The Same Old Tactics for Picking a Fight: Provocation, Getting Beaten Up, Making Threats

"Hey kid, where are you from?"

Ten Soul Masters, around twelve or thirteen years old, blocked Ouyang Ling's path. The boy leading them looked Ouyang Ling up and down a few times before fixing his gaze on Ouyang Ling's slightly immature face.

Ouyang Ling raised an eyebrow slightly: "..."

Is this some kind of baseless harassment? That's quite interesting. But then again, why use such an old trick?

"Hey—, I'm asking you a question!?"

Seeing that Ouyang Ling not only remained silent but also gradually turned into crescent-shaped eyes, exuding a sense of "boredom," the leading boy felt a surge of inexplicable anger.

This kid seems so annoyingly irritating!

But before he could get angry,

"Can't you see for yourself?"

With a nonchalant tone tinged with disdain, Ouyang Ling tugged at his pale yellow school uniform and the badge bearing the name "Tianzhi," saying, "I'm your senior, so mind your place."

Clearly, none of the guys who surrounded them were above level 25, otherwise their badges wouldn't be labeled "Tianwei".

"Mind your…mind your place!? You're letting me have it!?"

"And senior?! You're younger than me!"

In an instant, the leading boy's face turned red with anger.

My whole body turned bright red!

"Otherwise what?"

A glint of light flashed in his eyes, but he remained expressionless.

"Alright."

Ouyang Ling used his plate to push the leading boy aside, not even glancing at him again. "A good dog doesn't block the way, get out of the way."

As I walked forward, passing the leading boy by the side,

"call--"

The sound of wind breaking suddenly rang out, followed by...

"when--"

A delicate fist was firmly held in place by a perfectly frozen plate, so frozen that the fist was stuck to it and couldn't be pulled off.

Under the bewildered gaze of the leading boy, the frozen plate was slowly moved aside, revealing Ouyang Ling's "silent" pupils.

"You made the move."

"So what!?"

The leader broke out in a cold sweat. He glanced frequently at his other henchmen, who remained frozen in place, and could only manage a blustering but ultimately weak response, "I'm going to do it! What are you going to do about it?!"

"And I am..."

Before the leader could finish speaking, a fist appeared in his field of vision. He didn't even have time to react…

"boom--"

"Ouch—"

With a scream of pain, a bruised black eye appeared on the left side of the boy's eye. He stumbled backward, and as soon as he regained his footing, he incredulously bumped into his eye socket.

The next second, intense pain swept over me.

"Ah—you dare slap me in the face!"

"nonsense."

Ouyang Ling cracked his wrists, his face contorted in a ferocious expression.

"Since you've made a move, be prepared to get beaten up."

"What...what do you want to do!? I am..."

"I don't care who you are! Take this!"

Interrupting the leader's words once again, Ouyang Ling struck again. And then… "Bang bang, boom—, ah—"

The sounds of collisions, groans, and screams echoed throughout the cafeteria, quickly attracting a large number of students.

The group of guys following behind the leader, upon seeing their "boss" get beaten up, either retreated quickly, fearing they would be caught in the crossfire, or covered their eyes and turned their heads away, unable to bear watching any longer. Not a single one of them intended to go up and lend a hand.

That kid is too vicious!

The same idea quickly surfaced in the minds of this group of people.

Calculating the time, it was about time; more people would arrive soon, and since he had vented his anger, Ouyang Ling decided to call it a day.

He bent down and tore the plate off the leader's fist, then patted the ice shards and torn skin off the plate with a gasp, acting as if nothing had happened, without even a wrinkle in his school uniform.

On the other hand, that troublemaker...

He was lying on the ground, his head swollen up to look like a pig's head, his eyes were symmetrical, and there was blood in the corner of his mouth. He was panting heavily.

Although it looked serious, Ouyang Ling was careful with his actions. No matter how you examined it, it was only a superficial injury; in fact, a single healing soul skill at the level of a Great Soul Master could completely heal it.

This is a big shot, it wouldn't be good if something went wrong.

"Nu...Nugojawo...Nuwale!"

The leader was helped to his feet by his "underlings" behind him, his eyes flashing with fear as he uttered some indistinct threats.

But coincidentally, Ouyang Ling could hear it clearly.

"Um?"

A glance swept over him, then moved down to look at his fingers.

"I don't like being told what to do."

He swiftly reached out, before the other man could react.

"Click—"

"Ah—" Seeing the index finger bent upwards at nearly ninety degrees, the leading boy immediately let out a pig-like scream.

However, of all his injuries, this is probably the most serious.

"The furious family is wasting their time and resources; give it all to the fifth-rank official!"

The group of henchmen behind him: "..."

Huh?! We're supposed to go up?!

They looked at each other, not daring to step forward.

Just then, someone shouted, "What are you all still doing here?!"

A voice suddenly rang out, and a tall, slender young man with long black hair walked over. Ouyang Ling looked over and noticed that his school uniform also had a badge with the words "Tianzhi" on it.

The black-haired youth stepped forward, completely ignoring the leader, and crossed his arms to face the group of guys who were "too afraid to go up, too afraid to leave." "What do you want? Want to talk to me?"

As he spoke, he subtly shielded Ouyang Ling behind him.

Ouyang Ling raised an eyebrow: "..."

This guy is interesting.

The ringleader who was beaten: "..."

What do you want us to do with it?

Can't you see how badly I was beaten?

"roll!"

Recognizing who it was, the leader could only swallow his anger. Supported by his "underlings," he staggered around...

Fine, get out!

Seeing that the beaten man had left, and there was no more excitement to be seen, the crowd quickly dispersed, leaving only Ouyang Ling and the black-haired youth behind.

"Alright, little brother, are you alright?"

The black-haired youth turned around and said to Ouyang Ling.

"Of course I'm fine."

Ouyang Ling gestured with his chin in that direction.

"I hit that guy; those cowards didn't dare to lay a hand on him."

"and…"

He took off the badge and showed it to the black-haired youth.

"I'm your classmate, not your little brother."

"Oh?"

The black-haired youth stared intently, his pupils suddenly contracting.

Heaven has arrived!

That means... this guy who looks several years younger than me has already broken through level 25!? Are you kidding me!? Could it be that he's not growing up because of his martial spirit, and only looks like he's eight or nine years old?

Hmm, that's possible.

Just as the black-haired youth was brainstorming, Ouyang Ling, standing beside him, looked at him strangely, watching as expressions of shock, astonishment, deep thought, and understanding flashed by in sequence.

What is this guy thinking?

Ouyang Ling shook his head, but his thoughts were elsewhere.

He just shook his head regretfully when he saw the plate in his hand.

"Looks like I'll have to find another one." With that, he prepared to leave.

Seeing the black-haired youth still standing there, he couldn't help but call out, "Hey—, have you had breakfast yet?"

"Not yet," the black-haired youth answered instinctively.

"Together?"

Ouyang Ling's invitation surprised him for a moment, then he smiled and said:

"Okay."