Chapter 27: Sent for Appraisal
Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Editor: PlumSauce
Blinding flames surged forward, carrying a wave of heat toward Huai Boshe. At the instant the fire illuminated him, Huai Boshe cast a glance at Yun Yingzhi, his eyes showing surprise. He activated his ability, a layer of white flickering in his hands, followed by layers of white sand spreading out, extinguishing the incoming waves of fire.
Yun Yingzhi saw the twelve cannons being put out with ease and got so angry he almost transformed into his second form, ready to strike Huai Boshe with even more ferocity. But the last trace of reason restrained him. He continued controlling his source weapon, bombarding Huai Boshe. The scene became even more chaotic than before. Many students were hit by the shockwaves and drawn into the melee.
Among the crowd, some whispered, “What happened that night?”
“I’m certain the school flower must be the Cute Little Battle Rabbit from the Yaoming Battle Arena!”
“I think so too!”
“The three roommates of the school flower all look furious. Something bad must have happened, right?”
Yun Yingzhi’s eyelids twitched uncontrollably as he continued directing the twelve cannons at Huai Boshe. Even more frustrating was the fact that Huai Boshe truly lived up to his status as the top student of his grade. His strength far surpassed ordinary people. Even in a one-versus-four situation, he wasn’t at a disadvantage; he immediately took control of the battle.
Huai Boshe ignored Yun Yingzhi’s constant provocations and steadily pushed Yu Feiwen and the other two back.
Yun Yingzhi pressed his pretty lips into a thin line and scowled, thinking that a Level 5 source weapon truly couldn’t hit Huai Boshe. His weapon needed an upgrade, and it needed more cannons. Even though he had said, “Stop fighting,” he continued summoning the twelve cannons to bomb Huai Boshe.
“So, I’ll ask you one more time—what happened that day?” Huai Boshe asked coldly, controlling the white sand to extinguish the approaching flames as he approached Ji Xiaobo.
Ji Xiaobo’s eyes were red. “You wouldn’t understand… because of you, that day Yingzhi went through something!”
“You were such good brothers before, growing up together. Yingzhi came to you for help, and you refused, just to avoid being disturbed during your alone time with Yingzhi’s sister. You didn’t even ask why!” Yu Feiwen said, his eyes red.
“Even asking one question could’ve prevented that from happening!” Jing Haomiao added furiously.
Yun Yingzhi’s mind went blank. On one hand, he felt humiliated and worried that the events of that day would become public. On the other hand, he worried that his three roommates who were standing up for him would get hurt by Huai Boshe.
Knowing that Huai Boshe’s ability completely restrained the cannon skills in his source weapon, Yun Yingzhi rolled up his sleeves, clenched his fists, and charged straight at Huai Boshe. He decided to use both long-range and melee attacks. If that didn’t work, he would transform into the little white rabbit! He would fight Huai Boshe as much as he could!
Seeing this, the crowd of students was stunned. One student shouted, “Huai Boshe, don’t hurt our Cute Little Battle Rabbit!”
The voice was so loud it echoed across the area. Yun Yingzhi, already charging forward with his sleeves rolled up, felt his cheeks heat up and stopped in his tracks. The disorderly scene froze briefly, all eyes on three figures: Yun Yingzhi, Huai Boshe, and the student who had shouted “Cute Little Battle Rabbit.”
Under everyone’s gaze, Yun Yingzhi felt panicked. “I… I’m not… I’m not that… that Cute Little Battle Rabbit that spins in circles,” he stammered, his face reddening further. The students looked at him with suspicion.
The student who had shouted “Cute Little Battle Rabbit” hesitated, then yelled even louder, “He’s—he’s our Cute Little Battle Rabbit! No, ah… our school flower! He looks so weak, yet he rolled up his sleeves with such fragile hands. Everyone, protect our school flower!”
At that moment, most students believed Yun Yingzhi had to be the Cute Little Battle Rabbit from Yaoming Battle Arena. Yet it didn’t stop them from thinking their school beauty flower was really delicate—this was their long-held perception of Yun Yingzhi. Another student shouted, “Everyone, protect our Cute Little Battle Rabbit together!”
At that signal, one student transformed into their second form—a massive wolf—and let out a deafening howl. With the wolf’s howl, more students transformed into their second forms. Yun Yingzhi again summoned the twelve cannons, aiming at Huai Boshe. Just as the pandemonium threatened to explode further, the enforcement squad finally arrived in a leisurely manner.
Leading them was Wei Yuanqing, wearing a gentle smile as he gave the order, “All troublemakers, arrest them.”
