A Plan of Action

"All right." Though honest and simple by nature, Xiong Meng was far from stupid, and he quickly caught on. Killing Xia Tao was an act with monumental consequences. Losing points was trivial; once the truth came to light, they would thoroughly offend the Earth Martial Artist backing him. Now, Fang Yu, Qin Yang, and Bai Chen had all taken part. If he and Xia Yao stayed completely out of it, what would Fang Yu and Bai Chen think? *Whoosh!* Xiong Meng drew a short knife from his waist and handed it to Xia Yao. Then he drew his long saber and, carrying Xia Yao on his back, walked straight toward Xia Tao. "*Cough...*" Xia Tao lay sprawled on the ground, coughing up mouthfuls of blood and barely able to speak, his eyes brimmed with despair. That spear strike through his abdomen had damaged his lungs, rendering him speechless. Even so, with his formidable vitality, as long as his head was not severed and his heart remained intact, he would not perish immediately. "Don't kill him outright. The two of you, lop off one of his hands each." Bai Chen's voice surged with murderous intent. He did not withdraw his spear immediately; pulling it out now would accelerate the bleeding and only bring Xia Tao to an earlier death. *Whoosh! Swish!* Crouching slightly, Xiong Meng and Xia Yao dared not hesitate. They swung their blades almost simultaneously, erupting with over a thousand kilograms of force to instantly sever a section of Xia Tao's helpless arms. Blood sprayed in all directions. "Xiong Meng, apply hemostatic spray so he doesn't die too quickly." Bai Chen hoisted Xia Tao, who hung limp like a dead dog, unable to speak from his damaged lungs. With ice-cold eyes, Bai Chen said, "Follow me. We'll throw him to the pack of beasts we passed earlier and let the fierce beasts deliver the final blow. That will lessen our liability." "Understood! Let's go!" Xiong Meng sprang into action at once. Bai Chen lifted Xia Tao while Xiong Meng grabbed the severed arms, and the two quickly vanished into the mountain forest. Along their journey, the Scarlet Flame Squad had encountered several fierce beasts, though most were of low rank and not worth slaughtering. Now, they served a purpose. The nearest pack was only a kilometer away. Fang Yu, Qin Yang, and Xia Yao remained behind, waiting in place. "Qin Yang, let's clean up this area first," Fang Yu said in a low voice. "All right." Qin Yang nodded, and the two quickly began sweeping away and concealing the traces of battle... Three minutes later, Fang Yu received a notification on his communication star ring: *Coefficient score reduced by 0.1, 30 Primordial Points deducted.* Xia Tao was dead. Moments later, Bai Chen returned carrying his spear, sprinting alongside Xiong Meng. "Fang Yu, let's get out of here first," Bai Chen said somberly. "Right." Fang Yu nodded. *Swish! Swish! Swish!* This time, Fang Yu carried Xia Yao on his back as the members of the Scarlet Flame Squad sprinted at full speed, putting five to six kilometers between them and the site in no time at all. Only when they reached a secluded cliff face did they finally come to a halt. "Don't worry, Fang Yu. I didn't touch a single item Xia Tao was carrying, including his medicine—I threw it all away," Bai Chen said in a low tone. "Xiong Meng and I watched with our own eyes as that pack of beasts devoured him bite by bite. There probably won't even be scraps of bone left. There's no dead man to testify. "Now, the only evidence... "...is our coefficient scores. "From what I know, the academy can't look up our Primordial Points, but they can check our coefficient scores," Bai Chen said solemnly. "Any change to our coefficient scores, whether an increase or a drop, is recorded by the academy right down to the exact minute. There's no evading that. "However, we aren't in the same squad as Xia Tao, and his direct cause of death was fierce beasts, so the coefficient score deducted from us won't be too excessive." When warriors of the same civilization killed each other, the coefficient scores and Primordial Points deducted were never excessively high. "Most importantly, the five of us share the burden together. "So by my estimation, each of us should lose at most 0.1 coefficient points," Bai Chen continued. "Mine dropped by 0.1." "Same here." "Mine too," Xiong Meng and Qin Yang chimed in one after another. "I... I only lost 15 Primordial Points." Xia Yao's voice was somewhat timid, though this came as no surprise to the others. Given her injuries, she had barely participated. "Not losing any coefficient score is fine too." Bai Chen nodded. "Fang Yu, what about you?" Everyone turned to look at Fang Yu. "Also 0.1," Fang Yu replied quietly. Only then did everyone breathe a sigh of relief. "To be honest, I didn't want to drag you into this," Fang Yu said, shaking his head, though a trace of murderous intent still lingered in his eyes. "But just now, I simply couldn't stomach holding back any longer." Now that the battle had ended and his mind had cooled, Fang Yu realized he had acted somewhat impulsively. Yet! When they had first crossed paths, they had swallowed their anger because their strength was insufficient. Over an hour ago, when facing the wolf tide, the other squad had nearly caused their total annihilation. Fang Yu had held a furnace of rage in his chest, harboring the desire to kill him long ago. With a sharp blade in hand, the urge to kill arose naturally, and Fang Yu had grown powerful enough. How much time had passed since then? Xia Tao had returned to push them again, and Fang Yu refused to endure it. At twenty-one, he was in the prime of his youthful vigor and hot blood. *If I still have to swallow insults like this, why bother practicing martial arts? What's done is done—so what if he has a powerful background?