It seems this setback is even greater than expected.

In the old man's eyes, this kind of setback was nothing, but he also knew that for Emily, who had always had a smooth path since childhood, it would take time to process. Still, in a way, he was quite grateful to the other party. In his view, experiencing a setback at Emily Parker's age was a valuable asset in life.

If the old man knew what had really happened, he would have torn Ethan Brooks to pieces.

“No,” Emily Parker lowered her head to eat.

Seeing her like this, the old man couldn't help but smile: “Where do you think you lost?”

With his wealth of experience, the old man knew that for young people, avoiding the problem was not a good choice.

The spoon in Emily Parker's hand paused; she was stumped by her grandfather's question. Three days had passed, and she had been immersed in shame and anger, her mind filled with thoughts of finding that damned guy and tearing him to pieces.

She was not a fool, just blinded by anger. Now, with her grandfather's reminder, she immediately noticed the problem she had overlooked.

“He was very familiar with blind combat.”

Emily Parker's expression became serious and thoughtful, a look of recollection on her face. Every detail of that battle flowed through her mind like water. For the first time in three days, she recalled the fight without falling into anger.

The old man smiled silently, gently guiding her: “And what else?”

“He had a lot of combat experience, reacted quickly, struck decisively and ruthlessly, and knew how to use his own advantages.” Once Emily Parker regained her composure, her powerful insight immediately showed. She seemed to be talking to herself: “Thinking back now, he must have detected my position right away. But I didn't, and I didn't even notice his movements. He was very skilled at blind combat, an expert at fighting in the dark. He chose close-quarters grappling—if you think about it, that's the best way to fight in darkness. So I was completely passive, with no space at all. Without space, many moves and techniques are useless. On the other hand, his strength could be fully utilized.”

The old man listened carefully, knowing that at this moment, listening was enough.

“He deliberately made me struggle, accelerating my physical exhaustion—very cunning. It felt like his yuan force wasn't very strong; from start to finish, he didn't use yuan force, so I couldn't determine his level.”

The old man responded, “He beat you without using yuan force? That means he's pretty strong.”

“Very strong, and he should have been wearing a suppression bracelet like me.” Emily Parker didn't avoid the issue. She thought for a moment: “When he locked me, I used Owen Carter. But I couldn't break free.”

For the first time, the old man looked moved: “He held off your Owen Carter without using yuan force? Was he old?”

Owen Carter was an escape technique, quite ingenious, imitating the movement of a fish arching its back when startled, with explosive power. The fact that the opponent could suppress Owen Carter without using yuan force surprised the old man.

“Yeah.” Emily Parker nodded seriously. “His killing intent was overwhelming. I originally planned to use Owen Carter to break free, so I could tear off the suppression bracelet, but I couldn't escape. He shouldn't be very old, otherwise he wouldn't have acted for fifty thousand.”

Thinking back now, she couldn't help but feel a bit of admiration. Because she was a girl, being locked in a hold put her at a disadvantage, so her family had taught her Owen Carter when she was very young. She had spent a lot of effort mastering this move and had truly grasped its essence.

The explosive power of Owen Carter was sometimes hard for even her to control.

“To suppress Owen Carter without using yuan force, and if he's not old, then he must be a student.” The old man was full of admiration: “Looks like there's an incredible genius among this year's freshmen. I wonder whose child he is—how come there hasn't been any word?”

“Grandpa, you have to help me investigate!” Emily Parker shook her grandfather's arm, pleading: “I can't just take this loss. I want to have a fair fight with him.”

The old man laughed heartily: “Alright, alright, with Emily coming to grandpa for help, how could I refuse?”

Emily's desire to redeem herself was obvious. It's good for young people to have some spirit—even if they hit a wall, it's no big deal. Besides, he himself was very interested in this young man. Suddenly, someone even stronger than his own granddaughter had appeared—how interesting.

Emily Parker was overjoyed. With her grandfather's help, that damned guy was doomed!

Just wait! I definitely won't let you off!

A dangerous glint flashed in Emily Parker's eyes.

The old man saw his granddaughter's expression and, having experienced the ups and downs of life, how could he not know what she was thinking? He pondered, “He subdued you without using yuan force, so his strength is probably above yours. You need to be careful.”

Emily Parker looked up, her eyes burning like two blazing flames: “Emily will do her best!”

The old man was a bit surprised. He had never seen such strong fighting spirit in his granddaughter before.

It seemed this defeat had really hit Emily hard, the old man thought with a smile.

Ethan Brooks had no idea what kind of trouble his fifty thousand had brought him; he was attending his elementary class.

Sunlight streamed through the study's window, falling on the desk and the floor, even the floating dust in the sunlight looked lazy.