In the next moment, the presence of Wei Yuanqing, a level-eight esper soldier, pressed down on the scene. Huai Boshe remained calm, but Yu Feiwen and the other three didn’t dare act rashly under that pressure. The students noticed that multiple enforcement squads came. Huai Boshe, Yu Feiwen and his roommates, along with those trying to protect Yun Yingzhi, were all apprehended. Literally arrested.
Yun Yingzhi and some students in their second forms were restrained by the enforcement squad students. Outside the crowd, students who hadn’t yet joined the fray breathed a sigh of relief. They were glad they hadn’t gotten involved.
Yun Yingzhi was supervised by one enforcement squad student and felt a bit wronged. Looking at the other students, Huai Boshe had three squad members guarding him, and the other students each had two. He was the only one with just one enforcement squad member guarding him. Usually, the stronger the student, the more guards assigned. Yun Yingzhi was weaker, so he got lax supervision.
Wei Yuanqing’s eyes scanned the scene, and his smiling gaze met Yun Yingzhi’s. Yun Yingzhi’s eyelids twitched. Suddenly, a yelp came from outside the crowd. The chaotic cafeteria cleared a path. Dressed in combat uniform, the fourth-year top student His Highness Elvis walked in. The moment he entered, all eyes focused on him.
Elvis stared straight at Yun Yingzhi. Yun Yingzhi’s already-hot cheeks flushed further, and his exposed skin reddened. He instinctively avoided Elvis’s gaze. He remembered the main problem. He had slept with His Highness… And had stolen His Highness’s clothes and run away, which could mean… His Highness could have run around naked. Yun Yingzhi’s heart pounded. As a citizen of the empire, he felt he was an utter disgrace.
Elvis had barely entered the cafeteria when he said while looking at Yun Yingzhi, “Let Yingzhi go. The Little White Rabbit didn’t do anything in this mess.”
The enforcement squad students, “…”
The other students present, “…”
Had the Little White Rabbit really done nothing? He had clearly been repeatedly bombarding Huai Boshe with cannons summoned by his esper ability, and he had already rolled up his sleeves and charged into the center of the battle circle. But that wasn’t the main point. The point was, logically speaking, hadn’t His Highness Elvis just entered the cafeteria?
He obviously hadn’t been on the scene during the most riotous moments. So from what position was he claiming that Yun Yingzhi hadn’t done anything? Subtly, they remembered what they had heard not long ago. That night at the social gathering, His Highness had looked at his little pet and said, “What harm could a Little White Rabbit do?”
The students’ expressions instantly became complicated. They, along with the enforcement squad student responsible for watching Yun Yingzhi, instinctively looked toward Wei Yuanqing. Wei Yuanqing was the chief administrator of the enforcement squad.
Following Elvis’s line of sight, Wei Yuanqing looked at Yun Yingzhi and issued the order, “Indeed, in this disturbance, Yingzhi didn’t do anything. Let him go.”
The enforcement squad students, “…”
The other students present, “…”
Though it was a bit subtle, when they thought about it, it made sense—what harm could a Little White Rabbit really do? Still, compared to Yun Yingzhi, those students who had merely transformed into their second forms were a little wronged. And on closer thought, the main reason this mass brawl had happened was still because of Yun Yingzhi, wasn’t it?
Wei Yuanqing added, “Take all these disruptive students away.”
The enforcement squad members acted on his command in unison. The enforcement squad had absolute authority at Fansa Academy. Unless absolutely necessary, no student would dare resist them—not even Huai Boshe. Huai Boshe remained fairly poised, while some other students slouched along as they were escorted forward.
Yun Yingzhi frowned, subconsciously wanting to follow, but Elvis called out to him. He reflexively looked at Elvis, then quickly avoided his gaze.
At the same time, Wei Yuanqing called out Yun Yingzhi’s name. Yun Yingzhi looked at Wei Yuanqing, meeting his dark green eyes.
The smile on Wei Yuanqing’s face was perfectly measured—gentle and warm. He walked up to Yun Yingzhi, placed a hand on his shoulder, and asked, “Yingzhi, what happened that night?”
Yun Yingzhi’s brow twitched violently. His first thought was that he didn’t want to remember. He didn’t want to recall it, yet his mind had its own idea, automatically answering: after drinking himself into a state of oblivion, he had a one-night stand with His Highness Elvis. He also thought that he had completely lost the memory of that night and hoped His Highness wouldn’t confront him about it. Yun Yingzhi furrowed his brow. “Senior Wei, that day I—”
His words died halfway. He suddenly couldn’t say anything, thinking of the rumor he had heard—that one of Wei Yuanqing’s abilities was mind reading. Yun Yingzhi panicked and immediately stepped back two paces, keeping a safe distance from Wei Yuanqing. He hoped the events of that night would remain buried in the past and never be mentioned again.
