Chapter 81: The Little Tyrant (III)

Rambo frowned and said, “That’s not what I’m worried about. I’m worried about your studies. You’ve never gone to school outside the firmament, and now you’re jumping straight into the elite class. I’m afraid... if your grades are too poor when exams come, that fat pig will have an excuse to give you trouble.”

Le Kai smiled and replied, “Isn’t there still more than a month before the exams? Don’t worry, the knowledge kids learn in school—I’ll manage.”

Rambo cried, “Boss, this isn’t a street fight, this is studying! ‘Kids’ knowledge’—what do you know besides brawling and fighting all day?”

Le Kai only gave a calm smile, unwilling to explain further. Could he really say that, under his professor’s coercion, he had already completed every course in the imperial school curriculum, and had flawlessly solved every question on the university graduation exam papers? Could he tell them he’d even written a thesis on “The Relationship between Black Holes and the Limits of the Human Body,” and received high praise from his professor? The only reason he came to school was to put his name on the rolls, to have a legitimate status for competing over quotas—nothing more.

“Kid, who told you to mess with us? You don’t even know me, Rambo? You must be blind,” Rambo snarled, not intending to let up on the boy he had beaten so badly his own parents wouldn’t recognize him. He kicked him again, voice full of menace.

“Forget it. Ordinary students’ bodyguards are at most experts at the Mind-Body Unity stage. This guy had a martial artist-level guard, clearly his family was acting under someone’s orders. Asking him is pointless,” Wu Niantian said with a look of disgust at the terrified young noble, frowning.

Le Kai said, “Isn’t it obvious? If it’s not the Xi family, it’s the Hua family.”

Rambo spat and cursed, “It has to be that fat pig Xi Tiande. Rumor is he’s having an affair with his own sister-in-law. Xi Run-si is probably his bastard. You killed his son; of course he’d want revenge.”

Wu Meitian scolded coquettishly, “Rambo, this is school—show some civility.”

Rambo tilted his head proudly. “I’m the little tyrant of the school now. I have to act the part—can’t be timid like a girl.” With that, he gave the boy another hard kick. “Go tell your father—if he knows what’s good for him, he’ll know what to do.”

With an air of arrogance, he strode toward the classroom.

Left behind, the Wu siblings and Le Kai could only shake their heads in exasperation before following after him. As they left, Le Kai couldn’t help but glance back at the tall building, a mysterious smile on his lips, before letting Wu Niantian help him forward.

At the top of the building, Principal Lan Kai watched them go, his brow tightening ever so slightly. “At such a distance, even a first-star martial artist probably couldn’t spot us. Could he really have noticed?”

Behind him, Lanska stood with poise and elegance, every inch the gentleman. He smiled and said, “This boy is no ordinary person. We can’t judge him by common sense.”

Lan Kai pondered a moment. “Fine jade needs carving. Now is the time to take the chisel to it.”

“No, we can only assist and observe from the sidelines with this one. We mustn’t intervene,” Lanska hastily interjected, well aware of his uncle’s temperament and worried he might act rashly. He explained, “He’s already offended both Xi Bao and Hua Wu. A peaceful life is out of the question for him now. Wasn’t today’s incident just the beginning?”

“You’re right. That kid seems honest enough, but he’s a crafty one. Outwardly, he’s only at the peak of the Martial Initiate stage, but his true combat strength is impossible to measure. Did you see clearly what happened just now?”

Lan Kai recalled the duel from earlier, feeling there was something amiss. The bodyguard had used a life secret technique, unleashing all his potential in a single instant—a force strong enough to crush anyone below first-star martial artist level. Yet Le Kai, with nothing but Martial Initiate peak strength, had knocked him down, and at the moment when the guard’s momentum was at its fiercest. With the guard’s back blocking their view, neither had been able to see Le Kai’s move.

Lanska smiled, “If you didn’t see, how could I? But one thing is certain: this kid can definitely fight above his level—at least against someone twice as strong as he is.”

Lan Kai said, “How fascinating. His strength is plain to see, yet I still feel I can’t see through him. Where does his limit lie? And more curiously, it’s only been two months, but Rambo’s physical condition is almost at martial artist level now. You haven’t taken them to the capital for physical augmentation, have you?”

By physical augmentation, Lan Kai referred to the use of advanced technology to directly enhance the body.

Lanska was taken aback. “Rambo’s been hanging out with Le Kai, refining medicine together these two months. They haven’t gone anywhere! Wait—could it be?” A realization dawned on him, and his face lit up with delight. “I thought Le Kai was just fooling around, but he’s actually made pills! This is nothing short of miraculous!”

Lan Kai was stunned as well, his eyes flashing with excitement. “You mean the boy is an alchemist too? How is that possible? Even on Li Morningstar, alchemists are few and far between. Where did he learn it?”

Lanska hesitated. “You know who his teacher is—what in the world could that person possibly not know? We must keep this secret. If the Xi and Hua families find out, they’ll stop at nothing to kill him.”

Lan Kai nodded. “Of course. From now on, the Lan family is under your command. At school, I’ll guarantee his safety. I won’t interfere in the struggles among the younger generation, but if those old foxes make a move, these old bones of mine can still do battle.”

“Thank you, Uncle!” That was exactly what Lanska needed to hear. He knew the rules of the school and the background of the Xi and Hua families all too well. Those two, colluding together, were capable of any and all schemes. What he needed to do was create a relatively fair environment for Le Kai’s survival, otherwise, if those two families sent a star-level martial artist, even the most prodigious genius might not survive.

Lan Kai sighed. “I can’t stay out here much longer. You know what to do.”

With those words, he vanished, so completely it was as if he had never existed at all.

Lanska bowed deeply, then straightened, his gaze steadfast as he looked toward where Le Kai and Rambo had disappeared, his fists clenched tight.

Le Kai, from here on everything depends on you. This is only the beginning; many more challenges await. I hope you won’t let me down—or your professor.

Sunlight filtered through the sky-shield, losing some of its heat but gaining an even more dazzling brilliance, illuminating the splendid buildings as if they were shimmering with gold.