An Ordinary Student

"Late Nebula Level Star Demon. Hurry up and open it. Don't try anything stupid. Even if we can't kill you, we're still capable of throwing you out."

The four of them blanched and did not dare say anything more. They hurriedly took out a device and pressed it. The silver shield slowly rose.

"Thanks."

Jiang Changkong sprang up like a fish, watching the Late Nebula Level Star Demon warily.

The taiji diagram emerged from his body and protected him on all sides.

The few Star Demons around them did not move recklessly, waiting for the Late Nebula Level Star Demon to act.

Roar!

A roar rang out, and the Late Nebula Level Star Demon charged straight at him.

"Get in."

An urgent shout came over. A streak of golden sword light flew out from inside the shield, shooting straight at the Star Demon.

Jiang Changkong's brow twitched. The silver shield had already risen half a meter. He quickly crouched and slipped inside.

Boom!

The golden sword light fell. The Late Nebula Level Star Demon's movements paused, and Star Power scattered in all directions, destroying the weeds around it.

The surrounding Star Demons were also caught in the blast and were forced back again and again by the shockwave of Star Power.

The silver barrier dropped again. Jiang Changkong had already slipped inside.

Roar!

The Late Nebula Level Star Demon roared repeatedly, its sharp claws striking the silver shield again and again. The shield stood firm as Mount Tai.

Unable to break the shield, the Star Demon could only retreat to the side unwillingly, its savage eyes fixed firmly on them.

"Thanks."

Jiang Changkong leaned against the shield, gasping for breath.

"You're welcome."

The four of them looked calm as they watched him warily.

"Do you have food and water?" Jiang Changkong asked. "Don't worry. Once we get out, all these Star Demons will be yours."

The four exchanged glances, opened a backpack, and took out some dry rations and water, handing them to him.

Along with them came a set of clothes.

Jiang Changkong immediately began wolfing the food down. He put the clothes on as well; the clothes he had been wearing were already torn beyond recognition.

He had gone a full day without food or water, spending the whole time killing Star Demons. He had been starving for ages.

"What happened to you? How did the Star Demons catch you?" a woman asked.

Jiang Changkong glanced at her. She was the one who had mentioned the skull earlier.

She had a full figure and a bit of baby fat.

She wore a black warrior outfit and held a golden sword hilt in her hand.

The other woman had an oval face with a few freckles, and the way she looked at him carried a hint of curiosity.

Both men were thin. One was fair-skinned, the other slightly dark.

The fair-skinned man held a disk in his hand. That golden sword energy from earlier had come from this thing.

Jiang Changkong knew these four had quite a few tricks up their sleeves.

They had taken the initiative to attack earlier, using the sword light to block the Star Demon. Clearly, it was to tell him that they had ways to deal with him.

"It's a long story."

Jiang Changkong sighed and said, "Today, I went to the riverside to drink water and saw blood energy surging into the sky, drawing in countless Star Demons."

There was no way he would say that he had played himself into this mess.

"The riverside? Blood energy surging into the sky?"

The four looked at one another, then began asking for details.

Jiang Changkong answered them one by one. As they talked, the four also introduced themselves.

The one with baby fat was called Zhang Xiaoyu, and the oval-faced one was Liu Ya.

The fair-skinned man was Lu Hong, and the dark-skinned one was Liu Jun, Liu Ya's older brother.

All four of them were students of Kexiang School and were currently pushing through the two-year mock college entrance exam.

Martial arts schools had three years of mock exams and five years of college entrance exams.

Kexiang School had two years of mock exams and one year of college entrance exams.

"Your mock college entrance exam is outside the city, not at the school?"

Jiang Changkong was somewhat surprised.

"Our first-year mock is at school. The two-year mock is half a year outside the city and half a year inside the city."

Lu Hong explained, "We were following an upperclasswoman before, but the Star Demons scattered us. Now we're going to look for her."

After the four of them had been separated, they were chased and blocked by Star Demons, and in the end, they were surrounded here.

The Star Demon that had brought Jiang Changkong here had originally belonged to this Star Demon squad.

It had gone out to look for food and happened to be drawn over by the scent of blood.

And since the Star Demon could not deal with him, it could only bring him back and hand him over to a Late Nebula Level Star Demon.

"Changkong, at your martial arts school, you must be a top student, right?"

Zhang Xiaoyu asked.