After all, he had forcibly slept with the imperial heir. If Elvis were to blame him… he wouldn’t be able to handle it. That’s right! His Highness Elvis, the one he had slept with, was right here.
Yun Yingzhi looked at Wei Yuanqing and said, “Nothing happened that night,” then quickly shifted his gaze to Elvis and added, “Your Highness, I just remembered I have something very important to do. I’ll see you another time,” before bolting toward the cafeteria exit.
The entire cafeteria fell into an eerie silence. Someone finally broke the quiet. “So… what really happened that night at the social gathering?” Many people’s minds filled with not-so-innocent thoughts.
……
As class time approached, Yun Yingzhi returned to his classroom. Occasionally, classmates asked, “Are you the Cute Little Battle Rabbit from Yaoming Battle Arena?”
Yun Yingzhi forced himself to stay calm and denied it. “Of course not.”
The students gave him looks that plainly said, Yeah, right, you’re just pretending. Yun Yingzhi felt a pang of guilt. Some other students asked with concern, “What actually happened that night at the social gathering?”
Yun Yingzhi brushed it off, saying nothing had happened. When class started, his three roommates hadn’t returned yet. During class, Yun Yingzhi furtively opened his personal terminal and ignored incoming messages. Most of them were asking if he was the currently famous Cute Little Battle Rabbit of the Yaoming Battle Arena, or if he was Elvis’s little darling. How could he answer that?
Although he thought these questions were difficult to answer, it didn’t stop him from shamelessly posting a lie on social media. He wrote that his second form didn’t resemble that Battle Rabbit from Yaoming Battle Arena at all, and, most importantly, that the Battle Rabbit was an elementary school student—he was not.
After posting this shameless clarification, Yun Yingzhi immediately felt a sense of relief. Then… He saw a group of classmates replying,
—Hello, elementary school student.
—Hello, elementary school student.
Yun Yingzhi’s chest tightened, and he closed the social media app. Thinking it over, he opened his friends list and asked his three roommates if they were okay. They replied that they were still being reprimanded.
Before noon, the punishment results came out. Yu Feiwen and the other two roommates each had to write a self-criticism five thousand words long and, together, all three had to clean the training hall for one week. Yun Yingzhi told them he would accompany them to clean.
After morning classes, the four of them sat in a row in the library, writing their self-criticisms. Besides his roommates, some other classmates also needed to write self-criticisms, but only two thousand words long.
A bit amusingly, Yun Yingzhi overheard some students quietly complaining, “If writing a self-criticism were as easy as praising the school flower’s second form for being cute, I could write nonstop.”
“If that were the case, not just two thousand words, even twenty thousand words wouldn’t be a problem!”
Suddenly, the whispered conversations stopped. Yun Yingzhi perked up his ears and heard footsteps. His eyelids twitched. Looking up, he saw Elvis walking straight toward him. Yun Yingzhi panicked and, as if on instinct, stood up from his seat.
The sound emitted was a bit loud, and more people turned to look at him. Following his line of sight as if he saw a terrifyingly wild beast—Elvis. Elvis was getting closer to Yun Yingzhi.
Yun Yingzhi said, “I’m going to the restroom,” and then bolted in that direction.
Elvis furrowed his brow and changed course, heading toward the restroom as well. The moment Yun Yingzhi entered the restroom, he transformed into his second form, leapt out the window, and escaped. Almost immediately after Yun Yingzhi ran off, Elvis entered the restroom. It was empty—no little rabbit in sight.
After using an unconventional route to leave the library, Yun Yingzhi asked his three roommates, “Is Elvis still in the library?”
When they told him that Elvis had actually followed him into the restroom, he felt extremely relieved—thank goodness he had jumped out the window fast enough. The three roommates looked puzzled. “Why are you constantly avoiding Elvis?”
Yun Yingzhi’s chest tightened. This question was too hard to answer. He couldn’t exactly admit the truth—that he had taken advantage of Elvis while he was asleep and then taken the other person’s only set of clothes upon waking.
In the afternoon, Yun Yingzhi walked toward the academic building with his three roommates. From a short distance away, he spotted Elvis. Almost instinctively, he transformed into a little rabbit, curling up into a tiny ball to hide behind his three roommates.
The three roommates froze for a moment, then looked back at the small rabbit with a scrunched-up little face. The little rabbit secretly peeked toward Elvis. Elvis was walking with a person in a military officer uniform. They were a bit far away, and Yun Yingzhi couldn’t tell what they were talking about. Suddenly, Elvis seemed to sense something. His gaze swept in Yun Yingzhi’s direction.
