Can a Naive Man Be a Heartthrob in a Bizarre World? Chapter 62

Chapter 62: Chapter Sixty-Two

Early the next morning, the news of Chu Xiao staying the night at the Yuheng Dormitory reached the teachers.

The principal was still wearing a facial mask, but upon hearing the news, he ran to the teachers’ office with the mask still on his face.

“Could it be that they developed a bond while being locked in solitary together? This is the first student to ever voluntarily stay the night in another dormitory!”

Awakeners all had a territorial instinct. Unless absolutely necessary, they were never willing to rest in the same area as other Awakeners.

The school had to enforce a mandate just to get these students to live in dorms together.

But Chu Xiao staying over at the Yuheng Dormitory wasn’t “mandated”—it was his own personal action.

It was too shocking!

The principal was deeply gratified. In all his years of leading students, this was the first time he had encountered one willing to stay in another dorm.

Even if other students were already friends, there was a high probability they wouldn’t want to stay over.

Case in point: Ying He and Ying Liu were twin brothers who had been squeezed together in the womb, yet after becoming Awakeners, the two were still unwilling to stay in the same space. He had never even heard of them visiting each other’s rooms.

“This batch of students is too surprising. The speed at which their bonds are forming is more than double that of previous students. And now we have dormitory visits. Could it be that solitary confinement really helps classmates cultivate their feelings for each other?”

The principal’s face practically shouted: If locking people in solitary confinement together can build bonds, then lock all the students in solitary immediately!

Whatever those three in the confinement cells were eating for those ten days, arrange it for everyone! However they were trained, follow it exactly! The main goal was to replicate it identically!

Chen Heyan intervened in time. “Principal, it likely has nothing to do with solitary confinement. Look down there.”

He pushed open the window and beckoned the principal over.

The principal stepped forward suspiciously. Below was the training ground, where the students could be seen practicing against each other.

Chu Xiao and Xiao Shan were currently fighting, their speed so fast they were like blurs. Both were Elementalists and highly talented; metal and ice clashed repeatedly, every move looking like a lethal strike.

“Oh my, oh my!”

Professor Zheng came over with his thermos, looking on in amazement. “If I knew they were classmates, I’d say this was training; if I didn’t, I’d think they had a blood feud.”

The principal brought over a pair of binoculars and squinted through them for a long time. “Tsk, they really are going for the kill. These rascals aren’t even afraid of something going wrong.”

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Chen Heyan: “I’ve already asked the infirmary staff to head over. There shouldn’t be any issues; at most, they’ll shave a few pieces of meat off each other.”

Professor Zheng: “Oh my! Lu Qiujin is joining in! Oh my, oh my! Rong Nian is there too. What’s going on? Another free-for-all?”

“Eh?!”

His voice suddenly jumped eight octaves, and he stopped saying “oh my.” “Luo Shizhen is going up there, too?!”

“What?!!”

The principal’s voice also spiked, causing his facial mask to crack. He tore it off and pulled another one from his pocket to apply.

“Professor Chen, hurry down and take a look. Luo Shizhen was originally a Support Sequence, after all. Don’t let anything happen to him.”

Chen Heyan was the calmest of all the teachers.

On one hand, he knew Sui An was at the training ground; as Luo Shizhen’s Watchman, Sui An wouldn’t let anything happen to him.

On the other hand, Chen Heyan didn’t believe for a second that those little rascals would ever strike Luo Shizhen with lethal intent.

On the training ground, Luo Shizhen discovered that as soon as he stepped up, everyone who had been fighting so fiercely suddenly began to hold back.

When they were practicing against each other, it was clear they were using their full strength, but the moment they faced him, nine parts of their power dropped to three before the strike even landed, and another three parts dropped when it reached him.

Luo Shizhen sparred for a few moves before stopping in confusion. “Why are you holding back when you fight me?”

Xiao Shan: “I’m not. This is my normal training pressure.”

Luo Shizhen: “That’s not true. Just now, when you and Chu Xiao were practicing, your strikes were clearly much heavier.”

“And Lu Qiujin.” He turned to Lu Qiujin. “Just now, when you used your wood spikes against Chu Xiao, they would erupt from the ground instantly—dense and sharp.”

“But when you practice with me, why do the spikes look like this?” He effortlessly pulled a wood spike from the ground; its tip was visibly blunt. Even if Luo Shizhen really stepped on it, it wouldn’t cause him any harm.

“Rong Nian is the same, and Chu Xiao. Your abilities become different when they reach me.”

The group: “…”

They couldn’t very well tell Luo Shizhen that what happened earlier wasn’t “practice,” and that every move was a sincere attempt to kill the other person.

