Chapter 47: Turning the Tables

"What... What! Ji-ge, are you saying... Gao Xiang, he... he... he took Ling Ling away through deception!"

Huang Mang, who had finally caught on, had an incredulous expression on his face.

Dong Xuan's face was also filled with shock.

Zheng Haiyu, who had been looking after Zhou Jun, emerged from the room and furrowed his brows as he said, "Ji-ge, Gao Xiang and I are bunkmates. He's usually pretty honest. This doesn't seem like something he'd do, right?"

Ji Chang let out a soft sigh and glanced at Huang Mang and Zheng Haiyu.

He didn't want to believe his own suspicions either. After all, Gao Xiang was his classmate. But all the signs pointed towards his conjecture being correct.

However, if they disregarded the fact that they were classmates, everything made sense.

"But... But why would Gao Xiang do this? We're classmates! Although our relationship with him isn't that close, we've lived in the same dormitory for a year. Why would he do this?"

Huang Mang's eyes were red, and he kept muttering to himself.

"Captain, I... I don't think Ling Ling would agree to what Gao Xiang did!"

Dong Xuan vigorously shook her head.

Based on her understanding of Liu Qing, she was certain that Liu Qing wouldn't do something like that!

"Liu Qing... Liu Qing might have encountered unforeseen circumstances as well!"

Chen Lingsnow, forcing herself to calm down, had a trace of sorrow in her eyes.

After Ji Chang's analysis and reminder just now, she also realized that Gao Xiang's arrival, along with his actions and words, were suspicious.

Looking back now, Chen Lingsnow felt deep remorse within her heart.

"Huang Mang, I'm sorry. It's all my fault... If I hadn't agreed to let Ling Ling go, this wouldn't have happened while you guys were away!"

Chen Lingsnow looked at Huang Mang and apologized with self-blame.

"No... No! It's all my fault. If I..."

Upon hearing that Liu Qing had encountered unforeseen circumstances from Chen Lingsnow, Dong Xuan couldn't hold back her tears and began to cry, "It's all my fault, all my fault... I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

"But it's not your fault either. After all, Gao Xiang is our classmate. It's only natural not to be suspicious of him. And now isn't the time to blame anyone. The most important thing now is to find Gao Xiang!"

Ji Chang looked at the almost collapsing Dong Xuan and the self-blaming Chen Lingsnow. Then he helped Huang Mang, who was crouching on the ground, to his feet and lightly scolded, "Mang, pull yourself together! Wang Ling Ling is still waiting for you to rescue her, you know!"

He understood that in times like these, it was crucial to stay calm and composed. Drowning in self-blame and despair would only waste time.

"Mang-ge, don't worry. We'll definitely find Wang Ling Ling! Once we see Gao Xiang, I'll freeze him to the wall with an ice spike!"

Zheng Haiyu patted Huang Mang's shoulder reassuringly.

"But where do we even start looking to rescue her? I don't even know where Ling Ling is. I can't find her, I can't find her!"

Huang Mang, now a tearful mess, sobbed.

"If you can't find her, then let's search until we do! Search with all your might! Crying won't solve anything here! We'll turn this whole area upside down. I refuse to believe we can't find her!"

Ji Chang rebuked once again, "Can your tears bring Wang Ling Ling back?"

"Right! Right! Let's search, turn this whole area upside down. I refuse to believe we won't find her!"

The words jolted Huang Mang awake to some extent. He wiped away his tears and mucus, clenched his fist, and said.

"We will definitely find her!"

"I'm coming too!"

"We're going together!"

Zheng Haiyu, Dong Xuan, and Chen Lingsnow clenched their fists with determination.

"Uh~! But we can't all go. What about Zhou Jun? He's still... Zhou Jun?"

Seeing the group's resolve, Ji Chang couldn't help but snort lightly.

After all, Zhou Jun, who was still lying unconscious in the room, was a concern.

However, before Ji Chang could finish speaking, Zhou Jun unsteadily walked out of the room!

"What... What's going on?"

Leaning against the doorframe, Zhou Jun looked at Ji Chang and the others with confusion, then hesitated, "What... What happened?"

Just a moment ago, he had woken up, and as soon as he opened his eyes, he heard Huang Mang's wailing. After coming out, he had noticed not only Huang Mang but also the tears on the faces of Class Monitor Chen Lingsnow and Dong Xuan. However, he quickly realized that Wang Ling Ling was not here. Looking at Huang Mang's state, he suddenly understood something. He knew that the only one in this world who could bring this reckless fellow to his knees was Wang Ling Ling...

Seeing Zhou Jun wake up, Ji Chang briefly explained the situation about Gao Xiang deceiving Wang Ling Ling.

"What? That son of a bitch! He actually did something like this! I'm going with you guys!"

Upon learning the truth, Zhou Jun was furious.

"Zhou Jun, but what about your injuries?"

Chen Lingsnow looked at Zhou Jun with concern.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me! Let's go quickly!"

Zhou Jun waved his hand to reassure them, urging them.

At this moment, Ji Chang finally noticed that Zhou Jun's aura was rapidly increasing at a visible rate. Obviously, Zhou Jun's spiritual power had broken through from the second level when they were catching grasshoppers in the morning to the third level now.

Zhou Jun's strength was the strongest among all except for Ji Chang. Huang Mang's strength was subtly approaching fullness, on the brink of breaking through to the third level. Chen Lingsnow and Zheng Haiyu followed closely, their progress being quite similar. Dong Xuan had just reached the second level...

...

Afterward, Ji Chang and Huang Mang brought some food, riding on wolf spiders, while Chen Lingsnow, Dong Xuan, and Zheng Haiyu rode hornets. Together, they headed toward the entrance of the housing complex.

From bringing food back from the kitchen to going out twice in succession, they hadn't stopped for a moment. Their spiritual energy was now somewhat depleted.

They split up to search, thus covering more ground. Whether it was Ji Chang and Huang Mang who discovered something or Chen Lingsnow and the others on the hornets, Ji Chang could receive the information through his unique connection with the hornets.

If Ji Chang and Huang Mang found something first, Ji Chang would directly instruct the hornets to converge. Conversely, if Chen Lingsnow and the others found something, Ji Chang would guide the wolf spiders toward them!

For the search for Gao Xiang and Wang Ling Ling, Ji Chang had devised a simple plan. They could exclude the area of the courtyard; it was certain that the two weren't here. They had searched it several times already. So, Ji Chang decided to start from the takeaway they had found on the road and head south along the road. Apart from a few trash bins, there was a public restroom on the south side of the road. Therefore, Ji Chang focused their search in that vicinity. In his view, the public restroom was a very likely location. After all, it had washbasins, which meant there was a water source. Everything relied on water; a person might survive without eating for several days or even more than ten days, but surviving three days without water was difficult. It had been five or six days since they shrank, so Ji Chang tentatively concluded that the public restroom might be where Gao Xiang had taken refuge!