As Yue Jincheng’s face grew increasingly grim, he watched Zhang Yu walk out of the breeding base gate and put his phone into his pocket. A resolve began to form in Yue Jincheng’s mind.

With a swift movement, he silently and quickly followed Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen.

“With my skills as a proper university graduate, even if I acted right in front of them and took one or two things… I could guarantee they wouldn’t even realize it, leaving them no chance of discovery.”

Yue Jincheng had reviewed Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen’s exam data from the past few months and knew they were roughly at the level of high school seniors, in the late stage of Qi Refining. While this was already excellent for Songyang High School, in his eyes, they were just two kids. Especially since he was a university graduate specializing in commercial espionage, he had long mastered skills related to silent movement, covert operations, and theft. Dealing with two high school students seemed effortless to him.

“All I need to do is take their phones, use the company’s tools to copy the information, and then put the phones back before they notice.”

“Once I’m back, I can slowly decipher the acquired information and immediately uncover many of their secrets. Why would I need to foolishly keep tracking them?”

“They’re just two high school kids. I should have done this a long time ago!”

As Yue Jincheng’s figure flickered, about to catch up to Zhang Yu, Si Zhouyu, who was nearby, subtly changed her expression. She also followed, raising her hand as if to stop Yue Jincheng.

But in response to Si Zhouyu’s movement, Yue Jincheng scoffed inwardly, “How can a junior college graduate stop me?”

Watching Yue Jincheng accelerate again, silently closing in behind Zhang Yu, Si Zhouyu cursed under her breath. She had no choice but to abandon her attempt to stop him, rushing towards Bai Zhenzhen instead, intending to cover Yue Jincheng’s actions.

Si Zhouyu sighed inwardly, “Ah, this kid is too eager to prove himself, too impulsive.”

“Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen are indeed easy to handle; the two of us are more than enough. But if you don’t even listen to the leader’s orders, what good is it even if you do succeed?”

“Sigh, now I’m going to be buried in reports when we get back…”

At the same time, Yue Jincheng’s right arm blurred into a phantom image as he simultaneously activated, combined, and unleashed six martial arts techniques. In an instant, his arm moved silently and imperceptibly, faster than the average person could discern, reaching from behind towards Zhang Yu’s pocket.

Just as Yue Jincheng made his move, Fuki’s voice echoed in Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen’s minds: “Careful, someone’s about to make a move, heading for Zhang Yu.”

Zhang Yu thought to himself, “Oh? Someone dares to act directly? Are A-Zhen and I being underestimated? Or is something else happening?”

Bai Zhenzhen thought, “There’s no need to let them succeed, so Yu-zi will probably counterattack in time, right? What I need to do… is try to hold back the two who might want to flee immediately after failing.”

Just as a faint smile appeared on Yue Jincheng’s lips and his hand was about to slip into Zhang Yu’s pocket, he suddenly felt his palm touch something soft, like cotton. However, despite its extreme softness, a powerful shockwave rebounded from it. As the shockwave traveled from Yue Jincheng’s fingertips, he saw Zhang Yu’s body shrouded in mist. Swirls of Formless Cloud Aura had surged from beneath his clothes, encircling Zhang Yu like clouds.

“What?!” Yue Jincheng was slightly startled. “This kid actually detected my move? And he blocked my attack…”

At that moment, although Yue Jincheng was surprised, he wasn’t truly stunned. His slight hesitation stemmed from two choices that made him waver in his mind.

“Since I’ve already made a move, I might as well just snatch his bag. The company can clean up the mess afterward, treating it as a robbery…”

“Or, leave immediately. They haven’t lost anything, and the constables won’t bother investigating. They won’t find out who attacked them…”

But just then, streaks of divine power converged in the sky, finally erupting into a thunderous bolt of lightning. A muffled roar of thunder rolled across the sky, as if to awaken the entire world in an instant.

“A Thunder Talisman?” Yue Jincheng was shocked again. He hadn’t expected that, having failed his initial attack, the opponent would immediately deploy such a talisman.

“Go!” Si Zhouyu whispered sharply, shooting out like a dark cloud, clearly intending to withdraw immediately.

A flicker of unwillingness crossed Yue Jincheng’s eyes, but he knew this was no place to linger. He retreated a step, also intending to leave. However, just then, crackling sounds emanated from Yue Jincheng’s side, and a slight, static-like burning sensation spread across his cheek.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

Through a roaring burst, Bai Zhenzhen, enveloped in surging lightning, had already rushed to Yue Jincheng’s side. The invisible sword qi at her fingertips crackled with lightning as she thrust a sword toward Yue Jincheng.

Yue Jincheng snorted, shattering the invisible sword qi with a single punch. He was about to follow up with another punch to her body when he saw Bai Zhenzhen shift, revealing a large flower patch behind her.

Bai Zhenzhen calmly stated, “Be careful, you might have to pay for damages.”

Remembering that every plant and tree in this protected area belonged to Red Tower Company, Yue Jincheng instinctively stopped his punch. Because of this sword strike and the flowers, Yue Jincheng was delayed for a moment by Bai Zhenzhen.

