Chapter 6: The Desk Mate

“No! I can’t fall down yet!”

Tian Kui struggled to rise. He understood that once he collapsed, the countless lights behind him would no longer be guarded.

His family was there!

Just as Tian Kui was preparing for a desperate fight, a shadow suddenly appeared in front of him.

Ye Feng clenched his fist with one hand and shouted at the charging Wolf Demon King:

“One punch that’ll make your mom not recognize you!”

Boom!

The powerful, high-ranking ten-star Wolf Demon King disintegrated instantly under this blow, its bones shattered.

No defensive or offensive measures could stand against such overwhelming strength.

A blank magic card appeared in Ye Feng's hand.

The energy orb of the Wolf Demon King was absorbed by the magic card.

Then, with a flash, Ye Feng disappeared.

The entire event was over in less than ten seconds, so fast that no one even had time to react.

Did a person just appear?

When did Peng City have such a superpowerful being?

Someone who could kill a high-ranking ten-star with a single punch must definitely be an exceptional powerhouse.

The battle ended in such a chaotic way.

By the time Ye Feng returned home, it was already midnight.

He quietly opened the door, hoping to sneak back to his room.

But to his surprise, he found his cousin, Ye Xueying, fuming in the living room.

"Big Brother, you're back so late—surely you were working hard on your magic training, and not at the internet café, right?"

Ye Xueying approached him, and cold sweat broke out on Ye Feng’s forehead.

“I swear I didn’t go to the internet café, do you believe me?”

“Ha! I believe you, my foot!”

Ye Xueying was furious. She punched and kicked Ye Feng as if she were scolding him.

She was frustrated because her cousin’s talent was obviously better than hers, but he had no ambition at all.

If their uncle and aunt found out their son had turned out like this, they wouldn't say anything, but Ye Xueying felt bad for him.

Especially since they grew up together, she couldn’t just let her cousin fall down this path.

To her, scolding and beating him was a way of showing care.

She felt like a concerned mother worried about her son.

...

The new day brought a fresh start.

Ye Feng sat at his usual seat by the window in the back row, feeling quite comfortable.

However, the peaceful atmosphere of the class was suddenly broken by their class monitor, Sun Lanxue.

"We have a new student today—Han Yi. Please give him a warm welcome!"

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A muscular, somewhat fierce-looking dark-skinned boy stood on the platform.

Han Yi was quite distinctive in appearance.

His face had an intimidating look, with a scar running down the corner of his mouth. He looked like someone who wouldn't hesitate to throw a punch.

Even in the outside world, someone with this appearance would be seen as a big boss.

"Hi, everyone, my name is Han Yi. I look forward to working with you all for the next three years."

Han Yi flashed a smile, which he thought was friendly.

But...

The whole class collectively felt like they were having a heart attack.

When Han Yi smiled, it felt like he was saying, "Be careful, you might just be the one I take down next."

Han Yi was naturally assigned to sit next to Ye Feng, and the two became desk mates.

At first, the others were a little biased toward him, especially given his appearance.

But soon enough, they realized that he actually seemed like a good guy.

He looked like a bad boy, but wasn’t one at all.

During a study period, the four of them became good friends.

The bell rang for the break.

It was a long break between classes.

As Ye Feng looked at Han Yi, who was talking to them with a sunny, cheerful demeanor, he realized this guy was just a normal, outgoing boy—not a gang member.

He had misjudged him based on appearance.

"Hey, guys, anyone want to go to the bathroom for a smoke? I’ve got a pack of cigarettes; it’ll make you feel great."

Han Yi slammed the table.

The three others were stunned.

Ye Feng admitted he was wrong earlier. This guy was definitely a troublemaker!

...

“Ahhh~”

In the bathroom, Han Yi exhaled a cloud of smoke. Through their conversation, the three of them learned more about him.

Han Yi had grown up on the battlefield. He attended a military school for both elementary and middle school, and awakened as a mage in high school.

His parents wanted him to have a more relaxed life, so they sent him to Peng City for high school.

No wonder he looked so fierce—it all made sense now.

"Don’t you guys smoke?"

Han Yi offered a cigarette to Ye Feng and the others. They all shook their heads in refusal.

Li Mubai said, "I'm a good student. I don't smoke."

Wan Tianle said, "Smoking is bad for your health."

Ye Feng added, "A homebody's life doesn’t need tobacco."

Han Yi laughed and said, “Come on, try one.”

The three of them said, “No, no, no.”

Five minutes later…

“Ahhh~”

The three of them were now inhaling smoke, with only Wan Tianle still holding firm to his principles.

Ye Feng watched Wan Tianle and couldn’t believe how strong his resolve was. He envied people who had such boundaries.

A month later,

Under Ye Xueying's threats and persuasion, Ye Feng finally awakened his fourth star.

To awaken three stars in one month showed how high his magical talent was.

After another class,

The four of them were chatting when Li Mubai suddenly realized something important.

"Wait, we’ve known each other for over a month, and yet we don’t know what magical element each of us belongs to..."

The four of them fell silent.

Now that they thought about it, they hadn’t really discussed this.

The only thing they vaguely knew was that Ye Feng was from the Fire Element, as mentioned by the class monitor, Sun Lanxue.

Li Mubai was the first to speak:

“I’m Light Element, the fastest among the Light Mages.”

When Li Mubai spoke, Han Yi wasn’t shy either.

“I’m Earth Element. Tianle, how about you?”

"Although it’s a bit strange, I’m Summoning Element..."

The other three were stunned. Summoning magic usually appeared only when a middle-tier mage awakened their second element.

Wan Tianle’s first element being Summoning seemed a bit odd.

Wan Tianle, seeing their confusion, awkwardly explained.

“It’s probably because of my family’s job. That’s why my first element is Summoning, and specifically the undead type.”

Li Mubai asked the critical question:

“What does your family do?”

"Funeral services," Wan Tianle said, looking sheepish. "I usually deal with corpses and dig graves at home. The creatures I summon are all undead."

Looking at the innocent Wan Tianle, the others couldn’t help but shiver.

How could a boy like this awaken such a strange element, especially the undead type in Summoning?

Two months passed in the blink of an eye, and next week was the midterm exam.

Before the exam, they had a new class: Teamwork.

Each pair of desk mates would face off against another pair in combat.

Their class instructor was, of course, their homeroom teacher, Sun Lanxue.

"Your desk mate will be your partner.

The rules of the training ground have already been explained to you. I hope you’ll keep them in mind."