Lu Yu turned slightly sideways and watched Ta Ke's incoming slap with a look of disdain. He raised his right leg and drove a side kick into Ta Ke's stomach, sending him flying two meters. Ta Ke landed on the ground, clutching his stomach and howling.
Frowning, Lu Yu looked down at his right foot and rotated his ankle. A faint numb, itchy sensation came from both his sole and ankle. He curled his lip, gaining a new understanding of just how weak this body was.
After howling on the ground for quite a while, Ta Ke gradually recovered. Although he had awakened Soul Power and become a Soul Master, his Innate Soul Power was only rank two, far below the level-eleven Lu Yu.
"Get him! All of you, get him! I'm a Soul Master, and you, a commoner, dare hit me? I'll kill you!" Clutching his stomach, Ta Ke climbed to his feet and pointed at Lu Yu, roaring hysterically.
"Martial Soul Possession!" Ta Ke bellowed.
The phantom of a black bear appeared behind Ta Ke. Originally less than a meter tall, he instantly shot up to 1.3 meters. Already sturdily built, he now looked even more imposing.
Seeing that their boss had even summoned his Martial Soul, the four lackeys hesitated no longer. They also filled in the blanks themselves, deciding that Lu Yu had only managed to kick Ta Ke away by sneak-attacking him.
They charged at Lu Yu, shouting incoherently.
Just as Lu Yu stared warily at Ta Ke after his Martial Soul Possession, considering how to deal with him, a shrill, childish voice rang out from the little house behind Lu Yu.
"Don't bully my brother!!!"
A few minutes earlier, just as Lu Fei was holding the quilt tightly over Lu Fei's head, Lu Yu had kicked Ta Ke flying, drawing a howl of pain from him.
Lu Fei's whole body trembled, and Lu Fei shakily lifted a corner of the quilt. If Lu Yu hadn't transmigrated and taken over this body, he should have been the one lying on the ground howling.
Through the crack in the door, Lu Fei saw that Ta Ke was the one lying on the ground, while Lu Fei's brother Lu Yu stood tall in the doorway. Disbelief filled Lu Fei's frightened face.
Some of the fear in Lu Fei's heart dissipated, but the happiness was short-lived. Lu Fei saw Ta Ke get back up, and the scene from six days ago surfaced in Lu Fei's mind, identical to the one unfolding now.
Lu Fei had hidden inside the house while Lu Yu was outside alone, being bullied by Ta Ke and his companions. At the time, Lu Fei had seen a black bear appear behind Ta Ke, who struck Lu Yu in the chest with a palm. Lu Yu had then fallen unconscious for three days.
The scene before Lu Fei now overlapped with the one from six days ago, and the words Lu Fei had spoken to Lu Yu the day before yesterday surfaced in Lu Fei's mind.
"Brother, I'll definitely become a powerful Soul Master and earn lots and lots of money. I'll buy lots and lots of meat, and I'll never let anyone bully you again..."
Perhaps it was the fear of being oppressed for years erupting; perhaps seeing Ta Ke knocked down just now had given rise to the thought that he wasn't invincible, that he could be defeated; or perhaps Lu Fei was afraid that the scene from six days ago would play out again, with Ta Ke knocking Lu Yu unconscious with a slap and leaving him lying in bed, neither alive nor dead for all anyone knew.
Lu Fei threw off the quilt. Lu Fei's presence surged, and Lu Fei began to grow taller. The Fire Monkey Martial Soul had possessed Lu Fei without conscious intent.
Then a shrill, childish voice came from Lu Fei's mouth: "Don't bully my brother!!"
Lu Yu turned in surprise and saw Lu Fei charging toward the door, flames burning all around. "Holy crap!" The words slipped out. Without further hesitation, Lu Yu took a step back, narrowly avoiding Lu Fei as Lu Fei charged out.
By the time Lu Yu came to his senses, he saw Lu Fei sitting on Ta Ke, fists raining down on him while Lu Fei kept repeating, "Don't bully my brother!"
