Qiao Xi walked out of the school gates and, while passing through a small alley, suddenly heard a burst of painful, agonizing cries. Curious, she ran over to take a look, only to be frozen in shock by the scene before her. The entire alley was littered with bodies lying about in every direction.
Looking closer, Qiao Xi spotted two familiar figures—Brother Dadong and Brother Arthur. A jolt went through her heart.
"Could Brother Arthur have already found out about the news of adoptive father being murdered?"
She hurried over and cried out in alarm, "Brother Dadong, Brother Arthur, what happened to you guys? And what's going on with all these people?"
Wang Arthur looked at Qiao Xi in pain, his eyes filled with grief, anger, and despair. With trembling lips, he said with difficulty, "Little sis... he killed Dad!"
Hearing this, Qiao Xi stood frozen on the spot as if struck by lightning. She widened her eyes and asked in disbelief, "What?!"
Afterwards, the brother and sister were brought to the seaside by Wang Dadong.
Wang Arthur faced the ocean and let out a cathartic, roaring yell, "Ah!!!!!!"
Nearby, Qiao Xi was also quietly wiping away tears with a handkerchief, though she was actually secretly pinching her arm to force the tears out.
Just then, Wang Arthur's phone finally rang. It was a call from Wang Tulong.
Qiao Xi wore a bitter expression. "Adoptive father, you finally called. Pinching my arm really hurts..."
In the end, the three of them decided to go eat shaved ice together.
Arriving at the stall, Wang Arthur ordered milk mango shaved ice, Wang Dadong ordered jumbo mango shaved ice, and Qiao Xi didn't order anything, simply taking out the lychee ice she had bought along the way and starting to eat.
Just as the shaved ice was served, they saw Jin Baosan shaking down Ding Xiaoyu to treat them to ice.
"Jin Baosan!"
Hearing someone call his name, Jin Baosan immediately sat up straight from his seat.
"Brother Dong, hahaha, King Arthur, little sister Xiao Xi, how is it that the three of you are sitting together eating ice? I know you, hahaha."
Wang Dadong's tone was icy cold, his face full of unbridled arrogance and disdain. "Is there some rule saying we aren't allowed to eat ice together?"
"Oh, Brother Dong, I definitely didn't mean that at all." Jin Baosan shrank his neck in cowardice.
Seeing right through Jin Baosan, Wang Arthur chuckled and spoke up, "Jin Baosan, you look like you're feeling pretty disappointed."
Jin Baosan's entire face scrunched up into the shape of a bitter melon. "Really? Does my face look like I'm disappointed? I don't feel that way at all~"
"You must be upset because you can't be the boss anymore."
Head buried in her shaved ice, Qiao Xi raised her head and looked at Jin Baosan.
"Class Monitor Baosan, don't you dare bully Ding Xiaoyu."
She stood up, pulled Ding Xiaoyu over, and made him sit next to her.
Looking down at the slightly cool little hand that had pulled him—chilled from the shaved ice—Ding Xiaoyu felt a warmth spread through his heart. Guided by Qiao Xi to the seat beside her, he watched her let go of his hand. Unable to help himself, Ding Xiaoyu cast a stealthy glance at the girl in front of him, only to find that she was entirely focused on eating her lychee ice and hadn't noticed his gaze at all. With a restrained pull of his eyes, an unfamiliar feeling bloomed and spread deep within his heart.
Watching his younger sister's actions, Wang Arthur wore a smile, then cast a thoughtful look toward Ding Xiaoyu, as if he had seen right through something.
However, a sudden, intrusive noise shattered the peace. A crowd of people walked over, led by none other than Black Dog, the man who had been beaten and injured by Wang Arthur and Wang Dadong the other day.
"What are you guys doing here?" Wang Arthur furrowed his brow, a flash of disdain in his eyes.
Black Dog sneered. "Hmph, you lot had a lucky break last time, but it won't be so easy to slip away today!"
Wang Arthur stood up with a nonchalant expression, only to find his head starting to grow heavy and dizzy. Glancing at Wang Dadong beside him, he saw his friend was in the exact same state. He and Wang Dadong had been drugged by the other side; their bodies had turned soft and weak, and they slowly collapsed, completely losing any ability to resist.
"Hey, did you forget I'm still standing right here? You're actually trying to drag Brother Dadong and Brother Arthur away?" Qiao Xi shouted angrily at Black Dog, her tone filled with fury.
"Hehehe, little sister, seeing as you're so pretty, and apparently this Wang Arthur's sister to boot, why don't you come begging me? Serve me well, and maybe I'll spare his life."
Qiao Xi opened her mouth to retort, but Ding Xiaoyu suddenly stepped in front of her, his gaze resolute as he stated, "You are not taking them."
Black Dog burst into a mocking, disdainful laugh at Ding Xiaoyu. "Kid, did kindergarten let out early today? You're trying to play the hero saving the damsel in distress? Watched too many TV dramas, haven't you? You'd better hurry home and study your books!" With that, he ignored Ding Xiaoyu entirely and reached out directly to grab Qiao Xi.
