The high school students looked at the male teacher with pity, thinking he must be out of his mind. They knew the young man he approached was a ’superhuman’ who dared to fight the skeleton soldiers hand-to-hand and wondered what the scholarly teacher could do. They thought even getting hit would cause him more pain.
In the heat of his anger and humiliation, the male ’teacher’ Li Zhen, oblivious to this, ran towards Tang Zheng and swung a fist at his face, aiming to get back at him for what just happened.
"What a weak punch." Tang Zheng could tell at a glance that this teacher rarely fought; his attacks were aimless. Seeing this, Tang Zheng didn’t even bother to dodge. He struck quickly, catching the teacher’s throat and lifting his arm.
Li Zhen’s punch immediately went off course and hit Tang Zheng’s shoulder. Without any spare time for attack, he pulled back his hands and slapped at Tang Zheng’s right hand in a desperate attempt to force him to let go. He was unable to utter a word as his throat was being strangled, and his face turned red from lack of oxygen.
The high school students watched in shock as Tang Zheng picked up the at least 140-pound adult Li Zhen with ease with a single arm. Li Zhen’s legs flailing wildly mirrored the desperation of a drowning person, which further imprinted the scene in the people’s minds. Han Zifeng and his group of friends gasped in cold air and decided not to mess with Tang Zheng anymore.
Tang Zheng, not wanting to kill anyone, demonstrated his power by lifting Li Zhen off the floor, then casually tossed him aside as if he was a rag.
"Alright, Xu Guanlin, choose ten people, eight boys and two girls, quickly now," Tang Zheng issued his first command as the ’homeroom teacher’.
"Can I ask what this is for?" Yue Tong stepped forward, boldly asking for clarification.
"Obviously, it’s for fighting the skeleton soldiers in a while. You don’t plan on being chased around indefinitely, do you?"
Immediately, an uproar arose within the coliseum, and skeptical arguments filled Tang Zheng’s ears.
"Everyone shut up." Tang Zheng pulled out his Bronze Sword, walking through the crowd while swiping several of the loudest students on their buttocks. Screams and tumbling bodies followed immediately afterwards.
"No violence is allowed." Li Zhen sat on the ground, bellowing out a sentence like a chivalrous knight prepared to sacrifice himself in the face of evil. His gaze Ashen faced Tang Zheng with stern righteous indignation.
"Hey, if you don’t want to die, shut up and stay back." Zhang Hao, with a chicken drumstick in one hand and a gun in the other, aimed the gun at the male ’teacher’ and sneered, "Don’t you understand the situation yet? These students are already listening to Tang Zheng."
"Impossible, they are being forced." Li Zhen adamantly argued, turning to Xu Guanlin, "You are the class leader, right? Gather the student leaders for a meeting. You can’t let others determine your fate."
"I agree with Tang Zheng being the homeroom teacher." Before the echo of Li Zhen’s words died down, a student contradicted him, and several others also expressed their opinions, "Who do you think you are? Just get lost."
Li Zhen stared in disbelief, failing to comprehend the sudden backlash, while Tang Zheng grinned. Those who opposed him were definitely the poor performers in the class. His suggestion of a meeting with the class leaders instantly put him against the other poor performers. Anyone would have a rebellious streak, even more so in this dire situation.
Xu Guanlin didn’t respond. He wasn’t stupid, he understood very well what decision would benefit him most. As class leader, by choosing to align with Tang Zheng, at the very least he’d be guaranteed food and water. Then, by using these resources to establish connections, he would still be able to maintain his status.
After taking one more look at these students, Li Zhen let out a heavy sigh and walked away, filled with despair.
"What are you waiting for? Do you think I’m going to use you as bait? You are lacking trust. If you don’t learn to fight against the skeleton soldiers now, do you plan to just sit around waiting to die?" Tang Zheng’s words sparked another round of chatter among the students. Only this time, they were more accepting. Tang Zheng sneered, delivering the final incentive, "After the battle, those who perform well can have a meal. Decide for yourselves."
With the promise of food as a reward, what was supposed to be a selection process immediately turned into a volunteering spree. The male students, who had not experienced combat, did not grasp the extent of danger and believed they could perform adequately. They enthusiastically signed up.
"Oh, and the person training you will be a retired soldier from the Southland Sharp Blade Special Forces. This is not an opportunity that comes by often, so cherish it," Tang Zheng finished, waving to Lin Weiguo, "Brother Lin, the rest is up to you."
"Whoa, that’s cool." Watching Tang Zheng scold a group of high school students like they were his grandchildren, the envious Zhang Hao said, "I want to be a teacher too."
"Try being a student again, that’s not so difficult." As for Zhang Hao, who seemed to have no redeeming qualities, Lu Fan didn’t have high hopes.
"Whew, that’s finally settled." After picking out a few usable weapons from the weapon rack, Tang Zheng went back to the tent. "Zhang Hao, distribute these weapons to the ten selected students."
"Alright." Zhang Hao swallowed the food in his mouth and eagerly began to work. He was worrying over how to approach the female students.
"Are you really going to give them food?" Pang Meiqin seemed displeased.
"How much can a few people eat? But look at what I got in return – forty-something students willing to act as ’bait’." Tang Zheng lowered his voice, "Without benefits to go with the punishment, who’s going to follow you?"
"But they couldn’t possibly all listen to you, could they?" Pang Meiqin questioned.
"Class distinction. How would you feel if your starving companions suddenly got to eat their fill? Of course, you’d want to take their places. That’s how you ensure a steady supply of food." Lu Fan clearly understood the situation thoroughly.
"What if they try to overthrow this tyranny?" Pang Meiqin was worried. This update is available on NoveI-Fire.ɴet
"Foolish girl. Those who have access to food will want to protect their interests. In a way, they will defend our status. Once a class structure is established, animosity will be created, and the notion of sticking together will be gone."
"I thought Tang Zheng was a good person." Pang Meiqin pouted.
"While his motivations aren’t entirely pure, he is indeed doing a good thing." Lu Fan pointed out with deadly accuracy, "You have to make them feel like you’re taking care of them, make them feel like you’re a good person. Only then will they be willing to risk their lives for you."
"Also, if we don’t divide the food, they’ll resent us. Now, even if you openly eat, no one will mind." Tang Zheng pointed to the students who were training hard with Lin Weiguo, "See? They’re all working hard for food, which at least helps us divert some of the attacks."
The relaxed expression on Tang Zheng’s face concealed his worries. He felt the monsters couldn’t continue to be so weak. Sure enough, three hours later, the third wave of monsters arrived, and these were not comparable to the skeleton soldiers from before.
Over fifty people all looked up, their gaze fixed on the roof of the coliseum. After several magic arrays flashed, one abyss demon after another, each wielding a steel fork, crawled out, covering the entire ceiling.
Staring at the long, narrow eyes glowing with green light, the high school students all huddled towards Tang Zheng’s direction.
PS, thanks to all my friends for their birthday wishes. Your heartfelt words have made me very happy, so thank you, thank you! (To be continued. If you story, feel free to vote on qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)