"My business?" Chu Fan’s brow furrowed slightly. He tapped the booklet twice with his fingertips, his eyes filled with a hint of confusion.
The short, stout boy leaned closer, his voice low but brimming with excitent. "This afternoon, a rumor started spreading in the dining hall—that a few days ago on Xingning Street, you fought one against three and severely injured three Blood Saber Sect disciples!"
As he spoke, he slapped his thigh, his eyes shining. "The entire Seven Stars Gang Sub-Branch is in an uproar!"
Chu Fan raised an eyebrow slightly. The corner of his mouth twitched into a small smile before he quickly suppressed it.
That day, all his attention had been on those few Blood Saber Sect disciples. He hadn’t noticed if there were any people from the Seven Stars Gang in the crowd.
As for Cao Yan, he certainly wasn’t the type to gossip.
He spread his hands, his tone tinged with helplessness. "Ling Feng is fighting Tianxing. What does that have to do with ?"
"Holy cow!" The short, stout boy’s eyes went wide. "You really managed to fight one against three and seriously injure three Blood Saber Sect disciples?!"
Seeing the displeasure on Chu Fan’s face, he quickly composed himself and said, "You and Zhao Tianxing have earned Instructor Cao’s favor and received special treatnt. Who in this Sub-Branch isn’t green with envy?"
"That Ling Feng fancies himself a genius, but Instructor Cao never even gave him a second glance. He’s held a grudge against you two for a long ti."
"Later, Zhao Tianxing overshadowed him, and he got really frustrated..."
"Then this rumor suddenly started today. Everyone gathered around, comparing him to you over and over."
"It wouldn’t have been so bad if they hadn’t compared you, but once they did, it turned out this ’genius’ of theirs couldn’t even hold a candle to you!"
"I happened to see him in the dining hall during dinner. Listening to all that talk, his face was as dark as iron. His fists were clenched so tight his knuckles were white..."
"Then the guys around him goaded him on a bit, and he just exploded. He decided he had to co find you for a spar."
"Zhao Tianxing heard about it and intercepted them outside the dining hall, but they couldn’t talk it out..."
He took a breath, a little aggrieved. "I saw things were getting bad, so I bolted over here, and you’re getting on my case for not finishing my story!"
"So that’s what happened." Chu Fan nodded slightly, his gaze falling on the short, stout boy’s round face. "Fatty, what was your na again?"
Hearing this, the short, stout boy’s eyes lit up. A smile instantly blood on his face, crinkling the corners of his eyes into slits. "I..."
It wasn’t every day that a guy like Chu Fan would take the initiative to ask for soone’s na.
Just as he was about to speak—
"Let’s go take a look."
The words had barely left Chu Fan’s mouth when he leaped out of the window. In a flash, his figure was already dashing out of the courtyard.
"..."
The short, stout boy’s expression froze. After a long mont, he stomped his foot and said, "Didn’t you just ask for my na? How could you run off before I even answered! That’s so rude!"
...
When Chu Fan arrived, a large crowd had already gathered in the center of the Martial Arts Arena.
Heads bobbed in the crowd, forming a human fence.
Before he could even squeeze through, he could hear the dull thuds of clashing fists and feet, mixed with bursts of cheers and gasps of surprise.
"BANG!"
A loud thud was followed by a grunt from Zhao Tianxing. The surroundings suddenly fell so quiet you could hear the wind rustling the corners of their clothes.
Chu Fan pushed his hands forward, parting the crowd to either side as if separating reeds.
The people who were pushed aside were about to glare and curse, but when they saw his cold expression, they swallowed their words and imdiately shut their mouths.
"Chu Fan’s here!" soone shouted in a low voice, their eyes full of anticipation.
"Now we’ve got a good show to watch!" the person next to them whispered, their voice low but unable to hide their excitent.
"Did Chu Fan really fight one against three and seriously injure three n from the Blood Saber Sect? Isn’t that a bit of an exaggeration?"
"Rumors always get exaggerated. One person tells ten, ten tell a hundred, and the story changes. But so people definitely say they saw him fight Blood Saber Sect mbers with their own eyes and co out without a scratch!"
"To be able to fight soone in the Blood Nourishing Realm and escape unscathed... that level of strength is sothing else!"
Amidst the murmurs, Chu Fan’s face was as grim as still water as he walked forward.
