Chapter 33 Wang Dong'er's Destiny?
The next morning.
The tent flap was lifted, and the cold morning wind blew in.
Xiao Xiao rubbed her sleepy eyes, wrapped herself in a thin blanket, and crawled out of the tent, muttering, "So cold, so cold..."
Behind her, Cui Yajie stretched, her long pink hair becoming a mess, making her look completely unlike her usual alluring self.
Wang Dong'er was the last to come out, her fair face still bearing pillow marks, and her long, light blue hair was somewhat disheveled.
She had fallen into a deep sleep after being relieved late last night, but she seemed to be in good spirits right now.
The three of them looked at the campfire outside the tent almost simultaneously.
The charcoal in the fire was still glowing dark red, occasionally popping out a spark or two.
Dai Huabin sat there leaning against a large rock, with Zhu Lu nestled in his arms, her head resting on his chest, fast asleep.
Dai Huabin had one arm around Zhu Lu's shoulder, while the other hand unconsciously played with her long black hair that fell over her shoulder, occasionally gently rubbing her cheek with his fingers.
In her sleep, Zhu Lu gently rubbed against his palm, a slight smile on her lips.
Xiao Xiao stood there for several seconds, then cupped her face in her hands and let out a soft "woo".
Cui Yajie glanced at her sideways: "What are you whining about?"
"It's so sweet..." Xiao Xiao's voice was very low, afraid of waking Zhu Lu. "Look at the class monitor. He was so fierce when he was fighting, but now he's like a completely different person."
Cui Yajie tossed her messy hair and scoffed, "It's just him hugging his fiancée, why are you making such a big reaction?"
Despite saying that, she couldn't help but glance over there a couple of times.
Wang Dong'er crossed her arms and pouted. She stared at Dai Huabin's hand that was gently stroking Zhu Lu's cheek for a while, and inexplicably felt a tightness in her chest.
It's not jealousy.
Absolutely not!
She just felt that this freshman, who was about the same age as her, had such a much higher soul power than her and was so good at taking care of people.
Xiao Xiao leaned close to Wang Dong'er and whispered, "Dong'er, do you think I'll ever be able to find someone like the class monitor in the future..."
"Give me a break," Wang Dong'er flicked Xiao Xiao's forehead in annoyance. "How many Dai Huabins are there in the whole world?"
She regretted saying it as soon as it left her mouth.
Isn't this a compliment to him?
Cui Yajie squinted at her, a subtle smile playing on her lips. "Oh, so Dong'er is admitting that the class monitor is good?"
"I'm talking about strength!"
Wang Dong'er's ears turned bright red, and her voice unconsciously rose a few decibels.
"Thirty-three levels of soul power plus a martial soul fusion skill—of course, few can compare! That's what I mean!"
"Sh-!"
Dai Huabin's voice came from beside the fire, neither too loud nor too soft.
All three of them shut up at the same time.
Dai Huabin raised his head, glanced at them, and spoke softly:
"You guys go wash up by the stream first. Zhu Lu is too tired, let her sleep a little longer. We'll leave after we're done getting ready."
He didn't have any particular expression when he spoke, but he never let go of Zhu Lu's arm.
Xiao Xiao nodded obediently and pulled Cui Yajie toward the stream next to the tent.
Wang Dong'er followed, but after taking a few steps, she couldn't help but glance back.
Dai Huabin lowered his head and gently wiped away a trace of sweat from Zhu Lu's forehead with his sleeve.
The movements were very gentle, as if afraid of hurting her.
Wang Dong'er quickly turned her head and quickened her pace.
There's nothing to see.
There's really nothing to see here.
The stream water was icy cold, and the three girls were gasping for breath as they squatted by the stream washing their faces.
As Cui Yajie splashed water on her face with her hands, she muttered, "Next time I go out to hunt soul beasts, I must bring a thermos. What kind of place is this? Washing my face is like torture."
Xiao Xiao squatted down beside her, wiping the remaining crumbs of dry food from her fingers with a damp cloth: "Ya Jie, did you hear anything when you were on watch last night? I vaguely heard a howl in the middle of the night, it scared me to death."
"You mean that one?"
Cui Yajie casually flicked the water droplets off her hands.
"It was probably a wolf-type spirit beast that was a hundred years old, and it was quite far away from us. The class monitor was outside at the time, so he probably sensed it long ago."
Wang Dong'er wiped her face and suddenly interjected, "Have you noticed that Dai Huabin's mental strength seems to be much stronger than that of an average three-ring Soul Master? Yesterday, when he spread his mental strength to be on guard, the coverage area was ridiculously large."
Cui Yajie raised an eyebrow: "You're quite observant."
"I was analyzing my teammates' abilities!" Wang Dong'er glared at her, stuffed the wet cloth into the soul tool, and got up to leave.
When the three of them finished washing up and returned to the campfire, Zhu Lu had already woken up.
She was sitting next to Dai Huabin, her face still dazed from just waking up.
