And now I might die in Bai Ning Xue"s place. Way to go. Why the f.u.c.k did I decide to be a hero?

Then the memories of Hu Shi and Her son, Hu Hai, hit me. my failure to protect them, back when I was so weak, when I could only watch Ba Yun kill them right in front of my eyes. Back then, I had made a vow.

That never again would I allow anyone to die if I can help it.

"Fei Wu!"

On the other hand, Bai Ning Xue recognized me. She stared at me, her eyes wide in shock and disbelief.

"What are you doing here?"

"Uh, well…Princ.i.p.al Xiao Zhang asked me for a favor."

Technically, that was the truth. Earlier that day, Princ.i.p.al Xiao Zhang did request me to help the student council in case of an attack on the school. It seemed that he really had foresight. I honestly did not expect Lei Yong Chun to show up and a.s.sault the academy. Additionally, the truth was that I couldn"t even be bothered, and it was a ma.s.sive coincidence that I was out here training when the incident happened at all.

Otherwise I wouldn"t have bothered to step in and would have remained in my dormitory room the entire time.

Regardless, Bai Ning Xue was sure to include this in her report, so I might as well make myself look good. There was no harm in trying to improve my reputation, especially where Princ.i.p.al Xiao Zhang was involved. If anything, it would benefit me greatly, even if I didn"t deserve it.

Pushing my gla.s.ses up, I turned back to stare at Lei Yong Chun, who was scowling in annoyance at the interruption. Tilting my head to the side, I grinned. "Sorry, but you"ll have to go past me if you want to hurt Bai Ning Xue."

"You"re no match for him!" Bai Ning Xue cried out. "Hurry up and go! I"ll handle this! He is my first senior, so…"

Did you really believe that? The b.a.s.t.a.r.d was trying to kill you less than a minute ago.

"I see." Lei Yong Chun straightened up and watched me. "So you"re another of Ning Xue"s friends, huh?"

"I guess you can say that," I replied with a shrug. To be honest, we weren"t that close. Our only relationship was that of cla.s.smates, otherwise we were merely acquaintances. I hadn"t interacted with Bai Ning Xue much, even after spending over three years in the same cla.s.s. It wasn"t because I was antisocial. Bai Ning Xue hardly interacted with anybody in cla.s.s, even the girls. She was often by herself, with Zhu Jiao being the sole person who had the courage to approach her of his own volition. As expected of childhood friends.

"No, wait…" Bai Ning Xue protested, but Lei Yong Chun cut her off.

"Don"t worry. I won"t kill him either. I"ll just finish this quickly and knock him out…"

Before he even finished his sentence, Lei Yong Chun was already moving forward and slamming his elbow into my face. Lightning crackled fiercely around his arm, and even though it was not as potent as before, I recognized the danger it posed.

"!!!"

Lei Yong Chun spun around and stared at me, stunned, after his electric elbow pa.s.sed through thin air. I had dodged at the last moment, just narrowly escaping having my nose caved in by the otherwise deadly elbow strike.

"How did you dodge that?!"

"You guys talk too much," I retorted as I straightened myself and withdrew with a footwork technique. Around Lei Yong Chun"s figure, I could see the different flows and streams of silver, electric qi. Making use of my qi sense, and using Heavenly Flow and Earthly Steps, antic.i.p.ating Lei Yong Chun"s attacks and movements, and evading accordingly.

Even then, Lei Yong Chun"s attacks were so fast and furious that I barely stayed one step ahead, often dodging only by the most minimal of distances. Literally by a hair"s breadth.

"You have good reflexes," Lei Yong Chun complimented me as he delivered a Lightning Fist to my face, only for me to duck. Feeling his fist breeze through the air above, the shockwave rustling my hair, I then spiraled away before he could kick me. Just in time too. His foot sailed just millimeters away from my chest.

