Ye Chengwu's pupils shrank abruptly.
Xie Litang’s sinister sneer, along with that throat-slitting motion, filled him with boundless panic as his life hung by a thread, casting a massive psychological shadow over him.
Perhaps because of the livestream, the ambulance arrived remarkably fast.
Only then did Xie Litang glance toward the phone that was still livestreaming, parting her lips to utter, “Trash.”
The bullet comments instantly exploded. With that single word, Xie Litang had essentially insulted the entire student body of Jianghai High School, yet none of them could refute her right now.
First, four of them had ganged up on one, only for all four to be wiped out.
Then, someone came looking for trouble, only to be hauled away in an ambulance.
To make matters worse, she had just been expelled from school; this was practically grinding their faces against sandpaper.
Xie Litang walked away, feeling a bit bored. She truly had no interest in these buffoons; they would only hinder the speed at which she stacked Steel.
Ring, ring, ring~
Urgent ringtones sounded from the students who had gathered to watch the spectacle.
After answering and listening for a bit, they kept bowing and scraping; it seemed the school was conveying some sort of order to them.
Soon, a girl stepped forward briskly.
“Wait a moment.”
Xie Litang looked up, her cold eyes fixing on her. “Do you guys truly think I don't have a temper?”
A shiver ran down the girl's spine.
She tried to tell herself that she was a B-Grade ability user while Xie Litang was merely an E-Grade piece of trash, so there was nothing to fear.
Yet the icy chill radiating from Xie Litang made her calves tremble.
“I... I, I...”
“I-It's our school—they have something to say to you! Ye Chengwu is merely an ordinary member of the Martial Arts Club. His win or loss doesn't represent anything!”
Xie Litang took a step forward, reached out, and pinched the girl's mouth, exuding an imposing aura as she said, “And so?”
Tears welled at the corners of the girl's eyes. Looking like she wanted to cry but didn't dare to, she stammered, “They said they want to duel you again.”
Hearing this, Xie Litang curled the corner of her lips and let out a chuckle. “That's why I say you're all trash, yet you refuse to admit it. When one can't beat me, you send another, on and on until someone finally can, right?”
“Where's your shame?”
“Oh.”
“Turns out you don't even have any shame left.”
The girl held up her phone, listened for another moment, and said, “They're asking what it will take for you to agree.”
Xie Litang turned to leave. Why the hell would she play house with these idiots?
With that time, she could proc Steel several more times.
Suddenly, as if struck by a thought, Xie Litang turned back and asked, “Did you just say I could state my conditions?”
The girl nodded. “Yes. Money, martial resources—within reason, anything is fine.”
Xie Litang instantly broke into a grin, her icy demeanor melting into a warm spring breeze. “That's easy enough. Go find me an ant nest right now, and I'll agree.”
The girl was stunned, thinking she had misheard. “What nest? An ant nest?”
Xie Litang raised a single finger. “One hour. I'll give you one hour. Deliver an ant nest to me, and I'll accept your challenge.”
“Otherwise, from now on, whenever I see someone from Jianghai High School, I'll beat them every single time.”
The girl readily agreed, and in fact, the entire Jianghai High School mobilized.
Everyone began sharing locations where ant nests could be found.
With nothing else to do, Xie Litang went to buy a can of soda.
Click~
She then leaned against the railing and sipped leisurely, the livestream camera aimed right at her against the setting sun.
【Has anyone actually found an ant nest yet?】
【Where are you supposed to find an ant nest in the city these days?】
【Unless you go outside the city.】
【Don't panic, I remember there was one in the woods over by Lakeview Park.】
【......】
【Then again, have you guys noticed? Xie Litang is actually really pretty.】
【Now that you mention it, you're totally right. That side profile is an easy nine out of ten.】
【Aside from having a trash ability, she hasn't really done anything wrong, right?】
The vibe of the bullet comments seemed to take a strange turn, but that was inevitable; when it came to looks, perhaps only Xue Qingyue could rival Xie Litang.
Unfortunately, the peace didn't last long.
The bullet comments were quickly flooded by a coordinated wave.
Every comment was filled with accusations of her being vain, running online dating scams, swindling money, and the like.
Xie Litang didn't pay any attention to them at all, and even if she had known, she wouldn't have cared.
In under forty minutes, a red sports car pulled up.
A bookish-looking boy wearing glasses stepped out of the car, walked over, and said,
“Hello, I'm Su Yang.”
“Mm. Did you find the ant nest?”
“We found it. So about the challenge?”
“Student Su Yang, shouldn't you explain the rules of the challenge first?”
“Xie Litang, what do you mean...?”
Xie Litang cracked her knuckles and continued, “First, I'm just one person, while the school has thousands. If you fight me once a day, isn't that suspect of running a gauntlet on me?”
“Second, I'm a melee type. When you fight me, you only need to study how to beat me, whereas when I fight you, I have to deal with all kinds of bizarre abilities. Isn't that unfair?”
“Third, what are the stakes? You can't expect me to serve as your free sparring partner every day, can you?”
“Think it through carefully before answering me.”
It wasn't that she was afraid of them, but having challenges every day would just annoy her.
Fighting them for half a day wouldn't even be as rewarding as swatting a few mosquitoes. What would be the point?
Su Yang stepped aside and conferred on his phone for a bit. Soon, he hung up, walked back over, and said, “We can agree to that.”
“First, if Student Xie wins, we will respect your wishes; subsequent challenges will only count after obtaining your consent, or you may come challenge us at any time.”
“Second, our school will only send melee-type students to challenge you.”
“Third, you set the stakes.”
Hearing this, Xie Litang gave a light laugh. “The stakes? Before challenging me in the future, bring me an ant nest. In addition, how about a little wager on the side?”
Su Yang asked, “What kind of wager?”
“Money.”
“How much is Student Xie planning to bet?”
“If I win, two hundred for the first time, four hundred for the second, eight hundred for the third, and so on, doubling each time until you can no longer afford the price and terminate the challenges. But the title of trash will stay branded on you for the rest of your lives.”
“Student Xie might be thinking a bit too highly of herself. What if you lose?”
“If I lose, I'll admit that I'm a piece of trash.”
“Fine. It's a deal.”
The next challenge was set for two days later.
Because the ant nest Xie Litang was carrying felt nice and heavy, she figured two days should be just enough time to finish stacking Steel from it.
Soon, the crowd dispersed in different directions.
Xie Litang went to a general goods store, bought a small desk lamp, and hurried back home.
After wolfing down a couple mouthfuls of food, she grabbed the desk lamp, picked up the black plastic bag and the washbasin, and headed out the door, calling, “Linling, I'm full! Going out for a bit!”
Up on the rooftop.
The small desk lamp was clicked on.
The ant nest was poked open.
And then...
Pure Steel-stacking bliss.
Rate on N.U.
