A Teacher's Duty

Oh no, we've fallen for their trap!

Winnowing Basket Water Leopard immediately realized he had been tricked. His opponent was clearly feigning weakness to lure him into abandoning his evasive maneuvers and launching a direct attack. Now he had no choice but to bite the bullet and charge forward.

Murong Zhe raised two fingers together, gathering his True Qi at his fingertips, and unleashed the Thousand Accusing Fingers technique, striking the soft flesh of the Winnowing Basket Water Leopard's claw head-on.

The next moment, Winnowing Basket Water Leopard was thrown into the air by the blow, landing straight down more than twenty meters away. He crashed into the wall of the martial arts hall, his body shuddered, and hundreds of sharp energies erupted from his body, bringing with them puffs of blood mist. Then he slid off the wall like a painting.

The demonic Yao Qi blasted at Murong Zhe aggravated his previously suppressed injuries, causing him to vomit blood again. However, this time he casually wiped it away with his clothes, showing no sign of weakness. "Want to try again?"

The Tail Fire Tiger Woman leaped into the martial arts hall through the window, helped her companion up, and stared at Murong Zhe with her tiger-like eyes, saying, "Saying those words already proves your guilty conscience. Before, you were able to suppress your injuries, so you pretended to be weak and showed your enemy weakness. Now that you can't suppress your injuries, you're doing the opposite, pretending to be strong."

Upon hearing this, Lu Yifa and Ren Junshuang, who were lying on the ground behind him, immediately showed nervous expressions, fearing that what the other party said was true. Although one of them had been reprimanded by Murong Zhe in court and harbored resentment, and the other had spoken ill of Murong Zhe behind his back and felt guilty and afraid, the two of them were not brainless and naturally knew which side to stand on in this situation.

In particular, compared to Teacher Deng, who abandoned the two and ran away alone, Murong Zhe's noble character as a teacher is all the more evident. Those little frictions of the past are nothing in the face of matters of life and death.

"Your analysis makes a lot of sense. I am indeed outwardly strong but inwardly weak right now. So, do you want to continue fighting? Maybe if we just hold on a little longer, I will fall. Don't let this opportunity slip away because of momentary cowardice."

Instead of defending himself, Murong Zhe offered advice to his opponent, speaking sincerely, "What I said might just be a pretense of calm to arouse suspicion; you don't need to take it to heart."

The Tail Fire Tiger Woman was immediately caught in a dilemma. She was certain that Murong Zhe was injured, but it was difficult to judge the severity of his injuries. What she was certain of was that he was not at the point of being knocked down by a single blow and still had some fighting strength left. After all, he had taken the initiative in the previous battle, leading her and Winnowing Basket Water Leopard by the nose, so his injuries were definitely lighter than theirs.

"Giving up the initiative only reveals your inner insecurity. During our fight just now, your Foundation was clearly superior to mine, yet your True Qi showed signs of weakening. Judging from this, you must have expended a great deal of your power to protect your students when my clan attacked your school."

Upon hearing this, Murong Zhe showed a hint of panic, as if he had been caught out, and seemed to feel guilty.

Seeing this, the Tail Fire Tiger Woman became even more hesitant. If the other party acted as if nothing was wrong, she planned to transform into her demon form and rush up to fight and test their strength. But now she couldn't help but think that this was another trap, intended to lure her into taking the initiative, and she couldn't help but feel resentful.

This guy looks like he has thick eyebrows and big eyes, with an air of righteousness and authority. I never expected him to be so cunning. He also showed his ruthless side in the previous battle, making it impossible to predict his next move.

At this moment, Tail Fire Tiger Woman suddenly noticed that the other party glanced back unintentionally, as if worried about the injuries of the two students, which made her think of a possibility.

This Human Race expert dared not attack first in order to protect the students. The fact that he never strayed more than ten meters from the two students during the previous battle is the strongest evidence of this. However, he undoubtedly still had the strength to fight back, and even the confidence to win. Therefore, he deliberately set up a feint to lure himself into the trap.

Taking this into account, the other party's actions become completely understandable. I did indeed have the idea of using hostages to blackmail them, but unfortunately, I never found a suitable opportunity. Now that Winnowing Basket Water Leopard is seriously injured, it is even more impossible for me to do so.

"I must admit, your strength surpasses my expectations. Let's call it a day. There's plenty of time in the future, and I'll get my revenge sooner or later."

The Tail Fire Tiger Woman transformed into a demon, a large red tiger with flames burning on its tail, and left with her wounded companion on her back.

As she reached the door, she suddenly stopped, turned around, and said in a playful tone, "I'll give you a free secret: the one who poisoned your school was also a Human Race. Our race's liberation and greater freedom of movement were also a result of cooperation with your Human Race organization... I think it was called the Crimson Eye Society."

