Chapter 42

Many students were only just awakened by the commotion, emerging from their tents one by one, only to be stunned by the sight of one body after another lying on the ground.

"What happened?" they began to inquire.

Qin Zhen also fell to the ground at this moment, but he was not injured; he was just shocked. Although he was a perceiver, he had always trained carefree within the academy, unaware of what the future held. This brush with death came too suddenly. The moment Lu Ping blasted away the black-clothed masked man and saved him, his legs turned to jelly, and he collapsed on the ground.

But he soon saw Qin Yuan, his brother, who, despite the relief in his eyes, was clearly in great pain.

"Brother!" Qin Zhen, still trembling and weak, somehow found the strength to crawl over. Upon closer inspection, he was even more terrified: Qin Yuan was lying in a pool of blood, his face as pale as paper, his lips trembling slightly as if trying to say something, but no sound came out.

"It's good that you're safe," Xifan, standing nearby, interpreted his expression and mouth movements.

"Do you still have time to translate at a time like this?" Su Tang said to him.

"This is my strong point..." Xifan replied.

"Rest assured! He won't die!" Mo Lin squatted in front of Qin Yuan, holding a corn in his right hand, munching on it. With his left hand, he moved Qin Yuan's right hand away from his throat, examined the wound, and said, "Rest more and drink more water, and he'll be fine."

"Can he even drink water? It will leak out from this wound!" Mo Lin said.

"Can you be serious?" Su Tang said.

"Where do you see me being unserious?" Mo Lin said.

"What's in your right hand?" Su Tang asked.

"Corn? Do you want some? Here, here." Mo Lin impatiently handed the corn to Su Tang, who ignored him and looked at Lu Ping, who was approaching. Although Lu Ping didn't know much about treatment, whatever he said, Su Tang would find him a thousand times more reliable than Mo Lin.

"Is there anyone among you who knows medicine?" Lu Ping asked Qin Zhen.

"Hey, hey..." Mo Lin felt deeply hurt, as everyone seemed to distrust him. Was it just because of one mistake?

"No... no one..." Qin Zhen, completely panicked, was stunned by Lu Ping's question for a moment before reacting.

The power of the soul was not just for battle, but to make a career choice, one had to be at least at the Penetrating Realm. Penetrators either chose convenient careers based on their cultivated abilities or trained hard in the skills needed for their desired careers. The students of Xiufeng Academy were all at the Perceiving Realm, equivalent to the stage of learning basic knowledge. At this stage, they did not yet possess healing abilities, but some might have early aspirations in this field and thus have some related knowledge.

"I'll go ask Lu Qing." Qin Zhen, who had already said there was no one, suddenly remembered a classmate and jumped up to run and find him.

More and more students of Xiufeng Academy had woken up, and the mountain forest had lost its usual nighttime tranquility. Students gathered in groups, discussing what had happened. No one dared to approach the three dead bodies, and even those who bravely stepped forward were immediately stopped by the stern gazes of Wei Yang or Wei Ying. The two carefully examined the three bodies, searching for clues, and then reported to the young lord Wei Tianqi, who had finally appeared.

Wei Tianqi listened, but his mind was elsewhere, just as it had been when Wei Ming reported the situation. His gaze was more often directed toward the severely injured Qin Yuan. After listening to the report, he did not comment, knowing that he did not need to express any opinion; he merely had the right to be informed.

"What about Qin Yuan?" he asked after the report. This person, who had been severely injured, was not mentioned at all in the previous report.

"He led the assassins close and tried to give a warning when he saw our arrangements," Wei Ying said.

"Our arrangements?" Wei Tianqi looked at the family emblem that should have been on his tent. He did not know about these arrangements, but he knew Wei Ming must have a good reason for not informing him, though he still felt uncomfortable about it.

However, he was only uncomfortable with the lack of information; he did not think the arrangements themselves were inappropriate. He was to inherit the position of Lord of Xiufeng City, and his safety was paramount.

