Volume One: In the Prime of Youth Chapter Twenty-One: Encirclement

Jiang Feng returned to the academy, his nerves still unsettled. He wanted a drink to calm himself; unlike those powerful prodigies at the academy, he could only dream of earning extra points. Over there, they had to contend with an S-class calamity—a deadly affair. He suspected their extra scores would be low, for the battlefield of ultimate forms was a place where entry meant risking one's life.

At the next table, two young women sat, their uniforms betraying their status as freshmen. It was university, after all—only in the first month of the freshman year would they dutifully wear their uniforms. The academy had not sent first-year students to participate in combat. Ordinary exams were one thing, but facing the onslaught of a real calamity was another; freshmen would likely make irreparable mistakes out of excessive anxiety.

Jiang Feng had an ingrained habit of listening to everything around him—a professional reflex. He overheard the two girls talking.

“Wow, he’s really handsome!”

“Let me see, let me see—he is handsome! Is there a front view?”

“You’re lucky to get a live drone feed of the scene at all; expecting a frontal shot is a bit much.”

“True, true. Do you know which famous figure in the academy this senior is?”

“He’s from the dark arts department. I guess it’s the renowned Senior Tan Xiao.”

“No way. I’ve seen Tan Xiao’s photo—this guy is far more attractive.”

They chatted on, unaware that someone had quietly circled behind them. The newcomer cleared his throat, and as they turned, they saw a warm, smiling young man who said, “Are you two freshmen?”

“Yes, we are. Who are you?” one of the girls asked.

Jiang Feng pulled out two business cards and handed them over. “My name is Jiang Feng—here’s my card. I’m an intelligence broker. If you want to buy information or sell it, just leave a message on my FeiXun account below.”

“An intelligence broker?”

“That’s right. For you, a freshman benefit: ask me anything you want to know, one question each, and I’ll answer for free.”

Delighted, the two girls didn’t care about his profession—free gossip was irresistible. One quickly asked, “I’ll go first. Who is this senior?”

She handed her crystal-brain device to Jiang Feng, who took it, and immediately drew a sharp breath.

On the screen was live footage of the battle outside the wall, broadcast by drones. The warriors of the Hunter Corps and the students fighting below surely didn’t expect their bloody struggle to be livestreamed for others to watch. He wondered if anyone, after seeing some scenes, would lose their appetite.

After all, the battle outside the wall was not passive defense—it was a confrontation with death, fighting the calamities to the bitter end. The war had barely begun, and already the Hunter Corps had suffered significant casualties.

Jiang Feng followed the girl’s finger and felt his scalp tingle. He’d heard the girls talking earlier; so this was the one they found handsome.

Who was it? Huo Ye.

Huo Ye was weaving through the battlefield with astonishing skill, his movements ghostly and unpredictable. Calamities tried to catch him, but he evaded every attempt. He didn’t stop to fight any calamity, but sped like an arrow toward the empty field where Eddie and Bobby faced off.

Jiang Feng marveled at the scene—what courage, what audacity! A fierce father, a fierce son; truly, the apple hadn’t fallen far from the tree.

Despite his astonishment, Jiang Feng kept a calm facade and answered, “Him? The new transfer student in the second year, Huo Ye, adopted son of Captain Eddie Halls, known in the academy as ‘Little Reaper.’”

“Wow, Captain Halls’ son—so he’s the greatest young noble of the Sola Colony?”

Jiang Feng was momentarily stunned. Wasn’t their focus a little off? Shouldn’t they be impressed by his skills, given the scene before them?

Amid raging flames, the calamities left no trace when slain; only the bodies of human warriors littered the ground. Calamities fed on humans, so most of these martyrs died with their bodies incomplete.

Several drones filmed the battlefield: some recording the Hunter Corps in combat, others focusing on Captain Halls and the ultimate form, and some tracking the students fighting outside the wall.

“There seem to be very few people heading south with Senior Huo—only four.”

One girl mused aloud. Naturally, that quartet was Huo Ye’s group. The southern battlefield belonged to Eddie and Bobby; even Hunter Corps soldiers didn’t dare approach, and ordinary students might as well seek death.

Led by Huo Ye, the four charged straight from the city gate toward the ultimate form. By now, Eddie had the ultimate form tightly entangled—it couldn’t fight, nor could it escape. It had tried to burrow away, but before its head touched the ground, Eddie kicked it skyward—a literal flying kick.

Bobby, knowing escape was impossible, could only fight like a cornered beast. He condensed his body into human shape to better battle Eddie.

The new world’s radiation affected the globe—not just humans, but animals mutated slightly. Yet humans, most susceptible, awakened the strongest abilities. Among all earth’s creatures, humans were the most compatible with the new world’s energy.

Thus, powerful calamities, upon encountering earth’s life, aimed to mimic humans as their ultimate goal. However, turning into human form enhanced a calamity’s abilities, but required S-class or higher strength.

It was a contradiction: human form conferred greater power, but only the powerful could attain it.

When Bobby shifted into human form, he realized how formidable Eddie was. Eddie wielded the Reaper’s Scythe, “Lucifer’s Wing,” with unstoppable ferocity. Lucifer, the fallen angel of Western faith, was so named by Copper-armed Demon Shangguan Qing when he forged the weapon, signifying Eddie as the black reaper who brings hope to humanity.

A lone warrior capable of slaying a high-ranking member of the Twelve Calamities—how could a mere ultimate form, not even disaster-class, cope? If Bobby hadn’t noticed that Eddie was constrained by the chaotic battlefield—hesitant to use powerful attacks lest he injure his own—he would have been cleaved by Lucifer’s Wing long ago.

Eddie feinted with the scythe, seeming to nearly strike Bobby, but instead spun the weapon and slammed its shaft into Bobby’s abdomen, sending him flying in a parabolic arc.

Before Bobby could land, a flash of blade struck.

Huo Ye drew his sword: Second Style—Sunset Slash. The blade swept upward from below, slicing Bobby from lower back to abdomen—severing him at the waist.

But an ultimate form was resilient. Bobby summoned his greatest regenerative power, fusing his muscles front and back without caring if the bones healed, twisting his waist to deliver a flying kick to Huo Ye’s raised arms.

Huo Ye’s feet slid back along the ground, his forearms fractured, but healing swiftly.

Subgrade stem cells—rapid regeneration. This was Huo Ye’s greatest advantage against calamities: you can heal, but so can I. He’d trade wounds for wounds, and calamities have a vital core—Huo Ye did not. Until his internal energy ran dry, he was deathless.

Bobby saw Huo Ye and his expression twisted between mockery and rage. He pointed at Huo Ye: “It’s you! The human brat who pried open my jaws!”

“Oh, you remember me? I remember you, too. I’ve got a score to settle over a lost leg,” Huo Ye replied coldly, his twin blades gleaming.

Eddie, as if expecting Huo Ye’s arrival, glanced at Bobby. The ultimate form was almost spent, its recovery and combat abilities much diminished—he could leave Bobby to Huo Ye. Eddie tapped a few times on his crystal-brain, and his hover bike came to him. Mounting it, Eddie said, “Make it quick. I have other battles to join.”

Huo Ye replied, “Yes, Captain!”—for in the military, there was no father and son.

Bobby, who’d planned to escape, was enraged by their conversation. Any human brat thought he could kill him; if they were confident enough to leave the fight to Huo Ye alone, then Bobby would kill the brat before escaping.

But as he charged to duel Huo Ye, a gunshot rang out—Bobby’s