Lie was rapidly burning through his stamina. His chest was heaving, his Dou Qi flickering erratically. Frustration began to boil over into pure, unadulterated anger.
"Stop running like a coward!" Lie cursed loudly, his face flushing red. "Fight back!"
He drew back his right fist, pouring the very last reserves of his Dou Qi into a desperate, telegraphed, straight punch aimed squarely at Yoriichi's face.
'He has exhausted his reserves and completely compromised his center of gravity. There is no further data to be gained from observing him,' Yoriichi noted internally. 'I will end this now.'
As the glowing green fist rocketed toward him, Yoriichi finally moved.
He didn't retreat. He stepped inside Lie's guard.
With incredibly smooth, terrifyingly precise control over his physical strength, Yoriichi bypassed the punch entirely. He raised his right hand and delivered a single, sharp, two-finger strike directly to the cluster of meridians located on the back of Lie's right shoulder—the scapula.
Tap.
It wasn't a bone-breaking blow, but the absolute precision of the strike temporarily severed the flow of Dou Qi to the boy's upper quadrant.
Lie's eyes rolled back. His entire right arm went completely numb, and the sudden disruption of his kinetic energy caused his legs to give out. He stumbled backward a few steps, completely losing his balance, and collapsed onto the stone floor, gasping for breath.
The ring fell completely silent.
Standing at the edge of the arena, the instructor's eyes widened in genuine surprise. He had been watching closely. He hadn't seen a massive eruption of power or a Dou Skill. He had seen an absolute, flawless mastery of timing and anatomical precision.
'Such a smooth, effortless victory,' the instructor thought, deeply intrigued. 'To neutralize an opponent with a single, perfectly placed strike... his combat foundation is terrifyingly solid. He is incredibly strong for a one-star Dou Zhe, comparatively far beyond the usual standard of a C-rank recruit. I must observe him closely in the future.'
"Winner, Xiao Ning," the instructor announced, signaling for a pair of students to help the groggy, cursing Lie Shan off the floor.
Yoriichi offered a polite, shallow bow to his defeated opponent, turned around, and walked out of the ring as calmly as he had entered it, completely ignoring the awestruck whispers of the other forty-eight students.
A few hours later, the afternoon combat session was officially dismissed.
Eager to escape the suffocating crowds, Yoriichi swiftly navigated the winding paths of the academy and returned to his quiet sanctuary.
The contrast between the noisy, dusty arena and his luxurious assigned living quarters was immense. He walked into the traditional wooden house, stripped off his sweaty academy uniform, and thoroughly washed himself in the private bathing room.
He changed into a set of loose, dark, comfortable indoor robes, leaving his katana resting on the wooden rack inside his bedroom.
Stepping back out into the cool evening air, Yoriichi walked over to the edge of the small, crystal-clear pond situated within his private rock garden. He sat down cross-legged on the smooth stones, closing his eyes, and allowed his breathing to slow into a deep, rhythmic cycle.
He was contemplating the Water element.
While the morning classes had been a waste of his time, his mind was entirely focused on a far more important curriculum: his sister's training. Xiao Yu's physical foundation, brutally tempered by the four-hundred-pound metal vest over the last two weeks, had finally reached the threshold where her meridians could handle the explosive pressure of a customized breathing technique.
'Her Dou Qi is inherently fluid, but it lacks the cutting pressure of a tidal wave,' Yoriichi analyzed in the quiet of his mind, visualizing the graceful arcs of her whip. 'If I adapt the First Form: Water Surface Slash to travel along the length of a flexible weapon, she could generate enough kinetic force to sever steel...'
He was patiently waiting for Xiao Yu to arrive. She had mentioned she would find him after her own, separate classes in the senior D-rank sector.
A few minutes passed in absolute tranquility.
Suddenly, the sharp, unnatural sound of the courtyard's wooden gate being violently shoved open shattered the peace.
CRACK!
Yoriichi's eyes snapped open. The crimson irises were perfectly calm, but a dangerous, absolute stillness settled over his posture.
He didn't sense his sister's familiar, gentle aura. He sensed five distinct, hostile, and incredibly agitated auras.
Yoriichi slowly stood up from the edge of the pond. He turned to face the entrance of the courtyard.
Barging through the beautiful, manicured rock garden was Lie—the energetic boy he had effortlessly dismantled in the arena just hours ago. But he wasn't alone. He had brought four of his academy mates with him, all older youths of likely senior outer sect students. They radiated the auras of three and four-star Dou Zhes.
Lie's face was twisted in a savage, humiliated scowl. He had likely tracked Yoriichi through the dormitory sectors, perhaps bribing a clerk or following him at a distance, determined to reclaim his lost pride by establishing dominance over the "arrogant freshman."
"You think you're special, huh?!" Lie shouted, his voice echoing obnoxiously across the peaceful courtyard. He gestured aggressively to the luxurious surroundings, clearly shocked and infuriated that a fellow C-rank had such a grand estate. "You got lucky in the ring today, Xiao! Let's see you dodge when you're outnumbered!"
The four older students cracked their knuckles, fanning out slightly to cut off any avenues of escape, their faces wearing the cruel, mocking smiles of academy bullies accustomed to extorting new recruits.
Yoriichi did not flinch. He did not shout back.
He simply stepped away from the pond, walking with a slow, measured, and utterly silent gait. He stopped roughly twenty paces away from the group, standing tall and perfectly relaxed in his loose dark robes.
He looked at the five intruders, his crimson eyes reflecting the fading light of the evening sun, and a profound, chilling silence descended upon the courtyard.