"Amazing…"

Bai Ning Xue was gaping at me, unable to believe what she was seeing. Unlike herself, and the rest of our schoolmates, who were taken out almost immediately, I was dodging like a pro, evading every single one of Lei Yong Chun"s attacks (albeit narrowly).

Unfortunately, this wasn"t anything to be impressed about. Certainly, I had accomplished what no other student my age had done, escaping Lei Yong Chun"s relentless a.s.salt, but I had done so at the cost of offense. Simply put, I couldn"t fight back. I couldn"t even muster a single counterattack or retaliation. I had poured everything into evasion and evasion alone. As a result, I could dodge Lei Yong Chun"s barrage, but only just, having traded away any chance of fighting back to focus solely on escaping his fists, kicks and lightning.

And even then, I was just barely staying one step ahead of me. There were so many close shaves that were way too close for comfort. I was already relying on my footwork techniques to weave, dance and duck away from Lei Ying Chun, but he was using pure spirit and power to overcome my evasive maneuvers.

"Ugh!"

Lei Yong Chun"s fist swerved past the front of my face, almost scorching my skin and leaving a slight burn. I could feel my flesh numbing as the lightning slapped me lightly, but fortunately my footwork had pulled me just out of lethal range. Normally I would use this chance to counterattack, but I was forced to duck under a second swinging fist. Before I could recover my breath, Lei Yong Chun was already swinging his leg out to hook my feet out from under me, and I hastily jumped back. Using Tui to widen the distance between us, I quickly used the opportunity to recover my breath.

"What, out of breath already?"

"!!!"

I had hardly just inhaled a lungful of air deeply when Lei Yong Chun was already in front of me, rearing his fist back for a ppowerful punch. I swayed to the side, inviting him to attack me, and he fell for it, punching instantly. I allowed my momentum to swing me out of his reach, and his fist stopped just a millimeter short.

All right! I can do this!

Relieved, I was about to kick him when my instincts suddenly screamed out danger to me. Obeying them in reflex, I dropped to the ground as a Lightning Fist swung at me from behind, blazing through the s.p.a.ce where my head had been. Relying on my spiritual sense rather than sight to detect Lei Yong Chun"s position, I saw that he was already following up with another attack.

"Kuh!"

If I didn"t do something fast, I would run out of stamina and fall to his relentless a.s.sault sooner or later. But it wasn"t a matter of whether I wanted to attack of not. Lei Yong Chun was completely giving me no chance to retaliate.

h.e.l.l, he wasn"t even giving me a chance to breathe.

"That was a nice feint. On top of that, you saw through my feint as well. You"re really impressive. Which sect are you from?"

I smiled in reply, offering no answer. I had no obligation to tell him my sect. That would give him an advantage.

"And this technique…" Lei Yong Chun frowned as he studied me, aware that I refused to tell him about my origins like some cliché protagonist (should I give a long soliloquy as my self-introduction and show off a super-long list of the skills I had learn? f.u.c.k that. Only idiots would do something like that). "Where did you learn it from?"

While I maintained my silence, inwardly I was a little worried. The way Lei Yong Chun spoke, it was almost as if he recognized my technique as Heavenly Flow and Earthly Steps. No doubt he recognized my Shadow Steps, but everyone knew that the Stealth Shadow Sect had been destroyed centuries ago, and only now did we attempt to restore their techniques through Wu Ling Academy"s near inexhaustible resources.

But Lei Yong Chun seemed aware that Shadow Steps were never meant to be a primary martial arts and that I wasn"t a disciple of the Stealth Shadow Sect nor someone trying to restore it.

Unfortunately, I was mistaken. Lei Yong Chun wasn"t concerned about my Shadow Steps. No, he was more interested in my…

"Those evasive techniques. They go beyond footwork and the basic Shadow Steps. It doesn"t feel like an evolved or new form of Shadow Steps. No, this technique feels familiar, as if I"ve fought it somewhere before, not long ago…"

I narrowed my eyes, not sure what he was rambling about. I did know one thing for sure, though. He seemd to recognize the martial art I was using.