Ding Xiaoyu tightly grabbed Qiao Xi's hand, forcefully pulled her a step behind him, stepped in front of her once more, and repeated, "You are not taking them."
With a fierce glare, Black Dog shoved Ding Xiaoyu hard and roared, "Punk, what did you just say? Say it again!"
Without a shred of fear, Ding Xiaoyu replied, "You are not taking them."
Completely provoked, Black Dog threw a vicious punch straight at Ding Xiaoyu's face. Fresh blood instantly gushed from Ding Xiaoyu's nose, splashing across both cheeks.
With a heart-wrenching pang, Qiao Xi cried out his name, "Xiaoyu..."
Gleefully malicious, Black Dog glared at Ding Xiaoyu and threatened, "If you've got the guts, say that again!"
Unyielding, Ding Xiaoyu said it once more, "You are not taking them."
Black Dog threw another punch, smashing it into Ding Xiaoyu's face. Immediately following that, the surrounding mob swarmed in, raining blows and kicks down on Ding Xiaoyu.
Unable to watch any longer, Qiao Xi was just about to unleash her Battle Power Index when she saw Black Dog strike Ding Xiaoyu directly on the head. Her rising anger instantly grounded her; watching from the side, she saw Ding Xiaoyu extend his left fist and take down the thugs one by one, knocking them all flat before rushing forward.
She pulled the handkerchief from her pocket and gently wiped the blood from Ding Xiaoyu's face, an unmistakable ache of distress filling her eyes.
"Xiaoyu, even if you're the Undefeated King, how could getting beaten up like this not hurt? Don't you know you'll worry people acting like this?"
Ding Xiaoyu offered a comforting reassurance to the young girl whose face was etched with heartache. "I'm fine. Weren't you hurt?"
"Of course I'm fine! But look at you—are your injuries okay? I need to take Brother Arthur back to adoptive father's house. Come with me, your wounds need to be treated."
She turned her head to look at Jin Baosan, who was still hiding behind a rack. "Jin Baosan, help me get Brother Dadong back, you hear me?"
"Yes! Little sister Xiao Xi!"
She then walked over to Wang Arthur, grabbed one of his arms and hooked it over her neck, only to discover... he was ridiculously heavy! She couldn't lift him at all.
Noticing Qiao Xi's struggle, Ding Xiaoyu grabbed Wang Arthur's other arm and hoisted it over his own shoulder. "I'll help."
She flashed a grateful smile at Ding Xiaoyu, and the entire journey home was spent in silence.
—————— The Next Day ——————
"I gotta say, Narcissist, the two of us are pretty legendary. After taking down over 300 fighters and getting drugged into unconsciousness, we still managed to beat up that bunch of scum."
"That is indeed something ordinary people could never accomplish. And furthermore, please address me as King Arthur, Oversized Idiot."
"I'm telling you, Narcissist, just thinking about yesterday puts me in a great mood! To be able to thrash those punks even after being drugged—from now on, I reckon nobody's ever going to ambush us, not even while we're asleep."
At that moment, Qiao Xi walked into the classroom, took her seat, and let out a huge yawn.
"Little sis, you look completely exhausted. What on earth did you do last night that you didn't sleep well?"
"Yeah, Xiao Xi, look at those dark circles under your eyes."
Qiao Xi shot a fierce glare at Wang Arthur and Wang Dadong. "Look who's talking! Brother Arthur, you seriously need to lose some weight, you're so damn heavy! If it weren't for Xiaoyu, I honestly wouldn't have known how to get you home. My phone was dead, and I forgot to ask you for adoptive father's number, so I had no choice but to make Xiaoyu help drag you all the way back. By the time we got home, I was dead tired. Then adoptive father kept holding onto me and crying for ages. Just when I finally got the chance to go to sleep, I ended up suffering from homesickness for a strange bed and couldn't fall asleep. And now that I'm finally used to the bed in my own house, sleeping back home feels so completely awkward."
Wang Arthur and Wang Dadong wore matching expressions of total bewilderment. Little Xi brought us home last night?? How come I don't remember any of that?
Afterwards, Wang Dadong also announced to the Ultima Class that he and Wang Arthur had become sworn brothers.
Jin Baosan slammed his hand down on the desk and stood up, looking as though he had made a momentous decision.
Before Jin Baosan could even speak, Sha Jie piped up impatiently, "Hey, Jin Baosan, you got a problem with Dadong or something? What are you all hot and bothered about?"
"Actually... if I don't speak up about a certain matter, I'd honestly have zero integrity left."
Several classmates in the Ultima Class immediately burst out laughing and mocked Jin Baosan.
"Jin Baosan, you finally said something the whole class can agree with."
"Actually, the person who saved Brother Dong and King Arthur last night was... Ding Xiaoyu."
Wang Arthur and Wang Dadong stared at Jin Baosan in utter surprise.
Linda looked at Jin Baosan with total disdain. "Classmate Jin Baosan, ever heard the saying 'misfortune comes from the mouth'?"
Enraged, Sha Jie hurled a disc-like object straight at Jin Baosan. "You must be itching to reopen your internal injuries!"
