Chapter 118: I Will Be Back

  When Ning Fan asked the question, everyone looked at each other in dismay, wanting to speak but stopping themselves, as if there was something unspoken and hidden.

  "Sir, let me say something." Li took a deep breath and finally spoke up.

  "If you don't want to say it, then don't. I'll just go ask around myself." Ning Fan said with a shake of his head.

  "Instructor, you truly care for us and we won't treat you as an outsider. This actually involves some secrets of the Li family, but there's nothing that can't be said." Li began to say: "Actually, Li Tiancheng isn't a big shot or anything, the problem is, he's a direct member of the Li family."

  Li Yi paused for a moment before continuing, "Sir, you may not know that the Li family is actually a very large and complex clan. The entire Li family is composed of the main lineage and countless branch lineages. Although most of the time, the branch lineages are relatively independent, in reality, the main lineage has jurisdiction over all the branch lineages. And our Hai City Li family is just one of the branch lineages, whereas Li Tiancheng comes from the main lineage."

  "So that's how it is." Ning Fan suddenly understood, but he was also somewhat surprised. He really hadn't expected that in this era, there were still some large families with such strict hierarchical divisions.

  "Li Tiancheng, although a spoiled rich kid, is after all a member of the direct imperial family. So even if he's just a young master, no one dares to openly offend him, because offending him would be equivalent to offending the direct imperial family." Li Yi looked worried, "Although what the instructor did earlier made us feel relieved, I'm afraid this matter won't end like this. Li Tiancheng will definitely investigate further, and we don't know how the young master will handle it later."

  "Instructor, no matter what the outcome is, you will always be our instructor." Li Qī said.

  "Yes, Instructor Ning will always be our instructor!" everyone chimed in unison, but deep down, they felt a tinge of sadness, for it seemed that Ning might never again be their instructor.

  "Continue training." Ning Fang's face was calm, "Today I can help you out, but I won't be able to appear in time every time, so if you encounter similar troubles in the future, you must solve them yourself."

  "Yes, instructor!" everyone responded in unison.

  "Although I didn't see Li Yi's fight with that black man just now, I can basically infer that Li Yi's disadvantage lies in his strength. However, training strength is not something that can be accomplished overnight. So for now, you should continue to train your footwork and body movement according to the original plan. As for the disadvantage in terms of strength, we can make up for it with our body movement. Ning Fan said this and then paused for a moment, "Of course, as long as our attack points are suitable, even a small amount of strength can cause great harm. Moreover, we can also borrow the help of weapons if time permits, and I will teach you all about it later."

  "Yes, instructor!" The crowd responded in unison once again.

  "Alright, go train." Ning Fang didn't say anything more. As for the consequences of offending Li Tiancheng, he actually didn't care. Now, the number of people he had offended was already numerous, and compared to that unknown Heaven's Chosen, Li Tiancheng probably could only be considered a small role.

  Li Yi and the others stopped talking and soon threw themselves into training, with Ning Fan guiding them from the side. At noon, Ning Fan didn't leave and had lunch together with everyone, then continued training in the afternoon.

  Perhaps they felt that time was running out, Li Yi and the others refused to rest, constantly running in the Taiji diagram, constantly challenging their limits. However, such things ultimately have no shortcut, and half a day's time is not enough for them to make rapid progress.

  The whole afternoon, Li Feng did not appear again, and Li Tiancheng also did not appear. It was not until almost six o'clock that Ning Fan received a phone call from Li Liang.

  "Ning Fan, I'm at Qingyun Pavilion, are you free? I want to talk to you about something." Li Liang said straightforwardly.

  "Alright, see you in half an hour." Ning Fan was also very concise.

  Hanging up the phone, Ning Fan turned around, only to find that Li Yi and the others had all stopped in their tracks. Although they weren't sure who was on the other end of the call, they seemed to have all sensed something.

  "Today's training ends here, I have something to attend to and will leave first." Ning Fang said calmly as he looked at the crowd.

  Everyone fell silent for a few seconds, and then Li Yi asked in an unusual tone: "Instructor, will you come back?"

  "I don't like to leave things half done, so rest assured, I'll be back." Ning Fan smiled faintly and then turned around and walked away with big strides.

  Straddling his Harley, Ning Fan sped off in a flash towards Qingyun Mountain.

  Li Liang's intention, Ning Fan basically understood, but Li Liang chose to meet him at Qingyun Pavilion, which made him slightly unexpected. It seems that Li Liang should have already known the connection between Qingyun Pavilion and him.

  When Ning Fan arrived at the Qingyun Pavilion, it was exactly half an hour later. As he walked into the pavilion, he saw Li Liang standing there making a wish with great piety, and judging from his appearance, he seemed to have been standing there for a long time.

