ABBWW Chapter 61

Chapter 061 Sea King – “ “A gift to mark our meeting.” ” (07/20)

In a concealed shadow, the blond-haired, blue-eyed man clenched his hands so tightly that his fingernails dug into his flesh, yet he seemed to feel no pain as he maintained that position with great force.

An eerie silence seemed to settle over the dining table. The students from Siming Teji University all looked at Shi Jingge with varying degrees of shock, while those from Kalandi College frowned in unison.

“I…” The young man opened his mouth; his voice was extremely raspy, like the sound of  grinding gravel. The moment he spoke, the students from Siming Teji University shifted uncomfortably.

Just then, the instructor from Siming Teji University spoke up, “Kalandi College really does produce a steady stream of talent. If I’m not mistaken, there’s even a student from the Intermediate Division in your team, correct?”

Lin Yiwen offered a half-smile, making no attempt at modesty, and replied decisively, “Yes, he’s very talented.”

The mentor from Siming Teji University paused for a moment, then laughed. “Speaking of talent, I can’t help but mention Ye Mingxu. In my decades of teaching, I’ve never seen a student with such talent.”

Lin Yiwen replied nonchalantly, “That’s because you haven’t taught enough.”

“So, Coach Lin, you’ve actually seen students even more talented than Ye Mingxu?”

Lin Yiwen: “……”

The two coaches traded barbs back and forth, their exchange as sharp as a swordfight.

Over at the Kalandi table, a senior tugged at Shi Jingge’s sleeve. Leaning close to his ear, he whispered, “Advisor Lin and that guy across the table are arch-enemies. Rumor has it they’ve been at each other’s throats since their school days. And the people from Siming Teji over there are all a bit strange, especially their group leader. Let’s just ignore them and enjoy our meal. Xingyue does have some specialty dishes; they taste pretty good.”

Shi Jingge smiled, radiating a gentle aura. “Thanks, senior.”

Across the table, Ye Mingxu stared intently at Shi Jingge. As the senior’s hand tugged at the other’s sleeve, the corners of Ye Mingxu’s lips gradually tightened, and an air of displeasure began to emanate from him.

Shi Jingge seemed to notice his gaze; he turned his head and smiled at him, before turning back to whisper something to the senior.

Ye Mingxu froze for a moment, and immediately, the chill radiating from him intensified. He stared straight at Shi Jingge, the icy aura around him seeming to serve as a challenge to everyone else.

The students from Siming Teji University exchanged glances, each seeing a hint of certainty in the other’s eyes.

Just as expected, Brother Xu hates that kind of person from the other side the most. Just look—he’s radiating contempt!

Due to Ye Mingxu’s sudden burst of cold aura, the students from Siming Teji University fell completely silent; even those who had initially planned to provoke him now kept their mouths shut.

The students from Kalandi College were even less likely to speak. They all knew that Ye Mingxu possessed truly outstanding talent and exceptional ability. He’d even passed the Junior Pharmacist exam before graduating. Why would they want to go head-to-head with someone like him?

Besides, they wouldn’t stand a chance anyway!

Thus, the students on both sides maintained an eerie peace.

However, the chill emanating from Ye Mingxu grew stronger by the moment.

The upperclassman sitting next to Shi Jingge served him some food. “This duck is this place’s signature dish. It tastes pretty good. Give it a try.”

Shi Jingge nodded with a smile, but the moment the food touched his tongue, he paused slightly. It was a little better than the nutrient solution and the cafeteria food, but only by a tiny bit.

The upperclassman raised an eyebrow proudly. “Isn’t it good?”

Shi Jingge was silent for a moment before nodding quietly.

The upperclassman continued serving him. “Then have some more.”

Shi Jingge: “……”

Across the table, Ye Mingxu watched the scene unfold. The corners of his lips curled up slightly, revealing a hint of cold, mocking derision.

Couldn’t he see that the other guy didn’t even want to eat the duck? He was oblivious to social cues; their relationship couldn’t be all that great.

The students from Siming Teji University sitting nearby saw the look on Ye Mingxu’s face and sucked in a sharp breath.

What on earth could have made Brother Xu so angry?

Following Ye Mingxu’s gaze, a student noticed Shi Jingge, and a hint of pity flashed in his eyes.

