Teaching Assignment

Ning Rongrong had lost her mother at a young age. As time slowly passed, her mother's voice, appearance, and smile gradually faded from her memories.

That night, the moonlight flowed like water and the stars glittered, as though her mother in the heavens were gazing down at her gently.

At that moment, a different kind of warmth welled up in Ning Rongrong's heart, and she felt the urge to confide in someone.

It was as though her mother knew that she now had an older brother who cared for her, spoiled her, and patiently corrected her whenever she made mistakes.

Children's minds were always both complicated and simple, and sometimes they were especially prone to saying one thing while meaning another.

Ning Rongrong felt much closer to Lin Yao, but she was unwilling to show it too obviously.

She tilted her head slightly and glanced from the corner of her eye at Yan Jun and the others, who had been knocked to the ground, mulling things over.

If she really became the little sister, then all the prestige of being the "big sister" would be gone.

How could that do?

"Rongrong, go back. Staying up too late will affect your growth. It won't be good if you turn into a little dwarf. By then, you'll have to jump just to pat my shoulder. Don't you think you should go to bed early?"

Lin Yao had no idea that such strange and whimsical thoughts were spinning through Ning Rongrong's mind.

He looked at the sky, then checked the pocket watch in his hand. Seeing that it was indeed getting late, he smiled softly at Ning Rongrong.

There was a hint of teasing in his words, like a spring breeze that effortlessly shortened the distance between them.

Hearing this, Ning Rongrong instinctively raised a hand to compare her height with Lin Yao's and found that she was only half a head shorter than him.

But when she thought of Lin Yao saying that she might not even be able to reach his shoulder without jumping in the future, a sense of crisis filled her heart.

If that big bad brother Lin Yao grew too tall, wouldn't she have to look up at him from then on?

That was far too unbecoming of Miss Rongrong's status!

She secretly thought to herself that although she somewhat acknowledged him as her brother, if she got the chance to turn him into her little brother, the satisfaction would surely be overwhelming.

Since she could not suppress him for now, she had to sleep early, wake early, and work hard to grow taller—preferably even taller than Lin Yao. Only then would she have the upper hand.

"I'm going back to sleep, big bad brother Lin Yao."

Ning Rongrong said sweetly. When she called him "big bad," her voice unconsciously rose a little, carrying an irrepressible hint of delight.

After saying that, she darted away like a nimble little rabbit.

"This girl..."

Watching her departing figure, Lin Yao could not help but smile gently.

Then, he turned his gaze toward Yan Jun and the others lying on the ground nearby.

These fellows were restrained by the sword energy of Ink Star Sword Shadow and could not move.

Having overheard the conversation between Lin Yao and Ning Rongrong, they seemed to have heard some earth-shattering secret. They squeezed their eyes shut, their eyelids trembling slightly, terrified that Lin Yao, who had remained behind, might do something to them.

"Enough. Stop playing dead, you lot. I can't immediately solve the problem with your bodies right now. My control over this sword energy is still lacking.

"Wait a little while. I'll have Support Type Soul Masters from the sect take you back, but you'll have to pay for your own treatment."

Lin Yao spoke softly, his tone unhurried, yet Yan Jun and the others felt a little relieved.

Realizing that he was talking about them, Yan Jun and the others could no longer keep pretending to be unconscious and opened their eyes one after another.

They exchanged looks filled with helplessness and regret, then watched Lin Yao slowly walk away. For a while, none of them could say a word.

Only after Lin Yao seemed to have gone far away did one of them let out a breath. Looking at Yan Jun, who stood at the front, he said gravely, "Brother Yan, I think we accidentally got involved in the young miss and her brother's family matters. Now we're trapped between a rock and a hard place. The young miss thinks we're useless, and we've also offended this terrifying genius. Sigh."

Yan Jun shook his head, feeling that even after so long, his body remained tightly imprisoned. That sword energy was like a disease rooted in his bones, impossible to shake off.

The power appeared extremely faint within his body, yet it was far more tenacious than he could have imagined.

Even when he mobilized all the Soul Power of a Soul Elder, he could not disperse it. It was as though his Soul Power and that trace of energy did not exist on the same level at all—the gap was astonishing.

"A genius with such powerful talent, and such a close relationship with the young miss, must be someone the Sect Master is cultivating as a priority.

"Once he grows stronger, the gap between us will only widen.

"Perhaps this is the smallest that gap will ever be."

Yan Jun said with a bitter smile.

"A top genius like him belongs on the stage of the All-Continent Soul Master Tournament, in the contests between the Upper Three Sects' greatest young talents, and in Spirit City of Spirit Hall, the continent's most powerful faction."

Now, no longer dazzled by the benefits he had sought before, he had finally come to his senses.

