Don't Waste My Damn Time Here!

But on second thought, he decided against it.

Xu Tianyuan didn't consider himself a good person, but he couldn't bring himself to toy with someone's feelings.

Besides, he hadn't even seen what she looked like. What if she was a Female Yaksha? How would he survive the rest of his life?

So Xu Tianyuan smiled and played along for a couple of remarks, then turned away with two trays.

"All right, sis. I'll go back and talk it over with her."

The cafeteria lady nodded in satisfaction and gave him an encouraging gesture.

Carrying the trays, Xu Tianyuan made a circuit of the cafeteria and found Nana tucked away in a corner.

Nana had picked a secluded spot by the wall, with her back to the crowd-the classic seat reserved for the socially anxious.

He walked over.

"Here, this meal's on me. Dig in."

Xu Tianyuan set the trays down, took a seat, and picked up his chopsticks to start eating.

He had to admit, the food tasted pretty good.

The Soul Beast meat was cooked to perfection, crisp outside and tender inside, with rich juices that filled his mouth with flavor at the first bite.

It rivaled the cooking of the Imperial Palace's chefs.

Xu Tianyuan immediately began inhaling his food like a whirlwind.

He ate as though he'd been starving for three days and nights, his chopsticks moving so fast that even his hand left afterimages.

Nana had barely sat down across from him when she discovered, dumbfounded, that half the food on Xu Tianyuan's tray was already gone.

Her mouth fell wide open, and her eyes went perfectly round.

It was like watching a competitive eater perform.

Nana wasn't the only one. The surrounding students were also staring in astonishment.

Unbelievable.

How could anyone be this absurd?

Didn't he need to chew?

Such a huge chunk of meat, and it vanished after just two movements of his mouth?

Wasn't he afraid of choking?

"Who's that? I don't think I've seen him before."

"Look, Nana's sitting across from him."

"Whoa, doesn't he look a bit like Xu Tianyuan?"

"Who's Xu Tianyuan?"

"Damn, you don't even know that? He's the Sixth Prince, Mingdu's notorious wastrel. He visits brothels every day, and he doesn't even pay."

Murmurs came from every direction.

They weren't loud, but the cafeteria was fairly quiet, so every word came through clearly.

Xu Tianyuan heard them and initially thought nothing of it.

He was long accustomed to being called a wastrel.

After keeping up the act for sixteen years, he'd heard every insult under the sun. His resistance to abuse had long since reached max level.

But.

Since when had he ever refused to pay?

Sure, he frequented brothels, but he paid the proper price every single time, followed the law, and never ran up a tab.

As a prince, what did he stand to gain from pinching pennies like that?

Having people point at his back and curse him?

Who the hell was slandering him behind his back, saying he didn't pay?

Xu Tianyuan had walked straight and stood upright his whole life.

If he'd done something, he'd done it. If he hadn't, he hadn't.

Cockfighting and walking dogs? He admitted it. Listening to music in brothels? He admitted it. Bullying innocent people? He admitted that too.

But refusing to pay was the one accusation he absolutely would not accept.

This was slander!

This was defamation!

The sheer audacity!

Xu Tianyuan was just about to slam the table and stand up to have a proper discussion with these people.

Just then, a red-haired woman entered the cafeteria.

"If anyone dares keep running their mouth, get out of the academy yourself. Don't make me do it for you."

The red-haired woman's gaze was cold and sharp as she swept it over the students whispering about Xu Tianyuan.

Her voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear and carried weight in everyone's ears.

The hundred-odd people in the cafeteria instantly fell so silent that not even a crow or sparrow could be heard.

"Your Eminence Fire Phoenix."

A moment later, the students in the cafeteria hurriedly rose and bowed, trembling with fear.

Those who had been gossiping lowered their heads, wishing they could bury their faces in their trays.

Fire Phoenix Douluo.

A Level 9 Soul Engineer.

No one in the academy was unaware of what that name represented in the Sun Moon Empire.

"Hmph."

