Ch 68:- Peter is caught and Discovery

The two soldiers guarding the portal entrance kept their hands directed at Pio Blank, even though he had already identified himself as a student. They were soldiers, not school employees.

Backup was called, and a few moments later, Hayley entered the room accompanied by three additional soldiers. Pio's hands remained raised above his head, visibly shaking. This was not the welcome he had expected after being missing for a month. He had hoped for a warm reception, even to be treated like a king for a few days. But reality hit him hard, showing him that it wasn't the case at all.

"Will you guys drop it already? Can't you see that you're scaring him?" Hayley spoke up, her voice filled with concern. She understood the strict protocols in place before allowing someone back through the portal to the base.

On her way to the room, Hayley had heard some information about the person claiming to be a student who had entered the portal. She knew that if he could show his student military ID, they would have allowed him to pass. However, this situation turned out to be quite unexpected. Instead of a student from the orange portal expedition or someone left behind, it was someone from the original green portal planet, Pio.

As Hayley approached Pio, she sensed something strange, and when the realization hit her, she almost dropped the tablet in her hand.

"Pio Blank?" Hayley asked, her voice filled with confusion and puzzlement.

Pio, with a slight blush on his face, responded, "That's right... But how do you know my name? I didn't think that you paid that much attention to me." He felt special, thinking that Hayley remembered his name out of the 500 students on campus.

"Is this student the fake one? Or is the impersonator the one inside our base?" Hayley pondered, gulping at the thought. She reasoned that the person currently at the school was most likely the fake student. However, to be cautious, Pio's hands were cuffed behind his back, and a soldier escorted him for interrogation.

Pio started screaming, "Wait, I promise you! I'm really me! You can check my ID card! You can see that it's me in the files, right?! You guys already have my picture! Why are you doing this?!"

"That's the problem..." Hayley muttered to herself. "There's someone who looks exactly like you."

Hayley immediately went to inform Nathan and called for an emergency meeting. The situation had become even more complicated, and they needed to address it promptly.

Meanwhile, Pio, still cuffed, couldn't help but feel helpless and confused about what had transpired during his absence. He wondered what had happened and why he was being treated this way.

However, Pio's thoughts changed when the doors to the supposed interrogation room were opened. Instead of facing further interrogation, he was greeted with a full meal, desserts, and even a luxurious bed in one location. He didn't know that the school had such a place!

Pio's eyes fixated on the food. He hadn't eaten a proper meal in days during his desert journey. He had worked hard to gather credits, hire an escort team, and make it back to the school, but he never had the chance to splurge on a good meal. Drool kept falling from his mouth as he stared at the feast before him.

Amidst his anticipation, a deep voice reverberated in the room, "You can uncuff him now."

Pio's attention shifted, and he turned to see the second-year general, Duke, entering the room. Pio was surprised it wasn't Nathan, as first-year matters would usually be assigned to him.

"Now, before you enjoy your meal, I need you to tell me everything that happened," Duke requested.,

Duke had a hunch that something wasn't right about this situation. The incident in the portal room had reached him, and he suspected a connection to Pure, a faction he held a grudge against since the Truedream incident.

The woman in white robes, responsible for questioning, began her job. After an intense half-hour of interrogation, Pio's mouth turned dry from recounting his experiences. He had told the truth, confirmed his identity, and explained everything. However, there was still one thing bothering Duke.

"So you're saying you never saw the Dalki? Are you absolutely certain?" Duke inquired.

"My memory is a bit blurry, but I would have remembered a Dalki attack. So no, I didn't see the Dalki," Pio responded.

Duke realized that the earlier reports they had received didn't match up. The circumstances surrounding the deaths of the other two students seemed questionable. He couldn't shake off the feeling that something wasn't right.

"Thank you. You may now enjoy your meal. Make yourself comfortable; you'll be here for a while," Duke said as he left the room and closed the door.

Pio's hope for a quick resolution faded when two soldiers blocked the exit. He wondered what awaited him now.

In another part of the school, the selection process for the inter-military event was taking place. Logan, in his class, had volunteered for the crafting event since there were no known crafters among them. As the class was about to end, four soldiers suddenly entered, announcing their intention to collect Pio Blank.

The soldiers swiftly took hold of Pio, cuffing his hands behind his back. Logan attempted to intervene, but the soldiers warned him not to obstruct their duties. Logan reluctantly let go but discreetly had one of his spiders follow Peter, who had been caught.

As Logan watched Peter being taken away, he knew that something was wrong. Peter had been caught, and he couldn't shake off the feeling that there was more to this situation than met the eye.

The little mechanical spider was neatly tucked just underneath Peter's shirt collar. It climbed up from below his sleeve and was now in the prime position to listen and hear everything.