The next morning, Lin Yao once again used meditation in place of sleep.

During meditation, he could clearly feel that the Soul Power in his body had grown a little more refined.

Nor did his body show the fatigue his parents had mentioned when teaching him to meditate.

When ordinary Soul Masters meditated and became tired, it meant that the Spiritual Power in their spiritual sea had been depleted to a critical point and required actual sleep to recover.

But ever since awakening his Soul Power, Lin Yao had noticed that he needed less and less sleep. Recovering his energy and increasing his Soul Power through meditation had gradually become normal for him.

Sometimes, he wondered whether this change came from the awakening of his martial soul, or from the increased Spiritual Power and the points of focus from other worlds after the mysterious star cluster in his mind connected to those worlds.

In any case, when it came to cultivation, not only did his talent far surpass ordinary people's, but even his cultivation time and efficiency were vastly greater than others'.

After breakfast, Lin Yao encountered the old man who had arranged his lodging when he had first arrived at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

The old man was the Ning Family's steward and one of Ning Fengzhi's most trusted people.

Upon seeing Lin Yao, the steward said politely, "Young Master Lin, the Sect Master requests your presence in the main hall."

Lin Yao nodded and followed the steward toward the main hall.

Upon entering the hall, Lin Yao immediately saw Ning Fengzhi and Ning Rongrong.

Ning Fengzhi sat in the seat of honor with an expressionless face, while Ning Rongrong tugged at his sleeve beside him and acted cute.

Though Ning Fengzhi appeared unmoved, Lin Yao keenly caught the fleeting smile in his eyes.

Not far away, Yan Jun and a row of other youths stood there like children who had made mistakes. They were trembling with fear, their eyes full of unease, occasionally sneaking glances at Ning Fengzhi without even daring to breathe loudly.

Seeing this scene, Lin Yao roughly understood what had happened and guessed how things had developed to this point.

Ning Fengzhi had probably learned about last night's events and intended to take this opportunity to properly curb Ning Rongrong's increasingly obvious Little Devil Girl tendencies.

Poor Ning Rongrong still thought her father was truly angry. She was acting cute obediently, trying to earn his forgiveness.

Lin Yao knew clearly that no one in this world loved Ning Rongrong more dearly than Ning Fengzhi did.

From that perspective, everything seemed to fall into place.

With a clear understanding of the situation, Lin Yao had no intention of exposing Ning Fengzhi's act. He stepped forward, respectfully bowed to Ning Fengzhi, and put on a suitably puzzled expression as he asked, "Uncle Ning, did you call for me because something happened?"

"Yao, you've suffered a grievance. I already understand what happened last night. It is all because I have been busy with sect affairs.

"Even when I had time, I did not make time to look after Rongrong, and I failed in my duties as a father.

"I allowed Rongrong to become like this. I apologize to you for what happened last night."

Ning Fengzhi looked at Lin Yao with a measure of apology in his eyes.

At the same time, as their eyes met, Ning Fengzhi silently conveyed a message. It was an unspoken understanding between them, as though he were saying, Help me keep this girl in line.

"Uncle Ning, I..."

Lin Yao's expression shifted slightly as he was about to speak, but Ning Fengzhi interrupted him.

"I know what you want to say. Although you won last night and knocked them all to the ground, they had actually intended to gang up and bully you, using their numbers to oppress the weak.

"That kind of behavior is unacceptable. If it is not properly dealt with, it will inevitably damage the sect's friendly atmosphere. Over time, it could become a serious problem."

Ning Fengzhi spoke sternly, raising his voice slightly.

Hearing this, Ning Rongrong awkwardly clasped her hands behind her back and looked around, trying to distract herself.

Her gaze wandered around the hall until it inadvertently met Lin Yao's. Seeing the flicker of amusement in his eyes, she immediately became indignant and put on a fierce, tiger-like expression.

But when Ning Fengzhi seemed to notice something and turned to look at her, she hurriedly turned away and pretended to stare intently at a small potted plant in the distance, as though it hid some enormous secret.

"Uncle Ning, Rongrong is still young. It is understandable that she sometimes lacks restraint in her actions and thinking. Getting angry over such matters is useless.

"Now that the problem has been found, the best course is to patiently resolve it."

Lin Yao spoke calmly. His words made Ning Rongrong, who had been listening with her ears pricked up beside them, feel a little excited.

She could not help narrowing her eyes, and the corners of her lips lifted slightly.

However, Ning Rongrong still did not turn around to look at Lin Yao and Ning Fengzhi, afraid that their eyes might meet again. That would be far too embarrassing.

So she continued staring blankly at the potted plant beside her without moving.

