Chapter 18 – Gale Sickle Weasel, Can't Withstand a Single Blow

In the height of summer, the climate within Five Springs Mountain—resembling a primeval forest—was stiflingly hot.

The dense moisture in the air combined with the scorching sun overhead made one’s clothes damp after just a short while, creating a highly uncomfortable sensation.

Under the shade of a tree, Lu Chen was engrossed in playing a game, his gaze never leaving the phone screen, seemingly indifferent to everything around him.

Yet, about thirty meters away from him, a black sickle weasel was crouched low, slowly creeping toward him.

The Swiftwind Sickle Weasel was one of the more notorious demons in Five Springs Mountain.

Its appearance somewhat resembled a marten, with a slender body.

Coupled with a tail sharp as a blade and limbs brimming with explosive power,

few Yao Beasts could rival the Swiftwind Sickle Weasel in instantaneous bursts of speed.

The best way to deal with such a creature was to engage it in confined spaces, restricting its range of movement.

Once entangled in an open area, given its explosive power, even an ordinary Cultivator would find it difficult to escape.

It could be said that in the outer regions of Five Springs Mountain, the Swiftwind Sickle Weasel was undoubtedly one of the most challenging demons to handle.

Yet, Lu Chen beneath the tree appeared completely unaware, still focused on his game.

With his cultivation level already inferior to the Swiftwind Sickle Weasel’s, and now being ambushed by a prepared foe,

the teachers outside the Secret Realm believed that unless Lu Chen possessed some Heaven-Defying ability, his defeat and exit were inevitable.

But did Lu Chen have such capability?

They thought not, but in reality… he truly did!

“Has it set its sights on me…”

While pretending not to notice the Swiftwind Sickle Weasel, Lu Chen secretly kept track of it, searching for the right moment to strike.

To outsiders, Lu Chen seemed wholly absorbed in his phone from start to finish.

In truth, he had been perceiving his surroundings through a unique method.

However, his observation technique differed from what others might expect—he judged the environment based on the ‘sounds’ around him.

As is widely known, the essence of sound is actually sound waves generated by the vibration of objects.

And Lu Chen’s ability to cultivate Water Dragon’s Roar to a breakthrough level

undoubtedly signified that his comprehension of vibrational force had reached an astonishing Realm.

Anyone, as long as they moved, would interact with the surrounding environment, creating subtle vibrational ripples.

These ripples might go unnoticed by ordinary people, but Lu Chen could detect them instantly.

Although Lu Chen had not yet reached the point where he could fight relying solely on ‘vibrational perception,’

using it to detect enemies in the vicinity was still quite effortless.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have dared to sit so blatantly under the tree playing on his phone.

Fifty meters was the current limit of Lu Chen’s perception.

This distance meant little to demons at the Foundation Establishment Stage or above, but it was more than sufficient for those at the Qi Condensation Stage.

Perhaps believing that Lu Chen was already trapped,

once it closed within twenty meters, the Swiftwind Sickle Weasel launched its attack in an instant.

Whoosh.

With a demonic gust swirling up from the bushes, a black shadow shot toward Lu Chen at an astonishing speed.

In the blink of an eye, the shadow reached Lu Chen’s side, opening its gaping maw to bite his smooth neck.

But the moment the Swiftwind Sickle Weasel attacked, Lu Chen’s figure vanished.

Thud!

The sickle weasel’s fangs snapped shut on empty air.A teasing voice sounded above its head.

“You’re quite patient indeed. I waited ten minutes for you to show up. Take this!”

Lu Chen delivered a whip kick to the Gale Sickle Weasel’s waist, sending its four-meter-long body flying backward as if struck by a sound.

It tumbled several times on the ground before finally coming to a stop.

Fortunately, demon bodies are quite robust. After getting up, the Gale Sickle Weasel merely shook its head and quickly recovered.

Watching Lu Chen land gracefully from the air, its eyes filled with wariness.

This prey… wasn’t easy to deal with.

While controlling his game character to investigate methods for advancing to Outer Sect Disciple in the Azure Cloud Sect, Lu Chen divided his attention to monitor the Gale Sickle Weasel not far away.

He didn’t know whether the teachers outside the Secret Realm were aware of the situation inside.

Nor did he know if they were paying attention to him.

But given the school’s emphasis on this mock exam, Lu Chen assumed they were likely observing every move of the students within the Secret Realm through some method unknown to him.

