After school, Fang Bai handed over the several packages of traditional Chinese medicine he had brought to Qin Yaorao, explaining to her how to prepare and take it. Qin Yaorao accepted the medicine and wanted to pay Fang Bai, but he firmly refused.
Qin Yaorao didn't continue to insist on being polite with Fang Bai, giving him a faint smile and saying, "Alright, once I've recovered from my illness, I'll treat you to a meal as a way to thank you."
"Then I'll be waiting for Teacher Qin to treat me."
When he left the teaching building, Fang Bai went to the bike shed, pushed out his bicycle, and was about to ride home when he saw a group of boys and girls chatting and laughing as they passed by.
Fang Bai looked up, glanced at the group of students, and his gaze fell on a girl with ear-length short hair, wearing a red dress, which made him pause in surprise.
Is that her?
Fang Bai, with memories of two lifetimes merged, quickly searched through the original owner of this body's memories and found information about the girl in the red dress.
Sun Ying, a student from class 1, grade 16, lived next door to Fang Bai's family. The two had been playmates from childhood, and had even discussed and decided together to apply to Zhongzhou Medical College.
In the eyes of many, Fang Bai and Sun Ying were childhood sweethearts and a perfect match made in heaven. Even their parents highly approved of them as a couple, and even harbored the idea of the two families becoming related by marriage in the future.
However, just a few months ago, Sun Ying, who had sworn undying love to Fang Bai, suddenly transferred her affections to a wealthy classmate, leaving Fang Bai, who was already grieving over his father's tragic car accident, to suffer yet another blow and ultimately fall into a state of utter dejection.
The Sun Ying in front of him was dressed in designer clothes and looked fashionable and trendy, fiddling with a fruit phone worth thousands, a far cry from the pure and simple girl-next-door image she had just a few months ago.
Clearly, Sun Ying had gained quite a lot from her new relationship with the wealthy second-generation boyfriend.
As Fang Bai's gaze turned towards Sun Ying, she also looked back at him. Their eyes met; Fang Bai remained indifferent while Sun Ying seemed somewhat embarrassed, quickly put away her phone and turned her head away guiltily.
As the class belle of class 1, grade 16, Sun Ying was also a beauty, but in Fang Bai's eyes now, she was only moderately attractive.
Compared to Qin Yaorao and Su Linglong, whom he had met before, Sun Ying was completely overshadowed in every respect.
The handsome young man in white walking beside Sun Ying was her new wealthy second-generation boyfriend, Liu Yichen, who was also in the same class as Sun Ying and quite a notable figure at Zhongzhou Medical College.
Liu Yichen obviously recognized Fang Bai.
When he saw Fang Bai, Liu Yichen's lips curled into a scornful, mocking smile, arrogantly wrapping an arm around Sun Ying and provocatively lifting his chin towards Fang Bai, as if to say, "I've taken your girl, what are you going to do about it?"
However, Liu Yichen didn't realize that this Fang Bai was not the same as before; in the eyes of the Fang Bai who stood before him, Sun Ying was no different from a total stranger.
Liu Yichen's provocative gesture seemed rather laughable to Fang Bai, who couldn't be bothered with them and continued pushing his bike to leave.
"Fang Bai, stop right there!"
After a few steps, Liu Yichen caught up from behind and blocked his path.
"What's it now?"
Fang Bai frowned slightly, stopping in his tracks.
"Nothing much, just a warning. Sun Ying is my girlfriend now, so stay away from her in the future!"
Liu Yichen, sporting glasses and a neat side parting that gave him a cultured appearance, spoke in a tone that was arrogant and domineering.
Of course, Liu Yichen had the right to be arrogant; although he wasn't like Mao Qiangdong, who had a brother from a Martial Arts School, his father was a well-known real estate magnate in Zhongzhou City, and their family was wealthy indeed.
Fang Bai shrugged and chuckled, "We all attend the same medical college. How far can I stay away?"
"As far as possible!"
Liu Yichen adjusted his glasses and said sternly, "If I catch you looking at Sun Ying, you'd better walk the other way! If I find out you're staring at her, I'll beat you up!"
