Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

  When the black kitten saw that Meng Chao had terrified her biochemical beast before he trained his gaze on her, she became angry.

  The girl bared her teeth at Meng Chao and growled.

  Meng Chao’s smile froze, but the interest in his eyes grew stronger.

  The black kitten seemed to be…… the same type of person as he was.

  Ever since he returned from the apocalypse, he had never sensed such strong, sharp, and unconcealed killing intent from a peer.

  Even if Luo Hai, Sun Ya, and Xie Feng were aristocratic children, came from cultivation families, had cleared a lot of main meridians, practiced a lot of skills, and could deliver 100 Crystals or 200 Crystals worth of spirit energy, in Meng Chao’s eyes, they were flowers in greenhouses. They had yet to experience a real storm.

  But this kitten was different.

  She had the scent of death on her, which belonged to people who had crawled out of a pile of corpses.

  It turned her from a small black kitten into an incredibly dangerous black panther.

  Even her eyes turned from dark black to green. They were like two highly condensed will-o’-the-wisps.

  Meng Chao did not doubt that if they were to fight, they would not be in some boring battle because of a few monster coins like the new students. Neither would they be bound by rules and expectations.

  Instead, they would be fighting with everything they had, and they would use everything around them, including their lives. They would be dancing beautifully between life and death.

  ‘Judging by her looks, she shouldn’t be an upperclassman, right?’ Meng Chao was puzzled. ‘Didn’t they say that the monster controller course ran into a minor year and doesn’t have any talents? Why do they have such a new student, then?’


  When the girl sensed his interest, she was slightly stunned. Then, her cheeks, eyes, and canines started shining with hunger.

  Their gazes met in the air, and at the same time, they looked around themselves.

  They scanned the trees in the grove and the distribution of the branches to calculate their durability as well as how much of a bounce each of them could provide. They also calculated attack trajectories once they figured out how much of a bounce they could get from the branches.

  Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

  Sparks flew in their eyes, and all sorts of offensive and defensive strategies formed in their heads.

  The profound and complicated spirit tattoos on Meng Chao’s skin appeared faintly. Even though they were covered by his sleeves, he could not hide the raging spirit flames.

  The mysterious girl from the monster controller course crouched down and let out a deep growl from the back of her throat.

  The biochemical beast appeared like a ghost behind her. The creature and human seemed to have fused together to form a brand new monster. Four burning will-o’-the-wisps seemed to be burning through Meng Chao’s throat and heart.

  A light breeze blew through the forest.

  The branches rustled.

  But there were a few branches around them that did not move. It was as if two strange forces of power controlled them.

  Crack! Crack!

  They stayed still for a few seconds. Then, the branches that the two people had chosen cracked, and they lost the platforms they could use to launch their first attacks.

  “Wu Wu!”


  A shout came from outside the grove.

  The mysterious girl frowned a little. It looked like she was very displeased that her exciting game had been interrupted.

  But she only let out a soft huff. From a black panther, she changed back into a small kitten.

  She looked at Meng Chao before she licked her sharp canines. Her nostrils flared, and she sniffed the air for a long time, as if she was putting Meng Chao’s scent to memory.

  The black kitten then jumped out of the grove with her biochemical beast.

  Meng Chao climbed to the top of the tree and shouted, “Hey, don’t go! You’re also a freshman, right? Let’s be friends! If we have the chance, let’s spar!”


  But the black kitten was already gone.

  On her way back to the monster controller course from the martial arts course, the black kitten sat on her biochemical beast’s back. She was in a meditative position with her hands cradling her cheeks as she thought.

  The other new monster controller students were at least five meters away from her. They were filled with reverence and fear.

  “Wu Wu, where did you go just now?”


  A monster controller lecturer with white hair, a white beard, and a necklace made of monster skulls on his neck said, “This is the territory of the martial arts course. Don’t run around as you please, especially today. If you gave a really shocking performance, it’d be very easy for you to attract gossip.”


  The black kitten named Wu Wu nodded in a distracted manner. After a long time had passed, she made a gesture and said, “Someone, smells nice.”


  Her voice was hoarse. She spoke slowly, and she faltered after the first word. It seemed like she was more accustomed to using gestures to show her intentions.

  “Smells nice?” The lecturer was stunned.