Murong Zhe asked warily, "Why did you tell me this? If it's a partnership, what's the benefit of betraying an ally?"

The Tail Fire Tiger Woman scoffed, "Humans are such a hassle. They always need a reason for everything they do. But really, where do all these reasons come from? Just do what you want to do. Well, if you really have to find one, it's probably to get rid of the bridge after you've crossed it—believe it or not, it's up to you."

After saying that, he carried his companion and quickly left, disappearing after a few leaps into the air.

Chapter 154 The Duties of a Teacher

"The Crimson Eye Society, an international assassin organization, does it really have such capabilities? Or is it a smokescreen deliberately released by the Demon Race to conceal their true collaborators?"

Murong Zhe thought for a moment and then put the question out of his mind. The Analects says, "If you are not in a position, do not concern yourself with its affairs." This was not a matter for him, a mere teacher, to consider. There was no need to make trouble for himself. He would simply report the information to the government afterward, which would be fulfilling his civic duty.

After sensing the Yao Qi and confirming that the two demons had truly left, he finally breathed a sigh of relief and felt somewhat at ease.

The other party guessed correctly. In order to protect the students and help them break through and leave the campus safely, he had consumed a lot of his True Qi. When he fought the two demons, he had less than 40% of it left, and now he only had 20% left.

If he were in good condition, given his personality, he wouldn't easily let the two demons leave; eliminating evil completely would be his top priority!

Of course, in a real life-or-death battle, even with only 20% of his strength remaining, Murong Zhe was confident he could kill the two demons, but he couldn't guarantee the safety of the two students.

In fact, the Tail Fire Tiger Woman's guess was correct. Murong Zhe's combat strength and concerns were all true, because this was exactly what Murong Zhe wanted to tell her.

Knowing how to inform the enemy of one's true situation is also a skill.

Just because you say you only have 70% of your strength left doesn't mean your opponent will believe you really only have 70%. Even if you act it out, your opponent might still think you're acting and trying to cover something up.

Murong Zhe didn't want to get entangled any longer. To ensure the students' safety, the best way was to make the other party back down. So, through deliberate acting, he revealed his true situation to the other party in a deceptive manner, achieving the desired result.

It sounds complicated, but that's how humans communicate.

The truth needs to be conveyed through deception.

It's incredibly ironic, because there are so many lies in this world that no one wants to believe in honesty.

Murong Zhe turned around and asked, "Are you two alright?"

With tears in her eyes, Ren Junshuang said, "Teacher, I can't feel my feet anymore. Will I be crippled?"

She didn't cry in front of the enemy, because crying would be useless; they wouldn't pity her anyway. Now that she finally had someone to confide in, she couldn't help but tearfully recount the torment she had suffered.

Lu Yifa couldn't stand this kind of weak behavior. He still remembered being scolded by Murong Zhe in class. Although he wouldn't be an ingrate, he didn't want to be looked down upon by Murong Zhe. Leaning against the wall, he endured the pain and stood up, stubbornly saying, "I can still walk if I bear it. It's just that with that leopard demon around, I couldn't have escaped no matter how hard I tried."

Murong Zhe approached Ren Junshuang, squatted down, and used the Blood Coagulation Rejuvenation Finger to heal and reconnect his tendons. This is a medical martial art that can control the flow of Qi and Blood and even accelerate cell division. When used in combat, it can solidify the opponent's Qi and Blood, seal acupoints, and impair their movement. However, its destructive power is very limited, and almost no one would use it to fight their opponent.

"It's okay for girls to be a little delicate, but you have to remember that truly capable men prefer women who are assertive, responsible, and supportive. Men who are easily seduced by a woman's coquettishness are often not very capable. In their eyes, women are like pets, appendages used to please themselves and discarded at any time. If you want to marry a good man in the future, try to become stronger."

In the past, when others said such things, Ren Junshuang would have just scoffed. Her dream was to take good care of herself and marry a rich young man, preferably from a prominent Aristocratic Clan, so that she would never have to worry about food and drink for the rest of her life. She studied hard only to get a good diploma and raise her own value.

In an era before the expansion of university enrollment, a high school diploma was already quite good. A key high school like Tange No. 1 Middle School High School had a social status equivalent to a first-tier university in a certain country.

However, after witnessing Teacher Deng abandon her without hesitation and run away alone, she suddenly felt that her outlook on life had been reshaped.

If one day in the future she and her future husband are both in danger, will he also abandon her and flee for his life alone?

She used to think that with her beauty, she would definitely attract a man willing to risk his life for her. Now, thinking back, it was a naive and laughable delusion.

A person might love their pet very much in ordinary times, but when faced with a life-or-death situation, they wouldn't care about the animal's life at all; it would be a miracle if they didn't use it as a shield.