“Holographic simulation…” Ryan Carter muttered these words to himself. “I’ll go take a look!” Ryan Carter suddenly strode toward the door.

“Wait!” Frank grabbed Ryan Carter. “Teacher, you’re a mage too. Naturally, your physique and strength can’t compare to those knights. We can’t win this kind of fight!”

Ryan Carter patted Frank on the head and said, “Did you forget? Your teacher knows kung fu!” With that, he turned and walked away.

“Teacher!” Frank stared blankly at Ryan Carter’s back. Ryan Carter knows kung fu! That phrase was a running joke at Yulin Middle School. It was said that even the principal privately commented: What is shamelessness? Ryan Carter repeatedly claiming he knows kung fu is the most shameless thing I’ve ever seen in my life.

It was true that Ryan Carter could jump a bit higher, run a bit faster, was a bit more agile, and a bit stronger. In most people’s eyes, such abilities were perfectly reasonable for a PE teacher. But Ryan Carter insisted he had trained in martial arts since childhood, which was why he had such a strong and resilient body, claiming he’d been undefeated in fights since he was a kid.

No one believed him.

Because on Yulin’s campus network, there was a widely circulated video, shot by a surveillance camera at the school gate and uploaded online by someone with too much time on their hands. In the footage, a young man was being beaten black and blue by an old man at the school gate, rolling on the ground with no ability to fight back. The video was titled “Old but Vigorous.” The leading man was, of course, the old man, and as for the second male lead, it was confirmed to be none other than the self-proclaimed “undefeated in all fights” teacher Ryan Carter.

After something like that, who would believe Ryan Carter knew kung fu? Everyone thought he’d read too many martial arts novels and was a bit delusional. Fortunately, although Ryan Carter claimed to know kung fu, he never showed any violent tendencies and was quite serious about teaching, so it didn’t cause any further issues.

But right now… Frank watched as Ryan Carter had already walked out the Mage Academy’s main gate and was turning back to shout, “Which way?”

Frank instinctively pointed to the right, and Ryan Carter strode off in that direction.

Frank stood there stunned for a moment, then snapped out of it and hurried to catch up.

The game’s realism was undoubtedly impressive. The stone-paved road felt a bit uncomfortable underfoot, but Ryan Carter moved swiftly as if flying, while Frank was sweating profusely trying to keep up, only to see Ryan Carter stop again at an intersection.

“Where are they?” Seeing Frank catch up, Ryan Carter turned and asked.

“They were just over there.” Frank pointed to the fountain in the center of the plaza ahead. “Teacher, don’t go!” he shouted as Ryan Carter moved forward.

Ryan Carter turned back and smiled. “Don’t come over. I’ll be right back.”

The trailing mage’s robe always made one look frail, but Ryan Carter’s figure exuded an unusual sense of ease and confidence.

“Damn! At worst, I’ll just get beaten up. It’s just a game—my real self won’t get hurt!” Frank muttered to himself and chased after him.

But by then, Ryan Carter was nowhere to be seen. Frank walked along, glancing around, when suddenly he heard miserable screams coming from a nearby alley. He hurried over and peeked inside.

In the alley, four guys in light knight armor were beating up a scrawny man. The sound of fists landing on flesh was chilling. The victim’s nose was crooked, his mouth askew, and his face and body were covered in blood. From his gear, it was impossible to tell his class, but even if he was the toughest warrior, as an ordinary person, he couldn’t withstand an assault from four strong men. He had long since lost the ability to resist, and after being knocked into a corner with a heavy punch, he curled up silently.

The four attackers all had brutish faces—clearly not good people. But they stopped when Ryan Carter appeared before them.

No one spoke. The four glanced at each other when they saw Ryan Carter’s mage robe, exchanging knowing smiles.

“Let him go!” Ryan Carter said.

“You mean him?” The burliest of the four kicked the poor man curled in the corner, then signaled to the others. The four slowly moved to encircle Ryan Carter. They were on guard for Ryan Carter to try to escape, but to their surprise, he stood still and let them surround him.

A flicker of surprise flashed in the leader’s eyes. But after sizing up Ryan Carter, he seemed to relax. The guy in front of him wasn’t tall, and though the mage robe fit well, it didn’t hide his well-proportioned build—broad shoulders, slim waist, long legs. Clearly, he worked out regularly. His physical fitness wasn’t bad, so he probably wasn’t too weak in a fight. But this was a game. No matter how fit you were in real life, in the game, speed, strength, and physique were all determined by stats. As a mage, his strength and constitution were the lowest. One punch from me and he’ll be in pain for ages. Looks like the realistic environment made him forget this was just a game.

Without any more words, the leader just said, “Get him!”

Chapter Two: Kung Fu?

The two guys on either side charged at the same time, while the other moved to the mouth of the alley to block Ryan Carter’s escape.