Chapter 45: Zzz

Chapter 45: Zzz

The blast from the mecha explosion left numerous scars of different depths on Feng Wei's body.

As for his destroyed hand, it was due to a malfunction when his psychic energy connected with the mecha's cannon port, causing psychic and cannon fire damage to backfire onto himself. Technically, he suffered two explosive injuries.

This outcome felt eerily familiar.

Only when Xu Qingran appeared did Feng Wei, in his rage, remember that this was the outcome he had aimed for during Xu Qingran's psychic gun test. Shen Tingyu's intervention was the only reason he failed.

But Xu Qingran's plan against him had worked.

The pain gradually numbed Feng Wei's nerves, and with multiple fractures in his body, he couldn't move at all.

He could only stare fixedly at Xu Qingran, his bloodied lips twisting into a forced, grotesque smile, uglier than tears: "Wh-what’s happening, Young Master Xu... Did you plan all this?"

"Aren’t we... good friends?"

His voice was barely a whisper, and coupled with his pitiful state, his puppy-like, teary eyes somehow looked pitiful.

But Xu Qingran's gaze held no pity, his cold smile sending chills down his spine.

In his haze, Feng Wei felt transported back to his middle school days, when he had nearly beaten his childhood friend to death in a dark, deserted corner of the campus after school. Back then, he likely gave that friend the same cold stare.

He never imagined the same would happen to him.

In his disorientation, Xu Qingran's cold voice reached him: "You’ve misunderstood something."

"From start to finish, I never said I considered you a friend, did I?"

Pinned to the sandy ground, Feng Wei fell into a daze once more.

Memories flashed before his eyes like a carousel. Looking back, it was all his own assumption that he had already controlled Xu Qingran, accustomed to his indifferent demeanor from the start, and subconsciously thought it was normal not to receive an enthusiastic response to his overtures.

After all, he was Feng Wei!

His mother was an imperial prince, and his father's Feng family was a prestigious family in the Silver Dragon Battalion. Since childhood, what he wanted had he not obtained? The only time he hit a wall was due to the alliance of the Su and Lin families, and the Golden Wing Battalion's intervention to suppress the Silver Dragon.

His approach to getting close to Xu Qingran had always worked; since childhood, even the 'friends' he met in the Tower of Evil would fall for his charm.

Who wouldn't like a friend as enthusiastic and well-connected as him? Even Lin Qianmu and the Lin family had trusted him for so many years! If only he were a bit smarter, a bit more patient, and connected with him after graduation, he could offer a multitude of benefits!

As he thought this, he saw Xu Qingran smile emotionlessly and ask, "Didn't I clearly reject you when you first approached me?"

Feng Wei certainly remembered, but after his relentless pestering, Xu Qingran had agreed to befriend him!

Then he heard Xu Qingran say, "Ah, I only agreed to your request to get to know me."

"But knowing each other doesn't necessarily mean we're good friends."

From the moment Xu Qingran first saw Feng Wei, he felt that this person didn't quite suit his taste.

He always felt that beneath Feng Wei's cheerful exterior lay a certain darkness. It was only later, through observing Feng Wei's gaze towards Lin Qianmu and some incidents that occurred earlier, that he developed an interest in playing along with this person.

Before the semester started, he still regarded Feng Wei with heavy suspicion.

Even when Lin Qianmu approached him, after listening, he still harbored doubts. It wasn't until he followed the changes in Lin Qianmu and their attitudes towards him, got close to them, and encountered the needle-stabbing ambush.

And the universal card in Feng Wei's pocket.

Before today, he had arrived at the warehouse ahead of Feng Wei to inspect his training mecha, and as expected, he found issues. It just goes to show that Feng Wei is still too young and inexperienced, trying to reuse the same old tricks.

After all, he's just an innocent 18-year-old kid.

Xu Qingran chuckled softly.

He now sees the perks of the original owner's looks; doing nothing can make him seem weak and clueless, making it a breeze to fool others—effortlessly and with twice the fun.

Realizing Xu Qingran's cold-hearted nature, Feng Wei was so shocked that he forgot his pain.

