I used Double Jump, snapping the distance between us shut in an instant.

  From the air, I drew my bat back and poured everything into it, muscles tensing as I roared, “Oraaa—!”

  The charged basic attack crashed down.

  Huang Yong crossed his arms in a desperate guard. The impact drove him straight into the ground as stone spiderwebbed outward, the plaza shuddering as he failed to fully disperse the force. Blood burst from his nose in a thin red line.

  I landed lightly and tilted my head.

  “Hey,” I said casually, “you should take a more proper stance, you know? Or you might get hurt.”

  “You arrogant piece of shit!” he snarled.

  “What? You got shit on your—”

  He didn’t let me finish.

  Huang Yong exploded forward with a flurry of fists, strange energy roaring around his arms. It was fierce and deadly.

  I took a single step back.

  That was all it took.

  He stopped short.

  I noticed it the hesitation. The stiffness in his legs. The way his face had gone pale beneath the fury, sweat beading at his temples.

  He didn’t dare advance.

  “What did you put in my tea?” he demanded through clenched teeth.

  I widened my eyes innocently. “Forgive me, elder, but I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

  And that was the truth he couldn’t say out loud.

  The crowd hadn’t realized yet. If he moved too much, if he lost control even a little, the smell would spread. The filth would be exposed. The dignity of the Dragon Heart Sect would be dragged through the mud, literally.

  His brows were twisted in rage, but behind it was something else.

  It was fear.

  I almost felt bad.

  Ahem… I ‘almost’ felt bad.

  But this was survival. And… gods help me, I was enjoying this way too much.

  “Ora—ora—ora!”

  I unleashed a multi-hit basic attack, the bat whistling through the air in relentless arcs. Huang Yong parried every strike, arms braced, feet rooted firmly in place. He couldn’t retreat. He couldn’t advance.

  The crowd started cheering.

  My name echoed across the plaza.

  I’d worried earlier that this strategy might drive him into a blind rage, that he’d abandon pride and go for the kill outright. But I’d underestimated something else. His pride mattered more than my life. Right now, he was fighting two battles, one against me, and one against his own body.

  Sorry, old man. But I’m taking that EXP.

  “Bat of the Wild Dog!”

  A savage flurry rained down on him. He blocked, again and again, but his hands began to bruise, skin splitting beneath the strain.

  “I will kill you, snake!” he roared.

  “Oh? I’m more like a fox, actually.”

  Realization slammed into his eyes as he finally connected the dots.

  At the back of my mind, a tiny voice whispered an apology. I shoved it aside and blamed the [Shop] instead. Not my fault they sold laxatives, right?

  “Heavenly Punishment!”

  I brought the bat down in a brutal arc. He tried to parry and instinctively took a step, when a foul sound escaped him. The smell hit a heartbeat later.

  It was… impressive. In the worst way.

  His face drained of all color. The rage shattered, replaced by pure, naked terror.

  “S-stop—” he croaked. “Please—”

  Oh no you don’t.

  If we stopped now, my possible EXP gain might drop.

  I crouched low, twisting my stance mid-motion, redirecting the flow of power as I shouted, “Bat of the Wild Dog!”

  Strikes came from below, vicious and unrelenting. He blocked most of them, but not all. When the opening appeared, I didn’t hesitate.

  “Oraaa—!”

  The charged blow slammed into him. His footing gave way, his body skidding backward as something dark spilled beneath him.

  Tears welled in his eyes. “Please… I surrender—”

  “Tyrant’s Path.”

  A red, oppressive aura exploded around me as the bat connected.

  Huang Yong flew like a broken doll, crashing into the far wall with a thunderous impact before slumping to the ground, unmoving.

  Silence fell.

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  I exhaled slowly.

  …Yeah. I might’ve overdone it.

  From somewhere in the crowd, a hesitant voice said, “Uh… hey. Do you guys smell that?”

