Hu Liena's Change

After Zhou You explained why he had come, Xie Yue grew even more wary.

"What do you want with Nana?"

"I need her for something... wait, I can understand you guarding against Yan, but you're guarding against an upright gentleman too?" Zhou You belatedly caught on and found it a little funny.

He pointed at himself. "At my age, you're guarding against me? Is there something wrong with me, or with you?"

Xie Yue was speechless. He really did tend to forget that Zhou You was just a child who had awakened his Martial Soul not long ago.

People in Soul Master society matured too quickly, and low-level Soul Masters generally lacked a sense of security.

But as Hu Liena's only family, Xie Yue still had to ask, "What exactly do you want with Nana?"

"I want to ask her for help." Zhou You knew that if he didn't explain, this kid would probably keep reading too much into it, so he spoke frankly. "Yan's going Soul Hunting in a few days, and I'm going with him."

"What does that have to do with Nana?" Xie Yue frowned.

"Don't rush me, I haven't finished." Zhou You held nothing back and told him everything about Zhang Ping.

"I've thought it over. If we want to catch the Sonic Bird, I'm afraid speed alone won't cut it. Against a Soul Beast that's so extremely specialized, we only have a chance if we restrain it first and keep it from moving for a short while."

Xie Yue was no fool. Understanding dawned on him at once. "You want Nana to use Charm to restrain it?"

"Exactly." Zhou You nodded.

Hu Liena's Charm worked on both men and women, and even across species. The only question was how far its range extended.

"I've told you why I'm here. Can you let me in now?"

Seeing how Zhou You acted as though he were right at home and intended to walk straight in, Xie Yue grew a little angry. His hand moved faster than his mind, and he instinctively held his blade across Zhou You's path.

"She's not in there!"

If she's not in there, why are you blocking me? Zhou You was speechless. He sized Xie Yue up, wondering whether the guy might have a sister complex.

Come to think of it, considering that their parents had died and the siblings depended on each other, it was quite possible.

"All right." Zhou You didn't press the matter. He turned and walked away, leaving Xie Yue momentarily stunned.

"Worst comes to worst, I'll find her tomorrow. It's not like she can skip class forever, right?"

Only then did Xie Yue realize that there was no point in stopping him. His expression promptly soured.

But it wasn't because of Zhou You. He had realized he'd lost his composure and done something so stupid.

Although he had always acted as though he didn't care, it was clear that whenever he faced Zhou You, he easily lost his balance and his calm, leading him to make poor judgments.

Just then, Xie Yue felt someone touch his shoulder. He turned and found Hu Liena behind him.

She looked at him with concern. "Brother, it's all right."

Zhou You hadn't gone far. His five senses were exceptionally sharp, and he had known all along that Hu Liena was inside. But if she didn't want to see him, it wasn't his place to insist.

Besides, he had vaguely noticed that Hu Liena seemed to have been deliberately avoiding him lately, though he didn't know why.

But when he heard her voice, he immediately turned back and raised a hand in an easy greeting. "Good afternoon."

By now, Hu Liena had put herself in the right frame of mind and didn't hide behind her brother as she had last time.

She waved back and calmly returned Zhou You's greeting. "Good afternoon."

Zhou You keenly noticed that something seemed to have changed about Hu Liena.

Yes, that inexplicable habit of striking seductive poses was gone, and she looked much more serious.

Hu Liena actually had good features, and one could already tell she would grow into a beauty. But perhaps because of her Martial Soul's characteristics, there was an aggressive edge to her beauty that made her seem elusive and difficult to get along with.

But her behavior during this time had made Zhou You realize that she might not be as forceful on the inside as she appeared on the outside.

Just like Zhang Ping, whom he had only just met, might not be as pitiful on the inside as she appeared.

"You probably heard what I just told him. So, what do you say? Will you help?"

Hu Liena said calmly, "If I agree, what do I get out of it?"

Xie Yue looked at her in surprise. He, too, had clearly noticed the change in Hu Liena. In the past, she wouldn't have been so direct.

Zhou You had already prepared his answer. He held up two fingers.

"Take your pick of two offers. First, I owe you a favor. You can ask me to repay it whenever you like, provided it's within my ability and doesn't go against basic moral principles."

"Second, I'll be your brother's second-in-command and join you in that inter-academy tournament or whatever it's called."

"What did you say?" Before Hu Liena could speak, Xie Yue bristled. He clenched his teeth, and the words seemed to be forced out. "Are you giving me charity?"

He was already sensitive about the matter, and Zhou You kept stepping on that raw nerve.

Seeing this, Zhou You tilted his head and asked in confusion, "Then how about you be my second-in-command?"

"You!" Xie Yue gripped his Moon Blades in both hands, his eyes nearly spitting fire. He wanted nothing more than to fight Zhou You right then and there.

"I choose the second." Before Xie Yue could erupt, Hu Liena suddenly spoke, dousing him like a bucket of cold water.

"Good, it's a deal!" With that, Zhou You turned and left without another word.

Once Zhou You had disappeared from sight, Xie Yue withdrew his Martial Soul. His icy expression suddenly became animated, and he said somewhat anxiously, "Nana, why did you agree?"

Hu Liena sighed. "Brother, what do you think of Zhou You's strength?"

Xie Yue froze, a reluctant look on his face. "He's strong!"

He had been training hard every day, steadily absorbing the combat techniques his practical combat instructor had taught him. Yet he still felt he was a long way from Zhou You's level of handling heavy burdens as though they were light.

Soul Masters rarely spent time on martial techniques, because they took a long time to learn and yielded slow returns.

The general consensus was that Soul Masters ultimately had to rely on Soul Skills to decide a fight. Martial techniques could only serve as supplementary combat skills while their skills were on cooldown or when they needed to create an opening to use a Soul Skill, primarily bridging the gaps between them.

This was a deeply rooted belief in the Soul Master World. A battle between Soul Masters was, broadly speaking, a battle between Martial Souls. Thus, Soul Masters were always preparing to unleash their Soul Skills, and it was always Soul Skills that secured the final victory.

But his fight with Zhou You had overturned Xie Yue's understanding of combat.

Zhou You's control of the rhythm of battle, his precise grasp of timing, and the ease with which he drew on all manner of techniques had all shaken Xie Yue to the core.

How to allocate Soul Power and stamina, how to advance and retreat in battle, when to pursue, when to defend, and how to wear down an opponent's strength through deception...

The gap between them was not merely one of strength, but also one of tactical thinking.

Considering that Zhou You had only recently awakened his Martial Soul, Xie Yue could only attribute this ability to a gift from heaven—a talent that inspired both envy and hatred.

"Yes." Hu Liena's voice was somewhat distant. "He's already this strong now. What about later? He'll be even stronger."

She turned to look at Xie Yue, and there was something in her eyes that he couldn't understand. "If we can wield that kind of power, wouldn't that make us strong in another sense?"

"Brother, winning or losing for the moment means nothing. We still have plenty of time."