Chapter 15: Little White Rabbit
Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Editor: PlumSauce
The three roommates struggled to control their expressions, dodging the question and refusing to answer him directly. At that moment, Yun Yingzhi never imagined that, in the minds of the three roommates, his skills were even lower than Yu Feiwen’s younger brother, who was barely eleven.
Yun Yingzhi spoke again, “I just want to give it a try—by going to Yaoming Battle Arena, maybe I can make some money.”
The three roommates exchanged glances. Having lived together for over a year, they knew Yun Yingzhi was the son of General Yun’s family. But they didn’t know what life was really like for him there. One thing was certain: his lifestyle was vastly different from Yun Yingyao’s.
The most obvious difference was that, over the past year, Yun Yingzhi didn’t spend money extravagantly like most kids from wealthy families. He had always been frugal. They thought maybe Yun Yingzhi was a bit short on cash.
After a pause, Yu Feiwen said, “Honestly, it really depends on luck. If you’re lucky, you might face ordinary people who haven’t awakened second forms or abilities. If not, you could run into military academy students like us.”
The other two roommates nodded in agreement.
Yun Yingzhi fell into thought.
Seeing him getting restless, Ji Xiaobo said, “Yingzhi, if you’re interested, I could come with you for a team match.”
Yun Yingzhi looked at Ji Xiaobo, puzzled.
Ji Xiaobo added, “Also, a 2v2 doubles match pays more than a 1v1 match.”
Yun Yingzhi’s heart leapt immediately.
Hearing this, the other two roommates also chimed in, saying they wanted to participate too.
Yu Feiwen remarked, “But there’s no 4v4 match. After 2v2, it jumps to 5v5. We’ll need one more teammate.”
During their conversation, a figure suddenly approached and asked, “Do you think I can join?”
The four froze and simultaneously turned to look. It was Wei Yuanqing, dressed in his fourth-year uniform.
Yun Yingzhi’s eyelid twitched. Goosebumps prickled across his body. He felt like something bad was about to happen. It had barely been a day, and Yun Yingzhi could no longer remember exactly what questions Wei Yuanqing had asked him before. Yet now, seeing him, only one thought filled his mind. Did Wei Yuanqing have mind-reading powers? If he did, what triggered it? And if he really had it, what if he reported that day’s events to His Highness Elvis?
Yun Yingzhi reasoned that it couldn’t just be a matter of him wanting to peek into someone’s mind; there had to be a trigger.
Wei Yuanqing looked straight at Yun Yingzhi, their eyes locking, and said, “Actually, I’ve been wanting to try multiplayer matches at Yaoming Battle Arena, but I’ve never found teammates. Do you mind if I join you?”
Yun Yingzhi thought, Mind? Of course I mind. I mind a lot!
Seeing Wei Yuanqing now made him want to curl up and die. He just hoped Wei Yuanqing didn’t actually have mind-reading powers.
To Yun Yingzhi’s relief, before he could respond, Yu Feiwen said, “Senior Wei, it would be an honor for us to have you join, but we’re really weak. We’ll only hold you back.”
Yun Yingzhi nodded along, making his refusal clear.
Wei Yuanqing’s smile deepened. “I don’t think you’d be holding me back. In fact, I’m excited to be on the same team with you, so please let me join.” His gaze stayed locked on Yun Yingzhi, his tone polite yet smiling.
Yun Yingzhi’s forehead broke out in tiny beads of sweat. He was still trying to figure out how to stubbornly refuse.
Wei Yuanqing locked eyes with him again. “Yingzhi, I think I’m fairly strong. Would you like me to carry you?”
Yun Yingzhi’s eyelid twitched.
Wei Yuanqing’s deep green eyes were sincere as he lowered his voice. “Yingzhi, if you want to enter Yaoming Battle Arena, you probably don’t mean to go just once a month. You mean to go regularly, right?”
Yun Yingzhi silently thought, Exactly.
Wei Yuanqing lowered his voice even further. “I can take you all out there.”
Yun Yingzhi thought, This is an incredible temptation.
By the time he realized what he had done, he had absentmindedly nodded. And just like that, the five-person group was hastily formed. Yun Yingzhi and the three others added Wei Yuanqing as a friend, created a five-person chat group, and then went their separate ways.
