Jiang Zheyu fell silent for a moment, then slowly backed away.

’Forget it. Shan Xun is probably busy training his soldiers right now.’

’I’ll look for him later.’

’The smell of sweat here is a little strong.’

’Can’t stay, can’t stay. Time to dip.’

But just as Jiang Zheyu was about to leave, a roar erupted from the crowd.

"WHOA!"

The clamor was incredibly loud, echoing across the entire training ground.

The sound flooded into Jiang Zheyu’s ears.

All at once, the huge crowd of Beastmen in front of Jiang Zheyu parted, and a Beastman came flying out from the middle, straight at her.

Jiang Zheyu instinctively stumbled back a few steps, but it was too late. The Beastman, who looked as if he’d been kicked with immense force, rushed over and slammed right into her.

A jolt of pain shot through her as she crashed to the ground, instantly pinned beneath the Beastman.

Jiang Zheyu thought, ’You really shouldn’t get involved in commotion. It’s too easy to get caught in the crossfire.’

And now she was feeling exactly what it was like to be caught in the crossfire.

The hard body crashing into her had left her in so much pain she couldn’t tell which way was up.

The back of her head had hit the ground especially hard, making her vision swim and her eyes water with pain.

Before Jiang Zheyu could even react, the Beastman coughed up a mouthful of blood onto her face, then passed out.

’No, wait, isn’t this supposed to be training?’

’Why is he spitting up blood?’

’Is the training really this brutal?’

Jiang Zheyu stared wide-eyed at the Beastman collapsed on top of her.

The next second, someone strode over, grabbed the Beastman off Jiang Zheyu with one hand, and tossed him aside.

The Beastman landed heavily nearby with a loud thud.

Shan Xun grabbed Jiang Zheyu’s arm and pulled her to her feet.

Jiang Zheyu felt a powerful tug, and she was suddenly and inexplicably on her feet.

"What are you doing here?" Shan Xun’s brow furrowed deeply, his tone exceptionally fierce and aggressive.

He was also bare-chested, revealing wheat-colored skin, clearly defined muscles, and an extremely narrow waist.

His body was covered in sweat, and waves of scorching heat seemed to radiate from him.

Perhaps from fighting with his squad members just now, his entire body was radiating heat like a furnace.

His handsome, chiseled face was also covered in beads of sweat. A single drop slid from his forehead, over his sharp brow bone, and fell.

Jiang Zheyu could feel that the hand gripping her arm was exceptionally hot and rough.

Her head was still throbbing a little.

But after being scolded like that, Jiang Zheyu started to get angry.

"Why are you being so fierce!" Jiang Zheyu looked up at Shan Xun, fuming.

After such an intense fight, Shan Xun was still carrying a hostile aura, so that ferocity had unintentionally slipped into his words.

He always spoke to the Beastmen in his squad this way. In fact, he was usually harshest when berating them, because they were all defeated within just a few moves.

Naturally, Shan Xun wasn’t in any mood to be pleasant to his subordinates.

So, the moment he saw the young female get hit, he had rushed over, angry that she had suddenly appeared in the middle of the Beastmen’s sparring match.

’What if one of those Beastmen accidentally hurt her while fighting?’

After Jiang Zheyu’s words fell, the surrounding area grew quiet. The Beastmen all held their breath, not daring to speak. Someone actually dared to talk to their captain like that.

"Sorry," Shan Xun said, softening his tone. His voice was still a bit dry and hoarse from the fight. "This isn’t the place to talk. Let’s go."

As he spoke, he started pulling Jiang Zheyu away. Halfway there, he glanced back at the group of Beastmen. They had all been watching him, but the moment he looked over, they all immediately looked away, not daring to meet his gaze.

"Continue training," Shan Xun simply said to his subordinates.

A moment later, he pulled Jiang Zheyu out of the training ground. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

After Shan Xun left, the surrounding Beastmen burst into a noisy clamor.

"Did I hear that right? Captain Shan actually said sorry?"

"Gods, Captain Shan got yelled at and still apologized."

"Well, she is a female. And one that beautiful... I wouldn’t have the heart to speak harshly to a female either."

"Sigh, she got slammed onto the ground just now. I wonder if she’s in pain?"

...

Of course, Jiang Zheyu had no idea what the Beastmen were discussing.

She was pulled away from the training ground by Shan Xun, who walked on without stopping.

"Where are we going?" Jiang Zheyu asked, frowning at Shan Xun, who was still pulling her forward.

"Are you hurt anywhere?" Shan Xun asked, his eyes dark as he looked at Jiang Zheyu. "I’m taking you to the base’s hospital to get checked out."

Jiang Zheyu felt like nothing good ever seemed to happen whenever she ran into Shan Xun.

"My head hurts," Jiang Zheyu said, pressing her lips together slightly.

"Let me see." Shan Xun’s actions were faster than his words.

His hand was on her head in an instant. He gently pushed her hair aside, his gaze lowered. "Where on your head does it hurt?"

Jiang Zheyu reached up and touched the sore spot on the back of her head. "It hurts right here. Can you see if it’s swollen?"

Shan Xun quickly parted her hair and saw that the spot was indeed slightly red and swollen. His brow furrowed deeply. His fingers accidentally brushed against the swollen area, and the young woman in front of him let out a hiss of pain, punching him on the chest. "What are you doing?!"

"Sorry, I touched it by accident." Shan Xun, also flustered, quickly pulled his hand back. He took her arm again and started walking. "We need to go to the hospital and put something on it."

Apparently deciding this was too slow, he simply scooped her up into his arms. "Walking is too slow. I’ll just carry you there."

And just like that, Jiang Zheyu was being carried.

Shan Xun carried her and rushed toward the hospital at the Research Institute’s base.

They arrived at the hospital quickly. This time, Shan Xun didn’t just kick the door down like he did last time.

He only kicked the door open before carrying Jiang Zheyu inside.

A doctor examined her and placed a cold compress on the back of her head. "It’s nothing serious. It’ll heal up quickly."

Finally, Shan Xun pushed the doctor aside, took the cold compress, and stood before Jiang Zheyu. "You can go. I’ll take care of things here."

The Beastman Doctor nodded and left.

Jiang Zheyu sat on the hospital bed, melancholic and silent.

Shan Xun stood in front of her, holding the ice pack with a very steady hand and gently pressing it against the swollen spot on the back of her head.

"Did you come to the training ground for something today?" Shan Xun asked, looking down at the young female with a slight frown.

Jiang Zheyu answered as if all the life had been drained out of her. "To find you."

Shan Xun paused, his lips parting slightly. "What did you need me for?"

Jiang Zheyu remained listless.