The final bell rang, echoing across Jiangnan High like a war drum. Students poured out of classrooms, their voices mixing into a chaotic symphony of chatter, laughter, and footsteps.
Li Feng stepped into the courtyard with quiet composure, his uniform neat, his black hair catching the sunlight. Beside him, Li Xue scurried to keep up, her ponytail bouncing with each step.
"This is it," she whispered. "The Wang family brat is probably waiting outside. Just… be careful, okay?"
Li Feng's lips curved faintly. "Careful doesn't mean afraid."
They reached the school gates, and sure enough, a small crowd had gathered. At the center stood Wang Jun, tall, arrogant, exuding confidence like a king surveying his court. His two lackeys flanked him, smirking. A golden chain glinted at his neck; his uniform was intentionally sloppy, signaling wealth and power.
"Ah, Li Feng finally shows his face," Wang Jun said, voice carrying easily across the courtyard. "The useless sickly dog who fainted last semester. I was beginning to think you had the sense to stay home."
A few students laughed. Some whispered bets on how quickly Li Feng would crumble. Li Xue's fists clenched, but she stayed close to her brother.
Li Feng's gaze met Wang Jun's, calm and unflinching.
"Do you always bark at people who don't bother you?" Li Feng asked softly, his voice steady, almost hypnotic in its calmness.
The words made Wang Jun pause. His smirk faltered slightly. "What did you say?"
Li Feng leaned forward just enough, so his eyes locked with Wang Jun's. "I asked if you always bark at people beneath you. You should learn when to keep silent."
Whispers rippled through the crowd.
Wang Jun's fists clenched, veins standing out on his neck. "How dare you—"
Before he could finish, Li Feng rose, his posture unshakable. The air around him seemed to ripple, faint traces of energy brushing against the bystanders' senses. Subtle, but undeniable.
Even Wang Jun, confident as he was, felt the weight of it—a quiet pressure, like a mountain settling over his chest.
"Enough," Li Feng said, voice low but carrying authority. "Leave before I decide to teach you a lesson you won't forget."
The crowd went silent. Students exchanged shocked glances. Wang Jun's jaw tightened; he had never been spoken to like this before, let alone threatened by someone weaker in body and social status.
"You'll regret this, Li Feng. After school, outside the gates. I'll show you what happens to people who insult me."
With that, he turned and strutted away, throwing a glare over his shoulder. His lackeys followed, sneering, while the murmurs of the crowd swirled like wind around Li Feng.
Li Xue looked up at him, wide-eyed. "Brother… that was… incredible. Did you feel that?"
Li Feng's gaze softened briefly at his sister. "This world is weak, but that doesn't mean it's without obstacles. Every confrontation, every challenge… is a stepping stone. Tonight, Wang Jun becomes mine to teach."
The subtle energy in his body rippled faintly again, undetectable to mortal eyes, but Li Feng knew its potential. His cultivation was awakening—small, restrained, but growing.
Soon, this city, this school, this world… will see the return of the Starlight Immortal Sovereign.
As students dispersed, whispers followed him. "Li Feng… he's different."
"Did you feel that pressure? There was something… strange about him."
"Is he… dangerous?"
Li Feng walked beside his sister, silent, calm, yet his mind already planned the confrontation to come.
Tonight, outside the school gates. Let's see how much the Wang family brat knows about true power.
A faint smile curved across his lips. The city didn't yet know what had awakened.
And as the sun dipped lower, painting the streets in gold and crimson, a storm quietly brewed—the storm that would announce the rise of the Heaven Defying Sovereign in the modern world.