The Provocateur

The female voice from the speaker rang out again, her tone becoming cheerful. "Please take your student cards, freshmen, and begin your wonderful campus life!"

With a "Piu~" sound, like a magic trick, a card appeared out of thin air in everyone's hands.

The air rippled slightly, and the card came to rest securely in each person's palm.

Yue Shi looked down at the card in his hand.

It was a deep blue student card with the words 'Multi-World Joint Higher Vocational School' printed on the front. The font consisted of strange symbols that Yue Shi had never seen before, yet he understood their meaning at a glance.

At the top of the card was a school crest—a circle containing a drawing of an open book with a pen resting on its pages.

Below that was his ID photo, and next to it was a line of text: 【Student ID: 202604140800】.

The back of the card listed the rules for using the student card.

To put it simply, every activity within the school required swiping this card.

It seemed normal for students to use student cards within a school.

But in an instant, Yue Shi considered several things: How did one recharge the card? If it was lost, could it be reported and replaced? And what should be done if someone else took it?

Did this school only recognize the card and not the person?

As Yue Shi was thinking, his pocket suddenly began to feel warm, growing increasingly hot.

He reached in and pulled out a piece of paper—the one Tang Zhuhe had given him earlier.

As soon as he took it out, the paper dissolved into a wisp of black smoke.

The black smoke drifted for a moment before being drawn toward the student card in Yue Shi's hand.

The black smoke seeped into the card's surface. The school crest flickered slightly, and then a lotus mark appeared beside it.

It was a black lotus, its lines simple and sparse, yet possessing a distinct spirit.

Before Yue Shi could ponder what the black lotus represented, the blue-haired guy suddenly walked up to him.

The man approached at a moderate pace, his posture relaxed. He came to a halt less than two meters from Yue Shi, appraising him wantonly with a smug smirk playing on his lips. "I am the Wave Messenger."

Seeing this, the surrounding crowd's gazes converged from all directions. Some were looking for entertainment, some were analyzing the situation, and others were waiting for a good show.

"I feel the aura of the sea on you. Do you possess an ocean authority?" the Wave Messenger asked, his eyes burning with intensity.

Yue Shi remained expressionless.

"Now, hand over the Authority to me immediately," the Wave Messenger commanded as if it were only natural.

In the distance, several transmigrators who knew each other gathered to whisper.

"Who is this blue-haired kid? Why is he so arrogant?" a man in a gray trench coat asked in a low voice.

"The Wave Messenger," a hooded woman beside him replied, her eyes fixed on the blue-haired back. "I heard he's incredibly powerful; countless people have died at his hands."

She glanced at Yue Shi and shook her head regretfully. "That long-haired guy is really unlucky to have been targeted by the Wave Messenger."

"The Wave Messenger seems to be collecting all authorities related to 'water'," another voice chimed in.

"I see that his every move is both offensive and defensive; he's practically flawless," the man in the trench coat said, squinting.

The hooded woman's expression was grave. "We'd better stay back to avoid getting caught in the crossfire. Besides, let's see if there are any consequences for fighting and killing in this school."

The few of them exchanged looks and silently retreated, though their gazes never left the two men.

The Wave Messenger had clearly heard the crowd's discussion, and his smirk widened. He relished the avoidance and the flattery; he loved the feeling of being feared and looked up to.

He was the Wave Messenger, and there was nothing he wanted that he couldn't get. His gaze toward Yue Shi grew increasingly contemptuous. "Do exactly as I say and hand over—"

Before he could finish, something shot toward him.

His pupils shrank sharply; his body instinctively leaned back, trying to dodge.

But he couldn't dodge at all. It wasn't that his reaction was too slow, but rather that the object had locked onto him.

A guaranteed hit, impossible to evade.

"Aaaargh!" the Wave Messenger screamed in agony as he fell backward and slammed onto the ground. His body convulsed continuously, and his blue hair rapidly lost its luster, like a wilting flower.

Looking down, he saw an arrow protruding from his chest. It was neither metal nor wood, dull in color, with gold patterns flowing across its surface.

The arrowhead was buried deep in his chest. The Wave Messenger's eyes bulged like brass bells, and he couldn't muster any strength at all. His lips trembled. "What... is this..."

Yue Shi ignored him and crouched down to grip the shaft of the arrow.

The Wave Messenger shuddered, opening his mouth to speak.

Yue Shi gave him no chance to speak. With a gentle tug, the arrow was removed.

There was no blood, only a small amount of pale blue light drifting from the wound.

The Wave Messenger's body arched violently; his eyes remained open, but his pupils had already dilated.

A second later, he stopped moving. His body began to melt, and he quickly turned into a pool of pale blue liquid.

The liquid flowed and contracted on the ground, eventually condensing into a water-droplet-shaped object.

The droplet hovered a few centimeters off the ground, rotating slowly.

An Authority.

Yue Shi reached out and took it. It felt cold and light, and he immediately tucked it into his pocket.

The playground went silent—a deathly silence—as every gaze fell upon Yue Shi.

Then, the silence was broken by footsteps as people began to retreat, rapidly increasing their distance.

It was a subconscious, instinctual reaction to move away from a source of danger.

The ones who retreated the fastest were the members of the small group that had been whispering earlier. Killing was nothing new to them; they had seen scenes far more cruel and bloody than this.

But they had never seen anything like this. They hadn't even seen how Yue Shi had made his move.

When had that arrow appeared? And how had it been shot?

It had gone completely unnoticed.

They had only seen the Wave Messenger speaking when an arrow suddenly appeared in his chest, piercing his body without warning.

And they, powerful experts who considered themselves superior, had seen nothing at all. They couldn't even detect any trace of the arrow's trajectory afterward.

Everyone present was of the True God level, but it was clear that even among True Gods, there was a massive disparity.

That disparity was now laid bare before everyone in the most direct and merciless way possible.

Some turned and walked away with steady steps and calm demeanors, as if nothing had happened. However, they moved further and further from Yue Shi's location until they were at a safe distance.

Others remained where they were, continuing to watch the aftermath. They wanted to see exactly what the consequences of killing someone in this school would be.

Yue Shi gently stroked the snow leopard and glanced around. His face was incredibly calm, exuding the aura of a master, but in his heart, he quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, he had held the floor.