Chapter 30: Watermelon

Lying on the cold muddy ground, waves of sharp pain shot through Qin Li’s body. He had no strength left to stand up. Inside him, the Innate Purple Qi Art was circulating rapidly through his unblocked meridians, healing his injuries.

If Qin Shisan had seen this, his eyes would have popped out of his head. His next reaction would have been to kill Qin Li without hesitation. Even if it caused a conflict between the Qin Family and the Shangguan Family, he would never allow such a monstrous super genius to live. The feud between the Qin and Shangguan families meant nothing to him, not even worth a single coin. But if this youth was allowed to grow up, certain doom would await him!

Qin Li felt the world spinning around him. He thought bitterly that retribution truly was swift. He had just punched someone’s nose bridge until it collapsed, and less than half an hour later, he had the same thing done to him…

After a long while, a young boy came running from afar, his face still carrying some fear. He first picked up Qin Li’s book, then bent down and struggled to lift Qin Li up, muttering, “So heavy! Hmph, must have grown up in a rich family. If I’d known, I wouldn’t have bothered with you. Ouch… so heavy!”

…

The Innate Purple Qi Art kept circulating, continuously healing Qin Li’s wounds. When he opened his eyes again and woke up, he saw two tear-streaked faces.

“Mother, Qin Xue, I… I’m fine.” Qin Li moved slightly and felt intense pain all over his body. It seemed to hurt even more than when he was beaten.

“You say you’re fine? Look how badly beaten you are! You should have come home earlier. Don’t you know how many people hate you right now?” Qin Hanyue said through tears, her voice full of concern.

Qin Xue also looked full of self-blame. The place where Qin Li got hurt was only a few hundred meters from home. If Watermelon hadn’t found Qin Li being beaten and brought him back, things could have been much worse for Qin Li. Thinking of this, Qin Xue sobbed, “It’s all my fault! I should have followed the Young Master!”

“You two, ah… alright, let’s not talk about this. Mother, don’t worry. From now on, something like this will never happen again!” Qin Li said slowly. Then he added, “I’m a bit tired. You should both go and rest too.”

“Well… then you rest well. It’s too late today. I will find a doctor for you tomorrow.” Qin Hanyue said, extinguishing the lamp. She and Qin Xue, both with red eyes, left Qin Li’s room.

After the two had left, the room fell into complete darkness. Qin Li’s mind was extremely calm. He truly hadn’t expected beforehand that Qin Yongzhi would really dare to do this, and do it so brazenly. Thinking back now, he had been too naive. Indeed, no one in the Qin Family dared kill him at this time, but not killing you didn’t mean they had no way to deal with you! Like Qin Shisan did: wait until you’re better, then beat you until you’re bedridden. It wouldn’t take much; just three times like that, and Qin Li’s life would be completely ruined!

Remembering Qin Shisan’s last words before leaving, Qin Li sneered inwardly: This matter isn’t over? Qin Yongzhi, Qin Shisan, even if you want it to be over, I won’t agree!

In the darkness, Qin Li’s bright eyes emitted two sharp, murderous glints.

Gritting his teeth, he sat up from the bed. Immediately, that sharp, piercing pain spread throughout his body, wave after wave, like ocean tides.

After a long struggle, he finally managed to sit cross-legged. Qin Li began to consciously circulate the Innate Purple Qi Art. Previously, he had already noticed that when he was being beaten, the Innate Purple Qi Art automatically kept circulating, healing his body. If not for this cultivation method, he wouldn’t have been able to directly open his Ren and Du Meridians. Thinking about it now, his master’s cultivation method was clearly an extremely good thing! He just didn’t know why he couldn’t cultivate it in his previous world, but could in this one.

While circulating it, Qin Li was surprised to discover that the milky white chaotic energy mass in his Dantian had actually grown a bit larger than before! It was faintly showing signs of breaking through from the second layer of Yuanli and entering the third layer!

This discovery made Qin Li feel a bit frustrated. Did getting beaten up really help increase strength quickly?

The Innate Purple Qi Art kept circulating within Qin Li’s body, and his injuries were actually healing at a miraculous speed. By the next morning, when Qin Hanyue opened Qin Li’s door and saw her son sitting cross-legged on the bed, she couldn’t help but let out a low gasp of surprise.

Qin Li’s face, which had been badly swollen last night, now showed no sign of injury at all. Apart from some slightly broken skin, who could tell that last night his face had been swollen like a steamed bun?

Qin Xue, who arrived shortly after, was also stunned by Qin Li’s change. Her pretty eyes were full of suspicion as they stared at Qin Li’s face. She even wondered if she wasn’t fully awake and was seeing things.

At this moment, Qin Li opened his eyes, smiled at the two of them, and said, “Good morning.”

“Uh, good morning, Young Master…” Qin Xue’s small mouth opened slightly, her expression very cute.

Qin Li looked at Qin Hanyue and asked, “Mother, was it Watermelon who brought me back last night?”

