneer instructors, allowing the instructors to focus on teaching the second-term Pioneer students. Jiang Xiao and the others began their duty-rest rotation.

The only problem was that some students, having figured out Jiang Xiao's duty schedule, kept coming to the school's administration building to secretly take pictures of him...

Jiang Xiao and Han Jiangxue were celebrities. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them "world-class Star Warriors." There were many people stronger than the siblings, but their fame was simply too great, especially Jiang Xiao's...

Currently, Jiang Xiao and the others were working one day and resting two. If he had classes on Mondays to Wednesdays, he would attend classes during the day and continue his duties in the evening. If he had rest days on Thursdays to Sundays, he would have to work a full 24-hour shift before getting off work.

On Jiang Xiao's third shift, a photo went viral online.

The photo was clearly taken secretly from outside the administration building. Jiang Xiao was wearing desert camouflage short sleeves and shorts. The "荒 (Huang, Wasteland)" character on his armband wasn't very conspicuous, but it was definitely a major piece of news.

This little poison milk was sitting at his desk, propping his chin with one hand, lost in thought, clearly slacking off.

The unscrupulous media knew nothing, but they were experts at spreading rumors.

"World Champion Jiang Xiaopi Officially Joins the Pioneer Army, Sits in the Office, and May Enter Clerical Work."

"Students or Teachers? Han Jiangxue and Jiang Xiaopi Reach Teaching Intentions with the Imperial Capital Star Warrior University, A Gorgeous Transition from Students to Teachers."

...

As the Imperial Capital Star Warrior University students patiently explained the truth, the Du Nai fans were laughing up a storm.

"Jiang Xiaopi: Teaching at the Imperial Capital Star Warrior University? Pioneer soldiers joining the workforce? You're thinking too much, I'm just a gatekeeper."

"Gatekeeper Jiang Xiaopi?"

"The Imperial Capital Star Warrior University is amazing! World Champion comes home to guard the gate! What prestige!"

"I always feel like my Pi God is missing something... Someone! Get my Pi God a big door key..."

"See, never become a world champion, what are you coming back to do? Still just a gatekeeper?"

"Finally understand why the 'Sweeping Monk' is so awesome, it turns out they're all retired world champions..."

...

Jiang Xiao was suffering in silence. He wasn't slacking off, he was absorbing Star Power, okay? Every minute and every second, he was thinking about how to become stronger.

Because the reputation of the Imperial Capital Star Warrior University had been greatly affected, Jiang Xiao and the others were now on duty with the curtains drawn...

Hot weather, drawn curtains, huddled in the room with Little Jiangxue, enjoying the air conditioning, it was quite a unique experience.

Qin Wangchuan was preparing the next Other Dimension Space training mission for the quartet. With the quartet's combat strength, the training locations they went to were, of course, quite difficult, which meant it would take some time to contact and prepare.

Who would have thought that Jiang Xiao's butt hadn't even warmed up yet? After only three shifts, he received a message.

This message was from someone in the Northwest, the punctuation marks almost outnumbered the words: "Return to the team, assessment."

Oh?

Was Sister Pea going to participate in the induction assessment?

Jiang Xiao looked at the message on his phone and helplessly grinned. Sigh... he was short on manpower. Actually, he did have a clone, but that clone was playing with the kids in the Upper Layer Snow Plains.

Hu Wei and Cang Lan's child had some peculiar hobbies. For some reason, he especially liked crows. Ever since he witnessed the Bait Jiang Xiao transform into a crow, the child had been pestering the Bait Jiang Xiao to transform into a crow every day...

Jiang Xiao couldn't bear to refuse this "Little White Ghost," so he had to play with him every day.

Military orders were like mountains. What's more, he had promised Er Wei before. Helplessly, Jiang Xiao could only ask Vice Principal Yang Chen for leave.

Principal Yang agreed very readily. Ever since the Yan Judgment Department incident, Er Wei, as the Northwest Night Watch representative, had personally come to the school to communicate with the leadership. Jiang Xiao's Light Chaser status was an open secret among the leadership.

However, when asking for leave, Vice Principal Yang specifically instructed that there was news from the Star Pet side. If possible, he hoped Jiang Xiao would return quickly.

It took quite some effort to ask Qin Wangchuan for leave. The Pioneer Army clearly didn't want to let him go, but since Jiang Xiao was a Light Chaser, he did have a mission to carry out. Qin Wangchuan could only unwillingly let Jiang Xiao get out of his sight...

In fact, Jiang Xiao wasn't sure if Er Wei saw his leisurely gatekeeper life and called him back to the Northwest...

After saying goodbye to Han Jiangxue and Xia Yan, Jiang Xiao boarded a military plane heading to Kashi.

There were some advantages to being a soldier. He could always board the appropriate military plane. Jiang Xiao could also see that the Northwest region wasn't peaceful and that personnel transfers were very frequent.

After spending most of the day, Jiang Xiao flew from the chicken neck to the chicken butt. When he saw Er Wei, he felt that everything was worth it.

In the military airport, Er Wei stood with her arms crossed, silently watching the military plane descend. With her excellent eyesight, she immediately saw someone's little head peeking out from the window.

Er Wei seemed too lazy to wait for the military plane to stop. While the military plane was still taxiing, she directly waved at Jiang Xiao.

Jiang Xiao hesitated for a moment. There were so many soldiers around. Wouldn't this be too conspicuous?

