Chapter 78: Emerging Crisis

Early in the morning, as Leon Chen finished brushing his teeth and washing his face, he saw Michael Fang arriving with breakfast: egg rolls with meat floss and beef congee from KFC.

The two other guys crawling out of bed were instantly drooling at the smell. "Hey, second brother, when did you become so considerate?" they teased.

Michael glared at them. "There's a social dance tonight. I couldn't let our youngest starve, could I?"

Leon knew exactly what Michael was thinking and clapped him on the shoulder. "We're brothers, no need to be so polite..." Before Michael could be moved by this display of camaraderie, Leon added, "But another bowl of silver ear lotus seed soup would be even better!" Michael's sense of gratitude instantly turned to disdain.

"But where's Lily? She's more important than me," Leon said, munching on his meat floss roll and sipping the congee, speaking with a mouthful.

"I sent a more luxurious breakfast to her dorm through Celia Qing in your name," Michael said, pained at having spent fifty bucks on breakfast.

Leon chuckled as a text message came in. It was from Lily Lin: "Leon, you didn't have to buy this for me, it's so expensive. I'll try it anyway!"

"Lily agreed to come," Leon said, surprised that Lily had accepted, as he was prepared to go alone. After all, social dances were like kryptonite to her.

Daniel Zhang admired, "Second brother's social skills are really paying off."

"Well, our club is ranked in the top ten at Hua University," Michael said proudly.

John Wu looked at Leon. "Leon, how's it been working as an assistant for Professor Tang these days?"

The guys were all curious about this. Leon being selected as Sienna Tang's assistant had caused a stir on campus. The school newspaper even ran a front-page article analyzing the situation.

No one believed that Leon could pass a test that even professors failed. Recalling the ambiguous behavior in the lecture hall, they unanimously concluded there was an undisclosed relationship between the two. Sienna's supporters even cast Leon as the villain, thinking he had some leverage over the professor. For several days, Leon's name was on everyone's lips, and he surpassed even Isabella Xiang and Grace Wang in popularity on the latest campus ranking.

Leon was unaware of this due to the heavy workload that kept him confined to the research lab. He hadn't even stepped out for meals for seven straight days, making him feel disconnected from H University. Hearing this, he was taken aback.

The guys said they had to fend off numerous visitors every day. They demanded Leon explain his relationship with Professor Tang and whether he had done anything inappropriate to her.

Leon remembered moments of unexpected intimacy in the bathroom and the office. But he would never admit to anything.

...

"Breaking news: Last night at 7 PM, the renowned British linguist and archaeologist Felix Keir was killed in a car accident on his way home. Felix Keir, the president of the British Association for Ancient Civilization Studies, had made significant contributions to deciphering ancient civilizations. He had just returned from an expedition. The British police are currently investigating the driver involved in the accident."

Sienna Tang was watching the morning news on the sofa. Her previously relaxed expression turned serious, and her eyes narrowed as a chill ran down her spine.

Felix Keir had been a member of her last expedition team.

Suddenly, the phone rang, startling her. She quickly answered.

"Sienna, Felix is dead!"

"I saw the news," Sienna replied solemnly.

"Do you think Stargate Corporation is behind this?" Michel asked seriously. "Felix's Primal Stone is missing."

"Are you okay? Sienna, are you listening?" Michel's voice grew urgent as the line remained silent.

Sienna snapped back. "Yes, I'm here."

"I thought something had happened to you. Have you secured your Primal Stone? I'll come to see you. We need to discuss this. Make sure the stone is safe... Damn, I think I'm being followed... I'll call you later!"

Beep, beep, beep.

Michel hung up before Sienna could respond. She stared at the phone, lost in thought.

Suddenly, a hand clapped on her shoulder.

Sienna instinctively grabbed the hand and, in a swift motion, threw the person onto the sofa, pinning them down and raising her fist. She stopped when she saw who it was.

Leon Chen was staring at her in shock. His teacher's combat skills were impressive.

"It's you?" Sienna exhaled in relief.

Leon swallowed hard. Sienna noticed his eyes were fixated on her neckline and snorted, tightening her grip.

"Ouch, I surrender!" Leon exclaimed.

"Why didn't you knock?" Sienna released him and adjusted her hair.

"I did knock. I saw you spacing out and wanted to ask if you were okay. I didn't expect to be thrown," Leon said innocently. "Professor Tang, your combat skills are impressive."

"You need survival skills in the wild," Sienna said nonchalantly, turning off the TV.

"Wasn't that Felix Keir on the news? You knew him, right?" Leon asked.

"This isn't something students should worry about," Sienna said, walking into her bedroom. "Stella is busy today, so take the day off. I hear you have plans tonight."

"You know about that too?"

Sienna responded with a bewitching smile.

Once in her bedroom, her smile disappeared, replaced by a stern expression.

Leon didn't leave the research lab. With nothing else to do, he continued piecing together the Heavenly Realm stele. The Primal Scripts etched into the cleaned basalt stones sprawled before him like a tangle of thorns.

Leon pondered, then slapped his forehead.

How could he be so dense? If these were indeed Heavenly Realm scripts, didn't he already have a piece from the Heavenly Realm—his watch? Leon remembered being curious about the strange characters on the watch when he first received it. He opened the watch and compared the characters; they matched!

Sienna's hypothesis was correct. But how to decipher the Heavenly Realm scripts? Should he ask Lina? But Lina spoke in Chinese, so asking her might be pointless.

"Your expression looks like you've confirmed my thoughts..." a soft voice interrupted his thoughts.

Leon turned around and nearly had a nosebleed.

Sienna Tang was wearing a black spaghetti-strap dress with an asymmetrical hem resembling fan blades. Her long, slender legs were paired with black, strappy high heels, making her incredibly sexy.

Her hair, usually tied up, now flowed down like a waterfall. The black strands shimmered like satin ribbons.

The most striking part was the low neckline of her dress, exposing her creamy shoulders and a tantalizing glimpse of cleavage.

Sienna's figure was already perfect, and this sensual dress made Leon feel like he was turning into a beast.

The ultimate touch was her lack of glasses. Her eyes, as mesmerizing as Cleopatra's, could charm any man. There was a legend at H University: Sienna's glasses were her restraining device. No one had seen her without them, so it remained a fantasy.

Seeing her now, Leon felt as if an arrow had pierced his heart, making it pound furiously.

This was too much, too much to handle.