Tang San was instantly engulfed in roaring flames. His eyebrows, hair, and clothes crackled in the blaze and quickly caught fire.
Right after that, Liu Erlong slammed a heavy punch into Tang San, sending his entire body flying.
Flender's pupils contracted. Without the slightest hesitation, he sprang into the air and caught the flying Tang San with his own body, absorbing most of the impact.
Then he rushed Tang San to the river without stopping and doused the flames covering him.
Tang San was now blackened all over, his hair and eyebrows burned to cinders. He lay limp on the ground, barely breathing.
That wasn't even the worst of it. Liu Erlong's punch had shattered several of his bones.
At this rate, he wouldn't be getting out of bed for at least a year, maybe longer!
If Flender hadn't rushed to save him and cushioned his fall, Tang San would have hit the ground with the lingering force of Liu Erlong's punch—and by now, he'd be dead as a doornail!
"Flender! How dare you stand against me!"
Liu Erlong glared furiously at Flender and roared at him.
"Where the hell were you just now?"
"If my precious disciple hadn't used her Soul Skill in time to disrupt that despicable wretch and send his crossbow bolt flying into the sky, I'd be the one lying on the ground right now!"
"And now you still dare to protect that sinister bastard who only knows how to shoot cold arrows from the shadows!"
"Has Shrek Academy run out of people? You have to keep a vicious, heartless beast like him around?"
"Th-this... how should I put it? Erlong, please calm down first."
Flender was drenched in cold sweat. He hurriedly explained himself to Liu Erlong, treading carefully.
"His background isn't something you or I can afford to provoke, so..."
"His background? Just how powerful is it?"
Liu Erlong scoffed, her face full of disdain and her tone utterly arrogant.
"In this world, there really aren't many people I'm afraid of!"
Flender gave a bitter smile but didn't explain anything further to Liu Erlong.
He didn't want her worrying over Tang San's background, so all he could do was let out a helpless sigh.
"Erlong, stop making a scene. Let's go. We'll leave, all right?"
Flender knew full well that if they stayed any longer, who knew what kind of unmanageable trouble Liu Erlong would stir up next.
He glanced at the Shrek Academy teachers and students behind him, then let out another heavy sigh and called sternly:
"Let's go!"
"Flender! You... do you still consider me your brother?"
Yu Xiaogang was consumed by resentment. Lying on the ground, he struggled and screamed.
"It was him! That despicable Xiao Yexuan! He used some kind of bewitching trick to take Liu Erlong—take Liu Erlong away from me... Argh!"
He hadn't even finished speaking when a groan of pain swallowed the rest of his words.
Flender flashed behind Yu Xiaogang in an instant.
He brought his hand down on the back of Yu Xiaogang's neck. Yu Xiaogang's eyes rolled back, and he passed out.
Flender didn't dare waste a moment. He carried the barely breathing Tang San in one hand and slung the unconscious Yu Xiaogang over his other shoulder.
His wings beat behind him, and within a few breaths, he had vanished from sight of Blue Tyrant Academy.
The other teachers and students from Shrek Academy saw the roaring flames rising from Liu Erlong and were too frightened to make a sound, let alone linger.
They shoved and jostled one another as they fled in disgrace, scattering in the blink of an eye.
Liu Erlong watched them run away in such a sorry state and curled her lips into a scornful smile.
"A bunch of cowards with no backbone!"
When she finished speaking, she abruptly turned to Xiao Yexuan.
The flames around her ebbed away like the tide, and the fury and ferocity vanished from her face. In their place was tenderness that couldn't be concealed.
She darted to Xiao Yexuan and opened her arms, pulling him tightly against her.
Her curvaceous figure trembled faintly with lingering fear, and even her voice quavered with a barely restrained sob.
"Xiao Xiaoxuan, thank you... If it weren't for you, that despicable wretch would have taken me by surprise just now, and I'd never... never have seen you again..."
"Ah!"
Not far away, Zhu Zhuqing, Xiao Wu, and Ning Rongrong, who had been circling Xiao Yexuan, saw the scene and froze in place as though a spell had turned them to stone.
They were all wailing inside. They wanted to hug Xiao Yexuan too!
Liu Erlong was just too cunning!
