บท 18: Return Me My Shi Xiaobai

Although Shi Xiaobai was a fool in Riko's eyes, she had no doubt that he was a genius when it came to cultivating Psionic Ability. Be it his Mind Expanse or Psy-genes that were at S Class, or the Perception of God of the Six Senses of God, each one of them was a talent dreamed of by anyone.

Although Shi Xiaobai's final evaluation was S– Class, [Gaia]'s upper echelons and Riko knew very clearly that Shi Xiaobai's true evaluation should have been S+ Class. This was because Shi Xiaobai had only shot once in his ability test. Since he possessed the Perception of God, then just being a little bit serious was enough for him to easily obtain a higher ranking.

This was also the reason why the treatment Shi Xiaobai received far exceeded the other S– Class rookie from this year. Even the upper echelons were foolish enough to request Riko to sacrifice herself to ensure that Shi Xiaobai would have a sense of belonging to [Gaia]. What status did Riko enjoy? Ignoring the Minamiya family's status in China, just the fact that Riko was One-Pun's only student, or that she was this generation's Oceanic Pontus, was enough. If they forced Riko to lose all decorum with them, it was not something that could easily be resolved. Yet, the upper echelons were willing to take such great risks, making the degree of attention placed on Shi Xiaobai evident.

As such, even if Riko was unwilling to admit it, she had no choice but to exclaim.

This fool, Shi Xiaobai, is truly the best genius she had ever encountered.

However, despite Shi Xiaobai being a genius, what made it shocking was that he was a weakling. Shi Xiaobai possessed the most amazing Psionic Ability talent, but he was not a Psionite. In fact, he could be said to have had not even begun Psionite cultivation. Without any exaggeration, be it Kevin or Yang Yang, they could have easily taken Shi Xiaobai down. Shi Xiaobai was not even a match for the 4–5 year-old loli, Zhong Yue'er.

This contrast was what made Riko ponder the most. Why hadn't Shi Xiaobai begun Psionic Ability cultivation at the age of thirteen? Some children from a family of Heroes would even begin Psionic Ability cultivation at the age of two or three, for instance Zhong Yue'er. Even those who began later—those who came from ordinary households—would begin at six or seven. This was because the nine years of compulsory education in this world mainly focused on teaching Psionic Ability cultivation.

Riko even began to treat Shi Xiaobai's joke seriously.

Is Shi Xiaobai really from another world?

Riko realized that the more she spent time with Shi Xiaobai, the more she couldn't comprehend him. As a result, after all the various incidents that had happened today, there was a veil of mystery surrounding Shi Xiaobai in her heart. It was as if the Shi Xiaobai in front of her was a fictional character, a reality that was impossible to make contact with.

But at this very moment, Shi Xiaobai had used a single sentence to pierce through that mysteriousness, shattering the imaginary barrier to pieces. This made Riko feel a true sense of warmth.

"I want to become stronger. Please help me."

Upon hearing those words that sounded like a plea, Riko felt as if a particular soft corner in her heart had been gently prodded with a finger. What sort of feeling was that...? Slightly bitter, slightly tingly, slightly warm, but it was very real.

In her mind, she thought, "Ah, so this is Shi Xiaobai."

He obviously had a talent others dreamed of, yet he desired true power. He called himself "This King" in an arrogant manner, yet he knew better than anyone how weak he was. He knew he had the right to be proud, yet he timidly tugged at her hand and made such a tender request. Perhaps, the reason why he was crying his heart out during the sunset was not because he was afraid, but because he was feeling remorse? He desired—more than anyone—to become one of the strong. He wanted to protect that Little Fatso! No wonder Teacher One-Pun said that he was a brave child.

Such a Shi Xiaobai was very real, and very cute.

At this moment, Riko was touched.

"Tsk. Girl, you are already This King's person. This King orders you to help This King become stronger!" Suddenly, Shi Xiaobai's high-spirited voice resounded.

Riko, who was still deep in a million thoughts, was momentarily stunned. An ominous feeling arose in her heart.

"Eighty-one blood-limiting seals were imposed on This King by the evil Gods, and the only way of removing these seals is to constantly become stronger. Once the seals on This King are removed, there would be no rival in this entire world!"

By then, Riko had already guessed the ending. She nearly wanted to cover her ears, so that she need not listen to the rest of his words.

