Chaga Combat Technique (Revised)

In the dark alley, Tang Qi clutched his abdomen, his face pale as he panted. The corner of his mouth twitched slightly as he looked helplessly at Sally beside him, who had once again turned into a frightened little rabbit.

Tang Qi was not injured. After the intense exertion, he had merely been winded when the excited girl crashed into him.

Still, that interruption slightly eased the atmosphere in the alley.

Three corpses were still lying on the filthy ground.

Tang Qi had killed someone.

It was not like on the first day after his rebirth, when he had used a loophole in witchcraft to turn the tables on Old Morgan.

This time, he had truly killed with his own hands.

The unexpected change had come too quickly. Even Tang Qi had not had much time to think.

When he had caught up, he found Sally in serious trouble.

One look at the three punks was enough to tell him that if Tang Qi had not stepped in, Sally would have been in grave danger.

But if Tang Qi had faced them head-on, he would not have ended well either.

One against three—Tang Qi had not been confident.

Even if he used Furnace Eyes, the derived skill he had just acquired, it probably would not have helped him fight three people alone. The skill had only just been mastered. It could intimidate a high school student, but it might not intimidate Drug Addict Ghosts as crazed and vicious as these.

Seeing that a "tragedy" was about to unfold, Tang Qi had no choice but to use the only Combat Technique he had obtained from Old Morgan's diary that could be used in battle.

It was an extremely simple and brutal set of Combat Techniques, but its killing power was terrifying.

Its origins seemed to lie in the wars and hunts of the barbaric tribes across the Saha Continent.

Tang Qi had originally practiced it only for self-defense. He had never expected its first use to be killing people.

The instant he struck, Tang Qi felt as if he had entered some special state. His strength, speed, and reflexes had all received an unknown boost, allowing him to easily complete movements that had originally been difficult.

But the moment he stopped, Tang Qi immediately felt needle-like pain throughout his body, along with a scorching sensation as though his blood were boiling. It made him suspect that he had not killed three people, but run an entire marathon.

Still, there were benefits.

As he panted violently, the Special Interface appeared in Tang Qi's eyes once more.

There was one more entry in the skills section.

Skill: Golden Furnace Meditation Method, Furnace Eyes, Chaga Combat Technique (Beginner, Progress 0.01%)

"This... turned into a skill?"

At that thought, an Information Fragment emerged.

Information Fragment: This is a Combat Technique originating from the Chaga Tribe of the Saha Continent. Born from war and hunting, it has spread among the tribes of the Saha Continent. It is easy to begin, but few individuals have ever cultivated it to the mastery level.

"Just the beginner stage, with 0.01% progress, and I could ambush and kill three people in a row?"

At first, Tang Qi had not thought much of the Combat Technique recorded in the diary. He had only learned some of it in private alongside the Meditation Method because it was the only thing he could study without the old witch detecting him.

Now, it seemed that since Old Morgan had recorded it in his precious Witchcraft Notebook, this Combat Technique was clearly not simple.

He silently raised the importance of the Combat Technique in his mind, then withdrew his gaze.

After letting out a long breath, Tang Qi finally steadied his breathing. The needle-like pain gradually receded.

He glanced at the corpses on the ground and recalled every detail of what had happened earlier, making sure he had not left behind anything such as fingerprints.

"Let's go."

After saying that flatly, he turned and left without a trace of reluctance. Sally hurriedly followed beside him.

As for the three punks' corpses, Tang Qi had no intention of calling the police or destroying the evidence.

Messer City appeared peaceful on the surface, but the Bronx District was universally acknowledged to be chaotic.

Here, robbery and murder were as normal as eating and drinking.

It was said that every morning, the Bronx Police Station sent out a Corpse Retrieval Vehicle to haul away the bodies of those who had died in dark alleys or at the scenes of gunfights the night before.

Unless the dead person was a well-dressed resident, the police would have the coroner examine the body and investigate a little.

If they were clearly punks or gang members, they would be dragged directly to the incinerator.

Even if the police came looking for him afterward, it would not matter. Strictly speaking, Tang Qi had acted in self-defense, with no consequences to worry about.

On the dim, filthy street, Tang Qi had Sally walk ahead to lead the way while he followed at her side. His expression was calm, as though the unexpected change from earlier had not affected him in the slightest.

But only he knew how violent the aftershocks in his heart still were.

He had killed three people in hand-to-hand combat.

Although the process had not been bloody or intense, the Chaga Combat Technique had been ruthless killing moves from the moment it was used.

Still, three living lives had turned cold and dim in his hands. Earlier, with his blood surging and the skill activated, Tang Qi had entered a state of terrifying calm. Now that he had sobered up, he immediately felt an overwhelming shock.

If not for the warm current slowly flowing from his mind and gradually spreading through his limbs and body, Tang Qi would likely have completely lost his composure by now.

After quite a while, Tang Qi regained his calm under the influence of Furnace Mental Power.

Only then did Tang Qi notice something strange.

He could remain calm after killing because of his adult mentality, his special experiences, and the Meditation Method in his mind all mixing together.

But how had Sally in front of him managed it?

Tang Qi had personally killed three people in front of her. Although he had done it to save her, how could an ordinary girl still bring him home under such circumstances?

"Perhaps she isn't an ordinary girl either."

Tang Qi recalled Sally's calm behavior when she had faced the three crazed punks earlier.

When tragedy was about to befall her, she had not thought of screaming or begging for mercy. Instead, she had thought of suicide. That was clearly not something an ordinary girl could do, especially not a high school girl.

Although he was thinking these things, Tang Qi's expression remained calm.

He did not ask, nor did he bring up what had happened earlier.

They continued toward Sally's home. On the street, their shadows stretched long beneath the moonlight. The rest of the journey went smoothly, and they encountered no more absurd incidents.

About Ten Minutes later, the two stopped in front of a small building.

It was a cramped-looking green brick building, squeezed between two larger brick buildings with not even twenty centimeters of space between them. Its mottled walls, old iron gate, and rusted fire escape made it a typical poor people's building in the Bronx District.

"I-I'm home."

Standing before the iron gate, Sally still looked like a frightened little rabbit as she spoke softly.

She clearly had good features, but because of her personality and family circumstances, she could only become someone old-fashioned and frequently bullied.

Unlike Tang Qi, who was merely playing a role, Tang Qi could tell from all sorts of details that Sally's family was probably worse off than ordinary families. There had to be something unusual about it for her to develop such a personality.

There was likely only one reason she had been able to enter St. Thorn High School: the girl was very smart.

Unlike Tang Qi, who had gotten in through connections, she had probably passed the entrance exam on her own merits.

Tang Qi was currently doing his best to play the role of a High School Student, taking everything as it came, including making friends.

The girl before him was Tang Qi's first friend at St. Thorn High School.

If he were a normal boy, he probably would not choose to be friends with a girl so old-fashioned, strange in personality, and rejected by the popular girls at school.

But Tang Qi didn't care.

With that thought, Tang Qi smiled faintly and reached out to rub Sally's messy blond hair. Smiling, he said, "Go on inside. If you need it next time, tell me. I can walk you home. After all, you're my first friend at St. Thorn High School. I don't want anything to happen to you."

"Ah!"

As soon as Tang Qi finished speaking, the girl in front of him immediately raised her head in surprise and delight. Beneath her black-rimmed glasses, her pretty face broke into a radiant smile, and her eyes, which had been dim with fright, now shone with a moving brilliance.