At the corner of the street, steam billowed from a takoyaki stand.
Dressed in a cute Gothic Lolita dress, Xia Mi carefully skewered a piping hot takoyaki ball with a bamboo stick, puffing out her cheeks to blow on it.
Just as she was about to pop the delicious treat into her mouth, her movements abruptly stopped.
Her lively, mischievous dark golden eyes froze.
She snapped her head up, her gaze piercing through the bustling crowd and buildings, looking all the way toward Tokyo—specifically, Genji Heavy Industries.
"Brother," Xia Mi said softly, her voice trembling uncontrollably.
Sitting beside her, Fenrir, who had been burying his face in a massive plate of takoyaki, stopped his ravenous eating.
He raised his head. His usually slightly bewildered eyes were now frighteningly clear.
The brother and sister exchanged a glance, needing no words.
Their Emperor had arrived.
In the next second, the takoyaki in Xia Mi's hand dropped to the ground with a splat, splattering sauce everywhere. She and Fenrir vanished into thin air.
The surrounding pedestrians remained completely oblivious.
...
Meanwhile, at Shilan High School.
The afternoon sun filtered through the tall windows of the kendo hall, casting mottled shadows on the floor.
The hall was very quiet, save for the crisp clacking of two bamboo swords clashing.
In the center of the arena, Lu Mingfei and Chu Zihang stood facing each other.
Around them, a crowd of girls in Shilan High School uniforms packed the area tightly, most of their gazes fixed on Chu Zihang's aloof and handsome face.
A small portion, however, was directed at the previously unremarkable loser of the school—Lu Mingfei.
No one knew when he had changed. His back was straight, his eyes as calm as a deep pool, and his every movement carried an indescribable composure and... weariness.
No one knew that he and Chu Zihang had been sent by Ian to the Warhammer world, a place shrouded in war and despair.
Over hundreds of years of brutal warfare, Lu Mingfei had long ceased to be the loser he once was.
Upon returning to their homeland, the two had coincidentally chosen to return to this high school, attempting to pick up the pieces of their long-lost youth.
They had secretly joined forces to take control of Cassell College, purging all the meddlesome elders and firmly grasping the entire hybrid world in their hands.
To them, the current Earth felt like a game they had already perfectly cleared—it seemed somewhat... dull.
*Smack.*
With a light sound, the bamboo sword in Chu Zihang's hand was precisely parried by Lu Mingfei.
"I lost," Chu Zihang said calmly, lowering his sword.
Lu Mingfei smiled and also lowered his bamboo sword. "Thanks for letting me win, Senior."
The surrounding fangirls let out gasps of surprise. Senior Chu actually lost, and to Lu Mingfei of all people!
They looked at Lu Mingfei's face again. It was clearly the same face, but now it exuded an unprecedented charm.
"Lu Mingfei, when did you get so amazing?" a gentle voice asked.
Chen Wenwen, hugging a few books, walked up to Lu Mingfei with a perfectly measured hint of shyness on her face. "This weekend, our literature club is going on a field trip. Do you want to..."
Lu Mingfei guessed her little scheme—she simply wanted to use him to get closer to Chu Zihang.
Before Lu Mingfei could answer, another figure squeezed in.
Su Xiaoqiang boldly and directly shoved a bottle of iced mineral water into Lu Mingfei's arms. "You've been practicing for so long, you must be thirsty." She then shot a triumphant, highly provocative glare at Chen Wenwen.
Watching the scene unfold before them, Lu Mingfei and Chu Zihang exchanged a glance.
Both saw a hint of amusement in each other's eyes.
How nice. This youthful and beautiful atmosphere felt as though it could wash away the blood and fire staining the depths of their souls.
Right at that moment.
They simultaneously sensed that supreme aura.
The smiles on Lu Mingfei and Chu Zihang's faces vanished instantly.
The laziness and peace in their eyes were instantly replaced by an indescribable sharpness and iron-blooded resolve. It was the instinctive reaction of veterans of ten thousand battles sensing their monarch's call.
