15: Chapter 15 Review

"Here, please allow me to offer my sincere apologies to the thirty-four students who were bullied by me alone yesterday."

"The first person, and the student to whom I owe the deepest apology, is Wang Yu."

Offstage, Wang Yu shuddered.

"The second person, Tong Hao."

Another boy lowered his head.

"The third person, Li Shi."

"The fourth person, Han Ming."

Qin Ce, unhurriedly, read out the thirty-four names one by one.

With every name read, a figure offstage wished they could crawl into a crack in the ground. Meanwhile, other students began whispering, pointing at those who had been named.

"Damn, it really is Wang Yu and the others..."

"Thirty-four against one, and they still got countered and thrown off the building? That's too embarrassing!"

"No wonder the Dean of Students wanted Qin Ce to give a self-criticism; he was trying to save face!"

"And it ended up being turned around by Qin Ce with an apology, exposing it to everyone. Hilarious..."

By the time Qin Ce finished reading the last name, the atmosphere in the entire auditorium had completely changed.

The original serious self-criticism had turned into a public execution. The thirty-four wealthy students became the laughingstock of the entire school.

The Dean of Students sat on the stage, his face turning red and white, wishing he could announce the end of the meeting right then and there.

"My self-criticism is finished. Thank you, everyone." Qin Ce put down the microphone, bowed to the audience, turned around, and walked off the stage with a steady gait.

The entire playground fell into an eerie silence. Then, with a 'bang', a massive roar of noise and discussion erupted!

"Holy crap! This freshman is awesome!"

"This self-criticism... is incredible! The reverse operation is maxed out!"

"Hahaha, I'm dying of laughter. This isn't a self-criticism, this is a declaration of war, right?"

"What actually happened yesterday? It sounds like that Wang Yu started it and even rallied a crowd to beat him up?"

"I know! My cousin is a sophomore, and I heard that people were falling from the Elite Class corridor yesterday like dumplings, and it was all thrown by one freshman!"

"Really? That fierce? Then what he just said..."

Countless gazes and discussions surged like a tide toward Wang Yu and the students who had participated in the siege yesterday.

They were all red-faced, wishing they could crawl into a crack in the ground, their heads buried so low they dared not lift them up at all.

This 'self-criticism' by Qin Ce was like taking a whip and stripping them bare in front of the entire school's faculty and students, then whipping them all over again! It was ten thousand times more painful than just beating them up!

Director Gao stood on the stage, holding the microphone, his hands shaking, too angry to speak. He had intended to use the self-criticism to humiliate Qin Ce and protect the Wang family's reputation, but he hadn't expected to lift a rock only to drop it on his own feet, and to turn the school's image of 'impartiality' into a joke in front of the whole school!

Just then, the principal, who had been silently watching, suddenly chuckled and took another microphone from the side.

"Hehe."

The principal was a spirited old man. He smiled as he looked at Qin Ce, who was walking off the stage, his voice gentle yet clearly carrying across the area, "Student Qin Ce, is it? You're a very good young man."

This one sentence caused the uproar of the entire venue to fall silent.

The principal's gaze swept over Director Gao; that gaze was calm, yet it made cold sweat instantly break out on Director Gao.

The principal had clearly seen through Director Gao's little scheme to protect the children of the powerful.

"Young people having spirit and strength is a good thing," the principal continued, his tone filled with praise. "Our Battle Academy cultivates warriors who can fight against magical beasts outside the walls, not docile sheep. Competition and friction between students, as long as it doesn't cross the line, aren't necessarily bad things. The key is to use this energy for the right path, to improve one's strength, and to protect our home and country!"

He looked at Qin Ce with encouraging eyes: "Student Qin Ce, your self-criticism... is very 'creative'. It has also allowed us all to understand the 'other side' of yesterday's events. Since you have recognized your 'insufficient strength', then work hard. I hope that in the future, I can see you on the stage honoring those who have slain magical beasts, rather than on the stage for self-criticizing mistakes. Alright, Director Gao, the ceremony can end now."

The principal had the final say, lightly defining the matter as 'young people having spirit' and 'competition and friction,' while giving Qin Ce a positive evaluation and expectation, completely suppressing Director Gao's attempt to make a mountain out of a molehill and pursue the matter further.

Director Gao's face turned red and white. Under the principal's gaze, he could only grit his teeth and force out a sentence into the microphone: "The opening ceremony... is hereby concluded! All classes, return in an orderly fashion!"

Offstage, Qin Ce followed his class queue to leave.

Wherever he passed, countless gazes focused on him, filled with amazement, admiration, and curiosity.

He became famous after one battle—no, he became famous after one 'self-criticism'—completely becoming the most sensational figure on the first day of school at the Battle Academy.

In the distance, within the senior year ranks, a tall and beautiful figure was watching Qin Ce with sparkling eyes.

She was the legend of the entire First High School for the past three years, the city lord's daughter—Jiang Ruowei.

Listening to the discussions around her about Qin Ce's commoner background, and recalling the rumors vaguely emanating from home about her potential need for a political marriage in the future, a different kind of light flashed in her eyes.

The opening ceremony ended in an eerie yet heated atmosphere. Qin Ce's 'earth-shattering' self-criticism was like throwing a giant rock into a calm lake, with ripples quickly spreading throughout the entire Battle Academy. His name, along with labels like 'threw thirty-four people down single-handedly,' 'master of sarcastic self-criticism,' and 'stood up to the Dean of Students,' instantly became the hottest topic of conversation for students of all grades during their leisure time.

"Have you heard? That freshman named Qin Ce in the first year is incredibly fierce!"

"More than just fierce, he's simply arrogant! But I like it, hahaha!"

"The Dean of Students' face turned green, and in the end, it was the principal who covered for him."

"Commoner background, and I heard his contracted pet beast isn't simple either... Now there's going to be a good show to watch."

"Wang Yu and his group are now completely famous, but it's an infamous reputation, haha."

Amidst the discussions, Qin Ce followed his class queue back to the classroom.

Along the way, he could feel countless gazes focused on him—some with admiration, some with curiosity, and some with jealousy and scrutiny. His expression remained as usual, as if it wasn't him who had caused such a huge uproar on the stage just moments ago.