Eh... never mind, whatever.

You're the superior, you decide!

The next moment, Jiang Xiao, carrying his little schoolbag, directly appeared in front of Er Wei.

Er Wei turned around and left, gesturing towards a military vehicle in the distance.

Jiang Xiao couldn't help but mutter in a low voice, "Not even a hug..."

Er Wei turned her head and glanced at Jiang Xiao out of the corner of her eye.

Jiang Xiao pouted, "I crossed the entire country to get here because of one message from you this morning, and you don't even say a word. Unhappy..."

Er Wei was silent for a moment before saying, "There are too many people here."

Jiang Xiao was immediately stunned.

This sentence... was interesting, wasn't it?

Jiang Xiao excitedly asked, "What if there weren't so many people?"

Er Wei: "I'd kick you."

Jiang Xiao: "..."

Until they got into the military vehicle, the two of them sat in the back row. Er Wei looked at Jiang Xiao's sulky expression, and her stiff expression slightly softened, and she couldn't help but reveal a trace of a smile.

Jiang Xiao grumbled, "Thank you for saving my face! You're so considerate."

Er Wei held onto the vertical beam of the convertible military vehicle with one hand and said, "The person you recommended has a lot of personality."

Jiang Xiao paused, smiled inwardly, and said, "The strength is also there."

"Hmph." Er Wei casually hummed in agreement. The military vehicle drove out of the airport and, after another 3-hour drive, entered a military camp.

The vehicle slowly came to a stop. Er Wei got out, and Jiang Xiao hurriedly followed, saying, "You haven't told me how to assess yet."

Er Wei: "I'm getting your Black and White Candle Flame back."

Jiang Xiao's eyes lit up. Was the Shiny Pokémon coming back?

That little guy must have suffered a lot...

Under Er Wei's leadership, they proceeded smoothly. Jiang Xiao followed her into an office building and entered a conference room on the first floor.

As soon as he entered, Jiang Xiao saw a familiar figure silently sitting on a chair, her eyes tightly fixed on... a pocket watch?

Across the conference table, a slender man was sitting, with a small braid tied behind his head. No one knew how he managed to tie that few centimeters of braid.

The man was probably twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with fine stubble on his face. He crossed his legs, resting his left elbow on the conference table, and wearing a pocket watch chain on his right hand. The pocket watch at the bottom of the chain was swinging left and right like a pendulum.

Hou Mingming's eyes were constantly fixed on the swaying clock, moving back and forth.

The man's voice was gentle, almost like a "涩轻男主播 (se qing nan zhu bo, lewd male streamer)": "You feel very relaxed, very relaxed..."

Jiang Xiao's expression was strange. He couldn't associate this man with "Da Sheng (Great Sage)" no matter what. Didn't Er Wei say that Da Sheng was a fiery, crude man?

What was with this lazy and casual demeanor?

What was with this little braid?

Er Wei's voice was extremely cold: "Fu Hei."

"Shh! Almost there, give me a moment." The man named Fu Hei raised one hand, pointing a finger towards Er Wei's direction.

His eyes were bright as he carefully observed Hou Mingming's expression, his voice extremely gentle: "You feel like you're sleeping on a soft bed, very comfortable, your eyelids are heavy, you feel sleepy... Wow! Wait, Lord Er!"

Er Wei kicked the man named Fu Hei away. With a "thump," the man smashed several chairs and was kicked into the corner of the wall...

Jiang Xiao was also dumbfounded.

L... Lord Er?

What kind of immortal title was that?

"Snap! Snap!" Er Wei supported herself with her left hand, leaned forward, and snapped her fingers twice towards Hou Mingming's direction.

Hou Mingming's body trembled slightly, and she suddenly looked up at Er Wei, looking confused.

Three seconds later, Hou Mingming suddenly stood up, her posture for drawing a bow and shooting an arrow exceptionally standard. The pitch-black tail feather arrow instantly aimed at Fu Hei, who was howling in the corner.

Er Wei squeezed a word out from between her teeth: "Stop."

Hou Mingming stared intently at Fu Hei, her chest heaving violently. Her fingertips were white, and the fingers holding the black feather arrow were trembling.

In her rage, it was difficult to ensure whether she would truly obey, as she was not yet a real soldier, and the words of obeying orders didn't seem to be engraved in her mind.

"Snap! Snap!"

Suddenly, there were two more snaps.

Hou Mingming suddenly turned her head and saw a familiar face.

Xiao Pi?

Hou Mingming was slightly surprised. With her Perception Star Technique, she shouldn't have been so oblivious, but the hypnosis had indeed interfered with her brain.

Jiang Xiao raised a finger and waved it from side to side, saying, "You feel very relaxed now, you will put down the arrow in your hand."

Hou Mingming: "..."

The atmosphere in the room was extremely strange. Two seconds later, Hou Mingming glared at Fu Hei hatefully. With a casual flick, the bow and arrow in her hand disappeared, and she plopped down on the chair.

It was now Fu Hei's turn to be dumbfounded. He hugged his head, curled up in the corner, and stared at Jiang Xiao with wide eyes.

What kind of monster was this?

Fu Hei foolishly asked, "What kind of hypnosis Star Technique is this? It's so powerful?"

Jiang Xiao weakly said, "This is not a Star Technique, this is love. In this world, only a father's... sincere love can influence those rebellious and irritable souls."