This is the most troublesome group I've ever fucking led.

To be honest, that helpless and pitiful expression on Liu Yuan’s face made Su Qi’s heart soften for a moment.

At the end of the day, Liu Yuan was just a brat who had barely reached adulthood this year.

Who knew what their teacher was thinking, throwing them into such a brutal, fear-inducing training regimen right from the start.

But Su Qi couldn’t deny it—this was the most direct and effective method.

Don’t be fooled by Liu Yuan’s tearful state now. It was just the aftermath of a tightly wound tension finally snapping.

Letting out the emotions bottled up inside was good for her.

After this crying session, her mentality had already surpassed ninety-nine percent of martial examinees.

Next time, even if he wasn’t around, she’d have the courage to face creatures of her level in the mystic realm.

As for encountering higher-tier creatures?

Su Qi could only say: Play the fool once, and that’s enough.

What, were they supposed to stick around and wait for a commendation banner?

But the fight was already over.

Where was their class’s teacher?

Watching the show more engrossed than he was?

Why wasn’t he stepping in to clean up the mess?

That utterly useless Xu Kun on the ground—from Su Qi’s perspective—probably wouldn’t last much longer.

In fact, Su Qi suspected this was all a staged "ambush" arranged by Liu Yuan’s teacher.

And that teacher was undoubtedly lurking in some dark corner, observing their desperate struggles.

Bound by the guardian agreement, Su Qi couldn’t intervene unless their lives were in immediate danger.

That’s why his earlier words had been more like guidance than anything else.

"It’s okay, stop crying."

"I’m here now."

But instead of calming down, Liu Yuan’s emotions spiraled further out of control.

Like a wounded little beast, she whimpered, frantically trying to wipe away the blood staining her.

"Su Qi… I… I really thought I was going to die…"

Su Qi wasn’t great at comforting girls, so he just stiffly replied, "As long as I’m standing here, you don’t need to worry about that unless I die first."

Liu Yuan’s mood remained low, only letting out a faint "Mm," the lingering fear in her eyes slowly fading.

But only slowly.

Words weren’t some miracle cure, after all.

Scared?

Good. She should be.

Su Qi hadn’t been much better during his first trip into the Source Realm.

All romanticized notions of the Source Realm shattered in moments like these.

No dazzling magic duels, no exhilarating clashes of blades—

Forget about soaring on swords or vanquishing demons across the land…

Just flying chunks of flesh and splattering blood.

At least, that’s how it was for low-tier transcendents.

Their limited methods meant close-quarters combat was their strongest option.

As for those stories where the protagonist felt no fear after killing monsters or people for the first time—even feeling a twisted excitement—

If they wanted to make their protagonist special, this wasn’t the way.

Su Qi’s advice? Go check into a psychiatric ward and stop ruining things for everyone else.

What exactly was so exciting about it?

The stench of rotting fluids splattering all over you?

Squishing pulped flesh and blood underfoot?

Or maybe your comrades’ scattered organs strewn across the ground?

If anything, irrational psychopaths often exhibited these traits in their youth.

Of course, once you got used to it, it was whatever.

At the very least, Su Qi still had the appetite to munch on a slice of watermelon, didn’t he?

Su Qi leisurely took another bite of the half-eaten watermelon in his hand before hopping down from the unusually thick tree branch.

But his gaze wasn’t on Liu Yuan—it was fixed on the opposite riverbank.

A moderately strong presence was rapidly approaching from that direction.

Old Li came sprinting, roughly plowing through the underbrush before executing a leap no ordinary human could manage, clearing the nearly ten-meter-wide river in a single bound.

Bracing one hand on his knee and wiping sweat from his forehead, he gasped for breath.

"You guys…"

"Are seriously the most trouble-making batch I’ve ever taught… I…"

He was about to curse some more when his eyes landed on Xu Kun—his chest pierced, blood gushing uncontrollably.