Ta Ke's Martial Soul was nothing more than an ordinary black bear, while Lu Fei's was a fire-attribute Fire Monkey Martial Soul. Lu Fei's Innate Soul Power was also three ranks higher than Ta Ke's, and with Lu Fei now in a rage, Ta Ke was even less of a match.
Watching the scene, Lu Yu's lips curled upward, and a trace of satisfaction rose in his heart. Ta Ke, oh, Ta Ke, Lu Fei's transformation still depended on you!
A monkey's tail extended from behind Lu Fei, with a fist-sized ball of fire at its tip, swaying from side to side with Lu Fei's movements. The four lackeys looked at one another, but none dared go up and help.
Seeing the four of them itching to act, Lu Yu raised an eyebrow, snatched up a wooden stick from the ground, and swung it at the nearest one's lower leg.
The stick whistled through the air and struck the boy squarely on the lower leg with a smack. "Ah-" he screamed, instantly falling to the ground and bursting into tears as he clutched his leg.
"Boo-hoo, my leg, my leg!"
The other three took a step back at the sight. Seeing Lu Yu walk toward them, they all turned around at once.
"Run! Boss Ta's been beaten! Run!"
Lu Yu didn't give chase. He strode over to Lu Fei, grabbed the fist that was about to come down, and urged, "All right, stop hitting him. If you keep going, he'll die."
It wasn't that Lu Yu was kindhearted or a saint. They were still right outside their home, and having someone die here would be terribly unlucky. Besides, even if Ta Ke had to be killed, he couldn't die at the hands of the two brothers-at least, not openly.
Looking at Ta Ke's bruised and swollen face, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth, his head beaten into a pig's head, Lu Yu pulled Lu Fei off him.
Lu Fei stood silently beside Lu Yu with head lowered, fists clenched tight and whole body trembling. This wasn't fear; it was a reaction caused by excess adrenaline.
"Hey! Hey! Are you dead? If you're not, get up!" Lu Yu nudged Ta Ke's shoulder with his foot. When he got no response, his heart skipped a beat. He bent down and checked Ta Ke's breathing. It was faint, but he was indeed still breathing.
Turning to look at the little brat still lying on the ground and crying as he clutched his leg, Lu Yu rolled his eyes. "Uh, you there..."
Seeing that the boy was still crying, Lu Yu raised the stick and struck the ground. "Keep crying, and believe it or not, I'll give your other leg a whack too."
"Boo-hoo, I'll stop crying, I'll stop! Boo-hoo, please don't hit me again! I know I was wrong!"
The child cried as he got up and begged for mercy.
"Shut up!" Lu Yu rubbed his brow and pointed at Ta Ke, who lay on the ground drawing more breaths than he let out. "Get him out of here. Remember, if you dare show up in front of me again, you'll end up like him."
"Yes, yes, yes, I know I was wrong. I won't dare do it again!" The child scrambled over on hands and knees, grabbed one of Ta Ke's arms, and ran off, dragging him along without caring whether this might make his condition worse.
Watching Ta Ke's head strike a stone, only for the child to keep dragging him along, Lu Yu hissed. His gaze grew deep. At this rate, Ta Ke would probably have stopped breathing long before he got home.
No, we can't stay here any longer. Where else can we go? Lu Yu thought about a way out.
Suddenly, Lu Yu thought of someone-Su Yuntao. If there was anywhere Lu Yu and Lu Fei could still find shelter now, Su Yuntao's place might be a good choice.
Lu Yu had also figured out why Su Yuntao had looked after the two brothers like this: it was all because of Lu Fei's talent. With rank-five Innate Soul Power, Lu Fei was undoubtedly a genius in Nuoding City.
If Lu Yu remembered correctly, Su Yuntao seemed to have had only rank-two Innate Soul Power himself.
Having now met a child with rank-five Innate Soul Power, any normal person would build a good relationship in advance.
(PS: I still owe you a chapter from yesterday. I'll post it later~)