Seeing the three people approaching, Zhu Lu subconsciously moved closer to Dai Huabin, a hint of embarrassment flashing in her dark gray eyes.
"You're up?" Xiao Xiao squatted down and grinned as she approached Zhu Lu. "Zhu Lu, you looked so pretty when you were asleep. The class monitor kept touching your face."
Zhu Lu's face flushed red instantly.
She glanced quickly at Dai Huabin and saw him casually packing his things, as if nothing had happened.
Zhu Lu pursed her lips, lowered her head, and gently kissed Dai Huabin on the cheek.
The movement was so fast that it was almost invisible.
But Xiao Xiao saw it clearly.
"Ahhh!" Xiao Xiao covered her mouth and let out a gasp.
Cui Yajie rolled her eyes: "I can't stand you guys so early in the morning."
Wang Dong'er simply turned her back, took out her dry rations and started eating, indicating that she hadn't seen anything.
Dai Huabin touched his cheek that had been kissed, smiled, stood up and brushed the grass off his clothes: "Alright, everyone eat something, let's pack up and get ready to leave."
Zhu Lu also stood up and lowered her head to rummage through the dry food in her backpack. The tips of her ears were still red.
The five people huddled around the dying fire and finished off the last of their dry rations and jerky.
Dai Huabin quickly dismantled the tent, rolled it up, and stuffed it into the storage soul tool. He then used soil to completely extinguish the fire.
"Let's go. Let's go back the way we came. Xiao Xiao will walk in the middle, Dong'er and Ya Jie on the left and right sides, and Zhu Lu and I will bring up the rear."
Stay vigilant. While daytime is safer than nighttime, the outer areas are not without aggressive soul beasts.
"Understood, class monitor!"
Xiao Xiao tightened the cloth belt around her waist and skipped along in the middle of the group.
The return journey was much smoother than the way there.
They didn't encounter any decent soul beasts, only two lost hundred-year-old grass rabbits, which were scared away by Cui Yajie's "Charm" and ran away in a panic.
At noon, Shrek Academy's iconic clock tower came into view.
The five people quickened their pace and entered the school gate, heading straight for the teachers' building.
Mu Jin was preparing documents in her office. Hearing a knock on the door, she looked up and saw five people standing at the door, looking travel-worn. She quickly put down her pen and invited them in.
"You're back so soon? You weren't hurt, were you?"
Mu Jin stood up, glanced at the five people, and breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that there were no obvious external injuries.
Dai Huabin nodded: "Everything went smoothly. We've got Xiao Xiao's soul ring."
Mu Jin's attention immediately turned to Xiao Xiao.
Xiao Xiao stepped forward nervously, took a deep breath, and released her Spirit.
The Three Lives Soul-Suppressing Cauldron appeared out of thin air, with two Spirit rings clearly visible—one yellow and one dark yellow.
Mu Jin narrowed her eyes slightly, carefully sensing the fluctuations of soul power within Xiao Xiao's body, and then let out a soft "Eh".
"This Spirit ring's age... isn't low, is it?"
Xiao Xiao puffed out her chest: "A Thousand-Pound Ant from nine hundred and ninety years!"
Mu Jin paused for two seconds.
"Nine hundred and ninety years?" she repeated, her tone clearly surprised. "A Spirit Master who just broke through to level twenty absorbed a Spirit ring that's close to the thousand-year threshold?"
Xiao Xiao nodded quickly: "It was the class monitor who helped me take care of my body with whale gelatin and medicinal baths beforehand, otherwise I definitely wouldn't have been able to withstand it."
Mu Jin turned to look at Dai Huabin.
Dai Huabin leaned against the door frame, arms crossed: "Xiao Xiao, tell Teacher Mu Jin about your second Spirit skill."
Xiao Xiao nodded and then explained the effects of "Cauldron Defense" in detail. The three-cauldron form provides a 60% increase, and the combined cauldron form provides a 90% increase, lasting for one hour.
After listening, Mu Jin remained silent for a long time.
She picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip of water, and her hands were trembling slightly when she put the cup down.
With a 90% increase in defense and strength, coupled with the weight and hardness of the Three Lives Soul-Suppressing Cauldron itself, this is no longer the level of defense that an ordinary second-ring Spirit Master should have.
"You three worked together to take it down?" Mu Jin looked at Wang Dong'er and Cui Yajie.
Cui Yajie tossed her long pink hair and took a seductive half-step forward:
"Teacher Mu Jin, we were completely unharmed throughout. I first used Charm to immobilize the Thousand-Pound Ant, then Xiao Xiao used Cauldron Shock to control it, and then Dong'er went up to cut off its legs and pincers. Finally, Xiao Xiao combined the three cauldrons and delivered the final blow."
Wang Dong'er added:
"The teamwork was indeed much smoother than during previous practice sessions. Dai Huabin had arranged the formation for us beforehand, and there were basically no mishaps during the battle."
