Jiang Nannan and Xu Sanshi

"I was wondering why the taste seemed so familiar. So it was you grilling fish, little Yuhao!"

Tang Ya suddenly darted out from the woods behind them, her eyes shining as she stared at the grilled fish in Huo Yuhao's hand.

Her nose twitched, and she nearly started drooling.

Even so, she spared some attention to greet Chen Junting and the others. "Hi, little Junting, little Ning Tian, little Wu Feng." But immediately afterward, she put on a ravenous expression again and stared at the grilled fish.

"Little Yuhao, could you sell me one of those grilled fish?" Tang Ya swallowed, clearly able to tell that the Green Fish before her wasn't an ordinary one. Thus, she couldn't shamelessly ask for one outright and instead requested to buy it.

"Xiao Ya, you'll have to ask Wu Feng."

Huo Yuhao smiled, sounding slightly embarrassed.

Although he had grilled the fish, Wu Feng had provided the ingredients. Moreover, the ingredients accounted for most of the cost.

"Little Wu Feng..."

Upon hearing this, Tang Ya immediately shifted her target.

Wu Feng was straightforward enough and said frankly that the grilled fish hadn't cost much. Tang Ya could eat as much as she wanted; she had prepared plenty.

Just as Tang Ya was about to take the grilled fish...

"Xiao Ya!"

The voice carried a hint of helplessness mixed with a trace of anger and suddenly reached everyone's ears. Tang Ya's hand paused just as she was about to accept the grilled fish. Facing her, Huo Yuhao could even see a trace of panic on her face.

Chen Junting and the others looked toward the voice. A girl in a purple school uniform appeared in their sights. She had a slender, well-proportioned figure and skin as white as snow. Her wavy golden hair fell loosely behind her, and her eyes, like clear springs, held a hint of anger while also possessing a unique charm.

"Ah! Nannan, I forgot about you!"

Tang Ya sprang to her feet, though she didn't forget to take the grilled fish.

A hint of embarrassment appeared on her face.

She hurried over to the girl called "Nannan," affectionately hooked her arm, and said in a slightly coquettish tone, "Nannan, my good Nannan, I was wrong. Please forgive me."

As she spoke, she brought the grilled fish to Jiang Nannan's lips.

"I'll let you have a bite of the grilled fish. Forgive me, okay?"

"Do you think I'm like you, getting bought off by a single grilled fish?" The girl rolled her eyes at her, but the enticing aroma drifting from the grilled fish made her sniff unconsciously.

"This grilled fish smells amazing."

When she took a closer look, the girl suddenly cried out in surprise!

"Ah! This grilled fish must be expensive!"

Her lips, which had originally been about to open, instantly closed.

She looked as though she absolutely refused to eat it.

"It's fine, Senior Sister."

At this moment, Chen Junting suddenly spoke, meeting the girl's gaze directly. Ning Tian, who was sitting beside her, wore a gentle smile as she continued his words. "Since Senior Sister is Senior Sister Xiao Ya's friend, come sit with us and eat. They're only a few ten-year Azure-Patterned Fish. They didn't cost many Gold Soul Coins."

As people from the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, Chen Junting and Ning Tian would never forget that one of their purposes in coming to Shrek Outer Academy was to befriend talented Soul Masters and recruit them into the Sect.

Since the girl before them was a Fourth or Fifth Year student, her talent was definitely not low. Moreover, her sensitivity toward money made it easy to tell that she was most likely from a commoner family.

If that was the case...

Forming a favorable connection with her would also make it easier to draw her into the Sect.

"Come on, Nannan. You don't need to worry. They're from the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, so they're very rich. We don't need to pay."

Knowing what the girl was concerned about, Tang Ya directly included herself in the statement, preventing Nannan from feeling inferior while persuading her to stay.

"Then thank you, four Junior Brothers and Sisters."

Seeing this, Nannan did not refuse.

She tucked her golden hair behind her ear, then accepted a freshly grilled fish from Huo Yuhao and began tasting it carefully. The moment she took her first bite, the flavor exploding in her mouth made her eyes light up.

At this point, Tang Ya also introduced the girl to everyone.

The girl's full name was Jiang Nannan, and she came from a commoner family in the Dou Ling Empire. Because she had displayed great talent at a junior Soul Master Academy, she obtained a recommendation letter from a city lord and joined Shrek Academy. She also shared a dormitory with Tang Ya.

