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Chapter 44: Why Doesn't Senior Sister Meng Speak?
"Snap."
As Xue Heng felt the soft sensation on his fingertips, he realized his mistake and his face changed.
Caught up in the heat of the sparring, he didn't think too much and only focused on his opponent's fingers. Instinctively, he saw an opportunity and used his finger snap technique.
It truly wasn't intentional.
Just as Xue Heng stood there in a daze, Meng Qingjiao imprinted a palm on his chest, sending him flying.
She still used gentle force.
Xue Heng did a quick flip and stood up, concerned about Meng Qingjiao. "Senior Sister, are you alright?"
Meng Qingjiao shook her head.
She gave Xue Heng a lingering glance, her expression unchanged. If not for the faint blush on her face, one would think nothing had happened.
The atmosphere turned a little odd, but Li Qi spoke up and eased the tension. "Alright, let's call it a day for today's training."
Hearing this, Xue Heng heaved a sigh of relief.
After what had happened, his heart was filled with a mix of emotions, and his battle intent vanished. Or rather, his 'qi of movement' was gone, and any punches he threw would be powerless.
The shrewd Li Qi noticed this and directly called an end to the day's training.
"Qingjiao, go and rest." Li Qi spoke gently.
"..." Meng Qingjiao nodded and after a moment's thought, she walked up to Xue Heng and patted his head, as if to say that he didn't need to worry about it.
Xue Heng was stunned. He could barely perceive a motherly gentleness from this usually cold and pretty face.
After the short-haired beauty left, Xue Heng watched her well-proportioned figure as she walked away and thought to himself, 'Next time, I'll make a grand meal for Senior Sister Meng...'
Shaking his head, Xue Heng opened the panel and took a look.
Fitness Lv.5 (827/2000)
Health Maintenance Lv.3 (468/800)
Culinary Arts Lv.3 (751/800)
Running Lv.5 (699/2000)
Charm Arts Lv.4 (66/1200)
Aiming Lv.3 (567/800)
Martial Arts Lv.3 (520/800)
Force Control Lv.4 (217/1200)
Visualization Lv.1 (251/300)
These three days of practical combat training had been a great harvest for him.
Especially in Martial Arts and Force Control, he had directly leveled up in both, and Fitness, Aiming, and Health Maintenance had all gained a significant amount of experience.
Of course, these were just the data displayed on the panel. The practical combat experience he had gained over these three days and the fighting style framework he had gradually built up were not reflected on the panel.
This was the true enhancement to his battle prowess.
"Although I've gotten used to your growth rate, I'm still surprised every time."
Li Qi rubbed his chin and spoke.
Xue Heng humbly replied, "It's all thanks to Master's excellent guidance."
Li Qi waved his hand. "We martial artists must learn to 'deceive'. We can't always speak the plain truth."
"In a martial combat, if you can deceive your opponent, you've already won half the battle. Misinformation can be extremely deadly in a critical fight. Remember this."
Xue Heng nodded. "Disciple will keep that in mind."
After a moment's thought, Xue Heng asked, "By the way, Master, why don't Senior Sister Meng and Big Senior Brother speak?"
He had been curious about this ever since he joined the sect.
He had originally thought that this father-daughter pair was naturally taciturn and aloof, but after spending these days with them, he realized they were not as he had assumed.
Big Senior Brother Meng Boshang, though silent, always nodded at him and offered a smile—or at least, something that might be considered a smile—seemingly expressing goodwill.
As for Senior Sister Meng, she didn't need further explanation. She spent several hours every day feeding him moves and training him in combat techniques, patted his head, and even... didn't get angry when he accidentally snapped her. She truly treated him like a beloved junior disciple.
Chapter: ...
"Aside from always being silent and expressionless, she's basically the opposite of 'aloof and distant'."
"...'
Li Qi fell silent for a moment before sighing, "When Qingjiao was still little, something happened..."
"When Boshang was young, he used to hang around with me in the inner ring of the city, and he was quite well-known. He could be considered a talented young man, and he knew quite a few young ladies from wealthy families..."
"He and one of them, Qingjiao's mother, fell in love. Not long after, they got married and had Qingjiao."
As he spoke, a hint of sadness and regret flashed in Li Qi's cloudy eyes.
"Back then, I was overly confident in my martial prowess and acted too arrogantly. I didn't know my limits, challenging others to duels every day. Eventually, I bit off more than I could chew and ran into a ruthless opponent who broke my legs and killed the true dragon in my heart, crushing my spirit."
"I had made too many enemies, and after they found out I had become a cripple, they took the opportunity to strike. When they heard that I had become a half-disabled man, those who wanted to settle scores with me were countless."
"Back then, Boshang stayed by my side every day to protect me, but that inevitably took his attention away from his family. On that day, only Qingjiao and her mother were at home when some enemies found them..."
"Qingjiao's mother wanted to protect her, so she told Qingjiao to hide and instructed her, 'Don't make a sound until mother comes back.'"
Xue Jing listened silently, already guessing what had happened.
"By the time Boshang and I realized something was wrong and rushed back, we only found Qingjiao in the basement, where she had been hiding and starving for several days. As for her mother, she disappeared, and we still don't know if she's alive or dead."
"From that day on, Qingjiao never spoke another word."
Li Qi's gaze drifted towards the window.
"Boshang used to be a talkative and cheerful person. But later, to prevent Qingjiao from feeling like she was disabled or different, he stopped talking as well, so she wouldn't feel alone in her silence."
"To escape our enemies and protect Qingjiao, we left the inner ring of the city and came to Qingcheng, where we opened this martial arts gym."
Xue Jing fell silent, unsure of what to say.
However, he couldn't help but feel a sense of pity for Meng Qingjiao.
'Don't make a sound until mother comes back.' These words, which had caused her to stop speaking forever, were heart-wrenching.
Since he wasn't directly involved, Xue Jing couldn't comment on Li Qi's story, so he remained silent.
"Ah, I'm getting old and sentimental, talking too much," Li Qi suddenly laughed.
"You don't need to worry about these things. They're all events from the past, long gone."
Li Qi reassured Xue Jing.
"Master, do you want revenge?" Xue Jing asked after a moment's thought.
Li Qi shook his head. "Vengeance breeds vengeance; when will it ever end... I brought this upon myself by making too many enemies and accumulating a mountain of grudges, which is why Boshang's family ended up in that situation."
"Of course, I want revenge. My only remaining obsession is to find the people who hurt Qingjiao and her mother. But..."
Li Qi shook his head again. "I have too many enemies, and I don't even know who to direct my anger towards."
Without hesitation, Xue Jing said, "Then let's not worry about who specifically did it. We'll just crush them all!"
Li Qi was stunned.
"You're even more arrogant than I was in my prime! My enemies are all influential figures from the inner ring of the city, not small fries from Qingcheng. Each one of them is difficult to deal with. How can we crush them all?"
Xue Jing blinked and said seriously, "I think I can do it."
Li Qi burst into laughter. "Then I shall look forward to it."
...
(End of Chapter)
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