He was just a kid from the intermediate division. Of all the people he could have approached, why did he have to choose Brother Xu? Wasn’t it better to stay alive?

The meal lasted a full two hours.

But it went without saying that the Siming Teji side had gone out of their way to invite them out, and it certainly wasn’t just for a casual meal.

Mentor Zhao from Siming Teji gave an elegant nod. “Mentor Lin, have you heard that Xingyue has launched a very interesting Potion Garden event?”

“Oh?” Although Lin Yiwen wasn’t aware of it, he didn’t let his composure falter in the slightest. “I’d love to hear more.”

Zhao Jiangcheng hated this side of Lin Yiwen the most; even when forced to yield, he never let on that he was enjoying the victory. As a result, every time Zhao Jiangcheng beat Lin Yiwen, the sense of frustration he felt deep down was far greater than if he’d actually lost.

With that thought, the smile in Zhao Jiangcheng’s eyes faded slightly, and he said indifferently, “As everyone knows, the energy contained within the materials needed to craft potions—namely, spirit flowers, spirit herbs, and spirit fruits—has a significant impact on the final product. Kids these days are just too spoiled. The materials are prepared for them long in advance, and they’re simply given whichever contains the most energy. They lack even basic discernment. Should we really wait until they hit one roadblock after another in their Pharmacist Exams before addressing this?

“That’s why Xingyue has launched a Potion Gardens initiative, featuring both a Spirit Plant Garden and a Potion Lab. The Spirit Plant Garden offers a wide variety of low-tier plants for students to select themselves, and they can then head to the Potion Lab to craft finished potions. It’s meant to be a fun learning experience. What do you think, Mentor Lin?”

With the challenge right in front of him, how could he possibly refuse? Lin Yiwen didn’t believe this was the first time Siming Teji had come here or tried this kind of setup.

But so what? When it came to mastering the energy contained within low-tier spirit plants, was there any student who could match Shi Jingge?

In this regard, even he might not be able to consistently outperform Shi Jingge!

How could he refuse an opportunity that Siming Teji’s team had handed to him on a silver platter?

Lin Yiwen looked at Zhao Jiangcheng with a half-smile. “With Mentor Zhao extending such a sincere invitation, how could we possibly refuse? Mentor Zhao is truly generous. To share such a great spot with us right away. It’s truly admirable.”

“A toast to you, Mentor Zhao.”

Lin Yiwen’s words were so roundabout they were almost meaningless, and the subtle sarcasm in his tone was quite irritating. However, Zhao Jiangcheng had never been one to take offense easily; upon hearing him, he laughed heartily. “Mentor Lin really understands me.”

The two exchanged a glance, looked down to take a sip of water, and each silently cursed the other as an idiot.

“Want to add a little incentive?” Zhao Jiangcheng suggested.

Lin Yiwen said nonchalantly, “Director Zhao, are you sure it’s just a small wager?”

“What else could it be?” Zhao Jiangcheng asked with a half-smile.

“Director Zhao has Ye Mingxu,” Lin Yiwen said, setting down his chopsticks with a similarly ambiguous smile. “You were just bragging about him a moment ago.”

Zhao Jiangcheng: “……”

If only he’d held his tongue.

Although this gambling element was off the table, both sides remained just as determined to win.

“Or how about we each come up with a question for the other?” Zhao Jiangcheng asked again.

“That’d be so boring.” Lin Yiwen laughed. “Let’s each come up with one challenge, and we’ll tackle them simultaneously. How about that?”

Zhao Jiangcheng’s gaze turned slightly cold. “Mentor Lin really does have foresight.”

“Where?” Lin Yiwen replied indifferently. “I’m just following your lead.”

“Then I’m truly honored.”

“I as well.” 

No matter where these two went, sparks flew between them.

But Lin Yiwen’s suggestion was actually quite good. It tested the students while drawing the teacher in as well.

The challenges they came up with couldn’t be too easy—otherwise, it would be impossible to determine a winner—nor could they be too difficult, or else their own side would be at a disadvantage.

In the end, Lin Yiwen proposed a sobering potion, while Zhao Jiangcheng suggested a basic antidote.