  “Yes. Smells nice. Must taste nice, too.” Wu Wu narrowed her eyes and gulped. Then, she revealed her sharp teeth again and smiled. “I wants to eat him.”


  Due to the delay brought by the black kitten, when Meng Chao reached the cultivation center, the tournament between the new students had already ended.

  He wanted to sneak in through the backdoor, but he was just in time to run into the students from the martial arts course stumbling out in scattered streams while sighing.

  ‘They lost?’ Meng Chao scratched his head. ‘Didn’t they say that there’s no genius this time in the monster controller course and that there’s a high chance that the martial arts course may win? Besides, even if they lost the tournament, everyone’s mood seems to be off.’


  In the past, when someone won the tournament between courses, they were naturally overjoyed, and if they lost, they rubbed their palms like they could not accept the results.

  But today, he saw more than just dejection on the students’ faces. He also saw…… fear.

  That was right. It was fear. It seemed like something horrifying had happened, which broke their spirits.

  At that moment, Meng Chao saw Duan Lian coming out with a bruised face and an arm fixed to his chest. He had a dispirited look on his face.

  Duan Lian saw Meng Chao as well, but he only glared at him before he left without a single word.

  ‘Was Duan Lian’s spirit…… also broken?’ Meng Chao scratched his head. ‘Ever since I taught him a lesson during the admission test, he has been causing a ruckus by saying that he wants to take revenge against me.

  ‘A few days ago, I ran into him in the canteen, and he said that after the tournament between courses ended, he would fight me, but he didn’t even say anything harsh to me now. He must have lost horribly.

  ‘But that shouldn’t have been the case. He’s still one of the Four Great Kings. Even though he didn’t manage to get an ace lecturer, he has been training hard by relying on the resources of his family. When he goes nuts, he can be as crazy as a Demonic Halberd Pig that has been single for twenty years. Even if he lost, there’s no reason for him to have lost so terribly.’


  Meng Chao thought about it and decided to move against the flow of the crowd. He walked into the cultivation center.

  The audience seats were empty since most of the people had already left.

  Sun Ya and Xie Feng sat stunned by the arena. They were the two most outstanding new students in the martial arts course, but their faces were stark pale, and they looked like they were scared out of their wits. They were similar to Duan Lian.

  Jiang Rui, who was known to be the best in terms of speed and kicking techniques among the Four Great Kings, was reduced to a bloody mess and was receiving treatment in the corner.

  The tournament was a bloody stage, and there were terrifying claw marks everywhere. They were a testament to how fierce the tournament had been.

  Griffin Li Yingzi stood at the center of the arena while observing the marks of the fight as she thought about a difficult problem that had no answer.

  When she saw Meng Chao, she frowned and said darkly, “Meng Chao, you’re finally here. I’m not your personal tutor, so there’s no need for me to say too many things to you, but—”


  “Wait, Ms. Li, I have something really important to tell you!” Meng Chao quickly wiggled his eyebrows before Li Yingzi could scold him and brought her to a corner with no one around. He whispered, “Do you know why I was late on such an important day? Because we’ve reached success in Project 1024. We found a way to cultivate using branch meridians!”


  Li Yingzi’s pupils shrank swiftly, and she said in disbelief, “What? Tell me what happened clearly!”


  “Well, the project is a success, and we’re cultivating with branch meridians, but that’s not important. What’s important is that to celebrate the breakthrough of the project, Mr. Gu got drunk and held me back like a mad man while having a heart-to-heart with me for a few hours. I couldn’t stop him!” Meng Chao said seriously.

  Li Yingzi was stunned. “What are you trying to say? What does him having a heart-to-heart with you have to do with me?”


  “It has everything to do with you. Mr. Gu said while crying that his love for you over the ten years hasn’t changed and that he has only grown to love you more and more.” Meng Chao sucked in a deep breath, and before Li Yingzi could interrupt him, he continued like a machine gun. “But he knows that his thoughts are completely different from yours when it comes to Project 1024. Neither of you could convince the other, but as a man, he had to carry on his friend’s dying will and continue on silently.

  “So, he could only hide his love deep in his heart. He’s been hiding it in hopes that there will come a day that he can get some results and his love can explode in a dignified manner!”


