“Oh? So they’re really going to fight it out?” Upon hearing the host’s announcement of Zhang Wen’s decision, General William, who had already walked to the exit of the training hall, raised his eyebrows and suddenly stopped in his tracks. After a moment of contemplation, General William turned back with renewed interest.
“Oh! General William?” Countess Melissa looked surprised to see General William returning to her side again. “Why did you come back?”
“Oh. That physical training instructor from Almesthys Academy isn’t as spineless as I thought.” General William grinned and lifted his chin.
“Hehe. It’s truly rare to earn a compliment from General William. One must risk their life just to stand a chance.” Countess Melissa joked with a smile. “However, with General William’s interest piqued, Governor Karajan will surely have a headache.” As she spoke, the countess gracefully turned her fair and slender neck, drawing General William’s gaze to Governor Karajan, who was seated two rows ahead of them.
Due to the sabbatical of the Saint-ranked principal of Themis Academy, he did not attend this competition against Almesthys Academy. Therefore, the two leading figures of Themis Academy’s physical and mental training departments were fortunate to sit beside Governor Karajan during this match.
Among them, the leader of Themis Academy’s physical training department was naturally the very same Themis chief instructor Gelt, with whom Zhang Wen was already “familiar.”
The commotion caused by Zhang Wen caught the Themis Academy instructors off guard, and his subsequent demands further infuriated the physical training department instructors, who viewed it as a grave insult.
Have all ten of Themis Academy’s elite representatives fight against merely four students from Almesthys Academy? Are they kidding?! What did that bastard Zhang Wen think Themis Academy was?
According to the prevailing sentiment among most of Themis Academy’s physical training instructors, they should have immediately and firmly rejected Zhang Wen’s request, then scornfully informed this arrogant fool that they only needed four students to defeat his ragtag bunch! They’d make sure to slap this shameless bastard hard across the face!
However, several “senior and prudent” instructors raised objections to the younger instructors’ angry outbursts.
“Hey! Don’t you find the Almesthys representative’s behavior rather suspicious? He might be deliberately trying to provoke us. Let’s not fall for his provocation!”
“Provocation or not, are we actually afraid of Almesthys Academy? That’s ridiculous!” The radicals shouted, clenching their fists.
“Hey! If you can guarantee that sending four people will ensure victory, we won’t mind.”
“Well… that…” The radicals were left speechless.
Against the backdrop of overwhelming victory in the mental training department, Themis Academy’s physical training department now found themselves in a difficult position. If they failed to help Themis Academy achieve dominance in the Southern Region, even if Governor Karajan didn’t hold them accountable, the public’s backlash would surely drown them.
“So what do you suggest we do? Surely we’re not going to send everyone out there? That would mean we lose no matter if we win or lose, right?”
“There’s no choice. This is beyond our control now. In my opinion, we should consult Chief Instructor Gelt’s opinion.” The moderates proposed a suggestion the radicals couldn’t refute.
Thus, one Themis instructor swiftly ran up to the stands while the training hall was in chaos.
The difficult dilemma that troubled the Themis instructors was now placed before Chief Instructor Gelt. Faced with this tough decision, Gelt also hesitated. Glancing at Governor Karajan beside him, Gelt noticed that the governor seemed indifferent to the report from the Themis instructor, indicating that he intended to let the chief instructor make the decision himself. Gelt had to abandon the hope of shifting responsibility to Karajan and furrowed his brow, deep in thought.
“Hey! Governor Karajan.” As Gelt was still undecided between the two choices, General William suddenly appeared beside Governor Karajan’s VIP seat.
“General William.” Governor Karajan, facing the commander of the Imperial Guards, naturally refrained from displaying his authority.
“Congratulations, Governor, on Themis Academy’s great victory. That should be good news, so why does the Governor still wear a frown?”
“Hmm… Nothing much, just a minor concern.”
