Chapter 33: But You Can Have Me

　　If Master Thirteen wanted to groom a superstar warrior, countless warriors at the Seventh or Eighth Energy Martial Stages would clamber to his doorstep and beg him for the opportunity. He did not lack powerful warriors. At the very least, a mere Nameless Warrior was definitely not worth taking such a massive risk for. One had to realize that in saving Qi Ying, Master Thirteen had killed a bunch of Celestial River Academy disciples and incurred the wrath of the Duan family.

　　Thus, Qi Ying was very curious about why Master Thirteen held him in such high regard.

　　Furthermore, just how powerful was Master Thirteen?

　　Qi Ying felt like he was quite possibly a Spirit Martial Stage warrior.

　　“The Nameless Warrior is not worth it, but Qi Ying is, no?” Master Thirteen smiled, “In the Celestial River County, I can easily protect you without any issues. All you need to know is that I see great potential in you and I will make a lot of money if you keep fighting for me at the Colosseum.”

　　“If you don’t tell me the truth, I will feel very uneasy about receiving your kindness.”

　　Qi Ying shook his head.

　　Aside from one’s family, no one would extend kindness toward them for no reason. In particular, Master Thirteen was an extremely successful businessman. He never made investments unless he could profit from the returns, so how was it possible that he had done all of this just for Qi Ying to continue to fight for him?

　　Master Thirteen contemplated for a moment before continuing. “Alright then, let me tell you the truth. I see great potential in you and the Young Mistress of the Qin family. I believe that you will rise to unprecedented heights in the future, and I’m giving you some benefits now in the hope that you can give me far greater benefits in the future. Is that a good enough explanation.”

　　“I guess…”

　　Qi Ying felt like something was amiss, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.

　　Master Thirteen had provided a valid reason, but why did he have so much faith in him? In terms of social status, he was worlds apart from the Young Mistress of the Qin family, so why would he draw a connection between the two of them?

　　Master Thirteen glanced at Qi Ying and said. “You’ve already reached the First Energy Martial Stage from the Eighth Strength Martial Stage since I last saw you two days ago. If you continue like this, what cultivation base will you reach in twenty days? Even I believe in you, so why don’t you believe in yourself?”

　　Qi Ying was rooted to the spot upon hearing those words; he felt a lump in his throat, that was rendering him unable to speak. He was momentarily silent before finally joining his hands in a salute and extending a grateful bow toward Master Thirteen. “Thank you for saving me today. No, you have saved both myself and Mother Yu. I will never forget your kindness. If I really do rise to the heights you anticipate from me, I will be sure to repay you for everything!”

　　A faint smile appeared on Master Thirteen’s face. “Just hearing that from you tells me that I was right to save you! Go back to the academy now. The entire county must be in turmoil after such a big event. Remember, even if you punch a hole in the sky, here in the Celestial River County, I’ll be here to clean up the mess for you! Don’t worry about the Duan family; they won’t be able to do anything to you!”

　　“Alright, I’ll be taking my leave now.”

　　Qi Ying picked up his belongings and quickly left the room. Not long after he left, a squeak sounded within the room as a secret door was opened on the wall. A gorgeous figure clothed in a set of purple robes emerged from a hidden chamber therein.

　　“Is he really that special?”

　　Lu Feifei wore a surprised expression as she made her way over to Master Thirteen.

　　Master Thirteen murmured in response. “Of course. However, the more outstanding he becomes, the more attention he’ll attract, and the more trouble he will cause… Looks like I’m going to be quite busy soon!”

　　“Heh.”

　　Lu Feifei’s eyes glowed with a hint of desire. “I really want him after hearing you say that.”

　　“You won’t get him.”

　　Master Thirteen sighed.

　　“Hmph, I’ll just have to try a few more times…”

　　Lu Feifei was unwilling to give up. Her brows suddenly furrowed as an arm found its way around her waist and a lustful male voice sounded beside his ear, “But you can have me.”

　　“Hmph.”

　　Lu Feifei pushed Master Thirteen aside. “What happened that day was just an accident… I must have him no matter the cost! He’s at the Celestial River Academy, right? Heh… just you wait!”

　　…

　　After leaving the Colosseum, Qi Ying immediately returned to the Celestial River Academy. On the way back, all he heard were conversations about how Duan Tianshan and the others had been killed. Even after returning to the academy, he discovered that all of the disciples were also discussing the same thing. Upon seeing Qi Ying, all of them began to point and cast surreptitious glances at him while discussing in hushed tones. Qi Ying was only able to catch a few snippets of their conversations such as “Duan Xilai”, “came”, “looking for the principal”, and things of that nature.

　　Qi Ying couldn’t be bothered to pay them any heed. He had to keep as low a profile as possible, since everyone knew that he was on bad terms with Duan Tianshan, so his top priority was to clear himself off all suspicion. Thus, he made his way to the mountain behind the academy and walked toward the courtyard.

　　The sun was beginning to set as Qi Ying quickly traversed through the forest path. When he reached the courtyard, he could already see the sunset on the horizon. His brows immediately furrowed upon reaching the place. There were people there!

　　Qi Ying’s heart jumped to his throat and he became extremely tense as he thought back to what had happened yesterday. Thus, he immediately began to accelerate and hurried his way into the courtyard.

　　“Who are they…?”

　　Qi Ying asked with furrowed brows at the sight of the unfamiliar middle-aged men there.

　　Xuan Yu made her way out of the room before giving a reply, “Qi Ying, these are the Principal and the Elders from the academy, and they’re here to see you. Make sure to cooperate with them and tell them everything you know.”

　　Among the middle-aged men present, a thin man in grey clothes said to Qi Ying, “So you’re Qi Ying. Quite a handsome young man you are. My surname is Gu, so you can call me Principal Gu.”

　　“Feel free to ask me any question, Principal Gu.”

　　Qi Ying nodded.

　　This man was the Principal of the academy, Gu Shiwei. He very rarely appeared before the students and was quite a mysterious man. However, it was indeed quite a shocking event that had just taken place, so it was no surprise that he had come to investigate in person.

　　Principal Gu looked at Xuan Yu before turning to Qi Ying. “This is not a good place to talk. Let’s go talk in the forest there.”

　　…

　　“Yes, that’s all I know. I went to a few shops today and in order to avoid them, I visited many places and planned on coming back at night. I only heard about their deaths after the event.” In the forest, Qi Ying shrugged with an innocent expression and said, “In all honesty, I don’t have that much of a vendetta against Duan Tianshan. I beat him in a few fights and he trashed my courtyard, but it certainly doesn’t warrant a blood feud… Besides, even if I want to kill them, how could I possibly be capable of doing so?”

　　Gu Shiwei stroked his beard and replied, “Hmm, alright, thank you for your cooperation. Go home and look after your mother now. She can’t see, so you should take good care of her. Don’t cause any more trouble.”

　　“Thank you, Principal; thank you, Elders.”

　　Qi Ying joined his hands in a salute to those men before leaving the forest.

　　One of the Elders turned to look at Gu Shiwei with furrowed brows. “Looks like he really wasn’t involved. So who could have done this?”

　　Gu Shiwei shook his head as his eyes narrowed. “How could he not be involved? He is embroiled at the very core of the entire event.”