Retribution and a Timely Rescue

Huang Xiu never imagined that karma would come so quickly.

That one casual taunt back then had actually brought about today’s painful price.

“I’m sorry!” she yelled, her face twisted. Her left hand tried to pry open the small hands gripping her.

But she couldn’t pry them open at all.

Those small, delicate hands had a grip that was terrifyingly strong, like a vise.

“Sorry? If sorry worked, what would we need the police for!” Liu Lu’s smile grew more arrogant.

People nearby had already noticed the commotion. They gathered around to watch.

Curiosity and excitement filled their eyes.

“Fight, fight…” someone muttered. He loved watching pretty girls pull each other’s hair.

“Why aren’t they grappling yet? Just go for a takedown!” This one was just hoping for chaos.

Huang Xiu listened to the whispers and gritted her teeth. “Then what do you want?”

“I want you to…”

Before Liu Lu could finish, a green figure shot out of Huang Xiu’s pocket like lightning.

It was Huang Xiaoxian.

As soon as it landed, it pushed off the ground, leaped, and kicked Liu Lu squarely in the chest.

Smack!

The steel plate could stop bullets, but not blunt force.

Liu Lu hadn’t expected this at all. The kick left her chest tight, a breath stuck in her throat.

She lost her balance, stumbled back a few steps.

Huang Xiu seized the chance to pull back her right hand, which was now red and trembling.

“Come back!”

She called back Huang Xiaoxian, who was about to press the advantage, and stuffed it back into her pocket.

“What was that thing!”

“Is it a virtual realm creature?”

“Looks like a cactus Pokémon from Digimon?”

The crowd buzzed with noise. Although everyone here was a special ability user, not all of them had seen virtual realm creatures in person.

Most had either come into contact with virtual energy near a contact point or naturally awakened their abilities.

Cases like Huang Xiu, who awakened at a life-or-death moment, were extremely rare.

“Your pet?” Liu Lu covered her chest, her pretty face flushed with anger. “Fine. Very well. I’ll remember this.”

Huang Xiu had thought it over when Huang Xiaoxian kicked. She had held back a little.

She didn’t leave spike marks on Liu Lu’s chest.

After all, she had been in the wrong first.

And even though Liu Lu had used a lot of force, she hadn’t caused any real injury.

But even so, Huang Xiu didn’t give Liu Lu a good look. She supported her right hand with her left and replied, “Remember, then! Let’s see what you can do to me!”

Anyone could talk tough. Hmph!

The tension between them grew, on the verge of exploding. But just then, a broadcast echoed across the square.

“Attention all examinees, attention all examinees. The second round exam is about to begin. Please submit your forms in fifteen minutes.”

The message repeated three times until the echo started to overlap before it stopped.

Huang Xiu couldn’t afford to spar with Liu Lu now.

Only ten minutes left, and she hadn’t even filled out her form yet!

Many among the onlookers hadn’t finished either. As soon as they heard the broadcast, they scattered to find a place to fill out their forms.

Liu Lu had come early to block Huang Xiu, but her form was already done.

Seeing Huang Xiu still searching, she didn’t bother her. She snorted, flicked her ponytail, and walked away alone.

“Damn it, where did it fall?” Huang Xiu was getting anxious.

She lowered her head, looking for the form that had fallen earlier. But sometimes, the more you rush, the harder it is to find.

“Are you looking for this?” A male voice came from the side, and a piece of paper appeared in front of her bowed head.

“Ah, yes. Thank you so much.” The girl took the form excitedly, then looked up and followed the voice.

What came into view was a youth with white hair and white eyebrows.

He was only about 1.75 meters tall, not particularly tall. His features were delicate, with azure blue eyes, but his sickly pale skin spoiled the overall look.

“You can call me Bai Baibai. Am I very white?” He made a joke.

“Indeed, very white,” Huang Xiu nodded seriously, a hint of embarrassment on her face. She raised the form in her hand.

“My name is Huang Xiu. And this… I haven’t filled it in yet. There’s not much time.”

“No problem. Take your time.” Bai Baibai smiled and stepped aside. “There are chairs and tables over there. You can fill it in there.”

“Do you have a pen?” he asked again.

“I do.”

Nobody does something for nothing… that saying might sound harsh, but it has some truth.

Huang Xiu silently increased her vigilance.

“Alright.” Bai Baibai said no more. He put his hands behind his head and walked off toward the crowd, swinging his shoulders.

Time was tight. Huang Xiu didn’t dare waste any more time. She jogged over to the table, sat down, and started writing quickly.

[Provide a detailed introduction of your ability.]

Without any hesitation, Huang Xiu had a pretty good grasp of her ability by now. She immediately wrote down everything she had learned in this period.

But because her right hand still hurt from being squeezed, the characters came out crooked.

[Define the role of your ability, e.g., offense, control, support, etc.]

‘Does that even need thinking? Of course I want all of them!’ Huang Xiu directly wrote down “All-round.”

She wasn’t joking or showing off.

[Senluo] was exactly that kind of ability, with endless uses. Different mutated plants had different effects.

Whether it was offense, control, support, or logistics, it could all be handled by an army of mutated plants.

[Your vision for future development of your ability, and after advancement, which aspects might improve.]

This question was harder to answer.

Huang Xiu dawdled for almost five minutes, barely squeezing out a hundred or so characters. She made them as large as possible.

That way, she could fill the answer box.

No choice. Even if she couldn’t really answer, she had to at least fill the blank space.

This was the test-taking skill her teachers had always taught her.

By the time Huang Xiu finished the form, time was almost up. Less than a minute later, the broadcast rang out again.

“Please have all examinees submit your forms at the front. The second round exam will officially begin after the forms are collected.”

With the broadcast, the silver-white wall at the front of the square, opposite the corridor, split open in a jagged circular door. A young man in a white coat, yawning, walked out.

“Submit your forms! Hurry up!”

His voice was lazy and not loud. But he seemed aware of that, so he wore a portable speaker that teachers often used in class.

“Line up, line up!”

He clapped his hands. The examinees didn’t dare act up and obediently formed two lines to submit their forms.

Because Huang Xiu was near the corridor, she was at the end of the line.

But that gave her a chance to observe the other examinees and look for Miaoqing.