Chapter Twenty-Four: Ji Qianqiu Begins to Question Life
The air in front of the mountain wall seemed to freeze.
Ji Qianqiu's battle-ready roar still echoed in the air—"Come on, don't waste your breath, spar with me!"
Fang Li took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the urge to smear the Explosive Flame Talisman on his face.
Following sect etiquette, he nodded slightly: "Thank you for your help earlier, Senior Brother Ji."
Ji Qianqiu was still grinning, waiting for her to either panic, be moved to tears, or sternly refuse his request to spar, but he didn't expect to receive such a dry thank you.
His fighting spirit and desire to repay kindness seemed to have been slightly deflated, as if a small hole had been poked in it.
He was about to say "Stop talking nonsense" and ask whether he would fight or not, when he saw Fang Li's gaze sweep over him quickly, especially pausing for a moment on the cuffs of his black robe, which were torn in several places and covered with dust and grass.
Fang Li seized the opportunity to quickly steer the conversation away from the topic: "Senior Brother's divine might, taking them down in just a few punches and kicks, is truly admirable! However... when Senior Brother was dealing with the person on the left just now, if you had used less force and changed your fist to a palm strike on his elbow joint, you might have saved some energy and avoided tearing your sleeve."
"Use less force?"
"Changing from a fist to a palm?"
"Strike his elbow joint?"
Ji Qianqiu's wild smile froze, and his arm, which was halfway waving to signal for someone to come and hit him, also stopped in mid-air.
A hint of bewilderment flashed in his large, round eyes, as if he had never considered issues like saving energy or avoiding tearing his sleeves.
Subconsciously scratching his somewhat disheveled hair, his thick, dark eyebrows furrowed, he actually followed Fang Li's words and replayed the scene of punching that person away in his mind.
It seems... to make some sense?
Ji Qianqiu scratched his head even harder, making his messy hair look like a bird's nest.
His expression changed from initial stunned silence to confusion, then to contemplation, and finally to a sense of frustration upon realizing something!
Frustrating! Yes! That's exactly how frustrating it is!
He, a dignified Foundation Establishment stage body cultivator, was fighting a mere Qi Refining eighth-level weakling, yet a junior sister at the Qi Refining seventh level pointed out that he had "used too much force."
"Not effort-saving enough"
"And you even tore your clothes?!"
This feeling... is so novel! But it's also so damn frustrating!
When Ji Qianqiu fights, he always does it however he feels best, however exhilarating! Saving energy? What's that? Clothes torn? So what if they're torn! What fight doesn't involve torn clothes! He has several spare sets of disciple robes in his storage bag!
But what this junior sister said... actually makes a lot of sense?!
Ji Qianqiu raised his head, glared at Fang Li, and the fighting spirit in his eyes subsided somewhat.
Instead, a complex mix of confusion, dissatisfaction, and curiosity arose.
The female disciple in front of him seemed to be quite different from what he had imagined.
Not the kind of weakling who just cries or hides to the side.
She wasn't scared out of her wits when she was almost attacked, so how can she still calmly analyze the details of his fight?
Ji Qianqiu looked Fang Li up and down, as if seeing her for the first time.
It is no longer a vague label of someone who can be fought or a weak person who needs protection.
Just as Fang Li was about to succumb to the intense gaze and was considering whether to say something more.
Ji Qianqiu finally spoke.
He stared at Fang Li and asked, word by word:
"you……"
He paused, seemingly considering his options, his thick eyebrows furrowed, his eyes filled with complex emotions.
"...You're quite knowledgeable?"
Fang Li: "..." (⊙⊙)?
Understand? Understand what? Understand fighting? Understand how to conserve energy? Understand how to avoid tearing your clothes?
Dude! Isn't your focus a little off?!
Just as Fang Li was racking her brains trying to figure out how to get through this or simply run away.
Whoosh—buzz—!
A deep, resonant chime, seemingly from ancient times, pierced through the slightly murky air of the secret realm, echoing clearly in every corner.
Fang Li felt a sudden sense of relief, and almost wanted to kowtow to the timely bell! A savior!
"Tsk, time's up." Ji Qianqiu also heard the bell, and the hint of inquiry and frustration on his face vanished instantly.
He pursed his lips, seemingly a little disappointed, but the sect rules still had to be followed.
He waved his hand dismissively, his movements still bold and unrestrained: "Let's go! Let's go report!"
The two walked one after the other through the increasingly noisy outer area of the secret realm.
More and more disciples gathered from all directions, their faces showing excitement, fatigue, or frustration, exchanging their experiences from the trip in twos and threes.
Xiao Tao ran excitedly to Fang Li's side, took her arm, and said with lingering fear and dependence, "Senior Sister Fang, it's so good that you're back! We heard fighting over there just now, and we were so worried!"
Fang Li patted Xiao Tao's hand, glanced at the team members, and seeing that everyone was safe and sound, she felt relieved. Just as she was about to shake her head and say that everything was fine, a tall figure came over.
"Danger?" Ji Qianqiu stopped walking at some point, crossed his arms, and with an expression that said, "What are you talking about?" He interjected, "She was almost robbed by Wang Mang and his gang of bastards just now."
"Wang Mang?!" Xiao Tao and the others gasped, clearly having heard of the bully's reputation: "Then... what happened next?"
"And then?" Ji Qianqiu grinned, revealing a mouthful of white smoke. "Then I beat them all to a pulp! One punch each, like playing whack-a-mole! Awesome!"
Xiao Tao and the others: "..." (⊙o⊙)
Looking at Ji Qianqiu's imposing figure and the undisguised desire for praise on his face, and thinking about the fate of Wang Mang and his gang, he was immediately filled with respect, and at the same time, his eyes were filled with sympathy when he looked at Fang Li.
Being saved by Senior Brother Ji must have been quite an exciting experience, right?
Fang Li could only manage a dry laugh: "Thank goodness Senior Brother Ji arrived in time." Just as she was about to say something else to change the subject, she keenly sensed an extremely unfriendly gaze falling upon her.
She glanced at it discreetly out of the corner of her eye.
Not far away, Su Wanqing was standing with several female disciples who were usually close to her.
When Su Wanqing saw that Fang Li was not only unharmed, but also appeared with Ji Qianqiu, especially with Ji Qianqiu's smug look of "I've got her back," Su Wanqing's originally pretty face instantly turned so gloomy that it could drip water, and the jealousy and resentment in her eyes almost materialized!
Fang Li withdrew her gaze, a cold smile playing on her lips.
It really was her! Another one to add to my list!
"Let's go! What are you dawdling for! Hurry up and hand over your things!" Ji Qianqiu urged impatiently, clearly disapproving of the group of junior disciples chattering about their gains.
He took the lead and strode towards the exit light gate.
No one dared to delay and they all followed.
A number of disciples who had come out earlier had already gathered in the open space at the exit, with voices of discussion, exclamations, and boasts rising and falling.
Several elders and disciples were maintaining order and had set up several temporary stalls to register the number of disciples injured or killed and to collect some of the spoils in exchange for sect contribution points.
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