Jiao's Burst

After the great battle, Feng Shiyi and the others went off to rest, bandage their wounds, and prepare for the battles to come, leaving Du Ge and Wang San alone together. At this point, there was no point in continuing to monitor them.

Wang San changed into dry clothes, picked up a pastry from the table, and swallowed it in a few bites. He licked his lips in intoxication and asked, "Are we really going to assassinate Qiu Yuanlang?"

"Of course." Du Ge nodded. "You grow, I grow. What's not to like? Solving the hidden threat is better than being hunted across the world, isn't it?"

"Do you know that if the assassination fails, the two of us will very likely be eliminated? That's exactly the outcome Feng Zhong wants to see." Wang San continued stuffing food into his mouth, gobbling it down. Everything he did matched Feng Jiu's description of students from civilian academies. Having eaten too much synthetic food, they instinctively craved the food in the Simulation Field. Perhaps tonight would be his last night in the Simulation Field, so he stopped pretending and did his best to let his taste buds enjoy the food's deliciousness.

"Eliminated? What are you thinking?" Du Ge glanced at him and chuckled. "If we can't beat them, can't we join them? We're both Heavenly Demons, and we don't have any faction tags. Qiu Yuanlang wouldn't give up on two Heavenly Demons who are obviously more useful just because one or two hall masters died, would he? Relax and enjoy yourself. We won't die."

"..." Wang San's hand, still holding the pastry, froze in midair. After a long while, he finally said, "Your Keyword really is Maintain, isn't it?"

"Genuine through and through." Du Ge smiled.

"You betrayed the Feng Family. Aren't you afraid of losing stats?" Wang San couldn't help asking. "From the speed at which you kill people, your various stats should already be very high, right?"

"Why do you insist on assuming we'll lose?" Du Ge asked. "Have so little confidence in yourself?"

What do you mean, I have no confidence in myself? There's simply no way we can win, all right?

Wang San complained inwardly, suppressed the irritation Du Ge had stirred up, and asked, "What if?"

"I won't lose that much." Du Ge said, "If it really comes to that, I'll use myself as a bargaining chip and ask Qiu Yuanlang to spare the Feng Family. That way, I can join the Iron Palm Sect openly while protecting the safety of the Feng Family's old and young alike." He straightened his body, looking utterly righteous. "Sacrifice oneself for righteousness—that's the ultimate form of Maintain. Maybe the Feng Family will even thank me afterward!"

"Damn!" Wang San opened and closed his mouth. After holding it in for a long while, he could only spit out that one word. Nothing else could describe his feelings at that moment.

"So, cooperate with me wholeheartedly. Win or lose, we won't be at a disadvantage." Du Ge pretended not to hear Wang San's praise and smiled.

At that moment.

Wang San finally understood the awkward feeling Feng Shiyi had experienced when Du Ge convinced him.

He could sense that Feng Qi's plan was full of loopholes, yet he simply couldn't find a single flaw in it. Moreover, whether it succeeded or failed, it benefited everyone—including the fact that even his stats hadn't dropped...

It was simply fucking absurd!

After taking a long breath to calm his turbulent emotions, Wang San gave Du Ge a thumbs-up. "Brother, you're truly something. Using Maintain to this extent—you're probably the first person ever."

Du Ge smiled without speaking. He had two Keywords, but most of the time, even he couldn't tell whether his actions counted as maintaining or backstabbing. All he knew was that his stats kept growing without pause. That was enough.

Wang San asked, "Seventh Brother, what about Feng Zhong? What are you planning to do with him?"

"We don't even know where he is. We'll talk when we run into him. He's just a nobody who hides his head and shows no face. He won't amount to anything." Du Ge said, "San'er, focus when you're doing things. Don't think about irrelevant matters and waste your energy on internal friction."

"Have you considered that, after failing to eliminate us this time and offending us in the process, he'll definitely scheme behind our backs to prevent us from taking revenge? The Iron Palm Sect came today. Tomorrow, it could be the Beggar's Sect. The day after that, it could be Taishan Sect." Wang San couldn't stand Du Ge's indifferent attitude. Since his stats had already dropped anyway, he had to say everything on his mind.