Fang Bai grinned, parked his bike to the side, and then turned back towards Sun Ying, "I've been looking at her quite a bit just now, how many beatings do I owe you?"
"Jerk!"
Seeing Fang Bai openly provoking him, Liu Yichen's face darkened. He quickly took two steps forward and raised his hand to viciously slap Fang Bai's face.
Liu Yichen and Fang Bai were about the same height, but Liu Yichen's body was much more robust. He was confident that without even calling on his friends for help, he could beat Fang Bai to a bloom of sprightly spring flowers.
Ever since Fang Bai had opened his Qi Sea and acquired a strand of True Yuan, his reflexes had become exceedingly sharp. As Liu Yichen's slap came at him, Fang Bai didn't dodge or avert, but swung back with the same action, his own hand moving several times faster than Liu Yichen's.
Slap—
Liu Yichen's left cheek met with a palm strike, his body staggered, nearly causing him to fall over.
Fang Bai lifted his right foot and, taking advantage of the momentum, kicked Liu Yichen's butt. Amidst his scream, Liu Yichen's body lurched forward, and he face-planted into the roadside bushes with the classic "dog eating dirt" posture.
"Damn it, he dares to hit our Brother Liu!"
"Beat him up!"
The four companions of Liu Yichen charged towards Fang Bai with loud shouts.
Since his rebirth, this was the first time for Fang Bai to face multiple opponents alone.
If this had been two days earlier, Fang Bai would have had no choice but to flee with his head in his hands.
But now, his "Dragon-Tiger-Lion-Elephant Technique" had already reached the first level of the "Sea-Cleaving Realm", enabling him to face three to five physically ordinary students with ample confidence, both fearless and resolute.
As four boys rushed towards him, a fighting spirit surged within Fang Bai's chest. He clenched his fists excitedly, did not retreat but advanced, stepping forward to meet them.
The first boy reached Fang Bai, eyes glinting with ferocity, and threw a straight punch towards Fang Bai's chest.
Fang Bai's eyes flashed coldly as he threw a punch directly to meet the attack.
Slap—
The two fists met in mid-air, and the sound of bone colliding followed immediately.
The boy cried out miserably, squatting on the ground and cradling his fist, crying from the pain.
The second boy was agile, using the momentum of his run to leap three feet high, kicking out a stunningly sleek aerial side kick towards Fang Bai.
Boom—
Fang Bai stepped out with the "Divine Elephant Eight Desolate Steps", his left foot crossing obliquely and forcefully stomping on the ground, raising dust into the air.
The two boys charging from behind were startled by the force of Fang Bai's step, simultaneously halting their charge.
With his left foot striding forward and his body slightly tilted, Fang Bai propelled his left shoulder upward forcefully, hitting right between the legs of the boy who was mid-kick.
Ah—
Amidst cries of alarm, the boy was sent flying backward, landing squarely on top of Liu Yichen.
Liu Yichen was also out of luck, having just crawled out of the bushes and not yet steady, only to be hit by his airborne companion. The two rolled over together and ended up back in the bushes.
Fang Bai's moves were clean and swift; within the blink of an eye, he had rendered three of Liu Yichen's group incapable of fighting.
"The two of you, are you coming at me one by one, or together?"
Fang Bai gestured towards the remaining two boys with a hook of his finger, a mocking smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth.
Those two boys, looking at Fang Bai standing proud and imposing, exchanged glances, not daring to move forward.
"If you don't come at me, then I'll be leaving!"
Fang Bai turned and walked over to his bicycle without giving anyone at the scene another glance, mounted his bike, and rode away.
Everything that unfolded before her eyes shocked Sun Ying; it took her until Fang Bai had left to snap out of her stupor.
Watching Fang Bai's retreating figure, she bit her lip, her expression fluctuating.
She could never have imagined that Fang Bai, who was usually frail and timid, would erupt like a volcano today, like a tiger entering a flock of sheep, beating Liu Yichen and the others so badly they cried for their fathers and mothers, searching the ground for their teeth.
She also noticed that Fang Bai's face no longer held the dejected and defeated look of days past. What it carried now was self-confidence and determination, as well as indifference and disregard towards herself.
At this moment, Sun Ying felt as if she had lost the most precious thing in her life, which she could never get back.