Chapter 11: Provocation

After Zhao Liang left, the third-class student immediately pulled Zhao Liang's chair and said to Fu Chengya, "Brother Fu, come and sit here."

Fu Chengya didn't hold back and directly sat in Zhao Liang's position. This position was the main seat, and he felt it was only natural for him to sit there.

All five of them were dressed in Gale's uniform. Fu Chengya, as a first-class student, naturally held the highest status, and neither Lin Zhen nor Meng Dong made a sound.

Fu Chengya sat down, with Zhu Haoran sitting to his left and Zhang Yi sitting to his right. Lin Zhen and Meng Dong were sitting opposite them.

"Did you guys come from the sixth high school?" Zhang Yi asked first.

"Yes, from the sixth."

"I heard that because the students in the sixth high school have poor aptitude, the selection standards are somewhat far-fetched. Those who barely make it will be given third and even second-class contracts. Is that true?" Zhang Yi's eyes sweep over the second-class student mark on Lin Zhen's chest, seemingly somewhat unconvinced.

Students from the first high school have always been strong, and their family backgrounds are not simple. Facing such people, Meng Dong felt somewhat uneasy, let alone being just a third-class student himself. Hearing Zhang Yi's question, he didn't know how to respond.

Seeking help from Lin Zhen, Meng Dong felt that Lin Zhen was very powerful and much better than himself. So, it's better for him to be in charge of these matters.

Lin Zhen smiled slightly and said to Zhang Yi, "Are you implying that Brother Zhao is being partial?"

With one sentence, Zhang Yi was rendered speechless.

His words were aimed at Lin Zhen, but even if he had the guts, he wouldn't dare question Zhao Liang.

Zhao Liang is a Level 3 War General, and his position within the Gale is not low, not someone a mere third-class student like him can question.

Seeing Zhang Yi getting a setback, Zhu Haoran immediately said, "Zhang Yi, Lin Zhen is a second-class student; you should maintain some respect."

After saying that, he turned to Lin Zhen, "What Zhang Yi said is not uncommon. Many students from lower-ranking high schools are indeed mediocre. He doesn't mean to question Mr. Zhao; Lin Zhen, don't try to falsely accuse."

Lin Zhen nodded, "There are indeed some mediocre students, but they are not only found in lower-ranking high schools. Some top-ranked high schools have a big reputation, but the students they send out are like flowers in a greenhouse, even having students who wet their pants when fighting monsters."

Zhu Haoran's eyebrows furrowed, and his face turned to Lin Zhen with a hint of displeasure.

What Lin Zhen said had happened at the first high school, where there was once a second-class student who performed well in training but wet his pants when he really fought the monsters. This matter was a great shame for the first high school, and all the students didn't like to hear it. However, Lin Zhen brought it up directly, and Zhu Haoran became disgruntled.

"What are you talking about?" With Fu Chengya and Zhu Haoran backing him, Zhang Yi immediately lashed out at Lin Zhen.

At this point, Meng Dong got over his initial unease. He had always been impulsive, and seeing Lin Zhen speaking confidently, he was no longer afraid of the first high school's reputation. He saw Zhang Yi yelling and immediately slammed the table, "Listen to what is being said, don't be shouting, third-class student!"

Zhu Haoran and Zhang Yi's faces changed, and they got up, seemingly intending to take action.

At this time, Fu Chengya finally spoke, "Stop arguing; the people from Dragon Slayer are here."

Seeing Fu Chengya speaking, Zhu Haoran and the others couldn't help but obey. They sat down, mouths shut, and looked back.

They saw a large group of people flooding in from outside, led by three Martial Artists, followed by seven or eight students with Ouyang Yu among them.

However, Ouyang Yu was at the back of the queue. As a third-class student, he had low status, and Martial Artists were very concerned about that. In front of him, there was one first-class student, two second-class students, and a total of five third-class students.

The Dragon Slayer people occupied two tables, and the three Martial Artists stayed for less than a minute before entering their private room. As Martial Artists, they naturally had their own circles and rarely condescended to spend time with students.

As soon as they left, the eight students started making a racket, loudly drinking and chatting. Their voices were loud, but the hall was mostly filled with students. Dragon Slayer was one of the top three Martial Arts Halls in Hua Xia and had a large number of members, so most people wouldn't dare to provoke them.

Although Gale was the number one Martial Arts Hall in Hua Xia, it didn't mean it was number one in all Base Cities. In Northern Base City, Gale's power was not the greatest. In Capital Base City and Tianfu Base City, Gale held an advantage, but in the North, Gale could only be considered third.

In Ice City Base City, the largest Martial Arts Hall was Changfeng, followed by a tight competition between Dragon Slayer and Gale for second place. Gale was slightly inferior to Dragon Slayer, so Gale's advantage was not very obvious here.

Today, no one from Changfeng appeared. Those from the Dragon Slayer noticed Lin Zhen and the others and started whispering to each other, obviously not having any good intentions.

Seeing the people from Dragon Slayer, Zhu Haoran's face changed, "Brother Fu, Lei Ming is over there. He didn't get along with us when he was in the first high school. I'm afraid he'll cause trouble this time. They have more people; we..."

