Author: 易修罗 / Yi Xiu Luo

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 39

The moment Ling Xiao got off from the web, he saw Ying Feng sitting opposite him. He hadn’t expected him to return after leaving. Immediately, Ling Xiao became defensive, almost like an animal that sensed a threat, his hairs standing on end.

“Oh? Changed your mind? Planning to come back and punch me?”

“Did you see Zhen He?” Ying Feng asked straightforwardly.

Ling Xiao’s first thought was that he was being watched again. “Do you always knowingly ask rhetorical questions? Or are you trying to force me to say it out loud?”

“Don’t go with him.” This time, Ying Feng simply gave an order.

Ling Xiao was momentarily taken aback, sensing that Zhen He had hidden the truth from him. But he didn’t intend to enlighten Ying Feng either. Jumping off the bed, he headed straight for the bathroom.

“It was impulsive of me to act earlier; you can hit me back. I won’t retaliate.” Ying Feng raised his voice as Ling Xiao walked away. “But I won’t allow you to join his group.”

While the first half of his statement seemed conciliatory, it was said without any concession in tone, more like a benefactor setting terms, emphasizing the latter part of his words.

Ling Xiao had almost filtered out the first half, but upon hearing the latter part, anger surged within him. He turned abruptly, swinging his fist. Even though the torments of the past few days had drained much of his strength, this close-range punch was powerful enough to break Ying Feng’s nose. But just as his full-force punch was an inch from its target, it stopped abruptly, unable to move further.

Ying Feng’s inconsistent behavior filled Ling Xiao with disdain. “I thought you weren’t fighting back? Oh, right, controlling isn’t considered retaliating, is it? Stop pretending.”

“I didn’t.” Ying Feng clarified expressionlessly, even with Ling Xiao’s clenched fist right before his eyes. “I didn’t control you.”

In disbelief, Ling Xiao pulled back his hand, which now moved freely. But when he swung again, his hand halted at the exact same spot.

“Ha,” a worse realization struck him, “Being a Qizi, I don’t even have the right to strike my Qizhu, do I? What a wonderful system, hahaha.”

He simply abandoned the idea of landing a punch, deciding to ignore whatever Ying Feng might say next.

“If you choose to go with him, decide whether you want to stay here or in a cell.”

Facing such a blatant threat, Ling Xiao ignored it, heading into the bathroom. Given his current state, how different was it from being imprisoned?

The reflection in the mirror looked the same as it did two days ago, but now it wasn’t as unbearable. Compared to Ying Feng, Ling Xiao mused, his own face seemed more pleasant.

He took deep breaths, repeating thrice, “This is the last day. I made it through the past two days; today will be fine too.”

He fist-bumped his reflection, “Stay strong, Ling Xiao!”

Revitalized, Ling Xiao picked up a towel as he left the bathroom.

Ying Feng watched him struggle to tie both his hands together with the towel, finally securing it with a tight knot using his teeth.

“What are you doing?”

Ling Xiao didn’t want to admit that the night before he had almost looked for a knife, contemplating ending his life. Each night’s torment was worse than the last, and he feared tonight’s impulses might lead him to do something regrettable.

Even without an answer, Ying Feng somewhat understood his intention. “How can a towel restrict you? You could easily break free.”

“You only see one lock.” Ling Xiao tightened the knot further. “But I have three.”

Ying Feng was puzzled. “Where?”

“My determination and self-control.”

Having said that, he lay down. “Don’t worry, I won’t lose control and roll towards you, so your sleep isn’t disturbed.”

The final night of his turbulent phase quietly began. The first night represented fear, the second depression, and the third intense cold. Wrapped in a blanket, Ling Xiao felt like he was frozen solid.

What was even harder to bear was the known source of warmth right next to him. The tangible warmth kept flowing from beside him, but abruptly halted just before reaching him. He yearned to get closer, just a bit closer, but he forcefully suppressed such impulses.

Ling Xiao covered himself with the blanket, curling up as tight as possible. In the darkness, the sound of his chattering teeth was the only thing accompanying him through this endlessly difficult night.

……

“Ling Xiao!” First thing in the morning, as soon as Ting Lei saw Ling Xiao, he rushed over with concern. He instinctively reached out to put his arm around Ling Xiao’s shoulder but suddenly remembered the incident from the previous day. He changed course halfway, scratching the back of his head. “Were you okay yesterday?”

Ling Xiao knew Ting Lei meant well, but he found it hard to bear being treated as the weaker one by everyone. “I’m fine. What about you?”

