Xu Qianqian was quite surprised.
She really was surprised.
She had no idea about today's hottest headline, so she had never expected to hear Su Ming's name from the junior who had become the most popular girl and the new School Belle.
Moreover, judging from what An Zijin meant, her relationship with Su Ming seemed far from ordinary.
After all, if their relationship were ordinary, how could she possibly call Su Ming "Brother"?
Therefore, Xu Qianqian's first reaction upon hearing An Zijin's words was none other than surprise.
"Do you know Su Ming?"
Xu Qianqian asked curiously.
As far as Xu Qianqian knew, Su Ming was incredibly low-key at the academy. He had been hiding his strength ever since enrolling and had never attracted much attention. Like an ordinary student, his presence was extremely weak.
If she had not gone to see Su Ming herself, causing many people to take notice of him, then whenever someone mentioned the name Su Ming, most people at the academy would probably have answered, "Who is Su Ming?"
Su Ming had actually gotten to know An Zijin, whose recent popularity was unmatched and who was even more popular than Xu Qianqian herself, with countless people viewing her as a princess. Their relationship also seemed far from ordinary, which naturally piqued Xu Qianqian's interest.
Unbeknownst to Xu Qianqian, her interest appeared in An Zijin's eyes as yet another sign that made her unhappy.
Just as Xu Qianqian knew about her, An Zijin naturally could not have never heard rumors about this goddess-like senior with such a dazzling halo.
Unlike Xu Qianqian, who disliked paying attention to unimportant news and had hardly ever visited the Academy Network forums, An Zijin was no different from ordinary gossip-loving girls and often kept an eye on what was happening online.
Furthermore, ever since she had enrolled, everyone had compared An Zijin with Xu Qianqian. It was impossible for An Zijin not to know Xu Qianqian.
Most of what An Zijin knew about Xu Qianqian had come from other people's accounts, but the point that had left the deepest impression on her was none other than Xu Qianqian's notorious coldness.
Few people had confessed to this goddess-like senior, but every one of them had been bluntly roasted by her until they doubted their own lives. As a result, although countless people admired her at the academy, hardly anyone dared confess to her, let alone pursue her openly.
Li Wei, the top student of Demon Hunter Academy and a fourth-year senior, was handsome, came from an extraordinary family, and possessed enough strength to contend for first place in the entire Demon Hunter Academy. Even professional Hunters who had only recently debuted were left far behind by him. Yet although he had publicly declared that he intended to pursue Xu Qianqian, she had never even looked him in the eye, much less given him a positive response.
Even the girls received no better treatment than the boys.
At least, ever since she had enrolled, no one other than her butler, assistants, servants, and the like had ever been able to approach Xu Qianqian at close range or enter and leave with her.
This goddess-like senior had few friends, let alone close girlfriends. It seemed that only one or two extremely rare individuals had any dealings with her.
Because of this, all kinds of rumors related to Xu Qianqian flew everywhere throughout Demon Hunter Academy. There were even rumors that she was frigid.
How could An Zijin possibly be happy when such an unbelievably cold goddess-like senior had shown interest only upon hearing about Su Ming?
Not to mention that this woman had gone to find Brother Su Ming before An Zijin, acted as though she were flirting with him, and had even given him a little note.
For the past two days, An Zijin had kept wondering what exactly had been written on that little note.
A phone number?
Her home address?
Or the location of a hotel?
At the thought of this, An Zijin felt terrible.
Vixen!
At that moment, An Zijin was about to say the phrase she had kept on her lips for ten whole years: "I belong to Brother Su Ming."
But when she remembered Su Ming's instructions just now, An Zijin could not bring herself to say it.
An Zijin had never disobeyed Su Ming's words.
Whether in childhood or now, even throughout the ten years they had been separated, An Zijin had never violated an agreement with Su Ming. She had even refrained from doing anything that might make him unhappy.
Otherwise, how could An Zijin have turned the sentence "I belong to Brother Su Ming" into her catchphrase?
It was precisely because Su Ming had told An Zijin that whenever someone wanted to approach her or play with her, she could say that, that An Zijin had done so—and continued doing it for ten years.
Now that Su Ming had told An Zijin not to say it anymore, and she had already agreed, she certainly would not do it again.
Thus, after thinking for a while, An Zijin decided to use a different wording.
"Brother Su Ming and I pledged ourselves to each other for life when we were little. We're not merely acquaintances!"
As soon as she said this, An Zijin felt immensely satisfied.
This way, she had neither broken her agreement with Brother Su Ming nor failed to declare her sovereignty over him. She had perfectly explained their relationship. It could not have been more wonderful.
It's decided! From now on, this will be my new catchphrase!
