My girlfriend isn't as cute as me.

Lin Jiu took out her phone and photographed all of them, taking several pictures in a row. Their expressions while smoking, the rectangular smoking devices in their hands, and each person's face were captured clearly.

This time, the dual-lens zoom camera played a crucial role.

Do you even understand the value of the Xiaomi Mi 6 phone?

Lin Jiu kept his phone on silent mode the entire time, and didn't make a sound while filming. He wasn't one of those third-rate reporters in TV dramas who film villains doing bad things, only to make a sound when they leave. Spreading those hard-won crime records only to meet a gruesome end himself—calling him cannon fodder would be an understatement.

As Lin Jiu put her phone back in her pocket and prepared to leave.

What are you doing here?

A voice came from behind Lin Jiu.

Appeared!

A terrible teammate who will appear in every movie scene!

However, this time they weren't even teammates. Lin Jiu turned to look at the other person's face and hesitated for a long time before remembering who it was.

"Oh, so you're the class monitor."

"...You really don't remember my name?"

Ning Yueyao said somewhat displeased, she hadn't expected that the other party couldn't even remember her name.

Lin Jiu glanced at the music room; the three students had already noticed him. He sighed helplessly.

"Squad leader, can I talk to you about something?"

"What is it? And are you trying to change the subject?"

"It's nothing, I just wanted you to vouch for me that my next actions were in self-defense."

Before Lin Jiu could finish speaking, the three people came out of the music room and surrounded Lin Jiu and Ning Yueyao.

Ning Yueyao was a little confused, not knowing what had happened. She wanted to question them, but when she saw one of them take a folding knife out of his pocket, her expression instantly turned grim.

The man with the knife was a fat man who was 1.8 meters tall. He was also the heaviest smoker among the three. Even from a distance, you could smell a sour and sweet odor emanating from him, a smell that was quite unpleasant.

Lin Jiu gave him a cold look.

Titanium alloy slingshots may look intimidating, but they're actually more for show. They're primarily lightweight and corrosion-resistant, weighing only half as much as steel knives, and their hardness is much lower, especially the blade... Even so, this shouldn't be something a student should carry, much less something to point at classmates at school.

The three of them were initially surprised, thinking it was security guards, but when they came out, they were astonished to find it was two girls. The shorter male student secretly observed his surroundings, nodded to the student with the knife, and, confirming that there were no teachers or other students around, the three of them immediately relaxed.

"Hand over your phone."

The three of them surrounded Lin Jiu and Ning Yueyao. Even though they were high on drugs, they knew what they had to do.

They knew they absolutely couldn't let anyone know they were smoking this kind of stuff at school, or it would cause a lot of trouble. But they were already hooked, unable to resist, unable to control themselves. What's more, the feeling of doing bad things at school fascinated them; this simultaneous surge of physical and mental transgression transformed into a sense of excitement, a kind of illusion of omnipotence.

In fact, these neurotic hallucinations are also caused by the substances they are smoking.

Ning Yueyao was inevitably thrown into a panic. She was just a girl who usually only knew how to study; she had never argued with anyone, never fought, and had never even thought about what to do in this situation. Her first instinct was to back away, her mind filled with only one thought: to find a teacher. One of the people trying to stop her was a tall, strong male student.

"Ugh."

Lin Jiu sighed softly and closed her eyes.

At that moment, time seemed to slow down.

Lin Jiu seemed to be traveling on another timeline, quietly observing everyone present.

The class monitor meant no harm; she had no idea what Lin Jiu was doing. The most likely reason she contacted him was because Lin Jiu still owed her money. This was Lin Jiu's own fault; he owed her fifty yuan and hadn't paid it back, so he had no one else to blame.

Lin Jiu turned her gaze to the boy who had reached out his hands to grab the class monitor's arms.

The boy had a buzz cut, and his school uniform was covered in dust. He didn't look very bright. There were obvious old marks on his face, and judging from the bruises, they were fresh, indicating he had been beaten up in the last few days. His elbows, visible under his short-sleeved shirt, also had clear marks, all superficial injuries, nothing serious.

The tall, fat man with a knife in his hand and bulging pockets was the minor leader among the three present.

The person's clothes were very new, and their skin was very fair, as if they hadn't been in the sun much. Their cheeks were oily from being overly nourished, and their neatly combed hair was all greasy. They also seemed to be prone to sweating. In the music room, a place without air conditioning or a fan, their collar was soaked with sweat after a short while.

In short, he's a piece of trash who doesn't exercise much, loves to eat but is hard to cook, and thinks he's the boss just because he has a knife.

As for this short guy with shifty eyes, seemingly harmless but actually quite cunning... he was the most easily overlooked person present, but in reality, he was the craziest dog.

This short man smoked the least and craved the most to be immersed in beautiful illusions.

He came from the poorest of the three, which was evident from his tattered school uniform and trousers. These were probably old clothes that had been worn by his older brother or relatives, patched up and looking particularly shabby.

It was clear in the music room that this short man desperately craved cigarettes. No matter how the two men teased him, he didn't resist, but continued to beg with a forced smile. He knew very well that he had no right to bargain with these two men; his position was that of a dog. No matter how hungry a dog is, it can only stick out its tongue and wait expectantly. If it behaved, it might get food; if it didn't, it wouldn't get any at all. It had already been domesticated.

If you give him a pack of cigarettes, he'd probably go crazy and work his life away for it.

"..."

A three-dimensional virtual projection was constructed in Lin Jiu's mind.

Basic information has been collected.

We began designing the solution.

