"Farmer," Fighting (Two-in-One Chapter)

It was that same unchanging, dark tone, whether in the sky or on the ground. Here, there seemed to be no such thing as day or night.

Following the path he had just taken, Yin Kuang was walking toward the No. 13 Teaching Building, also known as "Slaughterhouse No. 13."

By now, Yin Kuang had wiped the tear stains from his face. He had changed into a set of "Yichun" casual clothes purchased for 1 Study Point, which highlighted a youthful, spirited air—even though his actual age was nearing twenty.

Although the G-Virus had not been able to extend his lifespan, it had made him look three years younger, which was some small consolation.

His tender, fifteen-or-sixteen-year-old face held a maturity that belonged to an adult.

Fragility was merely an occasional self-indulgence for Yin Kuang.

In this place, only strength could allow someone with an already shortened lifespan to live a little longer.

Yin Kuang believed that in a university with infinite possibilities, as long as he survived, anything was possible!

Perhaps to distract himself, Yin Kuang's thoughts drifted as he walked. He suddenly wondered, if schools in reality were like this—well, that was obviously impossible, but that didn't stop Yin Kuang from letting his imagination run wild, did it? If the teaching methods were truly as cruelly limitless as they were here, with exams that threw students into various death scenarios to struggle for survival... he really dared not imagine what kind of people that would cultivate.

Incomparable geniuses? Or lunatics? Or psychologically twisted perverts?

Under the constant threat of death, who would still dare to slack off in class, pass notes, or chat on QQ? Who would still dare to skip class to play CF at an internet cafe? Who would still dare to "slice fruit" during a lecture? Who would still dare to... he reckoned that apart from thinking about how to survive, survive, and survive, they wouldn't dare to do anything else...

"Pfft!"

Yin Kuang suddenly let out a soft laugh. "Your imagination is too wild, isn't it? Why are you thinking about such messy things?"

Looking up, Yin Kuang was already standing in front of the so-called "Slaughterhouse No. 13." Only now did he see the true face of the building.

It was a six-story flat-roofed structure with dark red walls, peeling paint everywhere, and scarlet graffiti sprayed all over like chaotic scribbles. On it was a massive, pale skull, its mouth grinning with two rows of pale teeth, as if laughing heartily or roaring loudly.

The skull's hollow eye sockets seemed to be gazing into the distance, or perhaps looking down with contempt at Yin Kuang below!

"This is the work of a deceased senior. It's meant for 'certain people' to see. Skulls, at times, don't just bring fear; they also represent... protection."

A heavy hand pressed onto Yin Kuang's shoulder, nearly crushing him to the ground.

Yin Kuang turned his head in shock, his eyes flashing with intense fear and horror.

It was none other than Xiong Ba, who stood like a wall!

At this moment, he was looking up at the giant skull on Building 13, his eyes filled with deep reverence, profound helplessness, and intense longing and sorrow.

Yin Kuang didn't know why he could read the meaning in Xiong Ba's eyes, but he truly felt it. However, that wasn't the important part; what mattered was...

"When did he...?! "

Xiong Ba lowered his head, seemingly reading Yin Kuang's thoughts, and said in a voice like the breath of a beast: "If you could detect me, would I still be qualified to be your senior? A Perception of 13 is considered outstanding among freshmen. But in front of me, I fear that if I had wanted to kill you just now, you wouldn't even know who to seek revenge from in the afterlife."

Yin Kuang remained silent.

"It seems you must have had some fortuitous encounter during the 'Entrance Exam.' Originally, aside from Intelligence, you could say you were useless. But now, you have attributes that took me two uses of 'Scout' to detect. Not bad." Xiong Ba looked back at the painting on the wall and said nonchalantly.

"Senior... you..."

Xiong Ba said: "Heh, I'm just telling you that in front of upperclassmen, freshmen have almost no secrets. Do you know why this place is called 'Slaughterhouse No. 13'?"

"..."