And that moment was just enough time for Zhang Yu to arrive.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Amidst the pervasive roars, Zhang Yu’s surrounding mist transformed into four giant white arms. These arms, utilizing the techniques of Limitless Cloud Hand, Indestructible Seal Art, Dragon-Back Overturning Mountain Hand, and Dragon-Elephant Collapsing Mountain Palm, struck fiercely at Yue Jincheng. Concurrently, wisps of sharp aura circulated around the periphery, with faint electrical glints constantly targeting Yue Jincheng. This was Bai Zhenzhen, who had temporarily retreated after her initial sword strike failed.

“These two kids.”

Seeing Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen team up to surround and attack him, Yue Jincheng’s already anxious and annoyed mood worsened.

“Do you really think I’m afraid of you?”

“You want to keep me here, do you? Can you even manage that?”

Yue Jincheng suddenly roared, his muscles abruptly swelling from his previously lean physique to nearly 2.8 meters. This was his true combat height; his usual build was merely a modification through cultivation techniques to conceal his identity. He unleashed the terrifying aura of a university graduate, sweeping it fiercely towards the two high school students before him.

Amidst explosive thuds, Yue Jincheng, like an enraged Vajra, launched punches and palms simultaneously, shattering Zhang Yu’s four-armed aura in the blink of an eye. But the next moment, a lightning-flashing sword qi pierced towards Yue Jincheng’s back, forcing him to turn and disperse the attack. And no sooner had he dispersed this sword qi than he heard a “Pfft!”

A bolt of electric light shot out from Bai Zhenzhen’s mouth, striking towards Yue Jincheng’s right eye like a sharp arrow.

“Spit?” Yue Jincheng scoffed inwardly, watching this scene. “Petty trick.”

“As a dignified university student, do you think I wouldn’t know this move in actual combat?”

With another “Pfft!”, two streams of spit collided mid-air, exploding with a pop and dissipating into the air. Meanwhile, seizing the opportunity, Zhang Yu channeled his spiritual power, once again transforming his Formless Cloud Aura into four giant arms, which he slammed towards Yue Jincheng.

Although it had been a long time since he participated in martial arts competitions like ring battles, Zhang Yu’s combat ability now far surpassed his past self who had competed in such events. Especially through his continuous spars with Bai Zhenzhen and Yu Xinghan, he had gradually figured out the true combat style best suited for his martial arts.

Initially, Zhang Yu was accustomed to spreading his Formless Cloud Aura throughout his body, like heavy armor, to defend against opponent attacks. However, he soon realized this approach wasted too much aura. After all, if 100% of the aura was spread throughout the body, only 10% to 20% would be attacked and used to defend against an opponent, leaving the rest wasted. So, during his fights with Yu Xinghan and Bai Zhenzhen, Zhang Yu tried to concentrate his aura at the point of impact just before an attack hit. This not only allowed for a more efficient use of the Formless Cloud Aura but also improved defensive effectiveness. Yet, Zhang Yu soon discovered that this still didn’t allow him to fully utilize his true capabilities, particularly his mastery of numerous Level 10 martial arts. Finally, Zhang Yu experimented with transforming his aura into giant arms. These arms could be used for efficient defense and, more importantly, to execute various martial arts, maximizing the advantages of his martial cultivation.

At this very moment, Yue Jincheng, in combat with Zhang Yu, quickly discovered the profound subtlety of this approach. As a graduate of one of the 72 lower-ranked schools, Yue Jincheng’s cultivation had already reached the peak of Qi Refining. Not only had his Dao Heart, spiritual power, and physical strength all reached the limit of Qi Refining, but he had also cultivated dozens of techniques to Level 10. Every punch and kick he threw now unleashed immense power, a single move being enough to send an excellent high school student like Song Hailong flying.

However, Zhang Yu’s four aura-infused giant arms parried, blocked, pulled, shifted, deflected, or bounced back, forcibly absorbing the power of Yue Jincheng’s attacks with incredibly profound martial arts techniques. Yue Jincheng felt as if he had stepped into a quagmire, being firmly dragged down by his opponents.

Nevertheless, he was, after all, a formidable university graduate. Under his full-force assault, Zhang Yu’s aura-transformed giant arms quickly shattered and dispersed. But each time this happened, Bai Zhenzhen, circling around, would use her lightning spiritual power combined with various vicious sword techniques to stab at his vital points, forcing him to first repel her. And having repelled Bai Zhenzhen, Zhang Yu would have already reactivated his aura, charging at him head-on once more. In addition, he also had to be wary of Bai Zhenzhen’s electric spit, while Yue Jincheng’s own spit had little effect on Zhang Yu’s aura or the elusive Bai Zhenzhen.

Feeling that he was temporarily held back by the two of them, Yue Jincheng was astonished once more: “These two kids actually hid so much of their strength during the exams?!”

“At this level, even in the top three high schools, they would be among the best in their senior year.”

“And their coordination—one fast, one slow; one yin, one yang; one tricky, one direct—is surprisingly perfect…”

Just as Yue Jincheng was filled with astonishment, streaks of divine power suddenly appeared in the air. These powers then transformed into lines of text, floating in various corners of the scene, completely surrounding Zhang Yu, Bai Zhenzhen, and Yue Jincheng, who were in combat.

Warning! Warning!

Patrol Team enforcing the law on site! All individuals, retract your spiritual power and cease all actions!

In the distance, Si Zhouyu, who had been about to turn back to help Yue Jincheng withdraw, frowned. Watching the scene, she sighed inwardly: “The patrol team arrived too quickly.” She shook her head helplessly, then retreated back into the shadows and vanished without a trace.