Shackles of Humanity

The students who could attend the sports academy all came from well-off families. Many had been injected with Low-Level Gene Potions, so they possessed basic Power and speed. The only problem was they lacked that explosive burst.

The chubby Ma Junkai’s opponent was a tall young man. The two of them went back and forth in a heated exchange. Ma Junkai relied on his great strength, his fleshy fists swinging with whistling force, forcing the tall young man back step by step. In truth, if his Fist Power were just a bit more ferocious, he could have ended the fight with a single punch.

The class president of High Rank Class 3 was named Yuan Hua. His father was a Garrison Officer in Longyang City, and since he’d grown up mingling with officers from the Defense Army, he was quite experienced in combat. He was the first to defeat his opponent. Noticing Luo Kai standing all alone at the side, and remembering that Chang Lu had asked him to take good care of the new student, he walked over and said, "Student Luo Kai, let’s spar."

Luo Kai could see he meant well, so he didn’t refuse. The two began a simple spar.

Luo Kai only defended, never attacking. Each time a fist was about to land, he would evade it with just a slight turn of his body. With his superhuman Insight and reaction speed, which could even track the trajectory of a bullet, sparring with these students, who were still wet behind the ears, was simply child’s play.

After a while, seeing Yuan Hua’s expression turn anxious, he used the force of an oncoming punch to slowly back out of the sparring area, making his loss look completely natural. He was long past the age where he felt the need to be competitive and show off; winning or losing like this was meaningless to him.

Yuan Hua’s expression flickered. After fighting for so long, he hadn’t even managed to touch the hem of his opponent’s clothes. He was perceptive enough to realize this new student was no ordinary fighter. He let out a breath and said, "Student Luo, you’re very impressive. We should exchange pointers more often in the future."

Luo Kai smiled and nodded, then turned to look off to the side. Gu Cai was also watching him, his gaze cold and severe. The moment their eyes met, an intense fighting spirit instantly flared between them.

Gu Cai naturally knew Luo Kai’s identity. The fact that Liu Hou had recently taken a fourth disciple was no secret among the teachers. He was eager to test the young student’s strength, but given his current status as a teacher, it wasn’t appropriate for him to make a move.

Luo Kai was also eager to trade blows with this expert in elbow and knee fighting, but it wasn’t really proper for a student to challenge a teacher.

When school finally let out, Luo Kai was the first one out the door. ’I’m starting to regret agreeing to be a student,’ he thought. ’I can at least learn something in my literature and history class, but this Body Techniques class is a complete waste of time.’

That evening, Luo Kai made his way to Li Gui’s place on Xinluo Street. Inside the house, Li Gui was waiting for him. Though it had only been two days, Li Gui’s face had become extremely haggard, and a lot of gray had appeared in his hair, making him look as if he’d aged a decade.

"Second Brother, what happened to you?"

Li Gui forced a smile. "It’s nothing. I’m just cursed with a life of worry. Third Brother, you don’t need to get involved with the Elemental Coral matter. I’ll arrange everything."

Luo Kai asked, "When are you planning to make your move?"

"In the next few days. The She Mountain Three Tigers and Fur Monkey have already infiltrated Tiger Head Slope."

Luo Kai hesitated for a moment, then said, "Um... maybe I should still go check things out. If there’s any trouble, I can help."

Li Gui pondered for a moment, gave Luo Kai a deep look, and suddenly said, "Third Brother, to be honest, in all my years, you’re the only person I’ve never been able to figure out."

Luo Kai chuckled. "What’s so hard to figure out about me?"

Li Gui shook his head. "It’s because you act purely based on your own whims. But everyone is selfish at heart, so... that’s why I can’t figure you out."

Luo Kai gave a wry smile. "Second Brother, I’m a person too. Of course I have selfish desires. I like money a lot, and I really want a Genetic Potion, too."

Li Gui’s expression was conflicted. After a long pause, he finally sighed and said, "Alright then. This is a Disguise Mask. Third Brother, after you infiltrate, you absolutely must not reveal who you are. I’m a Counselor in the Dragon Shark Camp, so I’ll coordinate and provide support from within."

Luo Kai took the mask, which was as thin as a cicada’s wing. He wanted to try it on right there, but Li Gui said that once the Disguise Mask was used, it had to be washed off with a special Sulfur Soap. Otherwise, he’d have to wait ten days for the mask to fade.

