The Mysterious Young Man

She remembered that Jiang Chen did not like furry things. He said those were things only girls liked.

Today, he had suddenly asked about this. Could it be...

Thinking this, Xiao Lan asked, "Brother, why are you asking what foxes fear most?"

"I was just suddenly curious. I remember you were pretty good at biology."

That was not what Jiang Chen actually wanted to say. He wanted to tell his sister that a Thousand-Year Fox Demon had set her sights on him and tell her to be careful.

But the words reached his lips, then he swallowed them back down.

He thought, What good would telling my sister do? She cannot protect herself, and telling her would only make her worry about me.

Instead, he asked an entirely unrelated question.

"I thought you had guessed that I wanted to raise a pet fox and were deliberately testing me."

Xiao Lan had long wanted to tell Jiang Chen that she wanted to use the scholarship money she had recently received to buy a pet.

She did not like cats or dogs. Instead, she really wanted to raise a fox.

As for why a fox, it was mainly because foxes were smart, cute, and adorable!

"I'm not a worm in your stomach. How would I know?"

Jiang Chen said this as he ate a slice of bread from the table.

"That's true!"

Xiao Lan poured a glass of milk and handed it to Jiang Chen.

After thinking it over, she still did not say anything. She knew her brother disliked furry things, and she did not want to do anything he disliked.

Jiang Chen took the milk without noticing that something was off about Xiao Lan's tone.

His mind was entirely occupied with the Thousand-Year Fox Demon, Nie Xiaoqian.

His soul power would not recover until this afternoon.

He did not know whether he would encounter any danger before then.

However, compared to himself, Jiang Chen was even more worried about Xiao Lan's safety.

With that in mind, Jiang Chen quickly finished the milk in his hand, returned to his room, and called Zhang Banxian.

"Zhang Banxian, a Thousand-Year Fox Demon has set her sights on me."

"How did you discover her?"

"Fox demons are best at concealing their tracks. As long as she does not use demonic power to trigger the barrier, she is no different from an ordinary person in a crowd."

Not to mention Zhang Banxian—even Zhang Banxian's master would be unable to spot a fox demon in the human world with his naked eyes.

Yet Jiang Chen spoke with such certainty that he must have already discovered the Thousand-Year Fox Demon beyond a doubt.

Jiang Chen had no way to explain the existence of the system. He merely said, "After awakening my ability, it seems I can use my eyes to detect demonic beasts."

That ability was far too heaven-defying!

Zhang Banxian sucked in a breath and said, "Uncle-Master Jiang, even on Dragon Tiger Mountain, talent like yours is rare."

Jiang Chen did not care much about that. He was more concerned about Xiao Lan's safety, so he voiced his worries. "I'm afraid this fox demon might target my family. Zhang Banxian, can you protect my sister today?"

"Don't worry, Uncle-Master Jiang. Leave it to me. I'll take leave from school right away!"

After receiving Zhang Banxian's assurance, Jiang Chen finally relaxed somewhat. The fox demon's target was him, and staying by Xiao Lan's side would only bring danger to her.

Meanwhile, Xiao Lan saw that Jiang Chen had already put on his backpack and was preparing to leave.

She asked, "Brother, are you leaving already? You barely ate any breakfast!"

"I ate quite a lot yesterday, so I'm not very hungry today. Eat these to build up your strength. Rest well at home today, and don't go back to school until you've recovered."

"Okay!"

Xiao Lan wanted to say that she was fine, but she was afraid of making her brother worry, so she agreed.

She thought that if she rested at home for three days before returning to school, her brother probably would not say anything.

"Also, things have been unsettled outside lately. Don't go out unless you have to."

"Mm!" Xiao Lan nodded obediently.

After getting Xiao Lan's promise, Jiang Chen left as well and headed to school.

The moment he entered the school, Jiang Chen noticed that something was off.

Why was everyone looking at him?

Could there be something on his face?

Their gazes held no attempt at concealment.

They openly sized him up.

From time to time, he could hear them talking.

"Look, that's Jiang Chen, someone who has S-Class strength at such a young age."

"He's really amazing!"

"Yeah, he really is."

"When will we reach S-Class?"

The crowd looked at Jiang Chen with envious, complicated gazes, intentionally or otherwise.

They had completely begun to see Jiang Chen as a role model.

At that moment, a younger female student boldly walked over and said to Jiang Chen, "Hello, Senior Jiang Chen. I'm Li Rongrong from the first-year class. I really admire you. Can we get to know each other?"

"Hello."

Jiang Chen replied blandly, "I have something to do, so I'll be leaving first."

"Wow, Senior Jiang Chen spoke to me! My little heart is pounding!"

Li Rongrong said happily, touching her chest.

"Senior Jiang Chen, can you give me your autograph?"

At that moment, another bold girl approached with a pen and notebook.

"Sorry, I don't have time!"

Jiang Chen did not like this sudden enthusiasm.

They were not close in the first place. He neither liked nor was used to their sudden warmth.

"Jiang Chen rejected me. I'm so sad. I'm going to starve myself for three days to comfort my wounded little heart."

The girl spoke sadly.

Her voice could be heard from far away.

Jiang Chen acted as though he had not heard her and continued walking forward.

"Hey, that girl is crying. Isn't it a little inappropriate for you to just walk away like that?"

A cold voice rang out, drawing Jiang Chen's attention.

He noticed that the other person was wearing the uniform of an upper-year student.

At this school, the upper-year classes were made up of students with the highest talent and the strongest awakened abilities.

The school's best resources were all directed toward them.

This allowed them to reach heights in a short time that others would need years to attain.

As a result, their strength was unfathomable.

But so what?

Jiang Chen was no slouch either.

Jiang Chen stopped and looked at the upper-year male student. "If you want to show compassion for a beautiful girl, Senior, then go comfort her."

"You don't need to ask for my opinion, because I have no objection!"

"You..."

The upper-year student had a head of fiery red hair that stood out sharply among the crowd.

He spoke coldly, "Apologize!"

"You made that girl cry. Don't you know how to apologize?"

"If Senior wants to play the knight in shining armor, I have even less of an objection."

Jiang Chen said calmly.

"Apologize!"

"Otherwise..."

"Otherwise what?"

"Senior wants to fight?"

Jiang Chen sized up the red-haired man as he asked.

"As a senior, I have a duty to teach a junior the rules."

As he spoke, the red-haired man clenched both fists, producing crackling sounds.

His black eyes gradually began turning red.

His hair also faintly flickered with dazzling sparks.

The heat of the flames was intensely scorching.

Facing the blistering temperature, Jiang Chen stood still as if he felt nothing.

Seeing that Jiang Chen had no intention of making a move, the red-haired man asked, "What, aren't you going to use your blade? I heard your flames can even destroy an S-Class Demonic Beast."

"I'd really like to know which is stronger: your flames or my Hellfire."

Someone had already noticed what was happening here. The instant they heard "Hellfire," someone immediately recognized the red-haired man.

Wasn't he... that person?