His current actions would undoubtedly catch the teachers’ eyes.

This would greatly help in building his persona.

A gaming addict – this was the persona Lu Chen intended to craft for himself.

Otherwise, it would be difficult to explain why he was always on his phone in daily life.

Moreover, Lu Chen wasn’t just playing now. Even if he later entered the Dao Academy, he would still devote most of his time to True Immortal Cultivation.

So he had to first label himself as a gaming addict, making similar situations less abrupt in the future.

I’m even playing games during the mock exam – isn’t this gaming addict persona solid enough?

If others think ten steps ahead for every move, Lu Chen thinks a hundred steps ahead.

Though he hadn’t even been admitted to the Dao Academy yet, he was already planning his conduct and style within it.

He had truly mastered the art of being steady!

Unlike Lu Chen’s outwardly calm demeanor, the Gale Sickle Weasel had already assumed an attacking posture.

It stared fixedly at Lu Chen, lowering its body with its blade-like tail raised high.

In response, Lu Chen first put away his phone, then drew an ordinary Magic Sword from his Storage Bag.

“Playing games all the time isn’t really good. Time to put in some effort.”

As the words fell, the Gale Sickle Weasel’s pupils instantly contracted.

Because it watched helplessly as Lu Chen disappeared right before its eyes!

Before it could react, a clear sword cry rang by its ear.

This became the last sound it would ever hear.

Slish!

With a flash of cold light, the Gale Sickle Weasel’s head separated from its body.

“Eight points, I’ll take them.”

Standing beside the demon’s corpse, Lu Chen lightly flicked the brown blood from his sword, then sat back under the tree and resumed playing on his phone.

Overwhelming – a one-sided domination.

From beginning to end, Lu Chen demonstrated absolute superiority over the Gale Sickle Weasel.

Throughout the entire encounter, he maintained an air of effortless ease.

He wasn’t so much fighting as performing some trivial task.

Such prowess naturally shocked the teachers outside the Secret Realm.

Watching Lu Chen on the screen, they were utterly dumbfounded.The teacher with a square face, who had been quite dissatisfied with Lu Chen earlier, now changed his previously stern tone and praised, “Excellent, excellent! Not only were his movements fluid and natural, but his strikes were also clean and decisive. I take back my earlier words—this student is outstanding, truly outstanding!”

“Teacher Chen, isn’t he from your class? Teacher Chen, you’ve really kept this under wraps! We had no idea about such talent before. You’ve given us all a huge surprise.”

Not only the square-faced teacher, but even Li Youquan now wore a complicated expression as he said, “Old Chen, is this really a student you taught? Didn’t you come to No. 1 High just to coast along?”

“And you used to tell me this kid Lu Chen had mediocre, unremarkable talent. So this is what you call ‘unremarkable’?”

“Unremarkable enough to effortlessly slay a Qi Condensation Stage Four Demon with only Qi Condensation Stage Three cultivation.”

“If this is unremarkable, then no one at No. 1 High could be considered remarkable!”

Faced with Li Youquan’s questioning, Chen Fugui’s mind had long turned to mush.

To be honest, before today, he hadn’t known Lu Chen possessed such capabilities either.

But at this moment, could he possibly speak this truth aloud?

If he really said it, wouldn’t it make him appear utterly incompetent as a teacher, unaware of his own student’s true strength?

Thus, to defend his dignity, Chen Fugui decided to let this misunderstanding continue.

Facing his colleagues’ peculiar gazes, Chen Fugui adjusted his glasses, his plump round face revealing an inscrutable expression.

“You’re absolutely right. As Little Lu’s homeroom teacher, I recognized the immense potential hidden within this child long ago.”

“What he’s shown today is merely the tip of the iceberg. Just wait and see—he won’t disappoint any of you.”

Hearing Chen Fugui’s words, the teachers’ perception of Lu Chen underwent a complete 180-degree reversal.

Previously, Lu Chen was seen as: playing games during mock exams, self-indulgent and degenerate, disregarding rules and discipline!

Now, Lu Chen was viewed as: playing games during mock exams, supremely confident, exceptionally gifted!

This truly illustrated that old saying: when you’re sufficiently outstanding, everything you do is right.

But when you’re not outstanding enough, even your breathing is wrong.

In the teachers’ eyes now, Lu Chen was undoubtedly the very definition of excellence.

(End of Chapter)