Zhao Rong easily dodged the Assassin's blade and sent a flying kick straight to his backside. The Assassin was sent sprawling, landing face-first with a thud.
Staggering to his feet, the Assassin touched the scrape on his face and the trickling blood. "Damn it! You got lucky that first time," he snarled. "Let's see you dodge this next one. I guarantee it will take your life!"
With that, the Assassin's second strike lanced directly toward Zhao Rong's heart. Clearly, he intended to finish him off in a single blow.
Observing the Assassin's fierce attack, Zhao Rong picked up a chunk of concrete from the ground. Because Zhao Rong's reaction speed was at least a hundred times that of an ordinary person, he didn't make his move until the Assassin's blade was inches from his heart.
With a flick of his wrist, he smashed the large chunk of concrete against the Assassin's head. As a cloud of cement dust puffed up, the Assassin collapsed, and his knife clattered to the ground nearby.
Lili, who was standing behind them, was completely stunned. She watched in disbelief as her boyfriend—who had never been defeated—was knocked out by the unimposing Zhao Rong.
Zhao Rong dusted himself off and slowly approached Lili. "Sorry, beautiful, but you have to come with me," he said.
With that, Zhao Rong hoisted Lili over his shoulder. He was immediately aware of the soft, pleasant feeling of her body pressed against him.
As Zhao Rong carried Lili out of the unfinished building, the Assassin stirred. Coming to, he watched Zhao Rong's retreating figure and muttered, "Damn it... I've seen plenty of posers, but never one like this... Clearly skilled, yet pretending to be weak... He's a higher level than me, but acts like he has no level at all... I've been a badass my whole life, and today I lost to a guy like him..."
With that, the Assassin fainted again.
Although Lili struggled the entire way, Zhao Rong still managed to carry her to the front of the Romance Quest Company.
Inside the Romance Quest Company, the Boss with the Gold Tooth and the Man with the Small Watch were discussing how to collect Zhao Rong's corpse. They figured a college student like Zhao Rong, who didn't cultivate and had no True Qi, was doomed. Not only would he fail the mission, but he would probably lose his life.
Suddenly, Zhao Rong kicked the door open and strode in, carrying Lili.
When the Boss with the Gold Tooth saw that Zhao Rong was not only alive but had also brought back the chairman's daughter, he was utterly stunned. The Man with the Small Watch was so shocked he was speechless for a long moment.
He stammered, "Zhao Rong, are... are you really one of those prodigies with an exceptional constitution?"
The Boss with the Gold Tooth's jaw dropped. "Zhao Rong," he said in disbelief, "you don't even cultivate. How did you defeat a third-level cultivator Assassin and bring Lili back?"
After setting Lili down on the sofa, Zhao Rong tried to comfort the frantic girl before turning to his employer. "Boss, I brought Lili back. Pay me my bonus."
The boss reluctantly took out ten thousand. "You brought her back, but you haven't won her over yet," he said. "So, I can only give you ten thousand for now."
The Man with the Small Watch explained, "Zhao Rong, you have to make Lili genuinely fall in love with you and leave the Assassin. And you have to do it within three months. Otherwise, it's still a breach of contract."
Lili shot to her feet and rounded on Zhao Rong. "So you defeated my boyfriend. So what? If you think I'm going to leave him and fall for you, you're dreaming! It's never going to happen!"
With that, Lili stormed out of the Romance Quest Company and headed for the training center.
Zhao Rong watched her go without trying to stop her. He turned back to the boss. "Alright, I'll give it a shot. If I can win her over in three months, you have to pay me the remaining ninety thousand."
The boss nodded. "If you can win Lili over, forget one hundred thousand. I'll give you two hundred thousand."
The Man with the Small Watch then said, "Alright. Since you've completed step one by defeating Lili's Assassin boyfriend, it's time for step two. You will enter the training center under the guise of a manager trainee. You'll be in the same class as Lili, which will give you the perfect opportunity to pursue her."
Hearing that he, a soon-to-be college graduate, had to join a training center for managers, Zhao Rong was surprised. "Are you serious? I don't think I'm cut out for that."
The boss laughed. "It's the only way to get close to Lili. We have to put you in her class."
"You can go report to her class now," the Man with the Small Watch said. "We've already handled the paperwork."
With that, the Man with the Small Watch signaled his assistant to drive Zhao Rong to the training center.
When the assistant saw Zhao Rong return alive, he was completely floored. He stared at him and asked, "My God, you're not dead?"
Zhao Rong glanced at the assistant, who was missing two front teeth and now spoke with a lisp. "Nope. Not yet, anyway."
The assistant sized Zhao Rong up from head to toe. "Then you must be seriously hurt, right?"
Zhao Rong shook his head. "Doesn't look like it."
The assistant couldn't believe it. This is insane.
The assistant explained that in this world, especially in Xijing City, all the powerful elites were proud cultivators of True Qi. The cultivation levels ranged from one to one hundred, with higher levels signifying greater power.
Furthermore, the assistant strongly advised Zhao Rong that if he wanted to survive in Xijing City, he had to start cultivating and increase his True Qi level. Otherwise, he'd be a walking punching bag.
Soon, they arrived at the training center.
Before they got out, the assistant handed Zhao Rong a bundle of items. "Here, take these: training uniform, meal card, backpack, ID badge..."
Zhao Rong looked at the pile of gear and chuckled. "Wow, you've thought of everything."
With that, Zhao Rong walked into the training center and headed for his new classroom. As he walked, he kept repeating to himself, From now on, I'm a manager trainee, not a twenty-two-year-old college student.
Before Zhao Rong had even reached the classroom, Lili was already mobilizing her classmates. She rallied everyone to contribute what they could—be it money or muscle—to take out Zhao Rong, the agent the Romance Quest Company had sent to infiltrate their class.
And so, the class set up various traps and contraptions around the room, eagerly awaiting Zhao Rong's arrival.
Lili had personally overseen a pit trap right at the classroom entrance. It was filled with sharp spikes and covered with a false floor that blended in perfectly with the wooden planks around it. The remote control for the trap was in her hand.
Beyond the first trap, a second one was hidden inside the lectern at the front of the room. The moment Lili pressed the remote, a spring-loaded boxing glove would shoot out, aimed directly at Zhao Rong's groin.
Even if Zhao Rong somehow dodged the pit trap at the door, the one in the lectern and another contraption rigged to the blackboard would be waiting for him. At her signal, the entire blackboard would crash down, guaranteed to leave Zhao Rong a bloody mess on the floor.
With all these traps in place, Lili was brimming with confidence. She waited eagerly for Zhao Rong's arrival, ready to watch him make a complete fool of himself in front of the entire class.