"Have you come to visit?"

"It's a long story... In short, I got beaten up pretty badly." Huai Shi coughed violently. "Do you have any clue?"

"I have no idea," Luo Xian shook her head in confusion. "But among all the students who have come here, you're the one who got beaten up the worst. Looks like you're highly regarded!"

Highly regarded my ass!

I just didn't obediently pay the fee and get a card...

Struggling to turn his head, Huai Shi looked at the muscular old man who had calmly returned to his chair to sip tea. "That's your grand..."

"Yes," Luo Xian nodded. "He's my dad."

Huai Shi stared at her young appearance, then at the old man's face that looked seventy or eighty years old. Thinking about his almost ghostly performance earlier, he couldn't help but exclaim, "Wow, that's impressive."

"You're saying weird stuff again."

Luo Xian smiled, raised a finger, and tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "Although I don't mind you resting and enjoying the cool air here, could you let me pass?"

As she spoke, she pointed to the elevator door he was blocking.

"Sorry."

Huai Shi slowly inched his body, moving less than an inch. "It seems I won't be able to move for a while."

"It's alright, just close your eyes," Luo Xian said, still smiling as if she had said something profound.

Right after that, before Huai Shi could react, she slowly got up, her skirt fluttering slightly in the wind as she took a step forward.

In a panic, Huai Shi closed his eyes. He only heard the sound of high-heeled sandals near his ear and felt a skirt gently sweep over his nose amidst a breeze carrying a faint scent.

The sound of footsteps gradually faded.

Only after a long time did Huai Shi slowly open his eyes, lying in a pool of his own nosebleed, bathing in the lingering scent of perfume in the air.

His pale face was a mask of utter shock—astonishment, concussion, reverberation—in short, his mind went completely blank from the impact...

Damn, the gym is really exciting!

"Eh? You got beaten up pretty badly?"

In the parking lot outside the building, a man peered at Li Jian Amber's screen through the rolled-down car window, clucking his tongue. "Looks like Teacher Luo is quite fond of him, huh!"

Li Jian Amber sighed. "Chief, your sudden appearance can really startle someone."

"Sorry, sorry, I'll be more careful next time," Older Cousin said, squinting with a smile. "I remember you were also taught a good lesson by Teacher Luo, right?"

"Broke a leg, didn't you? And almost went blind."

Li Jian Amber rubbed his eye socket, which still ached with a phantom pain to this day. "That muscular old man... he's simply inhuman... Completely merciless when he strikes."

"Actually, Teacher Luo never wanted to take on students in the first place. Although he couldn't very well refuse Xuan Bird Uncle, any student sent over there ended up quite miserable; the more talented they were, the worse it got..."

Li Jian Amber listlessly smoked. "So, you guys sent me to some Ghoul Training Camp to intimidate the rookies, huh?"

"This is what focused development and special attention are all about, comrade. We should treat each other with the warmth of spring... Ah, even though Teacher Luo's 'spring' is quite different from everyone else's."

"That's Burning Wind!"

"Ahaha, pretty much the same."

Older Cousin's smile slightly faded. "Even though he doesn't say it, compared to students, Teacher Luo probably wishes more for a worthy opponent. When he encounters a talented student, he gets a bit rougher, and sometimes even goes overboard... But for those with potential, there's no better way than this."

"Chief, you went there too, right?"

"Yes."

Older Cousin looked embarrassed. "Turns out I was treated as rotten wood beyond sculpting. He didn't even bother with me and just made me earnestly work out for half a month... I even got rid of the fat on my chin but didn't learn a single move. Can't help it; I'm the kind of person with not much natural talent."

He smiled without any concern, already well aware of his own limits.

"What about Little White-chan?"

Li Jian Amber's eyes lit up. "Has Little White-chan been there?"

"Nope."

Older Cousin shook his head. "She was supposed to go, but she got sent back before even entering the door. Teacher Luo said he couldn't teach her, so then it was up to me, her unworthy brother, to step in."

Li Jian Amber was taken aback, then suddenly realized.

Right, a fourteen-year-old at the peak of Fifth Stage, crowned by the Abyss as the White Emperor's Son—who needs anyone to teach her?

"Born with knowledge" must be about people like her, right?

Such monsters, so far beyond the norm, can't really be used as a reference. Trying to measure her limits with one's own talents would likely only lead to eternal disappointment and despair, right?

Compared to that colossal power, everything else seems insignificant.

"Scary, Little White-chan," Li Jian Amber extinguished his cigarette. "What about Huai Shi?"

"I don't know... but I think Teacher Luo will mostly be disappointed?"

After a moment of contemplation, Older Cousin said so.

"Because of insufficient talent?"

"No, rather than talent, it's more about where his ambition lies," Older Cousin smiled ruefully. "Huai Shi, that guy, will probably not meet Teacher Luo's expectations. If you ask why, I think he's the kind of person who rarely gives people what they want or expect."

