Suddenly, Jiang Han pulled open the bus door.
Almost in the blink of an eye, the expressions of all the trainees on the coach changed drastically.
"Are you insane?!"
"Close the door right now! Do you have any idea what kind of malevolent spirits are lurking in this cursed place?"
"If you want to die, don't drag us down with you!"
The buzz-cut young man who had earlier suggested everyone stay on the bus leapt to his feet, shouting sternly at Jiang Han.
The short-haired girl, Xu Ya, also blinked her large eyes, staring blankly at Jiang Han.
Even the driver was so frightened his face turned ashen, his lips trembling uncontrollably.
"...I just wanted some fresh air. Is that not allowed?"
When everyone was waiting for his explanation, Jiang Han instead put on an expression of absolute innocence.
Immediately, the words the buzz-cut young man had prepared got stuck in his throat.
"At a time like this, you want fresh air? You're literally asking for death!" After a moment, the other man cursed with disgust.
Jiang Han shrugged. "Isn't this the classic trope in horror movies? Someone's gotta be the idiot who does something stupid, right?"
The buzz-cut young man said nothing more, already mentally writing Jiang Han off as a dead man.
Suddenly, Jiang Han called out to the back rows. "Yu'er, do you want to come along? I'm a bit nervous going alone..."
In an instant, everyone present was dumbfounded.
"This guy's sister is actually so stunning?" the others couldn't help but think privately.
Seeing Jiang Yu walking toward him, Jiang Han grinned, took her delicate hand, and led her off the coach.
In the dim passage, it was cold and dead silent, with only the coach beside them casting a faint glimmer of light.
Whoosh—
Suddenly, a gust of chilling wind swept past, and Jiang Han felt his hair stand on end.
"Go on then, what did you actually discover?" Jiang Yu glanced at Jiang Han and asked.
Of course she knew Jiang Han couldn't possibly genuinely want fresh air—it was just an excuse he'd fabricated.
This guy never says a single serious word, not even a single punctuation mark of him could be trusted!
At the same time, Jiang Yu summoned her Spirit Weapon.
Gazing at the folding fan in her hand that emanated soft pink light, Jiang Han enviously remarked, "Tsk, tsk, a Tier-A Spirit Weapon..."
Jiang Yu said, "I'm asking you why you actually got off the bus. If you can't give me a proper reason, don't blame me later when I knock you out and carry you back."
Jiang Han looked at his sister.
Those seemingly delicate and slender arms actually contained astonishing explosive power.
Because their adoptive parents had been missing for many years, Jiang Yu had enrolled in taekwondo classes from a young age and had learned to protect herself well.
"This sudden supernatural event is far too suspicious. It just so happened to occur on our way to the Celestial Mechanism Pavilion—don't you think there might be a connection to the Celestial Mechanism Pavilion itself?" Jiang Han replied with a serious expression.
Jiang Yu said, "Because of that? Do you think the other people on the bus haven't thought of that? But do you have any idea what price we might have to pay if this has nothing to do with the Celestial Mechanism Pavilion?"
Jiang Han knew the answer, of course.
If this really were a supernatural event, the price he might pay could very well be his life.
But the text appearing in his pupil convinced Jiang Han that his judgment was likely correct.
"As Spirit Tamers, facing dangers that ordinary people cannot resolve, we can't just sit and wait to die. We can only rely on ourselves! I believe this is also the lesson the Celestial Mechanism Pavilion wants to teach us.
You make your own decision. After all, Yu'er, you're grown now and have your own judgment. Do you want to return to the bus, or come explore this passage with me?"
Jiang Han passed the question to Jiang Yu.
Jiang Yu looked at this unreliable brother of hers, then turned her head away. "Fine. What if you die alone and there's no one to even collect your body?"
A faint smile curved Jiang Han's lips. He said nothing more.
"So what do we do now? It's pitch black everywhere."
Looking around, Jiang Yu frowned slightly.
In the passage, there were no extra hints, only pure darkness and silent fear.
The oppressive atmosphere was enough to drive a normal person insane.
