An anguished scream still echoed through the Martial Arts Hall.
The Hongchang Martial Arts Hall coach didn’t dare say another harsh word. He struggled up from the ground, scrambled and stumbled his way out of the Extreme Martial Arts Hall’s entrance, and fled in disgrace.
And with that, the farce was over.
Qin Feng watched his pathetic, retreating figure and just smiled faintly.
He turned to the surrounding Martial Artists, who were still dumbstruck and in shock, and said gently, "Alright, it’s over now. Everyone, please continue your training."
His voice seemed to carry a calming power.
Everyone snapped out of it as if waking from a dream. Their gazes, as they looked at Qin Feng, were filled with awe and reverence.
They all gave Qin Feng friendly smiles and nods before tacitly dispersing back to their own training areas.
To have personally witnessed the meaning of a true powerhouse had an unparalleled impact on them.
Having dealt with the trouble, Qin Feng stepped down from the ring and walked straight over to Li Weiguo and Zhou Heyuan. With a familiar, gentle smile on his face, he took the initiative to greet them.
"Teacher Li, Zhou Heyuan, long time no see."
"Ah! Qin Feng!"
Li Weiguo’s face was flushed with excitement. He took a step forward and carefully sized up his former student, as if getting to know him all over again.
His eyes were filled with unconcealable joy and pride.
"Good kid! What a good kid! Congratulations on winning the Qiming General Star! I was watching the live broadcast of the competition, and I—your teacher—was ecstatic! You’ve really... you’ve really brought great honor to our Silver Seagull Community and our Thirteenth Middle School!"
"It was just a fluke."
Qin Feng said humbly.
Standing to the side, Zhou Heyuan looked at the Qin Feng before him, his emotions a tangled mess.
He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end, all that came out was a bitter laugh.
"Qin Feng, you... you’re now so strong I can’t even begin to comprehend it."
Once upon a time, he had been the "genius" of the class who suppressed Qin Feng at every turn. But now, the other man stood on a peak so high and distant that he would have to spend his entire life just to look up at it.
The group exchanged pleasantries for a while, catching up on each other’s recent lives.
Finally, Li Weiguo looked at the young man before him, whose temperament was calm and whose strength was unfathomable, and couldn’t help but be filled with emotion.
He let out a long sigh, his tone filled with boundless sentiment.
"Honestly, Qin Feng, even now, I can’t believe it. Who would have thought that the student I almost advised to drop out and go to a vocational school, the student whose life force index was only 0.41 in his third year of middle school, could actually walk this path step by step to where he is today, winning... the title of Qiming General Star, something every Martial Arts High School student on Planet Qiming dreams of."
His voice carried a hint of relief.
Relief that he hadn’t personally snuffed out a legend who was destined to light up the starry sky.
These words were like a stone tossed into a calm lake.
When Hou Yuwei, the young girl who had been standing to the side, too full of admiration to dare approach him, heard this, her bright, wide eyes instantly went round, and her small mouth fell slightly open in surprise.
’A life force index of only 0.4 in the third year of middle school?’
’H-how is that possible?!’
’That score wouldn’t even get you into a regular high school!’
’But now, he’s the Qiming General Star who suppressed all the geniuses on Planet Qiming, the one who could defeat both me and the Martial Arts Hall’s coach in a single move!’
’What kind of earth-shattering transformation could have happened in between?’
For a moment, as Hou Yuwei looked at Qin Feng, her gaze held not only its original worship and awe, but also a new, thick layer of curiosity and disbelief.
...
After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Qin Feng bid farewell to Li Weiguo and the others.
He walked up to the front desk of the Extreme Martial Arts Hall and said directly, "Hello, I’d like to get a monthly pass for a top-tier Martial Arts Room."
The staff member at the desk, who had clearly recognized the "Qiming General Star" who had just displayed such incredible power, hurriedly processed his request.
"Hello, Mr. Qin Feng. The monthly fee for a top-tier private Martial Arts Room is three thousand Imperial Coins."
"Alright."
Qin Feng paid the fee without hesitation.
He currently had a balance of nine hundred thousand Imperial Coins in his account, so three thousand was truly nothing to him.
With the monthly pass settled, Qin Feng turned and left the Extreme Martial Arts Hall, preparing to head home.
However, just as he stepped out of the Martial Arts Hall’s main entrance, a clear, slightly timid voice called out from behind him.
"Um... excuse me! Classmate Qin Feng!"
Qin Feng turned around and saw the young girl named Hou Yuwei standing there prettily.
Her cheeks were slightly flushed from nervousness, and she was anxiously twisting the hem of her clothes, but her bright eyes shone with the determined light of someone who had mustered her courage.
"Can I help you?"
Qin Feng asked.
"I... I... I want to..."
Hou Yuwei took a deep breath, as if using all her strength to finish the sentence. "Can I... add you as a friend on Subspace?"
After speaking, her face was already as red as a ripe apple.
Qin Feng was slightly taken aback.
He glanced at the girl before him and recalled how, on the ring earlier, she had stepped forward to righteously defend the reputation of the Extreme Martial Arts Hall and Master Sun, even though she was clearly no match.
’That’s some decent character.’
’Besides, she’s also someone who received Master Sun’s favor, so in a way, we share a certain bond as fellow disciples.’
Thinking of this, Qin Feng nodded.
"Alright."
Receiving his affirmative answer, Hou Yuwei’s face instantly bloomed with a look of absolute, joyful surprise.