Chapter 23: You Kick Me, I Hit You Back. Mutual Destruction? Bring It On.
Chong Ming never expected Jiang Tea Tea to be so strong and nimble. One second he was yanked in front of her, the next he was staring death in the face, caught off guard.
He quickly twisted away and shoved Jiang Tea Tea back into the path of the charging Mutant Tiger. “No, Classmate Jiang Tea Tea, this tiger clearly prefers you.”
Jiang Tea Tea tried to shove him forward again, but there was no time. The Mutant Tiger lunged.
At the very last moment, she bent backwards so low her waist nearly kissed the ground. The tiger’s claws whooshed past her and missed entirely, throwing its weight forward.
BANG. BANG. BANG.
The Mutant Tiger’s head exploded into a bloody mess.
Jiang Tea Tea used one hand to flip herself off the ground and lashed out with a kick straight at Chong Ming.
He twisted away, coat flaring. “Excellent reflexes, Classmate Jiang Tea Tea. What kind of Supernatural Ability have you awakened?”
She planted her feet, glaring. “No ability could beat Your Highness Chong Ming’s sneak attack.”
She was a Tree Demon who ate anything and everything. She hadn’t even started drooling over this golden dragon yet, and he had the nerve to test her first?
Fine. He wanted trouble? She’d bring the iron board.
Chong Ming didn’t flinch. He spoke with calm authority, like he believed his own lie. “I only pushed you to dodge the tiger. How’s that a sneak attack?”
Jiang Tea Tea sneered. “Oh? So skilled at twisting logic—do your subordinates know you’re such a shameless talker?”
Chong Ming, ever infuriating, turned to his men and asked, “Adjutant Ai, Da Ma Zi, do I ever twist logic?”
Both Adjutant Ai and Da Ma Zi answered in unison, “Your Highness, twist logic? Never heard of it.”
A Pure Human female, no Supernatural Ability, and she just went head-to-head with His Highness like it was nothing. So brave. So cool. So freaking Alpha. She was the number one badass in the M31 Star System!
If the situation weren’t so dire, they’d be clapping, singing, and headbutting walls in her honor.
Jiang Tea Tea laughed from sheer rage. “So, Your Highness, to test me, you thought ganging up would be fun?”
Chong Ming’s golden eyes sparkled with mischief. “Test you? Classmate Jiang Tea Tea, what guilty conscience makes you think—”
He never finished the sentence.
She struck again.
This time her foot didn’t fly at Chong Ming but at his guards—Adjutant Ai and Da Ma Zi. Lightning fast. Brutally hard.
She landed every kick.
Weapons went flying. Their formation shattered. The half-circle shield around Chong Ming fell apart.
Now both Chong Ming and Jiang Tea Tea were exposed. And their enemies—the Tea King Bee, a Level 7 Mutant Rat, and a Mutant Leopard—weren’t going to wait politely.
Chong Ming blinked. “Classmate Jiang Tea Tea, on the battlefield, hurting the enemy while wounding yourself—that’s a losing trade.”
Jiang Tea Tea smirked. “When the gap is this wide, dragging the enemy down with me is a win. Besides, you pushed me first. Don’t expect me to play nice.”
Chong Ming’s eyes glowed like he was playing with a kitten. “Is it too late to apologize?”
Jiang Tea Tea dodged the pounce of the Mutant Leopard and coolly redirected it toward him. “Too late. I hold grudges.”
The beast, spotted and weighing over a thousand pounds, missed her completely and barreled toward Chong Ming with a ferocious roar.
He didn’t blink.
With a graceful spin, he launched a kick—straight into the beast’s side.
The Mutant Leopard flew like it had wings, soaring back toward Jiang Tea Tea.
She dodged again. The heavy creature landed where she’d stood a second ago—and crushed three Level 7 Mutant Rats in one glorious splat.
“Wow, Your Highness is so hot!”
Some student let out a dramatic sigh, and the rest of the group followed up with shrieks of adoration.
“Your Highness’s legs are longer than my life! Aahh! I want to be kicked by him too! He’s just that cool!”
“Totally! Your Highness is awesome! One kick and that Level 4 Mutant Leopard was down, along with three Level 7 Mutant Rats!”
