Upon entering the camp, Zhang Chen felt the surrounding energy subtly become more active, stirring the energy on his skin into a similar excitement.
He walked forward several dozen meters, passing through a small path, and soon arrived at a clean campsite.
Here, more than a dozen students in their ability user uniforms were relaxing. Some were playing on their phones, others were fast asleep, and a few were gathered, discussing something, occasionally erupting into laughter.
"Is this the legendary devil class? It doesn't seem like much!" said Pluto Mushroom.
"The devils here are naturally concerning this world, not us. I'll just proceed with the roll call according to the normal handbook!"
Zhang Chen glanced at the fine print at the bottom of the handbook:
Teaching Philosophy: To persuade with virtue, to move with emotion, to nurture with example.
"Hmm... I need to understand these three principles. After all, I'm going to be a teacher; I should have the bearing of one!" Zhang Chen walked to the center of the open space, took out the roll call roster, and deliberately cleared his throat, drawing the attention of the surrounding students.
Seeing Zhang Chen, these students reacted as if they had seen a ghost. After a moment of stunned silence, playful smiles appeared on their faces.
"Heh, new toys have arrived!"
"Are these teachers' brains broken? They wrote 'Trespassers will die' at the entrance, and this one still dares to come?"
"I could somewhat understand if a Level 5 ability user came here, after all, they have a bit of pride. But this assistant teacher... I really don't get it. Does he think his ability level is comparable to ours?"
"Exactly, wearing an assistant teacher's uniform, he thinks he's a teacher? He's still far from it!"
"Come on, let's bet on how many rounds this assistant teacher can last!"
"I remember the highest record was 5 rounds, with Meng Jiaojiao, wasn't it?"
"This teacher is so young, he doesn't look like he's been through much. He was probably tricked here by the master of Honglian. I bet 2 rounds!"
"I bet 3 rounds!"
"Let's go big. I bet he won't even get past the first round!"
The students below either sneered, continued playing on their phones, or started placing bets on the spot.
"Qu Bo? Yu Hai? Ling Tingting?"
Zhang Chen called out three names consecutively, but there was no response from below; they continued their own activities.
Suddenly, a male student from below said,
"I advise you, go back and resign to the dean now, at least you can keep your life."
"If you continue to stay here, the outcome might not be so certain!"
"Everyone who enters this academy has signed a waiver and a confidentiality agreement, so even if someone dies, no responsibility will be pursued!"
"Although we are called students, our talent has already surpassed most teachers, so we don't need to learn; we can study by ourselves!"
"So, Assistant Teacher, please proceed!"
The male student deliberately emphasized the words "assistant teacher" when he said the last sentence.
"I am here to lead you in practice and ensure your safety. I hope you don't mistake kindness for weakness!" Zhang Chen said coldly.
But then he suddenly remembered that one of the teacher's principles was to persuade with virtue, so at the end of his statement, he forced a stiff smile.
"This teacher seems to have a problem!"
"Alas, good words can't save a man bent on death. Since he wants to stay so badly, we'll play with him!"
Several students exchanged glances.
Then, a thin man walked up to Zhang Chen.
"Duel!"
He tossed a coin in front of Zhang Chen.
This was the coin of the Ability Academy. As long as this coin was thrown, one could duel the opponent. It was not considered private brawling and could exempt one from school penalties.
"Hey, there's going to be a good show!"
"How many assistant teachers has Monkey defeated? 10 or 15?"
"I've lost count. I hope this teacher can last past the first round; I bet on the third round, he must hold on!"
"Ha, letting a lagging student take on an assistant teacher is really slapping our faces, isn't it? Doesn't this prove our outstanding talent and higher existence?"
The crowd chuckled and formed a circle from a distance, ready to watch a spectacular match.
"Assistant Teacher, my ability is wind-elemental. I can release sharp wind blades, so you should be careful!" said the thin boy.
"Come on, if this is how you kids communicate... I accept the challenge!" Zhang Chen said unhurriedly.
In fact, most students in this class were between 16 and 19 years old, not much younger than Zhang Chen, so calling them children was a bit of an exaggeration.
"Alas, fine then!"
The thin boy sighed.
He was the weakest in the class, often bullied by students with higher talent.
Having him be the first to challenge the assistant teacher served two purposes: first, to test the assistant teacher's strength as a prelude for those who would come later; second, even if trouble arose in the future, the person who defeated the most assistant teachers would be the one to take the fall.
In plain terms, he was cannon fodder and a scapegoat.
The thin boy simply hoped the assistant teacher had some real skills, at least more than him, which was why he proactively revealed his ability and attack style to Zhang Chen.
But Zhang Chen seemed completely unfazed by these words, appearing completely confident of victory.
That expression was identical to the 12 assistant teachers he had defeated before.
It seemed another one was going to be added to the count!
"Wind Blade!" the thin boy silently chanted.
Simultaneously, three invisible wind blades shot towards Zhang Chen.
However, Zhang Chen, standing before him, seemed to not see the wind blades at all, still standing idly in place, making no reaction.
"I've already attacked!" the thin boy shouted anxiously.
*Pfft...*
The three wind blades, when still two to three meters away from Zhang Chen, immediately dispersed into wisps of breeze, gently brushing against his clothes.
"How is this possible?" the thin boy exclaimed, his face filled with astonishment.
Only wind-elemental users at Level 5 or above could achieve this level of control.
But would such a strong individual come to be an assistant teacher?!
"Hey, Monkey, don't go easy on him!"
"What are you doing? Giving him a cool breeze? You're deliberately trying to make me lose money! Be careful, I'll beat you up!"
"Haha, Monkey, well done! I'm going to make money!"
Various voices from the surrounding students echoed with laughter.
In their eyes, Zhang Chen had no skill whatsoever. He couldn't even see through a basic ability like wind blades, let alone the fact that the opponent had already told him in advance.
Did he not even bother to dodge? Or did he give up, feeling the gap in strength was too vast?!
"You can begin now!" Zhang Chen, not understanding what the thin boy was doing, impatiently urged him on.