Chapter 24: Warrior?

"Hmph!" Principal Sun suddenly snorted coldly, his voice indifferent as he said, "Killing them is just as well. He’ll gain an immense amount of spiritual energy, and Fang Qingyun will be the top scorer in this year's college entrance examination."

Many principals wanted to argue.

After all, their schools also had one or two geniuses, which gave them confidence.

But then they remembered Fang Qingyun already possessed around thirty points of spiritual energy, and after slaughtering these giant wolves, he would surely break through forty.

Their hearts skipped a beat.

They no longer had the courage to refute him.

With such a concentration of spiritual energy, aside from the direct heirs of great clans, it would be impossible to find another.

Principal Zhang also choked back his words, reluctantly protesting, "That’s not certain. Besides, our bet is on who can last until the end."

Once again, the two principals locked eyes, silently dueling.

Only the City Lord wore a smiling face.

No matter whether Zhou Yi or Fang Qingyun endured to the end, he was the true victor.

With both Fang Qingyun and Zhou Yi emerging from Flower City, the district’s higher-ups would certainly reward him.

Especially Fang Qingyun—a commoner who could wield more than thirty points of spiritual energy. That alone was enough to rival the ‘middle-ranked’ noble families.

He would have a chance to bask in glory within the district.

...

Bang!

When the alpha wolf dodged another bullet, Fang Qingyun stopped firing.

Half the ammunition of the light machine gun had already been spent.

He had about sixty rounds left!

In addition, there were two pistol magazines, with forty rounds in total.

That was his entire arsenal.

A furious howl broke from the alpha wolf, which, seeing that the gunfire had ceased, bellowed an order for the pack to attack.

The massive wolves crept cautiously closer to Fang Qingyun’s hiding place in the tree, slashing their claws viciously at the trunk.

Chunks of wood flew in all directions.

Fang Qingyun paid them no heed.

Instantly, the giant wolves grew bolder, rampaging against the tree with wild abandon.

Some even attempted to climb up and bite him.

Fang Qingyun’s earlier assault had stoked their rage as well.

He glanced at them, checked the time, and calculated silently.

No, it’s still too early by a few minutes.

He shook his head. He needed to ensure that as soon as he descended, the second tidal transformation would begin.

But the wolves’ progress was clearly too swift.

He needed to delay them by a few more minutes.

Rat-tat-tat!

Fang Qingyun fired a few shots at the distant alpha wolf.

The alpha, ever vigilant, dodged quickly.

It snarled in frustration, howling again and again.

Hearing the gunshots, the other wolves also retreated, unwilling to continue their assault.

They had truly been terrified by the last barrage.

A few more hits and their lives would be forfeit.

Fang Qingyun smiled faintly. "Easy, mutt, don’t get nervous."

The alpha wolf roared in fury, charging forward first. Its razor-sharp claws gripped the tree as it began to climb.

He chuckled, not even bothering to aim, and idly squeezed the trigger.

He didn’t care where the shots went.

So long as it made noise.

Rat-tat!

The alpha wolf leapt away in an instant, putting distance between itself and the tree.

The pack tensed as well.

There was no chance of hitting anything; the bullets shot off into the sky.

The alpha glared at Fang Qingyun with bared fangs, circling restlessly and growling low.

It charged again, clawing at the tree, its eyes locked on Fang Qingyun.

Fang Qingyun leveled the gun at it and held his breath.

The alpha sensed a killing intent and froze.

Just then, Fang Qingyun’s lips mimicked the sound: "Rat-tat!"

The alpha wolf’s muscles tensed, and it instinctively backed away.

But it forced itself to hold its ground.

A hint of amusement flickered in Fang Qingyun’s eyes.

Nothing happened.

The alpha was nearly driven mad.

It, king of wolves, was being toyed with by a mere human!

With a frenzied howl, it ordered all the wolves to attack.

Death was not a reason to stop!

Watching the giant wolves throw themselves at the tree, Fang Qingyun sighed.

"Have you ever heard the story called ‘The Boy Who Cried Wolf’?"

Rat-tat-tat!

This time, he truly fired.

The light machine gun spat fire.

Combined with Fang Qingyun's intermediate marksmanship, a hail of bullets rained down upon the wolves.

Howls of agony erupted.

Some of them had not believed he would shoot; others tried to dodge.

But none of them expected that not only did he fire, but he did so with such ruthless abandon.

Unlike before, he emptied all sixty rounds in one go.

What’s more, he fired with deadly precision.

One giant wolf was killed on the spot.

The rest were variously wounded.

The worst off staggered as it walked, nearly collapsing several times.

The alpha wolf charged again, now wild with excitement, its massive frame barreling through the pack, sending several wolves flying.

It saw it—Fang Qingyun’s gun was empty.

At last! The moment had come.

Its eyes were bloodshot, its breath ragged, and its charge accelerated.

It would tear Fang Qingyun apart!

And then devour him!

No—before killing him, it wanted Fang Qingyun to watch as he was eaten alive.

"Heh heh..."

Watching the alpha climb the tree, Fang Qingyun gave a ferocious grin and did something wholly unexpected.

He hefted the light machine gun and, using all his strength, smashed it down toward the alpha.

The secret realm was suffused with a unique pressure.

Old Li had said it could be considered gravity.

But that was not the case!

Weapons were affected within the secret realm, but not as much as living beings.

Still, they undeniably grew heavier.

A human without spiritual energy would find their own weight doubled. With spiritual energy, weight increased further.

Weapons, however, always doubled in weight.

In other words, a light machine gun from the Azure Moon World, typically weighing over thirty pounds, would weigh about seventy pounds here!

Fang Qingyun gripped it upright, barrel pointing down.

Bang!

With a dull thud, the alpha wolf, halfway up the tree, was struck and flung to the ground.

It let out a hideous scream; a deep dent was visible in its body.

No—

Its body was badly deformed, writhing in pain on the ground.

The machine gun itself was completely shattered by the impact, a heap of twisted metal.

Only the barrel remained, embedded in the alpha’s body.

...

"Impossible!"

In the city administration office, Principal Zhang could no longer contain himself and leapt to his feet, shrieking, "How can he possibly be that strong?"

A light machine gun, smashed to pieces!

The alpha wolf, crushed and gravely wounded.

Moreover, from their vantage point, they could clearly see the moment Fang Qingyun hurled the machine gun, it had already warped from the force.

Why didn’t the alpha dodge?

It couldn’t!

Fang Qingyun’s strength was so great, the speed of the swing rivaled that of a bullet.

Not just Principal Zhang—everyone else gasped.

Watching the surveillance feed, they could scarcely believe their eyes.

They had always assumed Fang Qingyun possessed the strength of a quasi-martial artist.

That was a measure of overall ability—a sum of all attributes, very close to a true warrior.

But the raw power Fang Qingyun had just displayed was clearly on par with a quasi-martial artist.

Was it not that his physique alone could withstand the secret realm's pressure, but rather his sheer strength that allowed him to endure?

Superb marksmanship, overwhelming strength, and a formidable constitution.

How could this possibly be a mere quasi-martial artist?

Aside from his inability to wield spiritual energy, he was already a warrior.

On the battlefield, an ordinary martial artist would hardly be a match for this gunman.

The college recruiters’ eyes all turned red with envy.