Reborn as the Candle Dragon, I became the strongest academy guardian beast.

Qinglong Academy.

library.

As a martial arts school, the library of Qinglong Academy is always overcrowded, with the various martial arts techniques and combat skills in high demand.

But the library next door was a completely different story.

Every day is deserted and quiet, with hardly anyone visiting.

However, today, unusually, a student came to the library.

The boy was nearly two meters tall and had bulging muscles all over his body. When he pushed the door open and walked in, the girl in charge of borrowing books thought he was there to cause trouble and was almost scared to tears on the spot.

As a result, the boy only borrowed a copy of the Analects of Confucius and sat in a corner of the library for half a day reading it.

Confucius said: "When three people walk together, one of them will be my teacher. I will choose their good points and follow them, and correct their bad points."

"Will I really become stronger by doing this...?"

Sitting on a stool that seemed unusually short compared to his own height, Kong Bowen held a copy of the Analects in his hand and couldn't help but sigh.

He was feeling somewhat depressed.

Upon hearing that the guardian beast was willing to take him as a student, Kong Bowen was overjoyed, thinking that he could finally officially embark on the path of martial arts.

He was stunned when the guardian beast uttered those thirteen words of truth.

Read more books and newspapers, eat fewer snacks, and sleep more.

You call this a martial arts manual?

Even more outrageous, the guardian beast imposed strict regulations on his words and actions from then on.

Smoking and drinking are strictly prohibited. Swearing is forbidden. Do not get angry easily. Do not fight unless necessary. Behave in a refined and easygoing manner. Do one good deed every day.

Furthermore, Kong Bowen was required to repeatedly read books such as "The Analects," "Mencius," "The Great Learning," and "Three Hundred Tang Poems" until he could recite them fluently from memory.

The guardian beast told him that this was the most suitable way for him to cultivate martial arts.

Kong Bowen racked his brains but still couldn't figure out what this had to do with cultivation.

Completely baffled, he could only clear his mind and continue reading.

Confucius said: "Learning without thinking is futile; thinking without learning is dangerous..."

After reading the Analects for two hours, Kong Bowen suddenly let out a soft exclamation.

Just now, he seemed to see a ray of golden light fly out from the Analects and enter his body.

"Is it just my imagination?"

Rubbing his eyes, Kong Bowen murmured in confusion.

……

After spending the morning in the library, Kong Bowen closed his book only to realize that it was past lunchtime.

He rubbed his stomach and decided to buy some tea eggs from the old lady who had a stall at the school gate.

Grandma's tea eggs are absolutely delicious. She's been selling them at Qinglong Academy for over a decade and they've always been highly praised for being tasty and inexpensive.

As soon as he left the library and stepped out of the school gate, Kong Bowen saw two blond-haired, tattooed men in loafers, looking like thugs, taking a bag of tea eggs from an old woman.

"It's five yuan in total, you can pay by scanning a QR code or cash."

The two thugs chuckled, took the tea eggs, and turned to leave without even looking back.

The old woman paused for a moment, then quickly chased after him: "Handsome young man, you haven't paid yet!"

"Pay up?" The thug stopped, glanced back at her, and smirked. "I'm already being lenient by eating your tea eggs, and you dare ask us for money?"

The old woman gave a humble smile: "Handsome young man, this is just a small business. I don't earn much money even after a day's work. My husband is sick, and my son and daughter still need to go to school. We urgently need money. Please..."

Before he could finish speaking, the short, stout man next to him suddenly raised his foot and kicked the old woman.

"Get out of my way! You old geezer, you just won't give it to me like that, what are you dawdling about!"

The old woman stumbled and fell to the ground, along with several tea eggs, which shattered on the spot.

"Old man, you really don't know what's good for you." The thug spat and turned to leave.

Upon seeing this, Kong Bowen was immediately filled with anger. He strode over, bent down, and helped the old woman up.

He helped the old woman to a bench nearby, then looked up at the two boys and said, "Stop!"

"Pay for the tea eggs and apologize to your mother-in-law, or you're not leaving today."

The two thugs paused, the tall, thin man in the lead looking at Kong Bowen's large frame with surprise, but quickly revealing a disdainful laugh: "A mere first-tier trash dares to meddle in other people's business?"

The short, stout man's gaze fell on the Analects in Kong Bowen's hands, and he burst into laughter: "Hahaha, no wonder Qinglong Academy is always at the bottom, it turns out they're all reading this kind of stuff every day. The Analects? Are you planning to use virtue to persuade us to listen to your reasoning?"

Kong Bowen clenched his fist instantly.

He glanced at the old woman out of the corner of his eye.

He found the old man sitting in a chair, clutching his stomach in obvious pain.

To resist the myriad races that descended upon Earth, human warriors fought valiantly, forging a Great Wall with their own flesh and blood.

These scoundrels, while enjoying the hard-won peace, are attacking their own weaker compatriots.

Absolutely shameless!

If he can't even protect an old man, what's the point of him practicing martial arts?

Kong Bowen recalled the words Su Chen had said.

Although the guardian beast instructed him to act with elegance and gentleness, not to get angry easily, and not to fight casually, it also said that if he encountered something that was immoral or unethical, he should take action when necessary!

"I'll say it one last time: pay up and apologize immediately, or don't blame me for being impolite," Kong Bowen said angrily.

"With your meager abilities, you dare to play the hero!" The short, stout man sneered, deciding to teach Kong Bowen a lesson.

As soon as he finished speaking, a pair of heavy, black hammers appeared in his hands, and the short, stout man swung the hammers and smashed them down hard at Kong Bowen.

"In that case, I have no choice but to win people over with virtue."

Kong Bowen did not retreat, but took a deep breath, clenched his right fist, and slammed it out to meet the heavy hammer.

Just as he threw a punch, a ray of golden light covered Kong Bowen's hand.

Kong Bowen's entire demeanor suddenly changed, exuding righteousness and integrity!

"Bang!"

With a single punch, the heavy hammer in the fat man's hand shattered instantly, but the fist, as big as a sandbag, still had considerable force and slammed heavily into his chest.

As if hit by a heavy truck, his obese body flew backward, knocking the tall, thin man behind him to the ground as well.

The two rolled several times before crashing heavily into a flowerbed by the roadside.

The flower bed tiles were smashed to pieces, and the two people, one tall and one short, rolled their eyes back and immediately fainted.

"Did I...do this?"

Kong Bowen looked down at his fist and froze.

It wasn't until the moment they clashed that he realized that both of them were actually second-tier martial artists.

But he easily defeated both of them with just one punch!

What exactly happened to my body?

I only spent half a day reading in the library, how could I have become so much stronger!

"Could it be that studying really makes you stronger?!"

Walking up to the two unconscious people, Kong Bowen took their wallets and gave them all to the old woman: "Grandma, take this money. If you're not feeling well, go to the hospital. If you need any help, I can go with you."

"A wise man said: 'To readily accept good advice is truly appropriate.'"

Kong Bowen couldn't help but recite a line.

The moment he finished reading, a feeling suddenly arose within him.

I feel like I've gotten a little stronger!