Invincible Snake Emperor

Chapter 612: Chapter 590: Disgusting Bai Junran

To be honest, despite his arrogance, Bai Junran was in a state of profound shock.

He wasn’t shocked by the terrifying extent of his opponent’s power, but by the fact that it was *him*.

’How old even *was* this so-called strongest freshman?’

Bai Junran had even suspected that his rival had heard about his breakthrough to Rank Three of Enlightenment and had gone into hiding, too afraid to show his face.

After all, following that defeat, he had channeled his humiliation into motivation, successfully achieving enlightenment in a single stroke and stunning the world. But when he emerged from his seclusion, the strongest freshman was nowhere to be found.

But now, meeting again, it was clear his opponent had successfully achieved enlightenment. And it was obviously much more than a simple breakthrough.

’Wiping out ten Fierce Beasts in one fell swoop... What a terrifying concept that was.’

Bai Junran was a genius with extraordinary Talent. His strength had skyrocketed after achieving enlightenment, yet he could barely manage to kill a single Fierce Beast in a one-on-one fight.

’If it was two against one, he’d be dead for sure. The gap was simply too vast.’

"Senior Bai, what’s wrong? Don’t tell me you’re so excited to see me that you’ve been struck speechless?"

Tu Xiao’an gave a faint, pleasant smile, a powerful aura radiating from his every move.

"Hmph..."

After a long moment, Bai Junran finally let out a heavy snort and turned his head away, unwilling to look at Tu Xiao’an.

’Is he trying to show off his might right in front of me?’

Just moments before, he had been thinking that if he ran into the "strongest freshman," he would have to thrash him soundly to get his revenge. But now, that very person was standing right in front of him.

Yet Bai Junran lacked even the courage for a single fight.

The reason was simple: the man had effortlessly killed ten Fierce Beasts. Not even the director of the Demon Management Bureau was necessarily capable of such a feat.

’Is there some expert hiding in the shadows?’

Bai Junran was unwilling to believe it. ’He was only gone for a month or so, and his strength has already improved to a heaven-defying degree?’

’Could it be he didn’t just achieve enlightenment, but went straight to Rank Four of Ascension?’

’Motherfucker!’ Bai Junran’s expression was as foul as could be; his face first turned a ghastly white, then flushed a deep crimson.

"Ah..."

Suddenly, a student cried out in astonishment, exclaiming, "I know who he is! He’s the former strongest freshman from the Ancient Academy!"

"What? He’s the strongest freshman?"

Upon hearing this, the surrounding students were shocked beyond belief. ’How did he manage that level of Cultivation? Did he just stuff his face with Immortal Pills?’

’Why is it that we’re all from the same academy, yet he’s strong enough to effortlessly slay ten Fierce Beasts?’

’Forget about us; even Senior Bai Junran is on a completely different level from him.’

’It’s just maddening to compare people.’

At this moment, everyone finally believed the story of Bai Junran’s prior defeat. A freakishly strong expert who could casually slay ten Fierce Beasts... you’d have to be a ghost to beat someone like that.

Such were the thoughts running through every student’s mind.

"He’s not just the ’strongest freshman’ anymore, he’s a total god," the students chattered among themselves.

"Hmph. We’re heading back."

Seeing the students whispering amongst themselves, Bai Junran barked angrily, turned on his heel, and stalked away, looking so furious he might explode on the spot.

Seeing Bai Junran’s livid expression, Tu Xiao’an chuckled to himself.

"Great Master, are you returning to the Ancient Academy with us?"

the students asked, looking with reverence at the calm and composed Tu Xiao’an.

Tu Xiao’an thought for a moment. His plans didn’t include immediately returning to the Ancient Academy; he wanted to go to the Demon Management Bureau.

’The director of the Demon Management Bureau is my servant now,’ he thought. ’The moment I go there, the entire Bureau will probably have to obey my commands.’

’Go back to the Ancient Academy? To be a student again? Get real.’

