Usually, those cramped alleys behind the school were nothing but a shortcut, you know? Just an escape from teachers or a way to shave off five minutes when you were late for dinner. But today… they felt different. Like someone had turned the tension dial all the way up. Wu Jian was hanging around back there, trying his absolute best to look chill, but honestly, the guy looked more like a villain from an old kung fu movie than the king of after-school mischief. He was leaning up against one of those sad, rusty fences, flashing a smile that could probably curdle fresh milk. And in his grubby hands? Some poor kid's crumpled notebook and a couple of coins—definitely not his, and everyone knew it.
Up ahead, there's Zhang Jie—always in his own world, humming some tune, totally clueless about the trouble walking up behind him. If trouble had a face, it was Wu Jian's, and he'd just locked right onto Zhang. "Well, well," Wu Jian sneered, stepping away from his fence, and you could tell by the way he said it he thought this was going to be easy money. "What do we have here?" Classic drama.
Zhang Jie, usually quick with a joke, kind of froze. Like, you could actually see the laughter die in his eyes. "Uh… Wei… maybe we should just—" He didn't even get to finish before Wu Jian's hand came down like a claw, spinning him around so fast the poor guy looked dizzy.
"No running this time. You're coughing it up. You know the rules," Wu Jian growled, like they'd rehearsed this before—which, frankly, they probably had.
Meanwhile, Li Wei's heart had gone full jackhammer. There was this sudden, warm pulse from the pendant in his pocket—his dad's old jade piece—and, I know this sounds corny, but it really was like the thing was alive. The pendant's warmth just spread—down his arms, into his chest. Made him feel light, powerful, a little bit superhero-ish. Even his feet wanted to move.
He just kind of slid in, voice extra calm—cooler than I'd ever manage in his shoes. "Let him go."
Wu Jian let out this nasty bark of a laugh. "Oh yeah? And what? You gonna stop me on your own?" He wasn't even looking scared; heck, he motioned for his backup goons, who were hanging back cracking their knuckles and giving each other 'tough guy' nods. "You got guts, kid. Shame they'll get you hurt."
Li Wei took a breath, and the warmth from that jade was almost like a pep-talk. He didn't *fully* get what was going on, but you could see it in his eyes—something had changed. Some switch flipped.
Wu Jian lunged, all muscle and rage, fist flying at Li Wei like he expected to send him crashing into a wall. But Li Wei? Dodged like he was in The Matrix or something—just a step, so smooth. For a second even he looked confused by how easily he moved.
Wu Jian seemed to notice, too. "What the—You move different, man," he grumbled, his confidence leaking away.
Li Wei didn't get all in his face—he just stepped forward, shook out his hands, and gave Wu Jian this look, like, "Try me." "You picked the wrong guy today," he said, and his voice? It wasn't loud, just steady, but even Wu Jian seemed to hear something in it that made him pause.
And then, oh boy, all hell broke loose. Wu Jian's crew figured it was time for a pile-on. Three-on-one, the usual cheap shot, right? But every punch, every wild grab—they all missed. It was like Li Wei was part-ghost, part-gymnast, and always, always in the right place. The jade in his pocket turned up the dial on his speed, his reflexes. He was dodging like he'd been doing this forever, flipping their own weight against them. Seriously, it started looking less like a beatdown and more like one of those viral kung fu videos people post online.
Poor Zhang Jie was peeking out from behind a wall, mouth hanging open, cheering him on but also trying not to get smacked by a stray punch. "Wei! How are you even doing that?!" he hollered, like Li Wei was suddenly a Marvel hero.
Li Wei, though, was totally zoned in. Even as his arms started to get heavy, and his legs weren't bouncing like they were ten minutes ago, he couldn't back down. "I…I honestly don't know how," he thought to himself, "but I can't let Zhang get crushed by these guys."
Wu Jian was all rage at this point, swinging like a wild animal, barely aiming. But Li Wei waited, patient for the right moment, and then—Pow! One push, and Wu Jian went crashing back into his own guys. The gang scrambled, tripping over each other, realizing this was not going the way they planned. Their intimidation routine? Absolutely shredded.
"Just get outta here," Li Wei said, calm as anything. Not even gloating—just done. Like, honestly, everyone could feel it was over.
Wu Jian looked like he was about to spit fire, but even he'd had enough. With a nasty look and a mutter that was definitely not "have a nice day," he slunk away, dragging his crew with him. The whole alley just…stilled. You could actually hear their sneakers scraping as they bailed.
Once the coast was clear, Zhang Jie hurried over, still looking dazed. "Dude! That was insane. You just… man, you wiped the floor with them!" He laughed, though you could tell there was a little bit of scared awe mixed in.
Li Wei finally let out the breath he'd been holding, pressing a hand over his chest where the pendant buzzed like some kind of power-up. "I don't really know what's happening to me," he said, way more quietly, "but I do know I can't just let people like him walk all over everyone."
Zhang Jie grinned, clapping him on the back hard enough to knock the air out. "Well, whatever you got, keep it up. Just…maybe we shouldn't advertise this, okay? I don't think I can handle a superhero fan club just yet."
Li Wei slipped the pendant back under his shirt, heart still pounding. One thing was crystal clear after today: this weird energy? Not just a lucky streak. No way. It was something bigger. And it might get a lot messier—but he was in, like it or not.
As the two of them made their way out, cutting through quieter blocks in the sunset glow, it got Li Wei thinking about all the stories his dad used to tell late at night, or those dusty old books that Madam Li was always raving about. Dad's treasures, the family secrets…if this was their real legacy? School brawls and alleyway bullies? Just the warmup.
Off in the shadows, city lights blinking way in the distance, Li Wei got this weird feeling—like something (or someone) else was waiting. He didn't know if he was ready, but right now? He'd take "sort-of-ready" and run with it.
'Cause after all, once your day includes a mystic pendant, a gang of bullies, and moves you didn't even know you had, what's a little more weirdness? Bring it on.