13: Chapter 13 The School Beauty's Intuition

"Next, Lin Fan!"

Old Zhang's voice rose an octave, filled with anticipation.

Since Fatty could reach such a level, how terrifying would Lin Fan be as the creator of the blind boxes?

The entire audience held their breath.

All eyes were fixed on Lin Fan like searchlights. There was expectation, jealousy, doubt, and also the venomous spite from Wang Teng, who couldn't wait for him to make a fool of himself.

Lin Fan sighed.

Troublesome.

He hated this feeling of being stared at like a monkey.

But he had to go up. Moreover, he had to control his strength carefully.

His current blood qi value was 5.0, a Rank Five Martial Apprentice. If he exploded with full force, the only fate for this primary testing machine used by the school would be turning into a pile of scrap metal.

That would be too high-profile.

A tree that stands out from the forest will be destroyed by the wind. Before he had fully grown, exposing such monstrous strength prematurely would only invite the wariness of major powers, or even lead to him being dissected for research.

"Thirty percent power, then."

Lin Fan calculated silently in his mind, "No, twenty percent. As long as it's a bit higher than Wang Teng's."

He needed to slap Wang Teng's face while also hiding a portion of his strength.

This was a delicate task.

Lin Fan walked to the testing machine.

He didn't take off his coat, nor did he even put down his backpack. He just stood there casually, showing no signs of gathering power.

"Playing tricks," Wang Teng snorted coldly from the side.

Lin Fan raised his hand.

His movement was very slow and soft, like an old man practicing Tai Chi in the park early in the morning, appearing completely harmless.

The surrounding students showed expressions of disappointment.

Is that it?

This is the legendary street-stall blind box boss?

However.

At the very moment before his fist touched the padding.

The muscle fibers under Lin Fan's skin suddenly contracted, and the terrifying density of Vajra Skin instantly erupted. But he kept this power tightly locked within his body without any leakage, letting it explode only within the small space of the contact point.

Inch-power.

*Puff.*

A soft sound.

The sound was very faint, not even as loud as swatting a mosquito.

The testing machine didn't shake, and the padding didn't cave in significantly.

"Hahahaha!"

Wang Teng finally couldn't help but burst out laughing, "Didn't you eat? Does this punch have any power? I bet even a girl's..."

*Beep.*

The synthesized electronic voice ruthlessly interrupted his mockery.

The numbers on the screen jumped and then froze.

[punch force: 750kg]

Then came the blood qi value.

[blood qi value: 0.9]

The laughter came to an abrupt halt.

Wang Teng was like a duck being strangled by the neck, the rest of his words stuck in his throat.

750kg?

How was this possible? How could that weak-looking punch produce a reading of 750kg?

Although it was only a bit higher than Wang Teng's 650 and couldn't compare to Fatty's 880, it was solidly above the passing line. Moreover, with a blood qi value of 0.9, it was only 0.05 lower than Wang Teng's!

For a trash student with an F-Rank Talent, this was already a miracle!

"It's alright."

Lin Fan withdrew his hand, looked at the data, and showed a barely satisfied expression. "I passed. I didn't hold the class back."

Old Zhang was stunned for a moment, then nodded.

Though not as stunning as Fatty's, Lin Fan's result was enough to surprise him. To reach 0.9 with an F-Rank Talent meant this kid had definitely worked incredibly hard in private.

"It seems the blind boxes have significantly improved you as well," Old Zhang remarked.

Lin Fan smiled and didn't explain.

Improved?

This is just the tip of the iceberg of my strength.

He turned and walked back, not even pausing as he passed by Wang Teng.

Wang Teng stared intently at Lin Fan's back, his face so gloomy it looked like it could drip water.

Although he won in terms of data, he felt like he had lost everything. Because Lin Fan's calm attitude—that relaxed sense of "I can match you even while just playing around"—hurt more than Fatty's direct face-slapping.

"He's lying."

At the back of the classroom.

Su Qingxue, who had been watching coldly from the sidelines, narrowed her clear, cold eyes and locked onto Lin Fan's back.

Others were fooled by Lin Fan's disguise.

But she wasn't.

As an Awakened with an A-rank Ice Talent, her perception of heat was extremely acute.

At the moment Lin Fan threw the punch, she clearly felt an incredibly terrifying heatwave flash through his body.

That wasn't a temperature a blood qi of 0.9 could produce.

That was a forcibly suppressed active volcano! The blood qi fluctuations hidden beneath the calm surface were ten or a hundred times more violent than Fatty's C-Rank Talent!