He looked up at the person looming over him, whose detached gaze was icy calm.

Back then, it seemed like he acted out of hatred and frustration, wanting to vent and make everyone hate him. But what Xu Qingran did today felt like he was an emotionless envoy, purely judging him for his own entertainment.

It made him hard to hate.

Feng Wei couldn't understand; after almost a year as classmates, had he really failed to win Xu Qingran over?

Isn't it said that rich young masters like him are the easiest to fool, with D-type personalities being the most gentle and loving? Why is Xu Qingran so different?! He had checked his background—clean since childhood, except for a short stint at the Tower of Evil, nothing out of the ordinary.

Maybe his current broken state was too obvious, because Xu Qingran finally, as if doing him a favor, added a sentence.

"Feelings exchanged without sincerity—how could they ever reach someone's heart?"

And those who were fooled by Feng Wei before?

Xu Qingran said they were just too naive.

As he bled more, Feng Wei's face grew paler. The flickering light from the burning mecha fragments nearby played across his body.

He asked reluctantly, "You have a universal card too?"

The one who should've been hurt in the mecha accident tonight was supposed to be Xu Qingran.

With a universal card and having visited the academy base with his father since he was a kid, he knew it better than anyone. Tweaking these training tools without getting caught was a piece of cake.

He had only made a few tweaks, hoping Xu Qingran would get hurt after firing.

Nothing too serious, just enough to slow his recovery.

But now, it was his training mecha that malfunctioned, even worse than he had planned, with more intense damage.

It felt like deliberate revenge, as if they wanted to cripple his hand too.

What he couldn't figure out was, how did Xu Qingran suspect tonight's training?

Even if he did suspect, how did he get in? And once inside, how did he know how to tweak and mess with the mecha? These are not taught at school; he only knew how to operate them because he had the fortune to learn a bit from an old repair craftsman.

"I don't," Xu Qingran kindly answered his question, "but I have someone more universal."

As soon as these words fell, Feng Wei heard another set of footsteps nearby.

He turned his head with difficulty and saw another man in the Golden Wing Battalion military uniform walking slowly towards them. The firelight added a hazy hue to his dark hair, and his deep, beautiful eyes sparkled with a gentle smile.

The smile did not reach his eyes.

Feng Wei was stunned.

General Shen Tingyu? Indeed, this general does have some familial connection with Xu Qingran.

But in Feng Wei's impression, Shen Tingyu was a gentle and courteous person like a spring breeze.

He was an E-type, but since entering the Tower of Evil, there had been no bad reviews about him. He was praised by everyone in the Tower of Evil, from top to bottom. Most of the news and information about him were related to his military achievements.

It was said that he was also a very rule-abiding person.

But now Xu Qingran claimed that Shen Tingyu had arranged his access, planned everything for tonight, and rigged the mecha with such a brutal trap that it nearly cost him his life.

Feng Wei, too shocked, shifted his weight, trying to use his other hand to prop himself up slightly and pull his lower body out from under the heavy debris. However, as soon as he moved, the man in dark golden boots forcefully stepped on his uninjured shoulder, pressing him back to the ground.

Shen Tingyu ignored his pain and casually asked the person beside him, "Was he the one who messed with your gun during the last assessment?"

"Probably," Xu Qingran said with a casual glance at the injured man on the ground, his tone indifferent. "Even if I guessed wrong, it doesn’t matter. This guy isn’t a good person anyway."

"He even tried to dose me with a sedative."

"Is that so," Shen Tingyu responded.

His tone remained calm, but he pressed down harder with his foot. The sound of Feng Wei's left shoulder bone cracking could be clearly heard, making him break into a cold sweat from the agony.

Feng Wei's face contorted in pain, all thoughts of D-types and E-types forgotten, as he shouted angrily, "General Shen, do you even know who you're messing with?!"

"My mother is a princess consort! The Emperor loves her the most, and I am her only son. How dare you treat me like this?! She’ll have you punished, thrown into the Tower of Evil to suffer and be tortured!"