"Because this is the teaching building for freshmen," Xiong Ba said. "To put it bluntly, this is a pigsty, a place to raise pigs. Although not all upperclassmen are 'farmers,' this type of person accounts for thirty percent of the total. And that thirty percent is enough to make you suffer. I went through the same thing. However, the only fortunate thing is that I met a few good seniors. Senior Black Bone, who painted this skull, was one of them..."

"Senior Black Bone... why did he paint this skull?"

"I just told you, protection!" Xiong Ba patted Yin Kuang's shoulder and said: "To intimidate those 'farmers' and protect you little chicks who are being treated as 'livestock'... It's just a pity that in this place, good people rarely live long... Good people can only live in the hearts of others, never in their eyes."

Yin Kuang nodded unconsciously.

Xiong Ba continued: "The 'exams' for the freshman year, generally speaking, are full of danger and a ten-to-one death rate, but compared to the hopeless, certain-death exams of the upper years, your exams are like child's play... Therefore, there are always people who, in order to gain more Study Points and higher evaluations, set their sights on you. These people are called 'farmers,' and you are the 'livestock'."

Yin Kuang shuddered. "Live... livestock? Farmers... livestock? Senior, you mean... someone is exploiting us freshmen to extract Study Points?"

Xiong Ba looked at Yin Kuang's reaction, smiled, and said: "Correct. It has always been this way. Even the omnipotent Headmaster cannot stop such things from happening. Where there are people, there is a world of conflict, and in this world, strength is what speaks. This is an unchanging law."

Yin Kuang's eyes darted around, then he looked up at Xiong Ba and asked: "Then, Senior Xiong, do you have any way to keep me from becoming livestock to be slaughtered?"

As soon as he asked the question, Yin Kuang regretted it...

Sometimes being too smart really isn't a good thing. Especially when you show your cleverness in front of your leader or superior; that is no different from courting death.

Just like now, Yin Kuang had actually roughly guessed why Xiong Ba was telling him about "farmers" and "livestock." He was recruiting!

It was a simple logic: since he was "livestock," if he didn't want to be slaughtered, he had to find a decent "farmer"—but no matter how good a farmer was, he was still a farmer. The implication in Xiong Ba's words was likely that he wanted Yin Kuang to become the livestock of some "better" farmer.

In common terms, it was picking a side!

However, Yin Kuang found it strange: why did Xiong Ba want to recruit him? What did he have that would make an upperclassman like Xiong Ba care?

Sure enough, Xiong Ba's expression shifted slightly, clearly having heard the subtext in Yin Kuang's words. He stared at Yin Kuang with annoyance and said: "Kid, remember my advice: no matter how smart you are, play the fool in front of your seniors. You want to know how to avoid becoming livestock? I'll tell you in one sentence: it's easy to enjoy the shade under a big tree. In this university, without a backer, it's hard to survive."

Yin Kuang lowered his head, silent.

"I'll leave these words here," Xiong Ba shook his head and said. "In this university, a rookie like you should never think too highly of yourself. There are some unstable upperclassmen who, when bored, love nothing more than to suppress and crush promising seedlings. Unfortunately, because your Intelligence was rated as 7 by the Headmaster—no, it's 8 now—you belong to that category of promising seedlings. People like me who can see through others' attributes aren't common, but they aren't rare either. You should think it over carefully. You have 10 days to consider; after 10 days... remember, as a senior, I advise you: in this university, if you want to survive, you must use every opportunity available! This is reality!"

After saying this, Xiong Ba patted Yin Kuang's shoulder lightly and said: "Contact me once you've made up your mind. You go up first; I still have to wait for two other teaching assistants. Also, when we go to the 'cafeteria' later, stay behind me. My skill can help you block some prying eyes."

"Yes, Senior."

What else could Yin Kuang do?

Just because he was a freshman, just because he was too weak... Perhaps Xiong Ba was right; to survive, one must use their brains and exploit every opportunity at hand to stay alive!!

Xiong Ba watched Yin Kuang's retreating back and sighed, "Kid, I hope you can wise up. Back in the day... wasn't I just like you? Unwilling to bow to others, filled with hot-blooded passion, wanting to carve out my own piece of the sky here... But in the end, what does it matter? Without a powerful backer, you don't even have the chance to survive, let alone stand tall. This university... it's more complicated than you imagine. It's dark."