“What could possibly happen to me? But Ying Feng’s current strength is really…” He paused midway through his sentence, recalling that the reason Ying Feng was now so strong, able to lift him with one hand, was due to obtaining Ling Xiao’s power. He quickly changed his statement.

“Speaking of which, we have physical training next. Are you sure you can handle it? Maybe you should take a day off.” Ting Lei noticed that Ling Xiao looked even paler than he did yesterday, like he might collapse after just running 500 meters.

“Don’t think of me as that weak.” Ling Xiao was already warming up.

“You’re just too stubborn,” Ting Lei said anxiously on his behalf. “There’s no harm in admitting weakness occasionally.”

“Fall in!” The instructor blew the whistle, and, as expected, both Ying Feng and Ling Xiao appeared in the line-up.

“Today’s physical training target is 30,000 meters. For some weaker races, this is already the limit, but for us, it’s just a basic requirement. Those of you who ascend to the military academy will realize this is just a warm-up distance. Everyone needs to finish within the set time. Those who don’t will run it again tomorrow. Start now!”

The students chose their initial pace and set off. Ling Xiao, who usually led these trainings, conservatively paced himself in the middle today. A few friends, worried about him, ran close by. As for Ying Feng, with his newfound strength and speed, he was far ahead of everyone else.

Less than halfway to the finish, Ling Xiao’s pace visibly slowed. Even those who usually trailed behind him seemed to breathe less heavily than he did. It was clear to everyone that he wasn’t feeling well.

“Ling Xiao, just take a break. The instructor will understand,” one of them said.

Ling Xiao shook his head and, contrary to expectations, increased his speed. The others had no choice but to keep up.

Ying Feng completed the whole course in just two-thirds of the usual time. For him, this distance truly felt like a warm-up.

The instructor looked even more appreciative of his star pupil. “Ready to apply to the elite Royal Sky Military Academy?”

Ying Feng replied dismissively, “Considering staying here, not thinking too much about it.”

“With your current level, you can choose any specialty at Royal Sky. I’ve heard that Major General Fu Yao is now teaching there. If you’re lucky, you might even be in his department.”

Ying Feng recalled the name, remembering him as the shorter officer.

“Heh,” Ying Feng remembered the punch the officer had given him.

“Fu Yao is the youngest Major General in Tianxiu. He’s quite powerful. But that’s not what he’s most famous for.”

“What then?”

“He’s the earliest to complete the coming-of-age ceremony in Tianxiu history. He reached adulthood just four years into his juvenile phase.”

After saying that, the instructor added with a mischievous gleam in his eye. “There’s a rumor that this is the reason he’s so short.”

His face became serious in an instant. “But never mention this in front of him, especially his height. If you do, you’ll regret it.”

Ying Feng thought, ‘I’ve already experienced how ‘regretful’ that can be.’

After a while, students began returning one after another, except for Ling Xiao, who was always uncomfortable if he didn’t finish first. Even Ying Feng felt it was unusual.

By the time Ling Xiao came into Ying Feng’s view, a significant amount of time had passed. Even at his worst, Ling Xiao shouldn’t have been this slow. He seemed to be forcing himself to complete the last stretch, running despite tasting blood in his mouth, facing difficulty in breathing, and feeling as though his legs were filled with lead.

The moment he reached the finish line, it was as if he had completed a mission. Ling Xiao’s vision blacked out, and he finally collapsed. Unlike yesterday, this time, he didn’t get up.

“Ling Xiao!” A cry of alarm rose from the crowd. People began to gather around, but they hesitated because of Ying Feng, turning to him for help.

Ying Feng walked over to find Ling Xiao unconscious.

“Ying Feng,” Ting Lei said, his voice thick with suppressed anger, “Something was wrong with Ling Xiao since yesterday. Today, after just 30,000 meters, he’s like this. What did you do to him?”

“Enough talking,” a female student interrupted anxiously. “Let’s get him to the infirmary.”

Ying Feng bent down and lifted Ling Xiao, carrying him without uttering a word towards the medical building, leaving behind a group of worried classmates. His strength, which had nearly doubled, made carrying Ling Xiao feel effortless. The man in his arms had a pale face, eyes tightly shut, and the hair at his temples clung to his cheeks, dampened by sweat.

Yao Tai opened the door, and upon seeing such a scene, her expression became grave.

“Lay him on the bed,” she coldly instructed.

Ying Feng did as told and watched as she connected various medical instruments to Ling Xiao.