Jiang Han said, "Whatever. Maybe some people from the Celestial Mechanism Pavilion are secretly watching us right now."
Jiang Yu curled her lips slightly. "Tch. Peeping Toms."
Swish!
Jiang Han turned on his phone's built-in flashlight function, barely able to make out a bit of the road ahead.
Suddenly, Jiang Han noticed something unusual. "Yu'er, look—there are things on the ground."
Following the flashlight's beam, Jiang Yu saw several pieces of yellow paper scattered across the cement ground, resembling the spirit money burned at rural funerals.
Jiang Han immediately grabbed Jiang Yu's right hand and followed the trail of yellow paper forward.
On the coach.
The short-haired girl, Xu Ya, was currently leaning against the window, gazing at the flashlight beam that cut through the darkness outside, muttering, "Didn't he say he was going to get some air? Why did he run so far away?"
Everyone else had nothing to do either, so they could only wait anxiously in place for the so-called rescue.
As time ticked away second by second, the dark and silent passage inevitably wore on everyone's nerves.
An emotion called despair gradually seized each person's heart.
The buzz-cut young man clenched his teeth tightly at that moment, trying his best to keep fear from numbing his mind.
"Darn it! Why hasn't the Celestial Mechanism Pavilion sent anyone yet?"
...
"What do you think of these candidates this time?"
In a certain enclosed chamber, the walls were lined with several large LCD screens, each currently displaying the scene inside the passage from various angles.
A middle-aged man in blue robes stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his brow furrowed tightly.
After watching for a long while, he withdrew his gaze and said with slight anger, "What a disappointment! These kids don't even have the courage to face the darkness! As Spirit Tamers, at a time like this they're still thinking about how to get someone else to rescue them? Absolutely absurd!!!"
Another round-bodied fat man chuckled and said cheerfully, "Take it easy, take it easy. They're still young after all. And most of them don't even have Soul Jades—how could they possibly resist ghosts?"
The middle-aged man in blue robes said, "That's no excuse! Even if they have to bite with their teeth and scratch with their hands, they must make those ghosts understand that human willpower is harder than theirs!"
"You're being too extreme."
The fat man didn't pursue the discussion further. He suddenly pointed to one of the screens and said, "Hey, look—aren't there still two little ones who took the first step?"
Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man in blue robes finally showed slight approval. "What are the names of these two young people?"
The camera zoomed in.
The fat man's eyes lit up. "Heh, these two young people are truly not simple. Their father is Jiang Yue."
"Jiang Yue? The number two position of the Dawn Spirit Tamers Squad?" The middle-aged man in blue robes exclaimed in surprise.
The fat man nodded. "That's right."
"No wonder." The middle-aged man in blue robes said slowly. "Jiang Yue is quite a character. His children haven't brought shame to his name."
"I want these two."
Immediately, he spoke directly, his tone decisive.
But the fat man smiled and said, "Hold on a moment. There's another piece of news here."
"What?"
"That boy there, yes—the one holding the dagger—his name is Jiang Han. His Spirit Weapon only has three skill slots."
"Three skill slots? How could that be? Jiang Yue back in the day had a Tier-A Spirit Weapon. Could there be a mistake?"
The middle-aged man in blue robes instantly found it hard to believe.
The fat man said, "I find it strange too, but Jiang Han's Spirit Weapon really does only have three skill slots. Also, he's an adopted son of Jiang Yue."
"No wonder..." The middle-aged man in blue robes fell silent.
After a long pause, he suddenly asked, "What about Jiang Yue's daughter?"
The fat man said, "Her name is Jiang Yu. Tier-A Spirit Weapon, twelve skill slots."
"What? Twelve skill slots?!"
Hearing this, the middle-aged man's face lit up with great joy. He then said, "Send out a Mist Ghost. I want to see what kind of courage this Jiang Yu has."
"A Mist Ghost!?"
The fat man's expression changed. "Old Lan? You're not serious, are you? These two kids are still just candidate Spirit Tamers."
The middle-aged man in blue robes swept his sleeve aside and turned to leave, leaving behind only a single sentence:
"Don't worry. I've got this."