Forbidden Zone of the Human Race

Chapter 40 Battle Arena

Xiang Xiaoyu pulled Ning’s hand, looking at him in a panic. “I’m so sorry for troubling you.” 

He shook his head and rubbed her hand with a smile. “Don’t worry, you have me! No one will ever bully you!” He stood in place, curious to see what the kid would do. 

Zhao Huayu hung up his communicator and glared. “Stay if you have the guts!” 

Xiang Ning didn’t speak, comforting Xiaoyu. When the teacher saw the situation escalating, he started to hesitate. Zhao Huayu was in his class and naturally knew of his background. If the person he was waiting for arrived, this student would suffer—and when the problem grew, the school would reprimand him as a teacher on-site. 

Just as he struggled internally, a black car appeared on the road nearby. Someone stepped out of it. Someone Xiang Ning recognized: Zhao Huatai. 

Zhao Huatai… Zhao Huayu.… So they were brothers. The corner of his lips curved up. They were both equally terrible! 

“Yu, what’s the matter here?” Zhao Huatai walked over. When he saw Xiang Ning, his expression turned icy. 

“He bullied me just because he’s older! If the teacher didn’t catch me, I would’ve been thrown into the fountain!” With his elder brother there, Zhao Huayu was emboldened. 

His brother was a tier one, six-star martial artist, and based on what he knew, his brother was one of the most powerful in his form. 

“Is that so?” Zhao Huatai looked at the teacher, who slightly furrowed his brows but still nodded. From the teacher’s perspective, Xiang Ning had hurt Huayu first, but based on how the little girl looked, he wanted to speak up but was stopped by Zhao Huatai. 

“Xiang Ning, what is the meaning of this?” Zhao Huatai coldly asked. If it weren’t for the fact that Xiang Ning was a little more powerful than he expected, he wouldn’t have been so civil. 

“You have two choices: make your brother apologize to my sister, or tell him to never appear before her ever again.” Was Xiang Ning’s confidence baseless? Of course not. As a tier one martial artist, he had already faced a tier two Tyrant Spider. Would he be afraid of a single tier one, six-star martial artist? 

Zhao Huatai squinted, looking at Xiang Xiaoyu, then at Xiang Ning. “We’ll fight this out in the battle arena tomorrow. If you win, my brother will apologize. If I win, I’ll break the arm that touched my brother!” 

Xiang Xiaoyu panicked, clutching Xiang Ning’s hand. With the situation spiraling out of control, the teacher also slightly panicked. 

“Fine,” Xiang Ning flatly replied. Both Zhao Huatai and the teacher were stunned by his calmness, thinking they might just have made a mistake. 

Zhao Huatai hadn’t thought that Xiang Ning would be so calm in his answer. The conditions were extremely unfair, yet he had still agreed. He couldn’t help but recall the moment Xiang Ning had slaughtered the Night Cat. Could he have killed the cat as quickly? The more he thought about it, the shakier his confidence grew, and the more calm Xiang Ning was, the tighter his chest became. 

Fury Points +55 

“Alright, see you in the arena at lunch tomorrow.” Zhao Huatai coldly huffed. Being a proud man, he refused to be humiliated here and turned to leave. 

Zhao Huayu was dissatisfied with the outcome. He looked at his older brother, but upon seeing the stony expression on his face, he didn’t dare speak. Instead, he obediently trailed along. 

Xiang Ning picked up Xiaoyu’s hand with a smile, stroking her hair. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll cook you something good today.” He gave the teacher a curt nod and left. It didn’t matter how the teacher had acted, he was still a teacher and basic respect was required. He was also setting a good example for Xiang Xiaoyu. 

The teacher froze, then nodded in response. The student hadn’t acted as he had expected, based on how the situation escalated.… But since they had agreed to fight it out at the arena, it was no longer any of his business. 

There was an arena situated in the stadium within the upper secondary block. If students had an unresolvable dispute, they could either bring it to the teachers or fight it out in the arena. Most people chose the arena; any conflict could be resolved after a proper duel. 

All the way home, Xiang Xiaoyu remained silent. Xiang Ning didn’t speak, either, until they arrived at the entrance of their house. Xiang Xiaoyu hung her head, unwilling to enter. 

Xiang Ning was both frustrated and amused. “What’s the matter, little princess?” He squatted before Xiang Xiaoyu, patting her head. When he saw her purse her lips, he reached out and brushed the tip of her nose. “Don’t worry, I’ll beat him like how I whack a ground mole.”

“Mm!” Xiang Xiaoyu wiped her eyes. Since she had left the orphanage to live with Xiang Ning, despite living frugally, all of her clothes and belongings were always decent and she had never felt a gap between her and her classmates. Sometimes, she even questioned why he didn’t treat himself better. He would always just smile without an answer. Now, she understood. They had no other family in this world; all they had was each other. 

Today, he cooked her favorite dish, stir-fried eggs with tomatoes. She found it exceptionally delicious. Neither of them spoke of tomorrow’s duel. 

The night passed as usual. 

The next day, news of Class 8’s Xiang Ning dueling Zhao Huatai from Class 2 spread like wildfire. At the school gates, Fatty Wang stood with a hand on his back and the other patting Xiang Ning’s shoulder as he panted, “Xiang Ning, is it true?” 

“Is what true?” Xiang Ning didn’t understand. 

“I heard you’re going to fight Zhao Huatai from Class 2 at the arena. He’s… he’s a tier one, six-star Martial Artist. What the hell happened yesterday?” he curiously asked. He didn’t think his good brother here would attack someone without a reason. 

After some thought, Xiang Ning briefly explained the situation. Fatty Wang’s face hardened and puffed up. 

“That shameless bastard! How dare he touch Xiang Xiaoyu? Why didn’t you punch him? If I were you I would’ve punched him straight,” raged Wang Zhe. Memories of Xiang Xiaoyu greeting him sweetly surfaced. Who dared lay a finger on her? His blood boiled.

Xiang Ning smiled, waving it off. 

“Do you think you can beat him?” Wang Zhe asked with uncertainty. Despite his anger, he must keep his head. Zhao Huatai was famous among the youth of Marsh City; many thought he could become a tier seven Martial Sect Master in the future. 

“Don’t worry, I’m out of his league,” Xiang Ning confidently said.