"Just an ordinary student."

Jiang Changkong smiled and said, "I'm about the same as you. I was originally with an upperclasswoman and an upperclassman too, and then this happened."

The four of them looked unconvinced. You could fight your way through a horde of Star Demons for half a day, and you said you were an ordinary student?

Even a super top student probably could not do that, right?

At their Kexiang School, even though they mainly focused on mechas, the physical consumption was huge, and they likewise could not fight for half a day.

"How is your defense so strong?"

Liu Jun asked. The other three also looked at him curiously.

Even Star Demon fangs and claws could break against him. Even the school's mechas could not compare!

"From training Iron Cloth Shirt."

Jiang Changkong said with an honest look, "I don't know why either. My fist and foot techniques just got better the more I practiced."

"Iron Cloth Shirt?"

The four of them froze. Iron Cloth Shirt could be trained to this level?

His fist and foot techniques got better the more he practiced?

He did not know why himself?

Could he be some kind of prodigy in unarmed combat?

"All right, let's not talk about that. I'll recover first."

After Jiang Changkong finished speaking, he sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and began to recover.

Some of the Star Power in his body had already recovered. He circulated the Taiji Fist Classic to restore his Star Power.

Of his three martial arts, Iron Cloth Shirt emphasized defense, while Traceless Three Blades focused more on killing.

The Taiji Fist Classic nourished the body and tempered it, making it the best for recovery.

Before cultivating, he also checked his own data.

After killing for half a day, he did not even know how many Star Demons he had killed. He added all of it to Copper Skin Iron Bone Technique.

Earlier, when he had been dragged along by the Star Demon, he had not had time to look.

Jiang Changkong: Mid Nebula Level

Low-grade mid-tier martial arts:

Copper Skin Iron Bone Technique: Minor Achievement 3908/4000

Taiji Fist Classic: Minor Achievement 3/4000

Traceless Three Blades: Minor Achievement 1/4000

Essence, energy, and spirit: 0

Half a day of nonstop slaughter had brought his Copper Skin Iron Bone Technique close to Great Achievement.

Taiji Fist had improved by two points. It was too little, and he did not feel much.

As Jiang Changkong recovered, the four of them huddled together in silence. They did not disturb him, only watched vigilantly.

Outside the barrier, the Star Demons watched covetously, but there was nothing they could do about the barrier.

Time passed. It was not until late at night that Jiang Changkong opened his eyes and exhaled a mouthful of turbid air.

"You've recovered?"

The four of them brightened and asked.

Jiang Changkong's face reddened slightly. "I've recovered. I'm just a little hungry."

His stamina and Star Power had both recovered, and he was full of energy, but his stomach was still empty.

Before, he had only eaten a bit of dry rations and drunk a bottle of water.

Zhang Xiaoyu took out a flatbread and handed it to him. "We don't have much left either. We can only give you one."

"I'm already very grateful."

Jiang Changkong bit into the flatbread and said, "I'm fine now. When do you want to make a move?"

"At dawn," Lu Hong said quietly.

Jiang Changkong nodded. The Star Wilderness Grassland at night was fraught with danger.

Once they made a move, they would very likely draw in even more Star Demons.

Besides, even if they killed the Star Demons now, they had nowhere to go. Daybreak was the best choice.

"Let's discuss how we'll act later."

Liu Jun said in a low voice, "The means we have can temporarily hold off that Late Nebula Level one.

"But after using them, we won't have any means left to look for our senior."

Those words clearly meant he did not want to deal with the Late Nebula Level Star Demon.

However, Jiang Changkong did not care.

Jiang Changkong pondered for a moment, then said, "You reached out to help me and even gave me food. How could I let you take action again?"

The four of them felt their hearts jolt. Was he angry? Was he saying the opposite of what he meant?

"Brother, that's not what we meant. We can help you hold off the Late Nebula Level one."

The four hurriedly explained, "It's just that we can't use up all our means."

"I really can handle it. We agreed earlier too: you save me, and I save you."

Jiang Changkong waved a hand. "Then it's settled. Once dawn breaks, open the shield. I'll rush out, and you wait until I'm done killing the Star Demons."

If they really used up all their means, he was afraid he would have to go back to being their bodyguard and escort them.

"This..."

Jiang Changkong cut them off and said firmly, "No need to say more. It's settled. Get some rest."