Redemption from the Abyss: The School Beauty Insists on Pulling Me Out of the Mire

All fifty-odd pairs of eyes in the class turned to look at the doorway.

There stood a tall boy in a school uniform standing at the door. He had a buzz cut and was holding a basketball in one hand. The sleeves of his school uniform were rolled up to his shoulders, revealing a pair of biceps that he was working hard on.

He struck what he thought was a cool pose, but was actually just greasy, and yelled into the classroom:

"Xie Wang, stop playing dead and get out here! If you're a man, come and duel on the court!"

The classroom fell silent for a second.

Immediately afterwards, there was no fear or awe that Zhao Zixuan had anticipated.

Instead, an awkward atmosphere of "looking at idiots" permeated the air.

A boy with glasses pushed up his glasses and muttered to his deskmate, "Isn't there too little homework for second-year high school students? They're so bored."

My deskmate rolled his eyes and continued working on his problems: "Maybe this is just the restlessness of adolescence. Try to understand, after all, we haven't experienced the harsh realities of senior year yet."

"Hey! What kind of look is that?!"

Zhao Zixuan felt greatly insulted. He strode in and went straight to a corner.

Immediately afterward, Shen Hao in the front row seemed to suddenly realize something, his eyes widened, he pointed at the boy by the door, and let out a gasp:

"Holy crap! Isn't this the same Zhao the hero who wrote the challenge this morning?"

The students, who were initially a bit confused, instantly came to their senses.

Everyone initially thought he was some kind of powerful character, but then they saw his art style...

"puff--"

I don't know who couldn't hold back first.

Immediately afterwards, the whole class erupted in laughter even louder than during the morning reading session.

"Hahaha! So it was him!"

"Help! Is this the legendary man who 'launched a duel for Goddess Su'?"

Xu You, sitting in the front row, huddled behind Shen Hao, tugged at his sleeve, and whispered something that the whole class could hear:

"Shen Hao... does this junior never look in the mirror? His nose hairs... seem to be showing a little bit."

Zhao Zixuan's face instantly turned a deep purplish-red, from his neck to his ears.

His carefully cultivated tough-guy image instantly crumbled, and he roared in anger and embarrassment:

"What are you laughing at!"

He suddenly looked at Su Qinghe, his gaze instantly shifting from fierce to a kind of fanatical infatuation, and shouted:

"Senior Su, I've been following you for a long time. I heard you're dating this pretty boy who's all looks? I can't believe it!"

"He's not good enough for you! Only the strong deserve to stand beside you!"

He then pointed at Xie Wang, filled with righteous indignation:

"Xie Wang! If you've got guts, don't hide behind women! Let's have a one-on-one basketball game after school tonight! The loser stays away from Senior Su!"

Xie Wang listened to these boastful words without even lifting his eyelids.

He simply leaned back lazily in his chair, twirling a pen in his hand:

"roll."

"you--!"

Just as Zhao Zixuan was about to lash out, Su Qinghe, who had been silent all along, suddenly stood up.

The laughter in the classroom gradually stopped, and everyone looked at Su Qinghe.

"You're Zhao, right?"

Su Qinghe's voice was cold and clear, instantly extinguishing the smoldering flame in Zhao Zixuan's heart.

"Class 2(5), if I remember correctly, your homeroom teacher is Teacher Liu."

She adjusted her glasses, her gaze calmly sweeping over Zhao Zixuan's flushed face:

"First, openly making noise and damaging public property in the classroom."

"second."

Su Qinghe's tone carried an undisguised sense of detachment.

"Your so-called 'duel' is childish."

"Xie Wang doesn't need to prove anything to you, nor does he need to go to the basketball court to play one-on-one with you."

She turned her head and glanced at the languid Xie Wang beside her, her eyes softening instantly:

"Because I chose him."

"Whether he plays basketball or not, or how many points he gets on his test, I will only choose him, do you understand?"

"Go back now, don't block our way from studying."

Zhao Zixuan stood there, his face deathly pale.

This is not just a rejection.

This is utterly humiliating.

The mocking and scornful looks from his classmates made him feel like a clown jumping around on the beam.

That intense sense of shame instantly transformed into impotent rage.

"I don't believe it! He's just a gigolo hiding behind women!"

Zhao Zixuan completely lost his mind.

In an attempt to get revenge, he flexed his arm muscles and slammed the hard basketball in his hand directly at Xie Wang's face!

"careful--!"

Xu You screamed in fright and even instinctively covered her eyes.

Shen Hao also jumped to his feet: "Holy crap! A sneak attack?!"

The basketball, accompanied by a strong gust of wind, whistled past at incredible speed, like a cannonball fired from a gun, heading straight for Xie Wang's handsome face.

however.

The next second, the whole class heard a crisp "snap" sound.

Extremely somber, yet extremely powerful.

Time seemed to stand still.

The high-speed spinning, powerful basketball was held firmly in mid-air by a long, slender hand with distinct knuckles.

It stopped less than ten centimeters from Xie Wang's nose.

Not moving.

Xie Wang gripped the ball with one hand, and due to the sudden burst of finger strength, the veins on the back of his hand bulged slightly, forming a line that exuded power.

