4. In the library

Lu Shang was able to locate and reach the library with the help of the memory of the body he was occupying.

As soon as Lu Shang entered the library, the other kids turned their heads to look at him, making him the center of attention, and most of them started whispering and laughing.

Lu Shang didn't bother and was already used to hearing people talk about and mock him.

He kept walking into the library. "Why are you in the library, you trash?" a boy around the same age as Lu Shang cursed at him. The boy's name was Lu Feng; he was one of the sons of an elder in the clan.

Lu Shang didn't bother to take a step back when he heard the words from the boy. Lu Shang was laughing within himself because the people still thought that he was trashy and dumb, but they didn't know that the previous Lu Shang was dead and a new Lu Shang was the one standing before them.

"Interesting," he whispered to himself.

He kept on walking, and suddenly he felt someone's hand grab onto his shoulder.

The person began dragging Lu Shang out of the library. Lu Shang didn't retaliate and decided to play along.

He was still dragged even when they were already out of the library.

The person dragged him to a small corner outside the building, and only a few seconds passed when suddenly he was pushed to the ground and held tightly in the chest.

The boy named Lu Yuan began to speak with an evil smirk on his face: "I can see that you still won't stop showing your face to those in the clan despite my warning to you, so you better learn your place now, and I don't even know why you are in the clan. Not that you can cultivate nor have any use in the clan; if I were you, I would have long killed myself, but you continue roaming around the clan premises with no shame," he stated as he held Lu Shang down.

Lu Shang's jaw dropped open, and he looked at Lu Yuan angrily. He didn't reply to Lu Yuan's words and only looked at him in the eyes.

Lu Yuan could tell what kind of feeling Lu Shang had towards him, but he didn't care how Lu Shang looked at him. 'What will happen even if he is angry at him?'

Lu Yuan's beauty couldn't be compared with that of Lu Shang, but he was still handsome enough to attract the attention of girls to himself; he had an average height, average weight, and a curved nose, but just one thing: his eyes were red and small; some called him a demon for that reason.

"Can't you talk, or do you want me to beat the hell out of you before you stop looking at me as a dummy? You aren't even better off than a dummy," Lu Yuan cursed out loud as he saw the look on Lu Shang's face.

"You brat, who the hell do you think you are?"

Surprisingly, Lu Shang yelled at Lu Yuan, and upon hearing that Lu Shang talked back, Lu Yuan was shocked because the Lu Shang they knew in the clan didn't even dare talk back to anyone, especially not Lu Yuan, because he was part of the powerful and talented people in the clan who was at the 2nd stage of the consolidation realm. He wasn't expecting that sort of reply from Lu Shang, but here it happened.

How can a cultivator who is at the 2nd stage of the consolidation realm easily accept the curse of a person who cannot cultivate? It should be extremely difficult!

But Lu Yuan accepted it easily without saying anything, and that was just unbelievable.

Just as Lu Shang struggled out of the grip of Lu Yuan and was about to walk out on him, he received a blow to the face that sent him falling to the ground again.

Lu Yuan's angry eyes were fixed on his face but was shocked to see Lu Shang smiling instead of crying in pain like in the past.

When Lu Yuan saw the smile spread across Lu Shang's face, he felt a little cold shiver across his body and decided to beat up Lu Shang for talking back at him.

He bent down and then grabbed Lu Shang by his collar.

"After talking back at me, you think you can go scot-free? Hehehe!" Lu Yuan laughed evilly, pinning Lu Shang down on the ground again, but this time more severely. "Are you trying to scare me? Did you think that I am weak enough for you to talk back to like that? What qualification do you have to talk back at me?"

In response to that question, Lu Yuan let go of Lu Shang and grabbed onto Lu Shang's neck, wanting to hit him again, only for the next unexpected thing to happen.

Lu Shang was holding his hand midair.

Lu Yuan was shocked beyond words and had this feeling that the Lu Shang in front of him was different from the one in the past.

There has never been a time when Lu Shang has blocked or fought back against someone, but now he is doing so against the almighty Lu Yuan, who is an outstanding and talented teenager among the clan's members.

"Don't underestimate me, little shit. I can beat you without using my fists if I want to," said Lu Yuan while looking directly into Lu Shang's eyes; shockingly there was no iota of fear in his eyes, only a confident expression and a scary look.

"Scram!" That was the only word that came out of Lu Shang's mouth.

Lu Shang walked past Lu Yuan, leaving Lu Yuan stunned. He had allowed him to walk away without stopping him this time; he wasn't expecting all those reactions and replies from Lu Shang.

Lu Shang returned to the library.

The people were surprised to see him back here again because no one believed that Lu Yuan would drag him out of the library and then let him go scot-free without giving him a harsh beating.

Then what happened to Lu Yuan? Why did Lu Shang return instead of him?

The Lu Clan members knew that Lu Yuan is one of the best fighters among the juniors, and Lu Shang can't cultivate, so how can it be possible for him to fight against Lu Yuan? That would only be a death sentence for Lu Shang if he tries that.

Lu Shang laughed within himself, seeing the reaction and expression on the faces of the people looking at him; he didn't stop and kept walking to the shelf where all the books were neatly arranged for the young cultivators to study and make research from.

He began to search for a particular book, and soon he saw the book he was looking for because the book was a popular one with the words "STEPS ON HOW TO CULTIVATE" written in bold letters on the front cover.

When everyone saw the book he had taken and was going to read, they burst out into laughter.

"Someone who can't cultivate wants to read a book on cultivation," said people after laughing their asses off at Lu Shang, and then becoming quiet when they saw that Lu Shang was not even paying any attention to them or their words.

"WTF? Is something wrong with him? Is he sick or something?" many people also turned their heads toward Lu Shang.

"Maybe he wants to gain knowledge on how to cultivate, but what use is it to him even if he gains all the knowledge in the world on how to cultivate? Hahahaha, what a crazy fellow."

Lu Shang, who had already started reading, was deeply focused on the book without any distractions because he knew that without knowing all the information, he would not be able to cultivate the courage to prove himself to everyone, making them silent.

He began to flip open the pages of the book to read the details written in it.

Lu Shang continued reading, and after some time, he finished reading the full details of the book.

In haste, he returned the book to the position from which he had taken it and immediately started going to his room to see if things would work out for him.

....

Lu Yuan was in the room, pacing up and down with a worried expression on his face.

"How was he able to block my attack from hitting him? Something seems strange about him because I feel like he is not the Lu Shang that I originally knew; the Lu Shang of the past was dumb and couldn't even talk back when he was bullied by his peers and mates," he kept murmuring to himself, pondering around his room with a grieved face.

An elderly man entered the room and saw him in a worried state; this was Lu Yuan's father and one of the elders in the clan.

"Yuan'er, what is bothering you, and why the worried expression on your face?" he asked.

"No...nothing, dad, I can handle it on my own," Lu Yuan said, shocked and unable to properly speak to his father.

"Okay, if you say so. I decided to check on you to see if there was anything wrong with you because I have not set my eyes on you for days, and now that I have confirmed that you are sound and healthy, I will take my leave now." He knew that there was something bothering Lu Yuan, but he didn't want to persuade him to tell him what the matter was.

"Okay, dad."

His dad left the room, and Lu Yuan jumped onto his bed with a panicked face, still thinking about what happened today.