"The child of a princess consort," Shen Tingyu murmured, smiling as if joking. "You’re just unlucky tonight, running into the Emperor’s child. Don’t believe me? I even beat up the third prince, and the Emperor... didn’t lift a finger."

Feng Wei's eyes widened in shock.

As a member of the Silver Dragon Battalion, Feng Wei had also heard about Mu Ziyu's ordeal during his vacation, but he never thought the ridiculous rumors were true!

Before he could recover, a heavy kick landed on his head, and he sneered sarcastically, "General Shen, it’s a shame you didn’t go into acting. You’re such a good actor, you’ve fooled the entire empire."

He’d always thought, E-types are still E-types, how could they be perfect?

Turns out, it was all an act.

Feng Wei despised E-types, yet he longed to be one.

He disliked their imperfections but longed for their immense power and the right to match with various D-types. His feelings were always so contradictory.

Shen Tingyu gave a faint smile, offering no reply.

As if no matter how harshly Feng Wei ranted, it didn’t affect him at all.

"So?" he asked softly, turning to Xu Qingran. "You reserved my time last semester just to handle him. So, what’s the plan?"

"It just so happens that I can also get revenge for the wounds I took before."

When Xu Qingran reached out to Shen Tingyu, he suspected his attacker had a high-level spiritual pool.

At this stage, having the general present would make things easier to resolve. Now that it was confirmed that Feng Wei was the one secretly targeting him, a 3S-level classmate, it would be better to rely on Shen Tingyu's help to deal with him precisely.

Feng Wei, overhearing their conversation, finally panicked: "If you kill me, you’ll pay for it!"

Xu Qingran lazily retorted, "This is the place you personally chose, with the attack point facing away from the base. Don’t you know how hard it is to be discovered here?"

Then, he added with a smile, "And who said I was going to kill you?"

Before Feng Wei could breathe a sigh of relief, he continued, "Letting you die like this would be too easy."

"If circumstances allow, I prefer to leave lasting pain for those I despise."

With that, Xu Qingran walked over and slowly crouched next to his head, tilting it left and right, inspecting the bruises and marks. The flickering flames around them reflected in his deep amber eyes, and Feng Wei instinctively felt that they were the most captivating eyes he had ever seen.

Deep and clear.

Yet they also resembled distant stars, untouchable.

"Shen Tingyu," Xu Qingran called out, addressing the other man, "is there a way to permanently destroy his spiritual pool, yet keep him barely alive, confined to a bed, a vegetable for life?"

Xu Qingran curved his captivating peach-blossom eyes toward Feng Wei, and the words that followed felt like plunging him into an icy void.

With an angelic face but a demonic heart.

"Just like—his friend from middle school, alive but in agony worse than death."

Shen Tingyu, of course, had a way.

He could even precisely gauge the level of spiritual force needed to keep Feng Wei on the brink of death, forever unconscious. He could teach Xu Qingran, but given the latter's current spiritual rank, damaging a 3S-level spiritual pool would still be beyond his reach.

"I'll take care of it," Shen Tingyu said.

It had been a while since he last inspected the 3rd Tower of Evil, where E-types were held. He had been carrying a lot of pressure, though he still clung to the edge of rationality.

Moreover, he could clearly remember Xu Qingran's instructions.

It seemed to be the only voice, besides his own, that could keep him from losing control.

·

The soft echo of waves crashing against the island cliffs and beaches.

Xu Qingran sat on a seaside rock, quietly absorbing the soothing sounds. From his vantage point, he could still see the chaotic wreckage near the shore and the slowly fading flames in the distance.

In the darkness, the tall, handsome figure clad in dark gold emerged from the "crime scene" and approached him.

Despite having just committed a cruel act, he remained calm, his natural grace even more noble than Mu Ziyu's. As people from his past life often said—he looked like a character straight out of a manga.

Xu Qingran rested his chin on his hand, deep in thought.

Earlier, Shen Tingyu had sent him away before taking action, saying, "You don't need to see this."

Xu Qingran's expression at the time was as if he had heard something ridiculous: "Why?"

