The "Truant" Headmaster
A week later.
At the Lac Hong valley, the first opening ceremony of the Lac Hong Cultivation Academy was held with great solemnity. The ceremony was broadcast live throughout the ASEAN bloc.
Hundreds of thousands of students admitted in the first wave, dressed in brand new uniforms, gathered in the central square, their faces shining with excitement, pride, and adoration. They were the first seeds, the future of humanity.
On the main stage, high-ranking military and government officials were all present. And sitting in the most honored position was the "Silver-Haired War God," Lac Long Quan. He appeared only for a moment, said a few brief words, and then vanished, leaving behind a sense of infinite regret and admiration.
And now, for the most important part. The honorary headmaster, the young hero "Second Lieutenant Asura" Lam Minh, was to give his first speech.
Backstage, Lam Minh was fidgeting. He wore a custom-tailored white ceremonial suit, looking incredibly handsome and majestic. But inside, he was screaming.
"Dammit! Why do I have to do this?" he muttered.
To Quyen, in her role as "Acting Vice-Headmistress," was helping him adjust his collar. "You can do it. Just say a few words of encouragement."
"Encourage what? I don't even know what to say," he lamented.
"How about I go up and speak for you?" Quynh Nhu, dressed in the uniform of the "Head of Discipline," looking very much the part, suggested.
"No, no," Lam Minh waved his hand. "If you go up there, you'll probably end up challenging the entire student body."
Finally, there was no escaping it. His name was announced.
"And now, we are honored to introduce the Honorary Headmaster of Lac Hong Academy, the hero of humanity, Second Lieutenant Lam Minh!"
Lam Minh took a deep breath, forced a "serious" expression onto his face, and walked out onto the stage.
ROAR!!!
The entire square erupted in a thunderous roar of cheers and applause. Hundreds of thousands of admiring gazes were fixed on him. They looked at him as if he were a living god.
Lam Minh walked to the podium, looked down at the sea of people below, and felt his scalp tingle. He cleared his throat a few times, trying to remember the speech To Quyen had prepared for him.
"Ahem... ahem... Welcome, all of you... uh no, all you cadets... to Lac Hong Academy..." He began rather smoothly.
He talked about the importance of the academy, about the future of humanity, about the responsibilities of the younger generation... very nice, very eloquent words.
But halfway through, he started to feel... bored.
These empty platitudes were not his style. He looked at the young, naive but passionate faces below, and he suddenly wanted to say something different.
He put down the speech paper.
The entire square fell silent, looking at him in surprise.
Lam Minh looked straight at them, his gaze becoming sharp. His voice also changed, no longer with a fake seriousness, but with a familiar frankness and a hint of... teasing.
"Alright, let's cut the crap," he said. "I know you didn't come here to listen to me preach. You came here because you want power. Am I right?"
The crowd of students was baffled, then a few timid "Yes, sir!"s were heard.
"Right! You want to be as strong as me, maybe even stronger than the Silver-Haired War God. You want to tear a Madakaros apart with one hand, you want to be a hero, you want to be admired by everyone. Am I wrong?"
"NO, SIR!" This time, the response was much louder.
Lam Minh smiled. "Good! Ambition is good. But I have to tell you a harsh truth. This path is not paved with roses."
He pointed down below. "Among the hundreds of thousands of you standing here, perhaps only half will graduate. Of those who graduate, only half will survive their first battle. The path of cultivation is a path of blood, of sweat, and of tears. It demands perseverance, an iron will, and also, luck."
The atmosphere became serious.
"So," he continued. "If any of you feel scared, feel that you can't endure it, the gates of the academy are still open. You can go back. No one will laugh at you. Becoming an ordinary person, contributing to building up the home front, is also a kind of heroism."
He paused, giving them time to think. Not a single person moved.
Seeing this, he nodded. "Good. Since you've decided to stay, then remember my words. Here, you are not young masters, not young misses. You are soldiers. Discipline is strength. Whoever violates it will be severely punished. Whoever is weak will be eliminated."
He glanced at Quynh Nhu standing beside him and winked. "And the person who will ensure you all 'behave' is her, the Head of Discipline, Quynh Nhu. I advise you not to be foolish enough to mess with her. The consequences will be very... disastrous."
Quynh Nhu lifted her chin, looking extremely "dangerous." The crowd of students looked at the pink-haired loli and swallowed hard.
"Finally," Lam Minh said, concluding his "train wreck" of a speech. "As the headmaster, I declare... that I will not be here often."
The entire square was once again dead silent. What? A headmaster who isn't at the school?
"The management and teaching duties have been entrusted to the most elite team, including Vice-Headmistress To Quyen and the other instructors. As for me, I have my own business. I will be out there, in the most dangerous places, to find opportunities, to find resources, to pave the way for you."
He looked at them, his eyes blazing. "Your mission is to train well. To become strong, quickly. So that one day, you can follow in my footsteps, and fight alongside me. Can you do it?"
"WE CAN!!!"
This time, it was no longer cheers, but a sky-shaking roar from hundreds of thousands of people, carrying a boiling fighting spirit.
Lam Minh smiled with satisfaction.
"Very good. My speech ends here. The opening ceremony is over. Training begins tomorrow. Dismissed!"
With that, he turned and walked straight inside, leaving behind a bewildered but incredibly excited crowd, and a group of high-ranking leaders who didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
This headmaster was truly one of a kind in history.