Luan Feng snorted coldly, turned slightly, and walked toward Xu Tianyuan.

"Uh..."

Xu Tianyuan was completely bewildered.

A piece of meat was still stuffed in his mouth, his chopsticks hung in midair, and his eyes were perfectly round.

His mind was full of questions.

He couldn't understand why Fire Phoenix Douluo had come here, much less why Fire Phoenix Douluo was speaking up for him.

It was too strange.

The same thing had happened yesterday when he'd gone to Jing Hongchen's office. For some inexplicable reason, Luan Feng had shown great concern for him.

At the time, he'd assumed this eminent figure simply had an eccentric personality and liked backing up the younger generation.

Now, it seemed things weren't that simple.

A Titled Douluo had come to the cafeteria late at night to stand up for a useless prince in front of over a hundred people.

What was that supposed to mean?

"Kid, did eating turn your brain to mush?"

Luan Feng reached him and frowned when she noticed his dazed expression.

"Oh! Your Highness Fire Phoenix. Forgive my rudeness."

Xu Tianyuan snapped out of it, immediately stood, and cupped his fist in salute to Luan Feng.

His movements were impeccable and his attitude respectful, leaving nothing to criticize.

"Heh."

Luan Feng's gaze settled on Nana. Her eyes narrowed, and the corners of her lips rose slightly, though no one knew what she was thinking.

Her stare made Nana's skin crawl. Nana lowered her head, wishing she could squeeze herself into a crack in the floor.

"All right, kid. Come outside with me. There are too many eyes and ears here."

Luan Feng clearly had something to say.

"Just a moment. I've only got a little left. I'll finish right away."

Xu Tianyuan was only half full, and he really couldn't bear to abandon the half-tray of food still remaining.

It was all Soul Beast meat.

Soul Beast meat that cost two hundred Gold Soul Coins a serving. Throwing it away would invite heaven's wrath.

He sat back down and resumed inhaling his food like a whirlwind.

Luan Feng stood beside him, looking thoroughly exasperated.

She was a dignified Titled Douluo, one of the foremost figures in the Sun Moon Empire, yet here she stood waiting for a sixteen-year-old boy to finish eating.

If word got out, where would she hide her face?

In the end, however, she said nothing and simply stood there waiting.

Nana, meanwhile, looked terribly ill at ease. She sat stiffly upright, her back perfectly straight and her hands resting on her knees, not daring to move a muscle.

She was no different from a little rabbit caught in a hawk's stare.

"Done! Just let me wipe my mouth and have a sip of water."

Xu Tianyuan polished off his food in a few swift moves, then took out a handkerchief to wipe the grease from his lips.

Unfortunately, Luan Feng didn't give him even that much time.

She reached out, grabbed Xu Tianyuan by the shoulder, and dragged him outside.

"Don't waste my damn time here!"

Xu Tianyuan suffered inwardly but couldn't voice it.

He could only let himself be dragged into the small grove outside the cafeteria.

It was pitch-black there, with only scattered shafts of moonlight filtering down from above and a few birdcalls.

The shadows of the trees swayed, and the wind stirred a rustling sound.

It was rather creepy.

Xu Tianyuan swallowed, utterly unable to figure out what Luan Feng wanted.

The dead of night, out in the wilderness... was she really only here to exchange a few words?

"You little brat. So you've been hiding your abilities all these years."

Luan Feng stopped, made sure no one was nearby, then released Xu Tianyuan and turned to him with a faint, knowing smile.

"If I hadn't decided on a whim to check on you tonight, I really wouldn't have known you had the strength to crush Xiao Hongchen."

Hearing that, Xu Tianyuan thought, Oh, crap.

This Fire Phoenix Douluo was actually a sneaky lurker, secretly watching him from the shadows.

When had Fire Phoenix Douluo arrived?

While he was beating up Xiao Hongchen?

Didn't that mean the whole thing had been witnessed from beginning to end?

His clothes bursting apart, his muscles transforming, calling someone an ant, demanding compensation for emotional distress... had all of it been seen?