Deduce weaknesses and analyze tactics.

There are zero solutions.

Conclusion: No tactics are needed; they are not worthy.

Note: Please be gentle and don't kill anyone.

Lin Jiu slowly opened her eyes.

Time begins to flow.

Chapter 43 Believe Me or Not?

"what--"

When Ning Yueyao saw someone running towards her, she was so frightened that she covered her head and crouched down in defense.

To be honest, Lin Jiu hadn't expected her to do this at all.

However, since Ning Yueyao was being so cooperative, Lin Jiu naturally wouldn't let her down.

He made his move.

"Snapped!!"

The tall, strong boy's outstretched hand was slapped on the wrist by Lin Jiu, resulting in a loud bang.

Under the man's astonished gaze, Lin Jiu showed no intention of stopping to have a proper talk with him, unleashing a surging aura like a tiger. One palm strike made the man's wrist numb and swollen, followed by another palm strike to his torso.

Quick, accurate, ruthless.

The tall boy clutched his abdomen and knelt down. The intense pain overcame the anesthetic effect of the inferior psychotropic drugs, and it felt like something was rising from his stomach to his throat, bringing a burning sensation.

This made him feel both angry and terrified.

The tall boy instinctively threw a punch, but Lin Jiu slapped his wrist again.

"Snapped!!"

Just like an electric mosquito swatter successfully popping a mosquito, a loud sound was heard.

Lin Jiu seemed to have anticipated his reaction, and responded to each move with nonchalant ease.

"With his hands crippled, abdomen injured, and legs unable to support him, the only counterattack he can mount is..."

Lin Jiu's mind provided timely feedback, and his body responded naturally to this information. He stretched out his arms as if preparing to give someone a big hug, shifted his center of gravity forward into a lunge position, and then suddenly clasped his hands together in front of him.

At that moment, the tall, strong student tilted his head back and prepared to headbutt him.

Lin Jiu timed it perfectly.

The slap landed heavily on the other person's ear and cheek, producing a loud slapping sound.

The other person's cheeks rippled as if a pebble had been thrown into a lake, creating waves.

The fourteenth form of the twenty-four forms of Tai Chi: Double Beacon Piercing the Ears.

Without protective gear, swinging your fists can easily injure yourself; you should only throw a punch when you're sure you can hit a vital spot. Lin Jiu knew this well, and he also understood the huge physical differences between himself and his opponent. He had to finish them off with a single combo before they could react; otherwise, it would be dangerous once they recovered.

The opponent could easily use their height advantage, with their long arms and legs, to overwhelm Lin Jiu with a combination of hitting and running. But after all, he's a student, constantly fighting outside of school. What good are all those fights? Most student fights involve just grappling and twisting, without any regard for technique.

"Your parents raised you all these years, it would have been more practical to give birth to a piece of barbecued pork."

Lin Jiu patted the other man's dazed face, a gentle smile on his lips, but his words were deeply painful. He casually tossed the tall, distraught man to the ground, then gently blew on his reddened hands, like a child whose hands were frostbitten in the cold. His movements were so tender, his smile so radiant.

Ning Yueyao stared blankly at Lin Jiu.

She thought she was the person in the class who knew Lin Jiu the most, but that wasn't the case at all; she didn't know him at all.

"Damn it, Hamburger, get her! Tear her face off, and I'll give you the whole pack of cigarettes!" The fat man with the knife was starting to flinch. He focused his attention on Ning Yueyao, clearly thinking this girl was easier to bully. It's really weird, are all girls these days so good at fighting? His prized henchman, whom he'd finally recruited, was beaten down like that.

Sure enough, the short guy nicknamed Hamburger's eyes lit up as soon as he heard that he could have the whole pack of cigarettes. He was initially a little afraid of Lin Jiu and hesitated to turn and run away, but now he was blinded by desire and pounced on her without thinking twice.

Lin Jiu hates this kind of person.

It's completely chaotic and unpredictable; it's impossible to tell what will happen next.

The best way to deal with this kind of person is to be even more ferocious, more violent, and more unreasonable than him!

Lin Jiu raised her leg and kicked the other person in the face, feeling a solid solidity under her foot.

The height difference between the two was not significant. This was the first time Lin Jiu had fought with a short person. In the past, the shady people he encountered were all hooligans who thought they were superior just because they were tall and strong and ate more meat.

This feeling is novel, but that doesn't mean Lin Jiu will show mercy.

On the contrary, Lin Jiu hit the hamburger even harder.

Every time the opponent lunged at him, he knocked them down.

Lin Jiu raised her arm to block the opponent's fist, and with a twist of her slender yet powerful waist, she slammed her left elbow into the opponent's face.

Hamburger swayed and fell to the ground, his shoulders still twitching. Subconsciously, he still wanted to get up and tear Lin Jiu's face apart, just to get a pack of cigarettes. But no matter how fierce a vicious dog is, it's still just a dog.

Lin Jiu aimed almost every punch at his opponent's head, but his physiologically sound boxing style emphasized precision, ensuring the opponent felt comfortable without killing them. He knew very well that since his opponent had taken that kind of drug, it was impossible to persuade them in a normal way.

"...You, you stop right there! If you dare come any closer, I'll stab her to death!!"

Lin Jiu turned to look at the kidnapped class monitor, then glanced at the hysterical fat man, and sighed helplessly.

"Class monitor, can't you run a little further away? Are you some kind of cheesy movie heroine who's just there to set the mood, or Princess Peppa from Mario who gets kidnapped every day? No, wait, isn't her name Princess Peach?"

"..."