Fresh Gossip

Even though Kate couldn't mind-control Qi Li, they had agreed that if her palm actually made contact with him, she won. That condition still held. In the past, hearing Qi Li speak like that would have shaken Kate, making her second-guess herself and hesitate. But after enduring a succession of harsh lessons, she didn't hesitate for a second. Moving swift as an escaping hare, she lunged at top speed, reaching for Qi Li's bare skin. *Snap! Crack! Crunch!* Qi Li's frame jolted, unleashing a burst of super strength that far exceeded ordinary superhumans, instantly shattering every piece of magnetically charged rebar binding him. Andre's head swam with dizziness, and his hands dropped limply to his sides. Qi Li offered Kate a faint smile, his movements softening slightly as he tossed her clear of the fray. Then, he swept his eyes over the rest: male Jordan charging alongside his comrades, Luke still blazing with fire, Ellie Han with razor-sharp claws sprouting from all ten fingers and a white fox tail extending from behind her back, the unseen Maverick lurking somewhere nearby, and the lightning-fast speedster Dean. Qi Li cracked his neck, flashing an excited grin, and clenched his fist. The surrounding air let out an overloaded, brittle pop. The next instant. He planted his right foot forward with an earth-shaking boom, launching himself into the clash. Over the minutes that followed, a deafening cacophony of bone-crunching, flesh-to-flesh impacts echoed through the hall like clashing swords and galloping iron steeds. With a vicious right hook, Qi Li slammed male Jordan ruthlessly into the floor, followed by a lightning-quick whip kick that launched Luke flying across the room. "Shit!" Maverick materialized abruptly behind Qi Li, diving forward in a bid to tackle him to the floor. Qi Li simply leaned a step forward, bent at the waist, and snapped a backhand grip onto the nape of Maverick's neck. "You need a bath!" With a powerful forward throw, Qi Li slammed Maverick violently into the floor ahead, gouging out a human-shaped crater and leaving the boy howling in agony. Debris and crushed rock sprayed in every direction. Darting in at blinding speed, Ellie Han shifted her stance and raked all five claws diagonally across Qi Li's chest, producing a screech of friction so sharp it set teeth on edge. Qi Li thrust his right hand forward like lightning. Before Ellie Han could dodge, he clamped a hand around her pointed chin, bodily lifting her into the air. As Ellie Han's long legs kicked helplessly off the ground... Dean, having circled the training hall several times to max out his kinetic energy, snapped down his goggles with a low hum. Moving at a speed far beyond anyone's reaction time, he lowered his shoulder and slammed violently into Qi Li's chest. In that split second, within Dean's drastically dilated perception of time, he realized to his absolute horror that Qi Li's head was actually turning toward him, millimeter by millimeter. Yet Qi Li remained half a beat too slow. *Bang!* Qi Li was knocked off balance, slamming into the concrete wall behind him. Plaster and chunks of cement cracked and shattered in a roaring cascade. Luke and male Jordan exchanged a glance, instantly scrambling to their feet and charging over. A blazing left fist and a power-packed right fist slammed simultaneously toward the wall. Qi Li ducked. Both punches hit nothing but air, blowing two gaping holes into the masonry. Before they could wrench their arms free from the wall, Qi Li moved with the agility of a leaping hare and the ferocity of a stooping falcon. His first blow sank into male Jordan's kidney, and as Jordan doubled over in agony, a second punch smashed squarely into the male face thrust before him. Without uttering a single sound, Jordan went skidding along the floor. *Crack!* Almost at the same moment, Luke landed a heavy punch on Qi Li's left cheek, the accompanying flames singeing a patch of his dark hair. A punch packing enough force to shatter an ordinary man's skull did little more than tilt Qi Li's head slightly. In the blink of an eye, Qi Li straightened his head as though nothing had happened. His right hand snapped out to catch Luke's incoming follow-up punch, pulling the caught-off-guard fire wielder forward as he drove his right knee upward. *Thud!* The knee struck Luke flush in the abdomen. Luke gagged, vomiting bile that instantly vaporized in the heat of his own flames. Qi Li followed up with a kick that sent Luke skidding across the hall. Then, tracking the whistling wind, he raised his left hand and caught a flying shard of metal flung by a recovered Andre. *Crunch, grind.