  Ning Fan's footsteps apparently startled Li Liang, who turned around, looked at Ning Fan, and smiled: "Ning Fan, I'm intruding uninvited, you won't mind, will you?"

  "Qingyun Pavilion has always been open to everyone." Ning Fang smiled lightly.

  "I had actually heard rumors about Qingyun Temple a long time ago, and at that time I was somewhat skeptical. But when I found out that you grew up here, I started to believe it a bit." Li Liang's tone was somewhat nostalgic, "Qingyun Temple is a Daoist temple with some legend, and you too, are destined to become a legend."

  "You may be overestimating me." Ning Fan's tone remained calm.

  "Ning Fan, I want to thank you. Thank you for taking care of Li Yi and the others, and thank you for teaching them these past few days. Although I haven't been here myself, I know that you've taught them well." Li Lian looked at Ning Fan with a sincere expression, then let out a soft sigh. "Actually, I had hoped that our collaboration wouldn't be just three months, but three years, or even longer. Unfortunately, now we have no choice but to terminate it ahead of schedule."

  "I've always been someone who sees things through to the end. We can terminate our cooperation, but those eighteen people will have spent three months training with me." Ning Fan said slowly: "Giving up halfway now would be irresponsible to them."

  "I think this matter is no longer something I can decide." Li Liang shook his head.

  "Does Li Tiancheng need to decide?" Ning Fan smiled faintly.

  "No, they need to decide for themselves." Li Liang shook his head, "Ning Fang, when you first came here, I had already informed those eighteen people. Because they made Li Tiancheng unhappy, I expelled them from the Li family together. So, whether they are still willing to train with you is their own business now."

  "What?" Ning Fan's eyebrows furrowed slightly, Liang's response was quite unexpected.

  "Ning Fan, I've decided to unilaterally terminate our cooperation agreement. According to the agreement, I'll pay you ten times the penalty, but in fact, our agreement doesn't specify the amount of the penalty. So, I plan to give you 100 million cash and that training base. What do you think?"

  Ning Fan was stunned again, about the tenfold liquidated damages clause in the agreement. He had noticed it before, but that clause was unilaterally aimed at Li Liang, so Ning Fan didn't care. But he didn't expect that Li Liang would now use this clause to demand a large amount of liquidated damages from him. What was Li Liang up to?

  Ning Fan thought for a moment and vaguely understood: "Liang Zi, there's no one else here. I think you should just be straightforward and say what you really mean."

  "Ning Fan, I actually wanted to ask a favor of you." Li Liang replied.

  "What's wrong?" Ning Fan asked.

  "If one day I'm in trouble, I'd like to ask you, please take care of my brother, at least, keep him alive." Li Liang looked at Ning Fan with a serious expression.

  "Although I threw Li Tiancheng out of the training base today, things shouldn't be that serious, right?" Ning Fan slightly furrowed his brow, "Besides, if Li Tiancheng really wants revenge, he should be looking for me."

  "It has nothing to do with today's matter." Li Liang shook his head, a wry smile appearing at the corner of his mouth. "Things are complicated and can't be explained for the time being. Ning Fan, can you help me?"

  Ning Fan suddenly understood that this was actually a new deal. Li Liang would give him the 18th son, as well as tens of millions of funds and a training base. What Li Liang wanted in return was Ning Fan's promise to protect Li Feng in the future. This was a transaction that wouldn't be written down on paper, but it was a real deal nonetheless.

  This deal seems to be very beneficial for Ning Fan, not only did he get a lot of money, but also got manpower. However, in reality, Ning Fan is actually taking on a much greater risk. If the enemy that Li Liang can't handle is indeed extremely powerful, then facing such a strong enemy would require more than just 10 million, even 100 million or more wouldn't be enough to tempt many people to take it on.

  "Are you sure I can protect your brother better than you?" Ning Fan finally spoke up and asked slowly.

  "Ning Fan, do you think I trust you too much?" Li Liang asked back.

  "I think you don't quite understand me." Ning Fan nodded, he believed in himself because he knew his own abilities, but Li Liang wasn't clear about his capabilities. So, Ning Fan felt that Li Liang seemed to trust him a bit too much, which was somewhat abnormal.

  "I actually don't understand you, in fact, the more I know about you, the less I feel like I understand you." Li Liang's tone was somewhat melancholic. "Ning Fan, I don't want to deceive you, as for my own understanding of you, I'm not sure if you'll be able to protect my younger brother in the future, but there is one thing I do know."

  Pausing for a moment, Li Liang added: "A man who can get within three feet of Princess Ye and still be unscathed, you're the first one. Moreover, you're not just close to Princess Ye, you're already together."

  "You're referring to Ye Rou?" Ning Fan furrowed his brow, this was the second time he heard someone call that freak "Princess Ye", it seemed like Li Liang also knew that freak's true origin?