Those Classmates who Suddenly Disappeared-Chapter 1684: The Secret of the Volcano

Ultimately, under Ning Qi’s reluctant lead, Gu Fan arrived at the command center of the Demon Refining Island Base, where a large screen displayed the process of exploring the depths beneath the volcano.

Gu Fan asked casually, "How many people did you send into the volcano interior?"

Ning Qi snorted dismissively, indicating she didn’t want to answer and left it to someone else.

A squad captain-level official informed him that about twenty people had been sent this time, equipped with various advanced detection instruments.

"Hmm, not bad. Make sure they do a good job; there’ll be significant rewards when they return," Gu Fan said, adopting the tone of someone giving directives to the X Legion, as if he were truly in charge here.

This annoyed Ning Qi. "Gu Fan, don’t forget, you’re still not the Great Demon King. You don’t have any authority to decide rewards and penalties."

In response, Gu Fan shrugged indifferently, flashing a nonchalant expression. "No problem. When I return to the past and start assembling the X Legion, the first thing I’ll do is recruit you, Ning Qi, under my command and punish you with one hundred smacks on your butt."

Upon hearing this, everyone else in the room displayed strange expressions on their faces.

Ning Qi’s face darkened, her expression revealing barely-contained fury.

Gu Fan sensed that the atmosphere changed because of his joke. Why did that offhand remark stir up such a big reaction among everyone?

At this point, Gu Xiaojin quietly reminded Gu Fan that when Ning Qi first joined the X Legion, she had indeed been punished with one hundred smacks by the Great Demon King, with no explanation whatsoever.

"Oh my gosh, something I joked about actually happened!" Gu Fan scratched his head and offered Ning Qi an apologetic smile.

The more Ning Qi looked at Gu Fan, the angrier she became. She simply turned away, refusing to even glance at his infuriating face anymore.

Fortunately, everyone soon shifted their focus to the exploration team, and the tension in the room eased considerably. Gu Xiaojin once again reminded Gu Fan to watch his words moving forward.

However, Gu Fan thought this situation worked in his favor. With Ning Qi’s past ordeal as leverage, the members of the X Legion would be even less inclined to provoke him.

Gu Xiaojin pondered this and realized it made some sense. The X Legion might have held the belief that since Gu Fan came from the past, he wasn’t technically the Great Demon King, and there were still differences between the two. So, if conflict arose, offending Gu Fan wouldn’t be too big of a deal.

But Ning Qi’s unfortunate experience—being punished with one hundred smacks—served as a warning to the X Legion. How they treated Gu Fan today could very well dictate how the Great Demon King would deal with them in the future.

Sometimes, a shift in mentality can determine the outcome. Gu Fan had seized control of the situation. Whatever he said, the X Legion followed obediently.

However, one question remained unanswered by the X Legion: what exactly lay inside the volcano?

The exploration team finally reached the deepest depths underground. They pushed onward, transmitting footage from their helmet cameras back to the command center.

Time ticked away slowly. At first, they observed nothing noteworthy. The exploration team proceeded methodically forward.

Everyone stared at the screen, which flickered on and off. Beyond the stone walls, all they could see were the backs of the explorers’ heads. After waiting for a long time with no groundbreaking discoveries, impatience began to spread.

Gu Fan yawned and stretched lazily, visibly bored. Yet, even with this indifferent attitude, his presence still carried a certain weight, preventing the X Legion members from expressing any dissent, not even daring to cast him a scornful glance.

Especially Ning Qi, who, upon learning the true reason behind her initial punishment upon joining the X Legion, still wore a grim expression that hadn’t softened since.

Suddenly, the exploration team encountered a massive object resembling a metal propulsion device. Its exterior, neither metallic nor rocky, clearly indicated it was a product of an ancient Super Civilization.

"What is this?" Gu Fan questioned, puzzled, then turned to Ning Qi.

But Ning Qi shook her head, stating she was only following orders to locate this thing and had no idea what its purpose was.

The enormous metal propulsion device seemed embedded in the stone wall. The exploration team tinkered with it for a long time but couldn’t budge it or find any sort of switch to activate it.

Gu Fan commanded additional scientific personnel to descend immediately and figure out what this thing was. He warned that anyone who defied orders would face consequences.

"What the hell? He really thinks he’s the Great Demon King now?" Ning Qi grumbled inwardly, deeply dissatisfied but unable to counteract Gu Fan’s mental dominance.

Consequently, numerous aircraft were deployed to transport the scientific team to the underground site alongside advanced equipment.

Meanwhile, battles along the coastline of Demon Refining Island had already concluded. Under the leadership of the big boss, Zhuo Hang, and Lord Xiong, the resistance forces had crushed the X Legion’s defenses and were advancing swiftly toward the island base.

The X Legion had planned to retaliate, but Gu Fan intervened, ordering both sides to cease hostilities immediately and to shake hands and reconcile. He threatened to punish anyone who disobeyed.

This command was absurd. After fighting for so many years, with each side’s hands soaked in the blood of the other, the resentment between them ran deep like the ocean—where only one side could survive. Now, to suddenly insist on reconciliation made all previous battles seem like childish games.

Nevertheless, Gu Fan adopted a cold, murderous expression that made him appear as though he were truly the Great Demon King, terrifying the X Legion members into complying with no further objections.

The resistance forces were similarly unwilling to cohabitate peacefully with the X Legion, but under the coaxing of Jie and appeals to "prioritize the bigger picture," they reluctantly agreed.

Ning Qi was the most unwilling of all. What kind of nonsense was this?

As she watched the resistance forces swagger into the Demon Refining Island Base, Ning Qi grew anxious over her inability to contact the Great Demon King, forcing her to reach out to Ao Sai instead.

Ao Sai unequivocally refused to accept the situation, urging Ning Qi and the X Legion to launch an immediate counterattack and wipe out the resistance forces completely.

However, Gu Fan opposed Ao Sai, declaring that if Ao Sai dared to challenge him now, then once Gu Fan returned to the past, he would refuse to collaborate with Ao Sai or establish the X Legion. In short, he’d let Ao Sai fend for himself.

The tension escalated. Ao Sai locked eyes with Gu Fan; one gaze was icy-cold, the other unyielding, as if neither would back down.

"You’re something else!" Ao Sai ultimately conceded, realizing that opposing Gu Fan was futile. Gu Fan’s every decision and action in the past directly influenced future outcomes.

With Ao Sai yielding, the others had no choice but to fully comply, following Gu Fan’s orders on everything.

Still, Ning Qi refused to accept this. She asked Ao Sai if there was truly no way to deal with Gu Fan.

Ao Sai instructed Ning Qi to stall Gu Fan and buy time while he sought out the Great Demon King to intervene and issue orders.

If the X Legion were forced to choose between Gu Fan and the Great Demon King, they would undoubtedly pledge loyalty to the latter without hesitation. At that point, Gu Fan and the resistance forces would be trapped with no escape.

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