Mu Jin took a deep breath.
A team of three, consisting of one Spirit Master and two Great Soul Masters, hunted down a nearly thousand-year-old Thousand-Pound Ant without suffering any damage.
For freshmen with no prior experience in hunting soul beasts on their own, this was already quite impressive.
Her gaze fell on Dai Huabin again.
This eldest son of the White Tiger Duke's mansion not only possessed the strongest soul power among the new students, but his ability to lead a team was also quite outstanding.
"OK."
Mu Jin suppressed her excitement and tried her best to keep her tone calm.
"You've had a long trip. You don't have class this afternoon, so you have a half-day off to rest."
"Thank you, Teacher Mu Jin!" Xiao Xiao was the first to speak up happily.
The five of them came out of the teachers' building, and the midday sun shone warmly on them, making them feel infinitely more comfortable than in the Star Dou Forest.
Cui Yajie stretched out a big yawn: "Finally, I don't have to eat dry food anymore. Right now, I just want to go to the cafeteria for a bowl of hot soup noodles and then take a hot bath."
Dai Huabin thought for a moment:
"It's rare to have half a day off. Let's go for a walk by Sea God Lake and get some fresh air."
"I have no objection."
Zhu Lu responded softly and naturally walked to Dai Huabin's side. Their fingers intertwined again without anyone noticing.
Xiao Xiao and Cui Yajie exchanged a glance and tacitly chose to ignore it.
Wang Dong'er snorted and walked at the front to lead the way.
The lake shimmered under the midday sun, and a few students sat in twos and threes on the grass by the lake, some chatting and some napping.
A gentle breeze blew across the lake, carrying a faint fishy smell.
The five of them strolled slowly along the pebble path by the lake. Xiao Xiao squatted down and picked up a few flat stones to skip across the water, while Cui Yajie found a big tree to lean against and sat down, closing her eyes.
Dai Huabin and Zhu Lu walked behind, their conversation in hushed tones, occasionally punctuated by Zhu Lu's soft laughter.
Wang Dong'er walked alone at the front, her hands behind her back.
Her steps suddenly slowed down.
Under a willow tree by the lake ahead, two familiar figures were sitting on the grass.
Tang Ya sat cross-legged, holding a stack of papers covered in writing, gesturing to Bei Bei next to her.
Bei Bei listened with a helpless expression, occasionally interjecting with a comment.
"Hey, isn't that Senior Tang Ya and Senior Bei Bei?" Xiao Xiao saw them too, dropped the stone in her hand, and ran over.
Wang Dong'er stopped in her tracks.
She stared at the two people for a few seconds.
A voice popped up in her mind again.
That voice had been there since the first time she saw Tang Ya at the grilled fish stall, sometimes clear, sometimes muffled. But this time, the voice was exceptionally clear.
"Join the Tang Sect."
Wang Dong'er couldn't explain where this feeling came from.
She had seen the flyer Tang Ya had given her at the grilled fish stall, and she thought it was all a bit exaggerated, with claims of hidden weapon techniques and unique skills.
But that voice wasn't analyzing the pros and cons; it was an intuition—an intuition so strong it seemed to have no reason.
Wang Dong'er stood there for a while, then walked over.
"Tang Ya."
Tang Ya was discussing the layout of the flyers with Bei Bei when she heard someone call her. She looked up and her eyes lit up.
"Wang Dong'er! You're back!"
Tang Ya jumped to her feet and rushed forward, her enthusiasm almost excessive.
"How was the Spirit ring hunting? Were you injured? Did anything interesting happen?"
Bei Bei sighed from behind. Tang Ya always had this expression whenever she saw a talented new student, like a hunter spotting her prey.
Wang Dong'er didn't beat around the bush.
"You told me before that the Tang Sect was recruiting."
Tang Ya was taken aback for a moment, then realized what she meant and nodded vigorously: "Yes, yes, yes! The Tang Sect is in dire need of rebuilding and needs fresh blood with strength! Have you thought it through?"
Wang Dong'er frowned slightly. She still couldn't explain why, but the voice urged her to speak.
"I want to join the Tang Sect."
Tang Ya froze completely.
She stared wide-eyed, mouth agape, at Wang Dong'er, then turned to look at Bei Bei.
Bei Bei was also a little surprised and stood up from the grass.
"Are you serious?" Tang Ya's voice changed.
"When have I ever joked?" Wang Dong'er crossed her arms.
Tang Ya let out a "whoosh" and pounced on Wang Dong'er, grabbing her arm tightly.
"That's great! Bei Bei, did you hear that?! Someone has joined the Tang Sect! A Goddess of Light Butterfly! A level 21 Goddess of Light Butterfly!"
Bei Bei walked over and smiled politely at Wang Dong'er: "Welcome to the Tang Sect. From now on, we're all fellow disciples."
Read 25+ Advanced Chapters at P@ Tre On
FictionTimeo
[end of the chapter]