Qin Hanyue nodded slightly and sighed softly. “Heroes often come from humble backgrounds. I used to not really believe that saying. The servants of the Qin Family never showed much heroism; mocking people was their specialty. But here, I truly understand the meaning of those words. Watermelon is a good child. Don’t forget to repay him in the future.”

Qin Li originally wanted to ask Qin Hanyue if she had seen that God-Level Combat Skill, but since she didn’t mention it, it seemed either Watermelon hadn’t seen it, or… Watermelon hadn’t returned it to him!

Qin Li felt a bit puzzled: Does that little kid Watermelon even know how to read?

At noon, after eating lunch, Qin Li, whose body was almost completely fine, ignored the objections of Qin Xue and his mother. He got out of bed, went outside, and started chopping firewood.

The other memory in Qin Li’s head was quite familiar with this kind of work. Qin Li had not been a pampered child growing up.

Although Qin Hanyue and Qin Xue were amazed by Qin Li’s incredibly fast recovery, they didn’t say much about it, thinking his physical condition was just naturally good. After all, the heavy blows Qin Shisan delivered couldn’t be seen from the outside.

Suddenly, the sound of running came from outside the gate. Through the broken wooden fence, Qin Li saw Watermelon running in excitedly. When Watermelon saw Qin Li, he froze for a moment and said in surprise, “You can already get up this quickly?”

“Yes, thank you for yesterday.” Qin Li said with a smile. With a crack, he split another piece of firewood as thick as a bowl. The two halves were almost equal, making Watermelon stare in amazement.

He couldn’t help but say, “A delicate-skinned Young Master like you can do this too?” Then he waved his hand dismissively. “I saved you yesterday for Sister Xue’s sake…”

Qin Li shook his head with a smile. “No matter what, I still thank you.”

Watermelon’s expression suddenly became awkward. He stammered, “Actually… you don’t need to thank me. Yesterday, I… I picked up a book. It should be yours, right? I couldn’t resist and started practicing what was written in it!” The more Watermelon talked, the more excited he became, and his words flowed smoother. He gestured animatedly. “I didn’t expect it to really be a God-Level Combat Technique! It’s so damn awesome! Haha, that Wen Laoliu and his gang had no fight left in them today when I beat them. Damn, it felt so satisfying, so satisfying!”

As he spoke, Watermelon took out the combat skill book and handed it to Qin Li, laughing sheepishly. “Hehe, I made a copy. This one… I’ll give back to you.”

“You… you can read?” Qin Li took it back, dumbfounded. “And… you practiced what’s in it?”

Watermelon, who originally also felt his actions were a bit shady, blushed immediately. He had only heard from his father that combat skills were valuable, but how valuable exactly, Watermelon couldn’t fathom. His father, a watermelon seller, hadn’t told him. Feeling embarrassed and angry, Watermelon said, “Why can’t I read? And… I did save you, didn’t I? So what if I took a few looks at your crappy combat skill? What’s the big deal!” With that, he turned to leave.

“Wait!” Qin Li’s face suddenly turned serious as he called out to the departing Watermelon.

“What? Want to fight? Come on then!” Watermelon cared a lot about face and had a temper that couldn’t stand provocation. Having just learned an ultimate skill, his confidence was sky-high. He believed he could defeat Qin Li with just one finger.

“Ah, forget it. You can go do whatever you were going to do.”

Qin Li waved his hand weakly. He knew that whatever he said now, Watermelon wouldn’t believe him, and the misunderstanding would only deepen. He would explain it clearly to him another day. After all, this combat skill wasn’t some secret not to be passed on. Thinking this, Qin Li said to the suspicious-looking Watermelon, “You don’t have a Yuanli Heart Method yet, right? When I have time, I’ll get one for you. Practice well. Go on.”

Watermelon was, after all, just a young boy. Hearing Qin Li say this made him feel shy instead. He said softly, “Well, I… I’m really sorry. Heh, forget it. From now on, I’ll watch over your family! When the time comes, you can follow me!” Saying this, he turned and ran out.

Qin Hanyue and Qin Xue came out of the room then. Qin Xue asked puzzledly, “What happened just now?”

Qin Li casually put away the Sovereign of All Battle Skill and said with a smile, “It’s nothing. Watermelon was just playing around with me.” But in his heart, he thought: Anyway, Watermelon is still young. Even if it’s Nirvana re-cultivation, it’s not a big deal. Sooner or later, I will go to that Phoenix Lake, but not now.

Back in his room, Qin Li opened the book. On the faint yellow cover, the mud footprint was still visible, like a mocking, ordinary face.

Qin Li didn’t hesitate and directly turned the page. On the first page, written in bold, flying, and domineering characters, were eight words: In Heaven and on Earth, I Alone am the Honored One!

Below was a line of smaller text: To cultivate this combat skill, one should use the Tianxuan Elixir as an aid. Without the Tianxuan Elixir, do not cultivate!

Qin Li glanced at it and turned to the second page…