Learning? To Hell with Learning

Although Qian Yuya had little expression on her face—Le Yu suspected the Qian siblings both suffered from hereditary facial paralysis—he always felt that there was something sarcastic in the way Qian Yuya spoke.

Since there was nothing left for him to do, Le Yu returned to the living room and practiced his combat arts to pass the time.

There was a large, empty area in the living room with no furniture. Before Qian Yuliu entered military school, he had trained his combat arts here. The ground at the very center of the empty space was visibly worn down, with a depression clearly stamped out by Qian Yuliu's feet.

When Le Yu stepped into it, both feet fit perfectly into the depressions. Countless memories surfaced in his mind like bubbles, and he naturally assumed the starting stance of the Biting Combat Arts and began practicing, recalling a great deal of knowledge.

The vast majority of combat arts could be divided into three parts: "nourishment," "application," and "refinement."

"Nourishment" meant nourishing the body. Practicing combat arts could strengthen the body—but it had to be a complete combat arts lineage. Warm-ups before training, stretching afterward, and massages during rest were all indispensable. Otherwise, practicing combat arts would only damage the body.

However, the combat arts that had been passed down to the present were all complete versions refined countless times by innumerable Awakened. It was said that certain great families possessed some unknown trump cards known as "Secret Arts," but the original Qian Yuliu had merely sneered at the idea. How could the inheritance of a great family, passed down through dozens or hundreds of generations and a few hundred people, compare with combat arts continuously revised and improved by hundreds of generations and tens of thousands of people throughout the nation?

"Application" meant putting them to use. Not all combat arts had been invented for battle. For example, the Inner Scenery Hand Combat Arts were a technique that allowed medical officers to treat most illnesses using nothing but palm massages and pressure-point sealing. Even combat arts intended for battle were not something one could use simply by learning how to throw punches—you also had to learn strategies such as how to respond when an enemy attacked you in a certain way.

Because combat arts information was completely transparent, every combat art had a perfect strategy for dealing with every other combat art. It was like a fighting game in which every character had a perfect matchup guide—for example, "When he throws an uppercut, duck under him and attack his groin."

Of course, a strategy was only a strategy. Whether you could actually beat the other person depended not only on your own skill, but also on whether your opponent was a master.

Therefore, if one wanted to master a combat art, there was absolutely more material to memorize than for a cultural studies exam.

"Refinement" meant refining the mind. Although practicing combat arts could not increase one's Mental Power, the process could allow an Awakened to mobilize their Mental Power to a greater extent.

Using muscle strength as an analogy, an ordinary person could unleash less than fifty percent of their strength with a straight punch, while a trained fighter could mobilize their muscles fully and unleash eighty or even one hundred percent of their strength.

Mental Power worked the same way. Ordinary people's Mental Power efficiency was only thirty to forty percent, with the rest dissipating when they mobilized photic energy. Only Awakened who had immersed themselves in combat arts for many years could raise their Mental Power efficiency above sixty percent.

When combat arts Mental Power efficiency exceeded seventy percent, it meant one could use them freely and had reached the Entry Level. Qian Yuliu's Biting Combat Arts Mental Power efficiency was around seventy percent.

"Mu Feihong was able to toy with me not only because his technique was better than mine, but also because his Mental Power efficiency was slightly higher. Yet that tiny difference was enough to leave me unable to fight back..."

As Le Yu practiced, he recalled that morning's battle. Many previously vague key points suddenly became clear, and he gained a clear understanding of many instinctive, habitual movements.

When he finished practicing the Biting Combat Arts, Le Yu had just returned to his original position, standing in the depression. His entire body was slightly warm, his muscles pleasantly sore, and his breathing smooth. He was even a little hungry.

Moreover, Le Yu had gained complete enlightenment.

His talent in combat arts still had plenty of room for improvement.

So far, he had yet to fully digest Qian Yuliu's legacy and could only approach Qian Yuliu's level infinitely closely.

Learning? To hell with learning. He would just wait until he completed the Survive 15 Days challenge, then level up directly with a single click.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Xiaoyu~ Are you home?"

A voice came from outside. Le Yu went over and opened the door, finding a girl in a purple-and-blue uniform standing outside. She had medium-length, choppy hair, straight bangs, and slightly chubby cheeks. Her eyes sparkled as she looked at Le Yu.

"You're Qian Yuya's classmate, right? Come in and sit for a while. She's cooking." Le Yu spoke amiably.

Le Yu opened the main door to let the girl in. She hurriedly said, "Sorry to bother you," then looked at Le Yu curiously. "My name is Li Ying. I'm Xiaoyu's classmate."

This was not Li Ying's first time coming to Xiaoyu's house, but it was her first time seeing anyone else there. The young man before her had a friendly, youthful face and looked somewhat similar to Xiaoyu, but he called Xiaoyu "Qian Yuya" directly... Could he be one of Xiaoyu's relatives? Or perhaps her uncle?

Le Yu invited Li Ying to sit down and poured her a glass of water before smiling and asking, "How is Qian Yuya doing at school? Do any classmates bully her?"

"No, no. Xiaoyu is very popular in class. How could anyone bully her?" Li Ying shook her head repeatedly, her gaze growing increasingly curious. "Are you very close to Xiaoyu?"

What is this handsome older brother to Xiaoyu? A relative? A neighbor? Or a child husband?

