The Great Serpent Cultivation School cannot make an obvious move against the Mayor, who is part of the Empire. They have no choice but to use someone else to achieve their goals.
And that person is the beggar, Apollo Leone.
However, to his surprise, what's happening now aligns perfectly with his goal—to uncover Klown's plans.
"So, I'm going to be your puppet then?" Apollo asked, feigning reluctance.
"No," Axton shook his head. "You're doing this as part of being my Personal Disciple. Your status is completely different from the other Martial Students, who are fully tied to the school."
Apollo 'thought' for a moment before nodding. "I can investigate. The information I gather will help with the request to the Main School?"
"Indeed," Axton nodded with a smile, impressed by how quickly his disciple caught on. He hadn't even gone into detail, yet Yoma had figured it out on his own.
"Alright, I'll do it," Apollo agreed.
"I knew you wouldn't decline," Axton said. "You've already offended one of his men. Their family will come looking for you, and it won't be long before they discover the killer of their kin."
"When did you start spying on me?" Apollo raised an eyebrow. He hadn't sensed anyone watching him.
"The moment you stepped out of my school," Axton replied with a smile.
Suddenly, they heard a screech from the balcony. Looking back, they saw the brown falcon with blue streaks growing restless.
Eli turned towards them with apologetic eyes. "My apologies! My mount wants to go home."
"You should go," Axton said. "I won't be able to provide much more information about the Mayor, but I believe you can handle it. The North Guard Captain's family is the key."
I know, Apollo thought, sharing the same sentiment. Great minds think alike.
"Do you have a library? I think I'll stay here for now," Apollo said.
"We do. Eli will guide you there," Axton waved his hand, and the translucent barrier around them disappeared.
"Okay," Apollo nodded, walking toward the balcony.
"This is the Great Serpent Library," Eli introduced as the two falcons landed in front of a large building. "You can just enter. No one will dare obstruct you."
"Alright," Apollo nodded, jumping off Bluetooth.
"Do you need my company?" Eli asked, stroking his falcon's head.
"No need, you should go back," Apollo said, waving his hand. "I know you still need to cultivate, and I can find my way out once I'm done."
Eli hesitated before sighing. "Okay. But if you need my help, you can just ask around, and they'll show you my residence."
As Eli left with his mount, Apollo turned toward the building. It was four to five stories tall, ancient, and stacked in layers. Statues of the Great Serpent adorned its roofs, coiling up to the top, watching over those who entered.
There were several people coming and going, but no one seemed to pay him much attention. A few cast curious glances, but no one approached to question the kid.
Apollo smiled. This is good. These students didn't seem to know that he was the Personal Disciple, and the news of his battle with one of their Seniors hadn't reached them yet. Hopefully, it wouldn't.
After taking in his surroundings, he walked toward the door, where an old man sat cross-legged beside it.
The reason he wanted to enter this place was to gain knowledge about this world, cultivation, and the state of affairs in the country. He realized he couldn't just stay in his beggar spot and cultivate while remaining ignorant of Planet Luan, especially when it came to cultivation. There were terms and probably basic knowledge he should already know.
Furthermore, there might be information he could use to grow stronger.
Just as he was about to enter the door, someone shouted from the side.
Apollo turned toward the voice and saw the old man pointing at him before beckoning with his hand.
The beggar was confused, but he still walked toward the old man.
"Who are you?!" the old man shouted. He had sparse white hair, almost bald, big round eyes, a goatee, and a mouth with only three or four teeth left. He wore a black-and-white hanfu robe, though upon closer inspection, it was clearly old and hadn't been washed in a long time.
Apollo sniffed, a frown appearing on his face as the foul smell from the old man hit him.
Still, he didn't dare judge. Although the old man looked like a beggar, just like him, there was a possibility he was a powerful expert.
"I'm Yoma," Apollo introduced himself, cupping his fist and bowing his head. It took all of his effort not to add anything else. However, what happened next shocked him into silence.
"Yoma… yomama is fat!" The old man said before bursting into laughter. "Hahaha! Yomama is fat!"
The words struck Apollo's heart, sending a shiver down his spine as he realized what had just happened.
Did this old man just dupe me with my own trick?!
Apollo's eyes burned with fighting spirit. He stared at the old man coldly.
"Don't bring my mama into this," Apollo said.
"Hahaha! I already did!" The old man laughed mockingly.
"I see, I see," Apollo nodded before cracking his neck side to side. "Then don't blame me."
"What are you gonna do?" The old man raised an eyebrow, clearly challenging him.
Apollo smiled, but this time, it wasn't the same as before. It was cold—so cold that the Antarctic wouldn't stand a chance.
"I agree, my mama is fat," Apollo said. "But yo momma is fatter—so fat, she needs three chairs just to sit down."
Apollo didn't drop the big one yet. He was taking it slow.
Hearing this, the old man's smile vanished. "I see how it is. In that case... yo momma is so fat, when she sleeps inside your home, her pig feet are still out on the street."
"Yo momma's so fat, when I told her to touch her toes, she said, 'What are those?'" Apollo fired back without missing a beat.
The old man went silent, narrowing his eyes before responding, "Yo momma is so fat, when she went for a swim at the beach, the ocean level rose tenfold."
That's a big one, Apollo thought. Taking a deep breath, his brain worked at lightning speed. "Yo momma's so fat, when she fell, no one was laughing, but the ground was cracking up."
At that moment, a group of students walked by. When they heard Apollo's words, they looked at each other before bursting into laughter. They turned to see the commotion—a child bickering with an old man.
"Crazy Zhang is at it again, and who's that kid? He's hilarious and even dares to talk back to Crazy Zhang! Hahaha!"