FALLEN ORACLE

**Chapter 9: The Strongest Mage (4)**

At the same time, blue lights appeared in many places across the academy, each bearing that strange symbol. The faculty and students near those symbols also received great benefits."It's Lisa!" Chen Yi exclaimed.Professor Cobb asked, puzzled, "You mean this spell was cast by the youngest professor in the academy's history—the genius Lisa?""Yes.""But... didn't she pass away last year?""Yes," Chen Yi said. "But she once told me she had placed magical markers around the academy. She said that if she happened to be away and the academy was in danger, those markers should help everyone.""This... this is unbelievable. After more than a year, the markers still have such power?"Professor Cobb specialized in Psionic magic. Though he had interacted with Lisa before, he never imagined that the twenty-year-old professor possessed such terrifying ability."Yes. She was a genius after all." Chen Yi's voice was heavy.---With the headmaster's assistance and the boost from Lisa's lingering markers, the battle finally turned a corner. Chen Yi could now spare some mental capacity to sort through the situation.Though the defenders had the advantage, no one knew the true size of the beetle swarm. Fighting endlessly like this was no solution.He picked up a relatively intact beetle corpse from his feet and examined it. After a moment, he flipped it over and studied its belly."Chen Yi, what are you doing?" Mendes asked from beside him."I think I've found something. Mendes, cover me." Chen Yi flipped over another corpse."Sure. But save me those corpses—I'm going to refine them into cores and sell them."After examining five or six relatively intact beetle corpses, Chen Yi suddenly stood up. He turned to a familiar student nearby and said, "Cast a Speed Enhancement on me.""You... what are you going to do?" The student was stunned."Please. It's important." Chen Yi pleaded.The student relented and cast the spell.The moment it took effect, Chen Yi dashed out beyond the magic barrier and ran straight toward the beetles."Chen Yi! What are you doing? Are you insane?" Professor Cobb shouted.Chen Yi ignored him. Using his speed advantage, he suddenly leaped onto the back of the nearest beetle.The beetle seemed uninterested in the rider and kept charging toward the campus."Professor Cobb, please don't attack this one!" Chen Yi waved. "Mendes, open a gap in the barrier and let us through."Everyone at the north gate was stunned. They had no idea what this intermediate trainee was up to.Though Professor Cobb hadn't given the order, no one was willing to risk hitting a classmate to attack that beetle.Only Mendes tacitly opened a small gap in the barrier, and Chen Yi rode the monster through the opening. Once he was past, Mendes quickly closed it.Under the stunned gazes of the crowd, Chen Yi rode the beetle through the gate and ran straight into the campus."How could you let that monster in?" Professor Cobb snapped at Mendes.Mendes waved his hand dismissively. "Relax. It's just one beetle. Chen Yi can handle it. Besides, he must have a reason.""Then tell me—what reason?""I don't know. But there's definitely a reason."Professor Cobb's beard bristled with anger, but there was nothing he could do for the moment."Professor, don't be angry. Let's focus on the battle," Mendes urged.---Meanwhile, Chen Yi rode the beetle across campus, waving and shouting at classmates and professors he passed, signaling them not to attack it.In the midst of the life-and-death struggle for the academy, this slightly comical scene left everyone unsure how to react.Given that a single beetle was not a major threat, they ultimately followed Chen Yi's request and ignored it.The beetle carried Chen Yi to the lawn beside the central plaza. With all faculty and students busy fighting the monsters, this usually bustling place was now empty.Once on the grass, the beetle suddenly used its front claws to frantically dig into the ground.Chen Yi quickly dismounted and watched the excavated soil, searching for something.After about half an hour of digging, the pit was about four or five meters deep.Then the beetle suddenly let out a strange cry—it had apparently found something.Chen Yi strained his eyes. Deep in the pit, the head of another monster was visible. Just the head was about a meter long.He didn't disturb it. He simply watched as the beetle unearthed the other creature.The unearthed monster was about seven or eight meters long. Its front half resembled an ordinary Blade Beetle, but its rear was abnormally swollen, like a golden sac.It seemed this monster had just been roused from dormancy and could not move on its own.The ordinary beetle extended a long organ from its abdomen toward the golden sac of its newly unearthed, peculiar kin.Seeing this, Chen Yi didn't hesitate. He pulled his sword from his storage ring.With Intermediate Strength Enhancement, he easily hacked off the ordinary beetle's head with one strike.Chen Yi felt little guilt about thus betraying his mount. He then struck again, cutting the immobile special beetle in half.Green fluid sprayed from the severed sac, nearly splattering him. The creature twitched twice and fell still.At the same time, Chen Yi could sense the beetles outside the academy becoming agitated.He rushed back to the north gate and rejoined Mendes and the others. Sure enough, the beetles that had been surging toward the campus were retreating like an ebbing tide.Mendes saw him return and asked eagerly, "They actually retreated! What did you do?"Chen Yi explained, "While examining the corpses, I noticed that all the beetles attacking us were males. Or rather, everything we thought we knew about Blade Beetles referred to males.""If a population consists only of males, how can it reproduce? So I guessed that Blade Beetles, like bees and ants, have extremely rare but highly specialized females.""And males will pay any price to mate with them.""With that hypothesis, it's easy to understand why they would attack the academy at all costs. The female must emit some scent—imperceptible to humans but irresistible to males.""That scent triggered the rampage. The academy must lie on the path to the female, or the female might even be on campus.""From there, it was simple. We just let one beetle in, and it would lead us to the female. Once we killed her, the scent would disappear.""The beetles, having lost the scent, would have their fear of magic and humans return, and naturally they would all retreat."---Thanks to the efforts of the entire academy, Rongqi Academy repelled the invading beetles before the Church's reinforcements arrived.Though some were injured, everyone looked out for one another, and no one was killed.For discovering the cause of the monster attack and successfully resolving the crisis, Chen Yi received commendation from the academy.Carl and the others returned to campus and excitedly discussed the mysterious power of the "Friendship" rings with Mendes.Though Chen Yi was somewhat left out, everyone understood why he had traded his ring for the ancient book.With help from the armies of both nations and the Church, Rongqi Academy soon repaired its damaged buildings and walls, cleared the debris and monster corpses, and quickly restored order.Seven days later, another piece of joyful news came from the Church:The Pope of the High God Church had received a divine oracle: The mage Morin Lance was to proceed immediately to the Holy City of Catlerai and ascend to the upper realm three days later.