Shangguan Bing’er gave a cold humph, taking a look at him, then at Xiao Ru Se. After the embarrassment in her heart had subsided after a while, she asked curiously: “You two?” She also knew that Zhou Weiqing’s actions were not intentional and did not blame him.
Xiao Ru Se looked at the sky innocently, as if she had nothing to do with the situation. Zhou Weiqing grinned and said: “I was chatting and comparing notes with Company Leader Xiao after our fight earlier, and we realised that we were actually childhood playmates. Right after that, some problems occurred with my body…”
“But, I just heard you call her elder sis a moment ago!”
Zhou Weiqing looked at Xiao Ru Se’s eyes, and saw the warning in them, and immediately understood, saying: “Battalion Commander, don’t you think that Company Leader Xiao looks like a pretty girl? When we were young he already looked like that, therefore all our friends called him Elder Sis. It is his nickname.” 1
Shangguan Bing’er’s breathing gradually stabilised and she said solemnly: “So what happened to you earlier? Why did you suddenly go crazy again?”
Zhou Weiqing said helplessly: “I don’t know either! All of a sudden my body started turning cold, and then my whole body was struck with severe pain, after that I don’t really recall what happened clearly.”
Shangguan Bing’er thought about it for a while, and all of her sudden her expression changed, and she exclaimed: “Could it be the Demonic Change?”
Both Zhou Weiqing and Xiao Ru Se revealed a surprised look on their faces, asking at the same time: “What is the Demonic Change?”
Shangguan Bing’er said: “Zhou Little Fatty, don’t you remember? I was telling you about Heavenly Jewel Masters like you who Awaken with the Evil Attribute, which can cause them to have an unstable mental state, and they may eventually turn into a mentally unstable Evil Heavenly Jewel Master?” 2
Zhou Weiqing nodded and said: “I remember! However, you mentioned that those were due to Awakening their Heavenly Jewels, and they usually killed those close to them, normally family members. They definitely do not have my self-control.”
Shangguan Bing’er’s face reddened, as she actually had no way of refuting his words. Indeed, if Zhou Weiqing did not have sufficient self-control, she would have already died that day, becoming a genuine sacrifice to his Heavenly Jewel’s Awakening.
“I heard that amongst those Heavenly Jewel Masters who have the Evil Attribute, some are especially formidable; when their spirit receives a provocation or their body reaches some sort of limit, they enter a special state called the Demonic Change. In the Demonic Change State, these Heavenly Jewel Masters enter a berserk state, receiving a massive short term increase of strength and power, but their state of mind is longer stable even awake, becoming a mindless killing machine. Because their existence was deemed too dangerous, the Skill-Storing Palace of the various large Empires in the world united a collective manhunt to exterminate these Heavenly Jewel Masters, massacring most of them but at a huge loss to themselves as well. From then on, there has never been any news of Heavenly Jewel Masters who have the ability to enter the Demonic Change State.”
Xiao Ru Se’s expression changed upon hearing the news and she said: “Little… Little Fatty, I will bring you home.” In her anxiety, she had almost called Zhou Weiqing by his given name.
Zhou Weiqing naturally understood her meaning; she wanted him to go home to be checked by his father for safety, but he quickly shook his head repeatedly, saying: “No, no, I do not want to go back. Battalion Commander, you are worrying too much, that was not the Demonic Change State earlier; if it were, I would have killed both of you! I can feel now that after I regained consciousness, my body has evolved somehow, I feel like I’m filled with massive strength, it should be a function of the black pearl that I swallowed. Perhaps it is just that the black pearl’s power is too formidable, and I am unable to fully absorb it.”
Shangguan Bing’er heard his explanation and relaxed slightly, but still said solemnly: “Little Fatty, you should always follow by my side from now on. At least, if anything bad happens, I can still help you restrain yourself. I do not know when that black pearl of yours can finally subside for good.”
On hearing Shangguan Bing’er call his name directly, Zhou Weiqing was extremely delighted in his heart, immediately latching onto it and saying: “Bing’er, you can rest assured that I will never leave you.”
Only then did Shangguan Bing’er realize her own improper word usage, her beautiful face flushing deep red and she quickly said: “Let’s head back to the military compound. I’ve already helped you get your rank of Squad Leader, but you will still continue being my Personal Aide. Go back and pack your things, we will be heading to the front lines early in the morning tomorrow.”
“Yes, Bing’er.” Seeing that she had not refuted him when he called her name, especially doing so in front of Xiao Ru Se, the excitement in Zhou Weiqing’s grew even further. This should be considered a huge step forward… right?
Xiao Ruse did not say anything further as well; having observed what had happened just now, she had realised that Zhou Weiqing’s state had definitely taken an obvious turn for the better once he hugged Shangguan Bing’er, having him stay together with her would obviously be the best choice for now.
As night fell, the military compound outside the Heavenly Bow City was bustling with activity. For the Fifth Regiment, everyone from recruit to veteran, were packing their luggage after finishing their dinner. They had to prepare everything so that they could move off in the early morning after tearing down their tents, and head to the front lines. Only after experiencing real combat on the battlefield would a recruit be considered a veteran, and this would be their only stage in the near future.
Zhou Weiqing was one of the few idle people around; Shangguan Bing’er was especially busy tonight since she was the overall in charge responsible for the entire recruitment this time. Since he had nothing much left to do, he was taking a stroll around the military compound after dinner, as he tried to feel out the changes in his body.
After dinner and some rest, the Heavenly Energy in his body had been basically restored, fully showing the superiority in terms of recovery of the Immortal Deity Technique. He also discovered that his total Heavenly Energy had only increased a little after the events in the woods, unlike the instantaneous massive increase of four stages like when he first Awakened his Heavenly Jewels. However, the greatest change would be the raw physical strength of his body; after coming back, Zhou Weiqing had tried the Purple Dawn Bow once again before returning it to Shangguan Bing’er. He found that he did not need to even apply much strength before almost breaking it. This was purely using physical strength alone!
At the same time, Zhou Weiqing kept feeling that there was something strange about his right leg, especially when he moved his right leg, he discovered something very different.
When he lifted his right leg, he found that it could instantaneously rise above the top of his head unexpectedly; the most mysterious and surprising thing was that he could now lift it behind and beyond his head! Such amazing flexibility, it might even be beyond those Heavenly Jewel Masters who had the Flexible Physical Attribute! Alas, it was only his right leg which had such a change, when he tried his left leg, it did not have the same effect. Furthermore, Zhou Weiqing discovered that his right leg’s strength and speed had increased manifold, which was why he felt it had such difference compared with all the other parts of his body.
Alas, at least for now, the change to his right leg was not of any advantage to Zhou Weiqing, and in fact was somewhat detrimental. When he walked normally, it was still relatively alright, but once he started running, he found that the strength of his right leg was too great, the moment he exerted any strength, his whole body would leap forward, causing him to lose his balance. It would probably take some time for him to adapt and get used to it.
Looking at the busy soldiers around him, Zhou Weiqing stood firmly on the ground with only his left leg supporting him, then lifted his right leg and gave out a few kicks into the air. His right leg blurred in the air rapidly, causing several afterimages through its sheer speed, and there was also a faint shrill sound generated in the air, It was as if his entire right leg was boneless, and he could kick from any angle.