Chapter 13: Beating the Tiger
Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations
Since Ling Yun had just started the fifth round, Li Lei had more than enough time to stop him.
Li Lei was under the impression that Ling Yun was in an exhausted state such that with a slight ‘nudge’, he would no doubt fall over and never get up again. The place Li Lei had chosen to carry out his plan was near the 200 meters mark. Now all he had to do was wait patiently for Ling Yun to fall into his trap.
On the other hand, Ling Yun was now having an easy time running. For the very first time, the weight on his shoulder no longer felt as heavy as before. As a result, he was able to speed up, moving ever closer towards where Li Lei laid in wait.
Similarly, Tang Meng’s mind felt lighter after witnessing Ling Yun’s now smooth and invigorated running form. He knew Ling Yun was now more than capable of completing five rounds and with that, Xie Junyan’s loss was inevitable.
However, as Tang Meng’s eyes followed Ling Yun, the enormous physique of Li Lei came into view. Tang Meng’s eyes were now wide open with bewilderment as he realized what was going on.
“Sh*t!” Tang Meng cried out as he ran towards Li Lei.
The mult.i.tude of events that had occurred today had distracted and slowed his thinking. Therefore, he had not put into consideration the possibility of Xie Junyan resorting to underhanded means to achieve victory.
“Li Lei, don’t you dare!” Tang Meng hollered just as Ling Yun was reaching Li Lei.
It seemed too late as Li Lei gave Tang Meng a wicked smile before raising his muscular arm and aiming it at the incoming Ling Yun.
“Fat t.u.r.d! Time for a little nap!” Li Lei shouted as he swung his arm towards Ling Yun.
In the crowd.
“Don’t tell me that guy is going to…”
“That a.s.shole!”
“Stop! He’s already hurt!”
Many onlookers screamed as they realized Li Lei’s intentions.
No one had expected this…
No one except Ling Yun.
For Ling Yun, whose vision was now crystal clear and whose mind had refocused, he could sense Li Lei’s evil intentions from his cruel smile alone.
Knowing what was coming, Ling Yun had already formulated a counter strategy. Seeing Li Lei’s raised arm, Ling Yun clenched his teeth in glee and with a twist in his step, dodged Li Lei’s swing by the skin of his teeth.
Without slowing down and wasting any movements, Ling Yun gracefully sped pa.s.s Li Lei.
“Try harder next time buddy! And you better be prepared for worse the next time we meet!” Ling Yun yelled as he sped past Li Lei like superman. On his face was a taunting smile as he attempted to ridicule Li Lei.
The crowd was stupefied.
“What kind of step was that!” one of them shouted
“Oh my G.o.d, this dude is just too cool!” another screamed
“Wasn’t he just puking blood a while ago?” someone exclaimed.
All the girls on the field were now mesmerized by Ling Yun after seeing him playfully yet elegantly dodge past Li Lei.
“What the heck? He was clearly going to be hit by Li Lei, how did he dodge that?” Tang Meng who had blinked at that crucial second where everything happened mumbled incredulously.
As for Li Lei, he could not even begin to fathom what had just occurred in from of him.
He was dead sure his arm had made contact with Ling Yun’s shoulder and yet did not understand how he just slipped through. Li Lei stood motionless on the track while girls surrounded him with angry eyes and bombarded him with verbal abuse.
With the commotion around him, Li Lei was pulled back to his senses. He then pushed a male student aside as he began chasing after Ling Yun. Since he had already started, it was too late for him to stop.
Hearing the shouts of warnings and the sounds of heavy footsteps closing in from behind, Ling Yun knew that the musclehead hadn’t given up yet. Ling Yun faintly increased his pace while using his right hand to tilt the sandbag as his left-hand stored up energy for a big swing.
Li Lei was now planning to grab hold of Ling Yun and slam him to the ground directly to stop all movement. Thus, when he reached Ling Yun’s back, he lifted both his arms and he tried to go under Ling Yun’s ribs.
That was what Ling Yun had been waiting for. Ling Yun tilted forward and lifted the sandbag before swinging and throwing the bag with all his might towards his back. Ling Yun gave his condolences for it was a swing without mercy.
*Pa* the dull yet solid sound of the bag meeting his left shoulder could be heard before the surprised Li Lei crumpled to the ground from the weight and impact. Li Lei’s face kissed the track and his nose was broken. Blood spilled out as he struggled to even crawl. Anyone else other than him would surely have been knocked out.
“Sweet move, dude.”
“Serves him right!”
Countless cheers could be heard from the onlookers.
Ling Yun, who was still in motion, grabbed the sandbag which was in midair and returned it to his left shoulder. Following which, he let out a deep breath as he continued running.
Using this opportunity, Tang Meng ran to Li Lei and unleashed a furry of kicks on the poor fellow.
“You think it’s funny to mess up someone’s bet? I bet you’re tired of living!” Tang Meng roared.
Li Lei had messed with the wrong guy. Tang Meng’s father was the vice minister of Qing Shui City’s Public Security Bureau. Xie Junyan and his goons were nothing to him.