"Where did you learn this from?"

Lei Yong Chun narrowed his eyes. Striking at me with a Lighnting Fist, he then spun around with a kick, forcing me to drop my head back to avoid it.

I had no reason to tell him, and was actually unable to answer because I was too busily dodging his next series of attacks.

"!!"

Lei Yong Chun was tired of not being able to hit me, and he suddenly unleashed a lightning bolt at close range. Having noticed a spike in his qi and the subtle shift in his attack patterns, I quickly pulled myself away and dove for cover.

Boom!

"Wow, you even saw that coming too?" Lei Yong Chun scowled as he watched me roll to my feet, his hand crackling with silver lightning as he got ready to hurl another thunderbolt. "I knew it. You really are…"

I used Jin and advanced forward, kicking at him before he could finish his sentence. Lei Yong Chun stumbled back, and then counterattacked with a Thunder Break. Knowing that it would be unwise for me to block it directly, I dropped to the ground, narrowly escaping his fist, and threw myself off to retreat.

"!!!"

"Thunder Crash!"

Lei Yong Chun suddenly switched his attack and swung his hand down, unleashing yet another lightning bolt. Having seen his qi surge and transformed, I had predicted his long-range attack a millisecond before he pulled it off, and jumped to my feet, using Tui and Duo to weave around and evade the ma.s.sive lightning strike.

"I knew it…man, it"s been a while since I"ve seen someone use that." Lei Yong Chun was looking impressed now. "I never thought that martial art would be revived. It seemed that I"ve underestimated Wu Ling Academy."

His eyes narrowed and he casually threw another distance lightning attack. This time, it took the form of a tiger and roared silently before it pursued me.

"You guys are way too dangerous to be left alone."

I would have made a retort, something along the lines of "you"re the one who"s too dangerous!" but I was too busily running away from the lightning tiger that mercilessly chased me. Cursing, I lashed out and disintegrated its form.

"Not bad. As I thought, you really are…"

Lei Yong Chun smiled broadly before he struck me, only for me to dodge his Lightning Fist again. He twisted around and blasted me at pointblank range.

"Thunderous Descent!"

"Kuh!"

The attack was way too large for me to dodge, and I was blasted off my feet, my body jerking about as I crashed onto the ground. Gritting my teeth as the electricity surged through my body, I pressed my hand against the ground to discharge it.

"!!"

While I was heaving, Lei Yong Chun suddenly kicked me, sending me flying. I hit the ground and rolled away, my body throbbing from the blow.

"Even if you can read the flow of my qi, you won"t be able to evade attacks that are too ma.s.sive or too fast."

Lei Yong Chun chuckled as he approached me. He glanced down at me, and nodded quietly.

"You"re actually still conscious…and to be able to discharge all the electricity into the ground. Amazing."

"I learn that from reading a manhwa," I replied dryly.

"I"m sure you did," Lei Yong Chun replied wryly. "What about your Heaven and Earth Formula? Did you learn that from a manhwa too?"

"No, I got it from looking at a brand of green tea."

Lei Yong Chun scowled and then attacked me, forcing me to dodge. As I used Tui to retreat to a safe distance, I wondered why he didn"t use the Heaven"s Void, Lightning Style. Then I realized that it was a time-consuming technique. He was aware that if he tried to use it, I would close in and attack him, interrupting him before he could complete it.

"How did you learn Heaven and Earth Formula?" he demanded, not buying my filmsy excuse for a minute.

"Fei Wu is an Expermentalist," Bai Ning Xue explained. "He"s been trying to restore Heaven and Earth Formula for years now."

"There"s no way he could have restored it this perfectly. It"s exactly the same as the technique that b.a.s.t.a.r.d Tian Mo used all those years ago." Lei Yong Chun cast a sharp and disbelieving glare in her direction. However, Bai Ning Xue could only respond with a bewildered expression. Having never personally fought anyone from the Heaven and Earth Sect, she wouldn"t be able to tell. Furthermore, she didn"t know the truth.

