Some People Are Still Alive, Yet Already Dead

On the other side, in the courtyard where Blue Tyrant Academy and Shrek Academy were located.

Tang San sat in the chair, his face as white as paper, and his whole being was shrouded in an eerie and heavy atmosphere.

Ma Hongjun had already been carried out on a stretcher, unconscious when he left. The gruesome scene caused the expressions of the boys present to become increasingly distorted.

The bed was a mess.

The bedding was in disarray, and there were many bloodstains on the sheets, winding from the head of the bed to the foot, as if a small-scale battle had taken place.

Flender stood in the doorway, glanced inside once, then turned away, took off his glasses and wiped them repeatedly, his hands trembling.

For once Zhao Wuji's fierce face revealed an expression as if he had just eaten half a live rat. He opened his mouth several times, but couldn't utter a single word.

Dai Mubai and Oscar huddled in a corner, exchanging glances for what seemed like an eternity, neither daring to speak first.

"Ahem." Flender finally found his voice, trying to make his tone sound calm. "Well... young people, sometimes... they can be impulsive. But you... you also need to be careful. What if... someone dies?"

Tang San raised his head, his lips moved as if he wanted to say that it wasn't like that, but when the words reached his lips, he didn't know how to explain.

He said it was caused by Hidden Weapon, but who believes him?

He said a six-year-old child had set a trap in the house, using needles coated with a strange drug. The child was disoriented after being hit by the needles, which is why the incident happened.

Who would believe that?

Moreover, he couldn't possibly admit that he went into a 6-year-old child's room to steal something.

If he were to say that, he would be laughed at by everyone, and everyone would look down on him.

No matter what, he couldn't tell the truth.

"Little San, you... sigh." Zhao Wuji sighed, patted Tang San's shoulder with his large, fan-like hand, and hesitated to speak.

Yu Xiaogang didn't say anything, he just stood by the window with his back to everyone, so no one could see his expression.

Xiao Wu stood at the door, already crying.

She didn't cry loudly, but tears just dripped down her face, falling onto her clothes.

Xiao Wu stared at Tang San, her lips bitten until they turned white, her fists clenched tightly, and her body trembling slightly.

"Xiao Wu, listen to me..." Tang San stood up and tried to pull her up.

"Don't come any closer!" Xiao Wu took a step back, her eyes terribly red, but her voice was surprisingly clear, carrying a forced tone, "Third Brother, you... you actually did that to Ma Hongjun... you actually... you two..."

She couldn't continue, so she turned and ran away.

"Xiao Wu!" Tang San chased after her for a couple of steps, but his whole body ached, especially a certain part of his body that still felt the burning sensation left by the Hidden Weapon. His legs went weak and he almost fell to the ground.

"I'm going to check on Xiao Wu." Zhu Zhuqing said this and transformed into a black shadow as she chased after her.

Ning Rongrong stood blankly at the door, looking at Tang San, then at the messy bed, and finally shoved the roasted chestnuts in her hand into Oscar's hand, whispered "I'm going to keep Xiao Wu," and ran off.

Dai Mubai looked away, trying to appear calm, and lowered his voice. "Tang San, it's not that we brothers can't accept this... but you at least have to tell us what happened. Where did you go last night, and why did you come back like this? And how did Ma Hongjun... become like that?"

Tang San's lips twitched slightly, his gaze darting away, like prey cornered against a wall.

He kept his head down, his fingers gripping his knees so tightly that his nails were almost digging into his flesh.

What could he say?

The story goes that he went to steal a martial arts manual from a six-year-old child in the middle of the night, but ended up falling into a trap and being pricked in an unspeakable spot by a silver needle laced with medicine?

Even if he were willing to tell, would anyone believe him?

"I..." Tang San opened his mouth, but his throat felt like it was stuffed with cotton, and he couldn't make a sound.

Yu Xiaogang turned around, his face so gloomy it could drip water.

He stared at Tang San, his eyes filled with heartache, anger, and a sense of disappointment at his son's lack of ambition.

Yu Xiaogang slammed his fist on the windowsill, making the paper windows rattle. "Tang San! You are my most prized disciple! I've taught you like my own son! Now that something like this has happened, you still won't tell us? How long are you going to keep this from us?!"

Tang San's fingers slowly tightened on his knees, his knuckles turning white.

He raised his head, his gaze sweeping across the faces before him.

Dai Mubai's confusion, Oscar's horror, Yu Xiaogang's anger, and Zhao Wuji's complex expression in the distance, wanting to approach but not daring to.

All eyes were like needles piercing him.

Tang San closed his eyes, steeled his resolve, and spoke in a hoarse voice, "I... I have a special hobby."

These words were like a silent thunderclap, exploding loudly in the room.

Dai Mubai instinctively took a step back and bumped into Oscar.

Oscar let out a strange cry and jumped directly behind Zhao Wuji, revealing a pair of eyes that looked at Tang San in terror.

Zhao Wuji's face twitched twice, and his mouth opened into a big "O" shape, unable to close for a long time. Even Yu Xiaogang by the window took half a step back, his back hitting the windowsill with a dull thud.

"You... what did you say?" Yu Xiaogang's voice changed, as if something was choking him.

Tang San didn't look up, nor did he speak again.

He just sat there silently, his shoulders slumped, as if all his strength had been drained away.

Tang San just wanted this matter to pass quickly, no matter what method he used, as long as he didn't have to explain anymore.

"You... you really dare to say that." Zhao Wuji swallowed hard, feeling unsure of what to do with his hands.

The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Everyone instinctively kept their distance from Tang San, not out of deliberate choice, but as their most primal physical reaction.

Tang San could sense the complex emotions in those gazes: shock, confusion, distance, and even a hint of fear.

He had never felt so humiliated, more so than when he jumped off the cliff in his previous life.

Back then, at least he could get a quick death. Now, he can only sit here, like a skinned prey, being slowly tortured inch by inch by everyone's gaze.

The scariest thing is that he has no way of explaining it.

The truth will only make him more pathetic.

A man who spouts righteousness and shame steals a child's secret manual in the middle of the night, gets ambushed and drugged, and then turns around and harms his own brother.

Saying this out loud is a thousand times more despicable than having a special hobby.

Therefore, Tang San chose to remain silent and opted for the most absurd yet convenient explanation.

At least this way, he won't have to bear the double shame of being both a thief and a victim of sabotage.

As for Ma Hongjun...

As Tang San thought of this, his heart felt like it had been squeezed, and his stomach churned.