The Suddenness of Parting

The fourth soul skill, Armor-Splitting Bone-Crushing Strike, was unleashed. His arms' dragon scales stood on end like sawteeth, and he lunged straight at Situ Xuan with a shrill whistle that tore through the air.

Sand and stone flew instantly within the Training Room.

Situ Xuan fought while retreating, alternating between the Black Heart Evil Palm and Fist of the North Star, shifting between sinister, devious movements and fierce, explosive power.

These two diametrically opposed martial arts were as fluid as his own limbs in his hands, executed without the slightest hesitation.

"Bang!"

Another head-on collision.

Situ Xuan was sent reeling back over ten steps, his back slamming heavily against the wall. Blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, yet the fighting spirit in his eyes burned ever brighter.

"Again!"

The youth roared, his hands forming a strange seal.

Seven secret points on his body lit up simultaneously, and the pattern of the Big Dipper flickered beneath his skin.

Long Xiuyuan suddenly pulled back his momentum, standing in place and laughing loudly: "Hahaha! Enough!"

He casually wiped the bloodstains from his face, and that cynical smile returned to his features: "You brat, hiding so many tricks up your sleeve—those last few moves almost made me capsize in the gutter!"

Situ Xuan froze, the boiling soul power within him slowly calming. He looked at Long Xiuyuan in confusion: "We're stopping... was it against the rules for me to use that palm technique?"

"Bullshit!"

Long Xiuyuan walked over and slapped him on the shoulder, nearly knocking the just-standing Situ Xuan back down again, "Do I look like the type of person who cares about that?"

He suddenly leaned in close, lowering his voice: "But this palm technique of yours... is it also a family martial art?"

Situ Xuan blinked, revealing an innocent smile: "Of course it's a family art. Did you think I dreamed it up?"

"..."

Long Xiuyuan stared at him for three seconds, then suddenly rubbed his hair vigorously: "Little liar!"

He turned and walked toward the door of the Training Room, his back radiating an indescribable sense of ease: "Alright, that's it for today. Eight o'clock tomorrow morning, don't be late."

Situ Xuan watched his retreating figure and suddenly shouted: "Hey! About the military..."

Long Xiuyuan waved his hand without looking back: "Do whatever you want! I'm packing my bags and leaving tomorrow anyway, follow if you want!"

Once the door of the Training Room closed, Situ Xuan finally couldn't hold on any longer, sliding down the wall until he sat on the floor.

He looked down at his trembling hands, the cold, sinister aura of the Black Heart Evil Palm still lingering in his palms.

This guy... he really didn't use his full strength the whole time...

The youth shook his head with a wry smile, but he couldn't hide the excitement in his eyes. He recalled the meaningful look Long Xiuyuan had given him before leaving—as if he were looking at an unpolished piece of jade.

The sunset outside the window dyed the Training Room the color of blood.

Situ Xuan struggled to stand up and began to tidy up the scattered bandages and clothes.

A sharp pain radiated from his left ribs, a souvenir left by Long Xiuyuan's final elbow strike.

When the morning light pierced through the mist, Long Xiuyuan was already standing outside the main gate of Eastsea Academy, checking his watch for the seventh time. The sunlight reflecting off the metal dial stung his eyes, yet it could not penetrate those bottomless pupils.

"Brother Long, if we don't leave now, we're going to miss the reporting time."

Beside the military jeep, a comrade in plain clothes reminded him while puffing on a cigarette, "Who exactly are you waiting for?"

Long Xiuyuan didn't answer, his thumb tracing the crack on the watch face—left by the wind of Situ Xuan's fingers during yesterday's fight.

As the second hand passed the final tick, he snapped the watch cover shut and turned toward the jeep.

"Let's go!"

Just as he pulled the car door open, a flippant whistle drifted down from above the perimeter wall.

"Lao Long, keep your head in the game when you get to the East Sea Legion, don't embarrass yourself!"

Situ Xuan sat on the edge of the five-meter-high wall with one leg bent, his school uniform jacket draped casually over his shoulders, a bruise from yesterday's fight still visible under his right eye.

