Cohabitation with Sword Spirit-Chapter 114 - 96: We Have a Traitor in the Bald Gang

September 3, 2017

The arrival of September signifies that the scorching summer that has enveloped QingCyan Cloud yun City for nearly two months is finally coming to an end. Although the heat hasn't completely dissipated, major shopping centers have already started discounting items like Cooling Talismans and Ice Crystal Stones, while fashion stores are continuously stocking autumn clothes. Restaurants and hotels have quietly updated their seasonal menus.

On the third day of September, an autumn rain brought a cool breeze to QingCyan Cloud yun City, delighting dozens of young boys and girls training hard in the Inner Sect Training Ground of the Li Family Mansion. It was a brief joy until the bald instructor coldly announced the new day's training plan, and the youngsters were reminded of the humiliation and fear under the bald man's control.

The situation was getting worse.

Ever since Li Chaolu defected to the enemy that day, the bald man seemed to have hit his 29-year-old menopause, becoming exceptionally bloodthirsty and unreasonable. He not only increased everyone's training intensity by 20%—which was more than adding insult to injury given the already near-extreme training standards—but also became unusually strict during individual guidance.

Of course, if you disregard the subjective influence of the bald instructor's unique appearance, Li Tingshu was actually a very civilized and cultured person. Even when furious, he wouldn't curse, much less physically punish the trainees. However, being told "You're terrible" by him with that terrifyingly chilling expression felt akin to having a rough toothpick irregularly skewer the insides along your nail bed. Some young girls even burst into tears on the spot, submitting sick leave notes that lasted a whole month, refusing to appear at the Inner Sect Training Ground ever again.

However, with the Cyan Cloud Competition nearing, the intensive training of younger Inner Sect disciples was a major family event that could not be dismissed by the whims and tantrums of the young ladies. Those who submitted leave notes were brought back by their parents that same afternoon, sniffling and crying as they resumed the bald man's training plan.

In short, the days were truly arduous. From the start of the training camp on August 30th to now, in just a few days, all dozens of young boys and girls felt as if years had passed like days. What was even more disheartening was the fact that despite all their hard work, in the Cyan Cloud Competition a few months later, these 13 or 14, or 15 to 16-year-old children would not really have a chance to shine. That once-a-decade grand event was tailor-made for those talented individuals perfectly born in time to not yet reach 20. Months of hellish training were just to become a backdrop, and this sense of loss was even more torturous.

Yet, during these hellish days, the only solace was Li Chaolu, on the other side of the training ground.

If their training was cruel, then Li Chaolu's was cruel multiplied by a hundred. Every day, she trained until her body was covered in bruises, vomiting blood continuously, and being carried out of the training ground unconscious. The scene seemed less like training and more like torture.

...

"Humph!"

A stifled groan of pain suddenly reverberated in everyone's hearts, making them instinctively turn their heads, just in time to see Li Chaolu bleeding from the seven orifices and collapsing weakly on the ground.

The unintentional spill of pain had easily pierced such a great distance, which only suggested that Li Chaolu's pain had surpassed the limits of her endurance, causing her Divine Sense to violently stir and transform the sound into a magical effect—remarkably, this groan implied that the injuries on Li Chaolu's body were severe enough to nearly damage her muscles and bones.

And as Li Chaolu's teacher, Wang Jiu simply stood beside the girl, waiting motionlessly for her to get up from the ground with difficulty.

"Damn it." As the Inner Sect Chief, Li Xinyu cursed and, struggling against fatigue, rose to confront Wang Jiu.

But after merely two steps, a strong and robust arm blocked his path.

Li Xinyu instinctively tried to push the arm away but found the person before him as immovable as a towering mountain. Looking up, he saw the bald instructor glaring at him coldly.

Li Xinyu was not one to naturally engage in quarrels, but at this moment he couldn't help but shout, "Instructor, that's my sister over there!"

The bald instructor replied coldly, "It's your sister's own chosen path. If she can't handle it, won't she come back on her own?"

"But..."

"Are you going over there now to disregard her wishes and forcibly bring her back? That would be worse than what Wang Jiu is doing now."

Li Xinyu was taken aback by these words, his mouth agape: "But..."

But what? No words could come out, no matter how much he tried.

Li Tingshu snorted coldly: "If you want your sister to suffer less, use more effort in your training. If you can prove that training here is more effective, you can give her a reason to return."

Li Xinyu was silent for a moment, then nodded forcefully: "Instructor, give me another set of Reverse Circulation training. I can handle it."

"Good, that's the spirit."

——

After dealing with the impulsive fatty, Li Tingshu's pressure was hardly diminished.

Watching a mere 13-year-old girl vomit blood daily like drinking water, even a heart of stone would find it unbearable. At noon, during the break while the other youths lay on the ground panting like dead dogs, Li Tingshu stealthily approached Wang Jiu and Li Chaolu.

And just as the bald one approached within ten feet of the pair, Wang Jiu turned his head ghostlike, a full smile on his face: "Li Tingshu, hello."

Li Tingshu sighed inwardly, this specially appointed consultant was indeed extraordinary. Although his True Essence was only around the Cloud Surge Realm when evaluated, when Li Tingshu approached, clearly using magic to conceal his movements, he was still spotted by the other almost instantly. Such perceptiveness was scarcely seen even at the Cloud Flipping Realm.