The agony had Xu Kun writhing wildly on the ground, his face contorted into something monstrous.

Even the summoned spear in his grip flickered, on the verge of dissipating.

His time was up.

"Save me…"

His fingers clawed at the dirt, dragging himself toward Su Qi.

Of course, Su Qi wouldn’t lift a finger for him.

He was too busy enjoying the show.

This teacher was a real veteran actor.

Look at him—clearly in control the whole time, yet playing up the "hero arriving fashionably late" trope so well.

The exhaustion from rushing over, the tension on his face, the barely restrained fury…

What dedication, just to leave an unforgettable impression on these students.

Su Qi definitely couldn’t pull off a performance like that.

Tsk.

Back in his day, schools couldn’t afford teachers of this caliber.

As for students nearly wiping themselves out under their teacher’s supervision?

Su Qi didn’t think human language could even form such a sentence.

He’d never seen anything so stupid.

…

Old Li’s furious roar died in his throat.

He’d been clearing Source Realm creatures when he sensed undead among them and immediately aborted his mission to rush back to camp.

Undead didn’t discriminate—they’d charge at any living thing they sensed.

But when he arrived…

Only a field of abandoned luggage remained.

No signs of a struggle…

Those brats really thought they were on a damn picnic?

If they’d run into the undead…

Old Li didn’t even want to imagine the consequences.

At best, half of them would’ve died. His teaching career would’ve been over.

He might’ve even ended up in Transcendent Court, tried for suspected intentional negligence leading to student deaths.

But of course—the more you feared something, the more likely it was to happen.

Teachers on field trips carried perception-type cards precisely for emergencies requiring "needle-in-a-haystack" searches.

When Old Li recklessly expanded his soul sense…

He nearly passed out.

Twenty-four life signatures tangled with thirty undead presences…

With his years of teaching experience, one conclusion was inevitable: These students were doomed.

Undead were like ghosts—most humans were born with an innate fear of them.

Old Li cursed his mother for only giving him two legs!

He sprinted like his life depended on it.

When he finally arrived, the chaotic scene before him—

One critical injury, five fractures, three minor wounds…

Suddenly, it didn’t seem so bad?

A flame ignited in Old Li’s palm as he strode toward Xu Kun.

Without hesitation, he pressed his hand hard against Xu Kun’s chest.

A sickening sizzle filled the air as the stench of charred flesh made the surrounding students pale.

Xu Kun’s pupils contracted violently. "Aaaargh—!"

His body convulsed uncontrollably.

"Two of you, hold him down!" Old Li’s roar snapped the dazed students to attention.

Immediately, four boys lunged forward—each pinning down one of Xu Kun’s limbs.

Whether they were seizing the chance to settle scores was unclear.

After all, if not for Xu Kun’s idiocy, would they be in this mess?

One guy even tried to shove an iron chain into Xu Kun's mouth to muffle his agonized screams, but Old Li glared him down. "What the hell are you doing? Trying to break his teeth? Find something softer."

Reluctantly, the guy took off his shoes and stuffed two crusty, blackened socks into Xu Kun's mouth.

Even Old Li winced, subtly edging away.

The flame licked back and forth over the festering, toxin-eaten wound.

Bits of rotting flesh peeled away, the sickly green-black hue fading slightly.

A girl asked curiously, "Teacher, will Xu Kun be cured like this?"

Old Li rolled his eyes. "Cured? What cure?"

"This is just a temporary stopgap to staunch the bleeding. He needs to be sent to the hospital. Then we’ll see if we can swap in another student—can’t waste the spot."

"Any of you injured folks who want out can leave with him."

What were these kids thinking?

He was just a sixth-tier teacher—did they expect him to scout, fight, and heal?

"Alright, whose idea was this? I won’t yell."

No one spoke, their gazes all drifting pointedly toward Xu Kun.

Old Li immediately exploded. "Then this dumbass fucking deserves to be lying here."