Practical Combat

Ning Yue took out the True Qi Pill and hesitated.

He poured a pill from the bottle and shoved it straight into the hand of Wang Qi, who ranked last in the class.

Wang Qi, who had been cultivating, was dumbfounded. "What's this? A pill?"

He looked at Ning Yue in confusion, waiting for an explanation.

Their little exchange drew the attention of their homeroom teacher, Zuo Tianchang.

Before the homeroom teacher could get angry, Ning Yue said in a low voice, "This is a new kind of pill my family developed. It's better than a Qi and Blood Pill. Since we're buddies, I'm giving you one."

With that, Ning Yue returned to the spot where he had been cultivating and resumed.

But now his heart wasn't in his cultivation. All his attention was on Wang Qi, and the martial arts movements he performed had neither form nor spirit.

He thought to himself, The True Qi Pill also increases true qi. There's no way it could kill anyone. As far as I can tell, it can only do him good, not harm.

Seeing this, Wang Qi gave it no further thought and popped the True Qi Pill into his mouth.

Ning Yue felt a little ashamed when he saw that.

He understood why Wang Qi had done it. One of them was last in the class, and the other was third from last, so they were natural friends.

Besides, the two of them got along reasonably well.

Ning Yue was usually generous and openhanded, often treating his friends to food and drinks. Wang Qi's family was a little worse off, and Ning Yue had looked after him plenty.

That was why Wang Qi trusted Ning Yue so much.

"Brother Yue, what kind of pill is this? The effect is incredible!"

Just as Ning Yue was finding it hard to bear the reproach in his heart, he heard Wang Qi's grateful voice.

Could there still be a turnaround?

Ning Yue looked over and saw no change in Wang Qi's movements as he practiced the Basic Body Tempering Art. But Wang Qi was in a state of excitement, his face flushed and his veins throbbing, as though his whole body were burning.

"Does the True Qi Pill also boost virility?" Ning Yue wondered.

He watched for a little longer, and the sight began to seem familiar. Then it dawned on him.

Wasn't this what he had just experienced that morning? It was a sign that Wang Qi's qi and blood were increasing rapidly, though the effect was much weaker than it had been for him.

He understood the effect of the True Qi Pill. For people like them who cultivated qi and blood, it was like a fuel accelerant. It could be used on its own or together with a Qi and Blood Pill.

Relieved, Ning Yue began cultivating with the True Qi Pill.

Time flowed like water, impossible to hold back. By the time Ning Yue had used up that True Qi Pill, two hours had passed.

"Brother Yue, lunch is on me."

After their homeroom teacher told them the time for the afternoon's practical combat training and left, Wang Qi spoke excitedly to Ning Yue.

"Looks like that pill was pretty good," Ning Yue said with a faint smile.

"It was more than pretty good! Guess how much I improved today? Two qi and blood points, a whole two points! That's more than I used to gain from a whole week of hard cultivation," Wang Qi said excitedly.

"What? Two qi and blood points?"

That remark drew the attention of the classmates who had yet to leave the martial arts room.

When they saw Ning Yue and Wang Qi, they thought, Oh! Never mind.

Just another attention-grabbing trick.

Most of the class had left the martial arts room. Those who remained were all on good terms with Ning Yue and Wang Qi: Li Feng, Liu Erren, Zhang Huairen, Gan Xiaomei...

At that moment, Ning Yue thought about how he himself had only gained one qi and blood point, while Wang Qi had gained two.

Could it be that the higher your qi and blood, the less you gain?

"Seventh Brother, what were you saying about two qi and blood points?" Zhang Huairen asked with a crooked smile.

"None of your damn business, Third Brother Zhang."

As one of the poor students, Wang Qi didn't care about his studies, but he definitely had an attitude. What he and Zhang Huairen liked doing most was trading barbs.

"Fine, don't tell me. Xiaomei, you ask him." Zhang Huairen chuckled and declined to take the bait.

Gan Xiaomei had originally been named Gan Xiaomei, with the characters for "little sister." She felt that, as a woman, she couldn't be a "little sister," so she had secretly taken the household register to the population statistics bureau and changed her name.

Only then did Ning Yue remember that the few of them seemed to have secretly sworn brotherhood, making Gan Xiaomei their sworn little sister.

Most importantly, the original Ning Yue had still been asleep at the time. When he woke up, he had inexplicably gained seven younger brothers and sisters.

So these five are my sworn younger brothers and sister?

Damn! The sister's fine. Her looks are an eighty out of a hundred, her figure is absolutely top-notch, and her martial arts aptitude is pretty good too. She even ranked in the top hundred in the last schoolwide mock exam.

But who wants younger brothers?

A bunch of hooligans, none of them any good. They're experts at bullying younger students and first-rate at brawling.

Though their qi and blood points are all on the low side, and any random student in their grade would be stronger than them, nobody can stand up to them when they gang up, launch sneak attacks, and use intimidation...

"Ahem, since Xiaomei's asking, I'll tell you." Wang Qi cleared his throat and pointed at Ning Yue. "It's all thanks to Brother Yue. He gave me a pill, and I gained two qi and blood points."

"Brother Yue, do you have any pills left? I'll pay for them," Gan Xiaomei said excitedly.

Ning Yue spread his hands. "No, there were only two True Qi Pills, and we used them up just now."

Gan Xiaomei was a little disappointed, but she continued, "Next time you have pills this good, remember to tell me. You're our big brother, after all. When something good comes along, you can't forget your little sister."

Ning Yue looked at her in surprise.

Aren't you a poor student?

Being this passionate about cultivation doesn't fit your character, Xiaomei.

"Two points from a day of cultivation would be sixty points in a month. Once I break through to the First-Rank Realm, I'll go suppress Wang Xueqing," Gan Xiaomei said, unwilling to concede.

Wang Xueqing ranked first in martial arts realm in the whole school. She was a First-Rank Realm martial artist and, moreover, the school flower goddess recognized by the entire school.

All right, most girls' efforts come from comparing themselves with others and jealousy.

"Sure. Next time I get a True Qi Pill, I'll save it for you," Ning Yue replied casually.

As for when that next time would be, even he couldn't say for sure. He was already regretting having Wang Qi test the pill. He could have saved a True Qi Pill and let his parents take it to their company for research.

If they managed to figure it out, he could ask for a share of the profits or something and gain another source of income. Then he wouldn't have to worry about money when he activated the Myriad Heavens Simulator in the future.

That afternoon was practical combat class.

The whole class came to the large sports field. Besides their homeroom teacher, Zuo Tianchang, there were five practical combat teachers he had invited, all homeroom teachers from other classes.

No matter how the classes competed, Xinyuan Martial Arts High School was one big collective. When the homeroom teacher invited them, they readily agreed.

Besides, this was also a chance to see whether Class Seven had any promising talents, though they didn't believe a class of poor students like Class Seven had any.

"Come on, Brother Yue, ravage me."

Under the practical combat teacher's watchful eye, Wang Qi laughed and did a few warm-up exercises.

Ning Yue took a deep breath. He was a little worried about whether he could complete the sparring exercise like his predecessor. Memories in his head were memories after all.

Without an actual fight, he couldn't be sure.

"Don't worry, I'll go easy on you."

Ning Yue smiled. His qi and blood stood at 52 points, while Wang Qi's was only 20. No matter how they fought, he wouldn't lose.

With that, the match began.

Following the sparring techniques in his memory, Ning Yue stepped to Wang Qi's side and chopped at his neck with a knife-hand.