“Oh! Is it because of that Almesthys Academy instructor’s request? What’s there to worry about? If the opponent has made such a presumptuous request, then Themis Academy should teach them a lesson about the vastness of heaven and earth, right?” General William said casually, spreading his hands.
Even when smiling, General William’s towering and muscular physique exuded an overwhelming pressure. Governor Karajan, accustomed to being in a high position for many years, might have already adapted to it, but the Themis instructors couldn’t help but be overwhelmed by General William’s powerful aura. Even the Saint-ranked Chief Instructor Gelt’s expression froze, and the words he was about to say were swallowed back.
Governor Karajan solemnly gazed at General William for a few seconds before his expression gradually softened.
“Indeed, we should do that.” Governor Karajan smiled and instructed Gelt, “Chief Instructor Gelt, did you hear General William’s opinion?”
“Ah! Of course.” Gelt nodded slightly and immediately whispered instructions into the ear of the Themis instructor who had run up to the stands.
“Hehe. I will certainly offer my respect and applause when Themis Academy reaches the pinnacle of the Southern Region.” General William nodded politely and then left Governor Karajan’s VIP seat.
“Tsk!” As soon as General William’s back disappeared beyond the box, Governor Karajan’s smile rapidly turned back into his previous seriousness. He grabbed Gelt’s shoulders tightly, staring at the head instructor of Themis Academy’s physical training department, and sternly said, “Gelt, don’t worry about the minor details anymore. I only care about the outcome now. You must ensure that the Almesthys people fall down one hundred percent.”
“Of course, Your Excellency. They won’t have a chance.”
“No! I don’t want you to make me any promises or oaths. I want you to come up with a concrete plan!”
“What?… I’m not quite sure what you mean, Excellency.”
“Hmph! I remember that last time at old Temisso’s house, that little girl from Almesthys Academy who displayed extraordinary strength had to follow her teacher’s commands, right?” Governor Karajan stared at Gelt expressionlessly.
“Ah… According to Douglas’s report, that’s indeed the case.” After a moment of hesitation, Chief Instructor Gelt finally nodded firmly. “Alright, Excellency. I understand what I should do.”
Efficiency in handling emergencies has always been something that the Alliance and the Federation admire about the Empire. In just a short moment, Enklay arrived beside Zhang Wen amidst the crowd’s roaring applause.
“In respect of the century-old reciprocal visitation rules between the two academies, we accept your request. However, given that your request is a serious insult to Themis Academy, I, on behalf of the academy, hereby declare that from now on, you are persona non grata at this academy. Please leave Themis Academy immediately. Of course, considering you are the sole representative instructor of the Almesthys Academy physical training department, to ensure the fairness of the competition, the entire teaching staff of the Themis Academy physical training department will also withdraw from the venue during the upcoming match. The competition itself will be supervised by the mental training departments of both academies.”
“Whoa! Finally got some revenge!”
“Haha, we should kick all these stupid Almesthys pigs out!”
“Way to go! You arrogant fool, why don’t you scram already!”
“Hmph! Using ten people to fight you in this match is already way too generous!”
Enklay’s response on behalf of Themis Academy immediately sparked a thunderous cheer in the training hall. On the surface, every decision made by Themis Academy was justified, even making sacrifices to ensure the fairness of the competition.
Based on “fairness,” Enklay’s tough stance toward Zhang Wen, who “dared to challenge the dignity of Themis,” naturally made the Themis people feel triumphant.
Everyone loves a hawkish approach.
The flood of curses from all directions didn’t affect Zhang Wen’s mood. The Themis Academy’s demand for him to leave only made Zhang Wen smirk.
“Oh? Is Themis Academy really that afraid of losing?” Zhang Wen looked at Enklay.
“Stop talking nonsense. Just scram!” Enklay hissed in a low voice, but couldn’t help showing a hint of shame on his face.
