Proud Sword Soaring Clouds

This time, she had returned for two reasons. One was to visit her beloved disciple, Shangguan Yutong. More importantly, she wanted to spend more time with her old father. After all, Qiu Chen’s illness was worsening by the day. Though she was reluctant to admit it, everyone knew that if things continued like this, the old man wouldn’t last much longer.

Qiu Jianhua nodded with a faint smile. "It’s absolutely true. Why don’t you go see Father now? He’s in much better spirits!" His initial excitement had passed, and he appeared relatively calm. But Qiuyue Yao vanished from Qiu Jianhua’s office like a gust of wind. A warm smile graced Qiu Jianhua’s face. ’Now that’s more like the impulsive little sister I remember.’ Seeing her current maturity always felt a bit strange to him. Perhaps only a master with such a personality could have trained a disciple like Shangguan Yutong. If Ling Xiao knew about this, he would surely feel the same way.

Meanwhile, Ling Xiao stood there leisurely, shaking his head at Qin Kang with a calm expression. "See? You brought this on yourself."

That’s right. Ling Xiao no longer needed to hide his true abilities. No one wants to face the scorn and ridicule of others day in and day out. Even if Ling Xiao himself didn’t care, he had to consider his family and friends. He wasn’t just living for himself anymore.

Besides, if he could still be ambushed or sneak-attacked at this point, it would only mean that Qiu Jianhua, the dean of the Imperial Academy, was a complete failure. Faced with the only person in the entire Lanyue Empire who could cure his father’s illness, how could Qiu Jianhua not have people secretly protecting Ling Xiao?

And by the time he returned from the Mesopotamia Grassland, the Foundation Establishment Pill should be ready. A faint smile touched Ling Xiao’s lips as he looked at the surrounding students, who were staring as if they’d seen a ghost. ’My pride,’ he thought, ’is something you could never understand!’

Qin Kang, on the other hand, had been beaten completely senseless. His pride, his dignity, his reputation... everything he had was shattered to pieces by Ling Xiao’s barrage of slaps.

He stood there, staring at Ling Xiao with a look of pure horror, his eyes filled with deep fear and venomous hatred.

"What, you want to bite me?" The impulsive side of Ling Xiao’s personality finally gained the upper hand. Defeating a Tier Six Sword Master bare-handed was an achievement great enough to make everyone re-evaluate the so-called "Disgrace of the Imperial Academy." If people insisted on finding a flaw in Ling Xiao’s performance, they could probably only say that he didn’t use any sword techniques.

But was a bullshit reason like that even important?

Strength was the ultimate principle that determined the respect you received from others. In the face of true power, all other embellishments were nothing but dross.

Just as, at this moment, no one held back their ridicule just because Qin Kang was from the Bauhinia Clan. In fact, that very status only added to their contempt for him.

What did it mean to bring disgrace upon oneself? This was it!

"Ling Xiao, you just wait! The day will come when you face the retribution of the Bauhinia Clan!" Qin Kang raised a hand to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth, his icy gaze fixed on Ling Xiao, and turned to leave.

In that instant, a flash of killing intent sparked in Ling Xiao’s eyes. ’A threat?’ He preferred to nip such things in the bud.

"Brother Ling Xiao, don’t..." Yisha, who was standing nearby, saw it clearly and whispered a warning, "This will affect the Dean!"

Ling Xiao immediately came to his senses. In this world, many things were still covered by a veneer of civility. It wasn’t his place to rip that veneer away, as doing so would be tantamount to slapping His Majesty the King in the face.

Qin Kang didn’t spare Yisha another glance; he was too ashamed to look at her. He had fallen too far today, losing all his dignity. He swore in his heart that one day, he would kill Ling Xiao with his own hands. ’No matter how strong you are, you’re still just a Celestial Vein Master. The day I break through to the Great Sword Master realm will be the day you die! Hmph. When that time comes, I’ll make you watch as I take back the woman who belongs to me, and then I’ll kill you!’

Qin Kang’s eyes were swollen to slits. At this point, he no longer cared about the astonished gazes of the passersby. ’Besides, looking like this, no one would recognize me as the young master of the Qin Family anyway, right?’

A venomous smile appeared on Qin Kang’s lips, which looked utterly ridiculous on his face, now swollen like a pig’s head. Qin Kang was fairly familiar with the Imperial Academy, having visited before to see Yisha, so he followed a less-traveled path toward the campus exit.

Suddenly, a cold female voice called out from the side, "Stop right there!"

Qin Kang froze for a moment, then stopped. He had just started to turn his head when he felt a fiery sting on his already numb face, followed by the dull sound of a SMACK.

He’d been slapped hard across the face again!

Qin Kang couldn’t hold it in any longer and spat out a mouthful of blood. His venomous glare was so intense it felt like it could kill. But when he saw the woman who had hit him, he froze. The stunningly beautiful face before him belonged to that same gorgeous woman from before, Xie Xiaoyan!

"Do you know why I hit you?" Xie Xiaoyan asked coldly, her face full of disgust.

His eyes filled with endless rage, but Qin Kang could only nod in humiliation.

"Heh, feeling wronged, are you?" A mocking sneer appeared on Xie Xiaoyan’s radiant face. "I bet you’re dying for revenge, aren’t you?"

Qin Kang’s voice was hoarse as he stared coldly at Xie Xiaoyan’s peerlessly beautiful face. "What’s it to you?"

Xie Xiaoyan suddenly let out a soft laugh. She spun lightly in front of Qin Kang, the hem of her vibrant red dress fluttering like a beautiful butterfly. In a gentle voice, she asked, "Do you think I’m beautiful?"

Qin Kang felt his thoughts couldn’t keep up with Xie Xiaoyan’s pace. He nodded blankly. ’This woman really is beautiful!’

"Then... do you want to marry me?" Xie Xiaoyan asked with a gentle smile, a hint of girl-next-door shyness on her face.

Qin Kang’s immediate, subconscious impulse was to say, "I do!" But he quickly caught himself and sneered, "Do you take me for an idiot? You’re just after the power of the Bauhinia Clan, aren’t you? Hmph. Afraid that good-for-nothing Ling Xiao will come after you for revenge later?"

The surprise on Xie Xiaoyan’s face was fleeting. She immediately dropped her coquettish expression and said coldly, "So what if I am? Don’t you want to get revenge on him? Don’t you want to kill him with your own hands?"

"That’s my business, and it has nothing to do with you!" Qin Kang said flatly, looking directly into Xie Xiaoyan’s limpid eyes. "I don’t like women like you." He paused, then continued, "Consider that slap just now my punishment for insulting you. Don’t think that just because I can’t beat that bastard Ling Xiao, you... can stop me!" With that, he lifted his head high and strode forward, as if he had rediscovered his inner pride.

A venomous light shot from Xie Xiaoyan’s eyes. Her two crystalline, jade-like hands were clenched into tight fists, and her chest heaved violently. Inside, she was screaming silently, ’Why? Why did it turn out like this? Am I really such a failure?’ After a long moment, a single tear escaped the corner of her eye and slid down her flower-like, beautiful face.

As for Qin Kang, a cold sneer touched his lips as he thought to himself, ’The pride of a nobleman... is something you could never understand.’