Universe Infinite Canteen

Despite explaining many times that she was a new student at Hou De and had come with the principal to deal with the disaster zone, Qiutong found herself in a predicament as Cao Jinhua had died, and Ma Lu had an unknown background.

The two were still detained in the security room for quite a long while, but fortunately, after half an hour, someone from the Talisman Master Association arrived.

The visitor was a middle-aged man dressed in a deep blue long coat, wearing a gray tile cap, saddle-style round glasses, sporting a goat beard, and carrying a briefcase.

Upon seeing Ma Lu and Qiutong, he seemed slightly surprised, but still asked, "Where is your principal?"

"Mr. Cao was infected by a Shadow Demon inside the disaster zone... and has... sacrificed himself," Qiutong said.

Every time she mentioned Cao Jinhua, she could not help but choke up.

Although her time with Cao Jinhua had been short, his kindness, justice, and the meticulous care and attention he provided to the students had deeply touched the girl.

At that point, Ma Lu also spoke, "I am not a student of Mr. Cao; I accidentally entered the disaster zone."

The goat-bearded middle-aged man, perhaps mistaking him for an ordinary person, muttered, "Are the folks at the Patrol Office just loafing around? They can't even guard an entrance properly."

He then looked towards Qiutong, "How did you guys escape from there?"

"It was Mr. Ma who..."

Qiutong hadn't finished speaking when Ma Lu interjected, "It was the two of us who together killed the lord inside."

"You knew about the lord?"

"Mr. Cao briefly mentioned it to me," Qiutong couldn't help responding, "The monsters in the disaster zone this time just happened to counter Mr. Cao's abilities. He had asked for help from the outside, and according to the rules, people from the Talisman Master Association should have sent someone into the disaster zone...four hours ago."

"Rescue? The Disaster Response Bureau didn't receive any such request," the goat-bearded man stated decisively, "Maybe Mr. Cao remembered wrong, or maybe he burned the wrong talisman paper."

"Ah?" Qiutong found the idea of burning the wrong talisman paper a bit inconceivable, but she wasn't a talisman master and didn't know how common such incidents were.

Meanwhile, the goat-bearded man stroked his beard and continued, "You killed the lord inside; did you find anything?"

Ma Lu presented the black shadow — Cao Jinhua's dropped four green stones — and a leaf made of light.
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The leaf had fallen from the Cardcaptor Sakura tree.

The goat-bearded man first glanced at the green stones, "According to the rules, you can keep the Song Stone."

After saying this, he picked up the leaf made of light, "I'll take an imprint of this material for registration, keeping it as a record, and it will also be returned to you later."

While speaking, he opened the briefcase he carried, took out a thick notebook, and placed it on the desk, forming a hand seal.

The next moment, the notebook opened to both sides, the pages turning automatically without wind until it reached nearly two-thirds through, finding a blank page.

The goat-bearded man placed the leaf made of light on it, and then took out a pocket watch to time.

A quarter-hour later, he picked up the leaf, and on the originally blank page, there now appeared the cherry tree made entirely of light that Ma Lu and Qiutong had seen before, with an indistinct black shadow beneath it.

On the right side of the page, a row of black ink characters emerged — Cardcaptor Sakura.

Seizing the opportunity, Ma Lu asked, "What exactly are this leaf and tree?"

After finishing a task, Goat Beard seemed in a pretty good mood, and casually explained,

"The so-called disaster belts are caused by these exotic fruits, no one knows where they come from or why they appear before us. Initially, due to a lack of understanding, people referred to them as disasters.

"But actually, according to recent research by the Talisman Master Association, these exotic fruits are more like diseases seeking our help.

"As long as you remove the diseases that trouble them, um, those monsters you see in the disaster belt, especially the lords, you can receive their offerings.

"Usually, it's a leaf, bark, rhizome, or something like that, which can be used as material for talisman making.

"If you're lucky, you might even get one or two fruits, which are extraordinarily valuable and have many wonderful uses for Talisman Masters."

Seeing Ma Lu's interested expression, Goat Beard snorted, "Don't even think about the fruits. Since you've seen the Exotic Fruit Tree, you should know they are impervious to knives and fires.

"So, whatever it grants you after you remove the disease is all you can take, and usually, fruits appear only in at least a Third-level Disaster Belt."

"Is that so?" Ma Lu listened with great interest.

"And since you said you're not a Talisman Master, you have even less chance of getting the exotic fruits."

Goat Beard, loath to waste time on a commoner, made an offhand comment and then turned to Qiutong.

However, he found the girl daydreaming.

After killing the Shadow Demon Mr. Cao, Qiutong had seen that cherry tree and even tried to pick the fruit from it, but just as Goat Beard said, she couldn't pluck it at all.

The cherry tree didn't look large, but its small body contained incredible power; unless it was willing, no one could take anything from it.

After shaking off a leaf, the cherry tree seemed ready to disappear.

But unexpectedly, just before leaving, it was swiftly caught by Ma Lu, and then Qiutong saw a small knife suddenly appear in Ma Lu's hand.

He easily chopped at the tree's roots, severing them effortlessly, and then repeated the process, cutting off seven roots in one go and forcibly pulling the cherry tree back from the void.

It was then thrown into the semi-transparent bag he was carrying.

At that moment, Qiutong was greatly shaken, but she didn't fully comprehend the significance of his actions.

Until Goat Beard finished speaking, she realized that the exotic fruits had come seeking human help, and in the end, both the fruit and the tree were taken away by Ma Lu.

Qiutong was still dazed but was startled by a soft cough.

"Qiutong, right? I looked at your Talisman Master Association test results from two months ago, you're at Grade D, but it's unexpected that this time you could eliminate a Second Level Disaster Belt's lord."

Although Ma Lu said it was a joint effort, Goat Beard, seeing him as a commoner, dismissed his involvement.

He continued, addressing Qiutong, "Technically, your qualifications wouldn't allow entry to Heroic Concealment. However, it seems you might be one of those Talisman Masters with exceptional combat talent. I can recommend you, what do you think?"

"Ah, but I've already been recorded by Hou De," Qiutong replied.

"Mr. Cao is no longer here, and whether Hou De can continue is still uncertain. Even if Hou De remains, it can't compare with Heroic Concealment, which, although at the bottom of the Hero Group, still ranks among the top hundred in the Ministry of Education.

"Moreover, if you perform well in Heroic Concealment, you can transfer to Light Hero, Ranger, Chivalry Hero, or even to Hero and Hero School—such opportunities are rare."