Early the next morning, Duan Ming saw another message from Zhang Hongji.
It basically said that the Demon-Slaying Alliance was holding a gathering at school the night after next, and he was invited.
He didn't reply.
That same day, at his third uncle's insistence, Duan Ming decided to live at school.
The reason was that his third uncle was worried something might happen to him on his way home after school.
After all, what had happened to Zhao Jie was a bloody lesson.
Class 1 had ten boys in total.
Excluding Zhao Jie, there were nine left.
The dorm rooms housed four students each.
Duan Ming shared a room with Dong Kai, Fang Cheng, and a boy named Xu Yun.
Since Xu Yun was tall and burly, everyone called him Xu Dazhuang.
To Duan Ming's surprise, Fang Cheng was living at school too.
He had thought that a rich second-generation heir like Fang Cheng would have a luxury car picking him up and dropping him off every day after school.
Yet Fang Cheng had chosen to live at school.
At first, he thought Fang Cheng was also worried that something might happen on his way home.
Only when he returned to the dorm that evening and heard the others talking about it did he learn the real reason.
"My mom died two years ago, and then my dad..."
"Started drinking and beating you all the time?"
"Can't you watch your mouth?"
"No, no, he found me a stepmother. She's only three years older than me. I don't want to see her, so I can't be bothered going home."
Fang Cheng breathed out. "Actually, there's nothing good about going home. Even if my stepmother weren't there, I still wouldn't want to go back."
"Why?"
"What do you think? That estate is huge, with more than thirty servants in all. My dad often stays out all night, and I'm home alone with nothing to do all day. When I'm bored, there's basically nothing to do except watch movies or play golf. Compared to home, I really like the atmosphere here."
"Do you even hear yourself?"
"Anyway, it's better here than at home. It's not as boring."
"You're your dad's only son, and he's fine with you coming to Divine Power School just like that? Shouldn't he be sending you to university so you can take over his company after you graduate?"
"He couldn't bear to let me go before, but that woman is pregnant now. I just don't know if the child is my dad's."
Fang Cheng continued, "My dad really didn't agree to let me come at first, but he couldn't win against me, so he just stopped bothering with me."
"Why would you leave all that money behind to come here and become a Divine Power Master?"
"What about you?" Fang Cheng looked at Dong Kai, his expression so solemn that there was no room for a joke. "Demonic creatures are invading, and the rise and fall of humanity hang in the balance. In these chaotic times, someone has to step forward, shoulder the burden, and press on."
Fang Cheng's words caught the attention of Duan Ming, who was sitting at the computer.
He had never imagined that such a righteously stirring declaration would come from the mouth of this rich second-generation heir!
"Aren't you afraid of dying, then?" Xu Dazhuang asked.
"What's death? Cowardice is more frightening than death!"
"I only hate that I wasn't born a few decades earlier!"
"If I can reach the front line of demon extermination in this lifetime, it will be the greatest honor of my life!"
"Listen to that! Now that's vision!" Xu Dazhuang, standing nearby, gave him a thumbs-up.
"Besides, I don't want to live under my dad's protection forever. I want to be independent. I haven't used the money he gave me in a long time."
"Then how do you still have so much money..."
"That's because my mom left me a huge sum before she died!"
"How much?"
Fang Cheng took a deep breath and leaned back in his computer chair. "Well... that's a secret... but my dad has always wanted me to lend him the money to invest in a project."
They could imagine that it had to be a huge sum!
As they chatted, the others looked over at Duan Ming, who was chatting at his computer.
"Holy crap, Peng Sisi!"
Dong Kai's eyes lit up, and he immediately leaned over behind Duan Ming.
When Xu Dazhuang heard that, he hurried over too.
Fang Cheng seemed calmer, but he also came over behind Duan Ming.
"Holy crap, that's impressive! Peng Sisi actually asked you out to eat."
As Duan Ming typed, he said, "She said she came to the classroom looking for me today, but I wasn't there. She heard I was living at school, and she's downstairs at the dorm building right now. She wants to get something to eat with me."
"That woman's got an ulterior motive!" Xu Dazhuang said, rubbing his chin.
Duan Ming asked, "You know her?"
"Of course," Dong Kai said immediately. "She's the vice president of the Heaven and Earth Society. The president is her boyfriend. What, Duan Ming, you haven't heard of her?"
Duan Ming shook his head.
Hearing what Dong Kai said and thinking of Zhang Hongji, he had a rough idea of what the woman wanted.
So she wasn't Zhang Hongji's girlfriend.
"The Heaven and Earth Society is..." Dong Kai went on at length.
The gist was that it was the same kind of organization as the Demon-Slaying Alliance.
The only difference was that the two factions had always been opposed, and neither could stand the sight of the other.
"What? Zhang Hongji came to you too?"
When they learned that Zhang Hongji, the leader of the Demon-Slaying Alliance, had also approached Duan Ming, the three behind him all looked surprised.
Dong Kai's reaction was the most exaggerated.
Duan Ming nodded. "Yeah, he asked me to join the Demon-Slaying Alliance."
Behind him, Dong Kai gave him an envious look. "Impressive, impressive! So did you agree?"
Duan Ming shook his head.
That surprised all three of them.
"Duan Ming, why didn't you agree? Only second-years and above can join, and there's no point applying yourself. You have to wait for the Demon-Slaying Alliance to invite you before you can join."
"I'm not interested in either of those two groups. Now that I know what this Peng Sisi wants, it's even easier. I'll just ignore her."
"Duan Ming, you might not understand what these two organizations are. If you join them, you'll have a better chance of getting into the Divine Mark Association after graduation."
Duan Ming thought for a moment. "Can't I get into the Divine Mark Association through my own efforts too?"
The main reason Duan Ming hadn't joined was that he didn't like being ordered around.
Right now, he was on his own and free from worries, and he got along well with the people in his class.
If he joined this Heaven and Earth Society or Demon-Slaying Alliance, then the principal and teachers wouldn't be the only ones above him. There would also be an alliance leader or a society president.
His freedom might be restricted too.
"Duan Ming, don't you feel anything at all about the Heaven and Earth Society?" Dong Kai asked, gesturing with both hands.
"Feel? Hmm... I feel like the name is a little tacky."
Dong Kai lowered his head, speechless.
"What about the Demon-Slaying Alliance?"
"Hmm... I feel like their leader might be gay, so I definitely can't join."
"Th-this..."
Dong Kai didn't know whether he was excited or worked up.
Being able to join either of those two societies meant you had absolute strength at school!
Yet Duan Ming wasn't interested in the slightest.
Fang Cheng, who was standing nearby in a blue jacket, folded his arms and said, "If it were me, I wouldn't want to join either."
"Huh? Why?"
Dong Kai turned and asked.
"Think about it. Whichever side you join, you'll become rivals with the other. For no reason, you'll have a whole group of people at school eyeing you like tigers stalking their prey. Do you think that's a good thing?"
Dong Kai nodded thoughtfully. "That makes some sense..."
Xu Dazhuang said, "You don't have to worry, do you? With a filthy-rich father like yours, I don't think anyone would dare do anything to you."
"Duan Ming, you have to think this over yourself. There really are benefits to joining." Fang Cheng folded his arms and watched Duan Ming's chat window with Peng Sisi.
As Duan Ming typed, he said, "No, there's no need to think it over. I don't want to join."