Unlike the spectators who didn’t know the whole story, most of the insiders probably understood very well what it meant for Themis Academy to force Zhang Wen to leave.
They were genuinely afraid of this arrogant guy! Themis Academy must achieve dominance today and become the number one in the South! Therefore, they couldn’t allow Zhang Wen to stay, fearing he might pull off some unexpected “trick” that would catch them off guard.
“You’ve already issued an expulsion order. What else can I do but leave?” Zhang Wen continued to smirk at Enklay. “However, before I go, I need to say goodbye to my students. Surely the mighty Themis Academy wouldn’t be afraid of that, right?”
“This…” Enklay’s face turned red from Zhang Wen’s jab. He hesitated for a long time before reluctantly nodding.
After all, this guy was about to be expelled. Even if he met those few students before leaving, how much trouble could he cause?
“Haha!” Zhang Wen laughed and left Enklay behind, returning to the edge of the rest area where his four students were.
“Teacher Zhang!” The outrageous decision by Themis Academy had already enraged Zhang Wen’s four students beyond words. The piercing boos from the surrounding audience only made them clench their fists tightly.
“Hey! How are you guys feeling now?”
“What do you mean? Of course it’s terrible! Are you really going to let Themis Academy push us around like this and just abandon us?” Zack couldn’t help but shout.
“Idiot! What do you mean by letting Themis Academy push us around? I never intended to give you any on-site guidance during today’s match anyway.”
“Huh… Huh?”
“What? Don’t you have the confidence to win without my guidance? Hey! What exactly did you learn during your special training?” Zhang Wen scratched his head helplessly, then suddenly smiled.
“Listen up, you guys. You’ve been following me for almost three months now, right?”
“Ah… Yeah, about three months.”
“I’ve seen how hard you’ve all worked during this time. Especially Zack and Cloud. I know that after completing the tasks I assigned, you often trained extra. You trained for more than ten hours a day, dedicating all your time except for sleeping and eating to training. Although it was only three short months, not everyone could stick with it. Before I arrived at Almesthys Academy, you were probably using this stubborn method to train yourselves, right? And Amylise too.”
“Ah? Amylise too?”
“Of course! Idiot! Do you think I chose her just to be a decoration?”
“I know that!” Zack looked at Amylise in surprise.
“That’s because she eventually gave up hope. No matter how hard she trained, she couldn’t see any results. She put in a hundredfold effort but still watched helplessly as others left her far behind. You should all understand that feeling of helplessness. But you know, this world is just like that. Never think your efforts are in vain, and never give up. As long as people strive, their sweat will leave a mark somewhere.”
“The techniques I taught you aren’t particularly special. However, they require the user to perfectly coordinate their body and weapon! To achieve this, the only thing needed is a lot of tedious basic training, and among Themis Academy, only you guys have ever done such ‘stupid’ things. So, don’t think you’ve improved your strength just because you studied with me for three months. Your strength has already been accumulated over years and decades of hard work. What I did in these three months was just to help you regain it.”
“Now, lift your heads up and listen to the sounds around you.” Zhang Wen opened his arms toward them.
Of course, what came from around them were only boos and curses from the Themis crowd. Every second Zhang Wen stayed in the training hall, the boos aimed at him grew louder.
As the atmosphere in the training hall seemed about to spiral out of control, the host couldn’t hold back any longer. He quickly walked to Zhang Wen’s side and urged him loudly, “Teacher Zhang, it’s about time. Please leave.”
“To stand against the whole world on the enemy’s territory. Though a thousand and ten thousand oppose me, I shall go forth! Today’s battle against Themis Academy is your stage, your very own stage.” Zhang Wen shouted with a big laugh. “Don’t you think this is the best stage you’ll hardly ever get in your lifetime?”
Facing the rising tide of boos, Zhang Wen suddenly snatched the microphone from the host’s hand.