"If only... there were more people like Senior Black Bone... sigh..."

"This is the second time Xiong Ba has mentioned my intelligence... What exactly does 7 or 8 points of intelligence signify?"

"How should I choose? Follow Xiong Ba's arrangements and seek their protection, or rely on myself and fight my own battles? To entrust my life and future to someone else... I really am unwilling."

"Livestock farmers... meat pigs... Slaughterhouse No. 13? Even the Headmaster acknowledges such a name, directly imprinting it into our memories. What kind of school is this, and what kind of students are we?"

"And this choice in 10 days... what exactly will happen then? Why 10 days?"

With his mind filled with these questions, Yin Kuang walked step by step to the entrance of the Class 1204 classroom.

However, before he could even step into the room, he suddenly felt a figure rushing toward him. Because Yin Kuang had been looking down, lost in those aimless thoughts, even though he sensed something, he was too slow to react.

With a "bang," he collided head-on with the person rushing out.

Fortunately, Yin Kuang's body, modified by the G-Virus, was extraordinary. After the impact, he only took a single step back before steadying himself. The person who hit him, however, was sent rebounding into the doorframe. Before that person could complain, he just shouted, "Sorry, sorry!"

Then he bolted out of the classroom.

"What's going on?"

Yet, before Yin Kuang could react, the corner of his eye caught something flying toward him.

Yin Kuang was already halfway into the classroom, and the object was moving at high speed with a whistling sound. Given the narrowness of the door and the suddenness of the event, even if Yin Kuang wanted to dodge, it was already too late.

Instinctively, Yin Kuang raised his arms to block!

Bang!

Clatter!

A classic classroom brawl, the sound of desks and chairs colliding. Anyone who has fought or witnessed a fight in a classroom would be familiar with this iconic sound—after all, this is the symphony of youthful blood and impulse!

Yin Kuang felt a wave of numbness and pain in his arms and couldn't help but gasp, "The force is this immense!?"

It was obvious that if Yin Kuang hadn't raised his arms to block, that object, carrying such immense force, would have smashed directly into his head. Even with his G-Virus-enhanced physique, he might not have survived such a severe head injury.

"Who is so vicious! They must have been aiming for the person who just ran out, but since he escaped, it landed on me. What an undeserved disaster. But if it had been anyone else, a desk smashed like that would have left them dead or crippled. Is that guy trying to commit murder?"

Before Yin Kuang could see who had dealt such a heavy blow, he heard a voice filled with anger and disdain, "Get the hell out of my way!!"

Yin Kuang's eyes turned cold. He stood firmly in the doorway, staring at the person with a frosty expression, "What did you just say? Say it again."

As always, Yin Kuang never looked for trouble, but he was never afraid of it either!

The moment that person said "Get the hell out of my way," he had crossed Yin Kuang's bottom line. No matter who it was, even the previous counselor, the Queen of Flames, once someone crossed his line, he would not let it go easily!

Yin Kuang had always held his family in the highest regard. Since he was old enough to understand, he had constantly told himself, "Yin Kuang, you can be a good person that everyone praises, or a villain that everyone reviles. But no matter how evil you become, even if you are rotten to the bone and soul, you must never wrong the parents who gave you life, or the relatives who share your blood."

From this, one can see how much Yin Kuang cared for his family.

So, when that person shouted "Get the hell out of my way," how could Yin Kuang not be furious?

However, perhaps because Yin Kuang's stature was indeed a bit short—his 165cm frame had no advantage in front of someone 180cm tall—or perhaps the man was too eager to beat the person who had just fled, he didn't pay any attention to Yin Kuang. He reached out to shove him, "Screw you! Don't block my path, get lost!"

He shoved, but he didn't move him?

The tall student frowned and increased his force, feeling even more enraged, "I told you to get lost, are you deaf?"

Yet, even with the added force, he still couldn't push Yin Kuang aside; he only managed to make him sway slightly.