In a panic, Jin Baosan dodged the "hidden weapon" thrown by Jiang Jinrou.
"It's true! How would I dare lie to you guys? Xiao La, Axe, and little sister Xiao Xi all saw what happened last night!"
Hiding behind Jin Baosan, Axe stammered nervously, "It's true... Ding Xiaoyu's glare is terrifying."
Xiao La chimed in as well, "And his left fist is even scarier!"
Just then, Ding Xiaoyu walked in through the back door.
—————— The Small Garden ——————
"Xiao Xi, are you certain Ding Xiaoyu actually threw punches yesterday?"
"Of course! He even got hit several times just to protect me and keep you guys from getting dragged away." Qiao Xi puffed out her cheeks, glaring at Wang Dadong, who was still doubting the truth of it all.
"Though, the fact that he was there at the scene is undeniable."
After a brief silence, Wang Dadong spoke up. "Only, Jin Baosan and his two lackies were there too."
"Those three were scared out of their wits and hiding under the tables the whole time, but even so, they wouldn't have any reason to make up a story like this."
As they spoke, Ding Xiaoyu had already arrived at the spot.
"Looking for me?"
Wang Arthur looked him up and down. "You're really the one they call 'The One That Frightens Death'?"
"That nickname is so lame, isn't it? Just some bored people from the South District coming up with nonsense."
"So you're the one who saved us last night."
Ding Xiaoyu gave a noncommittal nod.
Wang Arthur turned away and let out a long sigh. "Sigh... To think that I, Wang Arthur, would actually sink so low as to be drugged into total unconsciousness. Tell me, after I passed out, did my posture look completely uncool?"
Ding Xiaoyu subtly curved the corner of his lips, and Wang Dadong let out a couple of soft laughs.
"Your pose was alright, I suppose."
With a playful smile, Qiao Xi looked at Wang Arthur, wanting to tease him.
"Brother Arthur, it turns out your biggest concern was never your own personal safety... Well... I gotta tell you, your pose was beyond embarrassing, and I even took pictures."
"No way! Little sis, delete those right now!"
Qiao Xi took out her newly purchased Gold Dimension phone and waved it in front of him.
Wang Arthur started to lunge forward to grab the phone, but Ding Xiaoyu stopped him.
"She's teasing you. She didn't take any pictures."
Wang Arthur let out a sigh of relief and shot a resentful look at Qiao Xi.
She stuck her tongue out at him, then turned to Ding Xiaoyu, pouting, "Xiaoyu, why'd you have to ruin my fun?"
Ignoring the bickering siblings, Wang Dadong walked over to Ding Xiaoyu. "Xiaoyu, props to you. If you hadn't stepped up to save me, this Narcissist, and Xiao Xi yesterday, we would've been in deep trouble."
Qiao Xi muttered inwardly: *As if! I could've saved you guys just fine.*
Ding Xiaoyu shrugged indifferently. "It was nothing."
Wang Arthur also offered a sincere expression of gratitude to Ding Xiaoyu. "Thanks. I'll remember this."
"It's nothing."
"What do you mean 'it's nothing'? I, the great Wang Dadong, got ambushed like that on my own turf—this time, I'm definitely going to thank you properly."
"That's right, I hate owing people favors the most. Name it—how do you want us to repay you?"
Ding Xiaoyu said offhandedly, "I just happened to be passing by, that's all. Those guys were just unlucky."
"Great! I respect your style. Starting today, I, Wang Dadong, recognize you as my brother. What do you say, Xiao Xi, Oversized Idiot?" His grand, heroic, brotherhood-first demeanor left Qiao Xi speechless.
"Brother Dadong / Oversized Idiot, your word is law."
Wang Dadong chuckled as he looked at Wang Arthur. "Look at you, actually listening so obediently for once."
"Alright then. First off, I saved Wang Arthur, and then Xiaoyu saved the three of us. Doesn't that make us brothers who share thick and thin?"
A cross mark appeared glowing above Qiao Xi's head. "Brother Dadong, it's brothers who share *weal and woe*, not thick and thin. Please don't let any elementary school teachers hear you say that, or I'm afraid they'll drag you back to repeat a grade."
"Fine, whatever, close enough!" Wang Dadong waved a dismissive hand.
With that, Wang Dadong thrust out his left fist. Wang Arthur extended his left fist to bump against Dadong's, followed by Qiao Xi. When Ding Xiaoyu started to extend his left fist, Wang Arthur and Wang Dadong pulled theirs back, leaving only Qiao Xi's fist out.
"Hey, this wouldn't happen to be a left fist with the destructive power of a nuclear bomb, would it?"
The corners of Ding Xiaoyu's lips curved upward. "Relax. My left fist doesn't hit my own brothers."
Then, all four fists bumped together simultaneously.
The sworn-brotherhood ceremony was officially concluded!
Helplessly, Qiao Xi said to Wang Dadong, "Brother Dadong, what about those eavesdroppers hiding back there? Should we deal with them?"
"Forget it. I'm in a good mood today, so let them be."