Chapter Twenty-Seven: Exposed

On the stage, Chen Long was unaware that his earlier actions had brought shame upon the Chen family in front of the other two families—especially his father’s conduct, which had become the subject of ridicule. At this moment, he caught sight of Chen Bo among the crowd. Was that useless wretch here to compete in the recruitment martial contest too? Ha! Was he not afraid of being beaten to death on the stage? With his pathetic abilities, just about anyone here could crush him with ease.

Malicious thoughts swirled in Chen Long’s mind as he shouted at Chen Bo, “Chen Bo, you can’t even cultivate, yet you’ve come to take part in the recruitment contest? Don’t worry though. If I earn a spot and enter Tianyang Academy, I’ll be sure to guide you in the future.”

“Even if your useless body can’t learn much, I can still teach you a few exercises for health and longevity—so you might live a little longer.”

Chen Bo, standing below the stage, was momentarily stunned, looking up at Chen Long with bewilderment. This guy was utterly conceited! At first, it sounded almost caring, but on reflection, it was nothing but veiled mockery.

Just as Chen Long expected Chen Bo to be provoked into coming up for a bout, Chen Bo rose to his feet. But instead of mounting the stage, he simply turned and left, tossing back three words: “You’re insane.”

Chen Bo wasn’t foolish enough to walk into a beating, and Chen Long’s clumsy goading didn’t even ruffle his mood.

Chen Long, however, was livid. That useless wretch had actually called him insane?! Where did he get the nerve?!

“Chen Bo, if you’re a real man, get up here and fight me!” Chen Long bellowed in rage.

“Why do you care about my manhood? Hm, don’t tell me you have a special interest?” Chen Bo retorted, already walking away.

After watching several bouts, the novelty had already faded for Chen Bo. Bored once more, he mused, What now? Well, back to forging. That last bit of elemental fire is just sitting there anyway.

Arriving at the forge, he found it coated in dust and cobwebs—he hadn’t been here in nearly twenty days. With a sigh, Chen Bo set about cleaning the place up once more.

“Hello, everyone! It’s been a while since I’ve greeted you all,” he said to the camera, waving his hand. “Today your host will be forging again. Any suggestions on what sort of weapon I should make? I’m a bit indecisive.”

“I don’t want to watch you forge, I want to see you destroy that Chen Long guy!”

“Jacky Long tips the host 2000 gold coins. That guy’s name sounds just like mine, but I can’t stand him either!”

“Wow, Jackie Chan just showed up. Isn’t Uncle Long supposed to be in Hollywood? What’s he doing popping into the stream?”

“Easy Life tips the host 500 gold coins. Greetings, Uncle Long.”

“Bookish Goof tips the host 3434 gold coins. Hey Easy, I tipped more than you.”

“Host, why do I feel like things have gotten chaotic lately?”

“Isn’t that obvious? This is a live stream, not a TV show or a movie.”

“Wow, host, I can’t believe I’ve met Uncle Long. You’re my idol!” Chen Bo exclaimed with feigned excitement.

“As for those who want to see me beat up Chen Long, I think if I get on that stage, I’ll come down a cripple. For my own safety, I should probably level up a bit more before I go making a spectacle of him.”

With that, Chen Bo stopped chatting and took out his elemental fire, ready to get to work.

Having gained some experience from his first attempt, he made far fewer mistakes this time around.

Meanwhile, Zhao Qing, an instructor at Tianyang Academy, was wandering nearby. Disliking crowds, he had come out for a stroll. By coincidence, he found himself outside the forge. Glancing at the dilapidated wooden door, he shook his head—Flame Town truly was a small place. The Chen family, one of the three great clans here, didn’t even have a single forgemaster.

Just as he was about to leave, a rhythmic pounding sounded from inside the forge—someone was at work! Wasn’t the place empty just moments ago?

To find a forgemaster in this remote backwater—Zhao Qing was truly astonished. Even at Tianyang Academy, there were few students and instructors in the Forging Department; forgemasters were a rare breed.

Curious, Zhao Qing peered through a crack in the door and saw a youth forging a longsword. Though he knew little of the craft, he could tell at a glance that Chen Bo’s technique was remarkably practiced.

He might not understand the details, but it looked impressive all the same.

Oblivious to the watcher outside, Chen Bo focused intently—distraction could result in an explosion at the forge. The incantation for controlling elemental fire came from the system, so in theory, there was no risk, but Chen Bo wasn’t about to gamble. Nor would he ask the system—each question cost fifty thousand gold coins, and though he’d saved up a good pile over the past few weeks, he hadn’t bothered to count it. Still, no amount of gold could withstand such extravagance, and he was saving for an ultimate lottery draw.

After more than an hour, Chen Bo at last forged a longsword. Its grade was about the same as his previous work, but its appearance was far better—at least it actually resembled a sword this time.

He flourished it, but it didn’t feel quite right in his hand. Well, being a forgemaster didn’t make him a weapons designer—he couldn’t expect every creation to suit him perfectly.

Wanting some fresh air, he opened the door—and was stunned to find a middle-aged man staring at him with shining eyes. He recognized the man vaguely as an instructor from Tianyang Academy.

The naked hunger in the man’s gaze made Chen Bo swallow nervously. He hastily covered his bare chest and stammered, “Uh, senior, I’m really not into that sort of thing. Please don’t look at me like that.”

Zhao Qing was momentarily speechless. Chen Bo’s wary, disgusted expression was like that of a maiden confronted by a lecher. A few lines of exasperation appeared on Zhao Qing’s forehead as he fought the urge to smack Chen Bo. “I know you. You’re the eldest son of the Chen family, aren’t you?”

“Huh? How did you know?” Chen Bo replied cautiously.

“There are endless rumors about you in Flame Town. Turns out, not all hearsay is reliable. I wonder what those who call you a wastrel would think if they knew the truth,” Zhao Qing said, a playful look on his face.

“So, after all this, what do you want? I’ve got nothing to offer—no body, no money,” Chen Bo replied, now fully dressed.

“Do you want to become a member of Tianyang Academy?”

“What? What do you mean?” Chen Bo was bewildered. So this creepy guy wasn’t after his body? With that, Chen Bo heaved a deep sigh of relief—his chastity was safe, at least.