Chu Baxing offered little resistance to his father's criticism. He did not even resent it.
In his heart, he had already accepted that, apart from god-hunting prowess, Qin Siyang surpassed him in several other important abilities.
Before meeting Qin Siyang, Chu Baxing had always thought his peers were all like the military district's privileged wastrels: arrogant, domineering, empty-headed fools who constantly flaunted their ignorance.
He, meanwhile, stood above them all, an unrivaled prodigy who alone remained clearheaded in a world of fools.
Then he met Qin Siyang.
A formidable fighter who had slain countless gods and ranked among the highest in God-Hunting Points among Nanrong University's special admission students.
A rising academic star whom top professors like Li Tianming were willing to engage with closely.
An extraordinary talent with no backing whatsoever, yet chosen by the Black Market's Zhao Family to serve as a merchants' association director.
A supernova of the Safe Zone who navigated between major powers and won approval from all sides.
Qin Siyang, an orphan born and raised on the fringes of the Safe Zone, shook Chu Baxing to his core time and again.
Only then did he realize that the military, supposedly overflowing with talent, was merely a collection of sheltered frogs at the bottom of a well, living in castles built on air.
For the first time, he also realized with sorrow that he, the military's crown prince, was not the center of the world, nor its sole protagonist.
Compared with Qin Siyang's dazzling radiance, the spotlight that had once shone on him was a firefly beside the full moon.
But Chu Baxing's tenacious nature kept him from becoming discouraged. Instead, it ignited his competitive spirit.
"Father, I understand everything you've said. I've already recognized the gap between Qin Siyang and me. But don't worry.