However, in the next second, Shi Xiaobai's familiar laughter resounded once again. "Wahahaha, laugh and be excited, Girl. Once This King is invincible, this world will be eventually conquered!"

Riko was beyond tears. This fool could not even maintain that sincere act for more than three seconds. It was such a waste of her emotions.

Could it be that she was the one who moved herself a moment ago?

The more Riko thought about it, the more infuriated she became. As she watched on as Shi Xiaobai began bragging how invincible he would be after removing the seals, the more she felt the distance widen between the Shi Xiaobai she imagined and the Shi Xiaobai in front of her.

"Bastard, return me my Shi Xiaobai!"

At this moment, Riko could not help but reach out to wrangle Shi Xiaobai by the neck.

...

As Riko engaged in a moment of unilateral "abuse" of Shi Xiaobai, while constantly shouting "return me my Shi Xiaobai", Shi Xiaobai was repeatedly shouting in an aggrieved manner, "But This King is Shi Xiaobai!"

After the ruckus, Riko was covered in sweat and could not wait to take her shower. As she was used to wrapping a towel around herself at home, she had accidentally given Shi Xiaobai a chance to catch a glance of unspeakable things. As a result, she immediately screamed and beat Shi Xiaobai up once again.

Shi Xiaobai, who experienced the tribulations, lay on the couch with a face full of grievance.

On the other hand, Riko contentedly sat on another sofa. She began to ask Shi Xiaobai of whatever knowledge he had grasped. In fact, as Shi Xiaobai's rookie counselor, understanding and helping Shi Xiaobai was part of her job.

However, after a series of inquiries, Riko was shocked. Shi Xiaobai did not know a single thing. He didn't even know the most basic concept of what a Psionite was.

"So you really have no clue what Mind Expanse is, or what Psy-genes are, as well as the Six Senses of God?" Riko asked incredulously.

"Che, This King just feels disdain about finding it out!" Shi Xiaobai said with a disdainful face.

For a fool that did not know anything and has everything, made Riko have a deep sense of malevolence towards this world.

She could only sigh and say, "In seven days, the organization's intake of rookies will be halted. [Annihilation] will also begin a new batch of rookie training. You can slowly learn the basics in the future, but there is something that cannot be delayed."

"What is it?" Shi Xiaobai asked.

"Psionic Ability cultivation!"

Riko said in a serious manner, "For this batch of [Annihilation] rookies, the weakest is at the first level of the Psionic Mortal Realm, while the best has reached the fourth level of the Psionic Mortal Realm. As for you, who has been given the best evaluation by [Annihilation], you aren't even at the first level of the Psionic Mortal Realm. You will probably make a fool out of yourself."

Riko suddenly thought of something and took out her cellphone to make a call. Moments later, the other party picked up the phone as she whispered, "Teacher One-Pun..."

After spending a few minutes conversing with One-Pun, Riko revealed a smile and looked at Shi Xiaobai. She said with a laugh, "Go ahead and snigger, Teacher One-Pun has agreed to impart his personal Psionic Ability cultivation technique to you. This is something dreamed of by numerous people. Although trying to reach the first level of the Psionic Mortal Realm in seven days is an extremely difficult task, but with your talent, it might be possible with some effort."

Riko was already beginning to plan how she would spend the next seven days "drilling" Shi Xiaobai into proper shape.

She did not notice that Shi Xiaobai, who was slumped on the sofa, had eyes burning with intense fighting spirit. It was a morale that seemed like it would burn through everything at all expense.

"This King is unable to endure the thirst!"

Author's Note: As this is a transitional chapter to build up the plot, it might seem filler-like. However, the story shouldn't seem too boring, it's just that the promotion of the plot is slightly slower for this and the previous chapter. In addition, these two chapters are about Riko. Treat it as my favoritism for her, and also to let everyone get a clear understanding of the current situation between Xiaobai and Riko. This novel isn't about sex and girls. Although there was some ambiguity in Chapter 16, a story with the beauty throwing herself at the protagonist is something This King feels disdain for. Even if there is a female protagonist, there should be sufficiently deep feelings before anything happens. As for whether this book has a single female protagonist, dual or multiple was asked by someone on the discussion board, but to maintain the suspense, I will not be answering this question. Just leaving a thought for everyone.