"You can believe whatever you want," I snapped as I dodged another Lightning Punch. "I don"t care if you don"t believe us."

"Hmph." Lei Yong Chun threw another Lightning Punch, and then he winced. Evidently, the injury he received earlier from Bai Ning Xue was hindering his movements. It was also the reason why he failed to knock me out. His strength was reduced drastically. Otherwise, even with Heavenly Flow and Earthly Steps, I would never be able to match his speed. Lei Yong Chun seemed to have realized this as well, ahd he scowled. "I"ll have to finish this quickly then."

I felt a sudden chill. My instincts screamed at me to flee, and I was only too happy to oblige.

Unfortunately, Lei Yong Chun wasn"t going to let me run away. He dashed forward, actually overtaking me despite my using a footwork technique, and threw his hand forward.

"See if you can dodge this! Lightning Flash!"

Even though I was able to avoid direct physical contact, the shockwaves from the tremendous blast of lightning struck me with almost full force. There was an immense explosion and my smoldering body was sent hurtling across the courtyard.

"Fei Wu!"

Bai Ning Xue cried out, but I was in no shape to reply. Hitting the dirt, I skidded across the surface, leaving a blackened trail. Coughing, I tried to roll to my feet and spun around to catch sight of where Lei Yong Chun was.

However, I spotted something in my peripheral vision. Turning, I saw the sword that Bai Ning Xue dropped earlier after she used her premature version of Heaven"s Void, Lightning Style. Diving for it and simultaneously dodging another Thunder Crash from Lei Yong Chun, I grabbed hold of the sword and quickly rolled to my feet.

"Oh, so you"re a swordsman?"

Lei Yong Chun sneered as he advanced, getting ready to use another Lightning Flash. Against such terrifying power, I could only stand my ground and respond with everything I had. Gathering all my qi and infusing it into the sword, I sucked in a deep breath and swung it, unleashing my most powerful attack.

Heavenly Draconic Meteor Strike!

"?!"

Lei Yong Chun tried to stop when he realized the danger, but he was too late. The black wave of qi engulfed him in an instant and he bellowed in pain. The next instant, his fuming body crashed out of the darj blast, and he staggered to his feet. Blood dripped from several places around his body and he coughed out more from his mouth.

"f.u.c.k!" he snarled, glaring at me. "I can"t believe I got beaten this badly by a kid! I haven"t been this humiliated or injured in a while!"

I exhaled, daring to hope that I might just stand a chance of winning this. However, all hopes of that were dashed when Lei Yong Chun raised his hand. To my horror, a ma.s.sive influx of electric qi surged from his body. Even my Heaven and Earth senses were telling me that this was not an attack I could dodge or withstand.

"Heavenly Tiger Thunder Crash!"

The gigantic tiger slammed into me from above, despite me doing my best to parry it with a sword. Coughing out blood, I crashed onto the ground, convulsing and shuddering as electricity scorched my body from the inside out.

"Idiotic kid. I was only going easy on you. But d.a.m.n…f.u.c.k! I can"t believe you actually managed to seriously injure me. You and Ning Xue both!"

"This…this can"t be…"

Bai Ning Xue was staring at her first senior in horror, unable to believe what she was seeing. Even after taking successive attacks that would have proven fatal to any other martial artist, Lei Yong Chun was not only still standing, but he was radiating such power.

"Sorry, kid. But I have to eliminate Ning Xue. I might even have to crush you too…you"re both too dangerous. There"s no telling what sort of monsters you"ll grow to if I leave you two like this."

Lei Yong Chun was staring at us, his body crackling with power. He shook his head ruefully and began approaching a stunned Bai Ning Xue.

"I"ll have to hand it to you kids, though. This is probably the first time since the fight with the Heaven and Earth Sect that I"ve been hurt this badly. But…" he grinned. "You"ve got to be deluded if you thought you could win."

