Chapter 25

Hao Qi returned to the university, the one he had entered to gain some scholarships. It was called Yijian University.

Returning to this university again, although it had only been a little over a month, Hao Qi felt as if many years had passed. Time had changed, from the death of his brother-in-arms to the eruption of his inner strength, and then to a series of fierce battles. The experiences he had gone through were almost more exciting and wonderful than the sum of his previous thirty years and the ten years of this life. However, it also made him feel melancholic. If his brother-in-arms were still alive, they could probably be discussing the next journey with great enthusiasm.

Before returning to the university, Hao Qi specially asked Li Ming to get a bottle of good wine from the Li family. He held the bottle of wine in his arms and went directly to a secluded place on campus, where he and Su Shixian often practiced martial arts. Even before he reached the place, he could already hear the sound of the wind being cut.

"Truly a fine sword."

Hao Qi spoke directly upon hearing the sound of the wind. As soon as his words were out, the sound of the wind in the small forest stopped, and the forest fell into silence.

Hao Qi smiled bitterly. Although he had known Su Shixian for a short time, he was quite familiar with her temperament and style. She had a strong sense of chivalry, but she was not as rough as the women in martial arts novels. On the contrary, her temperament was more like that of a lady from ancient times—sharp, calm, and beautiful, with a hidden sense of chivalry. Just from the way she provoked him to drink the bowl of meat soup when they first met, if he had to make a comparison, Hao Qi felt that she was very much like the character of Gong Sun Jianwu in martial arts novels on Earth.

Now, Su Shixian clearly heard his voice but remained silent. From her character, she was probably angry and waiting for his explanation. Hao Qi shook his head slightly, did not hesitate, and walked into the forest. He saw a woman with flowing long hair, eyes like water, and a beauty that could be painted.

Su Shixian looked at Hao Qi silently without saying a word. Hao Qi took a deep breath and said, "A lot has happened recently, so much that I don't know where to start. If you have time, why don't you listen to me tell the whole story from the beginning?"

Su Shixian looked at Hao Qi silently for a long time before saying, "Let's go to the quiet room. I really want to know what happened to you."

Hao Qi was well-prepared for Su Shixian's lack of knowledge about his situation. After all, the Inner Strength Realm was like a different world from the Non-Inner Strength Realm. Unless someone was like Li Pancheng, who was in the Inner Strength Realm, others in the Non-Inner Strength Realm could only learn about it from their elders. Su Shixian, although from a noble family, was not from a noble family in this country. She was not in the Inner Strength Realm, not even in the Quasi-Inner Strength Realm. Even if her family had considerable influence in the Blue Shadow Republic, unless they knew that she had been close friends with Hao Qi, a new Inner Strength Realm practitioner, for a long time, they would not have told her about his situation.

Thus, the two of them went to a quiet room on campus. It was still paid for by Su Shixian, and Hao Qi did not say anything else. He did not know if Su Shixian intended to use martial arts to teach him a lesson, but the quiet room she chose had a large training yard, which was very nice. The two of them sat in the quiet room, each took a sip of fragrant tea, and then Hao Qi slowly began to tell the story of what had happened recently.

"His name is Lin Xiong. He is a brother-in-arms I met at the orphanage. I said I wanted to practice martial arts, and he didn't have the physique for it, so he earned money while I practiced martial arts. It started from then..."

"Although he entered the underworld, he didn't do any heinous deeds. And that woman, he probably liked her..."

"From then on, I erupted with inner strength. I wanted to kill the person from the Xu family to repay the debt. It's only right to pay back debts with money and to pay for murder with life. However, the Xu family had been investigating this batch of goods and was already prepared. At that time, two Inner Strength Realm practitioners attacked me simultaneously, trying to kill me..."

"After that, I recuperated in that small town until Li Ming, an Inner Strength Realm practitioner from the Li family, arrived. I also learned about the so-called baptism and the subsequent challenges, the first of which was a battle with Li Ming..."

"Then, I returned to the capital, but encountered another ambush. This time, I was hit by both technological weapons and long-range arrows, with an Inner Strength Realm practitioner personally shooting the arrow. I was hit, and that Inner Strength Realm practitioner was named Wang Diao..."

Hao Qi told Su Shixian most of what had happened in recent times. Although he did not go into detail about his system or martial arts, he told her the general story. After finishing, he silently drank tea, giving Su Shixian time to think.

Su Shixian held the teacup and thought for a long time before saying, "Li Ming wanted to kill you or at least beat you to near death. At that time, the Li family would step in to protect you, in order to plot your martial arts."

