Chapter 159: The Collapsing Pair (Revised)

Ying Duo remained unmoved; although the game's natural blood bar recovery speed was slow, currently aside from going to the infirmary there was no quick way to restore the blood bar, but it wasn't necessary.

One game session was only seven days; in the short term he wouldn't leave the Academy safe zone, nor would he trigger combat, so obviously raising affection and stats was more important.

Ying Duo pushed away Shen Zexi's supporting hand; in Shen Zexi's astonished gaze, he performed a clean carp kip-up and stood up, his motion smooth as if the one who had been punched and flown sideways earlier wasn't him.

"It's fine." He bluntly spat out two words, then——

"Whoosh!"

In Shen Zexi's vision, only a lingering afterimage of Ying Guang Lu remained; Ying Duo had already, like an unleashed wild dog, activated the Scouting skill to track and chased after the direction Qi Hengyu disappeared in.

"We agreed to run together in the morning!" A clear yet unperturbed voice drifted back from the hallway outside.

Shen Zexi's outstretched hand froze midair; his whole person froze.

What, what kind of tenacious creature is this?

After taking such a heavy punch, he's spitting blood and still going to chase someone for a morning run?!

Isn't that right?

The cool morning breeze pouring through the hallway windows blew through the wide-open dormitory door, making Shen Zexi, who wore only thin pajamas, shiver and fully wake up.

He looked down at his own pajamas, then recalled how he had burst out of the door, likewise wearing only pajamas and bare feet, just like Qi Hengyu, and that Ying Duo with blood at the corner of his mouth, stubbornly chasing out...

Shen Zexi slammed his forehead hard, his face showing a somewhat collapsed expression.

"You two bastards!!!"

He cursed lowly, no longer able to care about anything else, and at top speed grabbed the two sets of clothes he and Qi Hengyu were supposed to wear today, then haphazardly swept the important textbooks and notes on their desks into his backpack.

Shen Zexi held a bag in each hand, then rushed out of the dormitory door again, straining to chase after those two figures who had already run far away, their appearance extraordinarily bizarre.

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The icy cold stone slab road's chill rose through the soles of his feet all the way to the crown of his head.

Qi Hengyu ran barefoot like an out-of-control locomotive, sprinting on the Academy's deserted morning path, his pajama pant legs flapping in the wind, looking utterly disheveled.

He didn't know how far he had run, because he was running while holding his breath; his lungs felt as if they'd been squeezed dry, a burning pain.

The icy morning wind finally poured into Qi Hengyu's overheated brain, letting his chaotic thoughts cool down a bit.

His speed gradually slowed, and he finally stopped under a strange plant whose leaves emitted a faint bell-like sound; Qi Hengyu braced his knees and gasped heavily.

With his mind clear, everything that had just happened in the dormitory replayed in his mind like a high-definition remastered film, frame by frame.

Nightmare...... the Ying Guang Lu ghostly apparition chasing him...... Shen Zexi's bastard electric spark......

Wait...... Ying Guang Lu?

Then he seemed......

He had punched Ying Duo and sent him flying?!

Qi Hengyu straightened up, his face instantly turning deathly pale.

"Damn......" he muttered, his voice filled with belated horror, "Did I really hit him? Did I really land a solid blow?"

He instinctively clenched his fist, recalling the crystal-clear sensation of striking flesh, that was his full strength, with no holding back.

In previous spars, he had hardly ever landed a hit on Ying Duo; Ying Duo's speed was too fast, and keeping up was extremely difficult for him.

That Ying Duo guy looked like he couldn't take a beating, and yet he took his blow completely unprepared......

A huge sense of guilt flooded over him like a tide.

Afraid of ghosts as he may be, but laying hands on someone, especially striking a person who had no defense against him—even if that person was Ying Duo—was completely beyond his bottom line.

Although he had a short temper, he was by no means someone who would readily resort to violence.

While Qi Hengyu was torn between immediately going back to apologize or just digging a hole and burying himself there, a familiar Ying Guang Lu, already trailing effects, rushed to his face and stopped steadily.

Ying Duo's face showed no flush or breathlessness; only his cuffs were slightly red, and his golden eyes calmly gazed at Qi Hengyu before he posed a soul‑searching question:

"Why aren't you running?"

Looking at Ying Duo, who was completely unharmed and whose eyes remained as vacant as ever, Qi Hengyu's mind struggled to turn.

He subconsciously sized up his opponent; something was off—just now that impact feeling...

He was certain he had landed the blow, and with considerable force!

How could Ying Duo's slight frame possibly be unharmed? This is unscientific!

Could it be that, besides agility, this kid's defense is maxed out?

"Are you okay?" Qi Hengyu asked tentatively, his hand even feeling a little itchy.

Upon hearing that, Ying Duo tilted his head, then raised his hand and firmly gave Qi Hengyu a thumbs‑up.

"I'm fine."

However, the very next second after that thumbs‑up was raised...

Bright red blood welled from the corner of Ying Duo's mouth, blatantly ignoring decorum, tracing a striking red line across his pale skin.

Qi Hengyu: "!!!"

"How can you call this fine?!"

Qi Hengyu's voice jumped an octave as he pointed in horror at the corner of Ying Duo's mouth.

"You must have damaged your internal organs! I knew it! I shouldn't have......"

Guilt and worry exploded instantly; Qi Hengyu no longer cared about being afraid of ghosts or not, lunging forward to grab Ying Duo's arm and drag him toward the infirmary.

"Come on! Let's go to the infirmary!"

Ying Duo was pulled along, stumbling, but his mind was fixed on his attribute points; as he was dragged, he didn't forget to ask.

"Are we not doing the morning run?"

With each word he spoke, the fresh blood at the corner of his mouth surged; the next second he even spat a large mouthful of fresh blood directly onto Qi Hengyu's pajama sleeve.

Seeing that red stain and hearing Ying Duo's astonishing remark, Qi Hengyu's mindset completely collapsed; he almost cried out, hoarse.

"Run? Run what the hell! If you keep running you'll kick the bucket, big brother! I'm begging you—shut up and stop talking, can you? Hold on to your breath until we reach the infirmary!"

Because his HP had already fallen below half, a red aura warning appeared around the screen, and Yang Yixie only then belatedly checked the status bar, which now showed a continuous bleeding debuff.

【HP: 49/150 (continuously decreasing......)】

【Status: Internal injury, continuous HP loss】

Oh, so there really is a need to go to the infirmary.

Yang Yixie suddenly realized.

Just then, Fire Brigade Captain Shen Zexi finally arrived at the scene.

He was lugging a backpack stuffed with clothes and books in one hand, panting heavily, his hair blown into a mess, and only anxiety left on his face.

He had just stopped in his tracks, hadn't even had time to speak, when he saw Ying Duo being dragged by Qi Hengyu; fittingly, with a "Puff" sound, it spat out a small mouthful of blood— not much blood, but the visual effect was extremely terrifying.

Shen Zexi's pupils contracted, his heart nearly stopped, and he let out a sound even more broken than Qi Hengyu's.

"What are you still standing there for? Get him to the hospital!"