But his expression remained nonchalant and indifferent; he didn't even move an inch.

"Holy crap?!"

A boy in the back row nearly popped his eyes out. "Catched a dunk with one hand?!"

Su Qinghe merely raised an eyebrow slightly, as if he had expected it, and calmly sat down to take a sip of water.

"this……"

Zhao Zixuan's eyes widened, his pupils dilated violently, and his legs began to tremble: "Catch it with one hand... How is this possible? This is my ultimate technique, which I've practiced for three years—Meteor Throw!"

The whole class: ? ? ? ? ?

Xie Wang turned his head, his gaze peering through the stray hairs on his forehead as if he were looking at an idiot.

Then, he flicked his wrist seemingly casually.

"Here you go."

"boom--!"

Without any warning, the basketball flew back the way it came!

They're moving even faster than they did on the way here!

Zhao Zixuan didn't have time to react at all, not even to blink.

That hard basketball hit Zhao Zixuan squarely in the face!

The immense impact caused Zhao Zixuan's head to snap back violently, his nasal bone cracking with a sickening sound, and two streams of bright red blood gushed out instantly!

Before he could even scream, he was thrown half a centimeter into the air by the impact, then landed heavily on his buttocks, seeing stars and feeling dizzy.

The basketball bounced off his face before rolling to the side, still stained with blood.

Zhao Zixuan sat on the ground, stunned for several seconds, his mind blank.

He raised his hand with trembling hands, touched the warm, wet liquid under his nose, and looked at it in front of his eyes.

Looking at Xie Wang, whose hair was perfectly styled, countless lines from shonen manga flashed through his mind: "A hidden master, a sweeping monk, a sealed demon king!"

The final boss!

Xie Wang pulled out a tissue and slowly wiped the hand that was holding the ball, his voice languid:

"Want to duel again, junior?"

Just when the whole class thought Zhao Zixuan would get angry and embarrassed.

An unexpected scene unfolded.

Zhao Zixuan sprang up from the ground, ignoring the dust on his pants, his eyes now filled with a fanatical light.

He clasped his hands together and bowed deeply to Xie Wang at a perfect ninety-degree angle, his voice loud and respectful, deafening:

"Big brother!!!"

The whole class: "???"

Su Qinghe was drinking water and almost choked.

Lu Wen, who was outside the window, slipped and almost fell off the railing.

Zhao Zixuan was so excited that he was incoherent, and rushed to Xie Wang's table in a few steps:

"I admit I was a bit too loud just now! I was blind to your abilities! I never imagined you were such a legendary master!"

"That move of catching a blade bare-handed was absolutely awesome! That composure, that terrifying wrist strength—that's the kind of man who's worthy of Senior Su!"

"Brother Wang! From today onwards, you're my elder brother! I want to learn this move too, can you teach me?! My family runs a martial arts school, as long as you're willing to teach, tuition is no problem!"

Xie Wang: "..."

He looked at the immature teenager in front of him, whose expression changed faster than flipping through a book, and his lips twitched.

Isn't this plot development a bit too rushed?

"I don't accept apprentices." Xie Wang didn't take the water, pointing disdainfully to the door. "Also, we have class now."

"I understand! I get it! Masters need tranquility to cultivate themselves!"

Zhao Zixuan, with an "I understand" expression, immediately stood at attention, saluted Xie Wang and Su Qinghe, his eyes resolute:

"Then I won't disturb your ascension, brother and sister-in-law! From now on at No. 1 High School, if anyone dares to cause you trouble, just mention my name, Zhao Zixuan, and I'll take care of it for you!"

After saying that, he hugged the basketball, turned around, and left.

As he reached the door, he carefully straightened and closed the broken door for them, even breathing on it to wipe away the footprints.

……

The classroom was deathly silent.

in the corner.

Lu Yi pushed up his glasses and looked in the direction where the chuunibyou (delusional) teenager had disappeared:

"Last year on this day, in this very doorway, her face and the peach blossoms reflected each other's rosy hue."

Lu Yihe commented in his letter:

"Look at those two symmetrical streaks of blood flowing down from the nose, how strikingly red they are."

Xie Wang rubbed his temples silently.

He turned to look at Su Qinghe and found Su Qinghe lying on the table, his shoulders shaking, clearly laughing uncontrollably.

"What are you laughing at?" Xie Wang pinched her cheek.

Su Qinghe raised her head, tears of laughter still glistening in the corners of her eyes, and looked at him with a mocking gaze:

"I was thinking... Master Xie, does this mean we'll have a bodyguard from now on?"

"Forget it," Xie Wang sighed. "I'm afraid I'll catch his chuunibyou (middle school syndrome)."

Just then.

Suddenly, a knocking sound came from outside the window.

Lu Wen was still leaning on the railing, holding the sketchbook in his hand, turning to a new page where a thumbs-up was drawn:

[Awesome, I've got a new underling. This kid's family owns a martial arts gym; he can call in reinforcements for fights!]

Xie Wang: "..."

None of these people are normal.

He shook his head helplessly, picked up his pen again, and began to study.

Although the process was a bit outrageous, at least...

The world is finally quiet.