After dinner, the five discussed plans to go to Yaoming Battle Arena in the group chat. Team battles at Yaoming Battle Arena had ranks. Each win added points to the team, each loss deducted points. Reaching certain scores unlocked corresponding ranks and rewards.
Yaoming Battle Arena had 1v1, 2v2, 3v3, 5v5, 10v10, and 25v25 group battles.
Having a rank in one match type could slightly influence other match types. However, this wasn’t confirmed, since strong players could still encounter new players in other matches—it all depended on the system’s random matchmaking.
The five agreed to meet the next night at 8 PM in the fourth-year dormitory area. Wei Yuanqing would lead them in sneaking out of Fansa Academy.
Although Yun Yingzhi wasn’t particularly eager to see Wei Yuanqing again, as a mediocre student who had always attended classes obediently and had never done anything outrageous, the idea of breaking out filled him with excitement. He felt a subtle sense of accomplishment in fulfilling his “duty” as a mediocre student.
But then he realized something felt off. As a mediocre student, bending the rules was already doing your duty.
Wei Yuanqing, however… Year after year, he had been in the top three of his grade. He was, without question, a top student. Not to mention practical classes—according to what Yun Yingzhi knew, Wei Yuanqing’s theoretical knowledge seemed to always be first in his grade. He was incredibly impressive.
Yun Yingzhi subtly felt that Wei Yuanqing didn’t exactly follow the “top student code.”
Military academy students had morning training every day. Yun Yingzhi thought about having to wake up early for training the next day and tried to force himself to sleep. But maybe it was because of Huai Boshe, or maybe it was the embarrassment from the morning, or perhaps because he will be fulfilling his “mediocre student duty” tomorrow—whatever the reason, he wasn’t sleepy at all.
One moment, he thought of Huai Boshe, wondering why he had liked such a scumbag who had no affection for him, and became angry. The next moment, he recalled holding onto Elvis’s pants leg that morning, pressing his tiny second-form body against him, and felt a wave of shame. Then he thought of the possibility that Wei Yuanqing might have mind-reading powers, and finally his mind drifted to the excitement of entering Yaoming Battle Arena tomorrow night.
Around two in the morning, Yun Yingzhi finally drifted off to sleep.
Not long after, around 4:30am, Ji Xiaobo woke him up. The four of them got up and washed, but Yun Yingzhi was completely out of it. He stumbled out of bed, bumped into the corner of a desk, and wobbled unsteadily.
The three roommates stopped what they were doing and looked at him with worried expressions. Even after washing up, Yun Yingzhi still felt incredibly sleepy. He had always needed more sleep than others, and if he didn’t get enough, his energy suffered badly.
Yu Feiwen suggested, “Yingzhi, maybe you can transform into your second form and we’ll carry you to the training hall?” He asked tentatively.
In fact, ever since becoming roommates with Yun Yingzhi, they hadn’t stopped doing things like this. At the very beginning, when Yun Yingzhi didn’t know, the three of them had almost fought over who would carry the little white rabbit to the training hall. Eventually, they reached a consensus: the distance was short, so they would take turns carrying him.
It was fair and everybody was happy.
Yun Yingzhi had initially intended to agree, but then he thought about the social mortification from yesterday. Forcing his tired body, he shook his head and refused. On the surface, the three showed nothing, but inside they felt a deep regret.
Morning training started at 5am. With fifteen minutes to go, the four of them ran toward the training hall together. Two minutes before five o’clock, they arrived at the training hall and lined up with their class.
The training hall was crowded. Many students whispered to each other, talking about the little white rabbit who had been held by His Highness Elvis yesterday.
“That little white rabbit was so cute, almost identical to Yun Yingzhi’s second form. I really want to know where His Highness Elvis got him.”
Hearing this, Yun Yingzhi was forced to recall yesterday’s events, his cheeks burning red with embarrassment.
At exactly 5am, the instructor arrived at the training field. The whispering students went silent immediately. No one wanted to be the first to stand out. Morning training began. It lasted an hour and a half, with a short break in the middle. Yun Yingzhi was still sleepy but forced himself to follow the instructor’s orders.
Around 6am, the instructor said, “Now we’ll start a half-hour of sparring.”