* Qi Li squeezed his fingers, letting the pulverized metal filings trickle slowly down between his knuckles. He brushed a thick layer of dust from his clothes, glanced at the few people in the room who still had fight left in them, and nodded in satisfaction. "Keep going. I haven't even broken a sweat." Fifteen minutes later. *Boom—* A piercing sonic wake reverberated throughout the hall. Running flat out, Dean kept glancing over his shoulder in utter disbelief. Suspended in midair, Qi Li was barreling straight toward him. As everyone knew, running on two legs on the ground was no match for flight. After thoroughly flattening the others, Qi Li had gotten a clear measure of Dean's capabilities as a speedster. He had promptly taken to the air to make the official arrest. Outdoors, Dean might have held out a bit longer. But indoors, especially after Dean panicked and nearly tripped himself up, Qi Li seized the opening and caught him by the collar. "Wait! I surrender!" Dean shouted, frantically throwing his hands in the air. Qi Li glanced left and right at the floor, where everyone else was battered, bruised, and writhing in pain. He offered a gentle life lesson: "Dean, you've got to learn to fit in with the group." With that, Qi Li delivered a solid punch. Dean wailed and crumpled to the floor. Lesson complete. Qi Li felt thoroughly refreshed. This was the first time he had fought for so long. Before this, where could he ever find so many tough, thick-skinned superhumans to serve as punching bags? As for those who had died by his hand, he had always cut through them cleanly and quickly. In life-and-death encounters, there was no room for complacency or pulling punches. "Your stamina is terrifying," Kate remarked as she walked over, looking utterly drained. She knew all too well that both last night and this morning, Qi Li had taken the lead and expended far more energy than her. In response, Qi Li quoted that famous line: "I can do this all day." Kate didn't argue. She leaned languidly against her boyfriend. Qi Li hadn't been too rough on his own woman, so Kate's pretty face was still unblemished—unlike Luke, Andre, and Maverick, whose faces were now mottled with purple and red bruises. Especially Maverick; given the rare chance, Qi Li had naturally landed several solid hits on his face. As for Jordan, ever since Professor Brink had counseled them, Jordan mostly appeared in female form, but right now they were still in their male form. After all, Qi Li wasn't going to go easy just because Jordan also had a female side. He wasn't bisexual. On the other hand... a certain pair here seemed quite unusual. It was Kate who quietly pointed them out to him. Qi Li followed her gaze and saw Luke, whose flames had fully extinguished, standing stark naked and pressed remarkably close to Andre, whose clothes were likewise mostly burned away after repeatedly catching his best friend. The two of them seemed to realize it, yet at this moment, some invisible restraint in their minds appeared to unlock. When they looked at each other, their eyes held an unnameable spark of emotion. Qi Li and Kate watched in silence, thoroughly enjoying the fresh gossip. Before long, Maverick sidled over, his spirits completely revived as he whispered, "According to my observations, both Luke and Andre have bisexual tendencies." Qi Li wasn't particularly shocked. Compared to the guy standing beside him, Luke and Andre were among the more normal superhumans. It was only because he knew them personally that he felt a touch of curiosity. Kate, however, was thoroughly intrigued. Just as she was about to ask for details, Maverick abruptly switched topics. "Also, Qi Li, someone else is staring straight at you right now. Tee-hee." Hearing that, Qi Li glanced down at himself. Between the fire, the rebar, and all the high-impact collisions, his clothes had long since been shredded, putting his perfectly sculpted, powerful physique on full display. The person staring at him wasn't Maverick, but the other woman in the room: Ellie Han, who had fought so decisively moments ago, was now blushing so hard her ears were bright crimson. "Fuck!" Kate reacted the fastest, snatching up her jacket and wrapping it around Qi Li's waist. Then, she locked eyes with Ellie Han in a fierce silent standoff. The commotion snapped Luke and Andre out of their trance, and the others began pushing themselves up from the floor with groans and grimaces. Qi Li cleared his throat twice to change the subject. "Hey, everyone... anyone interested in checking out tomorrow's Race of the Century?"