"I know," Hao Qi replied with a slight smile.

Su Shixian hummed and did not say more. She continued, "Compared to technological weapons, the power of an Inner Strength Realm practitioner's bow is often greater. However, ordinary bows cannot withstand the immense power of an Inner Strength Realm practitioner and cannot be infused with inner strength. This Poison Dragon Bone Bow is priceless, a treasure that Inner Strength Realm practitioners would not exchange for anything. It's a pity you gave it up."

"I know," Hao Qi said again.

"Your revenge is too gentle. It makes people think you are weak and easy to bully. The reason you are so calm now is that they can't gauge your strength. They don't know how many Inner Strength Realm practitioners it would take to kill you or the limits of your martial arts. But Inner Strength Realm martial arts are rare treasures in the world. Someone will always take the risk." Su Shixian said calmly.

"I know."

"You... shouldn't have told me you have Inner Strength Realm martial arts. This is something you shouldn't easily reveal, even to close relatives, unless it's already widely known..."

"I know."

For a moment, both of them fell silent. The sky in the courtyard was already slightly dim, and it was already afternoon.

Su Shixian fiddled with the teapot and then asked, "Why did you choose me as your last stop? Didn't you already decide to travel around?"

This time, Hao Qi did not answer with those three words. Instead, he lowered his head and thought for a long time. Finally, he laughed and said, "I guess it's a kind of sentiment."

"Hmm?" Su Shixian was surprised by Hao Qi's response and looked at him with a slightly flushed face.

"It's a kind of sentiment," Hao Qi repeated. "You give off the aura of a classical beauty, but I know you have a sense of chivalry and passion. You probably grew up with the worldview and values of a noble family, which is why you have the outward appearance of a beautiful lady but an inner sense of passion and righteousness. To be honest, I have a martial arts complex, but I'm not a big fan of the so-called carefree women in the martial arts world. That's why I find you particularly appealing. And after getting to know each other over these days, we have become quite familiar. I... don't have many friends left. Xue Na was one, but the incident with Lin Xiong left a thorn in my heart. In the end, I realized that my biggest bond in the capital of the Blue Shadow Republic was you, so I decided to stay until the end."

"Yes, that's how it is..." Su Shixian's blush did not completely fade, but she gradually calmed down.

"Do you want to drink?"

Hao Qi suddenly asked, pulling out a white porcelain wine bottle from his chest. Su Shixian nodded, and he poured her a full glass of wine and did the same for himself. They looked at each other, each drank the glass of wine, and then Hao Qi continued, "I've always been thinking about the meaning of life. Of course, I'm not a philosopher, and I don't like philosophical debates. I think about it and come to my own conclusion. I believe that in this life, one should at least do what they want to do, what they can do, and what they are capable of doing, without regret, hesitation, or fear. That way, this life is worth living. I think this way and will act this way. I will walk this world well."

At this point, Hao Qi refilled Su Shixian's glass and his own. This time, he did not drink it immediately but slowly stood up, saying, "Life is already so difficult, and living is a painful choice. I want to accomplish what I want to do. No matter what I encounter on the journey, how many companions I meet, or how many enemies I make, I only want to face my inner self and make the decisions I want to make. In this life, I swear I will never compromise my inner self in the slightest. Wherever I sing, I will sing; wherever I laugh, I will laugh; wherever I cry, I will cry. Other people's opinions and thoughts cannot be imposed on my heart. Even if they say I am detached from society and the world, my heart is like this, and I cannot bear to compromise it any further. Su Shixian, this is my heart, and this is why my last stop is to find you, to come here."

Hao Qi stood in the courtyard, turned to look at Su Shixian, and smiled. He slowly raised his glass and said, "You have a family, relatives, and elders. You will have your own life, battles, lovers, and enemies. So I cannot ask you to leave with me. This is your bond, your life... The sentiment is real, and what I am saying now is also real. We may not have any more intersections in the future, but I still want to tell you... I like you, Su Shixian. I don't know when this feeling started, and it's not a deep love, but I want to tell you this now. Then, I'm leaving, not compromising my heart in the slightest. I want to see this world!"

After saying this, Hao Qi raised his glass and drank, and Su Shixian, after a moment of silence, also raised her glass and drank. When the wine was finished, Hao Qi threw down the glass and raised his glass again, smiling, "Farewell."

Su Shixian also raised her glass and softly said, "Farewell."

Then, in the golden sunlight, Su Shixian watched Hao Qi disappear, leaving only the wine glass on the ground, with no trace of him.

That evening, the young man's journey...

began!