Although the spider acted as a microphone and, at times, a small speaker, it couldn't transmit any video footage. The situation took Logan by surprise, and he was completely unprepared for something like this to happen.

While the sound recorded by the spider was sent to the computer in his room, where he could listen to it later, that wasn't good enough. He needed to be aware of what was happening in real-time.

Luckily, the soldiers came to grab Peter just when classes ended for the day, giving Logan the opportunity to rush back to his room. As he returned, he placed his other hand on the watch on his wrist and sent out an urgent message.

"This is an emergency! Everyone gather right now. Peter has been caught. I repeat, Peter has been caught. Everyone meet me in my room ASAP."

When the message was sent, all of their group's watches lit up. After what happened with Truedream, Logan had made sure the adjustments he made on everyone's watches were permanent.

The messages he sent were encrypted, and their whereabouts were also sent to Logan's computer in real-time.

Upon seeing the message, a devastated look appeared on their faces. If they found Peter, it was only a matter of time before their involvement would be discovered as well.

In an instant, they all rushed to the same location.

As Logan stepped into his room, his immediate focus was on the computer, eager to listen to the transmission from the spider. However, disappointment washed over him when he realized there was barely any sound recorded so far. The soldiers had silently escorted Peter without exchanging a single word.

"Well, at least they haven't revealed anything yet, Peter," Logan muttered under his breath, desperately searching for a glimmer of hope amidst the uncertainty. Time was of the essence, and he needed to act swiftly to find out where they had taken Peter. If things took a turn for the worse, they might be able to devise a plan similar to what they had done with Truedream. As he sifted through the gathered information and followed Peter's trail, a faint suspicion tugged at his mind.

"Now... why are they taking you there?" Logan pondered aloud, furrowing his eyebrows in deep thought.

Meanwhile, in another part of the school, Rayne let out an exasperated sigh as he read the urgent message. Frustration filled his voice as he messaged Quinn, declining the request without providing any explanation for his absence. "Can't I get some rest? I literally survived just moments ago. This Quinn is like a trouble magnet." Deep down, he knew that saving Peter at this point seemed impossible. Their options appeared limited, and the consequences of their actions weighed heavily on his mind. If Peter disappeared without a trace, it was only logical for the authorities to investigate everyone he had come into contact with, potentially searching students' rooms. It was a perilous situation that required careful consideration, unless the authorities were severely lacking in brain cells.

Lost in thought, Rayne surveyed the chaos in his room, realizing that in the event of a search, he would undoubtedly appear suspicious. Determined to avoid any unwanted attention, he swiftly began organizing his belongings and sent a message to Cia, instructing her to keep a watchful eye. Methodically, he stowed away machinery parts, his laptop, and finally, the scroll he used for teleportation. Only two items remained—the fabricator and the chest containing items that exceeded his inventory's weight limit.

Approaching the fabricator, Rayne was met with a peculiar message that caught his attention. The system prompted him with the question, "Would you like to store it or merge it to unlock the Crafting function?"

Raising an eyebrow, Rayne couldn't resist asking, "Can the crafting function create weapons?"

The system responded, "Yes, it can, but the quality won't match those crafted or forged by a blacksmith."

Contemplating his options, Rayne weighed the decision in his mind. "Yes, I would like you to merge it," he finally decided.

However, the merging process came with a steep price. The system requested intricate symbols to be drawn on the fabricator with his own blood, as well as a significant number of beast crystals. The cost seemed exorbitant, and Rayne attempted to negotiate, questioning the system about the high price. However, his efforts proved futile, and he reluctantly agreed to pay the required 15 soul shards instead.

With a mixture of reluctance and determination, Rayne cut his palm, utilizing blood control to meticulously draw the intricate symbols and circle on the fabricator. As he completed the ritual, the sleek design of the fabricator transformed into a grotesque sight, stained with his blood. Rayne inquired whether the process was now complete, feeling a momentary blindness as the symbols illuminated, followed by the fabricator dissipating into golden motes of light that hovered above his head before vanishing entirely.

A wide grin spread across Rayne's face as the system congratulated him on unlocking the crafting function. Without hesitation, he eagerly accessed the newly unlocked function, discovering a vast array of recipes that he never knew he had the ability to create.

Having meticulously organized his inventory and hidden any suspicious items, Rayne found himself filled with anticipation. He hoped someone would come to investigate, longing for a chance to test his abilities. Minutes passed, but no one entered his room. Focused and determined, he stared into the distance, revisiting every battle, dissecting his techniques, and searching for the elusive flaw that had eluded him thus far.

