Welcoming the Newborn

The next day.

The morning sunlight spilled across the marble gates of Huaqing Academy, gilding the red-and-gold welcome banner with a bright rim of light.

A row of folding tables had been set up along the tree-lined path. Chen Guan chose the most secluded corner and sat down.

He removed the black coffin from his back. Its heavy metal base slammed into the flagstones with a dull thud, and the ground trembled, splitting with a hairline crack.

Chen Guan glanced innocently at the damage. What a familiar spot. This time last year, he seemed to have broken this poor section of pavement in exactly the same place.

The only difference was that the people sitting here were no longer Li Yuqing and Huo Qixing. Now, it was Senior Chen.

The freshmen who had been chattering away fell silent as if someone had pressed a mute button. One after another, they edged toward the opposite side of the road. No one wanted to get close to this bizarre senior carrying a murder weapon on his back.

Chen Guan looked completely innocent. It couldn't possibly be his fault.

Fortunately, he was happy to enjoy the peace and quiet. He leaned against the cold coffin and closed his eyes to rest.

Baobao crouched beside him, its purple tail sweeping fallen leaves across the ground.

Long Ao pushed his way through the crowd, carrying two oversized combination cases. Sweat covered his forehead. He set the cases down heavily, making the ground tremble once again.

“You sure know how to shirk your duties. Come over here and help move this stuff.”

Chen Guan opened one eye and replied lazily, “This is meant to train the pillars of the new era.”

Long Ao ground his teeth. “Are you very old?”

Long Ao hadn't minded Chen Guan slacking off when he was still an invalid. But now that he had recovered, there was no excuse for him to keep lazing around.

An Changqing approached with a register and pushed a form in front of Chen Guan. “Chen Guan, Professor Situ assigned you a task. You’re responsible for filling out these forms.”

Chen Guan sat up straight. Looking at the pile of white sheets that was practically stacked into a small mountain, he felt his soul leave his body.

“Can I refuse?”

An Changqing smiled gently as he handed him a pen. There was a knife hidden behind that smile.

“Professor Situ said that refusing will cost you credits.”

He muttered under his breath, “I should never have come back.”

Su Yuehe let out a soft laugh. “Who told you that you’re Professor Situ’s favorite? You’re the first person she thinks of whenever she needs someone to exploit.”

“This isn’t popularity. It’s unpaid overtime. Shameful.”

After moving the last box of promotional pamphlets, Long Ao collapsed into the empty chair beside him, crushing it beneath his weight. He grabbed a form and waved it like a fan, puffing air over his face.

An Changqing handed him a bottle of water. Long Ao thanked him and downed it in just a few gulps.

“Hungry.”

At his feet, Baobao nudged his calf with its head, its purple tail weakly swishing across the ground.

Chen Guan searched through his pockets and could only find a small demon core, which he handed over. He was beginning to realize that Baobao’s appetite was growing larger by the day.

Baobao’s tongue flicked out and swallowed the core whole, refining it in an instant. Yet its violet eyes still radiated hunger.

“That’s all. We’ve exceeded today’s budget.”

Chen Guan spread his empty hands.

Su Yuehe took pity on it and pulled out another handful of demon cores, giving Baobao an extra meal.

Baobao ate happily, then ran around Su Yuehe in delight. It clearly lived by the principle of forgetting its master the moment someone else offered it benefits.

Just then, a figure passed through the bustling crowd. Ignoring the intimidating aura that everyone else was avoiding, he walked straight toward this isolated corner.

He was a thin, frail-looking boy wearing black-rimmed glasses. Even his walk was unsteady.

He stopped directly in front of Chen Guan’s table.

“Hello, Senior.”

The boy’s voice was refined and clean, but his gaze passed straight over Chen Guan and fixed itself on the black coffin behind him.

Chen Guan tapped the end of his pen against the tabletop and jerked his chin toward the side.

“The registration forms are over there. Take one yourself.”

“I’m not here to register.”

The boy shook his head. He adjusted the thick glasses on the bridge of his nose, but his eyes remained locked onto the black coffin.

“Senior, may I touch it?”

Everyone froze.

Before Chen Guan could react, Long Ao was the first to explode. He shot to his feet, the legs of his chair scraping against the ground with an earsplitting screech. Looking down at the boy, who was half a head shorter than him, he said, “Looking for trouble?”

The boy seemed not to feel Long Ao’s pressure at all. He simply stared stubbornly at Chen Guan and repeated himself.

“May I, Senior?”

Chen Guan studied him. The thick lenses concealed his eyes, but they could not hide the intense focus practically spilling from him.

“No.”

His refusal was crisp and decisive.

“I’m sorry, Senior. That was rude of me.” The boy introduced himself with a wave of his hand. In an instant, all kinds of demon cores appeared on the table, each of them seemingly of excellent quality. “My name is Shan Heng.”

“I noticed that your pet didn’t seem to have had enough to eat. Please accept these as a small apology.”

“No need. It was only a minor matter. There’s no reason to go to such expense.”

Chen Guan didn’t accept the demon cores. There was something strange about this person, and he had no intention of accepting a gift from someone whose motives were unclear.

“Please, you must accept them.”

The sunlight reflected off Shan Heng’s lenses, making his expression impossible to see. All that could be sensed was an almost pathological persistence.

“Are your ears broken?”

Long Ao took a step forward. The flagstone beneath his foot groaned under the strain, clearly suffering another brutal assault. He flexed his fingers, producing a series of crisp cracks.

“My friend said no. And he said you’re not allowed to touch it.”

An Changqing reached out and pressed a hand against Long Ao’s shoulder, signaling him to calm down. He looked at the frail boy and tried to reason with him gently.

“Student, that’s my friend’s private property. It’s not very convenient.”

“You’re here to register as a new student, aren’t you? I can take you to the dorms.”

An Changqing offered him an easy way out. Unfortunately, Shan Heng clearly had no intention of accepting his kindness. He continued to stare at Chen Guan with that frighteningly obsessive gaze.

Chen Guan frowned slightly. A student capable of entering Huaqing Academy clearly wasn’t intellectually deficient. From what Chen Guan could tell, Shan Heng’s strength was probably around the fourth tier.

Compared to them, that was nothing. But among this year’s freshmen, he was definitely no weakling. He would most likely qualify for the Tianshu Class.

When something was abnormal, there was always a reason.

Chen Guan tried to soften his tone and imitated An Changqing’s manner as he asked, “May I ask why you’re so determined?”

He wouldn’t overlook anything that might be connected to coffins.

“Senior, even if I told you the truth now, you wouldn’t believe me.” Shan Heng’s face went pale as he shook his head. “Senior, I was out of line today. I’m very sorry.”

With that, Shan Heng, who had been so stubborn moments earlier, turned and scurried away. He was like an entirely different person from before, as though the question Chen Guan had asked was something truly terrifying.

“What a weirdo.”

Long Ao watched Shan Heng’s retreating back and, after a moment, finally managed to sum him up in two words.

“Shan Heng…” Su Yuehe said. “I’ll have someone look into him later.”

She also found the new student suspicious, so Su Yuehe decided to deploy the box weapon directly.