Playtime was over.
*Boom!*
Two majestic auras erupted into the sky without warning. Golden light ignited deep within their pupils, instantly transforming into two pairs of burning golden eyes.
Under the dumbfounded gazes of the surrounding girls, the two men leaped into the air simultaneously.
Their bodies underwent drastic changes in midair.
*Crack... crack...*
Fine black dragon scales grew wildly from beneath their skin, instantly covering their bodies. Hideous bone spikes pierced through their pristine white kendo uniforms.
Immediately after, a pair of massive black dragon wings unfurled fiercely from their backs!
The moment the giant wings spread, the light in the entire kendo hall dimmed. A terrifying air pressure swept outward from them as the center, blowing the girls in the front row off their feet.
*Crash!*
They smashed a massive hole straight through the roof of the kendo hall and rapidly flew toward Tokyo.
The entire campus fell into a deathly silence.
Everyone tilted their heads up, jaws dropped, staring at the two half-human, half-dragon figures in the sky.
After a brief moment of shock, a tsunami of screams erupted.
"Ahhhhh!"
"W-Was that Lu Mingfei and Senior Chu?"
"Oh my god! Monsters! No, wait! They're so handsome!"
There was no fear in the screams; instead, they were filled with excitement and adoration.
They could actually transform! What were they supposed to do now that they loved them even more?!
However, in the next second.
Several black sedans rushed into the campus and parked outside the kendo hall. A group of men in black suits and sunglasses stepped out of the cars. They were the field agents of the new Cassell College's Executive Department.
The leading captain felt the lingering pressure in the area, his legs going weak. A fear originating from his very bloodline almost made him drop to his knees.
"Nobody move!" After steadying himself, he charged forward. What followed would be a complicated memory-erasing procedure.
...
Genji Heavy Industries, top-floor helipad.
When Lu Mingfei and Chu Zihang tore through the air and landed there, Xia Mi and Fenrir arrived at almost the exact same time.
Soon after, Old Tang, wearing a flashy floral shirt, and his younger brother Constantine also flew in from the side.
Everyone's gaze turned toward the figure standing at the rooftop doorway.
"Boss!" Lu Mingfei grinned, reverting to his usual cheeky self. "You're finally back! Which world are we conquering this time? Do we get travel expenses?!"
"Emperor," Xia Mi and Fenrir bowed, their movements devout and fanatical.
Ian looked at his old friends before him and nodded in satisfaction. The auras they exuded were more than a tier stronger than before.
He didn't waste words and directly issued a new invitation.
"It seems you guys have a lot of free time. Perfect. I just found the One Piece world, and the Summit War is about to break out over there. Let's go join the fun."
He raised his hand and made a swiping motion.
A stable portal appeared before the group. On the other side of the portal was a completely different scene—a blue sky and bizarre architectural styles brimming with exotic flair.
"Let's go. I'll introduce you to some new companions along the way."
"One Piece?" Hearing this term, Lu Mingfei and Xia Mi's eyes lit up.
Peaceful days were nice, but they ultimately couldn't compare to the thrill of wreaking havoc in a new world.
Ian stepped forward first, with Erii following closely behind. The others followed without hesitation.
When their feet touched solid ground, a humid sea breeze blew against their faces.
Before them was an island full of primal charm, covered in towering trees and exotic flora. The air was filled with a strange floral fragrance mixed with the salty tang of the sea.
Lu Mingfei reached straight into the water, pulled out a half-meter-wide crab, and brought it over to Chu Zihang.
"Senior, help me roast this. By the way, this One Piece world is a great place. The environment is really nice."
While the group was still experiencing the unique environment of the One Piece world, thousands of Amazon warriors, each wielding a longbow, surrounded them.
Then, a stunningly beautiful black-haired woman with an alluring figure slowly stepped forward. She leaned back so far to look down on them that she ended up pointing her nose at them, her eyes full of arrogance and disdain.
"Who are you people? How dare you trespass on Amazon Lily!"