The battle was over.
In just a single clash, Wang Dong had been pinned to the ground by Yan Zhen in the blink of an eye and knocked unconscious.
It was even faster than when he’d fought Liu Xing.
For one thing, Wang Dong was only at the Six-Star Mystic Practitioner stage, weaker than Liu Xing. For another, Yan Zhen had grown stronger.
The crowd below the stage hadn’t even had time to react, including the Practical Combat Mentor.
He could naturally see that without resorting to his trump card, Yan Zhen clearly had the higher odds of victory. But calling what actually happened a matter of “odds” was just laughable.
What odds? This was pure domination!
Wang Dong and his friends had prepared all sorts of dirty tricks to turn the tables unexpectedly, but in the face of such an absolute gap in strength, they’d all turned into a joke.
Was Yan Zhen actually a Mystic Scholar? He was ridiculously overpowered!
He was clearly just a Five-Star Mystic Practitioner, while Wang Dong was Six-Star!
“Yan Zhen, little bro—you’re amazing!”
In the midst of the stunned silence, Mi Xue’er let out a shriek, her eyes brimming with little hearts.
She remembered now. This was that heart-fluttering feeling.
In her previous life, she’d liked Yan Zhen, but at first, she’d only seen him as a cute younger puppy-dog type, fawning over his looks.
That changed the first time the normally mild-mannered, low-key Yan Zhen revealed his sharp edge.
The boy who always blushed shyly at her teasing, the little brother they’d treated as a pack mule while shopping, had taken on a powerhouse she herself wouldn’t dare face on the arena stage—and in a single clash, he’d slammed his opponent to the ground with cold, ruthless dominance, shocking the entire crowd!
Mi Xue’er had fallen hard.
Even though she’d been reborn and witnessed far higher-level battles and more terrifying spectacles since then, this moment still set her heart racing.
Yan Ruyu’s heart pounded too, her eyes hiding threads of affection as she gazed up at Yan Zhen on the stage.
Yan Zhen’s gaze swept over, landing on the other two Six-Star Mystic Practitioners in the crowd below—Ya She and Ding Yu. He said coolly,
“Are you two fighting or not? If you are, you can come at me together.”
Ya She and Ding Yu exchanged a glance, their faces flushing with humiliated fury. They turned to the Practical Combat Mentor.
“Instructor, this guy’s arrogantly challenging us like this. It wouldn’t break the rules if we both go up there to fight him, right?”
“Please give us your permission, Instructor!”
The Practical Combat Mentor hesitated for a moment before nodding. This wasn’t the first time something like this had happened—why not enjoy the show?
With the instructor’s approval, Ya She and Ding Yu leaped onto the stage together. Without a word, they launched a full-power assault on Yan Zhen.
Yan Ruyu’s heart leaped into her throat again, while Mi Xue’er grew even more excited.
Then, under the crowd’s close scrutiny, it took fewer than ten exchanges before Ya She and Ding Yu both tumbled off the stage, unable to get back up.
The entire class erupted in an uproar. They stared at Yan Zhen on the stage as he slowly withdrew his Flame Light Mystic Energy, feeling as if a towering mountain had suddenly loomed over their heads.
“He won again! Yan Zhen, little bro—you’re so handsome. I love you to death~”
Mi Xue’er blurted out her confession in excitement, not caring if anyone took her seriously. She meant it, at least.
Yan Ruyu shot her best friend a glare but inwardly envied how boldly she could shout something like that.
Yan Zhen was baffled by Mi Xue’er’s fangirl outburst. In the script, she did get excited, but not this exaggerated.
Mi Xue’er usually came across as bold and carefree, but she actually had a great sense of boundaries with friends and classmates. For her to yell “I love you to death” in front of everyone drew sidelong glances from many in the class and broke a few male students’ hearts.
Yan Zhen returned to the crowd below the stage and gave an awkward but polite smile to Mi Xue’er, who was even more thrilled than he was.
“Since when did you get this strong?” Yan Ruyu huffed proudly. “You made me worry for nothing.”