Yun Yingzhi’s eyelid twitched, and suddenly he was wide awake. Whether it was morning training, practical classes, or the comprehensive elective combat course, what Yun Yingzhi hated most was sparring—especially multiperson sparring. He absolutely hated it. Not because he disliked fighting, but because… During sparring, many students transformed into their second forms at the same time. Yun Yingzhi had no choice but to transform as well.
Looking around… Tigers, leopards, bears, lions, wolves, crocodiles, elephants, eagles… All were large, intimidating beasts. And then there was Yun Yingzhi: a tiny white rabbit, about 30 cm tall. If it were just that, he might not have minded. But… What made him feel even more awkward was that the students with beast forms seemed to have a soft spot, a kind of girlish fondness, for his second form.
At that moment, all the large-beast students would lock their gazes on him. And that feeling… It was really… Terrible!
In an instant, Yun Yingzhi’s sleepiness vanished completely. He felt like he was on the verge of collapse.
“Obliterate! Across the starry seas!” Unlike Yun Yingzhi’s sense of collapse, the students around him were visibly excited when they heard the instructor’s words. Even before transforming into their second forms, their eyes were already locked on Yun Yingzhi.
It was clear from their expressions that they had been coveting his second form for some time. Yun Yingzhi… didn’t say a word.
No one noticed that the instructor glanced briefly at Yun Yingzhi, a faint smile flickering across his eyes. “Today’s sparring will be a group battle, 25v25. We’ll begin forming teams,” the instructor commanded. “The first and third rows are one team, the second and fourth rows are another, and the next rows should continue in the same order.”
Following the instructor’s directions, the students quickly lined up. Yun Yingzhi couldn’t help it. He scrunched his small face into a pout, looking exquisitely beautiful and pitiful yet utterly lifeless. Life, indeed, had no joy left.
In stark contrast to Yun Yingzhi’s despair, some students occasionally glanced at him with eager anticipation. Normally, he didn’t transform into his second form unless absolutely necessary. Once the teams were set, the instructor instructed the first batch to step aside, and a large group of students transformed into their second forms.
In an instant, the entire field was full of beasts.
Yun Yingzhi’s eyelids twitched violently as his gaze swept across the field. Pairs of ferocious eyes stared straight at him. He couldn’t understand beast language nor could he read intentions from others’ gazes. But at that moment, he understood perfectly. These students, in their second forms, were urging him silently with their eyes to transform quickly.
A beat behind, Yun Yingzhi reluctantly transformed from his human form into his second form. Instantly, he became the tiniest member among the massive beasts—a fragile, weak, helpless little creature.
A student in the form of a soaring eagle said, “Yingzhi, your second form is so small. During the battle, hide under my wings. I’ll protect you.”
Yun Yingzhi quickly replied, “Okay, thank you.”
A student in the form of a giant python said, “A-Ying, don’t speak nonsense. This time, Yingzhi and I are on the same team. You’re our enemy.” His vertical eyes turned toward Yun Yingzhi. “Yingzhi, you can cling to my body. Trust me—I’ll protect you!”
Other students also joined in, their intentions clear: Yun Yingzhi was delicate and needed protection. They’d watch out for him during battle.
The scene was bizarre in many ways, but Yun Yingzhi didn’t notice anything strange. From kindergarten to university, his life had always been like this. Since kindergarten, whenever there was sparring, a group of students would compete to protect him because of his fragility, leaving him with no normal perception of combat. In fact, Yun Yingzhi didn’t realize that the reason he had never had space to shine was that his classmates had protected him too thoroughly.
In 1v1 matches, opponents held back intentionally. In group battles, his team defended strictly while the enemy went easy. In team tasks, Yun Yingzhi rarely needed to do anything; his teammates did everything for him. This was why, from childhood to now, he had never had the chance to truly excel.
Soon, under the instructor’s command, the group battle began. As the only tiny, adorable creature among all the beasts, Yun Yingzhi leapt nimbly across his companions, occasionally hopping onto enemy students’ bodies as well. If Yun Yingzhi had learned anything from years of being overprotected, it was probably agility.
As a military academy student, aside from practical courses, they had to undergo various physical exercises that no one else could do for him. About five minutes into the battle between the two teams, Yun Yingzhi leapt skillfully, landing precisely on the back of a male lion.
