Not long after Qin Xuan and his companions had taken their leave, an unforeseen group of visitors showed up at the Han Feng Dojo.
Han Pu, the chairman of Qingshan Construction Company, arrived at the entrance of the dojo, his face etched with worry lines. Despite his position as the head of the construction firm, he had under his wing a crew dedicated to demolition work.
"Brother Long is really putting me through the wringer!" he muttered under his breath, his brows knitting tightly together. In Jing Shui City, the Han Feng Dojo was a name to be reckoned with. Even the underlings of Mo Yunlong would likely get a thrashing if they dared set foot inside. And now, he was tasked with tearing it down?
The thought of Mo Yunlong's repeated injunctions filled Han Pu with a bitter taste.
"Brother Han, the lads are all set and ready!" an architect reported, approaching Han Pu.
"I'll pop in and have a peek first," Han Pu hesitated for a moment before making his way into the dojo.
Once inside, he was rooted to the spot, dumbfounded.
The floor was smeared with blood, bodies strewn about haphazardly. Even Li Xisheng, the renowned taekwondo virtuoso of Jing Shui City, lay sprawled and limp on the ground.
"Good heavens! Who on earth could have done this?" Han Pu's eyes bulged in disbelief as he took in the grisly scene.
To his astonishment, the entire Han Feng Dojo had been decimated. But in that split second of shock, a grin spread across his face.
"Brother Long wasn't pulling my leg after all!"
Overjoyed, he wheeled around and barked, "You lot, go in and haul out the people inside. Then, let's get cracking!"
When the workers rushed in, they too were aghast, exchanging glances of bewilderment. Under Han Pu's sharp command, they sprang into action.
Within a matter of minutes, much to Li Xisheng's fury and despair, the dojo he had painstakingly nurtured for years was reduced to a rubble-strewn wasteland, clouds of dust billowing in the air.
Not far off, a crowd had gathered, murmuring and speculating on the sudden demise of the Han Feng Dojo.
Among them were two elegant figures who happened to be passing by.
They stood transfixed, staring at the flattened remains of the dojo. A thought sprang to their minds.
"He actually went through with it and demolished the Han Feng Dojo!" He Yu stammered, her youthful face a mask of astonishment.
When Qin Xuan had first made the claim, she'd dismissed it as idle boasting. Little did she expect that, in the blink of an eye, the famed dojo would be reduced to ruins.
She and Xiao Wu were on their way home from school when they chanced upon this staggering sight.
"Was it Mo Yunlong's doing?" Xiao Wu whispered softly, a ripple of intrigue in her eyes.
A man's word is his bond!
Qin Xuan had once again managed to astonish Xiao Wu and pique her curiosity about his true identity.
For three long years of high school, he'd been as ordinary as they come. But in just a few short days, he'd compelled her to see him in a new light, time and time again.
It was as if he were shrouded in countless veils of mystery. The closer she got to him, the more her curiosity burned.
Back at home, He Yu remained in a daze, leaning against the window, lost in thought.
How had Qin Xuan pulled it off? When had he become such a force to be reckoned with?
The more she mulled it over, the more confused she grew. She'd known him for ages, yet now it felt as if she were meeting him for the first time.
The mauling of Zhao Mingyu and the razing of the Han Feng Djo—these two incidents had whipped up a tempest in her heart that refused to subside.
"Xiao Yu, what's wrong with you?" He Yun, He Yu's elder sister, approached, sensing her unease.
He Yu turned her head, her face a picture of bewilderment. "Sister, what do you do when someone you thought you knew like the back of your hand suddenly becomes a stranger? It's like you've never really known them at all."
He Yun frowned slightly, casting a glance at He Yu. "Xiao Yu, you're not sweet on someone at school, are you?"
In love?
He Yu's face hardened in an instant. "As if! None of those guys at school are worth my time!"
"Even if there were, they'd have to outshine me academically first!"
He Yun's gaze lingered on He Yu's face, making her squirm a bit.
"Glad to hear it's not that," He Yun sighed in relief and smiled as she addressed He Yu's query. "People change. Just get to know them again."
Get to know them again?
He Yu murmured to herself, and soon enough, she regained her confidence.