"We're fairly close, I suppose. How are Qian Yuya's grades?"

"Very good. Whether it's cultural classes or Combat Arts Class, Xiaoyu is one of the best. By the way, are you still studying? Or have you started working?"

"I've been working for over a year." Le Yu chuckled. He had asked about Qian Yuya's school life partly because of Qian Yuliu's memories, and partly because he was curious what his younger sister under the same roof was like at school.

He suddenly lowered his voice. "Tell me secretly—is Qian Yuya dating anyone?"

Li Ying blinked, then excitedly licked her lips and whispered, "Not yet. But I know Fang Wenhua from our class likes Xiaoyu, and Xiaoyu used to have quite a good impression of him too."

If we're talking gossip, now this is something I can get excited about!

"Used to?" Le Yu sharply caught the key word.

"Yes, but Fang Wenhua said something wrong today. Xiaoyu probably hates him now." Li Ying sighed regretfully.

Le Yu grew curious. "What did he say wrong? Did he swear? Or tell a dirty joke?"

"No, no." Li Ying wondered why this older brother's train of thought was so strange. "It's a long story..."

"How were your grades in language class?"

"Pretty good."

"Then summarize the main points. Keep it short."

Li Ying froze for a moment before her mind caught up and understood the connection between Le Yu's two questions. She smiled. "Simply put, Xiaoyu's horrible older brother went to school today, and then Fang Wenhua said something bad about him. Xiaoyu might have started hating him because of that."

Le Yu blinked, suddenly enlightened. "I see... Huh, I never expected Qian Yuya to have such a cute side."

"She really is very cute." Li Ying giggled. The more she looked at Le Yu, the more agreeable she found him. Le Yu was interesting too, sneaking around and discussing gossip about Xiaoyu with her, which made her feel even closer to him. For girls, gossiping behind someone's back was one of the best ways to build a relationship.

After chatting a little longer about Xiaoyu, Li Ying finally could not suppress her curiosity and asked, "May I ask your name? What are you to Xiaoyu?"

After asking, Li Ying's face reddened slightly.

Compared to the students at school, Le Yu had left a very good impression on her. Not only was he handsome, he was also witty and humorous, perfectly matching her fantasies about an ideal lover. She secretly decided to visit Xiaoyu's house more often in the future. Even if she could not get closer to this handsome older brother, she could at least enjoy looking at him!

However, this older brother did not seem very close to Xiaoyu. Not only did he call her by her name, he did not even know the details of Xiaoyu's life. Ah, if only this handsome older brother were Xiaoyu's actual brother!

"Me? My name is... Qian Yuliu. I'm Qian Yuya's older brother." Le Yu slowly drank a glass of water before answering.

Li Ying blinked.

"Qian Yuliu? Which 'Yu'? Which 'Liu'?"

"'Yu' as in feather, and 'Liu' as in flowing water."

"Your biological brother?"

"That... I'm not entirely sure. Our parents seem to have been dead for a long time, and I never asked before. We probably are."

"Does Xiaoyu have any other older brothers?"

"Not that I know of." Le Yu shattered the last trace of Li Ying's fantasy. "That horrible older brother who went to your school today was probably me."

Li Ying instinctively scooted away from Le Yu.

She really had not expected the young man before her to be the infamous Qian Yuliu!

When Le Yu had beaten up the Feng Chuanliu teacher on the athletic field that day, Li Ying had not really seen it. Besides, the athletic field was so far from the teaching building that it was impressive enough for everyone to hear Feng Chuanliu's roar. How could they have made out the Statistics Department officer's face?

More importantly, Le Yu's first impression was completely different from her image of a Statistics Department officer. The Statistics Department officers she had heard about were all crazed, greedy, lustful, vicious, evil people, with an average of three scars and six bullet holes each.

But Le Yu did not feel like a bad person at all. He was even somewhat soft and cute. Thus, Li Ying instantly dismissed the possibility that he was Qian Yuliu.

"Th-th-th-that..." Li Ying took a book with a blue-green cover from her shoulder bag and handed it to Le Yu with trembling hands. Stammering, she said, "Th-th-this is Xiaoyu's notebook I borrowed. I-I forgot to give it back to her after school just now..."

Do you really have to be this scared? Le Yu felt somewhat helpless. "Don't be nervous. I'm off duty now, so I won't take you to the Statistics Department. Besides, you're Xiaoyu's friend. I wouldn't hurt you—I should be protecting you."

Li Ying thought he had a point, but her legs continued trembling uncontrollably. A person's reputation spread far and wide. The Statistics Department was notorious, and Qian Yuliu, as one of its key members, had been portrayed as a merciless butcher with dozens of lives to his name at the very least. How could Li Ying not be afraid?

"Xiaoying?"

Hearing Qian Yuya's voice, Li Ying felt as though she had been granted a pardon. She immediately stood up and said, "Xiaoyu, I came to return your notebook! Now that I've returned it, I have something to do, so I'll head home first!"

After saying that, Li Ying dashed out of the Qian Family home without looking back.

As for getting closer to Xiaoyu's older brother... Sorry, there were plenty of handsome men in the world. Li Ying still wanted to live a few more years!

Qian Yuya took off her apron, watched Li Ying's hurried retreat, then turned to look at Le Yu.

Le Yu wore an expression as if nothing had happened.

"Is dinner ready?"