A notice

The way Cao Ya broke through Word Spirit: Time Zero was actually very simple.

No matter how powerful a word spirit was, it depended on its user to exist.

Angers was certainly formidable, especially after activating his word spirit-then he was badass beyond belief. But at the core of his existence, he was still ordinary.

Even with dragon blood, he still fell short of being divine.

Cao Ya could break the effects of his word spirit through brute force.

This was unlike the malevolent ghosts of the [Mysterious Revival] world. They were products of rules, fundamentally superior to the word spirits of the [Dragon Raja] world.

In this world, dragons and Mixed-Bloods alike were still merely living organisms.

Cao Ya said with utmost sincerity:

"Angers, merge Cassell College into my school. It's not impossible for a small handful of people to take on the dragons, but how confident are you? Besides, supernatural power shouldn't-and mustn't-belong to just a small group. Ideally, it should be made available to the public."

Angers froze. Rather than dwelling on Cao Ya's intention to absorb Cassell College, he asked in surprise:

"You have a school, too? Where?"

Cao Ya laughed heartily:

"In my head. I've also spoken to the higher-ups, and they all agreed. Once I finish the preparations, construction can begin right away."

Seeing that Cao Ya did not seem to be pretending and apparently really had such a plan, Angers's expression grew serious, and he said gravely:

"Cassell College doesn't belong to me alone. The trustees would never agree to your proposal. Besides, I think Cassell College's approach to education is excellent."

The implication was that he had no intention of changing it or merging it into a university that did not even have a shadow of an existence yet.

Beside them, Professor Goodman, Nono, Ye Sheng, and Sake Tokiko jolted, snapping out of their tangled mix of emotions-both stunned and unable to accept what had happened.

The principal actually lost in a head-on confrontation?

Wait, Cao Ya wants to absorb our Cassell College? Is he drunk? Or is he still half asleep?

The four silently questioned him. Cassell College stood apart from the world. How could it possibly accept being reorganized under another school?

Cao Ya, however, believed nothing was impossible. Where there was a will, there was a way. His strength was sufficient, so Cassell College had to take his words seriously.

Besides, he was not doing this for personal gain. His desire for power was very weak.

He sincerely believed that establishing Martial Arts University for society as a whole would certainly be better than Cassell College's small-scale, college-style teaching.

Dealing with the dragons was not the entire objective-or rather, it was merely one of the objectives.

Making the entire population stronger and elevating the world-that was the greater goal.

Simply talking about exterminating the dragons was still thinking too small.

Cao Ya said calmly:

"Don't worry about those trustees. It's best if they agree, but if they don't, just ignore them. They're capitalists, after all. Lampposts are where they belong."

"When it comes to dealing with dragons, Angers, you're an authority. But no authority is as effective as strength."

"Angers, you should understand that."

Angers nodded, then suddenly asked a question that cut straight to the heart of the matter:

"That power of yours isn't a word spirit, is it? It can be passed on, which is why you want to establish a university open to society."

What?

The other four were startled, finding it equally inconceivable.

How could supernatural power possibly not come from dragons?

Cao Ya said with a smile:

"Principal Angers, your eyes are as keen as ever. That's right. It's martial arts. Anyone can learn and practice it. Of course, how far they ultimately get will still depend on a variety of factors."

Angers sighed:

"That's already much better than what we have now."

At present, they relied solely on the strength of Mixed-Bloods, suffering countless casualties. Throughout history, there was no telling how many Mixed-Bloods had died on the dragon-slaying battlefield.

If Cao Ya had not lied about his martial arts, if everyone truly could learn it and could indeed potentially train to his level,

then the dragons' doom had arrived! When that time came, dragons would be vastly outnumbered by human experts.

Would they still need to worry about dragons reviving?

No. Instead, they would worry that too few dragons were reviving to meet their research needs.

Now he finally understood why Cao Ya had said earlier that he wanted to capture Dragon Kings for research.

Even Angers was starting to entertain the same idea!

He immediately laughed despite himself and shook his head.

I'm getting too far ahead of myself.

Angers spoke slowly:

"If I refuse, what will you choose to do?"

He meant refusing to merge Cassell College into the university Cao Ya intended to establish.

At Cassell College, Angers's prestige was unmatched.

Even his defeat at Cao Ya's hands did nothing to diminish his standing in the hearts of the faculty and students.

If he refused, Cao Ya's plan would inevitably fail.

Cao Ya said indifferently:

"If you won't agree, then forget it. I'll make the trip myself. When that happens, the good things at Cassell College will no longer belong to Cassell College."

Then he chuckled:

"You should understand that firearms, shells, and other such modern weapons are useless against me."

He wanted to say that even nuclear bombs were useless, but on second thought, he let it go, lest he frighten them.

Everyone from Cassell College was displeased. Cao Ya spoke as though Cassell College were not a military institution dedicated to slaying dragons, but a playground full of children playing house.

But before Cao Ya, wasn't that exactly what it was?

As that thought flashed through their minds, they suddenly felt rather dejected.

Cao Ya's words were not so much a threat as a statement of fact. Angers was no match for him, which meant there was absolutely no one at Cassell College who could stop him.

Despite how casually he spoke, Angers understood one thing very clearly: if he refused, Cao Ya really would set off for Cassell College.

When that happened, things might not remain so peaceful.

With Cao Ya's strength, there was no telling how many casualties Cassell College would suffer if it resisted.

So it did count as a threat.

Angers fell silent for several minutes, then said he could not give an answer right now. He needed to return and gather the others to discuss it.

This was indeed a major matter. Cao Ya expressed his understanding, while reminding Angers that he would give him only three days. If there was no answer within three days, he would take that as Cassell College's refusal.

The implication was that he would personally go to the United States, show up at their door, and smash his way through Cassell College.

Angers was also certain that Cao Ya truly could smash his way through Cassell College.

As for the influence of those trustees, honestly, Angers could see no sign that Cao Ya cared at all about power or money. If they angered him, he would probably come straight to their doors and slaughter everyone in his path.

Cao Ya was absolutely capable of doing such a thing!

But the thought of how to persuade those trustees gave Angers a terrible headache.

"Hmm, forget it. I'll tell them the truth. If they aren't afraid of dying, they can stand their ground against him."

Angers raised a hand and rubbed his temple. This trip to China had brought him far too many surprises.

He had even managed to lose Cassell College.

Yet he had no choice but to agree. What could he do when he could not beat Cao Ya?

The key was that Cao Ya's strength was terrifying, allowing him to disregard all manner of modern weapons.

In this world, aside from nuclear bombs and Dragon Kings, there was probably nothing that could threaten Cao Ya.

Angers sighed and left with Professor Goodman, Nono, and the others.

On the way, Professor Goodman hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back.