He almost thought Shen Tingyu was being soft-hearted or afraid of losing his position if discovered, so he reassured him, "Don't worry, since I dared to call you here, I have a way to avoid detection. Even if we're exposed, I'll ensure you're completely clear in this matter."

"I'm not worried about exposure," Shen Tingyu replied, a faint smile on his lips. "It's just not a good thing, and the methods are far more savage than you imagine. I'm afraid you might get scared and ruin my good image in your eyes."

Xu Qingran found it amusing: "Shen Tingyu, what delusion makes you think you've always had a good image in my eyes?"

The man actually lowered his head and thought seriously before replying, "Haven't I? Aside from the despicable things I did to you in the Tower of Evil, I think I've been pretty decent otherwise. Isn't that why you're willing to interact with me?"

This time, Xu Qingran couldn't help but let out a ridiculous laugh.

He couldn't tell if Shen Tingyu was joking or seriously responding to the question.

In the end, he just patted his shoulder and left Feng Wei for him to handle alone.

He thought to himself that perhaps E-types had a certain principle—they didn't want others to see them tearing apart their prey like demons. He also couldn't tell Shen Tingyu that he had long been accustomed to such scenes in his past life and might even be more ruthless than most E-types when it came to action.

So, Xu Qingran went to rest in the distance by himself, taking the opportunity to reminisce about his hometown while gazing at the clear sea. After all, it's rare to see such pristine seawater since the apocalypse began.

He only looked up when he heard Shen Tingyu approaching.

This glance sparked countless thoughts in his mind.

It seemed the world preferred to see the gentle and refined demeanor of a noble gentleman like Shen Tingyu. But Xu Qingran found himself more intrigued by Shen Tingyu's current appearance—half cloaked in shadow, half illuminated by faint light, radiating a cold and somber aura.

He thought to himself, if only the man's true nature matched the facade he presented.

Then perhaps he wouldn't be so intriguing.

Xu Qingran even wanted to see what Shen Tingyu would look like when he dropped his mask and revealed his bloodthirsty side.

"Host, I now think you seem more like a psychopath than Feng Wei," the system said, trembling.

Xu Qingran was rather pleased with this label.

After Shen Tingyu returned, they didn't head straight back to the base. Instead, they took him to another secluded place.

It was said to be the training ground where Shen Tingyu used to practice mecha combat as a student at the Grandis Military Academy. Indeed, many old craters and even holes blasted into the mountain walls remained, now reclaimed by greenery.

The two trained until late at night before departing.

The next day, during the assessment, Feng Wei was nowhere to be found.

The instructors searched everywhere and even dispatched classmates and guards to check his residence, but even his roommate didn't know where he had gone. They didn't immediately assume he was missing or in trouble, as his roommate mentioned his whereabouts were always erratic.

Given Feng Wei's status and his reputation as a seemingly easygoing but actually volatile person who wouldn't hesitate to lash out at the slightest provocation, everyone was somewhat wary of this moody classmate and dared not pry into his private matters.

The instructors had no choice but to report the situation and concentrate on the students' assessment evaluations.

It wasn't until the afternoon that investigators suddenly arrived at the villa to find Xu Qingran, their faces stern: "Feng Wei is missing. Reports indicate you've had the most contact with him recently, training together almost every night. Therefore, you are now considered a suspect. Please accompany us for questioning."

Xu Qingran left without a second thought.

Shen Tingyu followed suit.

When they were summoned to the dean's office, the middle-aged dean, already stressed over the matter, had sprouted many more white hairs.

As someone frequently targeted by various conspiracies at the school, the dean naturally hesitated to suspect their outstanding student. But Feng Wei was, after all, a scion of the Feng family, and the pressure from above was immense. He couldn't dismiss any possibility.

What was even more infuriating was that an informant planted by the Feng family within the academy had already leaked the news. It was said that Feng Wei's mother was already on her way. If they couldn't locate him, not only would the academy's reputation be tarnished, but it might also incur the wrath of the royal family.

"I do usually train with Feng Wei, but last night I couldn't reach him. Coincidentally, General Shen was available, so we spent the night together," Xu Qingran lied without a trace of deception, his calm demeanor likely even capable of fooling a lie detector.

