Dormitory Conflict? Protecting Jiang Zhu, He Shows His Edge

The oil lamp at the registration desk had just been refilled, and the evening breeze broke its dim yellow halo across the window paper. When Lin Che slapped the completed form onto the desk, the old clerk's gaze was still fixed on the cloth pouch at Jiang Zhu's waist, his Adam's apple bobbing twice unconsciously. "Seventh Dormitory is at the very back of the East Courtyard. All work-study students live there." His fingertip traced a dark line across the map. "But newcomers need to follow the rules. That kid Wang Sheng..."

Before he could finish, a huge sound of a wooden bed breaking suddenly came from the East Courtyard, mixed with a boy's furious roar. Jiang Zhu instinctively gripped her cloth pouch, the silver-green scepter inside trembling urgently as vine-like patterns faintly glowed through the velvet. "Let's take a look." Lin Che had already started walking. The Azure Water Sword gave off a faint hum within its sheath, echoing the distant commotion.

After passing through two spiderweb-covered corridors, they found the broken door of Seventh Dormitory hanging crookedly from its hinges. Moonlight poured through a hole in the roof, illuminating the mess inside: two of the three wooden beds had collapsed, bedding had been torn into strips, several work-study students huddled in the corner, and Tang San was blocked in the middle of the room. Blue Silver Grass flickered in his palm, its leaves speckled with wood chips. The burly boy opposite him had already activated his Martial Soul Possession. Yellow-brown wolf ears stood atop his head, and sharp claws glowed coldly in the moonlight—it was the owner of the Lone Wolf Martial Soul who had provoked them at the testing platform earlier.

"Newcomers don't know the rules?" Wang Sheng's roar shook dust from the ceiling. He planted one foot on a broken bedboard. "At Nuoding Academy, the work-study boss has the final say! Only I get to sleep in that bed by the window!" The two lackeys behind him immediately jeered. One of them picked up a chunk of wood and hurled it at Tang San.

Tang San merely shifted aside, and the chunk of wood grazed his cheek before embedding itself in the earthen wall. His eyes lowered as his left hand quietly pressed against the Darksteel Dagger at his waist. The roots of the Blue Silver Grass had already silently wound around his feet—this was a defensive stance he had improved from the Tang Sect Ultimate Skills. It looked passive, but concealed a lethal counterattack. Yet just as he was about to activate his Soul Power, a jade-colored sword light suddenly shot in through the doorway, streaking past his ear and splitting open the bedboard beside Wang Sheng's foot with a sharp hiss!

Amid the flying wood chips, Lin Che stood at the doorway with his hands behind his back. The Azure Water Sword had already returned to its sheath, while tiny glass fragments on its tassel gleamed with a cold light beneath the moon. The cross-section of the split bedboard was as smooth as a mirror, a faint green remnant of sword qi still clinging to the cut, yet Wang Sheng's trouser leg had not been harmed in the slightest. "Bullying a junior who just enrolled—is that Nuoding Academy's rule?" His voice was calm, but the restless room fell silent in an instant.

Wang Sheng's pupils contracted, and the violent aura brought by his Martial Soul Possession immediately drained by more than half. He could clearly sense the Soul Power Fluctuation contained within that sword qi—it seemed to be only around level fifteen, yet its precision was terrifying, as though it could dictate life and death within a fraction of an inch. "Who are you? This is work-study student business..."

"I'm Lin Che." The Azure Water Sword suddenly trembled faintly, and a jade-colored halo spread along the sheath to the ground. "He sleeps in this bed."

Wang Sheng's Adam's apple bobbed twice. Just as he was about to flare up, Lin Che's fingertips moved slightly, and the fragments of the bedboard he had split earlier suddenly rose into the air, lining up neatly beneath the moonlight. "The lingering force of Wind Scar Slash." Lin Che's tone was casual, as though he were displaying an ordinary object. "If I hadn't held back, bones would be shattered instead."