Terrified, the little rabbit immediately retracted his head. With a small jump, both paws and both feet clung to Yu Feiwen’s back, making sure Elvis couldn’t see him at all. Almost intuitively, the three roommates huddled together to hide the little rabbit, using their adult-sized bodies to form a human shield for the tiny figure behind them.
From a distance, Elvis’s gaze lingered on them briefly before turning away. Only then did the three roommates exhale. The timid little rabbit still clung to Yu Feiwen’s back.
It wasn’t until Elvis walked out of sight that Jing Haomiao said, “He’s gone,” and only then did Yun Yingzhi finally leap down and return to human form.
At the same time, Yun Yingzhi received a notification on his personal terminal. He opened it. The sender was… Elvis. In his mind, Yun Yingzhi slowly typed a question mark.
When had he added Elvis as a friend? Why did he have no memory of it? Could it have been that day when he forcibly pinned Elvis to bed and coerced him to add him as a friend? Yun Yingzhi’s body trembled, and two of his roommates immediately supported him, asking if he was okay.
He felt befuddled, like he was lost in a fog. He shook his head, trying to calm himself, and said it was nothing. He looked at the private message—Elvis had requested a meeting.
Yun Yingzhi’s eyelids twitched violently. After thinking for a moment, he replied: “Sorry, Your Highness, I’ve been very busy recently and don’t seem to have time for now.”
If he could, Yun Yingzhi really wanted to block and delete Elvis completely—but he didn’t dare. After replying, he fearfully switched his personal terminal to Do Not Disturb mode. In Do Not Disturb mode, unless someone had explicit permission, no messages could get through. He didn’t know if Elvis sent more messages, but as long as he didn’t see them, he could pretend he knew nothing.
In the afternoon, Yu Feiwen and the other two had to go to the training hall—for cleaning and for special training. Originally, Yun Yingzhi was supposed to go too, but the three of them refused. They not only forbade Yun Yingzhi from going to the training hall, but also decided he wouldn’t accompany them to the Yaoming Battle Arena for the time being.
Yun Yingzhi wasn’t happy. Although fighting at the Yaoming Battle Arena as the Cute Little Battle Rabbit was embarrassing, each victory gave him satisfaction.
Seeing Yun Yingzhi’s obvious displeasure, Ji Xiaobo furrowed his brow and asked, “Yingzhi, we don’t mind, but are you okay with this?”
Yun Yingzhi asked blankly, “What wouldn’t I be okay with?”
Yu Feiwen hesitated, seeming unsure if he should say it. “I mean… your body. Don’t you feel uncomfortable?” He gestured toward his own neck meaningfully.
At first, Yun Yingzhi didn’t understand. Seeing Yu Feiwen’s gesture, he grasped the meaning. His cheeks flushed crimson. He awkwardly avoided the three of their gazes, then… He seriously examined his own body.
It was strange. He had heard that for many people in similar situations, depending on their strength, it was possible to be unable to get out of bed for three days and three nights. However, he had woken up fully able to get out of bed and even energetic enough to bounce around. On closer thought, he realized that His Highness Elvis might not be all that capable. Although the prince liked to nibble and bite, he himself was not the least bit tired.
Yun Yingzhi sighed softly. Though Elvis was the crown prince, he was somewhat pitiable. No matter how polished his outward appearance, “not being capable” is not being capable. Yun Yingzhi also suspected that Elvis’s recent attempts to find him may be to tell him not to reveal this secret to anyone. He thought that from now on, he would have to be careful not to look at Elvis with too much pity.
However… Yun Yingzhi had a feeling that he might have leverage over Elvis!
He replied, “I’m fine. Look at me—I’m really completely fine,” bouncing lightly on the spot.
Seeing this, the three of them subtly thought… That person from that day might not have been all that capable. Otherwise, facing a little beauty like Yun Yingzhi… Cough, better not think too much.
Still, Yu Feiwen and the others didn’t allow Yun Yingzhi to go to the training hall. They pushed him back to the dorm. Their eyes looked at him like he was a pathetic little creature whose body and mind had been through too much.
Originally, Yun Yingzhi hadn’t felt anything wrong with his body, but under the exaggerated treatment of his three roommates, whether real or imagined, he started feeling off too. His current self wasn’t fit for high-intensity training. Thinking about it, it was fine—he could take advantage of this time to design the source weapon that was about to be sent to Yun Yinghui.
Yun Yingzhi returned to the dorm, opened his personal terminal, and continued refining the space-restriction imprint.