"General Shen can vouch for me on this. Of course, if you don't believe me, you can check the access logs of the mecha hangar and the usage records of his two training mechs."

They only had one short night, so it was impossible to repair the mech Feng Wei had tampered with before going out.

In reality, Xu Qingran had replaced the usual training mech. Since Shen Tingyu's mechs were also used for teaching, they didn't look much different from the academy's training mechs. If Feng Wei had observed closely enough, he would have noticed Xu Qingran's unfamiliarity.

Unfortunately, Feng Wei was too preoccupied with what was about to happen to pay attention to such details.

Faced with Xu Qingran's prepared statement, Shen Tingyu nodded without changing his expression: "He's telling the truth."

Two wolves, each more adept at deception than the other.

Shen Tingyu's words lent more credibility to Xu Qingran's excuse.

The dean followed up with an investigation as they had suggested, and the records matched up. Surveillance in the area didn't pick up any suspicious activity, except for the distant watchtower capturing two mechs leaving the academy base for training elsewhere.

According to the timeline and clues, it was Xu Qingran and Shen Tingyu.

Shortly after, a search team on an island near the main base continent finally found Feng Wei, severely injured and unconscious. They rushed him to the medical center, where the military doctor, after examining him, looked very grave, stating his condition was worse than expected and might require immediate transfer to a well-equipped hospital in the empire for treatment.

That same day, Feng Wei's mother, whom he referred to as 'Prince,' arrived at the military academy in a fury.

The woman, with a head of beautiful, big wavy hair, was dressed in a purple noblewoman's outfit, adorned with an expensive jade and pearl necklace, and strode in high-heeled boots towards the main office building.

Upon hearing about Feng Wei's severe injury, she flew into a rage, demanding of the academy, "Grandis, is this how your empire's top school operates?!"

"I entrusted my son to you, abiding by your strict teaching rules without meddling, and what do I get in return? An injured child?!"

Feng Wei was her only son among several children, a child she and her husband had desperately tried various methods and remedies to conceive, praying to heaven and earth. Feng's mother was brought to the medical center, where she screamed upon seeing her unconscious child, his right arm blown off.

Then, clutching her chest, her face turned pale, and she collapsed in a breakdown.

Her son's condition was worse than expected, prompting Feng's mother to make a scene at the military academy.

The students' learning projects were even forced to pause, and by afternoon, news of Feng Wei's severe injuries had spread throughout the school.

Feng Wei was quickly arranged to be sent to the large hospital used by the royal nobles of the main star system, while the investigation at the school continued.

Xu Qingran, who had been Feng Wei's closest classmate over the past year, became Feng's mother's prime suspect, and she summoned him for a scolding without explanation. She accused him of harming her child out of jealousy, claiming that as a friend, he should have looked after her son better, but had shirked his responsibilities.

Coming from the royal family, Feng's mother maintained a basic level of decorum.

Even while scolding someone, she sat elegantly at the table, a cup of fragrant flower tea before her.

Her tone wasn't that of a street shrew but was gentle, laced with sarcasm and disdain: "I hear you're from the Xu family, a wealthy clan in Silver Dragon? My apologies, I know too many wealthy Xu families to remember you."

"Look at you, thin and weak, so pale and soft—it seems you've never suffered. Are you even fit to graduate?"

"I can't fathom how my noble child could take a liking to someone like you."

Xu Qingran responded politely, "Madam, you're mistaken. I am not friends with your son."

Feng's mother's expression shifted, her eyes widening in anger and disbelief: "Do you think I'm clueless? Over the holidays, your name was everywhere, and my child wouldn't stop talking about you, calling you his best friend at school!"

Xu Qingran added, "That was his one-sided attachment. I never agreed to it."

Hearing this, the guard assigned to Feng's mother couldn't help but glance at him.

Thinking to himself, who is this guy, speaking so bluntly without a care?

As expected, these words infuriated Feng's mother, who turned red and raised her voice: "Shameless brat, don't you see my son's status? He can have any friend he wants. Why would he stoop to chasing after you?!"

