Chapter 80 - 78: Master of Blade and Sword, My Brother Chong is the Fiercest
"Brother Chong, is there something on my face?" Xu Jun asked with a goofy grin.
"It’s nothing."
Chen Chong looked at the others. "I see you’re all injured. Why don’t we head back to the university to get treated?"
The members of the Swordsmanship Club were more seriously injured.
Two were severely injured, two had minor injuries, and the rest, aside from Ning Yu, all had some scratches.
His own group included. Though they hadn’t been bitten by the Fear Wolves, they had also picked up some minor scrapes while running and fighting.
The wounds weren’t serious, but an infection would be trouble. Cleaning and debriding them was necessary.
The wound on the Tiger Striped Dog’s neck also needed some medicine.
’It wouldn’t be too late to come back out after our injuries are properly treated...’
The young man called Xiaofeng nodded, a hint of worry on his face as he looked at his comrades being supported.
"We do need to go back for treatment. It’s just a shame we don’t have much of the trauma medicine we traded for last time. These wounds are deep; I don’t know if we’ll have enough."
Chen Chong asked, "If you don’t have enough medicine, it’s fine. Just go to the Chinese medicine hall downstairs. They have more than enough herbs there."
"A Chinese medicine hall?" The members of the Swordsmanship Club looked confused, clearly unaware.
Chen Chong smiled.
’Looks like our advertising isn’t up to par. Oh well, they’ll find out once we go.’
’When it comes to publicity, you have to slowly build a name for yourself to get more "customers".’
"I’ll take you..."
...
The group packed up, taking all the Fear Wolves from the ground with them before heading for the university.
Fear Wolf was still meat. It was a hard-won hunt, so naturally, they wouldn’t waste it.
Aside from the Fear Wolves killed by the Swordsmanship Club, Chen Chong’s group also took the Terror Wolf King and two other ordinary Fear Wolves...
On the way back to the university, the group slowly got to know each other as they talked.
Through their idle chatter, Chen Chong learned the basic composition of the Swordsmanship Club.
The Swordsmanship Club wasn’t large, with only eight members in total.
Don’t be fooled by their small number; they were different from interest-based university clubs like the Fishing Club or the Fighting Club.
The Swordsmanship Club was a club in name only, participating in university activities to boost its reputation.
In essence, they were a professional training team, and also "family" with close ties.
The highly energetic young man holding the Western-style sword was named Ning Feng. The other, a slightly smaller, cute girl with short hair, was named Ning Shuang.
You could tell from their names that the two of them were Ning Yu’s siblings.
Although the other five members didn’t share the "Ning" surname, they had been sent to the training hall run by Ning Yu’s father before they were even ten years old.
You could say the eight of them grew up together.
Even though five of them weren’t blood-related to the three Ning siblings, they still called the older girls "sister," basically making them no different from actual younger brothers and sisters...
"So the eight of you are tight, huh? Not only did you train together since you were kids, but you also got into the same university. Did you plan it in advance?" Xu Jun asked.
Ning Feng smiled and shook his head. "No, actually, our training team has about twenty-something people, but only the eight of us are at this university. The others either haven’t gone to college yet or are studying elsewhere."
"We usually only get together when we go out for competitions and stuff. So here at our university, it’s naturally just the eight of us."
"Oh, so that’s how it is." Xu Jun had a moment of realization, then remembered something else and asked again.
"So what events do you compete in? Aren’t you the Swordsmanship Club? How come you use both swords and blades, and such a wide variety at that?"
At these words, Chen Chong, Zhang Meng, and the others also looked over.
To be honest, they were curious about that question too.
The Swordsmanship Club. Just from the name, you’d think they did fencing.
It subconsciously brought to mind the sport you see on TV, the one that’s more mainstream overseas—people in white protective gear and masks, poking each other with swords to see who lands a hit first.
But aside from Ning Feng, who used a Western-style sword, the weapons the others carried had absolutely nothing to do with the standard equipment for that kind of competition.
And Ning Yu, the club president, even had a blade and a sword tucked at her waist.
Chen Chong had wondered about this before. If he wasn’t mistaken, those were a Tang Blade and a Seven-foot Sword, weapons from an ancient dynasty, weren’t they?
"Hahaha, you’re not the first person to ask us that. If I’m not mistaken, you guys probably haven’t seen our team’s competitions, have you?"
Xu Jun, a little embarrassed, quickly blustered, "We have! Of course we have!"
Ning Feng waved his hand dismissively. "It’s fine if you haven’t. That’s normal. Our kind of competitions are pretty niche compared to sports like soccer and basketball."
"For example, the most common ones are fencing, HEMA, and kendo competitions. Then there are the slightly more obscure and niche ones like Wushu, traditional weapons competitions, cold weapon combat, half-armor weapon combat, and full-armor combat. We’re professional-level competitors in all of them."
"Our training hall trains with all sorts of weapons. As long as it’s a competition involving cold weapons, our family’s hall participates, and we have different independent training squads."
"Of course, the squad of twenty-something people led by my sister mainly trains with swords and blades—all kinds of them. We usually participate in these types of competitions, which is why everyone specializes in a different weapon."
Chen Chong finally understood. "So your training hall is blooming everywhere. That’s really impressive."
"Of course." A trace of pride showed on Ning Feng’s face.
"My father is the president of the local traditional cold weapons association and a special guest judge for the international cold weapons rankings. Our training hall’s reputation is pretty well-known, both at home and abroad."
"And let me tell you something else. The rest of us only master one type of sword or blade, and we only focus on one event for competitions. But my sister is different. Don’t be fooled because she’s only carrying a Tang Blade and a Seven-foot Sword. The truth is, as long as it’s a sword or a blade, my sister knows how to use every type. She dabbles in all the competitions!"
"That badass!?"
