With this thought, one of the students, filled with apprehension, took a step closer to the ants.
However, due to Zhou Lin, the ants felt a sense of dread.
They immediately retreated a step, a movement that Zhou Lin noticed.
He subtly glanced sideways, a hint of mockery playing on his lips.
Fine, if they wanted to court death, let them. The authorities were watching, waiting to see how they would perish.
Just as Zhou Lin was thinking this, a heart-wrenching scream echoed from behind.
He saw that the student from Sakura Country was surrounded by ants, which had begun to gnaw at him. The sounds of tearing flesh stimulated the eardrums of the onlookers.
In a short while, only a pool of blood and scattered remains lay silently on the ground.
The people from Sakura Country were stunned by this sight, staring blankly and fearfully at the remains.
How could this happen?
"Professor Zhou Lin, shouldn't you offer an explanation? Why did my student have an accident?"
Professor Jingxia looked at him with great displeasure.
"Why are you looking at me? Did I tell your students to go and provoke the ants? Who can you blame if you can't control your own people?"
"These ants were just standing there peacefully. Are your students not despicable for provoking them?"
Zhou Lin sneered at Jingxia, casting an indifferent glance at the remains.
To put it bluntly, it had nothing to do with him.
Without waiting for Jingxia to speak, he continued to walk forward.
Jingxia, however, was seething with anger. His assistant kindly reminded him,
"Professor, hurry up. If we get too far from Zhou Lin, we'll be in danger too."
The assistant's words brought Jingxia back to his senses. He hurried to catch up, followed closely by the students who, seeing the gruesome fate of their classmate, were eager not to fall behind and suffer the same.
This scene was observed by the people of Daxia.
"Hmph, serves them right. So arrogant. Did you see that? This is the consequence of disobedience. Don't learn from them; they are a negative example."
Huo Qi glanced back at his students.
"We saw."
The students were equally fearful of the ants. The only difference was that Zhou Lin was from Daxia.
Previously, they had only seen pictures and had not witnessed the ants killing people. Now, seeing it firsthand, they understood the ants' cruelty.
They were still very fearful, but their admiration for Zhou Lin grew. The fact that these ants feared Zhou Lin was a testament to his power.
In the live stream:
"Holy crap, the people of Daxia are so despicable, letting someone die without helping."
"Exactly! And they're using it as a negative example? You've gone too far. Are the lives of our Sakura Country people not lives?"
"What the hell, people are coming to get yelled at? Are you guys idiots? The great master already said not to mess around, so who are you to blame? I knew you were all ungrateful wretches, it was too much to have saved you."
"That's right. Our great master is like a god in the field of archaeology. What could you country bumpkins possibly understand?"
"Haha, the great master is truly popular. His actions just now were so cool. For those who don't listen, they truly deserve it."
"Decisive, clear about grievances and debts. My great master is truly awesome."
...
In the Dean's conference room:
"That scoundrel truly deserves it. No wonder Zhou Lin extorted them. With such pathetic behavior, it would be a shame not to take a hefty sum."
Professor Wen suddenly felt a sense of catharsis. This Jingxia was a petty, purely insidious villain...
"This feud is now cemented. No doubt, Jingxia is probably plotting how to scheme against Zhou Lin later."
Professor Hu understood the situation perfectly.
"Zhou Lin is not someone anyone can scheme against. Look at this, he's already taken thirty million Daxia currency at the start. Not bad, not bad."
The Dean still felt that although Zhou Lin was young, he was cunning enough. Perhaps he was brewing some mischief.
"I think it's great too. I just admire Zhou Lin's personality of repaying grievances with grievances and debts with debts."
"It would be even better if he could further expose this Jingxia. How many people has he taken advantage of? This old man probably has a lot of money."
"At least a hundred million. This time, leading the expedition, perhaps the country will provide full support, seeing this opportunity. Not to mention the backing from Eagle Country and Noodle Country."
The professors and experts whispered among themselves, not holding a high opinion of Jingxia.
Inside the tomb entrance:
The people from Sakura Country had arrived.
They looked at Huo Qi and the metaphysics professor with displeasure, then let out a cold snort and led their people inside first.
Captain Song Lin, the mercenary leader, was the captain of Sakura Country's national guard and possessed extraordinary abilities. The fact that he was here to protect the archaeological team showed how much Sakura Country valued this tomb.
With Captain Song Lin paving the way, Professor Jingxia, the other professors, and the students felt much more at ease.
As long as the ant incident was behind them, everything else would be manageable.
The remaining students felt that Daxia had no further use for them, and their attitude became arrogant. They strutted past Zhou Lin like peacocks, full of self-importance.
Zhou Lin saw this, his eyebrows slightly raised. He didn't mind, instead revealing a cold smile.
"Aren't you angry?"
Huo Qi asked, puzzled.
"If you put it that way, should I be angry or not? But it doesn't matter. If someone is willing to be a scapegoat, then let them be."
Zhou Lin looked at Huo Qi with a half-smile, and only after the Sakura Country group had completely disappeared did he quietly walk behind them.
The metaphysics professor and Huo Qi exchanged a glance, smiling at each other.
"I have a feeling Zhou Lin isn't planning anything good."
Huo Qi whispered.
"If he were planning something good, he wouldn't be Zhou Lin. Good intentions are for people, not for beasts. I think this is just fine."
The metaphysics professor chuckled.
The group reached the tomb entrance. As they entered the stone gate, they saw several stone pillars inside, carved with numerous eyes. The walls on the sides were adorned with colorful murals, depicting a queen.
However, the queen's eyes emitted a yellow light, shining down on the humans on the ground.
At the very edge, there were also some weapons used at the time.
"Have you researched this place?"
The metaphysics professor asked Huo Qi, looking at the tomb that stretched as far as the eye could see, feeling shocked.
"I have investigated before. When this place was inhabited, it belonged to the Han Dynasty. It was also the period when the Silk Road was just emerging."
"This area is all desert, with many subordinate small states, such as Loulan and Gumo, which were also included."