The Underdog 08

The entire venue fell silent; this accusation could be considered incredibly serious.

Fang Zhiyi turned his head. He had an impression of the person speaking. It was the very first classmate he had beaten up. That guy seemed to have gained the favor of some god, called the God of Fire or something...

"None of your damn business, idiot," Fang Zhiyi said directly.

The man froze for a moment, then instantly flew into a rage.

"You're courting death!" The flames in his hand surged. Fang Zhiyi raised an eyebrow. It really was true: once they obtained the power given by those gods, any Tom, Dick, or Harry could use esper abilities.

A stream of fire struck Fang Zhiyi directly. Unable to react in time, Mo Xuan rushed over frantically, shouting, "Stop..."

Some people gloated, some remained silent, and some couldn't bear to keep watching.

However, when the fire dissipated, Fang Zhiyi stood there completely unscathed.

"See, my bet paid off," Fang Zhiyi said.

Little Hei scoffed, "Wasn't it all thanks to my reminder?"

"H-how is this possible?" The man looked down at his own hand; the flames were real.

Fang Zhiyi curled his lip. "Why wouldn't it be?" Saying that, he strode up to the man and slapped him across the face, sending him spinning in a circle.

"Stop! Disrupting the order and showing contempt for the gods, your qualification as a Chosen of the Gods is revoked!" a majestic voice boomed.

Fang Zhiyi looked up and saw an old man. He remembered him; this old man was the principal.

"I don't need you to revoke it... I never planned on participating in the first place," Fang Zhiyi said nonchalantly. "I am an atheist." He paused. "Or rather, I don't believe in these false gods."

For a moment, the air in the venue froze.

"You, you actually dare to speak such treasonous words! You blasphemer!"

The crowd descended into panic.

"A blasphemer! Execute him on the spot!" someone roared. Several espers instantly leaped high into the air. They were originally there to maintain order and keep records.

Fang Zhiyi grinned, revealing a set of gleaming white teeth.

Several attacks of various colors hurtled toward Fang Zhiyi. Mo Xuan was extremely tense, but suddenly he saw Fang Zhiyi wave a hand at him. It meant for him to get out of there. Previously, whenever Fang Zhiyi was about to beat someone up, he would make this exact gesture to him.

An icicle condensed in the air and thrust toward Fang Zhiyi, but shattered with a bang just as it was about to pierce his body.

The same went for a sphere of light flashing with dangerous radiance, which vanished into thin air the moment it approached Fang Zhiyi.

Vines shooting up from the ground entangled him, but quickly withered and died.

The only burly esper swung a fist at him. Fang Zhiyi raised a hand, and the muscular man suddenly realized that the moment he made contact with Fang Zhiyi, the esper ability in his body disappeared without a trace. Immediately following that was an incredibly swift and fierce slap to his face.

Instantly, the scene fell dead silent.

"How, how is this possible?"

"What happened?"

"This blasphemer is actually fine? What did he do?"

Fang Zhiyi cracked his neck. "If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving." With that, he stepped off the stage, ready to depart. Facing Mo Xuan, who habitually wanted to follow him, Fang Zhiyi raised his hand. "Until we meet again."

Mo Xuan stopped in his tracks. He suddenly felt that the distance between him and the person before him was actually vast.

What Fang Zhiyi needed to do now was rush home, take his parents, and head to that place...

However, when he arrived near his home, the police tape before his eyes made his heart skip a beat.

It wasn't until an onlooker answered his unspoken question: "A faction of an evil god infiltrated this place. An esper squad has already gone in to deal with it." The person glanced at Fang Zhiyi and shook their head. "That's how it is, don't worry too much."

Unlike the original owner of his body, Fang Zhiyi stepped right over the police tape. This action immediately drew the displeasure of a guard: "Hey, civilian, step back!"

Fang Zhiyi ignored him.

"Can't you understand human speech?" The man reached out and fired a bolt of lightning. This amount of voltage was enough to make Fang Zhiyi pass out, but the lightning bolt simply vanished beside Fang Zhiyi.

"Huh?"

Fang Zhiyi didn't bother arguing with him and took large strides, running straight into the scene.

Just as he arrived, an explosion rang out. Fang Zhiyi's heart sank. He looked up; a massive hole had been blasted into his home.

"Why... did it happen earlier?" Fang Zhiyi's heart was filled with fury right now. It had been a long time since he was this angry.

Two people engaged in combat simultaneously looked at a young man slowly walking up the stairs. Both couldn't help but freeze for a moment, and then they saw a face radiating murderous intent.

"My parents aren't dead, so you should be thanking the gods."

By the time another esper squad arrived, the scene was in utter chaos.

Whether it was the cultists or the espers, they had almost been beaten beyond recognition, their identities nearly impossible to distinguish.

The next day, the Empire issued a wanted poster for Fang Zhiyi.

"Blasphemer. Danger level: Ten stars. Excellent physical fitness, possesses absolute combat skills, no esper abilities."

Below that was Fang Zhiyi's school admission photo and an ID number.

"Your bounty is quite high... Honestly, even I'm tempted." It was the still-talkative Mo Xuan. He was helping Fang Zhiyi pack his things, his mouth never resting. "Boss, you're really not being a good bro. You're already that badass, yet you actually kept it from me. My little heart was almost scared out of my chest back then, you know?"

Fang Zhiyi looked at the food, water, and some money he handed over, and glanced at him. "If you completely disbelieve in the gods, and I mean disbelieve from the very marrow of your bones, then the gods cannot obtain the power of faith from you, and the so-called esper abilities they provide will have no effect on you either."

Mo Xuan froze, staring at Fang Zhiyi with a somewhat dumbfounded expression.

"The condition is very harsh. I'm not talking about hating the gods, or despising the gods. I'm talking about... not believing. Do you understand?"

Looking at Mo Xuan's wise appearance, Fang Zhiyi patted his shoulder. "I'll be back. When that time comes, maybe you'll be able to go home."

Before Mo Xuan could react, Fang Zhiyi vanished into the dark night.

"I haven't even told you yet... I'm with... Forget it, I think he would definitely find me perverted." Mo Xuan shook his head. A hand rested on his shoulder: "What are you doing here all alone? Let's go back. You have to report to the esper squad tomorrow, don't you?"

Mo Xuan turned his head to look at Li Yana and chuckled.

"Where do you think Fang Zhiyi will escape to?"

Li Yana cast a suspicious glance at Mo Xuan. "You don't have ties with that dangerous individual, do you?"

Mo Xuan shook his head repeatedly. "I don't. I'm just curious."

Li Yana looked at him for a moment, and ultimately, affection gained the upper hand. "He won't be able to stay within the Empire's borders anymore. Blasphemers will be purged wherever they are, including his family..."

Speaking of family, Mo Xuan thought of Fang Zhiyi's parents, and his heart tightened. "What a bullshit rule."

In his heart, Fang Zhiyi was definitely the protagonist of this world. Tanking esper damage head-on, breaking through blockades, directly wiping out both the evil god cultists and the esper squad... A person like that would absolutely not die. All he needed to do was cling tightly to his coattails!

But if the protagonist lost his parents, that would be much more terrifying...