~~~

Liu Jin’s body twists, so instead of his back crashing against the ceiling, he lands on his feet, diminishing the force of the impact as he bends his knees. Three of his fingers touch the ceiling as his eyes zero in on his opponent, his red eyes almost glowing.

Before gravity can do its job, he lunges.

His body bounces off the ceiling. A sonic boom rings through the training room as Liu Jin breaks the speed of sound, flying through the air like a cannonball, his Qi blazing around him. It is not the force of someone in the Ninth Level of the Inner Realm.

It is the power of someone who has reached the First Level of the Nascent Realm.

Xiao Nan counters with ease.

The young man barely moves his body, yet in the blink of an eye, Xiao Nan vanishes from Liu Jin’s sight, leaving him passing through empty air. However, that is not all. As Liu Jin passes by, Xiao Nan’s arms blur, and suddenly, Liu Jin finds his momentum turned against him. Even though he doesn’t even feel the moment in which Xiao Nan touches him, Liu Jin is somehow upside down now, his head mere inches from the ground.

There is no way for him to switch directions in time. Liu Jin crashes against the wooden floor of the training room.

Quickly, Liu Jin rolls to his feet. The motion is neither fluid nor graceful, but it is speed Liu Jin is after. However, it is not enough. Liu Jin looks up and finds Xiao Nan’s fist coming down towards him. He brings his hands up in a desperate attempt to block.

He need not have bothered.

Xiao Fang chooses that instant to attack

The Xiao Sect's Young Master comes from Xiao Nan's blindspot, his body propelled by the acceleration granted to him by his fastest Ground Contraction. Even Liu Jin's eyes barely manage to catch a glimpse of Xiao Fang's form blurring towards Xiao Nan, his fists stretched out before him, his entire body a battering ram.

For a moment, Liu Jin almost believes Xiao Fang has scored a hit.

Alas, it is for naught.

Xiao Fang passes through nothing but air, his momentum causing him to trip over Liu Jin a fraction of a second later. It is yet another reminder of who they are up against. This is Xiao Nan, the strongest prodigy of Eastern Port City. Liu Jin may have reached the First Level of the Nascent Realm, and Xiao Fang may already be in the Seventh Level of it, but before Xiao Nan, those things don't matter.

He is Xiao Nan, and they are not.

It is that simple.

Of course, that doesn't mean they are going to give up. Rising to their feet with eyes full of determination, they nod at each other, an understanding passing between them.

They charge.

Liu Jin goes for the left and Xiao Fang for the right. Moving as fast as their legs allow them to, they are on Xiao Nan in less time than it takes for a butterfly to flap its wings. Punches and kicks fly as Liu Jin and Xiao Fang attack in perfect tandem with each other, each doing their best to minimize the number of safe angles around Xiao Nan. Not even once do they get in each other's way.

And yet, they remain unable to score a single hit on Xiao Nan.

The strongest prodigy of his generation moves in between them with impossible grace. It is almost like he is dancing. He ducks and weaves in between their blows, only occasionally using his hands to bat aside a stray kick or punch, and he does it with such gentleness, the two can barely feel him.

It is ridiculous.

Certainly, Xiao Nan is in the late stages of the Earth Realm, which is the sixth of all cultivation realms. By comparison, Liu Jin and Xiao Fang are only in the Nascent Realm, the third of all cultivation realms. The difference between them is that of three cultivation realms, but even saying that doesn’t get close to expressing the vast abyss between them. For Liu Jin and Xiao Fang to do anything against Xiao Nan is simply impossible.

At least, that would be the case if Xiao Nan were using his full power.

However, that is not what is happening right now. In fact, Xiao Nan is not even using half his full power. Right now, Xiao Nan is only using as much power as that of someone in the Spirit Realm, the fourth of all cultivation realms.

In other words, it is fully within Liu Jin and Xiao Fang’s combined power to match the current Xiao Nan.

That is how it should be.

The reality is anything but.

Even while limiting himself this far, Xiao Nan is still superior to them by this much.

How annoying.

Liu Jin’s feelings are clearly shared by Xiao Fang if the angry scowl on his face is any indication. Liu Jin feels Xiao Fang’s Qi spike in a, by now, somewhat familiar way. There is no need for Xiao Fang to tell him what he is planning because he already understands it. The Qi around Liu Jin spikes and changes nature as he seeks to occupy the bulk of Xiao Nan’s attention.

White Venom Fist!

His fists glow with power as Liu Jin seeks to strike Xiao Nan with poisonous Qi, his body moving with unnatural fluidity.

“I do not mean to offend, Little Brother,” Xiao Nan says as he keeps moving just outside the reach of his fists, “but you truly don’t have much luck using this technique.”

Liu Jin’s eyebrow twitches.

It might be true.

That doesn’t mean he has to like it. Instead of rising to Xiao Nan’s provocation, Liu Jin switches to a technique he has had success using.

Art of the Roaming Thief.

His form vanishes from Xiao Nan’s sight, and at that moment, Xiao Fang strikes with all his might.

Void Fist!

Everything within six yards of Xiao Nan is utterly destroyed in the blink of an eye. The floor and the ceiling of the training room cannot withstand the distortion of Xiao Fang’s Void Fist. They shatter in a thousand tiny pieces and crumble, forming a deep crater in the space Xiao Nan used to occupy.

Used to.

Xiao Nan dodging that attack was only to be expected, and Liu Jin and Xiao Fang are ready for it. In fact, this is what they hoped for.

In order for Xiao Nan to dodge that attack just now, he’d have needed to use Ground Contraction, a move that lowers one’s visibility and ability to counter-attack. Thus, Xiao Nan is at his most vulnerable right now.

As Xiao Nan’s Ground Contraction comes to an end, Xiao Fang comes at him with a kick to the face while Liu Jin aims for his legs. Xiao Nan jumps and tries to twist his body away from Xiao Fang’s kick. Liu Jin barely manages to make contact with Xiao Nan’s robes before he vanishes, using Ground Contraction once more.

Xiao Nan reappears on the other side of the training room. However, there is a key difference.

There is a scratch on the side of his face.

Distantly, Liu Jin hears Su An and Big Nose Li cry with joy, but he cannot afford to take his eyes off Xiao Nan.

“Well, well, well,” Xiao Nan says, touching his cheek. “It looks like you two have improved.”

No more words are said after that. The battle begins anew.

Needless to say, Liu Jin and Xiao Fang lose.

