Chapter 9: Chu Zihang

The journey was pleasant and novel, at least that's how Lu Chen felt.

He spent the entire flight peering out the window, so much so that the girl sitting next to him wondered if he was crazy. Even if you've never flown before, is it really necessary to be this excited?

But what the girl didn't know was that Lu Chen had already spent several hours on a plane during this trip. Vietnam didn't have direct flights to Chicago, USA, where he was headed. The academy's arrangement was for him to fly to China first and then transfer flights. Fortunately, Huang Tao had accompanied him and guided him through the entire process during the first leg of the journey, otherwise, Lu Chen would have been lost.

Just as he got off the plane, Lu Chen was still savoring the feeling of being in the sky when he was interrupted by a familiar voice.

"Junior Brother, over here."

It was standard Mandarin pronunciation, but the speaker was a blonde girl, someone Lu Chen had seen before, Ludhiana.

Ludhiana didn't look like a female secret agent today. Her face seemed to have light makeup, adding a touch of softness to her already delicate face. Silver wisteria flower earrings dangled from her ears, and her Turnbull & Asser custom-made white shirt gave her a somewhat masculine but competent look.

She wore a black skirt below and Roger Vivier high heels. A touch of nobility... Business style?

Although she dressed like a secretary, her demeanor was that of a queen.

The academy was well aware of Lu Chen's situation. Although it sounded a bit unpleasant, Lu Chen was indeed a "country bumpkin" who hadn't seen much of the world, and he seemed unfamiliar with various modern facilities.

Therefore, they were extremely worried that Lu Chen would get lost or disappear halfway to the academy. That's why the scene unfolded as it did.

Lu Chen felt countless eyes on him and Ludhiana as they walked through the airport. Each gaze was filled with curiosity.

Lu Chen was still wearing his training clothes from the martial arts gym, looking like a kung fu teenager who had just run out of a studio. Ludhiana's outfit and her demeanor, on the other hand, made people suspect that they had just come from a film set.

Taking everything into account, people concluded that this must be another film shoot?

Are they filming "The Overbearing Female CEO Falls for the Kung Fu Teenage Me"?

But their gaze scanned the surroundings and found no cameras.

Neither Lu Chen nor Ludhiana cared about these stares. What Lu Chen was concerned about was the young man beside Ludhiana who had been staring at him, seemingly around the same age as himself.

"Let me introduce you. This junior brother is Chu Zihang, who will be entering the school with you. I just happened to give him a ride."

Ludhiana looked at the young man beside her and then introduced him to Lu Chen. Then she introduced Lu Chen to Chu Zihang, "This junior brother is Lu Chen. Don't be fooled by his funny clothes. When it comes to fighting, he's anything but funny."

Lu Chen felt speechless. What did she mean by dressing funny? What's funny about this training suit!?

It's loose and comfortable, and there's no restraint when you move. In Lu Chen's eyes, it's indeed a great piece of clothing.

"Chu Zihang, we'll be classmates from now on. Please take care of me."

Chu Zihang reached out his hand, and if it were someone else in this situation, it would surely be accompanied by a warm and infectious smile. But Chu Zihang had a naturally poker face, which made it seem like he was rejecting people from miles away when he said those words, all wrong.

Lu Chen carefully examined Chu Zihang. He had medium-length black hair with occasional prominent tips, sharp as swords, just like whatever was hidden deep in the eyes of this young man. Coupled with his stern face, that aura of coolness made him unforgettable at first sight.

"Lu Chen."

It took a moment for Lu Chen to realize that Chu Zihang was offering his hand for a handshake. In Lu Chen's previous life, there wasn't this Western custom, so he wasn't used to it.

"Hey, why are you both so cool? Young people should smile more. Otherwise, people might think you two are about to fight."

Ludhiana noticed that the atmosphere had cooled down for a moment, so she patted both of them on the shoulders and turned around, saying, "Let's go, big sister will take you guys to eat something nice."

Chu Zihang nodded and followed, and Lu Chen hesitated for a moment before following suit.

He still felt a bit dazed. In his previous world, it was a world of war, but now he had stumbled into the atmosphere of everyday life.

People like Ludhiana, Westerners, if he had encountered them on the battlefield in his previous world, he would have snapped their necks without hesitation, without even blinking an eye.

But now, Ludhiana had just patted his shoulder, saying she would take him to eat something nice. It made him marvel at the mysteries of the world.

...

Half an hour later, Ludhiana and Chu Zihang watched Lu Chen devouring his food as if they were watching giant pandas at the zoo.

Because it was a spontaneous decision, Ludhiana hadn't managed to book a Michelin three-star restaurant. She didn't want to lose face in front of her junior brother and thought of using some other means. But Chu Zihang suggested, "Let's just eat something casual."

Lu Chen caught a whiff of the aroma coming from the nearby Burger King and practically couldn't walk, so they ended up here.

Lu Chen had just finished devouring his twenty-second Double Whopper and was still eyeing Ludhiana.

"Junior Brother... are you sure you won't eat until you burst?"

Ludhiana wasn't worried about her wallet. Eating at Burger King didn't cost much, but she was concerned about her junior brother's stomach.

There were rumors that ancient Chinese generals could eat eighteen steamed buns in one meal. Ludhiana didn't believe it before, thinking that even if he was a mixed-blood, he couldn't eat that much.

But she believed it now. Lu Chen had eaten twenty-two burgers all by himself, and he still seemed unsatisfied. The quantity was so much that it scared her a little. She was afraid of stuffing her junior brother, who seemed to have a suspected super-A bloodline, to death.

If that happened, not to mention whether she would bear the responsibility, the academy's news department would definitely have one more headline: "Super-A Elite Mixed-Blood Freshman, brought into a restaurant by senior sister before arriving at the academy, fed to the point of deformation and death." She couldn't accept it just thinking about it.

Chu Zihang also had a good appetite, but being away from home, he was always polite. Under the hospitality of his senior sister, he ate two Triple Whoppers and said he was full, leaving the rest of the time to watch Lu Chen's performance.

"Eighty percent full, sorry for being rude, but I'm still a bit hungry."

Lu Chen felt a little embarrassed. Huang Tao's earlier sarcastic comment about him "forgetting to eat and sleep" was not entirely unreasonable. For the past few days, he had only cooked the remaining rice from the gym and drank some thin porridge, which had caused his physical condition to decline.

Of course, his stomach wasn't bottomless. It's just that his digestion and absorption of food were far beyond ordinary people. The food he ate was quickly broken down and turned into nutrients absorbed by his body. And Secret Blood Warriors had a very high demand for energy.

"Then... would you like a few more?" Ludhiana hesitated, thinking that the cafeteria at the academy's free buffet window was finally going to welcome a big customer.

After hesitating for a moment, Lu Chen spoke up, "Three more, please?"