By the time Qiao Xi came to her senses, she was already standing in front of the Black Cat Bar.
Rex noticed the newcomer. "Are you a student from Bali High? You'd better get away from here."
Qiao Xi frowned ever so slightly. *He didn't recognize me?*
A nameless, bittersweet ache welled up in her heart, likely because he looked so much like Brother Yu.
Ignoring him, she walked straight into the Black Cat Bar.
Sitting at the counter, she tried to recall the name of a low-alcohol cocktail she had coincidentally heard about in her past life. "Mister, get me a Gin Fizz."
The bartender gave Qiao Xi a strange look before starting to mix the drink.
Rex walked over and stood beside her. "Little girl, do you know what kind of place this is? It's a bar—the Black Cat Bar, no less. Do your family members know where you are?"
Qiao Xi looked at Rex with a smile. "You don't look very old yourself, you look like a high school student. How is it that you're the boss of the Black Cat Bar?"
Hearing her words, the corners of Rex's mouth curled into an enigmatic smile, though his eyes watched her with guarded vigilance.
"Just who are you anyway? A normal student should be at home doing homework right now."
The bartender placed the freshly mixed drink in front of Qiao Xi. "Thanks."
She took a gentle sip, the refreshing, sweet-and-sour flavor spreading throughout her mouth.
"The reason I came here is purely out of curiosity. After all, so many rumors make this place sound so mysterious, I just wanted to come and take a look."
Of course, Rex—who was as cunning as a fox—would certainly not believe a word of what she said.
Qiao Xi slowly finished her drink. Rex didn't say anything, as if waiting for her to speak, or perhaps lost in thought.
As she took the very last sip, her face flushed slightly. "Sigh, I guess I'm still not very good at holding my liquor."
Perhaps a little tipsy from the alcohol, Qiao Xi turned her head and flashed Rex a big, adorable smile.
"I'm sure we'll see each other again very soon." With that, she stood up, took out the black card given to her by the Flame—one that could be used across all Twelve Dimensions—to pay the bill, and walked out the front doors of the Black Cat Bar.
While Rex was still stunned by Qiao Xi's parting smile, she had already walked out the door. Rex stared at her retreating figure and fell into deep contemplation.
*That smile... it's so familiar. Could it be her?*
Back at the villa, she washed up and got ready for bed. Today had truly been exhausting: she had spent the entire day searching for Teacher Tian Xin, helped tidy up Xiao Yuyu's room in the evening, stopped by the Black Cat Bar on her way home, and even caught a glimpse of Rex—the protagonist of the upcoming arc—whom she hadn't seen in years. Though part of that had admittedly been the alcohol talking.
The next day, Wang Dadong announced in Ultima Class that their homeroom teacher had been kidnapped. Everyone put their heads together to discuss how to save her, and just as they stepped out of the school gates, they received a call from Wang Arthur's subordinates saying they had located her.
They arrived at the spot where Teacher Tian Xin was being held captive.
Seeing Yu Shengde standing right beside their homeroom teacher, Qiao Xi couldn't help muttering inwardly:
"What on earth is this? Did he really have to lean this hard into the stereotype of a deranged uncle? The scruffy stubble, the unkempt hair, the look of utter grievance like Dou E—I honestly barely know how to make fun of this anymore."
Seeing such a large group of Ultima Class students arrive, Yu Shengde laughed like a madman and pressed a knife against Teacher Tian Xin's neck.
"Look at how they look right now! Do they look like students? You still want to reform them? They're nothing but punks, juvenile delinquents, and scum of society!"
Hearing Yu Shengde hurl such insults at them, Ultima Class couldn't possibly keep their cool, and they moved to teach him a lesson. But Wang Dadong stopped them.
Yu Shengde laughed maniacally. "I see you're their leader! I want you to come over here! Kneel!"
"Brother Dong, no!" "Brother Dadong, don't listen to him!"
Sha Jie, Ji-an, and the others were desperate to rush forward, but they were held back when Ding Xiaoyu and Wang Arthur released their Powers to form a barrier. Watching the leader of Ultima Class abandon his dignity and drop to his knees with a heavy *thud*, Qiao Xi slipped past them just as the barrier was going up.
Clenching her fists, Qiao Xi watched as Yu Shengde pulled out a leather whip and lashed Wang Dadong with it over and over, his clouded eyes filled with madness.
"Say you were wrong! Hurry up and say 'Teacher, I was wrong'!"
He struck harder and more viciously with each blow.
Tian Xin wept as she begged Yu Shengde, "Stop hitting him, I'm begging you, please stop hitting him!"
Damn it! Qiao Xi clenched her teeth. *No!*
Taking advantage of the fact that Yu Shengde's attention was entirely focused on beating Wang Dadong, she instantly teleported right next to him.
"Freeze! Freezing Spell Wulamabaha!"
In an instant, Yu Shengde was frozen in place. "What kind of person are you! What kind of sorcery did you use, let me go right now!"
Qiao Xi stepped forward, carefully moving the knife away from Teacher Tian Xin's neck before snatching the blade away and tossing it aside. She reached out to help Brother Dadong up.
"Brother Dadong, are you okay?"
Wang Dadong looked at Qiao Xi, somewhat drained of strength. "I'm fine. Go check on the homeroom teacher first."
