Due to lingering too long, students occasionally cast curious glances at Lv Bai, wondering why this guy was blocking the exit of the school building.
Just then, a freckled-faced young man stepped out from a classroom behind Lv Bai, looking quite excited.
Especially when he noticed Lv Bai, his eyes lit up even more.
The freckled youth jogged over to Lv Bai and said with undisguised joy in his voice, "Great, I didn't expect the two of us to end up in the same deathmatch battle."
This guy... what's his name again?
Lv Bai felt a vague sense of familiarity with the freckled youth, but couldn't quite recall who he was.
"Come on, let's find a safe place to discuss."
The freckled youth put his arm around Lv Bai, and the two left the school building like good buddies.
As they walked, the freckled youth asked in a low voice, "Xiao Lü, what ability did you pick?"
Hold on a second...
Lv Bai was slightly taken aback.
Everyone can choose an ability?
So this panel isn't his exclusive system?
Seeing Lv Bai remain silent, a trace of impatience flashed across the freckled youth's face, but he soon forced a smile.
"Don't be so tense. Although the teacher said you must stay vigilant in the Death Arena, we are classmates, right? Besides, it's our first deathmatch battle; there's no real danger."
The freckled youth casually patted Lv Bai on the shoulder and added, "I know your situation too. If you don't find someone to cover you, do you plan to wander around the Death Arena alone?"
Considering the repeated mentions of the deathmatch battle, it was clear the freckled youth was using "Death Arena" to refer to the current world.
"You're right."
Lv Bai nodded obediently.
He could sense the freckled youth's attitude was not as friendly as it appeared.
But whatever this guy was up to, getting information from him was better than wandering around like a headless fly.
Thinking of this, Lv Bai casually bluffed, "I chose an ability to improve calculation speed."
For some reason, the freckled youth didn't doubt this, as if he didn't consider Lv Bai capable of lying.
He frowned and sighed to himself, "It's not very useful."
While chatting, they unknowingly arrived at a corner formed by an old banyan tree and a fence at the side of the playground, where a few delinquent youths were smoking.
The delinquent youths noticed the two new faces, snuffed out their remaining cigarette butts, and left one by one.
In a blink of an eye, only Lv Bai and the freckled youth remained in the corner.
Seeing that no one else was coming for a while, the freckled youth released his arm from Lv Bai and subtly blocked the exit route.
Lv Bai seemed unaware of this.
The freckled youth sighed dramatically and said, "Xiao Lü, don't blame me; you're a burden and picked a useless ability, so..."
As he spoke, the freckled youth, like performing a magic trick, pulled out a long sword in the form of the Eight-sided Han Sword from who knows where, raised it, and pointed it at Lv Bai: "Why not just give your point to me, and maybe when I return, I'll take care of you."
Gazing at the sword blade glinting in the sunlight.
Lv Bai unconsciously raised his eyebrows.
Honestly, even though the sword tip was less than half a meter away from him, he felt no tension.
The way the freckled youth held the sword revealed him as an amateur, not like someone who had really killed before.
Cold weapons, you either know how to use them, or you don't.
Even without that so-called [Super-speed Regeneration], Lv Bai was confident the youth couldn't harm him; the only thing to be wary of was the Eight-sided Han Sword itself.
So Lv Bai sincerely asked, "Can we talk a bit longer?"
"What?!" The freckled youth was momentarily stunned.
He came to his senses, tried to shove Lv Bai with a fierce expression, but missed.
Seeing Lv Bai take a step back, the freckled youth's face turned dark as he threatened, "Move again and see what happens."
Upon hearing this, Lv Bai drew an arc on the ground with his right foot.
"Alright, alright."
The freckled youth gritted his teeth, paused, and then cursed, "You're f***ing asking for it!"
Lv Bai wasn't intimidated.
What caught his attention was that the youth's reaction seemed less an angry retaliation and more a shattered stereotype, revealing his vulnerability.
When the freckled youth said he'd attack, he really did strike, swinging the sword directly at Lv Bai.
With such an obvious swing trajectory, anyone could easily dodge it by staying calm.
Swish!
With a swoosh, Lv Bai swiftly sidestepped.
Then quickly reached out, pinned the sword hilt down, embedded part of the blade into the dirt, and followed through with a kick to the freckled youth's waist.
The entire sequence flowed smoothly, leaving Lv Bai with spare mental energy to ponder the youth's extreme response.
But before he could think too long, the freckled youth, knocked to the ground, offered part of the answer.
He stared wide-eyed at Lv Bai, mouth slightly agape, and instinctively asked, "How's it possible, your illness..."
"Illness? What illness?"
Lv Bai casually pulled the sword from the dirt, walked in front of the freckled youth, and chuckled lightly, "Is there a risk of recovery?"
The freckled youth swallowed hard, his eyes filled with disbelief.
His reaction didn't seem fake; Lv Bai added a teasing remark only to mask his confusion.
Am I actually a patient?
I feel pretty healthy.
"Not speaking anymore?"
Lv Bai weighed the sword in his hand and then skillfully placed it at the freckled youth's neck, "Want to test the sharpness of my sword?"
What do you mean, your sword?!
Upon hearing this, the freckled youth almost spat out a mouthful of blood.
He glared at Lv Bai, "What else do you want me to say?"
Slap~slap~
Lv Bai tapped the freckled youth's shoulder with the sword's spine, not hiding his threatening tone.
"I ask, you answer. Pause even for a moment, and I'll cut your head off."
The youth turned his head, remaining silent, seemingly in agreement.
Lv Bai didn't mind the opponent's minor outburst: "Name?"
"Fan Ding."
"Age?"
"Eighteen."
Fan Ding's expression turned increasingly sour.
To him, Lv Bai's "asking what he already knew" seemed like pure humiliation.
"How many students are in our class?"
"Enough!"
Fan Ding took a deep breath, appeared resolute, and coldly laughed at Lv Bai: "If you're so bold, just kill me."
"Look at you, all impatient again."
Lv Bai smiled.
It was a genuine smile, almost impossible to fake.
Ultimately, it's because Lv Bai felt no intent to kill, nor even a desire to lay a hand on Fan Ding.
He was almost surprised at how well-tempered he'd become.
Patting Fan Ding's head as if comforting him, Lv Bai decided to switch tactics and gather information indirectly.
But before he could speak, his thoughts were interrupted by a scream from the playground.
"Ah!!!"
The scream was like a signal, triggering a chain reaction.
Shrieks echoed from all directions, shattering the campus tranquility.
Upon careful listening, there were also beast-like growls.
Lv Bai looked towards where the sounds came from, but the view was blocked by several large old banyan trees, preventing a clear view of the playground.
He blinked, then turned to the equally bewildered Fan Ding.
"Any idea what's happening?"