Then he heard a student in the crowd exclaim, “I thought Yingzhi’s second form looked like the mischievous little rabbit that was held by His Highness Elvis yesterday. Seeing him now, it’s even more similar!”
Yun Yingzhi’s ears twitched. At that moment, he felt like a blazing little white rabbit, burning hot with shame. His tiny body slid down the lion’s brown fur as if he were plummeting from the sky. Immediately, a nearby eagle extended its talons and scooped up the little white rabbit.
Yun Yingzhi felt dazed and lost. He could still hear some students whispering among themselves. The shame made his entire little rabbit form feel unbearable.
Some students, sensing Yun Yingzhi’s unusual state, whispered in confusion, “Yingzhi doesn’t seem to be feeling well today.”
“Yeah, probably not. Stop talking about that little… naughty rabbit from yesterday, or else Yingzhi’s reputation will be ruined. And it’ll all be that little troublemaker rabbit’s fault.”
Yun Yingzhi… couldn’t say anything. He absolutely couldn’t let anyone know that the “naughty little rabbit” from yesterday was him.
The group battle continued for about five more minutes before ending, and the students from the other teams carried on with their matches. Under the disappointed gazes of the crowd, Yun Yingzhi reverted from his second form back to human form. It was obvious that many students looked at him with disappointment. Clearly, they had hoped to see more of his second form.
From the crowd, another student remarked, “Yingzhi, are you feeling unwell? Your face is so red.”
Yun Yingzhi thought, Not just red… it’s burning hot. Hot enough to steam an egg.
His roommate, Jing Haomiao, stepped forward, touched Yun Yingzhi’s forehead, and asked worriedly, “Are you okay? Do you need to go to the medical room?”
Military academy students often fought without restraint, so the academy had a fully equipped medical room.
From the crowd, another student said, “Poor Yingzhi, what a tough situation.”
“Sigh… he can’t help it. If he had a choice, he wouldn’t willingly suffer here at the academy.”
“True… he’s so delicate, really.”
Yun Yingzhi paused, shook his head at Jing Haomiao, and said, “I’m fine.” His face remained bright red.
Immediately, a student whispered, “Our Yingzhi is so fragile, yet so strong. Unless his body can’t handle it, no matter how tired or exhausted, he never complains. He’s really obedient.”
Yun Yingzhi… didn’t respond. Fragile, delicate—these were the labels he had carried since childhood. He was used to them, and reinforced by the support of his classmates, he truly believed himself to be fragile. Yet, from the past to now, Yun Yingzhi had always felt a little puzzled.
Since childhood, he had heard people say that life as a military academy student was extremely tough—waking up early for training, plus all sorts of physical and agility exercises that ordinary people couldn’t endure. Many assumed that Yun Yingzhi relied solely on strong willpower to get through it. But in truth, that wasn’t the case.
Yun Yingzhi found the training remarkably easy. Even an entire day of exercises wouldn’t tire him. Thinking about it, it seemed reasonable—after all, he was a source weapon maker. Some complex processes to make source weapons couldn’t be interrupted, sometimes requiring three or four days of continuous work—or even longer. Without strong physical ability, he wouldn’t be able to handle the job.
As a source weapon craftsman, Yun Yingzhi valued his physical condition highly. That was why, no matter how hard it was, he always completed his physical training on time. Yet, there was a subtle point… Up to now, he had never felt that Fansa Academy’s training was particularly difficult.
Easy! Simple! As long as he didn’t have to transform into his second form and fight against a crowd of tigers, leopards, bears, and lions, he felt military training was nothing special. Not because he feared his classmates’ second forms—simply… Looking at his own second form compared to theirs… The difference was striking. The damage might not be high, but the humiliation was overwhelming.
After morning training, Yun Yingzhi returned to the dorm with his three roommates to wash off the sweat, then went to the cafeteria for breakfast. The day’s classes were about to begin. More and more students slowly filed into the classroom, filling the room with chatter. Yun Yingzhi, who hadn’t slept well the night before, was drowsy.
Suddenly, a student called out his name.
Yun Yingzhi opened his eyes and looked at the student.
The student said, “Yingzhi, His Highness Elvis is looking for you.”
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