Chapter ten: Sudden Change

As night fell, the neon lights of Star Sea City illuminated the sky, and the grand Jiang Mansion villa area was shrouded in tranquility. In the spacious training ground, the clashing sounds of metal gloves and a lightsaber echoed continuously. Fang Xing and Gu Yun were engaged in a fierce sparring match.

Bang! Bang! Two figures quickly crossed paths. Gu Yun, wearing a gravity suit, wielded a light wooden sword, while Fang Xing's gloves gleamed silver as he constantly fended off her attacks.

"You've improved really fast, Fang Xing." Gu Yun suddenly stopped, shaking the wooden sword in her hand, panting slightly. "It's only been a few days, and even with my gravity suit on, I can barely keep up with you."

Fang Xing wiped the sweat from his forehead, a modest smile appearing on his face. "Well, I am a few years older than you."

Gu Yun raised her eyes, smiling mischievously. "Stop being so modest. No matter how good my dad is at teaching, I shouldn't be pushed this far by you. Come on, I'll turn off the gravity suit, and we'll go another round!"

"Don't turn it off, let's keep going," Fang Xing waved his hand, feeling a bit embarrassed. "I can barely manage because you have the gravity suit on. If you turn it off, I won't stand a chance."

Gu Yun blinked playfully. "Don't underestimate yourself. How about this: I'll turn it off. Dare you?"

Fang Xing felt a twinge of guilt. Though he had improved rapidly, Gu Yun, who was younger than him, could always keep up with him, making him feel like he had an unfair advantage.

"All right, let's do it!" He took a deep breath, preparing to face her renewed assault.

However, just as they were about to spar again, a low explosion echoed from the distance, causing the entire villa area to tremble slightly. Gu Yun's expression changed as she put down her wooden sword and turned toward the direction of the explosion.

"What's going on?" She frowned, "So close?"

Fang Xing also felt a sense of unease. "Let's go take a look."

They quickly changed out of their training suits, hopped onto their flying vehicle, and sped toward the source of the explosion. Along the way, the air was thick with a pungent smell, and the flickering firelight dyed half the sky red.

When they reached the city center, a scene of devastation unfolded before them—buildings were blasted apart, debris and metal fragments scattered everywhere, and occasional severed limbs could be seen among the wreckage.

"Oh my God…" Gu Yun's eyes widened, her mouth slightly open, clearly shocked by what she was seeing.

Fang Xing was momentarily speechless, his eyes scanning the area until he noticed a figure lying on the ground amidst the flames in the distance. He rushed over and found a young man seriously injured, his chest pierced by several steel bars, with blood gushing from his wounds.

"He's… he's still alive!" Fang Xing knelt down, trying to stop the bleeding.

"Help…" the young man groaned weakly, his eyes filled with fear and despair.

"Hang in there!" Fang Xing grabbed the young man's hand, trying to comfort him, but his heart sank when he saw that the man's lower body was missing.

"He… he's beyond saving." Gu Yun knelt beside him, her eyes filled with helplessness and sorrow.

"Maybe… maybe he could use prosthetic limbs…" Fang Xing's mind raced, thinking of medical pods and mechanical repair technology, but he knew deep down that the man's injuries left little hope.

Just as they were at a loss, a sharp sound pierced the air from above, like the chirping of countless insects. It ripped through the atmosphere, directly assaulting their eardrums. Fang Xing covered his ears and looked up, only to see a towering figure emerging from the flames and smoke in the distance.

It was a monster, three to four meters tall, with compound insect eyes glowing with eerie light, its mandibles slightly parted as if chewing on something. Its body appeared to be made of flowing black liquid, sometimes solidifying, sometimes becoming blurry, as if it didn't belong to this world.

"This is bad!" Fang Xing quickly lowered his head, forcing himself not to look directly at the monster. "That's… an Eldritch Spawn?"

Gu Yun's face also turned pale, and she quickly bowed her head. "It's an Eldritch Spawn! We can't look at its patterns or we'll be mentally contaminated!"

"We have to run!" Fang Xing grabbed Gu Yun and took off running.

They fled the disaster site with all their might, their hearts pounding in their chests, feeling as though they might leap from their throats at any moment. More explosions and sharp screeching sounds echoed behind them, as if the monster was closing in fast.

"Look!" Gu Yun suddenly pointed to the sky. Fang Xing looked up and saw several streaks of fire cutting through the night sky—missiles, headed straight for the monster. At the same time, several figures flew out of the darkness, rushing toward the monster's location.

"It's the professionals!" Gu Yun shouted, her voice filled with a hint of hope.

"They're here!" The fleeing crowd also let out cheers.

Fang Xing's feelings were complicated, his fists clenched tightly. He was overwhelmed by a sense of powerlessness that he had never experienced before. All the confidence and pride he had felt earlier seemed to have been utterly crushed at this moment.

"I must become stronger…" he muttered, determination flickering in his eyes. "I can't experience this feeling of helplessness again… Never again!"

A few minutes later, Fang Xing and Gu Yun returned to the school. At the gate, Xia Long stood with a giant sword, watching the distant battle with a grave expression.

"Head to the shelter." Xia Long's voice was low but left no room for argument.

Fang Xing nodded and, together with Gu Yun, headed toward the underground shelter within the campus. The school had a dozen martial arts masters stationed there and was equipped with the highest-level protective facilities, making it one of the safest places in the city.

"The Maple City website just updated!" Liu Wei's voice suddenly broke the brief silence inside the campus.

Everyone quickly took out their communication devices and opened the official update.

[Eldritch Spawn "Moon Moth Beast" has been eliminated. The alert is lifted. The Void Tunnel has been closed, and rescue operations are underway.]

[Casualties: 134 dead, 528 seriously injured, mental contamination under evaluation…]

[Professionals "Lin Jia" and "Gu Renwang" have perished.]

Fang Xing fell silent, staring at the last line of the message on the screen. Gu Yun, standing next to him, turned unusually pale. She said nothing, her eyes filled with undisguised pain.

"Gu Yun… your father…" Fang Xing hesitated, his voice heavy.

Gu Yun bit her lip and turned to leave without answering. Her figure appeared particularly lonely and vulnerable under the dim lights.

Fang Xing watched her retreating figure, silently vowing to himself, "This won't be the end…"