Jiang Tea Tea swept her gaze across the room and locked eyes on the students who had just spoken—both boys and girls, wide-eyed and worshipful, practically drooling over Chong Ming.
She chuckled. [That flashy Golden Dragon is such a troublemaker. These kids have been completely fooled by his facade. They can’t even see the predator beneath that pretty shell.]
“Woof woof woof… Elder Sister Tea, help… Elder Sister Tea…”
Just as Jiang Tea Tea stomped a Level 7 Mutant Rat to death, a piercing cry came from Big Yellow Strong.
She spun around, her boots still planted in rat guts. That foolish mutt had tried to challenge a Mutant Tiger and got his leg clamped in its jaws. He’d partially reverted into beast form—dog body, human head—and was now yelping for her help.
“So annoying.”
Jiang Tea Tea snarled and darted over without hesitation.
Adjutant Ai raised his gun, aiming to rescue Big Yellow Strong—but Chong Ming’s hand clamped down on the barrel.
Adjutant Ai looked shocked. “Your Highness…?”
Chong Ming’s lips curled into an arrogant smirk. “Anyone who can land a kick on all of you at once? A Level 5 Mutant Tiger isn’t even worth her time. You lot wouldn’t stand a chance either.”
“Double your training when we get back. Maybe next time you won’t get kicked into next week.”
Adjutant Ai and Da Ma Zi: “!!!!!!”
[Great. This low-key Human female is the one hiding her true power. And we’re the ones paying for it.]
[Double training? Say goodbye to our lives.]
Jiang Tea Tea stomped through several more Mutant Rats on her way to Big Yellow Strong. She raised her foot, ready to crush the tiger’s skull—
—when lightning cracked across the sky. A bolt of thunder came screaming down, slamming directly into the tiger’s back.
Flames burst across its fur as the Lightning Strike cooked it alive. It let go of Big Yellow Strong, collapsed, and let out a tortured wail.
Jiang Tea Tea yanked up the now-human, limping Big Yellow Strong and narrowed her eyes at the figure approaching.
“Sui Xuan Chu, that Double S Rank Lightning-type just now—was that yours?”
Sui Xuan Chu’s blue-black combat uniform was drenched in blood as he sauntered over, eyes scanning her up and down.
“Didn’t think you had it in you, Roommate. Picking a fight with the Commander of the Three Armies himself?”
Jiang Tea Tea scoffed. “He attacked first. I was just defending myself. Tell me, isn’t that nuts?”
Sui Xuan Chu chuckled. “All the big shots are nuts. You’ll get used to it.”
“I won’t. I want payback.”
Sui Xuan Chu’s eyes lit up. “You wanna fight him again?”
Jiang Tea Tea snapped back, “Why should he almost let me get eaten by a Mutant Tiger and I can’t lay a hand on him?”
Sui Xuan Chu pointed at Big Yellow Strong. “How about we use him as bait? You and I tag-team, ambush the Commander-slash-Regent!”
Big Yellow Strong: “……”
Jiang Tea Tea raised a brow. “You got beef with him too?”
Sui Xuan Chu grinned, teeth gleaming like a classic villain. “No beef. But he once said: anytime, anywhere, if a student from the Military Academy can land a single kick on him, they get direct admission to any of the Empire’s Thirty Top Elite Corps.”
“That kind of temptation? Once in a lifetime. As a Military Academy student, how could you not be tempted?”
Jiang Tea Tea didn’t even hesitate. “Arrogant much?”
Sui Xuan Chu corrected her, “Not arrogance. He’s got the chops. That’s how he commands the Three Armies and keeps the outer planets trembling.”
“Besides, the Mutant Beast and Mutant Insect invasion on campus? If he gave the order, his personal guards could’ve wiped them out with their high-tech gear in minutes.”
“The fact that he didn’t means he’s just sitting back, watching how the Royal Military Academy reacts—and testing us.”
Jiang Tea Tea let out a low whistle. “Roommate, I gotta say, your brain’s working overtime. He really is just watching from the mountaintop while the tigers fight.”
Sui Xuan Chu nodded like it was obvious. “So, Roommate, you in or not?”
Jiang Tea Tea’s smile turned wicked. One word slipped from her lips: “In.”
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation