"..."

An Le's gaze fell on Sakuragi Hitomi's meaningful gesture, she didn't come into contact with the tentacle state at all.

"Don't worry, it's sealed inside, she can't escape."

"Dong!"

As she spoke, Sakuragi Hitomi knocked on the door of the equipment room.

"Mm..."

Inside, Ye Shiyu's sobbing could faintly be heard.

Hearing Ye Shiyu's cries, An Le and Tong Yingying both frowned.

The implication was clear:

Are you sure the person inside is Ye Shiyu?

Could it be a recording trying to deceive us?

"..."

Even so, An Le slowly landed on the ground, calling out Little Thumb,

"Hiss..."

Little Thumb stuck out its tongue as it appeared, glaring at An Le and scolding first,

"Great! Now your limbs are probably numb again!!"

An Le didn't reply, just looked at Sakuragi Hitomi,

"...She has a question for you."

Little Thumb helplessly turned its head, looking at Sakuragi Hitomi.

"Little Thumb, Index Finger... might have intelligence."

"Impossible!"

"Absolutely impossible!"

Upon hearing Sakuragi Hitomi's words, An Le instantly realized what Sakuragi Hitomi intended to do, she widened her pink snake eyes, and together with Little Thumb, they spoke in opposition.

An Le was even more furious,

"Sakuragi Hitomi! I listened to you only for Xiao Huan's sake, putting up with it again and again!! Indeed, it hasn't been three days yet, but Ye Shiyu is the one who sought death first!!"

Yet Sakuragi Hitomi also frowned, counter-questioning,

"An Le, whose standpoint do you think I'm taking by advising you not to ruin yourself with that modifier?"

"Sakuragi Hitomi, stop acting like Xiao Huan's official girlfriend!! How long have you been with Xiao Huan now?! If you really loved the president, you would make that bastard pay!"

"Ha, do you know how long I've been with the president? When I joined the student council and spent day and night with the president, you were still..."

"Then if you joined the student council so early, why was Xiao Huan's first time with me!?"

"Because I'm different from you! I don't have my mind full of that kind of stuff!!"

Listening nearby, Tong Yingying couldn't help but interject, frowning,

"You two... Do you have to argue about this now?"

"She started it!!"

Both looked at Tong Yingying, angrily speaking in unison.

Tong Yingying couldn't stand it, she directly stabbed a knife into the ground, positioning herself between the two,

"Enough! Weren't you two discussing that... index finger?! Continue! Stop talking about these things!!"

At the mention of this, An Le glanced at Little Thumb, still fuming.

Little Thumb hopped onto the knife Tong Yingying had thrown to the ground, shaking its head,

"Index finger is disgusting, yes, but it can't be intelligent..."

"But it is now!!"

Sakuragi Hitomi pointed to Ye Shiyu inside the door, shouting loudly,

"The president might have died trying to save Ye Shiyu and Aunt Ye Lan! If it really happened because of Ye Shiyu, would she sacrifice her own mother?! And would the president be willing to save her?!

"Even if the truth isn't so, Ye Shiyu is already here, shouldn't we spend time investigating clearly instead of letting your emotions ruin everything?!"

Upon hearing this, An Le gritted her teeth, about to speak, but Little Thumb, shaking its head, looked at her and said,

"However, I also think you're too impulsive... That thing Yan Huan brought is precious, after much effort, we cleared your side effects, and now it's all in vain...

"And seriously, An Le... any further, and Lord God might descend..."

An Le looked at Little Thumb before her, sneering,

"Heh... what's this, weren't you very hopeful Lord God would descend while in Tokyo? Now you've suddenly changed your mind?"

Upon hearing this, Little Thumb widened its eyes, truly responding,

"Why else? Because I'm a traitor!"

"..."

Little Thumb's straightforward words rendered the three present speechless, leaving them silent where they stood.

But Little Thumb wasn't ashamed at all, its eyes rolled mischievously, starting to mumble,

"But... now that you mention it, I suddenly remember that the index finger might... possibly... maybe... have... a slight chance..."

"You damn..."

Seeing Little Thumb change its tune, An Le completely lost her temper, even starting to speak without restraint as she grabbed the white snake, intent on punishing it.

But even as Little Thumb was held tightly, it didn't forget to speak continuously like a cannon,

"That's how it is... Index Finger is a bit different from us, its evolution, besides the general four stages, involves levels, which I'm not too clear on...

"Each time it evolves, the modifier will grant a random evolutionary branch related to the host's choice... usually it's a choice between two...

"If its luck is outstanding, and it encounters a one-in-a-million vessel provided by Ye Shiyu, indeed... there is... oh, ouch, ouch, let me finish..."

However, before Little Thumb could finish, a thunderclap startled everyone present, changing their expressions,

"Rumble!!"

They all looked towards the ceiling, their expressions varied.

But...

They were inside the Barrier now...

How could they hear thunder from outside?

...

...

At this moment, outside, in Yan Huan's memorial hall.

Sakuragi Hitomi and others went to cremate Yan Huan's remains, and Ye Lan, exhausted, went elsewhere to rest.

So, only Yuanyue Academy's teachers, students, and some employees of Ye International remained in the scene.

"Buzz!"

But at this moment, the previously noisy memorial hall suddenly had the lights flicker on and off.

After Sakuragi Hitomi's fragment fell to the ground, getting dragged into the tool room...