Both were well-known examples among low-tier potions. They required a relatively large number of ingredients, involved a rather tedious process, and presented a fair degree of difficulty, though they didn’t demand exceptional skill, just a bit of meticulous work.

However, when you had to gather your own materials, as was the case today, potions that required a lot of ingredients were undoubtedly the most suitable.

The raw materials needed totaled as many as twenty types. With five people in each group, that meant each person had to collect at least four of them. The students from Siming Teji’s group headed straight into the Spirit Plant Garden. Without any apparent discussion of how to divide the tasks, they all followed closely behind Ye Mingxu, their eyes fixed straight ahead as they moved in a large, orderly procession.

“It feels like one pharmacist with four bodyguards,” muttered a senior student standing next to Shi Jingge. “Let’s divide up the tasks. Among these ingredients, some have similar growth habits and are likely to be clustered together. Everyone can start by picking those.”

Choosing materials with similar growth habits would naturally be easier, saving a lot of time searching and allowing them to take their time identifying and selecting those with the most abundant energy.

On Kalandi’s side, the twenty ingredients were divided into five groupings. The first few groups each contained several with similar growth habits, but the last group, consisting of four ingredients, had absolutely nothing in common.

Shi Jingge chose this group.

“Junior?” The senior standing next to Shi Jingge looked at him in surprise.

Shi Jingge smiled. “The seniors are all more capable than I am; you could certainly pick out better ingredients. I think it’s more important to play to my strengths than to avoid my weaknesses, so please leave these to me. I’ll gather them all. Since they’re all in Xingyue’s Spiritual Plant Garden, the quality can’t be that bad.”

Shi Jingge easily persuaded the other four, and the way they looked at him instantly changed.

Was Shi Jingge simply taking on the most troublesome task himself?

No, that wasn’t it. He had also taken the blame upon himself in advance.

If, when the time came, their potions’ quality fell short of those from Siming Teji’s group, the criticism would fall squarely on Shi Jingge!

How could Shi Jingge not realize this?

Everyone believed that would be the logical outcome. But Shi Jingge went ahead and volunteered anyway.

He did it with such openness and integrity that it commanded respect.

In that moment, the other four made up their minds: if the quality of the potion they produced really fell short of Siming Teji’s, they absolutely wouldn’t let Shi Jingge take all the blame!

They couldn’t bully their junior like that!

As for Shi Jingge, he was actually just looking for an opportunity to get in touch with Ye Mingxu.

By wandering around, he’d have a better chance of running into him; however, with so many people always trailing Ye Mingxu, he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to speak with him alone.

As Shi Jingge walked, lost in thought, his eyes scanned the area for the Lark Flower; its roots were what he needed.

Just around the corner, he spotted a figure. Blond hair, blue eyes, and delicate features—like an angel, yet exceptionally cold. Ye Mingxu stood there, motionless, with no one else around, as if waiting for something.

Shi Jingge stopped in his tracks. Ye Mingxu looked up at Shi Jingge.

Silence hung in the air as a gentle breeze blew by.

Ye Mingxu held out his hand to Shi Jingge, revealing a whole Winter Frost Herb, one of the ingredients needed to make a sobering potion. It carried a faint fragrance, and its quality was nothing short of top-notch.

“Here. For you.” Ye Mingxu lowered his eyelids and spoke slowly, enunciating each word clearly.

Shi Jingge didn’t take it.

Ye Mingxu took a step forward, came to a halt, raised his head to glance quickly at Shi Jingge, then lowered his eyes again, refusing to look at him. Then, his voice hoarse, he said, “I am…Ye Mingxu. Ye as in ‘leaf,’ Ming as in ‘tomorrow,’ and Xu as in ‘nine days.’” He lowered his head, his ears exposed, flushed an unusual shade of red. “Here…”

He held out the “Winter Frost Herb,” looking both stubborn and defiant. It was as if, should Shi Jingge refuse to take it, he would never withdraw his hand.

After a long silence, Ye Mingxu added a few more words, “…A gift to mark our first meeting.”

Author’s Note: Brother Xu never forgets to bring a gift to mark their first meeting in every world √

Brother Xu: If he doesn’t take it, does that mean he hates me? QAQ

Edit: Krone

Proofread: Choux_choux