The reason they had come here today was that Jiang Nannan had been in a bad mood after class, so Tang Ya had simply accompanied her for a walk.

"Looks like Senior Sister Jiang Nannan has tremendous talent."

Chen Junting's words were full of praise. For some reason, Tang Ya revealed a hint of pride as she said, "Of course. Nannan was one of the three Core Disciples in her year at the Outer Academy."

Ning Tian's smile grew even sweeter upon hearing this.

Clearly, she had set her sights on this Senior Sister.

But at this moment...

"Hm."

Chen Junting sensed something. His gaze casually swept toward a clump of bushes in the distance. A voice infused with Soul Power came from his mouth. "Since you've arrived, why not come out and sit with us? Hiding around like that will only lead to misunderstandings."

The wind surged, bending the treetops.

He flicked the bamboo skewer in his hand, sending it flying toward the bushes!

Hearing the disturbance, everyone looked over at once, yet no one made any unnecessary moves. This was Shrek Academy, after all. Unrelated people couldn't possibly enter the academy.

Just as the bamboo skewer was about to shoot into the bushes, a pair of large hands suddenly reached out and caught it directly.

A tall, burly young man appeared. He had thick brows, fierce-looking eyes, a straight nose, and a broad mouth, with a dignified appearance. His black school uniform clearly identified him as a Sixth Year student.

However, the moment the black-clad young man appeared, everyone sensed that the atmosphere around them had become somewhat strange.

"Heh heh, Nannan, what a coincidence."

The black-clad young man hurriedly tossed the bamboo skewer aside, a gentle smile appearing on his face. Yet no matter how others looked at it, they could all see the ingratiating hint hidden beneath that gentle smile.

"Brother Junting."

Ning Tian lowered her voice, signaling for Chen Junting to look at Jiang Nannan.

The previously cheerful Jiang Nannan's expression had turned as cold as the depths of winter the moment the black-clad young man appeared. The disgust in her eyes was completely undisguised.

Tang Ya pointed at the black-clad young man's nose and scolded him before Jiang Nannan could speak. "Xu Sanshi! Nannan doesn't want to see you at all! Why are you as annoying as a dog-skin plaster?"

"Tang Ya, this has nothing to do with you."

Seeing Tang Ya blocking his way, the black-clad young man's tone became impatient.

"Move aside!"

"You—"

"Xiao Ya." Jiang Nannan grabbed Tang Ya, who was about to lose her temper, and walked in front of Xu Sanshi, facing him directly. The moment Xu Sanshi saw the girl's stunning face, the impatience in his tone vanished, and his expression became exceptionally gentle.

"Nannan, I..."

"Xu Sanshi!" Before he could finish, Jiang Nannan said coldly, "I've told you before that there's no possibility between us. Please stop bothering me in the future. Sorry, Junior Brothers and Sisters. We've disturbed you. Xiao Ya, I'm leaving first."

After saying this to Chen Junting and the others, she turned and walked in the opposite direction from Xu Sanshi. Her pace grew faster and faster until, in the end, she even activated her Martial Soul Possession.

"Nannan..."

At that moment, everyone seemed to hear the sound of a heart breaking.

But more than that, they were curious about what they had just witnessed.

"Sister Tang Ya, what's going on?"

Wu Feng held her grilled fish and moved over beside Tang Ya.

Her question also made everyone prick up their ears.

Tang Ya did not refuse. After all, among the Outer Academy's upper-year students, practically everyone knew about this matter. At the end, Tang Ya said with some confusion, "Actually, I also feel that Xu Sanshi isn't bad. Although he looks like a flirt, he really doesn't fool around with other girls, and he's so devoted to Nannan. If I didn't have Beibei, I might have accepted him if he pursued me."

"Bullshit!"

Xu Sanshi had been wearing a sorrowful expression earlier. When he heard Tang Ya telling the Junior Brothers and Sisters about his relationship with Jiang Nannan, he had felt somewhat embarrassed, but he hadn't even been in the mood to get angry. However, after hearing her final sentence, he couldn't hold back. Disdain appeared plainly on his face as he said, "Tang Ya, only that fellow Beibei could ever find you appealing. As for me, I'll always belong to Nannan!"

"Xu Sanshi! What did you say?"

Seeing the two of them already start bickering, Chen Junting and the other three, who had been enjoying the spectacle, exchanged glances. In the end, Wu Feng muttered, "You call that devotion? He's clearly just a pathetic simp."

The moment she said that, the other three deeply agreed.