Yin Kuang looked coldly at the boy in front of him, feeling a sense of familiarity. Upon closer inspection, he realized it was Tang Zhaotian, the one who had exchanged for the Spider-Man bloodline.

But so what if he had the Spider-Man bloodline? If Yin Kuang remembered correctly, the "Freshman Passing Grade" Spider-Man bloodline's boost to physical attributes was nowhere near his own G-Mutation Enhancement. Even if his base stats were higher, judging by the force of that shove, the opponent was clearly inferior to him.

Fine, even if he were inferior, so what? To someone who had crossed his bottom line, even those unfathomable seniors meant nothing! In Yin Kuang's value system, a person who couldn't even defend their own family might as well be dead!

"Take back what you just said, and I can pretend this never happened," Yin Kuang said. "I don't want to get involved in your affairs, but insulting my parents is absolutely not allowed!"

If he stepped aside now, wouldn't that make Tang Zhaotian his superior?!

Regardless of the other party's mindset, the stubborn Yin Kuang took it seriously.

"I said," Tang Zhaotian said, feeling frustrated. He temporarily put aside the person who had run out of the classroom to deal with the stubborn fool in front of him, "Can you have a sense of humor? Move aside, I don't have time for you." It seemed Tang Zhaotian had no interest in tangling with Yin Kuang, or rather, he didn't take him seriously at all.

There was no helping it; so far, he was the only one in the class who had exchanged for an ability—himself, Tang Zhaotian! In that regard, he certainly had the capital to look down on others.

And Tang Zhaotian? After playing the underdog for a while, he had regained the feeling of being a rich second-generation heir and was feeling high and mighty again. In just a few hours, he had already gathered a few lackeys, just like in the past.

The boy who had just run out had a minor conflict with one of his lackeys, and Tang Zhaotian, as the boss, had stepped in. Driven by some unknown motive, he had demanded the boy apologize to his lackey in front of the whole class.

The boy had a bit of backbone; he pretended to apologize, then suddenly lashed out, throwing a desk at Tang Zhaotian's lackey, knocking him unconscious on the spot before turning and running, which led to the collision with Yin Kuang.

Naturally, Tang Zhaotian was itching to drag that boy back and teach him a lesson!

But seeing that Yin Kuang had no intention of moving, Tang Zhaotian's face darkened, "Kid, you'd better not push your luck."

Yin Kuang replied, "Respect is earned, not given by others. And you aren't in a position to give it."

Yin Kuang clenched his fists and said, "I'll say it again. I don't want to get involved in your business. But you must take back what you said. I hate it when people insult my parents! No one is allowed to do that!"

To the many students watching, Yin Kuang seemed incredibly stubborn and foolish. It was just a sentence, was it really necessary to be so serious?

They, naturally, could not comprehend Yin Kuang's values.

"Fine! You're very good! Then, what if I don't take it back? What can you do to me?"

"Nothing much," Yin Kuang inhaled, then said, "I will beat you until you do take it back."

"Beat me? Fine, fine, fine, I'll take it back, I'll take--what the hell!!"

Before he could finish his sentence, Tang Zhaotian's expression shifted violently, and he threw a heavy punch toward Yin Kuang.

This punch was powerful, heavy, and sudden.

However, in Yin Kuang's eyes, while this punch was indeed formidable and launched unexpectedly, it possessed one fatal flaw: the speed was too slow.

That's right, it was slow.

Perhaps to others, the speed of this strike was incredibly fast, impossible to track with their "dexterity," let alone dodge. But to Yin Kuang, it was the exact opposite. Within his vision, the speed of that punch was like a gentle wave of the hand; Yin Kuang was entirely confident he could dodge it and counterattack!

If he could dodge, why wouldn't he?

Yin Kuang shifted his body to the side, and the massive fist, carrying a gust of wind, brushed past his cheek. The next moment, Yin Kuang struck back; his 12 points of dexterity and 10 points of strength displayed their power as his fist landed directly on Tang Zhaotian's lower abdomen.