In the center of the circle, Ling Feng stood proudly, a faint, almost imperceptible smile on his lips. His eyes swept over the crowd with a hint of smugness.
Zhao Tianxing, however, was sitting on the ground, one hand propping himself up. A trickle of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth, and his face was pale!
"I lost."
Zhao Tianxing grinned, his smile defiant despite the blood trickling from his lips. He didn’t care that his teeth were stained red. "But if this were a fight to the death, I could kill you!"
"Hmph!" Ling Feng sneered, his gaze sweeping over Zhao Tianxing with utter contempt. "The only thing tough about you is your mouth."
He clasped his hands behind his back, his chin slightly raised. "A real man accepts defeat. Saying things like that after you’ve lost just makes you a laughingstock!"
Chu Fan walked over slowly and helped Zhao Tianxing up, his eyes as cold as ice. "We’re all brothers here. It was just a spar, why did you have to be so heavy-handed?"
Seeing Chu Fan, Ling Feng’s tone was indifferent. "If your skills are inferior, you have to admit it."
"Zhao Tianxing should have known this would be the consequence before he challenged ."
He lifted his gaze, his eyes filled with arrogance. "A person must know their own limits."
"It’s better to get injured sparring with brothers in the gang than to be killed by an enemy outside."
"Besides, since you haven’t broken through to the Blood Nourishing Realm, you aren’t considered true Seven Stars Gang disciples. I am no brother to you!"
The surroundings grew even quieter, to the point where the sound of the wind itself was distinct.
Everyone knew that Ling Feng, priding himself on his superior talent, usually looked down on others. But with these words, he drew a clear line between "handyn" and "Seven Stars Gang disciples," acting as if he were their superior.
Yet, there was nothing technically wrong with his words, leaving no room for rebuttal...
Many people’s expressions darkened. They secretly glanced at Chu Fan, hoping he was truly as formidable as the rumors said and would teach this arrogant "genius" a proper lesson.
But many others worried that Chu Fan would suffer an even more miserable defeat than Zhao Tianxing.
In the crowd, Jiang Yuanfan shrank back, his eyes darting about nervously.
He was the one who had spread the story of Chu Fan fighting one-against-three and seriously injuring three n from the Blood Saber Sect.
He did have selfish motives, but he hadn’t ant to plot against Chu Fan—
He had fought Chu Fan once and lost miserably. Afterward, people always used it to make fun of him, turning him into the laughingstock of the Sub-Branch.
’But if Chu Fan’s strength is truly imnse...’
’...the stronger Chu Fan is, the more insignificant my own defeat becos!’
’If Chu Fan can fight one against three and seriously injure three in the Blood Nourishing Realm... then my, Jiang Yuanfan’s, defeat would be an honor!’
His guilt stemd only from the fact that he had exaggerated the events of that day a little...
On Xingning Street that day, Chu Fan had actually injured one person first, then fought one-against-two to injure the other two. It wasn’t the "one against three" that he had claid.
Now, seeing Chu Fan arrive, Jiang Yuanfan felt a little thrill of excitent.
Although people were talking a lot about the story he’d spread, very few actually believed it.
After all, it was just too incredible.
’But if Chu Fan could defeat the genius Ling Feng in front of so many people...’
’...who would dare to make fun of ever again?’
...
On the other side of the crowd, Zhang Shuyao stood on the outskirts, her pretty face flushed red with excitent. Her cheeks were puffed up like ripe apples, and her fists were clenched so tight her knuckles were white. "Fight! Beat him to death!"
"Even Zhao Tianxing was injured, and that idiot still dares to go up there. He’s simply asking for death!"
She raised her right hand and waved toward the arena, her voice high and trembling slightly. "Senior Brother Ling Feng, be careful! That guy plays dirty! He’s utterly shaless and a master of trickery!"
Ling Feng turned a deaf ear, rely staring silently at Chu Fan. The fighting spirit in his eyes grew more and more intense, and his fingertips tensed slightly.
Chu Fan turned his head and gave Zhang Shuyao a cold look.
Zhang Shuyao’s body shuddered. She felt as if she were being stared at by a Fierce Beast, a chill running through her. The hand she had raised fell unconsciously to her side. Her lips moved, but she didn’t dare make another sound!
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