"Restrained blood qi, hidden depth."

Su Qingxue's fingers lightly tapped the desk, a thin layer of frost condensing under her fingertips.

"Lin Fan, just how many secrets are you hiding?"

Not only does he have blind boxes that can evolve people, but he also possesses such terrifying strength himself. This boy, who originally had no presence in class, was now full of fatal attraction in her eyes.

It was curiosity toward the strong and a desire to explore the unknown.

"Alright, the testing continues!"

Old Zhang's shout pulled everyone back to reality.

Lin Fan returned to the corner, and Fatty immediately leaned in with a mischievous grin. "Brother Fan, you're too wicked. I saw you didn't even break a sweat with that punch. If you really used force, wouldn't this machine be scrapped?"

"Hehe, keep it low-profile. I'm saving up points to give them a big surprise later, one that'll shock my 'son' Wang Teng for a hundred years."

Lin Fan took a bottle of mineral water from his backpack, unscrewed it, and took a sip. "Besides, school machines are expensive. What if they make me pay for it if I break it?"

"Tsk, acting cool will get you struck by lightning. Could you even father a son as big as Wang Teng?" Fatty raised a middle finger in disdain, then lowered his voice. "But Brother Fan, look at School Beauty Su. She's been staring at you since just now. That look... tsk tsk, it's like she wants to eat you up."

Lin Fan paused his movements.

He keenly felt that gaze from behind.

Cold, probing, and even carrying a hint of... excitement?

Was I discovered?

Lin Fan frowned slightly. It seemed an A-rank Talent really had some tricks; he would have to be more careful around Su Qingxue in the future.

However...

Being noticed by a big client is always a good thing.

As long as she's curious, she'll pay. As long as she pays, he can become stronger. It's a perfect closed loop.

The testing continued until four in the afternoon.

With the interlude of Fatty and Lin Fan, the subsequent tests seemed dull.

The moment Old Zhang announced dismissal, Lin Fan shouldered his backpack and was the first to walk out of the martial arts hall. Fatty followed closely behind.

"Lin Fan!"

Just a few steps out the door, a venomous shout came from behind.

Wang Teng, with several lackeys in tow, aggressively blocked the middle of the road.

"Something the matter?" Lin Fan stopped, not even bothering to look him in the eye.

"Don't think you can walk all over me just because you used some parlor tricks."

Wang Teng walked up to Lin Fan and lowered his voice, his tone oozing ruthlessness. "School tests are just playing house. Real martial artists are judged by actual combat. In the upcoming wilderness survival combat, I hope your bones are as tough as Fatty's skin."

"Threatening me?"

Lin Fan laughed.

He suddenly took a step forward, the distance between them shrinking to just ten centimeters.

"Wang Teng, do you think the Wang family behind you can protect you forever? Your bodyguard isn't with you today, is he?"

Lin Fan's voice was very soft, audible only to the two of them.

"In this era, it's perfectly normal for a few people to die. You're no match for me right now!"

Wang Teng's heart skipped a beat.

At that moment, he felt as if he were being watched by an ancient primordial beast, and the hair all over his body stood on end. That fear originating from the depths of his soul made him instinctively want to retreat.

But he held back.

"You... you dare touch me? My Wang family can crush you as easily as an ant." Wang Teng roared with false bravado. "My dad is Wang Gang! I am the Young Master of the Wang family!"

A lackey nearby suddenly piped up, "Young Master Wang, isn't your dad Wang Tianba? Who is Wang Gang?"

"You damn...! You think you know everything, don't you? *Slap!*" Wang Teng slapped the lackey without mercy.

"Heh, Young Master Wang sure has character! Always talking about crushing people."

Lin Fan chuckled and took a step back, the terrifying pressure vanishing instantly.

"Don't be nervous, I'm a law-abiding citizen."

He patted Wang Teng's stiff shoulder as if patting a piece of trash. "But then again, my life is cheap. Wouldn't it be a bit of a loss for Young Master Wang to trade yours for mine?"

With that, Lin Fan took Fatty and left without looking back.

Watching their departing backs, Wang Teng felt his legs go weak. The fear from that moment made him feel incredibly ashamed.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it!"

Wang Teng kicked a roadside trash can hard, denting it. "Investigate! Find out exactly what's going on with those blind boxes! Also, contact Black Snake. Keep an eye on him. Once he leaves the Base City for the wilderness... I want him dead!"