* That had been Fang Yu's thought at the moment. Fang Yu knew he had been hotheaded. Yet he felt no regret. If faced with the choice again, he would still make the same move. "Brother Fang, I was sick of taking it lying down long ago!" Xiong Meng growled in a low voice. "Dead is dead, and without a body, there's no proof. A 0.1 drop in coefficient score is hardly concrete evidence that we killed Xia Tao." "That's right," Qin Yang agreed. "Fang Yu, none of us wanted to endure it either; we only hated that our strength fell short," Bai Chen said with absolute gravity. "As for dragging us down, don't mention it again. You saved all our lives. "Besides, we're a squad. We share the treasures together, and we shoulder the consequences together. "What's there to fear? "All this Xia Tao relied on was having an uncle who is an Earth Martial Artist," Bai Chen sneered. "Yet let alone an Earth Martial Artist, even a Sky-Patrolling Martial Artist might not be able to investigate the specific circumstances on the Primordial Star. "Moreover, I've never heard of any martial artist being convicted just because their coefficient score dropped by 0.1. "According to academy regulations, unless there is direct evidence of murder—such as testimony from multiple people across different squads, or a coefficient score plummeting by more than 0.5—we'll face an interrogation at most," Bai Chen explained. The others nodded in agreement. That had also been the reason behind Xia Tao's previous arrogance. On the Primordial Star, oversight was practically nonexistent. Merely injuring someone was nearly impossible to prosecute. "I gave it careful thought just now. "Our coefficient scores dropped collectively, synchronized with the time of Xia Tao's death. We will definitely be the academy's prime suspects," Bai Chen said gravely. "Furthermore, if an Earth Martial Artist insists on pursuing the matter, they will likely employ a spiritual polygraph." "A spiritual polygraph?" Fang Yu felt a jolt in his heart. This was nothing like the lie detectors of the old days. When martial arts cultivation reached profound heights, immense spiritual force could easily sway the minds of ordinary people. Under the overwhelming pressure of a powerful martial artist, an ordinary person could scarcely utter a lie. A spiritual polygraph was an apparatus designed to work in tandem with formidable martial artists adept in spiritual force. Fortunately, every member of the Scarlet Flame Squad was an Intermediate Martial Artist, endowing them with far greater resilience against spiritual pressure. "Therefore," "If we are interrogated separately, we cannot claim that Xia Tao's death had nothing to do with us. That would leave too large a loophole to evade scrutiny," Bai Chen continued. "We must stand firm on one point. "We did not kill him. We did indeed clash with Xia Tao, but having just survived the wolf tide, our stamina was heavily drained, and we were no match for him... On that front, the two members from the Black Ice Squad can actually serve as our witnesses. "At the critical moment, an advanced fierce beast suddenly charged out, ambushing and killing him. "This aligns with the facts as well; he was mauled to death by fierce beasts in the end," Bai Chen said slowly. "Only with seven parts truth and three parts falsehood do we have any hope of getting through the interrogation." Fang Yu felt a surge of silent admiration. He had to admit that Bai Chen's handling of the situation and strategy were far more meticulous than his own. "However, all of this merely treats the symptoms, not the root cause. "Fang Yu. "The true key to breaking this deadlock actually lies with you." Bai Chen turned his gaze onto Fang Yu. "Me?" Fang Yu's mind stirred. "Your background isn't small either," Bai Chen said in a low voice. Xiong Meng and Xia Yao's eyes lit up. They all knew Instructor Jiang Wei was Fang Yu's martial uncle, and Fang Yu's family appeared quite wealthy as well. In their eyes, while Fang Yu's backing might not match Xia Tao's, it shouldn't be weak either. "My background isn't enough," Fang Yu said, shaking his head. "No, but your talent is," Bai Chen replied. "The moment we return to the space base, you must immediately report everything to Instructor Jiang Wei and the academy—that you awakened a Middle-Rank Star Aspect, opened forty-six primordial star acupoints, and comprehended the Entering the Minute secret technique. "And not just them. "You must also notify your family right away and have them contact the Eight Great Martial Artist Groups... As long as you display enough value through your talent, forget being merely suspected of indirectly causing Xia Tao's death— "Even if there were undeniable proof, there would still be people willing to shield you! "If you are safe, "...then none of us will face any real trouble."