The work-study students hiding in the corner sucked in cold breaths, while Tang San slowly relaxed the hand hidden in his sleeve. He had once thought his Mysterious Heaven Skill was already exquisite, but this control over Soul Power could make the remnants of sword qi move as freely as one's own limbs. It was even more profound than the Purple Demon Eyes cultivation method his father had taught him. What shocked him even more was that the Soul Power Fluctuation Lin Che released was clearly similar to his own, yet their actual control was worlds apart.

"Get out." Lin Che raised his chin. The bedboard fragments suddenly flew toward Wang Sheng, embedding themselves neatly into the dirt at his feet and forming an orderly barrier. Wang Sheng's face alternated between green and white. In the end, he stomped his foot fiercely, then fled through the door with his lackeys. The aura of the Lone Wolf Martial Soul drifted farther and farther into the night.

Only then did Jiang Zhu hurry into the room. The Healing Scepter in her cloth pouch had long since impatiently poked halfway out, its silver-green halo sweeping over the wreckage. "Is anyone hurt?" Her gaze fell on the scratch on Tang San's arm, which had been cut by wood chips when he dodged the chunk of wood earlier. "Let me treat that for you."

Tang San had just been about to refuse when Jiang Zhu had already walked forward. The crystal atop her scepter glowed with a gentle green light. The moment her fingertips touched the wound, the scepter suddenly shook violently. Pale green particles surged toward Tang San's meridians as though drawn to a magnet, traveling from his arm through his entire body. "Huh?" Surprise flashed through Jiang Zhu's eyes. "Your Soul Power..."

Lin Che leaned against the doorframe, his fingers secretly gripping the Martial Soul mark of the Universe Cauldron. The system panel flickered faintly in his mind. The Mandala Snake red dot locked onto by [Fortune Detection] was still pulsing in the West Grove, only brighter than before. Jiang Zhu suddenly tugged at his sleeve and lowered her voice. "Brother Lin Che, he has Innate Full Soul Power! And..."

She paused. The crystal atop her scepter was now giving off a faint red glow. "There's a very strange fluctuation hidden within the Blue Silver Grass. It's as if another source of Soul Power is suppressing it. Its aura is even heavier than that of an ordinary Weapon Martial Soul."

As soon as she finished speaking, a golden notification suddenly appeared from the system:

[Special Soul Power characteristics of a Child of Destiny detected. Main Quest triggered: Lock onto the Child of Destiny]

[Quest requirements: Confirm Tang San's hidden Martial Soul attributes and establish a long-term tracking mark]

[Quest reward: Rare Can ×1, Universe Cauldron Martial Soul proficiency +10%]

Lin Che's heart stirred. The Universe Cauldron at his fingertips quietly released a thread of pale golden Soul Power, which followed Jiang Zhu's scepter and wound around Tang San's arm. Tang San only felt a warm, gentle aura pour inside his body. Just as he was about to operate the Mysterious Heaven Skill to resist it, that aura had already swept past his dantian and precisely touched the Clear Sky Hammer Martial Soul mark on his left hand before retreating like the tide.

[Quest complete! Reward has been distributed to the System Space]

Lin Che quietly withdrew his Soul Power. The [Rare Can] on the system panel was radiating flowing light. He focused and clicked to open it. A golden light flashed, and a palm-sized talisman slowly appeared. Complex patterns were drawn across its surface in cinnabar, with tiny glass fragments embedded along its edges—it was made of the same material as the Soul Concealment Talisman Elder Gu Rong had given him.

[Item obtained: Soul Power Fluctuation Monitoring Talisman]

[Function: Tracks the target's Soul Power frequency in real time, marks special soul beasts / treasures associated with the target within a radius of ten li, and can link with the Universe Cauldron Martial Soul]

The moment the talisman was in hand, it turned into a streak of golden light and merged into Lin Che's left palm, overlapping with the Universe Cauldron's mark. He immediately felt a powerful Soul Resonance coming from the direction of the West Grove. Beside the Mandala Snake red dot on the system panel, a new line of text appeared: [Compatibility with Tang San's Soul Power frequency: 92%. Estimated trigger time: tomorrow, Dragon Hour.]

