Chapter 28: Suspected Extraordinary

Chapter 28: Chapter 28: Suspected Extraordinary

"Junior, it might be a bit forward of me to say this, but are you sure what you saw at your family’s martial arts hall was real?"

"I mean... is it possible that the ancestor who was supposedly in seclusion for hundreds of years was actually just an actor your martial arts hall hired?"

"And that whole ’one man fighting dozens’ thing... maybe the people from your hall were just acting along with him to create a viral video and drive traffic to the hall?"

Gu Qing looked at the physical education student next to him and voiced his reasonable doubts.

Even though he had awakened his ’cheat,’ he tried to keep an open mind no matter how bizarre things got.

But that didn’t mean he would believe things blindly.

One man taking on dozens of opponents already sounded incredible enough.

Add to that an ancestor who was a recluse in seclusion for centuries...

Seriously, it was just too absurd.

Unless he saw it with his own eyes, nobody would believe it.

Seeing Gu Qing finally start to show some doubt, Xia Shuran smiled in relief.

’That’s more like it. This is how you’re supposed to react when you hear something so outrageously unbelievable.’

’This is the reaction a normal person would have.’

’Sheesh, Senior, you were so calm just now it was hard for me to know how to act.’

With that thought,

Xia Shuran stood up from the steps and gave Gu Qing a playful smile.

"It’s normal for you not to believe me, Senior. Seeing is believing, after all."

"But that’s okay. I’m about to prove it to you with my own actions."

"Come on, Senior. Follow me to that sandpit up ahead."

With that, Xia Shuran set off toward the long jump pit.

Gu Qing stood up and followed, quite curious how this physical education student planned to prove her point.

They arrived at the edge of the sandpit.

Xia Shuran said to Gu Qing,

"Senior, stand right here at the edge, with your back to the pit."

"I’m ready," Gu Qing said, getting into position as instructed.

Xia Shuran continued,

"Senior, I’m about to show you a Palm Technique."

"This Palm Technique is called the Mountain-Shattering Palm. I just learned it from my ancestor."

"Once you witness this palm’s power, you’ll believe everything I just told you is true."

As she spoke, Xia Shuran stood before Gu Qing and settled into a stance that would allow her to generate force.

Seeing his junior so serious, Gu Qing became serious too, bracing his body with all his strength.

"Senior, this Mountain-Shattering Palm of mine can easily send a two-hundred-pound man flying."

Xia Shuran looked at Gu Qing, her voice more serious than ever. "Are... you ready?"

"I’m ready."

"Then, Senior... here I come!"

As soon as she spoke, Xia Shuran’s gaze hardened. She took a swift step forward, using her body’s momentum to suddenly strike out with her palm toward Gu Qing’s chest.

The way she struck with her palm looked completely ordinary.

But the sound of it cutting through the air was enough to make a bystander’s ears ring.

In the next instant,

the Mountain-Shattering Palm—which looked ordinary but packed explosive power—landed squarely on Gu Qing’s chest.

However, the expected scene did not play out.

Gu Qing was not sent flying by the palm strike.

Instead, it was Xia Shuran, the one who threw the strike, who felt like she had just slammed her palm into a city wall. A numbing sensation shot up her entire arm, straight to her brain, leaving her completely stunned.

Xia Shuran: "???"

Gu Qing: "..."

Xia Shuran was a bit dazed, unable to understand why her senior could take a Mountain-Shattering Palm and not move an inch.

’You have to understand,’ she thought, ’yesterday at the hall, I used this very same Mountain-Shattering Palm to send a two-hundred-pound man flying with a single strike.’

’But this senior in front of me looks so thin in his clothes, probably only around one hundred and fifty pounds.’

’I can send a two-hundred-pound man flying, so it makes no sense that I can’t do the same to someone who’s one hundred and fifty pounds.’

’I get it!’

’I must have messed up the force generation. I only just learned the Mountain-Shattering Palm, so I’m not very skilled with it yet.’

’And I must have just messed up, which is why I couldn’t send him flying.’