The examination results came out quickly. After reading the report, Yao Tai felt the urge to severely reprimand Ying Feng.

He looked at her with confusion as she glared at him fiercely, then noticed her attaching some therapeutic device to Ling Xiao’s temple.

Yao Tai pressed a few keys on the device, and blue numbers appeared on the display, gradually increasing.

“Do you know what this is?” she asked irritably.

Ying Feng shook his head.

“It’s a machine used for inducing sleep. It puts a person into a deep slumber temporarily, but upon waking up, the mental stress accumulated beforehand will backlash, almost like drinking poison to quench thirst. No one would use it unless absolutely necessary. He’s deeply asleep now and won’t hear our conversation.”

Ying Feng frowned.

“I asked you to take good care of him. Is this how you do it? Do you realize he hasn’t eaten for three days?”

Confused, Ying Feng asked, “Why?”

She questioned, “Did you get him a supplementary card?”

“He didn’t mention it,” Ying Feng replied.

Yao Tai had to restrain her urge to lash out.

“Didn’t I tell you? After becoming a Qizi, the main card gets demagnetized, and all the funds transfer to your card. Didn’t you notice an increase in your balance?”

Only then did Ying Feng remember. After returning from the field practice, he found an extra four units of money in his account. The amount was so small; he thought he misremembered.

“If he didn’t mention it, couldn’t you have asked?” Yao Tai angrily pointed at them. “One doesn’t ask, the other doesn’t speak. Were you waiting for him to starve to death?”

“He hasn’t eaten or slept for three days and has just done strenuous exercise. The fact that he only passed out now is a miracle! Even with our constitution, we couldn’t endure such strain!”

“You seem even more out of control than him. Those who can’t control their emotions aren’t qualified to be Qizhu! Had I known, I would have sent him to the disease control center rather than leave him with you; at least he wouldn’t starve there!”

Yao Tai berated him incessantly, but Ying Feng remained silent.

Yao Tai, overwhelmed with anger, paused for a moment before speaking seriously.

“I’m warning you; his psychological rating has reached E-. He’s on the verge of mandatory hospitalization, but that’s not the worst of it. He’s now showing signs of mild mental trauma. This damage will stay with him forever and cannot be cured. Have you seen the principal? He’s a typical case of severe mental trauma. Do you want Ling Xiao to end up like him?”

“If you continue with your recklessness, he will die. I’m not joking.” Her tone softened slightly. “Ying Feng, a Tianxiu person can only have one partner in their lifetime. If the Qizi dies before maturing, the Qizhu will also cease to grow. Your abilities will peak, so even if you’re only thinking selfishly, you should take good care of him. The person lying in bed is the only Qizi you’ll ever have in this lifetime. Get rid of your impractical notions now!”

Ying Feng uncomfortably turned away, looking at Ling Xiao on the bed. He noticed the rapid rise and fall of Ling Xiao’s chest; his breaths were quick and shallow, resembling an animal.

“Why is he breathing so fast?”

“The heartbeat and breathing of a Qizi are faster than before. Haven’t you noticed your own heartbeat slowing down? The average lifespan of a Qizi is already lower than a Qizhu’s, but thanks to irresponsible Qizhu like you, that average is even further reduced,” she said sarcastically.

Yao Tai glanced at the time. “He can sleep for another hour. His period of disorder was supposed to be over, but you dragged it out another day. The mental backlash tonight will be even more painful than the past few days. I’d like to see what you’ll do then.”

She flicked her hair and left, leaving Ying Feng alone with Ling Xiao in the medical room. He walked over to Ling Xiao’s bed. The usually fierce-looking man appeared gentle and serene in his deep slumber. The earlier quarrel hadn’t affected him in the slightest. Ying Feng couldn’t imagine that this was Ling Xiao’s first sleep since the coming-of-age ceremony.

The blue light on the instrument blinked on and off, with numbers symbolizing the passing time and counting down ruthlessly. In this harsh system, challenges could only be overcome by the spirit of the individual. Even the most advanced medical instruments could only offer a brief respite to the Qizi.

When Ling Xiao woke up, the room was empty. He had probably just experienced the deepest sleep of his life, so deep that no dream could infiltrate.

However, with his sleep issues resolved, his hunger felt even more pronounced. As he sat up, he noticed some devices still attached to his head. He removed them and was about to get out of bed when he accidentally bumped into something peculiar.

Looking down, there was a pack of banana-flavored energy bread by his side.

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