"I'd love for him to have that much ability!" Du Ge laughed. "If he can throw the jianghu into chaos by himself, and I then quell the war and maintain peace in the martial world, I wouldn't even dare imagine how far I'd grow!"

Who exactly gave you that confidence?

Are all Elite Academy students this arrogant?

Wang San swallowed all the words in his stomach again. After struggling for a long while, he finally asked, "You used the Feng Family to spread the news about the Heavenly Demons so that you could throw the jianghu into chaos and then maintain it from within?"

If I'd known the rules of the Simulation Field, I would never have done that, even if you beat me to death!

Du Ge remembered how his full-of-holes Heavenly Demon plan had pushed him into opposition with every player, and his face grew slightly hot. But he would absolutely never admit to such childish behavior, so he nodded. "More or less. Feng Zhong was an accident, but also within expectations."

Wang San fell silent. He looked at Du Ge and said seriously, "All right, I'm convinced. I'll work with you. This time, I mean it."

Du Ge smiled and continued asking, "Since you really mean it, tell me—what skill did you awaken this time? Partners have to be honest with each other so they can bring out the full extent of their abilities."

Wang San was horrified. "How did you know?"

Du Ge pointed to his eyes, then to his head, and smiled. "I saw your little movements and microexpressions."

"..." Wang San was thoroughly defeated. After a pause, he said, "Jiao's Burst: When the person I love is hurt, I can unleash ten times my attack power."

"What a great skill!" Du Ge's eyes lit up.

"It's not very useful for now. My personal stats are too low. After talking with you for so long, they've dropped quite a bit more. Even ten times my attack power wouldn't be that impressive." Wang San shook his head and habitually stuffed another pastry into his mouth. "Just like how you want to maintain peace throughout the martial world, I'm afraid my Yandere nature will only grow by leaps and bounds after it affects more people!"

"After tonight, your reputation should spread throughout the Iron Palm Sect. That ought to be enough." Du Ge said.

"Perhaps." Wang San said gloomily, "But unlike your Maintain, my Yandere nature will make more people lower their guard around you and want to recruit you. Once my reputation spreads and they realize how frightening I am, I'm afraid even more people will want to eliminate me to prevent future trouble.

"Just now, there were two Heavenly Demons present, and the Iron Palm Sect's hall master prioritized eliminating me rather than you. Feng Shiyi was even willing to sacrifice himself for your sake. My Keyword will never receive that kind of treatment..."

Du Ge glanced at Wang San, then patted him on the shoulder with a smile. "Don't worry. With a powerful support like me protecting you, no one can kill you."

"I hope so." Wang San sighed inwardly. If I hadn't been exposed, and if I had any other path to take, only an idiot would willingly follow you in this ridiculous venture...

He paused, then asked, "Seventh Brother, you said partners should be honest with each other, but I still don't know your skill. If I'm eliminated today, I can't exactly remain clueless until I die, can I?"

"I already told you. Sacrifice oneself for righteousness." Du Ge observed Wang San's expression and calmly altered the description of his Advanced Skill. "While maintaining others, the injuries I suffer will recover twice as quickly."

Wang San's expression didn't change. Instead, he relaxed. "No wonder you recovered so quickly after being injured. This Advanced Skill is practically a perfect match for your Keyword. If you use it well, it's an Undying Body. No wonder you dare to be so reckless..."

As expected.

Advanced Skills aren't fixed. They're randomly generated according to a person's actions. This really is a very humanized game. Du Ge now had a clearer understanding and sighed with emotion. "That may be true, but it still hurts!"

"If I could recover that quickly, I'd be willing to endure the pain too!" Wang San smiled and continued, "Brother, you're so powerful. You must have awakened a second skill too, right?"

Du Ge shook his head. "No. I've killed so many people and still haven't awakened a second skill. I can't figure out where the opportunity lies."

"Maintaining and killing are contradictory. It would be strange if that could still awaken a new skill." Wang San didn't suspect anything and instead offered Du Ge advice. "If you want to awaken a second skill, you'll have to start with Maintain itself..."