As the half-hour mark approached, Rayne could no longer bear to sit idle. Swiftly, he summoned his powerful Shadow Dragon Suit armor, willing it to transform into his school uniform, perfectly matching its color. Satisfied with his appearance, he shifted his attention to the soul force bar, which displayed a full capacity: [100,000/100,000].

A subtle smile played upon his lips as he uttered an incantation, skillfully weaving threads of illusion around him. In an instant, a flawless clone materialized, an exact replica of Rayne in every aspect. Creating the doppelgänger only consumed about 100 points from his reserves, but Rayne further enhanced the clone by infusing it with half of his Qi and blood aura, making its body almost solid. Rayne then carefully removed his watch and tucked it under the pillow, out of sight.

Looking at the clone, he gave a final instruction, "Look after the room and try to act normal," his voice filled with concern and uncertainty as he made a decision he had never attempted before.

"No worries, boss," the clone Rayne replied with a huge grin.

Using the power of his teleportation spell, Rayne vanished from the room, consuming another 1000 points from his reserve. When he reappeared, he found himself in a breathtaking location on Earth. A cascading waterfall flowed down in elegant steps, resembling the cuts of a mountain, forming a narrow yet mesmerizing stream. The glistening water revealed the rounded rocks on the streambed, and each breath invigorated every cell in Rayne's body with the pure, refreshing air.

Excitedly exploring further, he discovered a clearing beyond the riverbank, adorned with smooth pebbles and small grass-like plants. But his journey didn't end there. Venturing deeper into the lush foliage of a less dense forest, Rayne stumbled upon an ancient temple in ruins. Its dark-colored stones, covered in moss and lichen, exuded a sense of age and grandeur.

Although his heart swelled with nostalgia upon arrival, Rayne sighed, acknowledging that it was now nothing more than a distant memory. Suddenly, his attention was captivated by a peculiar sight—a familiar monkey perched on the temple rooftop, engrossed in its feast of wild fruits. At first glance, it appeared ordinary, but through the lens of his Dragon Eyes, Rayne discovered the true nature of the creature—a demon-tier beast emanating an ambient and formidable aura. What fascinated him even more was the creature's peaceful disposition, unbothered by his presence. Unlike other beasts that would attack, this one remained absorbed in its simple task of fruit gathering, occasionally observing Rayne with curiosity. It was a peculiar beast, unlike any other of its kind he had encountered.

Rayne couldn't help but cast one last glance at the monkey before returning to the open place along the riverbank. There, he began gathering rocks and creating a makeshift fire pit. After collecting a bundle of firewood, he realized they were all wet. Undeterred, he cast a standard spell, "Burn O' Flame," igniting a small fire. Using his flame scripture, he deftly manipulated the flames, drying the wood before finally igniting it. He then retrieved his trusty cauldron and placed it over the fire to heat.

Carefully, Rayne took out a metal plate and arranged the herbs meticulously. He was about to create a body refinement elixir, also known as a foundation elixir. Its task was simple—to enhance and strengthen one's physique, setting the stage for further growth, along with additional effects.

Double-checking all the ingredients—Purple-leaf fern, Bonebleach Flower, Golden thistle, Chamomile, and a basic-tier crystal serving as a proxy for the required beast crystal—Rayne initiated the pill-making process.

Several hours later, he let out a sigh of relief, exclaiming, "Finally, I have finished crafting the elixir." His back stretched as he eased the soreness from sitting in the same position for nearly four hours straight. His gaze shifted to the five vials containing a viscous green liquid, a testament to his meticulous work. Just as he was about to revel in his accomplishment, a familiar presence caught his attention—the same monkey perched nearby, observing his every move with curious intensity.

Locking eyes with Rayne, the monkey's gaze brimmed with uncanny intelligence. Unexpectedly, it began to communicate through hand signs, drawing a box shape with its fingers before pointing in a specific direction. Rayne's astonishment grew as he realized the monkey was trying to convey a message to him. Unable to fully comprehend, he watched as the monkey sighed in disappointment, seemingly unimpressed by Rayne's understanding. It approached him, grabbed his hand, and started pulling him toward the temple. They stopped before the entrance, and the monkey made a pushing motion, pointing at the door.

Confused yet intrigued, Rayne agreed and approached the door. However, as soon as he touched it, he felt his strength seep away, a terrible sensation overwhelming him. Thirst consumed him, as if he hadn't drunk anything in ages. Rayne recognized this thirst—it was a thirst for blood. It became evident that the temple was draining his blood aura. Gritting his teeth and enduring the agony, he pushed against the door, his fangs elongating and his eyes glowing with an ethereal light. His skin tightened, his body bulged, and even strands of his hair started turning gray. The intricate designs on the door lit up, resembling a river of blood flowing through them. Creaking open, the door revealed the inside of the temple.

As Rayne looked inside, his eyes widened in shock.