In any case, Xu Qingran was gladly shown the door.

The investigation quickly yielded results.

The academy stated that on the night of the incident, Feng Wei had used a universal card to take the academy's mech out for training. However, an accident occurred during the training—the mech exploded, and the launch cannon, which used gunpowder, malfunctioned, causing an energy backflow and explosion.

Upon hearing this, Feng's mother was even more displeased.

She had also heard rumors that Xu Qingran had a similar situation during his previous psychic gun assessment. She believed it was due to the academy's negligence and even suspected foul play, insisting on a full investigation.

She even brought her own team, experts in computer systems, to scrutinize all the school's surveillance footage.

She aimed to uncover any falsifications or deliberately concealed data.

When Xu Qingran found out, he asked her, "This is such a hassle, why not just drop it?"

"If things get too messy, it won't look good."

Madam Feng didn't think much of him and said coldly, "Who do you think you are, telling me what to do?"

"I will investigate, and it's better to make a big fuss, so the academy can give my son justice!"

Xu Qingran gave up trying to persuade her.

Every student, staff member, and worker in the school became a suspect to her. The students from the same cohort were forced to gather in the main halls. They were not allowed to move freely or even return to their dormitories until the investigation concluded.

Madam Feng was aware that Shen Tingyu was present. Although she wasn't fond of him due to his affiliation with the Golden Wing faction, she still dragged him onto the stage, ready to have him back her up at any moment.

Shen Tingyu had to postpone his departure from the academy base once again.

He sat in a hidden corner of the high platform and immediately noticed Xu Qingran, who stood out in the crowd with a rare serious look.

Despite Xu Qingran's assurance that they wouldn't be discovered, Madam Feng's thorough search made it hard to guarantee there were no loopholes in their plan.

Shen Tingyu thought, as he glanced again towards Xu Qingran.

The person below remained calm, even a bit drowsy from the tedious wait, struggling to keep his eyes open.

Seeing this, his heart suddenly relaxed.

Indeed, the eldest son of the Xu family rarely gave people cause for concern. If he said there was no issue, there likely wasn't one.

Shen Tingyu's eyelids drooped slightly.

Moreover, if his guess was right, Xu Qingran's core origin was likely special, and he probably possessed 'that.'

"Zzz..."

A faint electric current sound unexpectedly flashed through his mind, fleeting, as if it had never been there.

Shen Tingyu maintained his original sitting posture, motionless.

His eyes were calm, as if he hadn't noticed.

After what felt like an eternity, there was finally some movement from Madam Feng's side.

"We found it—several videos from the past year were indeed hidden in the academy's surveillance system data."

The main hall was very quiet, and this sentence could almost be heard by everyone present, as well as the students waiting for the live broadcast results in other halls.

There were murmurs of discussion among the crowd.

Even the instructors in the front suddenly straightened their postures, sitting upright.

Shen Tingyu looked up, his gaze habitually falling in Xu Qingran's direction. He found that this person had already leaned back in his chair, head down, entering sleep mode, not even disturbed by the surrounding noise.

Madam Feng's eyes gleamed sharply as she declared, "Good, I knew there was an issue!"

"Play it now, and make sure the live broadcast is visible everywhere! I want everyone in this school to know exactly what happened to my son and who framed him!"

"How dare they cause trouble so blatantly in the academy! They must be severely punished!"

She pointed imperiously at the school officials in the front row: "And if I find out it was due to negligence on your part, all of you can expect to lose your jobs and be dismissed!"

The instructors below looked anxious.

What’s the deal with the hidden surveillance footage?! This is the training school for future soldiers before they officially take up their posts. Over the years, there have only been minor disputes and framing incidents. Why is this year particularly full of major troubles?

The experts Feng Wei's mother brought in started playing the footage.

As they watched, the expressions of Feng Wei's mother and the students present grew increasingly uneasy.

Especially Feng Wei's mother, who had been so aggressive earlier, now her face turned alternately pale and dark.

