Chapter 1231: Disaster Besieges the City

On this day, all afternoon classes at the Integration Faction were canceled.

Chen Ling and Sun Bumian sat on the Integration Faction's stairs. Through a tree hollow, they could see the dim sunset of the Gray World. Although there were no classes today, the students didn't seem lively. As they moved about, they kept glancing at the doors of the Sanitation Squad and the underground laboratory, their expressions somewhat uneasy.

After an unknown period, the door to the Sanitation Squad finally opened.

"How is the Holy Son??" "Xiao Tao, Xiao Tao, where is the Holy Son?" Many figures immediately gathered around. Xiao Tao looked a little tired, but she patiently replied:

"Don't worry, the Holy Son has a special constitution; it's nothing serious."

Everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief. While the Holy Son was out of danger, the underground laboratory door remained closed. Students, carrying their books and homework, sat down outside the door, anxiously awaiting Teacher Ye's rescue results, all while absently studying.

Chen Ling walked straight towards Xiao Tao. "What's the situation with Zhao Yi's injuries?"

"Brother Chen Ling," Xiao Tao obediently replied, "Most of the Holy Son's injuries are from impact and bites... they were likely caused by a Calamity."

"Calamity... how could a Calamity attack an Integrator?" Chen Ling's brows furrowed.

"I'm not sure, but the Holy Son should wake up soon; you can ask him then."

"Understood, you've worked hard."

Xiao Tao removed her blood-stained gloves, her eyes filled with exhaustion. It was clear that the recent rescue operation had not been easy for the petite girl. What unsettled her more, however, was the cause of Zhao Yi's injuries and the increasingly somber atmosphere within the Integration Faction, her small face looking incredibly serious.

"I never thought Teacher Xiao Tao could treat injuries, that's amazing..." Sun Bumian leaned down slightly, hands on his knees, and looked at Xiao Tao with a slight smile. He conjured a sugar-coated hawthorn skewer as if by magic. "Here, have a tanghulu to fill your stomach."

Xiao Tao was startled, and the gloom on her face was largely replaced by amusement. Her eyes curved into a smile as she said, "Thank you, Brother Sun!"

Sun Bumian was very fond of the children at the Integration Faction, and Xiao Tao was even his and Chen Ling's tutor. Sun Bumian was like a poor student who never studied; even when he attended tutoring, he would just sleep beside them, often making Xiao Tao so angry she wished she could hit him with a pointer. Of course, their private relationship was still quite good.

Just as they were speaking, the door to the underground laboratory slowly opened.

The students waiting at the door immediately stood up. They were about to ask something, but in the next moment, they froze.

Two stretchers, covered with white sheets, were silently carried out from underground. The students lining both sides of the corridor stared blankly at the outlines of the figures beneath the white sheets. Even with the keenest hearing, they could not discern the sound of their hearts beating.

"They... they..." a younger student stammered, their voice trembling.

The older members carrying the stretchers shook their heads helplessly. "Only Old Wolf was rescued... the other two were too severely injured; even Teacher Ye couldn't save them."

The entire corridor fell into a deathly silence.

It had been a long time since anyone had died in the Integration Faction, and the two white sheets undoubtedly delivered a profound psychological shock to the children. Many of them, after all, had been brought back by these two older predecessors during their travels.

Moments later, Teacher Ye's weary figure emerged from underground.

"Everyone, go back and rest," Teacher Ye said, his gaze sweeping over them. "What about Zhao Yi, is he awake?"

Just as everyone was about to answer, Xiao Tao's voice came from the room upstairs: "He's awake! The Holy Son is awake!"

"Good. He Chengxuan, Mi Bo, follow me..." Teacher Ye walked up the stairs. His peripheral vision caught Chen Ling and Sun Bumian nearby. After a moment of hesitation, he added, "You two come along as well."

Chen Ling nodded slightly and followed behind Teacher Ye.

Once the named individuals had entered the room, Teacher Ye closed the door behind them.

Zhao Yi, his body wrapped in bandages, was lying on the bed. Seeing Teacher Ye arrive, he tried to sit up but was gently pressed back down.

"Even if your injuries are the least severe, you shouldn't move around carelessly. You need to rest properly for a while," Teacher Ye said seriously.

Zhao Yi immediately asked, "How are Old Wolf and the others??"

After a brief silence, Mi Bo slowly spoke: "Only Old Wolf was rescued..."

He Chengxuan and Mi Bo were both high-ranking combatants of the Integration Faction. They were among the group Zhao Yi took to the Boundless Realm to rescue Chen Ling. Older, powerful, and reliable, they were figures whom the younger children looked up to.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yi was thunderstruck, lying stunned on the bed.

"Zhao Yi, what exactly happened?" Chen Ling asked. "Weren't you supposed to be purchasing supplies in the Tianshu Realm?"

The Integration Faction was located deep within the Gray World, a region with scarce resources. However, Teacher Ye didn't want the children to live a hard life, so every month, he would send people to blend into human realms and purchase large quantities of supplies, including food ingredients, clothes, ornaments, toys, and books.

Also in the Gray World, the people of the Scarlet Heaven Cult branch lived like primitives, but the children of the Integration Faction could enjoy delicious food, wear beautiful clothes, don cute hairpins, and read various interesting extracurricular books, just like children living in the realms. This was the result of the combined efforts of Teacher Ye and all Integrators.

Ever since Zhao Yi joined the Integration Faction, he had participated in almost every supply procurement trip. This was partly because he himself wanted to visit the human realms, and partly because he didn't have long ears, a tail, or other obvious physical characteristics of a Calamity. As long as he dressed warmly and disguised the curse marks on his face as tattoos, he could move safely within the realms.

Despite numerous previous supply trips, there had never been an incident, yet this time, casualties had occurred.

Zhao Yi remained silent for a long time before speaking bitterly: "At first, everything went smoothly... We crossed the Gray World and successfully blended into the Tianshu Realm, purchasing a large batch of supplies. But just as we were about to leave, something unexpected happened..." "The Weeping Wilderness surrounded the Tianshu Realm."

At this revelation, everyone was stunned.

"The Weeping Wilderness?" Mi Bo's brows furrowed. "How is that possible? Although the Weeping Wilderness is located between the Tianshu and Nanhai Realms, it's still some distance from the Tianshu Realm. How could it suddenly appear around the Tianshu Realm?"

"I don't know... but the Gray World lands surrounding the Tianshu Realm were covered with white bones under the domain of Calamities. Countless Calamities charged and roared outside the realm, trampling the ground. The reverberating tremors caused successive earthquakes within the Tianshu Realm, followed by piercing alarm sounds..."