  Meng Rong approached the newly formed crater, its jagged edges still crumbling as dust drifted down. From the angle of the hole and the splintered beams jutting out, it was obvious the impact had punched straight through the outer wall of an adjacent building. A corpulent man burst out from the side alley moments later, face flushed red as he waved his arms in despair.

  “What did you do!? My inn!”

  Yeah. Definitely the inn owner.

  Meng Rong turned calmly. “My apologies. The Dragon Heart Sect shall compensate you fully for all damages incurred.”

  A visible ripple passed through the Dragon Heart cultivators. Several of them stiffened, their expressions tightening as if they had just swallowed something bitter.

  Meng Rong covered her nose delicately with one hand as she glanced toward Huang Yong’s sprawled form. Even from where I stood, it was clear she was exerting effort not to grimace. She did not approach him, nor did she attempt to check his condition personally. Instead, she raised her voice just enough for everyone present to hear.

  “Yakuza Man is the victor of this bout.”

  I stepped forward and bowed deeply toward the unconscious elder, keeping my movements respectful and my tone solemn. “Thank you for your precious pointers, Elder Huang. I have learned much.”

  Then I turned and bowed toward the gathered Dragon Heart cultivators as well, my expression composed, though I had to clamp down hard on the urge to grin. It would not do to look too pleased with myself.

  The system notification chimed softly in the back of my mind, and I felt the surge immediately.

  From Level 195, I had risen to Level 227.

  As expected. After all, Huang Yong had been Level 290. There was no way such a jump could have been achieved through brute force alone. Certainly not through something as crude as laxatives. Ahem. I meant superior planning and flawless execution.

  The Dragon Heart cultivators finally erupted.

  “This arrogant bastard!”

  “He must’ve cheated!”

  “What kind of trick did you use!?”

  “Wait… what’s that smell?”

  They rushed to Huang Yong’s side, helping him up with expressions torn between concern and confusion. A few of them shifted uncomfortably, clearly unsure whether the source of the stench was the battlefield or their fallen elder.

  Meng Rong’s voice cut through the clamor. “Cheating? Trickery? I observed the duel from start to finish. Do you take me for a blind fool?”

  Her gaze swept over them, heavy with pressure. “If you intend to slander the hero of Xincheng, slayer of the spider demon, and friend of the people, then you will need more than wounded pride and baseless accusations. Should you continue this unruly behavior, I will have no choice but to expel you immediately.”

  Huang Yong stirred at last, his eyes fluttering open. Whatever fire he once had was gone, replaced by a hollow, defeated look. His voice came out flat and drained. “Enough… it’s fine. We were planning to leave anyway.”

  The younger cultivators reacted instantly.

  “But Elder, we haven’t recruited anyone yet!”

  “And we still haven’t found the Meteor Child!”

  “I swear, Elder, I will avenge you!”

  Huang Yong snapped, his voice suddenly rising with what little authority he had left. “Enough!”

  That was the end of it.

  They left Xincheng not long after, their departure quiet and hurried, though not before paying an exorbitant sum for the destruction I had caused by launching their elder into the building. Judging by the inn owner’s suspiciously satisfied expression, I suspected the compensation had been… generously calculated.

  Later, I stood at the gates of Xincheng beside Meng Rong, watching the fading silhouettes of the Dragon Heart Sect disappear into the distance. I raised a hand and waved cheerfully.

  “Thank you for visiting and for your pleasant company! Please come back again!”

  Meng Rong visibly winced. “You are a very, very bad man.”

  I straightened proudly. “A dashing bad man, you mean.”

  She scoffed, turning her head slightly. “Laxative, was it? A poison, but not quite a poison. Yakuza Man, if something like that ever happens to me, know this. You will be the first person I kill.”

  I swallowed hard.

  That was incredibly unfair. Just because it happened once did not mean I would automatically be responsible for any future… incidents. There were plenty of possible concoctions in the world, after all. Even the xianxia equivalent of a laxative could exist independently of me.

  Naturally, I kept those thoughts to myself.

