Chapter 33: Chapter 33: You All Might as Well Come at Me Together
The past few days had not gone well for Li Qunfan.
Ever since he’d been beaten up by that new kid, the way his martial brothers looked at him had been strange.
He had trained painstakingly in the Inner Sect for over two years. His strength had broken through to the Profound Gate First Layer, making him strong enough to lift a cauldron and crush a skull with his bare hands.
But even with such strength, he had been knocked unconscious by a new Disciple who had been here for less than two days.
Although there were many reasons—his hands were tied, he’d let his guard down, and sect rules prevented him from fighting back—it was still utterly humiliating.
But that wasn’t what hurt Li Qunfan the most. What truly tormented him was this:
’Does Xiaofang really not like me?’ Li Qunfan thought, lying on his side. He tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.
For the past few days, every time he closed his eyes, Fang Can’s mocking words echoed endlessly in his mind:
She never loved you at all!
Never loved you!
You...
Li Qunfan’s entire goal in practicing the Martial Dao was to become strong enough to be worthy of her, so they could be together, their love mutual.
But a single whisper from Fang Can had cruelly shattered that dream: Xiaofang had never liked him at all.
"Impossible! Xiaofang has to like me!"
Li Qunfan’s eyes, webbed with red, flew open. He tried to use the Method of Portrayal, but it had no effect whatsoever.
Fang Can’s impassive words were like a sharp knife plunged deep into his heart, leaving a wound that wouldn’t stop bleeding.
The so-called Mind-based Martial Dao required one to find a goal, a conviction, and then pursue it with unwavering resolve.
But when a practitioner of this art began to doubt himself, his path was already lost.
After several days of frenzied training, Li Qunfan discovered to his horror that his Martial Dao Realm hadn’t improved at all. In fact, it was gradually regressing.
As his martial will faded, the proportion of new blood in his body plummeted.
In just four or five days, his physical strength had permanently declined by a full ten percent. If this were discovered, he would likely be demoted to the menial division.
"Fang Can! It’s all because of that Fang Can! I’m going to break both his arms and legs!"
Consumed by hatred, Li Qunfan slammed his fist into the table in his room, shattering it. His eyes were completely bloodshot.
"One month. In just one month, the rules will allow for normal sparring."
Li Qunfan practically roared, "I’ll beat him until he admits that Xiaofang loves me!"
The thought finally calmed him a little. Feeling the slight weakness in his body, he slowly, miserably drifted off to sleep.
He still did not sleep well that night.
...
’Why am I on the floor!’
「The next day」
Fang Can slowly opened his eyes. He glanced around before realizing he had woken up on the floor.
Gently rubbing his groggy head, Fang Can began to recall what had happened the night before.
’I remember I was training before I passed out. Because I took ten arsenic pills at once, my body felt worse and worse the more I practiced. I figured I’d sit down for a moment to recover, and then I lost consciousness.’
Realizing this, Fang Can figured he knew what happened. He had probably overdosed and passed out.
Slowly pushing himself up from the floor, Fang Can changed into a fresh set of clothes. ’I should take it a bit easier next time,’ he thought. ’It won’t kill me, but I can’t train if I’m passed out.’
Looking at his 9.2% progress, Fang Can tightened the sash of his pants. He hadn’t forgotten what he had to do today.
Stepping out of his small house and feeling the cool morning breeze of the Otherworld, Fang Can set off toward the training hall.
Along the way, he ran into fellow disciples. They exchanged curt nods before all proceeding toward the training hall.
Although it was early, some people were already up and practicing on the grounds.
But compared to seven days ago, Fang Can could now easily discern their techniques and patterns. Movements that were once a blur were now as clear as day to him.
’None of these martial brothers in the training hall have a Flesh and Blood Transformation over 20%. Most are hovering around 10%,’ Fang Can mused.
After all, this training hall was just for new Disciples. After three years of training, they would be dispatched elsewhere.
Anyone who could break the 20% threshold and reach the Profound Gate Second Layer within those three years was considered exceptionally talented, a one-in-a-hundred prodigy.
As Fang Can was lost in thought, his gaze drifted forward.
In the distance stood Li Qunfan, sporting dark circles under his eyes and glaring at him with murderous intent.
The two cronies who had tried to extort him before were standing with Li Qunfan, staring at him with malicious eyes.
Of course, they didn’t dare to approach. They were afraid that not only would they be unable to fight him, but they might also be verbally devastated by him again.
’Perfect timing.’
Seeing his target, he was about to step forward when Instructor Yang Lie stopped him. "Fang Can, come over here a moment."
"Hm?" Fang Can turned to see Yang Lie strolling toward him.
"Is there something you need, Instructor Yang?"
"It’s nothing major. There’s just a rule I forgot to tell you about."
Yang Lie clasped his hands behind his back, a wine flask in his right hand, and spoke unhurriedly.
"The training hall has a rule. Once a month, we hold a sparring competition for the Disciples to test their skills against one another."
"I heard you had a little run-in with Li Qunfan and his friends. Once the one-month probation is over, they’ll probably come looking for trouble. You should watch your back."
"Even though you were recommended by Hall Master Li, as long as they don’t injure you severely, it’s not my place to interfere."
Fang Can nodded and smiled at Yang Lie’s warning. "Thank you for the heads-up, Instructor Yang. But... what if I want to spar with them right now?"
"What are you getting at, kid?" Yang Lie, who had been leaning forward, instinctively straightened up. "You have a death wish? If you’re the one who starts the fight, not even the rules can protect you."
Fang Can now understood Yang Lie’s position. He simply walked past him, heading straight for Li Qunfan in the distance.
"What do you want, you bastard! Are you looking for trouble? You really think I won’t hit you?"
Seeing Fang Can approach, Li Qunfan seethed with a hatred that made his teeth ache, but he truly didn’t dare to make a move.
He could only watch as Fang Can strode right up to him. He widened his bloodshot eyes, trying to make Fang Can see the killing intent within them and back down.
What he got in return was a simple, unadorned slap from Fang Can.
BAM!
Like a cannonball, Fang Can’s right palm smashed directly into Li Qunfan’s face.
In that instant, Li Qunfan felt as if the left side of his face had been struck by a solid iron ingot. His entire body was sent flying sideways.
CRASH!
Before everyone’s horrified eyes, Li Qunfan’s body slammed straight into the stone wall of the training grounds. He crumpled to the ground with a thud, unable to get up, like a dead dog.
Seeing the distinct, spiderweb-like cracks left on the stone wall from the impact, the entire training ground fell utterly silent.
Yang Lie instinctively rubbed his eyes in disbelief. ’He has a sensation of qi? No, he’s at least close to the Profound Gate First Layer! How is that possible? How?!’
With everyone watching, Fang Can walked over to Li Qunfan, grabbed him by the hair, and yanked him to his feet. The man was already unconscious again.
Finding it all a bit dull, Fang Can tossed Li Qunfan’s body aside, turned, and grinned. "Fellow disciples, why don’t all of you just come at me at once?"
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