"What nonsense," Li Jian Amber retracted his gaze, seemingly understanding yet apparently disliking the convoluted reasoning.

"Regardless, that guy managed to grab the most important experience pack before the rookie competition," Li Jian Amber lit up another cigarette, his smile turning into one of schadenfreude. "Although swallowing this experience pack is probably not going to be easy."

"Yeah."

Older Cousin nodded in agreement, pulling his attention away from his smartphone screen.

After all, the one responsible for training was not some old man obsessed with fitness and muscle gain, but a bona fide monster of a Sublimator from fifty years ago.

The now-named Coach Luo, a Border half-blood whose real name had long been lost, was an unquestionable powerhouse who had fought his way out of relentless wars.

Fifty years ago, he was active as a mercenary on the Border battlefields. Back then, he wasn't the kindly and affable old man of today but a bloodthirsty being akin to an incarnate Asura.

Purely in terms of killing artistry, whether it was barehanded or armed combat, he was a monster at the pinnacle.

At the height of his power, he could even shatter the Axis of Six Reincarnations in India within three hours. The ratings he left behind in the Hungry Ghost Path and Beast Road have remained unbroken to this day, firmly holding the title of 'King of Ghoul' in India's Maintenance Genealogy...

Such a person, how could he be a gentle, kind, and considerate family tutor?

It'd be more accurate to call him a bona fide devil of a coach.

If his path had not been cut short, Dongxia today would likely be a completely different place, right?

"What a pity."

Li Jian Amber turned around and asked, "By the way, Master, his name..."

"Huh?" Older Cousin, ready to leave, turned back.

"His name, he's never told anyone."

"Yeah, after all, it's a past he erased himself. We irrelevant folks better not pry too deeply."

Older Cousin stretched his joints, turned around with a smile, waved his hand, and walked into the crowd.

Li Jian Amber stood there in a daze for a long time, shaking his head with a sigh. "What is this, one after another, all with pasts too painful to revisit."

He turned off his smartphone screen, tossed away his cigarette, and slumped in the driver's seat, mumbling softly, "I really feel like eating ramen..."

Past ten o'clock in the gym, after everyone else had left, Huai Shi finally managed to gather some strength to get up from the ground.

Then his first reaction was to struggle to his feet shakily and stumble into the gym, only to fall flat on his face once again.

Afterward, he saw the old man approaching.

Luo Lao took a sip from the teapot filled with protein-enriched tea. He squatted down to examine him, his smile pleasant. "What's the matter, still up so late?"

"Coach!"

Huai Shi grabbed his hand, blinking with expectant eyes as if he was about to cry. "I want to learn how to fight!"

"Sure."

Luo Lao smiled, picking up the POS machine from the nearby table and placing it in front of Huai Shi. "Would you like to know about fitness and swimming? Shall we get you a card first?"

Huai Shi's expression twitched. "With all my sincerity, shouldn't you give me a break, impart your knowledge, and even take care of food and drink?"

"Where did you hear that, Little Brag? That kind of JUMP storyline hasn't been in vogue for thirty years. I teach you how to slash people, you give me money. Isn't that the natural order of things?"

Luo Lao remained unmoved. "One hundred thousand a day. Since you're roughly in one piece, I'll give you a discount. Dongxia Yuan will do."

"Fine then..."

Huai Shi clutched his wallet, tears welling in his eyes like a sad kitten, as he handed over a newly obtained credit card. But Luo Lao tugged and tugged and couldn't pull the card from his grip.

"Let go, will you?"

"I can't bear to!" Huai Shi hesitated. "Or, how about we start with one hundred thousand?"

"For one day?" Luo Lao snorted through his nostrils. "That works."

"One day? What are you thinking!" Huai Shi's eyes widened. He raised both hands, showing ten fingers. "I mean, ten times the type of trial lesson I had today!"

In the silence, the old man stood still.

It was as if this was the first time he'd encountered a student so exceptionally, almost bizarrely, frugal...

Dumbstruck.

"You really are... choosier with your money than with your life, young man."

"You're not going to actually kill me, anyway," Huai Shi said boldly, picking his nose. "And since I won't die from it, just beat me as hard as you like."

DING!

As the crisp sound from the POS machine rang out, Luo Lao looked up, his expression sly and expectant. "I've never seen someone so game to have me as a sparring partner..."

"You won't hold back, will you?" Huai Shi asked, skeptical.

"Don't worry. Since I've taken the money, I will impart everything I know. How much you can learn is up to you."

The old man grinned, the muscles on his face twitching, revealing a mix of excitement and ferocity. "Get ready, Little Brag. Starting tomorrow, one lesson a day... Even if you cry and beg me on the floor, I won't stop."

"Ah, I wouldn't have it any other way."

The youth sat cross-legged on the floor, staring intently at the monstrous face before him, their eyes locked in a steadfast gaze.

Silently, he smiled.

"If you have any moves left, bring it on!"

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