The morning breeze ruffled the hair on his forehead, revealing a pair of eyes brimming with laughter.

Long Xiuyuan's grip on the car door tightened sharply, the metal handle letting out a groan of protest. He suddenly kicked the tire, shaking the entire vehicle: "Situ Xuan! You damn brat! I waited forty-seven minutes!"

"I was counting."

Situ Xuan shook his wrist, which wore no watch at all: "Just letting you taste what it's like to wait—after all, someone made me lie in the infirmary until midnight yesterday."

The car radio suddenly crackled with static, and Long Xiuyuan's comrade wisely ducked into the driver's seat.

The two men stared at each other across the morning mist, neither mentioning a word of farewell.

Long Xiuyuan suddenly pulled something from his pocket and threw it hard toward the wall.

Situ Xuan caught it, discovering it was a dark gold scale, its edges still stained with dried blood.

"I'm with the East Sea Fleet 1st Marine Division."

Long Xiuyuan shouted at the top of his lungs, his voice startling the sparrows from the treetops: "Remember to call for backup if you get into a fight you can't win!"

Situ Xuan tucked the scale into his inner pocket and stood up, brushing the dust from his pant legs as he did so.

This simple movement tugged at the injury in his ribs, causing him to frown almost imperceptibly.

"Get lost."

The youth's waving gesture was like he was shooing away a mosquito. "When you become a general, I'll come find you to mooch off your success!"

Amidst the roar of the engine, the jeep kicked up a cloud of dust.

Long Xiuyuan leaned half his body out of the window, his figure with a middle finger raised gradually blurring at the end of the road.

Situ Xuan waited until even the exhaust fumes were no longer visible before leaping lightly down from the top of the wall.

As he landed, he stepped on a fallen leaf, the crisp sound startling a wild cat hidden in the grass.

The cat bolted out with its fur standing on end, colliding right into his hand hanging at his side.

Situ Xuan instinctively went to grab it, but relaxed his fingers the moment he touched the warm flesh.

The wild cat fled into the distance, and he opened his palm to look at the few cat hairs in his hand.

As the wind blew, those tufts of fur swirled and drifted in the direction Long Xiuyuan had left.

"Brother Long, that colleague of yours..."

The comrade driving the vehicle stole a glance in the rearview mirror. "He's quite something."

Long Xiuyuan was peeling an apple with a dagger; hearing this, he gouged the tip of the blade heavily into the fruit and shot a glare at the guy who had kept the truth from him. "What the hell kind of look is that? That's my student!"

The comrade's eyes widened. "That's a student?!"

Long Xiuyuan rolled his eyes and unceremoniously propped his feet up on the dashboard. "A student! My proudest student!"

The cabin returned to silence, save for the rhythmic hum of the engine.

Long Xiuyuan pulled out his cigarette case, only to find the last cigarette had snapped into two pieces at some point. He stared at the broken tobacco shreds for a long time before suddenly kicking the back of the front seat.

"Damn it! I forgot to beat that kid up one more time!"

The angry curse startled a flock of birds resting by the roadside, the fluttering sound of their wings bearing a striking resemblance to the rustling of the youth's clothes as he leaped off the wall.

Long Xiuyuan gazed at the shrinking silhouette of Eastsea Academy in the rearview mirror and scattered the crushed tobacco out the window.

Situ Xuan listened to the morning wake-up bell of Eastsea Academy, slowly exhaled, and muttered to himself, "No more fighting, then~"

"Lao Long, oh Lao Long, you really didn't pick a good time to leave."

In truth, Situ Xuan had guessed early on that Long Xiuyuan wasn't just some ordinary guy; he had ties to the military, was young, and possessed the cultivation of a Soul King.

It was obvious at a glance that he was someone who had come here on a mission.

His departure was inevitable, but Situ Xuan hadn't expected that to drag him away, Long Xiuyuan would actually end this simple undercover mission—which could have served as a vacation—ahead of schedule.