Seeing Tang Meng losing himself, Cheng Zhiye and gang raced over and tried to hold him back.
“Tell me who ordered this! Who told you to hurt Ling Yun?” Tang Meng ordered Li Lei like a tyrant.
“Bo… boss it’s a misunderstanding, I was only trying to teach that p.r.i.c.k a lesson for what happened yesterday with Cao Shanshan…” Li Lei stuttered as his mind raced to find excuses.
“Don’t give me that c.r.a.p! Whatever happened yesterday had nothing to do with you!”
“Now tell me, was it Xie Junyan, that b.a.s.t.a.r.d, who gave you the order?” Tang Meng interrogated Li Lei.
“Boss Tang, trust me. I’m speaking the truth, I swear!” Li Lei pleaded. Though he was formidable in the cage, even Li Lei knew not to mess with Tang Meng directly.
As if he was trying to show Li Lei who was boss, Tang Meng spat at him. Then, he warmed him in a menacing voice, “Listen up, don’t go forgetting your place just because Xie Junyan is your master, you hear me? This sh*t ain’t over and if you try touching Ling Yun again, I will make sure you can’t take the entrance exams!”
Upon hearing those words, Li Lei’s face turned pale. Knowing Tang Meng, Li Lei was sure he would keep true to his words. Just as Li Lei was going to beg more…
“Look! Ling Yun’s already done with the fifth round!”
“But he ain’t stopping!”
“Unbelievable…”
While everyone had been distracted by Li Lei and Tang Meng, Ling Yun had already finished the fifth round!
Seeing this, Tang Meng felt a sense of relief and started walking back to the stands. Of course, he didn’t head back without giving Li Lei one last glare. In retrospect, Tang Meng finally realized why Cao Shanshan looked so resolute when making her bet. Knowing this, Tang Meng could not help but shake his head in defeat. The school Madonna isn’t just all looks after all!
Back on the track.
Li Lei, who was now at the side, knew that his plan had ended in total failure! Not only was he in for a scolding he had also earned the wrath of Tang Meng, the school tyrant. What was he to do now? However, Li Lei had forgotten about the scariest guy of all; Ling Yun.
On the field.
Seeing how Ling Yun had completed the fifth round with such ease in contrast to a while ago, Ma Tian Feng was simply astounded. He was wondering what kind of magic pill Ling Yun took to still be able to run after vomiting so much blood.
The sixth round.
The seventh round.
With each round, the cheers and applause gradually became harmonized with the whole field, cheering in symphony. The audience was filled with fervor and pa.s.sion as they looked towards Ling Yun.
*Ring!*
Just as Ling Yun was beginning his eighth round, the bell signaling the end of the third period could be heard. Almost immediately, students attracted by the commotion in the field dashed out of cla.s.s in large numbers and raced towards the field. None of them knew what had been happening all this while but one thing was for sure, Ling Yun was still running!
The Grade 10 and 11 students, who were no longer content with watching from their cla.s.srooms, were the first to race for the field.
The grade 12 students, Ling Yun’s cla.s.s 3 especially, all rushed down as well.
Now that the cla.s.sroom was empty, Cao Shanshan finally stood up to leave. The school madonna’s perfect S-shaped curves could be seen as she stood up and gave Zhang Ling a slight smile.
“Let’s go and have a look too,” Cao Shanshan said softly.
Anyone could tell that she was in a good mood. Cao Shan Shan was in fact curious.
She was wondering if what happened last night had stimulated Ling Yun so much that it triggered such a change in him. That being said, this change was still too sudden and drastic. As the two exited the cla.s.sroom, they decided to scout for a place with a better view in the building. Having found one, the two girls stood against the railing as they looked towards the track.
“Oh my, the crowd is insane!” Zhang Ling cried out with her mouth agape as she watched the swarm of humans on the field from above.
“That ordinary and fat Ling Yun is actually still running!” Zhang Ling continued as she identified Ling Yun’s silhouette while Cao Shanshan watched on absentmindedly.
“Shanshan, how many rounds do you think he has completed?” Zhang Ling asked as she remembered about Shanshan’s thousand dollar bet.
“We don’t know if he rested midway but I’m guessing at least four rounds.” Cao Shanshan replied, her eyes followed Ling Yun as she touched up her makeup.
“I bet he rested. Anyone else would have fainted by now!” Zhang Ling exclaimed with conviction. It was at this moment that the crowd shouted in unison.
“Eight!”
“What?!” Both girls cried out in disbelief simultaneously. Both girls were rooted to the spot.
“Is he crazy? How many rounds does he intend to run?” Zhang Ling asked the question which was on everyone’s mind.
Unbeknownst to Zhang Ling, Cao Shanshan’s pupils s.h.i.+ned with a brilliance one seldom got to see. This was because out of the entire student body, Cao Shanshan knew the reason behind Ling Yun’s seemingly limitless vigor. And that reason was the fact that he had successfully forced out the innate potential hidden within his body.