The students instinctively turned their gaze to the most handsome boy in their midst. Even though he was still asleep, as if in another world, it didn’t stop them from feeling sympathy and pity for him.

The footage indeed showed that the surveillance had been tampered with.

But the one causing trouble in the surveillance was none other than Feng Wei.

The surveillance footage showed him using a universal card to unlock the medical facility’s security door, stealing a mental suppression spray, and then using it to attack Xu Qingran. There was even footage of him sneaking into Linglong City’s underground base training ground with the universal card, tampering with Xu Qingran’s specialized firearm.

His misdeeds were thus unexpectedly exposed.

The instructors were also stunned.

Even the dean, who had rushed over upon hearing the news, looked shocked. After all, people had come forward to admit their mistakes regarding the incidents involving Xu Qingran. Who would have thought Feng Wei was the real culprit?!

Feng Wei’s mother never expected that what she had revealed would be the most embarrassing thing for her.

She panicked and rushed to the team investigating her son’s incident, shouting agitatedly, "Turn it off! I order you to stop the playback now!"

Shen Tingyu, who had been in the background all day, finally stood up and spoke to stop her: "Wait."

"Didn’t Princess Ningluo say we must investigate fairly and thoroughly, which is why I’m here to stand up for the students?"

Shen Tingyu smiled faintly and said, "No matter who is caught in the surveillance, the fact that the military academy’s surveillance system has been tampered with needs to be taken seriously. With so many teachers and students watching, should we pretend nothing happened just because the person in the footage is your child? Wouldn’t that damage the academy’s reputation?"

Hearing this, Mu Ningluo’s face turned even darker.

She felt even more that bringing Shen Tingyu into this mess today had been the worst decision! She had been so confident that her precious son was the victim; how could she have expected him to have done such disgraceful things behind the scenes?

Mu Ningluo was stopped by Shen Tingyu, and the footage continued to play uninterrupted.

The surveillance records reached the most recent date, the night before Feng Wei disappeared. The mecha warehouse footage showed Feng Wei returning from practice with Xu Qingran. Since the next day was a designated rest day before the assessment, they had agreed to continue that evening.

But shortly after leaving with Xu Qingran, he returned alone, stopping in front of Xu Qingran's training mecha.

Then, he began to repeat his previous dirty deeds—attempting to sabotage Xu Qingran's training mecha, hoping to cause an accident during the next day's practice or assessment.

Somehow, perhaps Feng Wei made a mistake himself, but in the end, the incident happened to him. Xu Qingran, who should have been the victim, luckily went to practice with Shen Tingyu at the last minute and used the mecha he provided, thus escaping harm.

The students gasped in shock, while Mu Ningluo was utterly disgraced.

By this point, the hidden surveillance footage had mostly finished playing. The team members she brought were also shocked by the reversal, looking at each other, unsure how to react. The dean and instructors were shocked and a bit angry, never expecting Feng Wei to be such a person.

As an academy directly managed by the empire, they indeed feared the power of the royal family.

But as fellow instructors, they simply couldn’t continue pretending that nothing had happened after facing such a situation.

This is absolutely maddening! It’s downright despicable!

Moreover, Xu Qingran is one of only two high-level D-class in their academy this year, and an outstanding talent at that. If it weren’t for his luck or sheer skill, Feng Wei would have done him in long ago!

Xu Qingran slowly woke up amidst this chaotic scene.

As soon as he opened his eyes, he noticed everyone around him looking at him with eyes full of sympathy. It was as if he’d been diagnosed with some fatal disease while he was out cold.

Until he looked up and saw the mortified mother of Feng Wei, and the surveillance footage magnified on various screens.

He immediately put two and two together.

He lowered his eyes to conceal a fleeting smile.

Hadn’t he warned her from the get-go? She insisted on ripping off the last shred of dignity, so what could he do?

To everyone else, Xu Qingran looked like he was heartbroken.

After all, he was one of Feng Wei’s only friends at school—no one else dared to get close to him. The two of them had always been tight. Imagine being in Xu Qingran’s shoes—how could you not be crushed to find out your buddy was out to get you?

