Chapter 268: The Pinker the Skirt, the Harder the Beat

"Since you all want me to go back," Meng Kexin's voice became calm and clear, "then I'll just loosen up a bit."

Then she made a move that none of the thugs had expected.

She gently lifted a corner of her own skirt.

To the thugs, the gesture seemed full of a suggestive submission, and someone even whistled flippantly.

However, Meng Kexin did not show the panicked expression they had imagined.

Her hand swiftly slipped inside the skirt's inner side and retrieved a metal container about a finger long, its interior filled with a reddish fluid.

She pressed a hidden button at the container's tail, and with a soft "click" the needle popped out.

Without hesitation, Meng Kexin aimed the needle at the side of her own neck and pressed the push rod.

The medicine flowed into her veins at a visible speed, then vanished.

The thugs were stunned by this sudden self‑harm act, their steps unconsciously lagging a beat.

Under Meng Kexin's originally fair, delicate skin, a faint dark‑red glow surfaced, quickly spreading through her body before fading just as fast.

Her surrounding aura also changed abruptly, shifting from gentle harmlessness to a poised, tranquil tension.

The bald burly man felt an alarm ring in his mind; though he didn't understand what had happened, his instinct told him something was wrong!

"Up! Grab her!" he barked loudly.

The thug closest to Meng Kexin reacted first, snarling as he swung his iron club, hammering down hard on Meng Kexin's shoulder.

If it had struck solidly, it would have been enough to shatter an ordinary person's scapula.

Meng Kexin didn't even glance at him.

"Bang!!!"

The soft, fluffy pink plush bear struck the thug's face with a force that defied physics.

The thug's sneer froze instantly, and he screamed as his whole body was flung backward into the air.

The blood spewing from his mouth, mixed with a few broken teeth, arced through the air; his body, hurled sideways, knocked over two comrades behind him, then slammed heavily onto the ground several meters away.

He twitched twice and then collapsed unconscious.

The entire alley suddenly fell into dead silence.

All the thugs stared dumbfounded at the pink bear Meng Kexin held, then glanced at the unconscious comrades on the ground, their minds blank.

"What the hell is this?!"

"Is this bear solid?"

"No, even a solid one wouldn't cause that much damage!"

Meng Kexin gave them no time to react.

After the injection, her strength was astonishing, and her control over her body was terrifying.

She hoisted the bear and charged straight into the crowd of thugs.

"Pa!"

The bear slapped a thug's knife‑wielding wrist; the sound of the wrist bone cracking was clear, and the dagger flew out of his hand.

"Dong!"

The bear collided with another thug's chest; the latter let out a muffled groan and was flung backward, crashing into the wall and sliding down.

"Hoo—!"

With a sweeping slash, the bear, accompanied by a rush of wind, knocked the two thugs approaching from the side to the ground, them clutching their legs and wailing.

There were no fancy moves, not even any extra expression.

Meng Kexin simply held the pink bear like a war hammer and surged straight into the thugs.

The pink, fluffy toy bear formed an oddly stark contrast with the blood‑soaked violence.

The thugs initially tried to counterattack, but were quickly stunned by the one‑sided crushing.

Wasn't she just a miss who was useless except for the Aberrant Arts?

The boss never said this person could fight so well, either?

The bald burly man felt his scalp tingle; he finally realized he had kicked an iron plate, no, a T‑rex disguised in sheep's clothing!

While retreating, he shouted with a fierce tone but trembling inside.

"Y‑you, what kind of monster are you?!"

Meng Kexin gave no answer; she was even too lazy to look at him.

After dealing with the last two standing thugs, she hoisted the still fluffy pink bear and turned toward the bald burly man.

The bald burly man was terrified, his soul fled, and he turned to run.

Meng Kexin tossed the bear directly from her hand, tracing a precise parabola in the air, and with a "Bang" it struck the bald man's occiput.

The bald burly man didn't even manage a hum; he collapsed straight onto the ground.

The fight from start to finish lasted less than a minute.

The narrow path was littered haphazardly with unconscious or moaning thugs; Meng Kexin bent down, picked up the bear from the ground, and gently brushed off the dust.

The faint dark‑red pattern on her body quickly faded, and her breathing gradually steadied.

She lifted her head and looked toward the wall.

Ying Duo, at some point, had changed posture, shifting from squatting to sitting, his legs dangling lightly beyond the wall.

Seeing Meng Kexin look over, he raised his hand again, this time flashing two thumbs up.

Ying Duo just glanced at those mid‑story spawn monsters that had appeared; several didn't even have a level, and the few that did were only single‑digit. Killing them felt like a waste of bullets.

Besides, he hadn't seen Meng Kexin in combat before, so he took the chance to gather intel.

Is this what they call "the pinker the skirt, the harsher the beating"?

"Come down," Meng Kexin said irritably, "had enough of the show?"

Ying Duo nodded, then, with a swift motion, flipped down from the wallhead and walked to Meng Kexin's side.

His golden eyes swept over the unconscious thugs on the ground, then glanced at the little bear in Meng Kexin's hand.

"Very impressive."

He commented, his tone flat, yet it sounded like a sincere compliment to her.

Meng Kexin twitched the corner of her mouth, not knowing what expression to make.

She smoothed her slightly disheveled skirt hem and coat, re‑hugged the little bear, and brushed her fairly clean back of the hand across her cheek, trying to wipe away sweat that wasn't there.

"I already guessed that Zhao Family wouldn't be satisfied, but their methods are still as low‑level as ever."

The only problem is that this body she now inhabits is so frail it can't even match her real‑world body, leaving her with only technique; fortunately she can use a potion to briefly boost this body's strength.

At least dealing with these people is no problem at all.

"Shall we take care of them?"

Ying Duo asked, pointing at the group of people lying on the ground.

His meaning was clear: should we clean them up more thoroughly?

Meng Kexin looked at the throbbing, moaning or unconscious thugs on the ground and shook her head.

"No need; killing them would only cause trouble," she paused, then added.

"The appearance of corpses near the Academy could draw the Supervision Bureau and the Heresy Tribunal, so let's leave quickly."

Ying Duo nodded in approval, then looked at the partially damaged but still green‑pink little bear in Meng Kexin's hand, suddenly wondering whether he should give her a decent weapon.

Even a white‑quality little bear fights this well; what about swapping it for another weapon for Meng Kexin?

Next time, I'll give Meng Kexin a weapon; maybe this will raise a lot of favor.