Xu Jun and Huang Mao exclaimed in shock.
Even Chen Chong couldn’t help but look at Ning Yu. He hadn’t expected this beautiful girl to have such exceptional talent with swords and blades.
"Of course she’s badass! How else could she be the captain? She’s the one Dad has the highest hopes for. Ever since she was a kid..."
"Xiaofeng."
Ning Yu couldn’t listen anymore. With just that soft call, Ning Feng immediately clapped a hand over his mouth and didn’t dare say another word.
Seeing him so scared of his sister made both Chen Chong and Wang Biao laugh...
Startled by Ning Yu, Ning Feng didn’t dare talk about her anymore, but his restless mouth was itching to chat with someone.
Maybe it was because they were two peas in a pod, or maybe it was because Xu Jun had been such a good straight man earlier, but he felt it was more fun to talk to Xu Jun.
He bypassed Chen Chong, Zhang Meng, and the others, and trotted over from the Swordsmanship Club’s side to start a conversation with Xu Jun.
"Bro, your team only has six people, but you guys are incredible! WHOOSH, WHOOSH, WHOOSH, and you cut down three Fear Wolves, including the Terror Wolf King! Your combat power is insane!"
"Right?" Xu Jun was delighted, a smug little expression immediately appearing on his face.
"You know it. Don’t be fooled by how clean and handsome my Brother Chong looks, like some pretty boy. When he gets his hands dirty, he’s ruthless. Forget the Terror Wolf King, even if that rumored Giant Eagle or Blood Python showed up, he’d dare to run up and stab it!"
"That ruthless?" Ning Feng believed him. The look he gave Chen Chong was filled with deep respect.
Chen Chong: "..."
Ning Yu also glanced at Chen Chong, her gaze filled with suspicion, as if she were genuinely contemplating whether he was as brave as Xu Jun claimed.
Catching this out of the corner of his eye, Chen Chong felt even more speechless and could only speed up to walk at the very front of the group.
’Out of sight, out of mind...’
Xu Jun and Ning Feng were still busy hyping each other up.
"Amazing, truly amazing. For just six people to be so strong... I feel like you’re even stronger than the eight of us in the Swordsmanship Club—not counting my sister, of course."
"Your sister might not necessarily be stronger than my Brother Chong. Besides, our team has more than six people."
"Your team has more people?"
"Of course! The Chinese medicine hall we’re taking you to? Our logistics member is the one holding consultations there. Counting her, that makes seven people!"
"Nice! You’ve even got medical resources sorted out. Even if she’s not a combatant, a logistics member who knows medicine is incredibly useful. Your team is seriously amazing!"
Xu Jun was bursting with pride. He suddenly thought of the laborer and the maid. "No, wait, it’s actually nine people!"
"Nine people?" Ning Feng was a little surprised.
Seeing his expression, Xu Jun grinned. Then he suddenly noticed the Tiger Striped Dog trotting alongside Chen Chong up ahead and thought about its combat prowess.
"Well... if you really want to get technical, you could even say ten."
"Ten people?" Ning Feng was stunned.
Xu Jun then thought of the eagle egg still in the incubator. That thing was probably their real ace in the hole.
"I guess... it’s not just ten, but eleven!"
"Huh?" Ning Feng was dumbfounded. His gaze towards Xu Jun was now tinged with suspicion.
After a long silence, he finally squeezed out a sentence.
"Damn, you’re even better at bullshitting than I am. I’m done playing with you..."
...
The group returned to the foot of the faculty apartment building.
Shen Xinrou had just finished up in her consultation room. The "medical fee" from the last patient was still on the table.
When she saw a group of people walk in, almost all of them covered in bloody scratches and gashes, Shen Xinrou panicked.
"Brother Chong, are you okay?"
Chen Chong shook his head. "I’m fine. It’s mainly Wang Biao, Zhang Meng, and the Tiger Striped Dog who have scrapes and bites. These other people are more serious. See what you can do to treat them."
"Okay." Seeing that Chen Chong was unharmed, Shen Xinrou let out a sigh of relief. She immediately sat down, regained her composure, and began diagnosing their injuries one by one.
In less than half an hour, everyone had been seen.
Wang Biao and Zhang Meng had scrapes.
They weren’t as bad as the ones from their encounter with the Blood-tooth Python by the creek. A simple poultice of antiseptic herbs would be enough.
The Tiger Striped Dog’s wound was deeper, as it had been bitten by the Terror Wolf King, but thankfully, the bone wasn’t injured.
Shen Xinrou applied a poultice made from herbal juice to its fur and said it would be fine once it scabbed over in a few days.
As for the Swordsmanship Club, aside from two members who were so badly injured they could no longer hold their blades and another two who had been bitten on the chest and back, the rest were not seriously hurt.
Like Wang Biao and Zhang Meng, a simple poultice of antiseptic herbs would suffice for them.
As for the other four who were more seriously injured...
"The bites on you two aren’t a major issue; they’re just flesh wounds. After I disinfect them, apply this herb and wrap it with a cloth strip. Don’t let it get wet for the next few days, and you’ll be fine in a week. It won’t affect your activities before then."
"But yours... the injury has reached the muscle and bone in your arm. If it’s not treated properly, it could very well lead to the amputation of the entire arm."
"And I’m not very confident about treating it. I can only guarantee that the wound will heal, but I’m not sure if there will be aftereffects that hinder your arm’s movement in the future."
"And you—most of the skin and flesh on your hand has been torn away. It’ll be tricky to treat, but thankfully, there shouldn’t be any aftereffects. At most, you’ll be left with a large, ugly scar."
"However, you’ll need to pay close attention to the risk of infection going forward. Your wound has the largest surface area, making it the most prone to infection. If it gets severe, there’s also a risk of amputation..."
...