And just as he said, that very evening, he "escaped" from the academy and, alone, continued his journey of "leveling up." The real fun was always out on the battlefield.
...
After the "train wreck" of an opening speech, Lam Minh officially became the most famous "missing headmaster" in history. He entrusted all responsibilities to his staff, while he himself used an excuse that couldn't be more legitimate: "The headmaster must conduct practical field surveys to find new resources and training methods for the academy."
Of course, his "practical field survey" was just him, one man, one vehicle, one storage ring, beginning a journey of "leveling up" with complete freedom.
His first destination was the Hoang Lien Son mountain range in the Northwest. According to intelligence he had "accidentally" read on To Quyen's computer, this area was one of the least affected by the war, with treacherous terrain, and was home to many solitary Madakaros species that didn't belong to the major clans. It was a perfect hunting ground.
The upgraded Iron Horse glided along the deserted mountain paths. Lam Minh hummed a song as he drove, enjoying a sense of freedom he hadn't had in a long time. No teammates beside him, no need to "act," no need to hide his strength. He could be himself.
His first target was a "Raging Black Bear," a Mid-stage Foundation Establishment monster, famous for its terrifying physical strength and extremely high defense. According to descriptions, it was the overlord of a dense forest.
Lam Minh didn't rush in. He spent a whole day observing. He climbed a tall tree and used his spiritual sense to track the bear's daily habits. He discovered it had a cave near a waterfall and that it went out to hunt every day at dusk.
"Alright, the plan is..." he murmured. "I won't confront it head-on. I'll use a trap."
He began to prepare. He found an area with many tough, flexible vines and used his Thuan Thien sword to cut them. Then, using the physics knowledge he learned in school, combined with his control of spiritual energy, he created a giant hanging trap. He even "laced" the trap with the scent of a prey species that the bear favored to lure it in.
Dusk fell.
The Raging Black Bear lazily stepped out of its cave, its large nose sniffing the air, searching for prey. It was quickly attracted by the scent Lam Minh had left behind.
It followed the scent and stepped into the trap area.
WHOOSH!
The hanging trap was triggered. A giant net made of qi-reinforced vines shot up from the ground, enveloping the monster. The bear roared in anger, struggling frantically. But the net, though it couldn't hold it for long, was enough to slow it down for a few seconds.
And a few seconds was more than enough.
Lam Minh, who had been hiding in a tree for a long time, descended like a ghost.
He didn't attack the bear's thick hide. He aimed for a fatal weak point that few knew about: its eyes.
The Thuan Thien sword in his hand transformed into two streaks of azure sword qi, as fast as lightning, stabbing straight into the Black Bear's eyes.
"GROAAAA!!!"
The bear let out a terrifying roar of pain. Suddenly blinded, it became even more frenzied, swinging its claws wildly, destroying a whole section of the forest.
Lam Minh gave it no chance. He constantly moved around it, using sharp sword strikes to slash at the tendons in its arms and legs. He didn't kill it immediately, but slowly "toyed" with it, "tormenting" it, making it lose strength and blood.
This was the fighting style of a true hunter: intelligent, patient, and ruthless.
Finally, when the bear was exhausted, lying half-dead on the ground, Lam Minh walked over and finished it with a single sword thrust through the heart.
[Eliminated a Mid-stage Foundation Establishment Madakaros. Received 5,200 Immortality Points.]
"Not bad," he murmured, wiping the blood from his sword.
He dissected the corpse, taking its inner core and its extremely rare bear hide. He didn't forget to cut off a few of the best cuts of meat.
"Bear steak for dinner tonight," he smiled.
After "cleaning up" his first prey, he didn't stop. He continued deeper into the mountains, searching for other targets.
Meanwhile, somewhere far away.
At a secret base of the Madakaros race, a high-level meeting was taking place.
"Report! Another of our Mid-stage Foundation Establishment warriors has been killed in the northern region of Earth. The method of execution is very similar to the previous incidents: fast, clean, and leaving no trace," an officer reported.
The commander sitting on a high throne, a Late-stage Golden Core cultivator, narrowed his three eyes. "It's him again? We still haven't found any information about him?"
"No, sir. He moves like a ghost. No one has seen his face. Our warriors only know that the enemy is an extremely powerful human swordsman."
"A human swordsman?" the commander murmured. "Could it be that kid from the school last time?"
"Impossible, sir," another officer objected. "That kid, though strong, is still only at Foundation Establishment. This person can easily kill even a Late-stage Foundation Establishment creature. Besides, after that incident, the humans will surely protect him very carefully. There's no way he could be wandering around outside alone."
The commander nodded. "You have a point. Humans are cunning; perhaps they have secretly trained another 'assassin.' This is very interesting."
He thought for a moment then gave an order. "Send down the command. Dispatch the 'Night Shadows' to that area. I want to know just who this 'ghost' really is."
"'Night Shadows'? Sir, is it necessary to use them?" the officer asked in surprise.
"It is necessary," the commander said, a cold light flashing in his eyes. "A silent battle of wits has begun. Let's see whose 'assassin' is superior, the humans' or ours."
A confrontation in the shadows was about to take place.
And Lam Minh, who was happily grilling bear meat by a stream, had no idea that he had become the target of one of the Madakaros race's most feared assassination units.
His hunt was about to get much more interesting.