Zhu Zhuqing's Change

"Qin Xiao, pass down the orders. Make the necessary preparations to receive our guest in two days," Xue Hong instructed Qin Xiao beside him.

"Yes."

Qin Xiao answered and was about to leave.

Xue Hong called out again, "Wait."

Qin Xiao stopped at once. "City Lord, do you have any other instructions?"

"Why hasn't Madam returned to the residence these past two days?"

"Madam has been at the Suotuo Great Soul Arena these past two days, maintaining the arena. She has also been with Physician Gu."

"Oh, is that so? Then there's nothing to worry about. Go make the preparations." Xue Hong did not suspect anything and let Qin Xiao leave.

After all, he trusted both his wife and Gu Ye's character.

One was the man who had saved his life, while the other was his wife. There was simply no way anything could happen between them.

Soon. Once Cousin Qinghe arrives, no matter what it takes, I must gain his support. Elder Brother, just wait. I will repay you for what happened two months ago.

Xue Hong recalled how he had been ambushed by that Soul Sage two months ago, severely wounded and nearly killed. Had Qin Xiao not held off the enemy and allowed him to escape, and had Gu Ye not treated him afterward and saved his life, the grass on his grave would already be a foot high.

It was precisely because Gu Ye had saved his life that Xue Hong placed such inexplicable trust in him.

The night passed without incident.

The next day, led by Zhao Wuji, the Shrek Seven Devils left Shrek Academy and ran toward the Star Dou Great Forest.

The Star Dou Great Forest lay southeast of the Balak Kingdom.

A small portion of it bordered the Balak Kingdom.

Suotuo City itself was also in the southeast of the Balak Kingdom, less than five hundred kilometers from the Star Dou Great Forest.

Thus, it was naturally the best place for Shrek Academy's students to obtain soul rings.

While running toward the Star Dou Great Forest, Zhu Zhuqing noticed the changes in her body.

Her body felt lighter, her movements were faster, her stamina more abundant, and her exertion far lower.

Along the way, Tang San, Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and the others all needed to eat Oscar's sausages to restore their stamina, but Zhu Zhuqing did not. She could barely feel any depletion in her strength.

Remembering what Gu Ye had told her earlier, Zhu Zhuqing became even more determined to take him as her master.

"Zhuqing, are you really not going to eat Oscar's Recovery Sausage?" During a brief rest, Xiao Wu noticed that Zhu Zhuqing had not eaten any of Oscar's sausages throughout the journey and asked.

To her surprise, Zhu Zhuqing shook her head and refused. "I don't need one. You all can eat."

"Alright."

Seeing that Zhu Zhuqing had refused, Xiao Wu could only pick up one of Oscar's large sausages and put it in her mouth.

Zhu Zhuqing's condition also left Tang San, Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and the others somewhat puzzled.

They were all men, and their stamina should generally have been better than a woman's. Yet Zhu Zhuqing seemed to have barely expended any energy along the way, and they could not understand why.

"Zhuqing, how did you... do that? Why don't you look tired at all?" Ning Rongrong asked Zhu Zhuqing between gasps.

"Maybe because I specialize in speed," Zhu Zhuqing replied calmly, then said no more.

Her words made Tang San and Dai Mubai, who were watching her, feel that Zhu Zhuqing had become somewhat different. As for exactly how she was different, neither of them could say.

"Alright, let's continue." Zhao Wuji announced, and they resumed their journey.

As they ran, he deliberately stayed behind to observe Zhu Zhuqing. He discovered that her movements were light, and that among them all, her speed was the most consistent. This made Zhao Wuji quite curious.

After all, Dai Mubai was the strongest of the seven in terms of strength, yet even he could not match Zhu Zhuqing.

Zhu Zhuqing's changes naturally stemmed from the Cell Reinforcement Potion Gu Ye had injected into her body yesterday.

The changes had only just begun. In a few more days, she would only grow stronger.

By the time night fell, the Shrek group had traveled more than four hundred kilometers and were already very close to the Star Dou Great Forest.