’Besides, the Demon Management Bureau is sitting on a lot of intelligence. They might even know where the War Relics connected to the real Taotie have opened up.’

"I can head back to Wencheng City with you all, but I won’t be returning to the Ancient Academy just yet. I have other plans,"

Tu Xiao’an said with a smile.

The students quickly agreed, saying that was great. Just having him agree to return to Wencheng with them was more than enough. With such a god-tier expert around, they wouldn’t be afraid even if they ran into a dozen Fierce Beasts.

The group took a small path and set off toward Wencheng City.

This was the outskirts of the city, a rather remote area. Even so, the silhouettes of numerous Fierce Beasts could be seen, a clear sign that Wencheng City was in a truly precarious situation, surely overrun by them.

Bai Junran walked alone at the head of the group, his pace brisk. If it weren’t for the junior students he had to look after, he would have simply vanished without a trace.

’Tu Xiao’an’s very presence is a mark of my shame. A shame, a loss of face, that I can’t even reclaim.’

’I’ve already reached Rank 3, yet the gap between us seems to have grown even wider. As a genius, where am I supposed to go to complain about this injustice?’

The wild and arrogant Bai Junran couldn’t bear this blow to his pride. The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. He was even slightly worried he wouldn’t be able to control his explosive temper and would challenge the man to a one-on-one fight.

Haha...!

Seeing Bai Junran’s utterly sullen and furious expression was incredibly satisfying to Tu Xiao’an.

’This kind of satisfaction is even better than beating him up.’

’He was doing this on purpose, just to get under the skin of the Bai Family’s young master. After that first defeat, he was sure the guy still hadn’t accepted it.’

’But now, I’m standing right in front of him. Does he dare fight me?’

’Obviously, he doesn’t. Haha...!’

"What’s your name?"

As they walked, Tu Xiao’an pulled aside a student who seemed pleasant enough and asked.

The student was instantly overwhelmed by the honor. He unconsciously bowed his body slightly and said with a smile, "My name is Chen Feng. It is an honor, Great Master."

"Don’t call me ’Great Master’. In terms of seniority at the academy, I only enrolled recently. I’m your junior brother, so just call me that."

"Great Master, you must be joking."

Cold sweat beaded on Chen Feng’s back. ’With your level of power, a student? You’ve got more than enough strength to be the dean!’

’And you want me to call you junior brother?’

Tu Xiao’an just smiled. ’In this world, might makes right,’ he mused. He then asked, "Can you tell me about the situation in Wencheng? I’ve been out of the province for a while, so I’m not really up to date."

"Great Master, are you back to save the people of Wencheng?" Chen Feng’s eyes burned with fervor. ’Someone who can single-handedly slay ten Fierce Beasts... such power is a blessing for Wencheng City!’

’He alone is probably worth more than the entire Ancient Academy.’

Tu Xiao’an remained noncommittal, waiting for the student to answer his question.

Chen Feng reined in his excitement and said, "Wencheng’s situation is dire. Almost half of the city has fallen. The Demon Management Bureau and the Ancient Academy have joined forces to move most of the population into a safe zone. We have layers of defenses set up by our human experts there, so it hasn’t been breached. It’s safe, for now."

’That "for now" is interesting,’ Tu Xiao’an mused. ’Just temporary.’

"Are there any stats for Wenzhou Province? How many Fierce Beasts are there currently?"

Chen Feng’s expression soured. "It’s hard to get a proper count. Both the Ancient Academy and the Demon Management Bureau send people out to hunt Fierce Beasts every day, but strangely, their numbers aren’t decreasing at all. If anything, there are more and more of them."

"The worst part is the attrition. Our strength is constantly being drained, while the Fierce Beast forces only continue to grow stronger."

When humans face a Fierce Beast Taotie, even if they manage to slay it, the cost is always immense.

A Rank 3 master is completely outmatched, and besides, how many Rank 3 masters can Wencheng City even have?

It takes a large group of human experts just to fight a single Fierce Beast, and in many cases, the entire team is still wiped out.

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