So what if he's a good fighter? In this day and age, brute strength alone doesn't cut it!
Qin Xuan, don't think that just because you've bulked up your fighting skills, I'll overlook your abysmal academic record.
Meanwhile, inside the Jing Shui Pearl Villa, Qin Xuan was seated cross-legged in the living room, a faint wisp of white mist swirling around him like ethereal silk.
"If only we had formation materials, the spiritual energy here could be a good ten times denser," he mused wistfully.
In this modern world, spiritual items were as rare as hen's teeth. Had he been in the Cultivation Realm, he'd likely have advanced to the middle stage of Qi Refining by now.
Suddenly, the spiritual mist began to spread outward in all directions, snaking like filaments and seeping into the various power outlets dotted around the villa.
The Purple Thunder Palm!
To master this supernatural technique, one had to temper it with the raw power of thunder and refine the palms to an extraordinary degree.
Streams of electricity coursed along the spiritual conduits, hurtling towards Qin Xuan's hands. Some of these currents arced through the air in a brilliant cyan display. With the Everlasting Green Technique churning within him, Qin Xuan set about tempering his palms as per the Purple Thunder Palm's arduous regimen.
The moment the electricity made contact with his palms, a cacophony of crackling sounds erupted.
His hands were instantly cloaked in a shroud of cyan electricity.
The searing current began to seep slowly from his skin into his flesh and blood. With a sickening pop, the skin on his palms split open.
Blackened and charred patches marred his palms.
Yet, with the Everlasting Green Technique fueling his body's regenerative powers, Qin Xuan's face remained impassive. It was as if he felt no pain at all. And indeed, his hands were gradually knitting themselves back together.
Qin Xuan's hands were caught in a perpetual cycle of destruction and rebirth within the green thunder's embrace.
At daybreak, Qin Xuan's hands were no longer damaged. Instead, they bore a delicate, jade-like sheen. The surrounding spiritual mist had long since dissipated. Qin Xuan slowly opened his eyes.
A glimmer of satisfaction flashed in his eyes as he beheld his hands.
Thanks to his Everlasting Green Physique and the modern world's abundant electricity, he'd managed to elevate the Purple Thunder Palm to the coveted "Jade Hand" realm overnight.
Qin Xuan flexed his fingers ever so slightly. Wisps of green thunder danced at his fingertips like mischievous sprites.
With a sudden clenching of his fist, all the green thunder vanished in a puff of smoke, and his palm's jade-like hue faded away, returning to normal.
"I reckon it won't take more than a month to fully master the 'Jade Hand' realm. What a pity that to progress to the 'Thunder Bone' realm, one must draw on heavenly thunder as a guide and ingest its qi. Ordinary lightning just won't cut it." Qin Xuan stood up slowly, heaving a sigh.
He readied himself and headed for school.
After that eventful night, Qin Xuan was the talk of the town at school. On his way to school, whispers trailed him like shadows.
Even during the morning classes, a parade of curious onlookers, including some fetching young ladies, tiptoed into his classroom to steal a peek.
"Qin Xuan, here you go!" Meng De tossed a stack of envelopes at Qin Xuan, a tinge of envy in his voice. "These are from Mengmeng's classmates. They asked me to give them to you."
The envelopes were a delicate shade of pink, adorned with unmistakable heart-shaped imprints. Meng De didn't need to look twice to know they were love letters.
Qin Xuan didn't even spare them a glance. "Toss them," he said simply.
Toss them?
Meng De gaped at him in disbelief before shrugging helplessly. "Right. You're with Xiao Wu now. Why would you bother with these run-of-the-mill girls?"
Qin Xuan shook his head with a smile and said nothing more.
Suddenly, two middle-aged policemen in crisp uniforms materialized at the classroom door, sending a shockwave through the class.
"Who's Qin Xuan?" one of them barked.
The room fell silent in an instant.
Qin Xuan opened his eyes a fraction, frowned, and stood up. "I am," he said calmly.
The policemen glanced up, brandishing an arrest warrant. "We suspect you were involved in two malicious wounding incidents yesterday. Please come with us to the police station to assist with our investigation."