Bringing Warmth

Inside the Star-Ring Command Hall.

The atmosphere was so heavy it was almost palpable.

The Heavenly Wolf Xiao Nanfeng, turned completely gray on the leaderboard and became a sky full of light spots, Yang Feng felt as if his spine had been pulled out. He sprang up from his chair and then fell back down heavily.

His eyes were bloodshot as he stared intently at the ten-year-old boy on the main screen, his hands in his pockets and his face expressionless, his chest heaving violently.

"Gu Ci!! This is your good student!!"

Yang Feng whirled around, his eyes bloodshot as he glared at the Federation Envoy not far away. His voice was hoarse. "Your Excellency! This boy has disregarded the rules and indiscriminately killed innocent people! I demand! Immediately! Arrest him on charges of murder! Execute him immediately!"

The Federation Envoy frowned slightly.

Although there are limits on casualties in Exchange Tournament, deaths are practically nonexistent.

Deaths during the Exchange Tournament are the worst-case scenario.

Even though the Federation Envoy had high hopes for Chen Fan, he still had to follow the rules.

In the midst of this oppressive atmosphere, a languid figure slowly rose from the chair.

Gu Ci glanced around at the silent instructors, his eyes finally settling on Yang Feng.

"Your Excellency, Special Envoy."

His voice wasn't loud, but it reached everyone's ears clearly.

"I remember, the third line on the first page of the Exchange Tournament handbook says in bold red: 'Life and death are at your own risk.' Moreover..." He drawled, turning his gaze to Chen Fan on the main screen, "... it seems that Xiao Nanfeng was the one who first tried to kill me, wasn't he?"

"You're talking nonsense!"

Like a cat whose tail has been stepped on, Yang Feng instantly bristled, pointing his finger at Gu Ci's nose and roaring, "That's called fighting spirit! It's Martial Artist's determination to win! You're just being sophistical!"

Gu Ci chuckled softly and shook his head.

"Battle will?" He turned to the Federation Envoy, his expression unchanged. "As far as I know, battle will doesn't mean someone shouts 'I want you dead' before the battle even begins, nor does it mean using Family Forbidden Techniques aimed at annihilating the opponent's Divine Soul."

"My student Chen Fan," Gu Ci's voice suddenly turned cold, "Was simply making the most instinctive and correct defensive reaction of a Martial Artist when faced with a deadly threat."

"That was excessive self-defense! It was premeditated murder!"

Yang Feng's spittle almost landed on the Federation Envoy's face.

"Quiet!"

The Federation Envoy finally lost his temper and let out a deep shout like a thunderclap.

His sharp gaze swept over the two of them, his voice carrying an undeniable authority.

"The Command Center is not a place for you to argue!"

He turned to the Technical Officer beside him and coldly ordered, "Retrieve the Battle Recording from just now, all angles, slow it down tenfold, and activate Energy Fluctuation Analysis!"

"Yes!"

The image on the main screen switched instantly.

The scene of the Abandoned Energy Station reappeared, but this time, countless data streams and analytical graphs were superimposed on the screen.

Xiao Nanfeng's face, contorted with humiliation, was magnified infinitely, and the murderous words, "I want you dead!", were clearly captured and marked in striking blood-red text at the center of the screen by the system.

As the character appeared, Yang Feng's body trembled slightly.

These few words alone are enough to prove that Xiao Nanfeng was the one who first harbored murderous intent.

If Chen Fan were to kill Xiao Nanfeng at this point... it wouldn't be considered intentional homicide!

"Gu Ci..."

Yang Feng's voice lingered in his throat, like a wild beast staring intently at Gu Ci, as if he wanted to devour her Gu Ci.

Facing Yang Feng's gaze, Gu Ci simply smiled.

"Your Excellency, this matter is already quite clear..."

The one who first harbored murderous intent... has already revealed himself!

The Federation Envoy shifted his gaze from the screen back to Yang Feng.

"Chen Fan, a trainee at the Blue Star Training Camp, was deemed to have acted in legitimate self-defense."

"Innocent."

These two short words seemed to drain all of Yang Feng's strength and energy.

The color drained from his face instantly, and his body trembled violently.

"Puff!!"

A mouthful of blood spurted from his mouth and splattered onto the cold metal floor.

Yang Feng could no longer hold on and slumped back into his seat, his eyes vacant, as if he had aged twenty years in an instant.

The surrounding instructors remained silent, none daring to utter a sound.

Only Gu Ci picked up the hot tea on the table and gently blew on it.

Yang Feng, slumped in his chair, fixed his venomous gaze on Gu Ci, then through the screen, onto the still indifferent ten-year-old boy.

With trembling hands, he quietly activated his Personal Terminal, his fingertips frantically tapping on the virtual Light Screen, sending an embellished and distorted message to the Yang Family and Xiao Families on Blue Star via an encrypted channel.

[... Chen Fan is inherently bloodthirsty and cruel. During the Exchange Tournament, he brutally murdered Nanfeng without cause, using methods that were utterly heinous. Gu Ci has shielded and indulged him, becoming increasingly arrogant. We urge the family to make a swift decision and seek justice for Nanfeng!]

Meanwhile, on the Greedy Wolf Star, Abandoned Energy Station.

Chen Fan's Team waved goodbye to the few Heavenly Wolf Team Members who had vanished into the ruins, their souls scattered and their bodies tumbling and crawling away.

Shen Xuan pushed up his glasses, looking at the points on his wristband that had skyrocketed. His eyes behind the lenses gleamed with excitement as he began calculating rapidly.

"With one chief player and four additional players, our points have already skyrocketed to first place. At this rate, we only need to visit five or six more top-ranked teams to sweep all the top five individual spots!"

"That's narrow-minded." Chen Fan snapped his fingers and corrected him seriously, "What do you mean by 'visit'? It sounds awful."

He cleared his throat, a serious expression on his face that seemed beyond his years.

"We are the maintainers of order on the field. The advanced members lead the less advanced, helping those participants harassed by Interstellar Pirates to relieve their worries. From now on, our Operation Codename is 'Bringing Warmth.'"

Tuo Bashan scratched his head and asked in a muffled voice, "Then... what about the slogan?"

Chen Fan gave him a satisfied look; he was a promising young man.

He held up one finger and, with a smile, announced the team's action plan, "Active cooperation, points halved; stubborn resistance, death upon death."

"..."

Shen Xuan's lips twitched.

Tuo Bashan nodded as if he understood, finding it quite reasonable.

Su Qingyue didn't offer any opinion; she simply closed her eyes silently.

The next second, immense Mental Power, like an invisible radar, instantly swept across the entire competition area.

A moment later, she opened her eyes and reported in a cool voice, "Southeast, eight kilometers away, the Vega Training Camp. All five are present, their Psionic Energy fluctuations are stable, and their total wristband points currently rank third."

"Very good!"

Chen Fan waved his hand, giving the order to depart.

"Full speed ahead, let's Bringing Warmth to the Vega's sisters!"