"My objective was never to win," I whispered before coughing out some blood.

Lei Yong Chun froze and turned his eyes toward me.

"What was that?"

I grinned weakly. "I told you. I never intended to win. My role was only to buy as much time as possible."

Lei Yong Chun"s expression darkened. "You b.a.s.t.a.r.d…!"

I shrugged and lay on the ground, using the chance to recover my breath. I had been injured severely, but it wasn"t as bad as I had failed. All I needed was a little rest and I would be back up on my feet in a minute.

Not that I needed to.

"Reinforcements are here."

"d.a.m.n you!"

Lei Yong Chun glanced up and saw a new group approaching. Teacher Jiao Shi and the other staff had finally arrived. There was no sign of Princ.i.p.al Xiao Zhang…yet. Most likely he was still tied up in the whatever conference where he had to discuss budget plans for his school, but more likely he trusted his teachers to get the job done.

"Surrender, Yong Chun." Teacher Jiao stepped forward, almost disappearing like a ghost and reappearing in front of him. "You can"t escape."

Lei Yong Chun laughed at that, despite the blood dribbling from his mouth.

"You think you"ve caught me just because you have me surrounded and because you outnumber me? Have you forgotten who I am?"

"No. that"s why we"re taking extra precautions."

Lei Yong Chun chuckled weakly as he glanced around at the huge number of staff. It wasn"t just the teachers. Teacher Cai, Teacher Shu, and many of the teachers I learned under had approached, but they were reinforced by dozens of men in suits and sungla.s.ses.

Why they were wearing sungla.s.ses in the middle of the night, I had no idea. Probably to look cool, and also probably because it was part of their cliché uniform. Also most likely because the artist couldn"t be bothered to draw their eyes.

"Well then…" Lei Yong Chun cracked his neck, and then stretched his hands. He beckoned for them to come. "Let"s get this done and over with."

*

"Huff…huff…"

Lei Yong Chun heaved and puffed as he ran through the forest. Clutching his chest, he suddenly stopped to bend over and throw up a pile of blood.

"Ugh! Kuh!"

Slumping against a tree, he glanced up at the moon, which was barely visible through the canopy of the densely cl.u.s.tered trees.

"f.u.c.king b.a.s.t.a.r.ds…even after running this far, I almost wasn"t able to lose them."

He closed his eyes, and then smirked.

"Well…even though I"m seriously hurt, it doesn"t mean I don"t have enough strength to take care of a single kid."

"…"

"Come out, kid. I know you"re there."

I emerged from the trees and watched the slumped Lei Yong Chun warily. He didn"t even bother to sit up straight, just opening his eyes and glancing at me.

"Why are you following me, kid? You have a suicide wish or something?"

"Earlier, you identified my martial arts as Heaven and Earth Formula," I began. "How did you know?"

"Ah…I knew it." Lei Yong Chun clambered to his feet and stared at me. "I should be the one asking you. How did you learn it?"

"That"s none of your business."

No sooner were the words out of my mouth when Lei Yong Chun struck me with his arm. I just barely managed to parry it and block his lightning, but his other fist came, and despite antic.i.p.ating it with my Heavenly Flow and Earthly Steps, I couldn"t dodge in time. Instead, I was forced to parry it, and Lei Yong Chun effortlessly blasted me with Thunder Break, undoing my defense.

"Ugh!"

I staggered back, and Lei Yong Chun kicked me to the ground. I managed to duck that, but the edge of his foot grazed my temple and blood flew. I crashed to the ground, feeling winded, and Lei Chun Long stomped on me to prevent me from getting up.

"I"ll ask you again. How did you learn Heaven and Earth Formula?"

"I learned it from studying the resources that Wu Ling Academy provided. I managed to piece them together and come up with a workable version."

"Cut that bulls.h.i.t." Lei Yong Chun exerted more force on my head as he shifted the weight to his foot. "You know as well as I do that your Heaven and Earth Formula wasn"t pieced together from anything Wu Ling Academy managed to retrieve. Your techniques are far too perfect."