Ning Fengzhi was very satisfied with Lin Yao's cooperation. Seeing Ning Rongrong's appearance, he decided to go with the flow and voice his thoughts. "Yao, you're right. Once a problem is discovered, it must be taught and corrected. These disciples have sect instructors to guide them.

"But Rongrong, the main culprit, is in a special position, so others cannot easily interfere.

"I happened to hear that she acknowledged you as her brother last night. And since I am usually busy with affairs, I truly cannot always find the time to watch over her.

"If we lose track of things and give up halfway, that would be no good. So I'll have you look after her."

"Uh... I'm fine with that..."

Hearing this, Lin Yao felt somewhat dazed. He had originally thought he was merely being asked to help manage Ning Rongrong, yet Ning Fengzhi had directly assigned him an "epic-level" task.

Though he could not help complaining inwardly, he did not show any resistance or intention to refuse.

In his view, properly teaching Ning Rongrong, his little sister, was simply an older brother's responsibility.

Moreover, he was curious what kind of unique charm Ning Rongrong would possess if, instead of being psychologically manipulated like in the original story into suppressing her temper and becoming awkward, she could truly remove the small flaw in her innocent nature.

"Yao, I knew you were a trustworthy child. Rongrong's status in the sect is simply too exceptional.

"She is noble and adored by countless people, so even teachers responsible for instructing children find it difficult to interfere.

"And when we try to intervene, the generation gap makes communication difficult. Our usual indulgence has practically sent this girl's tail soaring into the sky. At a time like this, we have to rely on a young person like you."

Ning Fengzhi smiled in satisfaction, his smile full of trust in Lin Yao.

"Father, how can you slander your adorable daughter like this...?"

The more Ning Rongrong listened to Ning Fengzhi, the more something felt wrong. What father spoke of his daughter like that?

She felt terribly wronged, feeling that if her father kept talking like this, even his little padded jacket might start letting in drafts.

But Ning Fengzhi had rarely found such an excellent opportunity. He hoped that, through the principle that one is influenced by the company one keeps, Lin Yao, this obedient and sensible child, might help his daughter rein in her temper.

If Ning Rongrong could truly learn to control her emotions and stop being as willful as before, Ning Fengzhi would consider it an enormous gain.

Though he was secretly overjoyed, he still tried hard to suppress the urge to laugh. He kept a straight face and pretended to be stern.

Although Ning Rongrong had already acknowledged Lin Yao's position as her brother in her heart, she did not want to be controlled by someone her own age.

She only wanted to be pampered and cared for. She did not want any boring instruction.

But she was at too much of a disadvantage now and could not argue with her old father at all.

Feeling uncertain and unwilling to be led around by her father and Lin Yao, Ning Rongrong cast a pleading look toward her Sword Grandfather and Grandfather Gu.

However, Chen Xin and Gu Rong had long since coordinated with Ning Fengzhi. They also wanted Ning Rongrong to improve and hoped she would learn from Lin Yao.

Thus, they merely wore suitably helpless expressions and did not step in to help.

In the original story, they had doted on Ning Rongrong in every possible way.

First, Ning Rongrong had always been very obedient in front of them. Second, neither of them had descendants of their own, so they treated Ning Rongrong like their own granddaughter.

Furthermore, Ning Rongrong's talent was outstanding, and among the younger generation of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, she had few rivals.

But now that there was Lin Yao, a model with formidable talent, exceptional intelligence, and maturity in dealing with others far beyond his peers, they also hoped Ning Rongrong would change.

After all, in Douluo Continent, a world where individual strength reigned supreme, even the best personality could not secure a place for someone without talent and strength.

Now, however, they no longer indulged Ning Rongrong as blindly as they had in the original story, and Lin Yao was largely the reason.

Thus, under everyone's "siege," Ning Rongrong could only agree to let Lin Yao guide her, though her feelings were complicated.

"Uncle Ning, leave everything to me. I'll do my best to help Rongrong learn well and become an outstanding person, an outstanding Soul Master."

Lin Yao met Ning Fengzhi's gaze, then looked at Ning Rongrong, who was somewhat unwilling off to the side. In the end, he accepted the task.

In his view, looking after a child was somewhat challenging, but it was not particularly difficult.

As for Ning Rongrong, her feelings were complicated because she actually wanted to play with Lin Yao. But if he taught her in the same dull and tedious way as those old tutors, that would be far too boring.

She secretly thought, Sigh, I'll see how it goes. If Lin Yao is as boring as those old tutors, then don't blame Miss Rongrong for sneaking away.

With that thought, she followed behind Lin Yao step by step. Her mood improved again, her footsteps becoming much lighter, even somewhat bouncy.

She felt that her old father was far too naive. Trying to restrict her so easily was simply wishful thinking.