After Yu Feiwen and the others sent Yun Yingzhi back to the dorm, they planned to head to the training hall. On the way, they happened to pass by the delivery station. As a closed-campus academy, they usually couldn’t come and go freely, but that didn’t stop them from sending and receiving packages.
Yu Feiwen remembered the source weapon made by Yun Yingzhi’s friend. He said, “Wait, let’s send the source weapon made by Yingzhi’s friend to the Association for appraisal first.”
Ji Xiaobo and Jing Haomiao immediately responded, “Alright.”
Perhaps, once the appraisal results came back, they could use that as a legitimate reason to ask Yun Yingzhi to cancel their orders with that source weapon maker. With that thought in mind, the three of them entered the delivery station. It was almost empty today with few people around. They approached the service desk and began filling out the shipping forms.
Wearing a student uniform underneath his work vest, the student who was working part-time here smiled and asked, “What are you sending?”
Yu Feiwen replied, “A Level 5 source weapon,” while taking the circular Level 5 source weapon out of his pocket.
Seeing this, the staff subtly felt that Yu Feiwen was treating the source weapon a bit casually. After all, it was a valuable source weapon. To prevent loss, most fighters would wear it on their wrist or keep it in a separate bag. Even so, the part-time student said nothing. The source weapon’s exterior looked like the standard mass-produced models from the Source Weapon Association, giving off a slightly cheap impression.
One small difference: carved inside the source weapon was a lifelike little rabbit, looking especially cute.
The staff smiled and asked, “Where is it being sent?”
“To the Source Weapon Association,” Yu Feiwen said.
“Insured?”
Yu Feiwen hesitated. Generally, deliveries rarely get lost. Even so, most people insure valuable items just to be safe.
After a brief deliberation, Yu Feiwen said, “No insurance needed.”
Once the form was complete, the staff wrapped the package in front of them and attached the shipping label.
“Please don’t worry. If nothing unexpected happens, it will be delivered safely today.”
Yu Feiwen nodded, replying, “Okay.”
Before leaving the delivery station, Yu Feiwen clicked on the Source Weapon Association’s order form and entered the delivery tracking number of the source weapon to be appraised. There was a default option that allowed every appraisal by the Association to be publicly broadcast, streamed across major platforms. If one wanted to refuse live streaming, they had to opt out.
Yu Feiwen chose the default: allow public streaming. The final question: after the appraisal, would Yu Feiwen pick up the source weapon at the Association, or have it shipped to a designated location? If the latter, shipping fees had to be prepaid, including options for insurance and specifying the delivery company.
Yu Feiwen chose standard shipping without insurance. Everything was set. The source weapon entered the appraisal queue. Once scheduled, the Association would notify him via email when the livestream would begin. Yu Feiwen left the delivery station with his two friends. As fate would have it, on the way to the training hall, they ran into Huai Boshe.
The three of them stared at him coldly, with no intention of exchanging words, but that didn’t stop them from throwing pointed remarks.
Ji Xiaobo looked at Huai Boshe and said meaningfully, “Scum.”
Yu Feiwen said, “Trash.”
Jing Haomiao said, “Love-brain!”
Huai Boshe’s expression became very ugly. He blocked the three who clearly didn’t want to engage with him.
Ji Xiaobo casually said, “Good dogs don’t block the road.”
Huai Boshe furrowed his brow, his voice deep and icy, asking, “That night… what happened?”
The moment he asked, Yu Feiwen and the others’ gazes became angrier. Since that morning, Huai Boshe had been unsettled over this matter.
Ji Xiaobo said, “Even if you knew, what could you do?”
“Can you change what’s already happened?”
“If you had cared more about Yingzhi that day, none of this would have happened.”
Yu Feiwen said, “I hope you never bother Yingzhi again.”
Ji Xiaobo added, “Right now, you have nothing to do with Yingzhi.”
Jing Haomiao shot Huai Boshe a frosty look and snorted. Huai Boshe’s expression darkened. That night at the mixer, Yun Yingyao had said Yun Yingzhi hadn’t returned home. Yun Yingzhi, someone with absolute beauty but weak strength… What could have happened on that drunken night? Combined with the anger of Yu Feiwen and the others, the truth of the matter was becoming clear. At that moment, he felt a pang in his chest—regret, confusion, and… helplessness. He didn’t even have the courage to approach Yun Yingzhi for confirmation.
He didn’t notice it himself, but one hand instinctively covered his heart. It hurt… a lot. Ever since the day he went to Yun Yingyao for a second confession, it seemed…something had begun to gradually slip out of his control.
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