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Lin Qi stood off-field with his arms crossed, enjoying the show.

To an elder, the thoughts of young people were transparent at a glance. They usually worked quite hard to put on a fierce act, so he wasn’t going to miss this chance to see how they explained themselves.

Luo Shizhen, however, didn’t ask for his friends’ explanation.

He simply stated his confusion and asked everyone to treat him the same.

Luo Shizhen puffed out his chest. “Are you afraid I won’t be able to dodge because I’m in the Support Sequence? It’s okay—don’t be afraid of hurting me!”

Lin Qi thought he was going to say he had offensive power now, or that his strength was great and his speed was fast.

Instead, Luo Shizhen pointed at him:

“The professors are all watching from the side. If I can’t dodge, the professors will definitely intervene!”

The group: “…”

Lin Qi: “…”

This child’s trust in his teachers was truly pure and absolute.

Even though he knew Luo Shizhen was like this with every teacher, Lin Qi still felt comforted upon meeting that trust-filled gaze.

He made an “OK” gesture:

“Right. You lot go ahead; the teacher will back you up.”

Luo Shizhen wiped the sweat from his forehead, took his stance, and looked seriously at his friends. “Come on!!”

The blood in Xiao Shan’s body boiled a few degrees hotter than before. Right—how could he look down on his little brother?

If he held back now, would the anomalies hold back when Luo Shizhen faced them in the future?

He immediately shouted back, “Alright!! Watch closely!!”

Several gold spikes shot toward Luo Shizhen with sharp gleams, but he dodged them nimbly.

His method of dodging was a bit clumsy—he rolled several times on the ground—but Luo Shizhen’s eyes remained bright. He took the opportunity to ambush Chu Xiao while evading the latter’s ice blades.

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By the time Chen Heyan came down, Sui An had also reached the sidelines.

Seeing him arrive, Sui An kept his eyes on the field, but his tone held a hint of admiration. “He’s progressing very quickly.”

“When he first entered the school, he didn’t even have the simplest combat foundation. But now, he already possesses quite good combat literacy.”

Chen Heyan also looked toward Luo Shizhen. His face was flushed from the exercise, and even when attacking, there wasn’t much aggression in his eyes, yet every move was an effective strike.

“I’ve noticed it, too. Shizhen might be a bit behind in cultural classes, but in terms of physical quality and combat talent, there’s a lot of room for exploration.”

Sui An took out a lollipop and held it in his mouth.

“He’s emotionally stable, physically strong, capable of calming his teammates, and possesses personal charisma. He has the potential to be a leader, though he might not think so himself.”

Chen Heyan sighed. “The child is very well-behaved. Sometimes he’s too well-behaved. To be a Guardian, one still needs a bit of aggression.”

Sui An: “It can always be cultivated.”

He looked down and tapped a few times on his watch, signaling Lin Qi to blow the whistle.

“Assemble!!”

The students quickly gathered, and Luo Shizhen was among them.

“A case has appeared. I’m taking you out for some real combat practice!”

The students’ spirits were instantly jolted.

At this age, they had long grown tired of tedious training. Everyone was looking forward to going out for real combat.

Sui An took out a new lollipop. His long, calloused fingers slowly peeled the outer wrapper as he walked past the students.

“The victim who was kidnapped is a ‘Professional Actor.’ That’s the polite term; you can also understand him as a ‘shill.’ He specifically plays the role of a professor or expert in pharmaceutical commercials, using talk of ‘ancestral prescriptions’ to trick patients into buying medicine.”

“There are traces of pollution at the scene, confirming an anomaly kidnapping. The reason for the kidnapping is unknown. Your objective: rescue this professional actor, or determine if he is alive or dead. If possible, kill the anomaly. If you can’t win, remember to call for help in a timely manner. This time, there’s no ‘End Simulation’ button for you to use.”

Sui An finished speaking just as he finished peeling the lollipop. He was standing right in front of Luo Shizhen.

He lowered his gaze slightly, looking at the student standing so properly and seriously, and pressed the strawberry-flavored lollipop against Luo Shizhen’s lips.

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“Make sure all your combat gear is worn properly. Don’t leave anything out.”

With the lollipop pressed against his lips, Luo Shizhen opened his mouth in a daze, and the sweet strawberry flavor immediately spread through his mouth.

So sweet. His eyes lit up slightly.

Sui An looked at the way he subconsciously squinted in enjoyment, raised an eyebrow, and reached out to straighten Luo Shizhen’s tactical glasses.

“Keep your wits about you. This time, it’s not a drill.”

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