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Chapter 4: Preliminary "Functional Testing" and Domestication
It had been three days since returning to Notting Academy from the Hunting Soul Forest.
Xiao Wu lay on the hard wooden bed of Dormitory Seven, staring blankly at the ceiling. Moonlight slanted in through the window, casting long, lattice-like shadows on the floor. Wang Sheng was snoring on another bed, and the other working students were fast asleep.
But she couldn't sleep.
Something felt different inside her body.
It wasn't Soul Power—though the sensation of breaking through from rank ten to rank eleven was clear, with Soul Power flowing through her meridians like a warm stream. It was something else. Something deeper.
She turned over gently, the thin quilt rubbing against her skin. With just that simple movement, as the fabric brushed against her waist, a faint, electric-like sensation suddenly surged up. Xiao Wu bit her lower lip hard, swallowing the sound that nearly escaped.
What was happening?
She remembered Teacher Mo Bai's hands. She remembered the rush of heat that made her legs weak when his fingers pressed against the back of her neck. She remembered the touch of his palm against her waist when he checked her first Soul Ring in the forest.
At the time, it just felt comfortable. Reassuring. Her teacher's touch made her feel safe, as if she had finally found someone she could rely on.
But now...
Xiao Wu quietly slipped her hand under the hem of her clothes, her fingertips lightly touching her own waist.
Another shudder.
She pulled her hand back as if burned, her heart thumping wildly in her chest. In the darkness, her face burned intensely.
This wasn't a normal reaction. She knew that. Before her transformation, back in the forest, her mother had taught her about the body. The Soft-Boned Rabbit clan was indeed sensitive to touch, but that was a protective sensitivity, designed for quick reactions when danger approached.
It wasn't this... this kind of sensitivity that made her body go soft and her lower abdomen tighten.
"Is it because of the Soul Ring?" Xiao Wu whispered to herself, her voice so soft it was almost inaudible.
She closed her eyes and tried to sense the yellow ring. Her Soul Power circulated, and the Soul Ring emerged in her consciousness—but unlike usual, around the edge of that yellow glow, there seemed to be a trace of extremely faint pink. It was so faint it was impossible to notice without careful observation.
Furthermore, when her attention focused on the Soul Ring, the strange sensation in her body became even more pronounced. Her waist, thighs, the insides of her arms... it felt as if the skin everywhere had become thinner, becoming clearly aware of the flow of air, the texture of the fabric, and even the slight rise and fall of her body as she breathed.
Xiao Wu buried her face in her pillow.
She thought of Teacher Mo Bai's gentle smile, and remembered him saying, "Xiao Wu, your talent is very special; Teacher will guide you well." She remembered his promise to protect her, to give her a safe corner in this strange human world.
"Teacher is a good person," she told herself. "He helped me obtain my Soul Ring and taught me knowledge. This strange feeling... it must be a side effect of the Soul Skill. I'll just ask Teacher tomorrow."
Thinking this, her heart felt a bit more settled. Xiao Wu curled her body up, hugged the quilt, and finally drifted off to sleep.
The next day was a theory class.
Xiao Wu sat in the third row, holding a quill, but she couldn't write a single word. At the podium, an elderly teacher was explaining the classification of Soul Beasts, his voice as flat and hypnotic as a lullaby.
Her entire focus was on the sensations in her body.
The collar of her clothes rubbed against her collarbone—it itched. The hard wooden board of the chair pressed against her buttocks through her skirt, and the pressure was excessively clear. Even the air flowing over her bare calves made her break out in tiny goosebumps.
"Xiao Wu?"
Someone beside her lightly nudged her arm.
Xiao Wu snapped back to reality and found it was Liu Yue, her roommate. The girl was looking at her with a puzzled expression: "What's wrong? Your face is so red. Do you have a fever?"
"N-no." Xiao Wu shook her head hurriedly, instinctively pressing the back of her hand to her cheek. It was indeed burning hot. "It's just... a bit hot."
"Hot?" Liu Yue looked out at the overcast sky. "It's quite cool today."
Xiao Wu didn't know how to explain, so she lowered her head and pretended to take notes. Her quill drew wobbly, distorted lines on the paper.