  The way she looked at me made it very clear that this was not a topic up for debate.

  “But hey, I did a good job, right?” I said, breaking the silence as we walked.

  Meng Rong hesitated for a moment before nodding, clearly doing so more out of fairness than enthusiasm. “You did. I didn’t expect you’d manage to drive out one of the three sects entirely.”

  Neither did I, honestly. If I were in Huang Yong’s position, humiliation stacked on top of public disgrace, I would have wanted blood. The only reason I picked that fight in the first place was for the EXP. I needed that surge badly, enough to push me into a range where I could contend with Dong Li and avoid being forcibly recruited under the guise of a so-called spar. I had prepared myself for a life-and-death struggle if things went wrong.

  And things could have gone wrong very easily.

  What if Huang Yong had somehow purged the laxative? What if he decided that dignity meant nothing compared to killing me on the spot, consequences be damned? He could have done it, even in front of everyone, filth and all. That was precisely why Meng Rong’s presence mattered. She was the fulcrum, the counterweight. If the worst happened and I died, it would look justified that Meng Rong kick the Dragon Heart Sect away. I would lose a Life Token, but in exchange, my value in her eyes would skyrocket… after she learned my supposed-resurrection.

  A fake death would also conveniently let me dodge Dong Li’s recruitment, at least until I resurfaced under Meng Rong’s protection.

  At least, that was the theory.

  The more I thought about it, the less appealing that plan became. That damned magical contract complicated everything. Over the past week, I had realized that I had effectively cast my lot with Meng Rong. Dying and disappearing sounded clever on paper, but in reality, it would probably only tighten the leash around my neck when I came back. Still, I believed Meng Rong was a valuable ally. That belief would only change if someone more useful appeared with a better deal, and only if that contract could somehow be broken.

  We eventually returned to the library.

  I still had no idea how Xue Hai was hidden there. Whatever technique was involved went far beyond simple concealment, and every time I tried to probe it, my instincts warned me to stop. I sat down at one of the low tables, and Meng Rong took a seat opposite me, her posture composed as ever.

  “There seems to be a lot on your mind,” she said calmly.

  I let out a breath. “Yeah. More than I’d like to admit.”

  My gaze drifted briefly to my wrist, to the tattoo-like mark that never faded. She had the same one. The difference was that she could afford not to care about it. I couldn’t.

  She didn’t press the issue. Instead, she moved straight to business. “I brought you here to discuss your next step. Nearly a month has passed, and your spar with Dong Li is approaching. The same trick you used on Huang Yong won’t work again. Dong Li will be far more guarded.”

  That was her polite way of saying I was reaching the end of my usefulness.

  “I acknowledge your effort,” she continued, her tone measured, almost gentle. “You protected the Meteor Child well by diverting there attention, but I fear you are now the one in danger.”

  She wasn’t wrong. With one sect already gone, she could deal with the remaining two far more easily. Public sentiment was already shifting, and after my spar, regardless of the outcome, she would have plenty of leverage to force them out. She was being tactful, careful not to bruise my ego, but the implication was clear.

  I leaned back slightly. “Don’t overthink it. If you’re worried I’ll betray you, then don’t.”

  What she feared most wasn’t me turning hostile, but me revealing the Meteor Child’s location, or worse, using that information as leverage. The contract only protected those of her bloodline, after all. Anyone outside that circle was fair game.

  She spoke again, her voice steady. “Regardless, I will offer as much aid as I can. Weapons, elixirs, talismans, anything you need. You may even look through my storage ring if you wish.”

  I smiled. “That’s very generous. I wouldn’t mind taking a look, but there’s something else I want more.”

  She raised an eyebrow, clearly cautious.

  For a fleeting moment, a very stupid joke crossed my mind, one that would absolutely get me killed if I voiced it. We were nowhere near close enough for that kind of humor.

  Instead, I said plainly, “Teach me cultivation.”

  She blinked.

  Then she stared at me as if I had just asked her whether the sky had always been purple. “Huh?”