"They"re not," I muttered bitterly. Lei Yong Chun laughed.

"Sure, you"ve some way to go before you can consider yourself as having mastered them, but nonetheless, the form and techniques are otherwise excellent copies of the original. Which can"t be possible unless you learn the original from somewhere."

"You won"t believe me if I told you," I grumbled.

"Try me." the weight increased again. I gritted my teeth.

"I was taught by a ghost."

"…"

"I told you that you wouldn"t believe me."

"No, actually, I do."

"…huh?"

I blinked and struggled to turn my head to glance up at Lei Yong Chun. He was looking pretty thoughtful.

"I mean, Nascent Soul Stage pract.i.tioners have the ability to preserve their spirits even if their physical bodies are destroyed. Tian Mo was certainly powerful enough to do so, and leave a lingering trace that existed long enough for him to impart the basics to you."

He then grinned.

"Besides, it"s a standard cliché in all xianxia stories. Whether it"s Coiling Dragon, Against the G.o.ds, or Battle Through the Heavens, Douluo Dalu II: Jue Shi Tang Men or even Wu Dong Qian Kun, the protagonists always gets taught by the ghost of his master. In fact, I"m an idiot for not realizing that!"

He slapped his forehead and chuckled.

"…"

I couldn"t help but feel like an idiot.

"Seeing that you didn"t deny it, then you"re most definitely a disciple of the Heaven and Earth Sect." he lifted his foot. I blinked in surprise, and then slowly crawled to my feet, staring at him in astonishment.

"You…"

"Ah, don"t worry. If you"re a disciple of the Heaven and Earth Sect, you"ll eventually join my side, sooner or later."

"Huh?" I scowled incredulously. Lei Yong Chun shrugged.

"You do know how your sect was destroyed and how your master was killed, right?" he jabbed a thumb back at the direction where the academy was. "The Martial Arts Alliance is responsible for everything."

"I thought you"re working for the Martial Arts Alliance," I grumbled, puzzled. Wasn"t he helping the Martial Arts Alliance rein in or eliminate Wu Ling Academy altogether because of the artificial qi? Then why was he talking as if we were having a common cause against the Martial Arts Alliance.

"Don"t be naïve. You think the Martial Arts Alliance will stop at eliminating Wu Ling Academy?" Lei Yong Chun snorted. "While I agree with them that artificial qi is an abomination, and that we have to stop Xiao Zhang"s attempts to become a G.o.d at all costs, I"m not blind to their corruption. The Martial Arts Alliance will stop at nothing to secure their power. After they exterminate Wu Ling Academy, they will turn toward the other sects who are trying to be independent from them."

"…"

I wasn"t sure I believed him, but Lei Yong Chun continued.

"For example, the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect…"

"What?!"

"Why? Why are you so shocked? The Nine-Tailed Fox Sect has always been autonomous, relying on their reputation in high-quality spirit armaments to increase their wealth. The Alliance has begun to feel uncomfortable about them increasing their power and influence, yet maintaining their independence."

He then caught my pale expression and somewhat understood.

"Ah…perhaps you"re one of those secondary disciples…who joined the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect as a second sect to learn their Spirit Engraving and smithing techniques?" he nodded in approval. "That will be a good way of covering up your secret as a Heaven and Earth Sect disciple."

That was never my intention, but there was no point convincing Lei Yong Chun the truth. I merely stared at him.

"As a sign of goodwill, let me give you a small hint." Lowering his voice, Lei Yong Chun placed a hand on my shoulder and grinned. "If you want to advance your Heaven and Earth Formula further, you would do well to check out the nine Spirit Engraved Pillars."

"What do you mean?" I gaped at Lei Yong Chun incredulously. "What does the Spirit Engraved Pillars have to do with Heaven and Earth Formula?"

"Well, that…" Lei Yong Chun"s grin widened. "…is for you to find out yourself, kid."