Would You Be Willing to Be My Student?

In a suburb of the Heaven Dou Empire, a rather plain-looking academy had officially been completed.

Yet the wooden plaque bore several elegant characters: Phantom Star Academy.

Chen An sat in his office, his face dark with worry. He was really, truly worried.

"I thought things would get better, but I don't have a single student."

Looking at the empty academy, Chen An muttered helplessly.

He had been keeping his head down ever since his rebirth. His greatest cheat was a Library in his sea of consciousness.

With the Library's help, his level had risen rapidly. He had opened an academy and trained in martial arts, too.

But fortune and misfortune went hand in hand. Now his level was stuck, and he hadn't recruited anyone.

The Library's next task was still to recruit one fated person and several students...

"When will this ever end?"

Besides waiting, he had also handed out enrollment flyers. At first, some people had come, but as soon as they saw how empty the academy was and heard there were no teachers, they ran off in a hurry.

He had considered showing off his Soul Rings, but that would draw too much attention. It was better not to do that until he found his first student.

It was like playing the Asura card game: ride the waves, and you might get a perfect hand; defy the rules, and you might not know how you'd die.

"Ugh, another day wasted. No, I have to treat myself!"

He had been sitting there for hours. He spent these waiting days cultivating, but hadn't made the slightest progress. Simply put, he was stuck at a bottleneck.

Watching dusk fall, he packed up some things and took his gear out into the wilderness for a barbecue.

For some reason, today he just wanted to barbecue outdoors. The back hill wouldn't do.

By the time he had everything set up, night had fallen. Under the night sky, he lit a fire beside a small lake. Listening to the meat sizzle and watching the fat bubble, while breathing in that aroma, was a real pleasure.

"Roast chicken wings, I love to eat."

Humming a tune, he grilled meat and chicken wings, brushing them with honey glaze.

"Rustle."

Chen An wasn't deaf, and his senses weren't dull.

He had already noticed people running through the wilderness while he grilled, with others chasing them. His spot just happened to be right in their path.

He vaguely sensed that his fated person was about to arrive. Damn this feeling that everything was destined, this damn fluttering heart.

Damn it, I'm professionally trained. No matter what happens, I won't laugh. Damn it, mouth, don't curl up!

"You folks over there, spare her if you can. How about letting the little girl go?"

Chen An kept grilling without looking up, calling out with a burst of energy.

Their expressions turned quite colorful, as if their faces were asking:

Who had just used the Lion's Roar?

"Ah."

The little girl stumbled a few more steps. Hearing the voice, she couldn't help stopping. The moment she did, she began panting heavily, as if the breath she'd been holding had finally escaped.

"Captain, what do we do?"

The people chasing her were delighted to see this, but after hearing Chen An's words, they hesitated.

"What can we do? Pull back. For a few thousand a month, you'd risk your life? If you're so keen on catching her, go do it yourself."

The leader didn't hesitate. He was the strongest among them and had seen plenty of experts.

He couldn't even begin to match a voice-projection technique like that. This had only been a face-saving job anyway, and he could give his employers an explanation when he returned.

But charging in headfirst when it might not be a bluff... ahem, he wasn't stupid enough to ignore the risks and rewards.

So he left as soon as he'd finished speaking. The others who followed him felt the same way. Only the black-clad man who had asked the question stood there, stunned.

"Hey, wait for me! I haven't left yet!"

The little girl watched the people chasing her leave just like that. She stood frozen for a moment, then breathed a sigh of relief.

Then she called out her thanks. "Thank you, senior!"

She was about to leave when she caught a whiff of the outrageously delicious aroma. Her stomach gave an ungracious growl.

She hadn't eaten anything in all the time she'd been on the run. She hesitated, wanting to keep up her aloof front, but her feet carried her toward Chen An without listening to her.

"Oh, interesting."

When the girl appeared, he gave her a quick look and had a good idea who she was.

She still had some of her Star Luo noble accessories on, and she wore black. Her face also looked very much like a cat's.

Putting that together with the timing, it wasn't hard to guess she was Zhu Zhuqing. But wasn't it too early for this? And why had she run away from home while being chased? That hadn't happened in the story. Chen An was puzzled.

He didn't expose her or say much. He silently set aside some of the barbecue, then grilled some more meat for himself.

"Mmm, delicious."

As Zhu Zhuqing ate the grilled meat, her face was full of contentment, almost as exaggerated as the reactions in Food Wars!

Chen An approved of that expression. What chef didn't want people to call their food delicious, especially when they looked utterly blissful eating it?

After Chen An had finished eating, the girl bowed and said:

"Thank you, senior."

Her manner was graceful and polite. No wonder—she was a child from a great family.

Chen An wiped his mouth, waved a hand, and said with a smile:

"Child, judging by how you look, you've come from a long way away."

He spoke gently. He wanted to get to the point quickly, but, just like in that old saying, he first had to lower her guard.

"Mm, yes."

Zhu Zhuqing helped him pack up. For some reason, Chen An felt warm and approachable to her, and she was willing to say a few more words.

"Then do you have anywhere to go?"

Zhu Zhuqing thought of the reason she had come here, then shook her head.

"No."

Chen An was taken aback. If he remembered correctly, this girl was supposed to find some scumbag and keep him in line.

What did she mean, she had nowhere to go? He didn't dwell on it; another idea had already come to him.

He put on a serious expression, but in the end couldn't hold back his sly smile.

"I'd say you're from a noble family in the Star Luo Empire. I've heard what goes on inside those families.

Are you really putting your hopes in someone else, entrusting him with your fate?

Do you want to grow stronger and take control of your own life?"

Zhu Zhuqing's heart jolted. At the first half of his words, she trembled all over, feeling as if he could see right through her. The fear buried in her heart rose up.

At the second half, she felt a glimmer of hope. The sharp contrast left her barely able to think, and she nodded almost by accident.

Seeing that, Chen An pressed his advantage and asked:

"Since fate brought us together, would you be willing to take me as your master?"

At that moment, he had the bearing of an immortal master. He struck the pose he had been preparing for ages, looking almost like he stood supreme beneath the heavens.

Faced with this, Zhu Zhuqing calmed down.

His words had indeed stirred her heart and moved her.

She had come here to escape her family, find her fiancé, and follow him, keeping him in line.

But the way Chen An put it made her waver.

"Master, I want to take control of my own fate and not depend on anyone else, but I can't see any hope."

Without realizing it, Zhu Zhuqing had already called Chen An her master.

Chen An wasn't surprised by her reaction. What did surprise him a little was the way she had addressed him.

Thinking about what he was about to do, he couldn't help smiling.

"All right. Then see what you think of this hope."

He used a little power to conceal the area. His aura shifted slightly, and then he called out softly:

"Martial Soul, manifest!"

Threadlike strands appeared around Chen An. This was his Martial Soul, named Myriad Silk. Its special trait was that it could transform into all kinds of weapons.

When Chen An revealed his Soul Rings, Zhu Zhuqing covered her mouth, unable to believe what she was seeing. She stood there, stunned.

Eight Soul Rings weren't all that extraordinary to her. What was truly extraordinary was their color.

A field of crimson!!!!

Chen An remained calm and simply said:

"Chen An, level 89 Soul Douluo."