The two of them went over some contact signals in detail, and then Luo Kai took his leave. Watching Luo Kai’s back disappear into the night, Li Gui suddenly collapsed onto the ground, as if all his Essence Qi and spirit had vanished. He murmured, "It seems this was all fated to be."

...

「The next morning.」

The world outside was a blanket of white; a heavy snow had fallen. Erya woke up bright and early, dragging Luo Kai into the courtyard to build snowmen.

Under Erya’s various forms of torture—pinching his nose, covering his mouth, and tickling him—Luo Kai finally dragged himself out of bed. Today was a day off, but he needed to go to the school and find someone to help him request a leave of absence. ’To ask for time off on only my second day as a student... Even I feel a little embarrassed about it.’

The world outside was cloaked in white. Erya and the other children had already built a few lopsided, ugly snowmen.

Luo Kai smiled. His control over his body had reached a sublime level of precision. If he truly focused on a piece of craftwork, he wouldn’t be much worse than a master sculptor from his past life. He casually picked up a wooden stick and began to work on the snow, seeming to enter a special, ineffable state, his whole being taking on an almost sacred air.

In no time, three remarkably lifelike snow figures were complete. They depicted an adult holding the hands of two girls with ponytails. The adult was clearly recognizable as Luo Kai, and the two girls were Erya and Xiaozhuo.

The snow figures were sculpted so realistically that even their facial expressions were visible. It was as if three living people were standing there. Erya’s little face was flushed with excitement, and she clamored about finding Xiaozhuo to come see their creation.

Only after he was finished did Luo Kai notice that a young woman in a snow-white down jacket was in the courtyard. It was Lu Qing, and she was staring at him with a shocked expression.

"How did you find me?" Luo Kai stopped what he was doing.

Erya clutched the corner of Luo Kai’s shirt, eyeing the pretty young woman before them warily. She asked Luo Kai, "Uncle, who is this big sister?"

"Uh... a friend."

Lu Qing’s face flushed. She glanced at the snow figures again, unable to believe that such realistic creations were the work of this rather brutish man. Her curiosity about Luo Kai deepened, and she said softly, "My... my grandma said you lived here."

"Oh? What’s this about?" ’Granny Hua’s Divine Techniques are really something else,’ Luo Kai thought. ’Then again, our homes are only a few streets apart, so finding me wasn’t that difficult.’

"My grandma said she has something to talk to you about. She’d like you to come over."

"I have something on today. How about in two days?" Luo Kai said hesitantly. ’I have to go to the academy today, and the day after tomorrow I need to figure out how to infiltrate the Dragon Shark Camp. I’m just too busy lately.’

Lu Qing grew anxious. ’This jerk! He’s so disrespectful! I came all the way here to ask him myself, and he still rejected me!’ she thought, exasperated. She pointed at the snowmen in the yard. "Then how do you have time to build snowmen!"

Luo Kai gave a dry laugh and scratched his head. ’To be honest, I really don’t want to go,’ he thought. ’What is there to talk about with some old lady? I’d rather go to the academy and read.’ He thought for a moment before saying, "I really do have something later. How about this afternoon?"

"Hmph! Suit yourself!" Lu Qing stomped her foot hard and turned to leave.

Erya ran forward, angrily slammed the courtyard gate shut, and turned to Luo Kai. "Uncle, when you get a wife someday, you can’t marry one like her!"

Luo Kai walked over and tapped her on her little head. "What does a little girl like you know? Now get back to practicing your punches!"

Erya rolled her eyes at him in disdain, but she obediently ran to the side and started pounding on a rock.

Luo Kai stood there for a moment in thought, then hopped on his bicycle and chased after her. Up ahead, Lu Qing was walking along, kicking at the snow on the ground.

"Alright, don’t be mad. I’ll go with you. Hop on, I’ll give you a ride."

Lu Qing’s delicate nose wrinkled. She glared at him and said huffily, "Can’t you see the ground is icy? You’ll get yourself killed, you big dummy."

"Get on. You know my skills on a bike. I absolutely won’t let you fall." Luo Kai looked straight at her, his tone leaving no room for refusal.

For some reason, his tone reminded Lu Qing of her father when she was a child. She wasn’t very good at refusing people to begin with. And while this guy was a bit brutish, his heart was in the right place. He had even saved her twice. After a moment’s hesitation, she sat up straight and got on.

Feeling a pair of slender hands wrap around his waist, Luo Kai couldn’t help but feel his Heart Spirit stir. Riding through the bustling streets, he finally felt a sense of belonging in this world.