"Hss—"

A thick beam of white laser swept across, completely engulfing the transport for a split second. When the attack ended, the golden barrier around the aircraft had vanished. Smoke billowed from the entire plane as it began to plummet.

Uh-oh.

Qin Fan had clearly reached his limit.

Before Lixin, Qin Fan knelt on the ground, panting heavily. Meanwhile, Cleyna rubbed her eyes on the other side, tears streaming from the earlier blast. The cockpit glass was nearly melted.

If she hadn’t dodged fast, her eyes would’ve been blinded.

"Stop messing around! Hold on tight!"

The plane was dropping fast. If they didn’t grip something, they’d either be flung out or crushed against the ceiling.

"I am holding on! But I can’t hold on any longer!"

Qin Fan teetered on the edge of being thrown out. Cleyna had it easier—if she fell, the plane would be wrecked anyway.

Time to show some real skills.

Lixin’s ability wasn’t ideal for rescue here, but with a little help, it’d work.

"Thwack!"

"Wha—?!"

Two black spikes suddenly pierced both sides of the plane. Their jagged surfaces reduced the fall’s impact.

One grazed Qin Fan’s cheek.

"Lixin, you bastard! Was that on purpose?!"

Qin Fan was furious and terrified, not noticing the spikes had shot up from hundreds of meters below.

"Clang! Crack! Crackle-crunch!"

The battered plane groaned like it might collapse.

"Cleyna! I’ll need your help soon!" she yelled.

"What?! I can’t see clearly!"

Tch. Without these two, this wouldn’t be so troublesome.

"Whoosh—" "Boom!"

More attacks came, but Lixin defended steadily this time. The others didn’t care about the chaos.

Under two minutes passed. The pressure eased enough for them to stand shakily. Cleyna remained uneasy—she had no idea what Lixin wanted, hoping it wasn’t insane.

"Cleyna! Jump down now!"

I shouldn’t have hoped for mercy. This guy’s not normal!

"Are you joking?! Do you want me to die?!"

"It’s fine!" Lixin waved. "This height won’t kill you. If you don’t jump, we all die here!"

"............"

No choice. To avoid a pathetic end, Cleyna agreed. "Alright. What do you want?"

Her vision stayed blurry. The blast had hurt her eyes badly; tears kept flowing even when open.

"After you jump, use your ability to hold the plane. The impact won’t trouble you now."

"...Sigh... Alright."

Resigned, Cleyna felt this was the only way.

She walked to the cabin door. The wind wasn’t strong enough to blow her off—descent was slow, and the ground seemed near. Lixin wouldn’t have ordered the jump otherwise.

"Three! Two! One!"

She leaped without hesitation.

"Whoosh—"

The rush of air faded fast. The plane was under thirty meters up. After a "Thud!" on landing, she braced to catch the falling transport.

"Creeeak—"

A massive force slammed into her raised arms. To protect her bones, she bent her elbows, lowered her stance, and halted the military aircraft’s fall from hundreds of meters.

"Ugh............"

Her arms ached despite the stop. Ignoring the two inside, she tossed the plane lightly forward.

"Thump!" "Oof!"

Screams echoed from within—they’d landed hard.

They couldn’t stay. This city outskirts was flat and exposed. Preyas’s army was six hundred meters away, already spotting the wreck. Fierce battles raged in the city too. Their position was awkward.

Lixin dragged the exhausted Qin Fan out. He was too drained for long movement.

"Hiss..."

Cleyna tried checking her wristwatch location, but pain shot through her arm and wrist. Not severe, but it’d need days to heal.

"I’ll do it."

The transport still offered cover. Lixin quickly checked his watch...

Northeast Huaxia? Their destination was West Siberia! How had they only reached here? That pilot brother was probably fake!

Two problems now:

1. What should they do?

2. Why was Preyas fighting here? They shouldn’t be in this region.

Call the academy fast.

"Zzzzt……"

No signal.

"Right, contact Elwin."

For the last mission, they’d linked to Elwin’s secure line—he was reliable.

Lixin connected successfully.

"Hello! Elwin!"

"What’s up?"

Faint but clear enough.

"Our destination was West Siberia! Shot down midway! Now in Northeast China! Local forces are battling Preyas!"

Before Lixin could speak, Qin Fan yelled first. That guy still had energy to shout.

"What? Hold on! I’ll report immediately..."

"............"

Connection cut.

But the message got through. Qin Fan’s shout was deafeningly clear.

Wait—shouting?

"That... Qin Fan..."

Lixin and Cleyna glared at him with murderous intent.

"What?"

"Bang bang bang!" "Clang clang clang...!"

Bullets from afar ricocheted off the transport’s hull behind which they hid.

Preyas, seeing the downed plane, had confirmed their position and was closing in.