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Chapter 16 - Chapter 16: The Complaining Visitor - I Only Want the Coffin with a Sliding Lid!

Teacher Liu was furious. It wasn't just because he got beaten up; more than that, it was still because of Zhang Beixing! This blasted kid was just too good at causing trouble for him!

A while ago, after the kid got his hands on "Yue Family's Continuous Fists," he had been clamoring to learn it, completely derailing Old Liu's train of thought. Later, after much difficulty clearing his mind, Old Liu prepared to brace himself against the side effects of Yue Family's Continuous Fists. He planned to practice with Zhang Beixing for a week, letting him "steal" whatever moves he could pick up. But the next day, the kid didn't show up.

Seriously, if you weren't going to come, why did you make such a huge fuss in the first place? It made me think you, Zhang Beixing, were actually passionate about martial arts training! So, this is it? Giving up after just one day? Is your willpower really that weak?

Teacher Liu was deeply disappointed, feeling he had completely misjudged the young man. But then a thought occurred to him: What if something had come up and Zhang Beixing couldn't make it? So, he decided to give Zhang Beixing one last chance. He would go to the small woods and practice for one more day. If Zhang Beixing still didn't show, he would accept that the kid truly lacked perseverance, give up on the idea of him learning Yue Family's Continuous Fists, and let the matter rest.

But who could have expected what happened next? On the third day, he went to the woods. He had just begun practicing a few moves when suddenly, seven or eight men burst out from the adjacent trees. Without a word, they threw a sack over his head and started beating him. The blows were savage. If someone, hearing that the sounds weren't quite right, hadn't lifted the sack and recognized him as a teacher from Shi University, Teacher Liu wouldn't have just been laid up at home for three days. It would've been half a month.

After such an unprovoked disaster, he had to find out why it happened. So, Teacher Liu began to investigate. And it was during this investigation that he came across the words "Hei Ha Immortal." The woods at night, the deafening "Hei Ha" sounds... After a moment of thought, Teacher Liu realized: This has to be someone practicing martial arts!

Apart from himself, there were a few others at Shi University who practiced martial arts. However, they all had designated training grounds; none would sneak into the woods at night to practice. After eliminating all other possibilities, the answer became self-evident. Zhang Beixing! He was the only one without a regular training spot who could vaguely be considered a martial arts practitioner! And with his rather unconventional personality... For him to do something this outrageous, it's actually quite nor—

"Normal my ass!" Teacher Liu, looking at Zhang Beixing's sheepish grin, demanded irritably, "You brat! Tell me straight! Is that Hei Ha Immortal on our school's forum you?"

Hearing this, Zhang Beixing instantly tensed up. After all, Teacher Liu had been beaten up entirely because of him. And now, with his injuries healed, Teacher Liu was here to confront the one responsible...

"Holy shit, a 36D!" Zhang Beixing suddenly exclaimed, his eyes darting to a spot behind Teacher Liu.

Teacher Liu remained unmoved, quietly watching him, clearly not falling for such a cheap trick.

Zhang Beixing felt a bit helpless. He didn't even fall for such a perfect excuse! He then wracked his brains, desperately trying to come up with another excuse.

Seeing this, Teacher Liu knew exactly what Zhang Beixing was thinking. He reached out and patted the young man's shoulder. "How about you come to my office and think it over slowly there?"

Hearing this, Zhang Beixing forced a smile that was uglier than tears. "Can... can I not go?"

"What do you think?" Teacher Liu asked, smiling. His expression seemed warm, but for the slight pressure from his hand on Zhang Beixing's shoulder, Zhang Beixing might have almost believed him.

I'm done for! Barbecue! Zhang Beixing screamed internally. If circumstances allowed, he would definitely post online asking what to do when the one who took the blame... no, the scapegoat, confronts the actual wrongdoer! Especially when this scapegoat is absurdly strong! Am I going to be done for?

Zhang Beixing was utterly panicked. In that moment, his mind raced, even considering what his last words should be, whether to get a sliding-lid or flip-top coffin, and where to choose his burial plot.

Fortunately, although Teacher Liu was angry, he wasn't so furious as to lose his senses. After a brief lecture, he looked at Zhang Beixing, sighed, and said, "Enough. Whether you admit it or not, what's done is done. I don't want to blame you, but you must stop practicing Yue Family's Continuous Fists. It really doesn't suit you, and it can seriously harm your body. Besides, kid, you don't have the necessary perseverance; you won't be able to learn it! Focus on your studies. In modern society, education is the only true path."

With that, Teacher Liu patted Zhang Beixing's shoulder again and left without looking back.

Watching his departing figure, Zhang Beixing opened his mouth, wanting to say that he was on the verge of mastering Yue Family's Continuous Fists. But seeing that Teacher Liu was already some distance away, and considering his current mood wasn't quite right, Zhang Beixing thought better of it. He decided not to risk upsetting him further and would share the news when they next met. After all, Zhang Beixing was still a student at Shi University, and Teacher Liu worked there. Telling him sooner or later wouldn't make much difference.

With this in mind, Zhang Beixing didn't chase after him. Instead, he headed to the track to warm up for his upcoming run.

During this time, Zhang Beixing noticed his three roommates—Dong Guoning, Zheng Jituo, and Jin Linyu—had unexpectedly appeared in the stands. This surprised him. Among the three, apart from Dong Guoning, Zheng Jituo and Jin Linyu were quintessential homebodies. When they didn't have classes, they were almost always holed up in their dormitory playing games or binge-watching shows. For them to be out today was truly a rare sight.

How unusual! Zhang Beixing muttered to himself but didn't dwell on it. After finishing his warm-up, he began his daily exercise, jogging around the track.

His recent training had brought significant improvements. Firstly, his Power attribute had increased from an initial 63.5 to 69.3, just 0.7 points shy of 70. Then there was Yue Family's Continuous Fists. He wasn't sure if it was due to his high Mental Attribute, but after figuring out the moves by secretly watching, it was as if he'd had an epiphany—everything just clicked! He had only seen Teacher Liu perform the fist routine once. Yet, relying on that single memory, combined with the text and illustrations in the manual, he could identify problems in his own execution and correct them. He had progressed from gaining 5 proficiency points per practice session of Yue Family's Continuous Fists to now gaining 9.

It sounded like a lot, but in reality, only Zhang Beixing knew how much effort it had taken to gain those extra four proficiency points. He indeed had a talent for it. However, talent didn't mean he was immune to mistakes. While refining his technique for Yue Family's Continuous Fists, Zhang Beixing had repeatedly encountered problems. The worst instance was when, after completing a session, he not only failed to gain any proficiency but actually lost ten points! The crucial part was that, if he hadn't checked the System, Zhang Beixing would have been completely unaware, even thinking he had performed well and made perfect adjustments! One can only imagine that if it were an ordinary person without a master's guidance, they would only grow more confused the more they practiced, eventually becoming unable to practice it correctly at all.

Then again, not many ordinary people would persist after being explicitly rejected. It could only be said that Zhang Beixing was an anomaly, a truly stubborn sort. However, it was precisely this stubbornness that had raised his proficiency in Yue Family's Continuous Fists from an initial 5/100 to the current 83/100.

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