"You are a very good opponent... Classmate Li Xuan." Fu Hua smoothed her sweat-dampened bangs, took a breath, and said softly.
If she hadn't learned the martial art 'Inch Force' taught by her parents, it really wouldn't have been easy to break through Li Xuan's defense. The number of people in the same grade who could force her to use 'Inch Force' was few and far between. Even with Kiana, she could use the technique of borrowing strength to defeat her. As for Raiden Mei, she specialized more in swordsmanship than close combat.
After all, she was a genuine A-Rank Valkyrie...
"Please stand up, Classmate Li Xuan..." Fu Hua kindly extended her hand to pull up the dazed Li Xuan. This was her recognition of an opponent as a fellow martial artist.
"Mm... Thanks." Li Xuan straightforwardly took her outstretched hand. A loss was a loss... It was a bit embarrassing, but this wasn't the full extent of his strength, after all...
"Classmate Fu Hua, can your martial arts be taught to outsiders?" Li Xuan asked the Huaxia girl in front of him curiously, a hint of anticipation in his voice. She actually knew martial arts; if he could learn it too... wouldn't that be great?! He knew that more strength meant more security.
In these few days, Li Xuan had learned some knowledge about the Honkai from Kiana and the others at St. Freya High School... The disaster known as [Honkai] was prone to sudden outbreaks, and the frequency of Honkai occurrences had been increasing over the years. No one knew where the next Honkai would appear...
"Sorry... I cannot teach it to others without my master's permission," Fu Hua said seriously, without a smile. "Unless you become my master's disciple..."
"I see..." Although Li Xuan was a bit disappointed, he was mentally prepared. Huaxia culture emphasizes that techniques are not taught to outsiders; they are generally only passed down to disciples or descendants...
"Hehe~ Li Xuan, you lost too~" Kiana squeezed out of the crowd, a gloating expression on her face.
"..." Did you just come here to kick me while I'm down?! Life is hard enough... Li Xuan helplessly looked at Kiana's gloating face. He somewhat understood why Kiana was so happy about his misfortune; it was probably because Li Xuan had sparred with her back in Nagazora City. Of course, relying on his shield, Li Xuan had naturally thrashed Kiana, so it was obvious Kiana remembered him...
"Bang!" Mei casually smacked Kiana on the head and shot her down, saying, "Kiana, didn't you lose to Classmate Fu Hua too?!"
"I..." Kiana's face flushed red, but she still forced herself to say in a textbook tsundere manner, "Does a spar between classmates count as a loss? ... Ahem, my stomach was hurting at that time..."
"..." Like anyone would believe you... The onlookers, including Li Xuan, were speechless.
"Beep beep beep!~" A deafening ring suddenly sounded from the pocket of the black sports shorts Kiana was wearing.
"Kiana, didn't I tell you not to bring your phone to class?" Mei said helplessly, watching Kiana hurriedly take out a pink smartphone.
"Ahem... I use it to check the time!" Kiana said righteously.
"Then turn off your alarm!" Mei said, covering her forehead. The sound had already attracted the attention of the other students. Mei could clearly feel the gazes gathering on them from all around, which made her a little embarrassed.
"Okay~... But I don't remember setting an alarm..." Kiana replied and muttered to herself, unlocking the screen to look at the display...
"This is... a Honkai energy reaction!" Kiana was stunned for a moment when she saw what was on the screen and cried out in alarm... What kind of place was St. Freya High School?! It was the foremost fortress in the fight against the Honkai... Yet a Honkai energy reaction had suddenly appeared!
"What is it..." Li Xuan and Mei curiously moved closer. Only Bronya Zaychik, like Kiana, also showed a surprised expression, as if she had discovered something.
At this moment... a cold, synthesized female voice suddenly came from the campus broadcast on the wall of the combat training room...
[All students, please do not move around... An unknown Honkai energy reaction has been detected in the academy... The school is investigating the cause. Please do not move around and be mindful of your safety...]
"What's going on?! A Honkai energy reaction?!"
"Has the Honkai invaded?!"
"Ugh... What should we do?!"
The training room became noisy due to the sudden news. Many of the girls huddled together as if facing a great enemy. For these students who had been in school for a semester and had a preliminary understanding of the [Honkai]... the Honkai was already synonymous with 'disaster'...
"Could it be... that Honkai Zombies or Honkai Beasts have appeared inside St. Freya High School?!" Kiana said with a look of astonishment, but she wasn't too panicked. St. Freya High School had many people stronger than her hidden within... Mere Honkai Beasts or Honkai Zombies were nothing to worry about.
"Rest assured, I will protect everyone..." Fu Hua said, standing in front of the crowd.
"Hah? Who asked for your protection? They're just mere Honkai Zombies..." Kiana said dismissively, singing a different tune.
"Screech! Shhh~" The door to the training room was suddenly pushed open with a somewhat jarring sound, and the noisy training room suddenly fell silent...
"Ma-master..." The one who opened the door was Liv, dressed in a black and white maid outfit. She bent over, panting, and said, "I've finally... found you..."
"What's wrong, Liv..." Li Xuan walked forward in confusion and helped her up.
"..." Liv pursed her lips, glanced at the surrounding crowd of onlookers, then stood on her tiptoes and whispered into Li Xuan's ear.
"The Honkai Beast Egg has hatched..." Her warm breath tickled Li Xuan's ear.
"..." 'It hatched?!...' Li Xuan's eyes widened.
(End of this chapter)