Chapter 11 - Chapter 11 Kid, Aren’t You Scared of Me?

Zhao Zicheng nodded thoughtfully, then finally settled back into his seat, reassured. Yu Sheng, however, kept his eyes fixed on the driver the entire time. He appeared perfectly calm. But his hand, resting against the wall, was hidden in the sleeve of his coat. Just as the driver had said. Five minutes later, an abandoned factory came into view in the distance. The school bus trundled in and ground to a halt. By now, more than twenty people were scattered across the factory's open yard—students in school uniforms, and a handful of middle-aged men. In the far distance, Yu Sheng even spotted his homeroom teacher, Liu Qingfeng. The bus door slid open. "Sure enough, Du Xu's here too," Zhao Zicheng said, not hurrying to step off. He stared at a figure in the yard, his expression grave. "A Six-Pattern genius!" Li Kai frowned in confusion. "Which one is Du Xu?" "See that guy with the full beard?" Zhao Zicheng nodded toward the figure through the window. It was a man—well, technically. A thick, dense beard covered his face like a mask, hiding his features completely, leaving only a pair of eyes, calm and unwavering as an ancient well. "That's not a beard growing on his face," Yu Sheng said, peering through the window, genuinely impressed. "It's a face growing on a beard." For a rare moment, the other three found themselves in complete agreement. They exchanged glances and nodded vigorously, all thinking the same thing. "Let's go," Zhao Zicheng said. "The students and teachers from the other two schools are already here." "Yu Sheng, we didn't see eye to eye earlier, but I hope you'll watch out for that Du Xu." "He's... really strong." "Don't bring shame to No. 2 Middle School!" There was unshakable solemnity on Zhao Zicheng's face as he looked at Yu Sheng, the kind of youthful earnestness that bordered on melodrama. "Yeah." Yu Sheng nodded slightly, then stepped off the bus with Zhao Zicheng and the other two. The school bus driver climbed down too, leaned against the side of the bus, lit a cigarette, and took a deep drag. Then he stumbled into the factory and pushed open a rusted iron door. Inside the damp room, two middle-aged men sat in front of a bank of monitors, which cast live feeds of the yard outside onto the screens. "Well?" the driver asked, dragging a stool over and slumping onto it. The other two men shook their heads, their voices heavy with disappointment. "Low vigilance, too quick to trust strangers." "Their minds are far too naive." "The higher-ups are being too optimistic. Letting remote cities govern themselves is nothing but a pipe dream." The driver, still smoking, nodded thoughtfully, his eyes fixed on Yu Sheng's figure on the monitor. "This kid's a little interesting," he muttered, thinking back to Yu Sheng's actions on the bus. "Might just surprise us a little." But he quickly chuckled and shook his head. "Though I wouldn't hold out too much hope." "This mission's just a waste of time anyway." "God knows what the higher-ups are thinking." "Let those clods from the Monster Extermination Pavilion run around doing the work. I'm gonna catch some sleep." He stretched lazily, then flopped down onto the only single bed in the corner—even though the sheets were moldy, he looked as if he were about to sink into the most comfortable rest of his life. "No missions to run," he sighed contentedly. "Bliss." With that, he closed his eyes, and only a moment later, soft snores escaped his lips. The other two men exchanged a look, both helpless, then turned their attention back to the monitors. ... On the factory's open yard. "I'm leading this assessment," Liu Qingfeng said, his gaze sweeping over the gathered students, his expression stern. "We don't know the exact details yet—we'll have to wait for the people from the Monster Extermination Pavilion to arrive for that." "But this is the only chance all of you are on an even playing field, at the Novice stage. Talent doesn't matter here." "At most, some of you are a little stronger than others physically." "So this is an incredibly precious opportunity for all of you." "Remember this..." "No matter what the assessment entails, you must stay cautious and calm. Only then will you stand a better chance than everyone else!" Zhao Zicheng nodded firmly. When he looked at Du Xu again, his eyes blazed with fighting spirit. He was right. They were all Novices. None of them had fully awakened yet; none could wield their special abilities. This contest was about willpower. And when it came to willpower, Zhao Zicheng was certain he was second to none. Time ticked by, and the afternoon sun climbed higher. Bathed in its scorching rays, the students grew increasingly restless as the Monster Extermination Pavilion's representatives failed to appear. Just as the sun began to dip toward the horizon, a beat-up off-road vehicle finally appeared in the distance, kicking up a towering cloud of dust and sand in its wake. It barreled straight into the factory yard. The dust it stirred up swirled over the fifteen students standing there. Most of them frowned instinctively and stepped back two paces. The car door slammed open. A burly middle-aged man, wearing sunglasses and a cigarette dangling from his lips, climbed out. He glanced casually around the yard, his eyes landing on the several teachers present. When his gaze fell on Liu Qingfeng, he froze for a split second. "Old Liu?" "Fuck me! I've been looking for you for years! Where the hell have you been?" He completely ignored the students around him, strode over to Liu Qingfeng in a few quick steps, and clapped him hard on the shoulder. Liu Qingfeng's expression flickered when he saw the burly man. He fell silent for a few seconds, then his features softened back into calm. "I'm a teacher now." "What?" "You're a fucking teach—" The burly man stared at him in utter disbelief, his eyes raking over Liu Qingfeng's frame. Then he spotted the missing pinky on Liu Qingfeng's right hand, and his words died on his lips. "Alright then." "Being a teacher's not a bad gig. Beats living on a knife's edge like we do, that's for sure." He clapped Liu Qingfeng's shoulder hard again, his breathing a little heavy, but there was genuine envy on his face—though his attempt to hide his true feelings was clumsy, almost over-the-top. Realizing how obvious he was, he quickly changed the subject. "Which ones are your school's students?" Liu Qingfeng pointed toward Yu Sheng and the others. A rare, faint smile tugged at the corner of his usually cold lips. The burly man pulled off his sunglasses, took another deep drag of his cigarette, and grinned—but to the students, it was a grim, menacing thing. Especially his eyes, now unobscured by the sunglasses. One glance, and it was like staring into a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood, sending a chill straight down their spines. The burly man seemed utterly pleased by the fear on their faces, and his grin widened—until he suddenly froze, his eyes locking onto Yu Sheng, or rather, Yu Sheng's calm, unblinking gaze. "Kid," he said, his grin fading little by little, his voice turning cold. "Aren't you scared of me?" In that moment, a faint aura of killing intent seemed to seep into the air around him, thick and oppressive. It was just a single sentence, but it bore down on everyone like a mountain, filling their hearts with endless dread.