  Li Yingzi was stunned. “But—”


  “But why has he never said anything and kept smiling and acting in such a carefree manner? It’s because he was conflicted!” Meng Chao said hurriedly. “On one hand, Mr. Gu really wants to get together with you again, but on the other hand, he has been conducting an experiment that is extremely dangerous and has dangerous side effects.

  “He could have died at any moment, so he felt that it was too dangerous. Since his future was so uncertain, he couldn’t give you happiness and turned into a coward!”


  “What?!” Li Yingzi became anxious. “You’ve just relaunched your project not too long ago, right?”


  “We’ve just relaunched the project fully, yeah. But over the past five years, he has been conducting research by himself, and he has gone through a lot of pain, suffering, and grievances,” Meng Chao said.

  “Mr. Gu said that every time he entered the cultivation machine, he didn’t know whether he’d be able to survive, but he didn’t dare to tell you since he knew you’d be worried.

  “He also said that the person he has let down the most in his life is you. Every time he conducted an experiment and endured great pain, the only thing that flashed in front of his eyes was you.

  “He even said that before he succeeds with Project 1024, his life will belong to the project, but once it’s done, he will dedicate his life to you.”


  “That bastard……” Li Yingzi’s face lit up as hot as burning coal. She gritted her teeth. “He did this behind me, and he even told you?”


  “Yeah, I felt really awkward. Mr. Gu is such a coward. He should have told you these things. Why did he tell me?” Meng Chao said. “But when I thought about it carefully, it must be because he cares a lot about this relationship you once had with him. That’s why he used alcohol to provide a cover for himself and used me to deliver his words. So, even if you fly off into a rage or ignore him, he’ll have room to save the situation.

  “Ms. Li, based on my position, I naturally have no right to say anything, but Mr. Gu is really pitiful. Could you at least visit him?”


  Li Yingzi sucked in a deep breath. “Is he still drunk?”


  “He’s slightly better now, but I think that all his courage has faded away. I have to say, he can be really cowardly sometimes. If you don’t torture him, he won’t say what he’s truly feeling,” Meng Chao said. “But I promise you that everything I said just now is real. If you don’t believe me, you can strip him off and see his scars. Then, you’ll know how much pain he has endured in silence over the years. Oh, and that fatal injury……”


  Li Yingzi frowned. She grabbed Meng Chao’s wrist and asked in a trembling voice, “What fatal injury?”


  “It’s the one on his butt. I think he was trying to use electricity to stimulate his spine in hopes to clear the 188 branch meridians around the spine, but the electricity was too strong, so his spine was damaged. I don’t know the details, but Mr. Gu didn’t want me to take a detailed look of his butt.”


  Meng Chao shrugged and said, “Every time I ask him to have a doctor check him, he just waves it off. Do you know what I’m afraid of the most right now? He has been very tense and stressed while the project was unsuccessful, so he just kept on going through sheer willpower. Now, he finally saw hope and relaxed. What I’m worried about the most is that if the fatal injury on his spine will act up, everything may come to an end!”


  “That’s enough! Stay here. I have something to do. I need to go out.” Li Yingzi turned around and left.

  “Wait, Ms. Li.” Meng Chao pondered over his words and added, “I know that there are a lot of rumors in the university saying that Mr. Gu has been frolicking around outside and got into ambiguous relationships with many female entrepreneurs.

  “I’d like to defend him in this regard. He went to those female entrepreneurs because he wanted to get investments for Project 1024.

  “Of course, I can’t guarantee that they didn’t do anything exciting and entertaining to get investments.

  “But based on my personal experience, before you find the correct formula and way to cultivate with branch meridians, it’s very difficult and torturous to cultivate them. The rampaging spirit energy will charge about the branch meridians, which feels like stuffing a stick the size of a fist up your nostril. Every time the spirit energy charges into you, you’ll feel like dying and be drained of energy.

  “Even if I’m just eighteen years old and am filled with energy, whenever I finished cultivating my branch meridians, my fingertips were limp, and when I peed, my pee fell on my shoes.

  “So……”


  Li Yingzi glared at him, and like an aggressive female griffin flapping its wings, she left in a hurry.

  When she disappeared behind the door, a satisfied smile appeared on Meng Chao’s face.

  ‘Big Brother Bo, that’s as much as I can help you. What happens next will depend on you!’