Once the truth came out, everyone figured Feng Wei had tried to pull the same stunt again, but this time, he only screwed himself over.

Mu Ningluo, like any doting parent, refused to accept the truth, even with rock-solid evidence. She kept insisting, “This can’t be real! Your academy must’ve faked this video to cover your tracks and trick me!”

“Our Awei is the sweetest, most well-behaved kid—there’s no way he’d hurt anyone!”

In the end, her own team shut her down, confirming after thorough checks that the surveillance footage was legit, with no signs of tampering.

So, in the end, it was the Feng family and the royals who’d have to apologize to Xu Qingran.

After the meeting, classmates and instructors rallied around him, saying, “Sure, the Fengs are tied to the royals, but don’t worry—with thousands of eyes on them here, they can’t shut everyone up!”

Ni Xiaoyuan, ever the confident young lady, added, “Besides, they can’t afford to silence everyone.”

“With so many future defenders of the empire up against a prince who’ll need our protection, it’s pretty clear where the empire’s loyalties lie, right?”

Xu Qingran just nodded, keeping his thoughts to himself.

The whole mess with Feng Wei and his mom, Mu Ningluo, finally died down—for now.

Not long after the drama ended, Mu Ningluo got a call from the empire’s top hospital in the central star system.

They were calling to break the news gently: Feng Wei’s injuries were catastrophic, and his spiritual pool was beyond repair. Not only was he likely to stay in a coma, but even if he woke up, he’d be left with the mind of a toddler.

The news hit Mu Ningluo so hard, she passed out.

In the end, with all the commotion, she was packed onto her ship and sent off, leaving the academy behind.

Thanks to Mu Ningluo’s outburst, the academy dug up the deleted footage and exposed one of the Feng family’s moles in their ranks. He was mainly responsible for the observation and maintenance of the surveillance system, and it was he who helped delete the footage when Feng Wei was caught violating regulations.

But what he deleted were only some trivial and ambiguous small clips, at most recording movements, completely insufficient for conviction.

The other explicit recordings that were dug up, he had no idea when they were recorded or who took the opportunity to delete them! However, no one believed his explanations, and the academy needed to impose corresponding penalties, while the Feng family needed someone to vent their anger on.

So, he got the boot and even lost his military credentials.

After Xu Qingran heard the latest news from Ni Xiaoyuan and others, by the time he returned to the villa, Shen Tingyu had already left.

The overworked general couldn't spare another moment.

He shed his coat and collapsed onto the sofa, feeling unusually tired today for no apparent reason.

After sitting with his eyes closed for a while, he rose and made his way to the kitchen, intending to grab some cookies before heading to bed. But upon entering, he noticed the lit food warmer, holding a dinner prepared for him by a certain general before his departure.

Xu Qingran's eyebrow arched in surprise.

His fatigue seemed to lessen slightly.

He approached, lifted the lid, and the savory aroma of the food filled the air.

As the old saying goes, the way to a person's heart is through their stomach.

There's some truth to that saying.

Because Xu Qingran now realized that, no matter how much of a jerk Shen Tingyu could be, he found it impossible to dislike him.

·

The issue with Feng Wei was temporarily set aside.

Xu Qingran and his classmates finally embarked on the last project of their group training.

—Source Crystal Perception training.

Yet, on this eagerly awaited day, he found himself confined to bed, feeling so weighed down that even raising a hand was a struggle. His head was clouded in a familiar haze, and he didn't need a thermometer to know he was running a fever.

Xu Qingran wearily opened his eyes.

He thought to himself that yesterday's drowsiness and exhaustion were signs his spiritual pool was on the verge of advancing again.

He felt numb.

Shen Tingyu, this so-called target of conquest, really has some issues.

He couldn't comprehend it. His mission was to torment Feng Wei, even to the point of making him suffer immensely. Despite his intentions, not only was he not disliked, but his favorability actually went up? If he killed a few more people in Shen Tingyu's presence, would he instantly regain his supernatural powers?

The system remained silent: "..."

The host's thoughts are dangerously reckless!

Moreover, conquest isn't supposed to work like this!