Seeing that they could not reach their destination that day, Zhao Wuji ordered them to rest. They had happened to arrive at a small town, and if they continued onward, there was no telling whether they would find supplies.

Upon entering the town, Zhu Zhuqing found it far livelier than she had imagined.

The town was roughly three times the size of the village where Shrek Academy was located. Though it lacked city walls, it was practically like a small city, with shops lining the streets and every kind of store imaginable.

After looking over the town, Zhu Zhuqing withdrew her gaze and sensed the changes in her body.

Even now, she still felt that her stamina was incredibly abundant.

This showed just how potent the potion Gu Ye had injected into her body truly was.

Zhu Zhuqing had a feeling that if she fought Gu Ye now, she could battle him for three days and three nights.

Then, under Zhao Wuji's lead, the Shrek Seven Devils found an inn to rest in.

After entering the inn, Zhu Zhuqing said something to Xiao Wu, Ning Rongrong, and the others before returning to her room.

She had a feeling that the second transformation in her body was about to begin.

"Rongrong, have you noticed that Zhuqing has changed quite a lot since she returned from Gu Ye's Medical Clinic yesterday?" Xiao Wu leaned close to Ning Rongrong's ear and whispered.

"Mm, I feel the same way." Ning Rongrong had also noticed that Zhu Zhuqing seemed somewhat different.

As for what was different, she could not quite put it into words.

Oscar, who had also noticed the change in Zhu Zhuqing, nudged Ning Rongrong with his elbow and whispered, "Hey, Rongrong, do you really not know what Zhuqing and Gu Ye did for half an hour in the Medical Hall yesterday?"

"I don't know." Ning Rongrong blurted it out without hesitation.

And even if she did know, she would not tell Oscar.

After all, she privately suspected that Zhu Zhuqing might have been receiving breast treatment from Gu Ye, but that was only her own assumption. She had no idea whether it was true.

Dai Mubai looked toward the room upstairs, wondering what exactly had happened to Zhu Zhuqing.

Meanwhile, inside the room.

Zhu Zhuqing sat cross-legged on the bed, her teeth clenched tight. Her trembling lips and the sweat dripping down her cheeks like rain made one thing clear: she was enduring tremendous pain.

"Ugh!"

"Ah!"

The sensation of countless ants gnawing at her body, both painful and itchy, finally made Zhu Zhuqing cry out.

But when she remembered Gu Ye's words, she gritted her teeth and endured, enduring without pause.

After an unknown amount of time, Zhu Zhuqing's clothes were already drenched through. She lay on the bed, gasping for breath.

"What an incredible feeling. Is this the cellular strengthening Gu Ye mentioned?"

Zhu Zhuqing lowered her head to look at her chest, then at her hands. Feeling the immense power within them, she was overjoyed.

Boom!!

At that moment, a sudden roar came from outside the room.

Then the sounds of a fierce battle continuously rang out from beyond the door.

Hearing that someone seemed to be fighting outside, Zhu Zhuqing quickly tidied herself up and went out to take a look.

She discovered that Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and the others were fighting a Soul Master with a turtle Martial Soul, and she frowned.

They had been perfectly fine just moments ago. How had they suddenly started fighting?

Zhu Zhuqing hurried downstairs to Ning Rongrong's side and asked what had happened.

After Ning Rongrong gave her a brief explanation, Zhu Zhuqing understood.

It had all started because of Flender's saying that a Soul Master who did not dare to cause trouble was not a good Soul Master. Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and the others had teased the women from the other academy. Then Dai Mubai's arrogance and reckless words had caused the two sides to come to blows.

Because Dai Mubai had needlessly clashed with Blue Sunshine Academy and started a fight, Zhu Zhuqing suddenly realized that Shrek Academy's teachings seemed to have some issues.

It was not that they were bad, nor that they were wrong. Rather, the very nature of how they taught people to conduct themselves had changed.

If Gu Ye had been the one teaching her, he definitely would not have taught her to be so arrogant and overbearing.