In truth, the Spider-Man bloodline skill "Spider Sense" was not weak. Almost the instant Yin Kuang threw his punch, Tang Zhaotian felt a strange tingling sensation in his lower abdomen. This was the signal given to him by Spider Sense—a warning of danger. Had he dodged then, relying on his +4 agility and +4 dexterity, he could have barely managed to evade it.

However, Tang Zhaotian was too arrogant. He didn't believe Yin Kuang had the ability to strike him, so he had no intention of dodging. When his punch missed, he wanted to throw another—of course, the reality was that before he could throw a second punch, he had already been pushed back several steps by the sharp pain and immense force in his abdomen.

He wouldn't let up while he had the advantage!

Yin Kuang took two quick steps forward and launched a flying kick, aiming straight for Tang Zhaotian's chest!

Although Yin Kuang had never learned any formal combat techniques, he had watched plenty of kung fu movies. These flashy, superficial moves, combined with his 10 points of strength, produced a destructive power that was far from ordinary.

Bang!!

The kick landed squarely, and Tang Zhaotian immediately fell backward onto the floor.

But as someone who had strengthened with the Spider-Man bloodline, perhaps it granted him some innate combat instincts. The moment he hit the ground, Tang Zhaotian thrust out both hands, shooting two shimmering lines from his wrists—the Spider-Man bloodline skill, Tough Web-Shooting!

A web covered Yin Kuang. The web's firing speed was extremely fast; even with Yin Kuang's dexterity, he couldn't track its trajectory, but dodging it was no problem.

Meanwhile, one strand of silk stuck to the classroom ceiling. With a pull, Tang Zhaotian flipped himself up, leaped to the back of the classroom, and clung to the ceiling like a spider. Then, using all four limbs, he launched himself from the heights, throwing a punch at Yin Kuang, who had just dodged the web.

Yin Kuang crossed his arms to block, taking the heavy aerial punch while sliding back several steps.

It had to be said, the Spider-Man bloodline had many commendable aspects. If there was one thing Yin Kuang lacked compared to Tang Zhaotian, it was perhaps combat awareness—the G-Virus had merely remodeled his body. Perhaps there were gains and losses; the body transformed by the G-Virus did not inherit the violent, world-destroying destructive instincts of a "G-Monster"!

Perhaps if Yin Kuang activated "G-Body Alienation," he might inherit some of those destructive instincts and double his overall strength, but this was a classroom, clearly not a suitable place to use it. The only thing he could use was that strange vision. Since it had no name, Yin Kuang named it himself—G-Vision—simple, clear, and applicable.

In an instant, their fists were about to collide again.

However, this time, the Spider-Man bloodline's combat instincts seemed unable to manifest, or perhaps—they were cut off by something, such as Yin Kuang's G-Vision.

In Yin Kuang's eyes, Tang Zhaotian was a humanoid mass of fluorescence, red and yellow, alternating between light and dark. The moment Tang Zhaotian exerted force, Yin Kuang could see a cluster of dazzling red light bloom from his toes, traveling up his calf, thigh, waist, through his shoulder, and finally to his right arm. This red light converged on the surface of Tang Zhaotian's fist—a complete energy conduction route, a precise judgment of the point of force! The instant Tang Zhaotian threw his punch, Yin Kuang suddenly changed direction while shifting his body. The target of Yin Kuang's fist was Tang Zhaotian's armpit, where the red fluorescence was at its dimmest.

"Danger!!"

Tang Zhaotian only felt a sudden chill surge under his armpit, but before he could dodge, a sharp pain, like nerves being stimulated by high-voltage electricity, spread from his armpit throughout his entire body.

"Ah!!"

A scream rang out in the classroom, shattering the silence.

One-punch KO!

But it wasn't over yet. Yin Kuang lunged forward, pressed down on Tang Zhaotian's chest, stared at him fiercely, and said, "Apologize!!"

Tang Zhaotian was drenched in cold sweat from the pain, but his angry eyes remained locked on Yin Kuang. "Hmph, don't even think about it!"

A rich kid naturally had a rich kid's stubbornness.

"Then I'll beat you until you do apologize."

After saying this, Yin Kuang clenched his fist. "This is what you forced me to do!"

Then, he smashed his fist down!