Forced to Work Together

The lingering pain from the collision still throbbed in their foreheads, while the humiliation and dull ache in their chests made even their breathing burn with anger. Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi glared at each other, their clothes tattered and their hair disheveled, traces of unwashed mud and fresh red marks still on their faces. They looked like two defeated fighting cocks freshly dredged out of a mud pit, neither willing to yield an inch to the other. The atmosphere in the courtyard tightened again, as though an even more primitive brawl might erupt at any moment.

Just as they stood with swords drawn and bows bent, a clatter of footsteps and unabashed laughter came from outside the courtyard, breaking their brief standoff.

"Well, well, if it isn't our Xiao Clan's 'genius,' young master Xiao Yan! What put you in the mood to play in the mud today?" A slightly shrill voice rang out, dripping with mockery.

Before the words had even faded, seven or eight youths swaggered into the courtyard. At their head was a rather tall, sturdy youth with an arrogant expression-Xiao Ning. Several collateral disciples of the Xiao Clan, all around his age, followed him. Every one of them wore the look of someone eager for a good show, their gazes sweeping back and forth between the bedraggled Xiao Yan and the equally mud-covered Xiao Yi.

Xiao Ning folded his arms and surveyed the pair with contempt, lingering on Xiao Yi for a moment before curling his lip. "We heard a newcomer had arrived who didn't know the rules, so we thought we'd come give him a little 'guidance.' Who would've thought our former genius had fallen so low that he'd roll around in the mud with some wild brat fresh off the road?"

Xiao Ning deliberately emphasized "genius" and "wild brat," drawing another burst of laughter from the youths behind him.

"Perfect. Little sister Xun'er isn't here today... without that little girl protecting you, Xiao Yan, we might as well 'educate' a useless piece of trash like you too. Let you learn who calls the shots in the Xiao Clan these days!"

At Xiao Ning's command, the youths behind him immediately spread out, forming a loose ring around Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi. They wore malicious grins and rolled their wrists, clearly preparing to strike.

Faced with this sudden encirclement and undisguised hostility, Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi, who had still been glaring at each other, turned toward the uninvited guests almost simultaneously. A trace of gravity flashed through both their eyes, and they briefly exchanged a glance.

"Hey, truce first!" Xiao Yi spoke first, his voice carrying irritation at being interrupted, but even more wariness toward this new trouble. He wiped something from the corner of his mouth, unsure whether it was muddy water or blood.

Almost at the same instant, Xiao Yan said in a low voice, "...Stop fighting!" His words still came through gritted teeth, but his target had clearly shifted from Xiao Yi to Xiao Ning and his group.

As their words fell, the two struggled up from the ground in remarkable unison-or rather, out of instinct at being surrounded. They looked at each other's wretched appearance and saw disgust in each other's eyes, but more than that, the stance of temporary, unwilling "allies." Without exchanging a word, they turned around and entrusted their backs to the "enemy" they had just been fighting tooth and nail. Standing back-to-back, they faced the Xiao Clan disciples surrounding them. Both raised a hand to wipe the corners of their mouths, their gazes sharpening as they prepared for a new fight.

They had only just steadied themselves back-to-back. Their ragged breathing and the smell of mud from their earlier fight still hung in the air. The anger in Xiao Yan's chest had yet to subside, and now Xiao Ning and the others' mockery set it fully ablaze. He had had enough of being treated like trash! Especially in front of this inexplicable newcomer, Xiao Yi! Blood rushed to his head. Almost without thinking, he let out a fierce growl, abruptly broke away from Xiao Yi, and charged straight at Xiao Ning!

"Xiao Ning! You're asking for death!" Xiao Yan roared, his fists clenched, though his footing looked unsteady. Since losing his Dou Qi, his body no longer obeyed him as freely as before, and days of anxiety and insufficient rest had drained his stamina even further. His punch looked ferocious, but to Xiao Ning, it was laughably slow. Xiao Ning did not even need to use Dou Qi. With a deft sidestep, he easily evaded Xiao Yan's furious blow.

His strike missed, and Xiao Yan immediately staggered. Before he could regain his balance, two of Xiao Ning's lackeys lunged at him with vicious grins, one grabbing his waist and the other seizing his arms. Xiao Yan struggled desperately, but without the reinforcement of Dou Qi, his strength seemed pitifully insignificant beside these vigorous youths, each of whom had reached at least the third or fourth stage of Dou Qi. A third quickly joined them. Together, the three barely had to exert themselves to pin Xiao Yan firmly to the ground, a knee pressed into his back and his arms twisted behind him.