~~~

“I am impressed. You almost had me.”

Xiao Nan’s words would be a lot more credible if his two opponents weren’t lying on the floor, utterly exhausted, their clothes dirty with sweat, their faces all red. Big Nose Li is kneeling at Xiao Fang’s side, fanning his face. Su An, meanwhile, has placed Liu Jin’s head in her lap.

“Cousin… I… hate you.”

That Xiao Fang can even get that much out in between pants is worthy of praise. The heir of the Xiao Sect even manages to turn his head to the side, so he’s glaring at Xiao Nan. By comparison, Liu Jin can only stare at the ceiling, his chest rising and falling with heavy breaths.

Xiao Nan laughs.

“I speak truly, cousin. To think you always got in each other’s way when we started doing this.”

It began more than a month ago. At Xiao Nan’s suggestion, Liu Jin and Xiao Fang had teamed up to spar against him. It goes without saying they lost miserably, but that marked the start of a trend. They would team up against Xiao Nan at least two times every week.

The ease with which Xiao Nan defeated them only served to spark Xiao Fang’s competitive spirit, and Liu Jin would be lying if he said it didn’t motivate him as well.

“I never imagined you’d push me this far this quickly.”

“Elder Brother… is still limiting himself,” Liu Jin manages to say.

“Naturally.” Xiao Nan crosses his arms with an amused look on his face. “Little Brother, I am much more experienced than the two of you put together. I have fought more times in a month than you have fought in your entire lives. From the beginning, it was impossible for you to defeat me. Even landing a single hit on me is not within your power.”

It says a lot about Xiao Nan that he can say something like that without sounding boastful or arrogant. There is nothing mean-spirited in the way he speaks. He is not looking down on them or trying to make them feel bad. If anything, the way his eyes shine makes it clear how proud he is of them.

“It is a pity that we will not be able to do this again for quite some time.”

Liu Jin and Xiao Fang stay silent at that. This time, the reason has little to do with their exhaustion.

After all, today is the day.

Today, Xiao Fang will leave Eastern Port City.

It is a tradition of the Xiao Sect, and apparently, it is one shared by many of the larger Sects. The Xiao Sect has many branches all over the country. Xiao Fang, as the prospective heir, must visit all of them. It would not do for someone to assume command of the Xiao Sect without knowing everything there is to know about it.

The goodbye feast already took place yesterday. Today is the day in which Xiao Fang begins his trip. Some say he will be away for an entire year, but Liu Jin is certain it will take much more than that.

His stay in New Moon Town has taught him that much.

“We could have sparred more if someone weren’t so busy as of late.”

“I apologize,” Liu Jin says, knowing he is at fault on this.

“Now, now, it is fine. You need time to recover between each spar. Overdoing it is no good,” Xiao Nan notes. “It is best if we stop now. You two need to prepare. Uncle will want all of us looking our best for your departure, cousin.”

“Alright,” Xiao Fang says, standing up. He looks at Liu Jin. “By the way, are you still sure...”

Liu Jin nods.

“I am.”

Xiao Fang snorts.

“I never thought I’d meet someone who’d turn down a Riding Beast. You even helped find them, so no one would complain if you took one.”

The eggs they found in Doctor Wu’s clinic had been identified by the Xiao Sect as Black-Winged Imperial Eagle eggs, a rare and valuable breed of Spirit Beast. They could grow to sizes much larger than a horse and could fly at high speeds even while carrying heavy burdens. That made them very desirable as Riding Beasts. No doubt, Doctor Wu planned to give them to Yun Han after he won the Eastern Port City Tournament.

Xiao Fang had been given one of the eggs during the goodbye feast yesterday and had received the authority to decide who would receive the other two.

He offered one to Liu Jin right away.

“I do not really see the need for one.” If he weren’t on Su An’s lap, Liu Jin would have shrugged his shoulders. “Such things are for people who travel a lot. It’d be wasted on me.”

“I wonder. I travel a lot. Should I be offended you have yet to offer me one of those eggs, cousin?”

Xiao Fang snorts.

“You’re close to the Heaven Realm already, aren’t you? No one would forgive me for giving a tiger yet another set of wings.”

~~~

Hours later, Liu Jin is saying goodbye to Xiao Fang.

The heir of the Xiao Sect is not going alone. He is taking Big Nose Li with him. The older disciple couldn’t stop talking about how he’d meet his brother in the capital for a full week after receiving the news.

Other than Big Nose Li, Xiao Fang will be accompanied by a few other disciples, some servants, and an Elder. He is also bringing with him gifts to give to the branches of the Xiao Sect he will be visiting during his journey.

Xiao Fang will definitely not be returning in one year. Maybe not even in two years.

What a pity. Less than a year ago, Liu Jin would have never imagined he’d find himself sad over Xiao Fang leaving the city, yet now he can’t help but curse the unfairness of it.

To think he is leaving only when they are finally getting along.

“When I return, let’s have a proper spar,” Xiao Fang tells him.

Liu Jin smiles.

“I would like that.”

~~~