"I refuse. I don't need this honor, nor am I interested in being your friend," Liu Yilin stated, offering no pleasantries.
"Miss Liu, what if I insist on being friends with you?" Ma Liang's voice was laced with a threat as he stared at her.
"Scram!" Ning Beichen's voice cut through the air.
Ning Beichen's single word of dismissal instantly enraged Ma Liang, who was already seething with frustration and had no outlet for his anger.
"You're asking for death!" Ma Liang bellowed, launching a kick towards Ning Beichen. His strike contained a vicious internal force, fueled by his fury. He intended to cripple Ning Beichen with a single kick, to show Liu Yilin the consequences of defying him. He couldn't believe that a woman from outside could escape his grasp.
With a swish, a leg clad in Valentino high heels flashed from the side, connecting with Ma Liang's foot and disrupting his attack. The one who intervened was not Ning Beichen, but Liu Yilin. However, in terms of internal force cultivation, Liu Yilin was only at the second level of the Yin Xing Jue, far inferior to Ma Liang. But Ma Liang had never anticipated Liu Yilin would intervene, nor that she knew martial arts. Caught off guard, he was sent sprawling to the ground by her kick.
"Good, good, good..." Ma Liang, dusting himself off, said with a laugh that held no humor. "I didn't realize Miss Liu had also learned martial arts." Liu Yilin's martial prowess was a complete surprise to Ma Liang. He had assumed she was just an ordinary girl, but she had given him a significant shock.
"Those who respect others are respected in return; those who humiliate others are humiliated in turn," Liu Yilin recited. This was her first time engaging in combat with an outsider since learning martial arts, a situation that filled her with both excitement and a touch of fear. In truth, her action had been instinctive, a subconscious reaction to protect Ning Beichen.
"Hahaha..." Ma Liang declared loudly. "In Su Hang, no one dares speak to me, Ma Liang, like this. Miss Liu is indeed extraordinary. How about this: if you agree to be my friend, I'll let him off."
"Foolish beyond compare!" Liu Yilin retorted with a cold snort. "Ma Liang, I will not be your friend, and I ask you to stop bothering us. Otherwise, you will not be able to bear the consequences!" She knew that if she had not intervened, Ma Liang would likely have died at Ning Beichen's hands. While others might not know Ning Beichen's temper, Liu Yilin was acutely aware of it. He had no fear of the Violet Orchid family, so why would he fear the Ma family?
"Miss Liu, you will change your mind. In Su Hang, no one can defy my will. If you don't want this little bodyguard to lose his life, I advise you to be my friend," Ma Liang said arrogantly. It wasn't just his martial arts prowess; his status as the heir of the Ma family was enough to deter anyone from offending him, which would be equivalent to offending the entire Ma family.
Liu Yilin cast a helpless glance at Ning Beichen. She had met many arrogant people, but Ma Liang's level of arrogance was unprecedented. "Beichen, perhaps we should return to Haizhou?" she suggested with a sigh, not wanting Ning Beichen to incur further wrath from the Ma family because of her.
"No rush. In a few days. Yilin, you go back and rest. I'll be there shortly." Ning Beichen's expression was unreadable, making it impossible to gauge his mood.
"Alright, then be careful." Liu Yilin, sensing Ning Beichen's displeasure, cast a pitying glance at Ma Liang before turning to head back towards the house.
Seeing Liu Yilin leave, Ma Liang quickly tried to follow, but Ning Beichen blocked his path with one hand. "Young Master Ma, please return."
"Return your ass!" Ma Liang, already harboring ill feelings towards Ning Beichen, lost his temper at his insolence. With a loud roar, he launched a punch at Ning Beichen. Ma Liang's fist whistled through the air, appearing instantly before Ning Beichen.
With a thud, a figure was sent flying at high speed, landing with a splash in the lake. Ning Beichen didn't even glance at Ma Liang in the water. With his hands behind his back, he followed Liu Yilin.
Submerged in the icy lake water, Ma Liang felt a chill to his bones. He struggled to swim ashore, a pathetic figure. He had no idea what had happened. He remembered throwing a punch, and then, inexplicably, he had been sent flying.
Upon reaching the bank, Ma Liang let out an enraged roar! He stomped his foot on the ground. With a crack, Ma Liang became a blur, charging at Ning Beichen like a ferocious tiger. Ning Beichen didn't turn around. As Ma Liang closed in, he suddenly executed a "divine dragon's tail" sweep, a series of afterimages connecting with Ma Liang's chest. With a thunderous impact, Ma Liang, like a tattered rag doll, spun through the air and crashed into the lake, sending water splashing high into the air.
Ning Beichen continued walking towards the house without turning his head. Hearing the splash behind him, he merely shook his head in mild exasperation.
About three minutes later, Ma Liang surfaced from the lake, his hair entangled with weeds and mud. He coughed up several mouthfuls of lake water mixed with blood. Groaning, Ma Liang trembled as he grabbed onto a wooden support by the shore and laboriously climbed out, his internal organs aching. This time, however, was different. He had clearly seen Ning Beichen deliver a kick in return. He felt as though he had willingly presented himself to be kicked, with no chance to evade. In the blink of an eye, he had been sent flying. If Ma Liang still didn't realize Ning Beichen's martial prowess at this point, he had lived his life in vain.
"Ning Beichen, I will kill you! I will kill you, you wait!" Ma Liang, gasping for breath, finally managed to shout after Ning Beichen's retreating back.
"Idiot!" Ning Beichen replied without looking back as he entered the house with Liu Yilin. Ma Liang stood on the shore, his gaze fixed on the house Ning Beichen had entered. He coughed up blood intermittently, his fists clenched, his body trembling. However, he didn't charge forward again.
"Beichen, that Ma Liang has been struck by you twice without mercy. He will surely be resentful. He's a local thug here. Perhaps we should leave?" Liu Yilin said, her voice filled with concern, after they returned to the house.
"It's nothing. Just a clown," Ning Beichen dismissed with a wave of his hand, appearing unconcerned. He wasn't afraid of a mere spoiled brat, nor would he show any deference even if the head of the Ma family himself appeared.
"Alright, you're not afraid of him anyway." Liu Yilin pondered for a moment, then stopped trying to persuade Ning Beichen to leave. She knew he had his own reasons and that she couldn't sway him.