Translated by XephiZ

Edited by Aelryinth

Major General Gangma was leaning against the trunk of an old tree. He chuckled when he saw Mo Fan and the others had nowhere to go.

"Seriously, you could have taken the easy way out in the first place. Do you have any idea who you are going against? Your only chance of survival is to treat me nicely, hand that little girl to me, and send me back to the army!" Major General Gangma said.

Mo Fan could not enter Cairo, but it was difficult to leave now, too. The snake demons were watching them closely. As soon as they left the city's vicinity, the snake demons would surround them right away. First, kidnapping the young Medusa had infuriated them. Second, the Curse of the Vengeful Eyes would keep attracting them, too!

They were unable to leave and enter the city. If they continued to waste their time, the Curse would only worsen. It would be easier for the snake demons to find them!

"Are your bones itching again?" Mo Fan asked Gangma.

Gangma was quite scared of Mo Fan. The torture he was experiencing when Mo Fan injected the Dark Material into his body was absolutely unbearable. Even though Major General Gangma no longer had any secrets to offer, he did not want to be tortured again!

"Why don't we just give this guy back? I'm really worried about my students now," Mentor Vani said after a moment's hesitation.

He was the mentor in charge of the students, and would be held responsible if anything happened to the students. Vani was already afraid when the army listed them as wanted. He might be a Super Mage, but he was only a teacher without any real authority. He was nothing compared to the generals and commanders!

Vani knew what kind of people he could not afford to mess with, so he believed he was in deep trouble now.

"Send him back? Do you really think the Egyptian army will go easy on us? They can attack us without even asking who we are. It means they don't even care, taking us out is going to save them a lot of trouble!" Mo Fan said.

Compromise?

If they decided to compromise, they would be placing their lives and dignity in the hands of others! It was something that Mo Fan hated the most.

"But we are going to die too at this rate. It's fine if those big snakes show up, but if the Red Medusa finds us, we are screwed!" Vani countered.

"It seems like the teacher is the sensible one among you guys. Don't worry, you are from the European University Institute. Our army has no reason to provoke such a reputable school. Just forget what you saw and hand the girl to us. I can promise you that you will leave Egypt safely. I can even let the army settle the contribution seals for your students to complete the trial, so you can return to your school in glory," Major General Gangma spoke up again.

"What are you doing? Torturing him won't do us any good. I think it's not a bad idea to have a backup plan!" Mentor Vani exclaimed.

Mo Fan ignored Vani, and went to the higher ground. The sun was setting in the west. The snake demons were going to be active soon, which meant the Curse would worsen too. It was going to be another tough fight!

Apas knelt down beside Mo Fan and stared at the setting sun. Her face was tender and beautiful. However, her clear, beautiful eyes did not have any energy in them.

"Big brother, am I causing you a lot of trouble?" Apas asked softly.

Gangma heard Apas' words. It was true that she was the cause of everything. The Egyptian army could spare Mo Fan and the others, as after all, their strength and background were not that simple. But they could not afford to lose Apas, since they did not want anyone to know they were feeding the young Medusa. If it was disclosed to the public, it would stir up great chaos in Egypt, or even the entire world!

"I've met greater troubles than this, this is nothing," Mo Fan patted Apas' disheveled hair.

Apas slowly raised her head. She stared at Mo Fan for a long time, so long that Mo Fan was starting to feel a little awkward.

Apas was indeed very good-looking. Mo Fan was astounded by her beauty when he laid his eyes on her the first time. It was the main reason why he assumed she was the young Medusa, her innocent yet alluring looks. She was supposed to be a pure little girl, yet her temperament was so attractive.

Mo Fan moved his gaze away. Otherwise, the girl might notice that she had hooked his soul away.

"Do you like me?" Apas said in a serious voice.

"Ah? Why would you ask that!?" Mo Fan was startled.

"If you don't like me, why are you protecting me?" Apas asked.

Mo Fan was slightly amused by the question. He explained, "It has nothing to do with liking a person or not. I'm a man with flesh and blood. Just like most people, I hate cruel and filthy things. However, the world is full of these things, and I can't eliminate them all like a hero of justice. But if I stumble into them, I can't just treat it like I didn't see it!"

"Oh, oh, so that means if it was someone else instead of me, you would do the same thing too, right?" Apas asked.

"More or less, but it's a world that fancies the good-looking. Maybe I'd be more serious if the person is better looking, and I'd be more determined to save the person too," Mo Fan agreed.

Heidi was not far away. She was quite touched when she heard the first sentence. Her impression of Mo Fan was about to change dramatically, but after hearing the second part of the sentence, she once again believed that Mo Fan was being his usual jerk self!

"This one is the last bottle we have. It will help us survive the night." Mu Bai came over and gave them a bottle of some thin liquid.

Mu Bai managed to produce a serum that could temporarily restrain the Curse of the Vengeful Eyes. Unfortunately, the serum could only buy them some time. It could not get rid of the Curse.

"Let's rest up. I bet we'll be fighting a lot tomorrow, be ready for it," Mo Fan said.

Mu Bai nodded. They had not gotten any rest for the past few days, and had even been injured by the soldiers. If they kept forcing themselves, their bodies and minds were going to break down soon.

------

The group found a safe spot to rest for the night. The snake demons did not find them when evening came; Mu Bai's serum had worked as intended.

They were all very tired. They had to stay focused at all times during their attempt to capture the young Medusa, not to mention the endless torture of the Curse of Vengeful Eyes. They barely escaped from the army, yet the snake demons and the soldiers were still grabbing for their throats...