"Let go of me! You bastards!" Xiao Yan's cheek pressed against the cold, muddy ground, and humiliation engulfed him like a rising tide. He struggled with all his might, but could only writhe uselessly, earning himself an even harsher restraint and waves of pain through his back. He saw Xiao Ke looking down at him with eyes full of relish and heard the unrestrained laughter around him. The despair and fury in his heart nearly tore him apart.

While Xiao Yan was being subdued with ease, the remaining four or five Xiao Clan disciples closed in on Xiao Yi on the other side. They had assumed that this newcomer, who looked just as scrawny and had only just emerged battered and filthy from his fight with Xiao Yan, would be equally helpless. What happened next, however, left them staring in disbelief.

Facing their combined assault, Xiao Yi did not meet it head-on. Instead, like a slippery loach, his entire body began moving to an utterly strange rhythm. His steps were light and elusive, always carrying him out of reach at an unimaginable angle just before a fist or foot struck home. His arms and legs seemed never to stop tracing circles, arcs large and small continually appearing and dissolving around his body. His whole frame seemed to have become a huge, elastic ball. Each contact with an attacker was not a rigid block, but a marvelous borrowing and dispersing of force.

A Xiao Clan disciple's fist whistled toward Xiao Yi's face. Just as it seemed about to land, Xiao Yi tilted his head back at an incredible angle while dipping his shoulder slightly. His arm followed the motion in a small arc, lightly adhering to his opponent's arm as his feet slid half a step sideways as though greased. The disciple felt as if his fist had struck a spinning wad of cotton. Its force was instantly diverted, and his body lurched forward against his will.

Before that youth could steady himself, Xiao Yi had drifted to another attacker's side like a fallen leaf carried by the wind. Without using much strength, he merely curled his fingers and delivered a measured flick beneath the youth's ribs. Then he pushed off with his toes and spun away again, rippling toward his next target like rings spreading across water.

"Hey, I told you to line up and come one at a time!" Xiao Yi still had the leisure to tease them as he flitted among them like a butterfly weaving through flowers. His tone was so relaxed that he seemed to be playing an amusing game rather than fighting. His movements flowed without interruption, his limbs sometimes soft and clinging like Tai Chi Cloud Hands, sometimes swift and agile like a nimble monkey tumbling through the air. Yet every seemingly casual touch left an attacker briefly numb, stinging with pain, or thrown off balance.

The Xiao Clan disciples surrounding Xiao Yi grew more alarmed and frustrated with every exchange. They felt as though they were fighting a spinning top coated in oil. No matter which direction they attacked from, his slippery, circular movements diverted their blows and drained their strength. Sometimes the rebounding force even came close to knocking them over. Despite their advantage in numbers, they could scarcely touch the hem of his clothes. Instead, they kept receiving little knocks and finger jabs that, though hardly fatal, were decidedly unpleasant.

Pinned firmly to the ground, Xiao Yan could no longer spare any attention for the pain in his back or the humiliation filling his heart. With difficulty, he twisted his head and caught the full spectacle of Xiao Yi's incredible fighting style. What kind of fighting was that? It looked soft and limp, without the slightest ripple of Dou Qi, yet it was as elusive as a phantom. Every dodge was perfectly timed, and every counterattack looked featherlight while landing precisely on an opening or a painful spot.

Xiao Yan stared wide-eyed as Xiao Yi bounced tirelessly among his four or five attackers like a ball. Far from being at a disadvantage, he looked utterly at ease. There was even a faint sense that... the more opponents he had, the more merrily he bounced. This guy... just where had he come from? This bizarre yet fierce fighting style was simply unheard of! For a moment, a jumble of feelings churned inside Xiao Yan-surprise, bewilderment, and a trace of something even he refused to admit... awe.

The youths restraining Xiao Yan also noticed the fight on the other side, disbelief spreading across their faces. They had thought that once they dealt with Xiao Yan, that "piece of trash," they could easily take care of the newcomer. Instead, the others had become embroiled in a bitter fight-and several of them attacking a single opponent still could not gain the upper hand! Xiao Ning's expression began to darken as well.