Ding Xiaoyu and Wang Arthur had already lowered the barrier.
The rest of Ultima Class hurried over to help Wang Dadong to his feet.
After untying the ropes on Teacher Tian Xin, Qiao Xi began checking her body for injuries.
"Xiao Xi, I'm fine. Let's take him to the hospital together, okay? He might be having some mental health issues, let's take him to the hospital, alright?"
Qiao Xi looked hesitatingly toward Wang Dadong for his opinion. Seeing Wang Dadong nod, Rayleigh Freeze released his control over Yu Shengde, then cast a Mind-Swaying Spell on him so he would follow them to the hospital of his own accord, preventing him from pulling any more stunts along the way.
The group walked back toward the classroom.
Sha Jie fussed over Dadong's injuries, Tian Xin praised the students, Qiao Xi, Ding Xiaoyu, and Wang Arthur walked quietly behind them, while the rest of the crew skipped and cheered as they walked.
Walking between Wang Arthur and Ding Xiaoyu, Qiao Xi couldn't hide the joy written all over her face. This was the first storyline she had experienced in this world—a storyline she had shared with everyone. She was truly grateful to have come to this world, to have become friends with them, to experience these events together, and to help them.
Ding Xiaoyu and Wang Arthur noticed Qiao Xi's expression. "What's wrong? You look so happy."
"Yeah. Earlier I saw you looking pretty angry—it's rare to see you lose your temper like that. Now all of a sudden you're beaming."
She gazed up at the sky with deep emotion. "I'm so happy I could come to Ultima Class. I'm so glad I got to know you all, and I'm so happy I could experience all of this alongside you—searching together, rescuing Sister Xinxin together. I really love this feeling."
Wang Arthur flashed Qiao Xi his signature grin, while Ding Xiaoyu smiled gently and patted her head. Everything felt so wonderful, and everything went completely unsaid.
That night, at the Dimensional Virtual Reception Hall, Qiao Xi sat at her desk reviewing documents. Standing before her was a young woman with delicate facial features and a chilling, ruthless aura.
She was Qianyue, the newly chosen commander of the Gold Dimension's Imperial Guard.
"Qianyue, have the new East, West, South, and North City Guards started assembling yet?"
Qianyue replied in a cold tone that matched her demeanor. "Yes, Supreme Leader. The captains for each city guard have already been selected, and the members are still being screened."
Looking through the stack of documents in her hands, Qiao Xi couldn't help letting out a soft sigh. "Sigh. Ever since the previous Gold Dimension Supreme Leader sacrificed himself, a new one hasn't been chosen. The old city guard troops perished along with the former Supreme Leader, and many of the older veterans have already retired into seclusion. It really isn't easy to find senior veterans to assist the new Gold Dimension Supreme Leader."
Qianyue carried a fresh stack of documents over from the desk behind her. "Supreme Leader, these are the documents for the Gold Dimension, as well as the ones sent by the Flame Master."
Qiao Xi frowned slightly and rubbed her temples. "Sigh, go get me a cup of coffee. Looks like another all-nighter."
"Understood, subordinate will go prepare it right away." She turned and left.
"I finally know what it feels like when Giu Wu is addressed as 'Supreme Leader' and 'subordinate' all day long. It makes me feel like I've aged several decades."
When she finally finished handling everything and stepped out onto the balcony to relax, she heard a gentle, mellow voice—like fine mutton-fat jade colliding together.
"What a coincidence, we meet again. Is this what you meant last time when you said we'd see each other again?"
Qiao Xi lowered her head to look at that familiar figure: his gentle, fair-skinned face, and—unlike last time—his hair wasn't brushed back, falling naturally around his face, complete with his glasses and that gentle smile.
Qiao Xi massaged her temples. *Why is he here? He surely didn't recognize me as Qiao Xi, right?*
"What are you doing here?" Qiao Xi voiced the question in her heart.
"I just happened to pass by and saw you," Rex replied, using his naturally pleasing voice with a lazy, carefree tone.
"Like hell you did!"
A gust of wind blew past, and Rex was suddenly standing right next to Qiao Xi.
Qiao Xi wasn't particularly surprised; since she knew he was KO.2, having such abilities was hardly unexpected.
"It seems you're no ordinary person either. You didn't look surprised at all when you saw me do that. I'm getting more and more curious as to who you really are."
Rex rested his arm on the railing, glancing at Qiao Xi out of the corner of his eye.
"You... have something on your mind, don't you?"
She turned her head and stared blankly at Rex, as if asking, *Are you talking to me?*
Recovering her wits, she inexplicably blurted out, "Miyamoto Musashi said: 'Who can stop young samurai from rushing to their deaths? They cannot hear.'"
Rex looked at Qiao Xi with a meaningful gaze. "Don't get me wrong, I just suddenly thought of a brother I know. He's about to do some foolish things—things that will hurt his best friend, and end up dragging down a lot of people around him, yet I can't stop him."
Rex's bangs shadowed his eyes, preventing Qiao Xi from seeing the emotions hidden in their depths, or guessing what he was thinking. "Never mind, just pretend I didn't say anything. It's getting late. I suppose we'll see each other again soon, and you'll find out who I am soon enough. I'm going to bed. Good night." With that, he turned and left the balcony, locking the door behind him.