"Thank you, both of you." Tang San's voice interrupted his thoughts. The boy had already arranged the damaged bedding and quietly withdrawn the Blue Silver Grass into his palm. "My name is Tang San." There was obvious curiosity in his gaze as he looked at Lin Che. "That Wind Scar Slash from before—was it an exclusive soul skill of a Weapon Martial Soul?"

Lin Che raised an eyebrow and smiled, lightly tapping the sword sheath with his fingers. "It was only a basic application of Soul Power." He deliberately released a level fifteen Soul Power Fluctuation matching the Soul Concealment Talisman. "Nuoding Academy is full of hidden talents. There will be plenty of chances to exchange pointers in the future."

Jiang Zhu had already folded the scattered bedding. The scepter in her cloth pouch was still trembling softly, seeming especially interested in the Soul Power inside Tang San's body. "Your Blue Silver Grass is very special," she said quietly, a trace of mischief flashing in her eyes. "When I was examining you just now, it seemed like it was greeting my scepter."

Tang San's heart tightened, but his expression remained calm. "Maybe it was just a coincidence." He knew the Blue Silver Grass was merely a disguise for the Clear Sky Hammer. For this girl's scepter to sense something unusual, it was certainly no ordinary healing Martial Soul.

The night gradually deepened, and the other work-study students had long since curled up at the corners of their beds without daring to make a sound. Lin Che chose a bed near the door, placing the Azure Water Sword beside his pillow. The tiny glass fragments on its tassel reflected the moonlight together with the mark of the monitoring talisman on his palm. Jiang Zhu lay down on the bed beside his, clutching her cloth pouch tightly against her chest. The faint glow of the scepter seeped through the gap, casting vine-like shadows across the wall.

Tang San lay on the bed by the window, but sleep would not come. He repeatedly recalled Lin Che's sword qi and Jiang Zhu's examination, feeling that both of them hid far too many secrets. Lin Che in particular—his seemingly casual control over Soul Power was clearly the result of countless trials and tempering, something no ordinary Sect Disciple could possess. Tang San quietly operated the Purple Demon Eyes and looked toward Lin Che, but saw only a blurry Golden Halo—the other boy's Martial Soul could actually block spiritual probing automatically.

At that moment, Lin Che suddenly opened his eyes, and his gaze collided with Tang San's in the darkness. A teasing smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. With a light tap of his fingertip, the monitoring talisman mark on his palm flashed once. On the system panel, Tang San's Soul Power Fluctuation curve suddenly showed a subtle rise and fall, marked with [Spiritual Power probe: Purple Demon Eyes (Beginner)].

"Get some rest, Tang San." Lin Che's voice carried a faint smile. "Tomorrow, perhaps there'll be an unexpected gain."

Tang San's heart jolted. He hurriedly withdrew his gaze, cold sweat already beading across his back. He finally understood that this boy, who appeared to be around his own age, had already grasped every detail about him. What he did not know was that, beyond the window in the night, a jade-colored sword light silently flashed past and sped toward the West Grove—Lin Che had already locked onto the Mandala Snake's exact location through the monitoring talisman. At dawn, he would intercept this fortune meant for the Child of Destiny.

Moonlight passed through the hole in the roof, casting mottled shadows across the floor. The hum of the Azure Water Sword, the soft trembling of the scepter, and the faint glow of the monitoring talisman intertwined into an invisible net within the silent Seventh Dormitory, firmly locking down the course of fate. Wang Sheng's curses outside the courtyard gradually faded away, but no one knew that this dormitory conflict was only the beginning. The true confrontation would soon unfold in the woods beneath the morning light.