Fu Chengya waved his hand, "Ignore him; if we back down now, we'll become the laughingstock of others."

He swept his gaze over Lin Zhen and Meng Dong, "You two listen up; the people from Dragon Slayer might come looking for trouble later. If you're afraid, leave now; if you're not, stand together and fight then, and follow my command."

Lin Zhen frowned slightly, "We're not afraid, but I've never liked being commanded. If there's a real fight, everyone should rely on their own abilities."

"What Lin Zhen said represents my opinion too!" Meng Dong added from the side.

"Ungrateful. In that case, if you can withstand one second-class and one third-class, then consider your mission completed." Zhu Haoran said coldly from the side. Apparently, he was very dissatisfied with the lack of cooperation from Lin Zhen and Meng Dong.

At this moment, the people from Dragon Slayer arrived.

Leading them was a healthy-looking young man dressed in Dragon Slayer's outfit, with a first-class trainee emblem on his chest - Lei Ming, as Fu Chengya had mentioned.

Lin Zhen's eyes narrowed slightly as he realized that this Lei Ming was Ouyang Yu's older brother. After Ouyang Yu joined Dragon Slayer, he followed Lei Ming and became his sidekick.

This man's physical abilities had all reached the peak of a third-level Warrior, and he was just a step away from becoming a fourth-level Warrior. He was young and had amazing potential.

Lei Ming walked up in front of the table and looked down at Fu Chengya, "Fu Chengya, it's rare for us to meet. We're all old classmates, why not invite us to have a drink together?"

Fu Chengya remained seated and replied, "Our table is small, I'm afraid there isn't enough room for you."

Lei Ming didn't take offense and laughed, "It's okay if there's no room, we can stand. Let me introduce you to my little brother here, Ouyang Yu. He has a bit of a grudge with your two friends here. Since we all live in Ice City, let's have a drink and let bygones be bygones. You don't have any objections, do you?"

As he spoke, Ouyang Yu stepped forward, standing in front of Lin Zhen and Meng Dong.

Fu Chengya frowned, not expecting that their visit was aimed at Lin Zhen and Meng Dong. He couldn't refuse their drinking proposal, so he nodded slightly.

Obviously, both Fu Chengya's group and the Dragon Slayer members regarded Fu Chengya as the decision maker, while Lin Zhen and Meng Dong's opinions were simply ignored.

Ouyang Yu smirked and grabbed a massive bottle of Ice City's signature high-proof liquor, filling two large cups that could hold more than two pounds each in front of Lin Zhen and Meng Dong.

He raised his head and said, "Lin Zhen, Meng Dong, we all graduated from the Sixth Middle School. Despite our past grievances, that's all in the past now. Drink this cup for the sake of our friendship, and we'll continue to be good classmates and good brothers afterwards."

Meng Dong looked at the liquor cup, "Ouyang Yu, if you want us to drink, shouldn't you show some sincerity first? Aren't you going to drink as well?"

"Of course, I'm going to drink too. Watch this."

Ouyang Yu took another large cup and filled it up with two pounds of high-proof liquor.

"How about the three of us drink together?"

Lin Zhen had been keeping an eye on Ouyang Yu's fingers. This scene had happened before, but it wasn't Ouyang Yu who did it at the time. Obviously, this time it was because of Lin Zhen's presence that Ouyang Yu volunteered to take action.

Ouyang Yu's drink was real, but at this moment, he had an antidote pill in his hand. When placed in the drink, it would dissolve within a second, turning the high-proof liquor into water.

The antidote pill wasn't cheap, and Ouyang Yu was determined to make Lin Zhen and Meng Dong look bad.

The bar's dim lighting made it impossible for anyone to notice the antidote pill.

Lin Zhen had been paying close attention, and as soon as Ouyang Yu's fingers opened, he secretly used his mental power.

Mental power could be applied to inanimate objects, allowing them to move in mid-air. If one trained their mental power to the golden level, they would be able to control objects and even fly while carrying a person.

Lin Zhen's mental power was at the peak of the bronze stage, almost entering the silver stage. It was effortless for him to move a tiny antidote pill. The moment the antidote pill fell into Ouyang Yu's drink, Lin Zhen quickly pulled it through the air towards him.

One second later, the antidote pill dissolved in Lin Zhen's drink.

"Ouyang Yu, I'll join you for a drink. However, there's no need to involve Meng Dong, is there? How about I drink this cup with you?" Lin Zhen spoke.

Ouyang Yu's original goal was Lin Zhen, and Meng Dong was just a side target. He had been worried that Lin Zhen would refuse, but now that Lin Zhen agreed, he immediately showed a smile, "Alright, I'll give you this favor, Lin Zhen. But let's agree that if anyone can't drink, they'll be the one losing face, and all of today's expenses will be on them."

"No problem!" Lin Zhen agreed readily.

"Lin Zhen, can you handle it?" Meng Dong asked with some concern.

"Just watch. When have you ever seen me do something I'm not certain of?" Lin Zhen replied. He clinked glasses with Ouyang Yu, and the two of them raised their glasses to their lips, their eyes locked on each other with meaningful gazes.