Feeling the soft warmth in his arms, Xiao Yexuan was delighted, and he almost laughed aloud.
But his expression remained calm. Instead, he gave her a gentle smile and softly returned her embrace.
As though comforting a little one who'd been wronged, he patted her back again and again.
"Master, you got into that fight because of me. If anyone should be thanking someone, it's me thanking you."
"Xiao, standing up for one's student is only natural for a teacher."
Liu Erlong spoke through a sob, her voice full of lingering fear after surviving such an ordeal.
"You saved me. You truly saved my life!"
Xiao Yexuan smiled faintly, his tone sincere and earnest as he replied:
"Master, protecting you is just as natural. There's no need to thank me so formally."
"You're my master, and I'm your disciple. We're in this together, sharing both glory and hardship!"
"Good! Good! Good!"
At the words "in this together," Liu Erlong's face lit up with delight, and her eyes and brows filled with laughter.
Her pretty face flushed faintly. She tightened her arms around Xiao Yexuan and couldn't bear to let go.
She coughed softly twice, suppressing her excitement, then spoke gently.
"Xiao, it's only been two or three days since you absorbed your First Soul Ring. You still have a lot to learn when it comes to controlling your Soul Skill, and your cultivation needs plenty of refinement."
"Come with me to the clearing behind the mountain. I'll personally guide your training."
"Yes, Master!"
Xiao Yexuan nodded quickly, looking thrilled and eager to get started.
Seeing how impatient he was to grow stronger, Liu Erlong felt warmth well up inside her.
She was even more convinced that Xiao Yexuan was a thoughtful, good disciple. He was eager to grow stronger so he could protect her better next time!
However, Xiao Yexuan didn't immediately follow Liu Erlong to the back mountain.
He turned to look at the three girls beside him.
The three of them were still standing there, dumbstruck, apparently unable to recover from the shock of seeing Liu Erlong hug him.
Xiao Yexuan gave a soft cough, breaking the silence, then said gently:
"Ladies, I'm going to train with my teacher. I'll come find you when I have some free time."
After that, he turned his gaze to Zhu Zhuqing and smiled faintly.
"Miss Zhuqing, let's meet outside the school cafeteria after class today. We can have a proper chat then."
"All right! After class... see you then!"
Zhu Zhuqing met Xiao Yexuan's gentle, smiling gaze, her pretty face flushing as she quickly nodded.
"Sir, are you going to train? I want to train with you too!"
Ning Rongrong finally came to her senses. She hurried forward, clinging tightly to Xiao Yexuan's arm with a look of reluctance.
She looked up at Liu Erlong with her big, dewy eyes, pleading for her to let her come along too.
But when Liu Erlong saw Ning Rongrong's hand clutching her precious disciple's arm, her heart immediately turned sour with a sudden, inexplicable jealousy.
Her expression grew colder. Her cool gaze swept over Ning Rongrong, Xiao Wu, and Zhu Zhuqing, and she gently shook her head.
"Now that you've joined Blue Tyrant Academy, you should go back to class and study properly."
"Th-then, is Sir going to class with us too?"
Xiao Wu's eyes darted about. She quickly stepped forward and asked cautiously.
Liu Erlong furrowed her brows slightly, then sighed and replied in a measured voice:
"Xiao is not only my disciple, but also a student of Blue Tyrant Academy. Of course he has to attend class!"
"But right now, I'm his master, and I have the right to train him privately."
"You should head back first. Once I'm satisfied with his progress, he'll naturally join you in class."
As soon as Liu Erlong finished speaking, she flicked a finger, and a gentle wave of Soul Power instantly enveloped Xiao Yexuan.
She took Xiao Yexuan with her and sped toward the back mountain in a flash.
Zhu Zhuqing, Ning Rongrong, and Xiao Wu still wanted to say something, but it was already too late.
Liu Erlong was simply too fast. In the blink of an eye, the two figures had disappeared into the distance.
Even if they wanted to chase after them, there was no way they could catch up.
The three girls exchanged glances, their faces filled with disappointment.
It was as though the moment Xiao Yexuan left, their hearts went empty with him. They stood where they were, dazed and dispirited, unable to recover for a long while.
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