Finally, the bell rang to end the class. She packed her things and stood up immediately, wanting to leave the classroom as quickly as possible—but just as she turned around, a gentle voice called out to her.
"Xiao Wu."
Mo Bai stood at the classroom door, wearing his usual light gray robe, a smile on his face. Sunlight shone in from the window behind him, giving his entire figure a soft silhouette.
"T-teacher." Xiao Wu stopped in her tracks, her fingers reflexively tightening around her books.
"Come with me for a moment," Mo Bai said, his tone as natural as if he were commenting on the weather. "Your first Soul Ring was only recently acquired; it needs a regular stability check. Especially since... your situation is quite special."
He placed a deliberate emphasis on the word "special."
Xiao Wu's heart skipped a beat. She nodded and followed him obediently.
Mo Bai's office was at the very end of the faculty dormitory building. The room wasn't large, but it was kept very tidy. The bookshelves were filled with Soul Beast encyclopedias and Soul Master theory books, and a green leafy plant sat on the desk. The windows were closed, and the curtains were half-drawn, making the light inside the room somewhat dim.
"Close the door." Mo Bai walked to the desk, his back to her.
Xiao Wu did as she was told. The door lock made a soft "click," isolating the sounds from the hallway. The room suddenly became quiet, and she could clearly hear her own breathing, as well as the rustling of Mo Bai organizing papers.
"Come here." Mo Bai turned around, leaning against the edge of the desk.
Xiao Wu walked over and stopped two steps away from him. She looked up and met his eyes. Mo Bai's gaze was very calm, even gentle, but for some reason, Xiao Wu felt that gaze was like something tangible, slowly scanning over her body.
"Release your first Soul Ring," Mo Bai said. "Let me see the Soul Power flow."
Xiao Wu took a deep breath and mobilized her Soul Power. A yellow ring rose from beneath her feet, rotating slowly around her body. The sensation of Soul Power flowing through her meridians was clearer than ever before—she could feel every path the warm current took, and the "points" where the Soul Ring connected to her body.
"Very good." Mo Bai took a step closer and reached out. "Now, relax. Let me check the compatibility between the Soul Ring and your body."
His fingers lightly rested on her wrist.
Xiao Wu shuddered all over.
That wasn't just a touch. It was as if... as if something was sliding from his fingertips into her skin, following the path of the Soul Power flow, spreading through her entire body. It was warm, numbing, and carried a dizzying sense of invasiveness.
"The Soul Power flow is very smooth," Mo Bai's voice sounded very close, his breath almost brushing against the tip of her ear. "But some nodes are unstable. Especially near the waist and spine—these are the areas most prone to resonance for a Soft-Boned Rabbit Soul Ring. How do you feel?"
"I..." Xiao Wu opened her mouth, her voice trembling slightly. "I feel... very strange."
"Strange in what way?"
"It's just... very sensitive," she said softly, her face burning again. "Everywhere that's touched feels... wrong."
Mo Bai smiled. The laugh was low, carrying a sense of knowing.
"This is a normal phenomenon," he said, his fingers sliding from her wrist to her forearm, his movements very slow. "Your first Soul Skill, 'Charming Bone,' is essentially an ability that combines physical flexibility with nerve sensitivity. In the early stages, the body needs to adapt to this change."
His fingers continued upward, sliding past her upper arm and stopping at her shoulder.
Xiao Wu's breathing grew hurried. She could feel the temperature of his fingertips, and the increasingly intense electric current that the touch brought. Her legs were going weak, and she had to quietly shift her weight to stay standing.
"T-teacher..." she whispered. "Is it necessary to check it this way?"
"Of course." Mo Bai's tone was perfectly matter-of-fact. "The compatibility between the Soul Ring and the body directly affects your future cultivation. If we don't find the problems now, they could leave hidden dangers later."
His other hand also rose, pressing onto her other shoulder. Now he was standing completely in front of her, so close that she could smell the faint scent on him—like a mix of herbs and ink.
"Now, I need to check the Soul Power nodes near the spine," Mo Bai said, his voice dropped very low. "Turn around."
Xiao Wu hesitated for a second but eventually turned around slowly, her back to him.
She could feel his gaze landing on her back. Even through her clothes, that gaze felt heavy, making her spine tingle.