Chapter Seventy-Three: Struggle

“Senior Brother Han?”
Seeing the newcomer, Fang Xiao was quite surprised.
It was Han Dahu.
Fang Xiao remembered this man well—although only a year older than himself, Han Dahu looked like a strapping fellow in his late twenties or thirties.
Their acquaintance had been brief, interrupted by a misunderstanding, and they had barely spoken since.
Fang Xiao had always felt a bit regretful about this, for Han Dahu seemed a decent sort.
“Junior Brother Fang.”
Han Dahu stopped in front of Fang Xiao, scratching the back of his head. “I’d like to have a word with you.”
“Of course.”
Fang Xiao readily opened the gate to the side courtyard. “Come in and let’s talk!”
Once inside, Han Dahu looked around with wide eyes, sighing in admiration. “This place is really nice!”
Fang Xiao was curious. “You’ve never been here?”
“Never,” Han Dahu replied matter-of-factly. “This is the instructors’ courtyard—ordinary students never set foot here!”
Fang Xiao laughed. “But I’m just an ordinary student.”
Han Dahu shook his head. “You’re a genius, different from the rest. Otherwise, why would Instructor Lin treat you so specially?”
Fang Xiao was thoughtful. “Is that so?”
He had always believed that everyone admitted to Liuhe Academy was a genius.
He himself had little martial foundation, and compared to the others who had trained since childhood, he always felt at a disadvantage.
This drove him to work harder, unwilling to lag behind.
But now, it seemed, perhaps things were not so clear-cut.
“You didn’t know?”
Han Dahu continued, “Everyone in the academy says you pick up martial skills at an incredible pace, that your talent is exceptional.”
Fang Xiao shook his head. “No one really talks to me.”
He and Han Dahu were both in the Martial Hall.
Even though Fang Xiao spent most of his time training in the side courtyard, he would still run into Han Dahu now and then.
But they had never spoken much after that first encounter.
“I misunderstood you before,” Han Dahu said, a little embarrassed. “I’ve been meaning to apologize, but never found the right moment.”
His own nature was rather shy, not one for socializing or conversation.
That was why it had taken him until now to say anything.
The realization that he had been wrong about Fang Xiao came from a conversation with his father.
Not long ago, Han Dahu had mentioned Fang Xiao while talking about the academy, and his father had grown quite interested.
After learning more, his father had helped Han Dahu see things differently.

He realized Fang Xiao was nothing like he’d first imagined.

“It’s nothing,” Fang Xiao said earnestly. “You did nothing wrong—there’s no need to apologize.”

Han Dahu grinned sheepishly. “My father always says you can’t judge a person by appearances alone—you have to listen to what they say and watch what they do.”

He added, troubled, “But I still don’t really understand people.”

“Nor do I,” Fang Xiao said seriously. “Just do your best to be yourself.”

“Mm.” Han Dahu nodded, then slapped his own head. “Almost forgot why I came.”

“Junior Brother Fang, I wanted to warn you—Senior Brother Gao Hong is not someone to cross. You must be very careful!”

Gao Hong was a direct scion of the Gao family in Liuhe, and Han Dahu’s own age, though he had entered the academy a year earlier.
Despite his youth, Gao Hong’s strength was formidable; he had even bested an instructor in a sparring match.
Few in the academy could measure up to him.
Thus, it was only natural that he passed the martial entrance exam for Jingyuan Academy with ease.
More than that—one of Gao Hong’s uncles was an elder at the Qingfeng Monastery!
His family background was extremely powerful.

Earlier in the dining hall, Fang Xiao had refused Gao Hong’s invitation.
He had undoubtedly offended this prodigy.

Han Dahu had witnessed the whole affair and, worried that Fang Xiao did not know the danger, had come specifically to warn him.

“Thank you, Senior Brother.”
Fang Xiao expressed his gratitude, but inwardly he was uneasy.

He didn’t care about offending Gao Hong.
But Qingfeng Monastery’s involvement immediately made him wary.
For the monastery had once conspired with several monsters against Daoist Pang.
Daoist Pang’s enemies were his enemies as well!

“So long as you understand,” Han Dahu said. “If anything happens, wait until Instructor Lin returns. He should be able to help you.”

After this honest and upright senior left, Fang Xiao did not dwell on the matter.
Instead, he opened his personal treasure.

[Red Sun Canon]
[Unshaken by Myriad Martial Paths, Impervious to All Magic, Invulnerable to All Evil]
[Dragon-Tiger Stance (Perfected)]
[Demon-Subduing Fist (Great Success): 0/80]
[Lin Family Spear (Great Success): 0/80]
[Long River Sunset Spear (Proficient): 17/20]
[Soul-Reaping Ghost Whip (Expert): 0/40]
[Experience: 80]
[The essence of maintaining relationships is not yielding or ingratiating, but standing in opposition—struggle!]

Struggle!

Without hesitation, Fang Xiao poured all eighty remaining experience points into the Demon-Subduing Fist.

[Demon-Subduing Fist (Transcendent): 0/160]

In that instant, Fang Xiao’s consciousness plunged into a bottomless abyss.
Countless demons and monsters surged from the darkness, roaring and howling, their hideous forms terrifying beyond imagination.
To them, Fang Xiao appeared as a delectable prey worth fighting over.
They encircled him from all sides, reaching out with twisted claws, ready to tear him to shreds.

But at the critical moment, Fang Xiao struck out with his fist.
With a single punch, his muscles and bones resounded, and a torrent of blazing yang and dragon-tiger energy surged into his fist.
Crimson flames instantly ignited over his knuckles.

Boom!

A demon struck full-on by his punch exploded into black mist, vanishing without a trace.

With that blow, Fang Xiao’s power surged.
Though surrounded on all sides by fiends, his heart was not only fearless, but ablaze with fighting spirit!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Punch after punch, every demon that came within reach was obliterated by his iron fists.
More and more monsters rushed at him.
Fang Xiao lost track of how many he had destroyed.
Though his body and mind were pushed to the brink of exhaustion, and his inner yang and dragon-tiger energy rapidly depleted,
his fighting spirit burned ever brighter.

Never surrender!

Until, at last, the final demon appeared.
This one towered over him like a mountain, gazing down at the exhausted Fang Xiao with eyes vast and cold, brimming with scorn.

The next moment, the great demon raised its right hand and brought it down toward Fang Xiao as casually as one might swat a fly.

Its palm grew rapidly in the air, casting a dense shadow that swallowed Fang Xiao whole.

In that instant, Fang Xiao sensed the presence of death.

Yet he did not feel fear, nor did he retreat.
Instead, he summoned every last ounce of strength, meeting the falling demon palm with another blazing fist.

“Come and fight!”

With this punch, he poured in his bones, his marrow, his very soul!

Suddenly, Fang Xiao’s eyes flew open.

His fist crashed down upon the wooden training post before him.

Bang!

The post, made of black ironwood,

shattered instantly to dust.