“Fools of Themis! Have you all figured out how to save face after losing the match?” Zhang Wen raised his right arm high, pointing his finger straight at the stands, sweeping in an arc that included everyone in the training hall.
Enklay was dumbfounded, the host was dumbfounded, and even many of the audience who had been cursing the loudest couldn’t help but be taken aback. They had seen arrogant people before, but someone as defiant as Zhang Wen, who could stand straight and boldly curse back in the face of the whole world’s boos, completely unafraid to stand against the entire world, was something they had never encountered before!
“Hey! Catch!” Before Enklay and his group could recover from their shock, Zhang Wen had already thrown the seized microphone back to the host and left the training hall without hesitation.
“Hmph!” When the audience in Training Hall No. 7 came to their senses, Zhang Wen’s provocation naturally provoked even greater anger. However, since Zhang Wen had already left the arena, they couldn’t do anything to teach him a lesson. They could only send piercing boos to Zhang Wen’s four students, loud enough to almost pierce through the roof.
“Hehe… This instructor from Almesthys Academy is the most interesting physical training instructor I’ve seen in the Empire,” Countess Melissa said without hiding her admiration for Zhang Wen.
“I can only agree with half of what you said,” General William also said with a smile. “If those few students really win this match, he might be a very interesting physical training instructor. But if they lose, then he’s just a very foolish gambler.”
“Oh, General William, aren’t you being result-oriented?”
“Isn’t the world itself result-oriented?”
“Hmm…” Countess Melissa furrowed her delicate brows slightly, her lips pouting a little, as if a bit annoyed by General William’s argument.
This expression of a beauty’s slight anger, which might have seemed somewhat artificial on most women, had a subtle sense of harmony when it appeared on Countess Melissa’s youthful and delicate face. It was almost impossible to tell at which stage of her life this woman, who possessed both the charm of a mature woman and the purity of a young girl, was in.
“Countess Melissa, sometimes I really wonder how old you are. There are quite a few betting pools in the capital about your age, ranging from seventeen to thirty, with heavy bets placed every year. But according to your records, you’re forty-two. Of course, that number has long been a joke that no one in the capital believes,” General William gazed at Melissa’s slightly annoyed face for a long time before jokingly saying.
“Hehe, General William, are you complimenting me or trying to get some information from me to win a bet when you return to the capital?” Countess Melissa’s smile was full of charm. “Don’t you know that a woman’s age is a secret?”
“A secret, huh…” General William smiled as if it didn’t matter, his gaze returning to the arena.
Back at Training Hall No. 7 of Themis Academy.
The Almesthys Academy quartet led by Xiaoxi, with their stubborn refusal to bow before the Themis geniuses, made them feel very, very annoyed again.
And the Themis students, forced to fight with ten against four, were naturally even more furious. Almost from the moment they stepped onto the competition field, they had already started clashing with Zack and his group with fiery glances.
Compared to men, the women around the competition field clearly didn’t have such strong local biases. When Zhang Wen was provoking them, they also angrily cursed along with the men and gave him the middle finger. However, after Zack and Cloud made their appearance, the more emotional women easily changed their attitude.
The two handsome and masculine young men naturally gained more favor from the noble ladies than the muscular men of Themis Academy. Moreover, these two attractive young men also had noble family backgrounds that easily sparked fantasies among the noblewomen.
As a result, although Zhang Wen had left the training hall for quite some time, the boos coming from all directions did not diminish in the slightest. Moreover, these boos clearly carried a hint of jealousy.
“Are both sides ready?” Once the students on both sides had adjusted their weapons, the on-site host stood at the very edge of the competition field and raised his hand for the final confirmation.
“No problem.” Both sides gave the same brief answer.
“Then, the match begins now.” The host forcefully brought his hand down, stepping back one step to exit the competition field at the same time. The decisive battle between the two academies, which concerned their ultimate fates, finally began.
At this point, Zhang Wen had already left the training hall.