Having figured this out,

Xia Shuran pulled back her numb arm, resettled into her stance, and said to Gu Qing,

"Senior, that was my mistake. I didn’t put enough force into it. Let’s go again."

"Alright."

Gu Qing agreed and braced himself again.

Seeing he was ready, Xia Shuran wasted no time and immediately executed the same move, striking out fiercely with her palm once more.

This time, not wanting to disappoint his junior, Gu Qing pretended to be knocked back several steps by the blow, nearly stumbling into the sandpit.

"Senior, are you okay?"

"I’m fine."

"Senior, was my palm strike powerful?"

"Very powerful!"

"So, Senior, you believe me now, right? That everything I said was true?"

"I believe you."

Gu Qing had believed her from the moment the first palm struck.

The force behind Xia Shuran’s two palm strikes was immense, far exceeding what someone of her body weight should be able to produce.

It was only at this moment,

that Gu Qing had a delayed realization.

This world he lived in... perhaps the Extraordinary truly existed.

And his own ’golden finger’ was likely a form of that Extraordinary power.

Xia Shuran didn’t know what Gu Qing was thinking and just chattered on excitedly beside him.

"Seriously, Senior, your body is insanely tough."

"My Mountain-Shattering Palm can knock a two-hundred-pound man to the ground."

"But you’re nowhere near two hundred pounds, yet you only took a few steps back after my strike. You’re even tougher than that two-hundred-pound man."

"No wonder you’re so good at street workouts. Your core strength is just ridiculous."

"..."

Gu Qing was lost in thought and didn’t really hear her as she continued to talk.

She said that with his athletic talent, he’d definitely be great at martial arts, and he absolutely had to visit her family’s hall when he had time.

She told him to stop practicing with the Red Tassel Spear, that flashy, performance-based martial arts were a waste of life, and that he should practice her ancestor’s true techniques with her instead.

After a long moment of contemplation, Gu Qing gradually came back to his senses and smiled at the incessantly chattering Xia Shuran.

"No problem. From now on, I’ll follow your lead and practice your ancestor’s true techniques."

"..."

They chatted for a few more moments.

Then, Gu Qing and Xia Shuran went their separate ways.

Each headed back to their own dorm.

They agreed to meet on the athletic field the next afternoon to practice the Mountain-Shattering Palm together.

On the way back to the dorm,

Gu Qing kept an eye out for any rats.

He looked the whole way but didn’t see so much as the shadow of a rat.

After the past few days of extermination, the number of rats on campus had indeed decreased significantly.

The other day, he had run into a fat rat as soon as he entered the school gates.

That was a pure stroke of luck.

It was almost impossible to replicate.

By the time Gu Qing got back to his dorm, it was already past eleven at night.

He took a shower, then tidied up a bit here and there.

Before he knew it,

it was past midnight.

It was time for lights out in the dorm.

Right before the lights went out, Gu Qing took down the mosquito net over his bed.

The dorm beds were small to begin with, and being shrouded by the net always felt a bit oppressive.

It felt much better with it gone.

As for mosquitoes...

His skin was now far tougher than an ordinary person’s. A mosquito’s tiny proboscis couldn’t possibly break his defense.

Not long after,

the dorm lights went out.

And soon after the lights went out, the buzzing of mosquitoes began right on schedule—more punctual than a food delivery guarantee.

In the blink of an eye, several mosquitoes, drawn by the scent, flew over.

They landed on Gu Qing’s face, his neck, his arms, his thighs...

As soon as they landed, they unsheathed their swords, extending their slender proboscises and stabbing forcefully at Gu Qing’s skin.

But no matter how desperately they stabbed and jabbed, their proboscises just couldn’t break his defense.

[Blood... Blood...]

[Suck... Suck...]

[Can’t suck... Can’t suck...]

[It broke... It broke...]

[Fuck... Fuck... Fuck...]

Looking at the text messages popping up before his eyes, Gu Qing felt a little thrill of satisfaction.

Before, around April every year, he was the one tormented by mosquitoes. Now, the tables had completely turned, and he was the one tormenting them.

All he could say was, oh great Mosquito Emperor, the cycle of the Heavenly Dao is truly just.

...

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