"So?" he continued to ask.

"We cannot rule out the possibility that he is a spy," Wei Ying said.

"Do you know that the tent in question was precisely where he and his brother Qin Zhen stayed? So it's obvious why he gave the warning, isn't it?" Wei Tianqi said.

"Even so, we cannot rule out the suspicion," Wei Ying said.

"True, so what did Wei Ming instruct?" Wei Tianqi said.

"Keep a close watch on his actions," Wei Ying said.

"Very well, I'll go and keep an eye on him," Wei Tianqi said, walking toward Qin Yuan. Wei Ying and Wei Yang exchanged glances but did not stop him, following closely behind to ensure the young lord's safety.

A crowd of Xiufeng Academy students had already gathered around Qin Yuan, but when they saw Wei Tianqi approaching, they all instinctively moved aside.

Qin Yuan saw Wei Tianqi and did not hide the resentment in his eyes. Even if his brother was ultimately unharmed, it did not change the fact that these people had completely disregarded their lives. Qin Yuan felt he was about to die and had nothing to fear.

"Everyone, move aside!" Qin Zhen's voice came from outside the crowd; he had finally found Lu Qing. Lu Qing was just an ordinary third-year student at Xiufeng Academy, with no particularly outstanding achievements in the power of the soul, but he was the son of a doctor and had aspired to follow in his father's footsteps, so he had some knowledge of treatment.

But when they entered the crowd, they saw Wei Tianqi standing in front of the fallen Qin Yuan, talking calmly.

"I won't blame you," Wei Tianqi said, pointing to Qin Zhen as he entered.

"After all, that's your brother, and I can completely understand your concern for his safety," Wei Tianqi continued.

"But, you led these assassins here?"

"Did you sell out others to save your own life?"

"Fortunately, you betrayed me, and I have special protection. But what if it was another student? Would they already be dead because of you?"

"True..." someone in the crowd, for some reason, echoed in agreement.

"If it were us, we would have been killed by the assassins, right?"

"Qin Yuan is really..."

Some looked deeply pained, not because of Qin Yuan's injuries, but because of his actions.

Other students who did not share this view dared not voice their opinions and remained silent.

Qin Zhen could no longer bear it. His brother was lying on the ground, critically injured, and yet people were still talking about him like this.

He didn't care about the son of the city lord or the Wei family's power; he stepped forward to charge.

But someone moved faster than he did.

A punch!

Carrying an extremely strong air current, it whistled as it flew directly toward Wei Tianqi's face.

"Ah!"

Wei Tianqi only had time to let out a cry of surprise. He had not expected anyone to dare attack him. He tried to dodge, but his legs were too flustered to move.

Fortunately, a black shadow promptly blocked him. Wei Ying's movements were always quick and precise.

Bang!

The punch made a loud noise. Wei Ying intercepted the punch, and his body trembled violently. He hurriedly took a step back to maintain his balance. Wei Tianqi, hiding behind him, felt the wind brush past his face, causing a sharp pain. He reached up to touch his face and found spots of blood. Just the wind from the punch had scratched his face.

Lu Ping?

He thought it was him. Apart from Lu Ping, he could not imagine anyone else daring to attack him. But when his gaze moved past Wei Ying, he saw an angry girl.

Su Tang!

The punch was thrown by Su Tang.

Wei Tianqi was surprised, and so was Wei Ying. The girl in front of him was only at the Sixth Heaven of the Power of Strength, still a perceiver, but her punch had such astonishing force. His right hand, which had blocked the punch, and his right leg, which he used to stabilize himself, were both tingling.

Su Tang retracted her punch and her expression became much calmer.

"I saved you!" she said to Wei Tianqi, who was behind Wei Ying, "If it had been him, you would already be dead."

The "him" she referred to was not Qin Zhen, who was about to charge. Behind Su Tang, Lu Ping was also ready to act. (Yesterday's game really left me with internal injuries...)