Yan Zhen brushed back his bangs.
“I’ve always been this strong. Didn’t you see it yourself over the New Year, Cousin Ruyu?”
Talk about bringing up the worst possible memory! Recalling how he’d spanked her during the New Year holiday until she’d cried her eyes out right there on the spot, Yan Ruyu flushed with a mix of shame and anger. She wanted to punch him just to vent.
But she couldn’t beat him now. If she tried, she might end up pinned down and spanked again, which would be even more humiliating.
With that in mind, some of her anger inexplicably faded—and she even felt a strange, restless urge stirring inside her.
She huffed and turned her head away.
Mi Xue’er asked curiously,
“What happened between you two over the New Year?”
Yan Zhen shrugged.
“We just had a friendly spar. Right, Cousin?”
Yan Ruyu ignored him.
After Practical Combat Class ended, Yan Zhen hurried to the beginner class to find Yan Meng’er, but she’d already left on her own.
Oh well.
He had to go into town to buy medicinal ingredients anyway, so he couldn’t walk her home.
Divine Soul-related ingredients were extremely rare. They weren’t just expensive—they were hard to find!
This kind of material was mainly used by Pill Refiners, so it was basically controlled by the Pill Refiner Association, whose headquarters was in the Royal Capital. Other places rarely stocked them.
After running all over town, he still hadn’t gathered everything he needed. In the end, he had to ask the Golden Jade Chamber of Commerce to keep an eye out for him.
The chamber’s manager was a middle-aged man who promised that if any new stock came in, he’d notify Yan Zhen immediately.
Of course, it would all be free, as much as they could get.
Yan Zhen felt deeply uneasy about this. He didn’t believe there was such a thing as a free lunch in this world.
But the man absolutely refused payment. The moment Yan Zhen mentioned money, the guy acted like it was a life-or-death matter. When Yan Zhen insisted, the manager even dropped to his knees in public and pleaded,
“Young Master Yan Zhen, I really can’t take your money! Please, have mercy on me—I’ve got elders above and little ones below!”
He went on and on like that.
It shocked the onlookers for the whole year and left Yan Zhen completely at a loss.
With no other choice, Yan Zhen accepted the Golden Jade Chamber of Commerce’s kindness, though he still couldn’t figure out why.
The only explanation he could think of was that “Good Big Sister”—the one he hadn’t met yet—who had the script like him and knew he’d rise to prominence someday, so she was investing early.
But the System said she didn’t have the script. When he asked for details, it claimed it didn’t know.
What a trash system.
【Ding! Please don’t secretly curse the System in your mind, Host. It harms our friendly relationship.】
—Then stop peeking into my thoughts, you perverted system!
【The Host is a big brain.】
—What did you say?!
【Big brain.】
—Shut up, you dumb code. The hello world I wrote when I first started college ran better than you!
Man and System traded barbs back and forth.
Cursing under his breath the whole way, Yan Zhen finally composed himself when he reached the residence and headed straight for the dining hall.
Only the three women were at the table, eating takeout. Yan Meng’er was nowhere to be seen.
Yan Zhen had assumed Yan Meng’er had come home early to cook. Puzzled, he asked,
“Where’s Meng’er?”
Mentor Yu Xuan replied,
“She’s in her room and won’t come out.”
Yan Zhen was even more confused.
“What’s wrong with her?”
“I don’t know, but Little Sister Meng’er seems to have been crying,” Mi Xue’er said worriedly. “Her eyes are all puffy.”
Yan Ruyu widened her eyes.
“Meng’er rarely cries, unless it’s something to do with you. Yan Zhen, did you say something to her?”
“No, I haven’t seen Meng’er at all today,” Yan Zhen said thoughtfully. “She wouldn’t think I stood her up on purpose, would she? But that shouldn’t make her cry.”
His Silly Cousin Sister wasn’t the petty type. If she’d really been stood up, she’d march over, chew him out, and demand compensation.
“Anyway, you should go check on her in her room.”
Yan Zhen nodded and hurried toward Yan Meng’er’s room.