After closing the door of the training hall, all the noise was immediately left behind by Zhang Wen. At noon, the sunlight, just tinged with a touch of red, slanted down, making Zhang Wen involuntarily narrow his eyes.
“The timing is just right!” After getting used to the glaring brightness outside the training hall, Zhang Wen stretched his arms happily and lazily hailed a passing psychokinetic car on the “Sky Avenue” that ran through the entire Themis Academy.
The driver of the psychokinetic car that Zhang Wen boarded was obviously a martial arts enthusiast. As soon as Zhang Wen entered the psychokinetic car, he heard two men on the car’s built-in radio talking non-stop about the match between Almesthys Academy and Themis Academy. On a small screen at the front of the psychokinetic car, there was a blurry video feed of the match.
However, the psychokinetic transmission system of this psychokinetic car, which seemed to be quite old, had a minor issue, causing the image on the screen to keep flickering.
As Zhang Wen opened the door of the psychokinetic car, the driver, a martial arts enthusiast, was still cursing while slapping the small machine. “Damn it! What’s going on? This stupid old machine quits right when it matters most!”
“Alright, after the physical training instructor from Almesthys Academy, Zhang Wen, was expelled by Themis Academy, all the physical training instructors from Themis Academy also voluntarily retreated to the stands. Now both sides’ competitors have entered… As we all know, Themis Academy currently has the top physical training genius in the South, the versatile ninth-rank competitor Link. Surprisingly, Almesthys Academy, which has long been considered weak, also surprisingly produced a ninth-rank competitor in its physical training department this year!”
After slapping it a few times, the image on the screen finally stabilized. At this point, the driver finally remembered the passenger in his car.
“Oh! Welcome, welcome. Where are you headed?” He asked Zhang Wen with a warm smile, turning his head back.
“137 Linwei Street.” Zhang Wen also smiled at the driver.
“…Both sides are ready, and the competitors have entered the arena! Four against ten, in terms of both quantity and quality, Almesthys Academy is at a clear disadvantage. It seems that the outcome of Themis Academy’s victory was already decided before the match even began! Sir Wilson, as a master-level physical trainer and also as a physical training instructor who often competes against Themis Academy, do you think Almesthys Academy has any hope this year?”
“Hope? Has Almesthys Academy’s physical training department ever had such a thing?” The middle-aged man, addressed by the host as Sir Wilson, joked with a grin.
On the planet Phira, at least nine out of ten people were supporters of Themis Academy. This Sir Wilson was one of the most ardent self-proclaimed fans of Themis Academy. His sharp and harsh attitude toward Themis Academy’s rivals had made him quite popular on Phira.
And today, Sir Wilson was even more enthusiastic than usual. Because he was not only a die-hard “fan” of Themis Academy but also a die-hard “hater” of Almesthys Academy.
After hearing Wilson’s words, the taxi driver carrying Zhang Wen couldn’t help but burst into loud laughter. The martial arts enthusiast driver, of course, didn’t realize that the person sitting in his car was none other than Zhang Wen, the very instructor who had just been expelled from the training hall by Themis Academy.
“However, there’s no need to worry about that extremely arrogant idiot instructor from Almesthys Academy having no way to save face if they lose the match.”
“Huh? Why is that?”
“That’s simple, Bolt. If Almesthys Academy had to step down every time they lost a match, they would have dug a hole so deep on Phira that there would be nowhere left to go.”
“Hahaha! Sir Wilson, you’re so witty. However, let’s first take a look at the current match situation. Oh! Standing before the ten most outstanding physical training geniuses of Themis Academy, the four students thrown onto the field by the Almesthys instructor haven’t backed down in terms of momentum. They can still stand here proudly, which I think deserves my praise. Well done, Almesthys people, you’re already ten light-years ahead of your predecessors!” The host of the broadcast station, Bolt, also happily burst into laughter. After a long while, he finally changed the topic and brought the conversation back to the match.
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