Xu Qianqian, unaware of An Zijin's thoughts, was stunned.
"Pledged yourselves to each other for life?" Xu Qianqian asked in surprise. "Are you and Su Ming engaged?"
To Xu Qianqian, having a marriage agreement from childhood was nothing strange.
As the eldest daughter of the Xu Family, Xu Qianqian had seen countless childhood betrothals and even engagements arranged before birth. Family alliances were an everyday occurrence within the scope of her vision.
Under such circumstances, Xu Qianqian did not doubt that Su Ming and An Zijin had pledged themselves to each other for life.
What surprised Xu Qianqian was that the low-key Su Ming actually had such a beautiful fiancée.
His fiancée had already become the most popular girl and the new School Belle at the academy, yet Su Ming had not shown the slightest reaction. Was he really just watching so many people call his fiancée "wife" every day?
Wasn't that a little too much like a Side Character?
"I've never heard him mention this." Xu Qianqian looked at An Zijin and suddenly asked, "Has he ever told you about what happened between him and me?"
Xu Qianqian wanted to know whether An Zijin was aware of the transaction between her and Su Ming.
Her mission and current predicament were not things she could casually reveal.
If Su Ming had told An Zijin everything, then Xu Qianqian felt that she would have to pay close attention to An Zijin's movements as well.
Lost in these thoughts, Xu Qianqian had no idea how serious her words sounded to An Zijin.
".What is there between you and Brother Su Ming?"
An Zijin's heart sank.
Could this vixen really have some improper relationship with Brother Su Ming?
This thought made An Zijin glare at Xu Qianqian through clenched teeth.
Seeing this, Xu Qianqian raised an eyebrow.
It seemed that this new goddess-like junior did not know about the transaction between Xu Qianqian and Su Ming.
Having learned this, Xu Qianqian relaxed.
"If you're interested, you can ask Su Ming yourself." Xu Qianqian said this to An Zijin. "Of course, I advise you not to. What happens between us isn't something you can casually interfere with."
No matter what, An Zijin was only a new student. Even if she was the top student among the freshmen, as a first-year junior who had just enrolled, her strength could not possibly be very high.
If An Zijin casually interfered with the missions involving Su Ming and Xu Qianqian, she would undoubtedly be courting death.
Based on this thought, Xu Qianqian offered that advice.
However, Xu Qianqian's bluntness and her cold manner of speaking without caring about other people's feelings had an extremely bad effect on An Zijin this time.
".Is Senior declaring war on me?"
An Zijin was silent for a while before slowly speaking.
Xu Qianqian's expression changed slightly.
At that moment, An Zijin's tone contained no fluctuation of emotion, and there was no expression on her face. Even her eyes had lost all focus. An eerie atmosphere began spreading from her.
Of course, that was not what had caused Xu Qianqian's expression to change.
What truly made Xu Qianqian's face change drastically was the transformation taking place on An Zijin's body.
Faint, strange patterns suddenly surfaced across An Zijin's body, then vanished again.
The patterns appeared only briefly.
Yet in that fleeting instant, Xu Qianqian felt as though the blood inside her body were boiling and her entire body had begun to burn and tremble.
Xu Qianqian was not unfamiliar with this sensation.
Although she had encountered it only rarely, Xu Qianqian had felt the same thing from a very small number of people before.
Xu Qianqian knew exactly what this feeling represented.
And when it appeared on An Zijin, Xu Qianqian understood even more clearly what it meant.
"So you're..."
The look Xu Qianqian gave An Zijin changed. It became serious, focused, and incomparably sharp.
An Zijin ignored her completely.
She merely stared coldly at Xu Qianqian, and the eerie atmosphere radiating from her grew increasingly intense.
Xu Qianqian instinctively circulated the Phantasmal Demon Power within her body, and faint crimson light lit up in her reddening eyes.
The atmosphere between them immediately grew heavier and more oppressive, like a powder keg on the verge of ignition. Even the air began to tremble slightly.
Just as the tension between them reached the breaking point and unpredictable consequences were about to erupt, several voices came from the other side of the path.
"Let's search over here."
"Su Ming might be here."
"Hurry up and search. We have to dig three feet into the ground if necessary and find him."
"Damn it, who knows what corner Su Ming took Junior An to?"
"Don't do anything foolish, Junior An!"
"Junior An isn't that kind of person!"
When those voices came from the distance, Xu Qianqian and An Zijin immediately snapped out of it as though awakening from a dream.
The two of them glanced at the figures approaching from afar, then looked at each other. Without any warning, they immediately parted and left.
As they brushed past each other, a brief exchange took place.
"You hid yourself quite well, Junior."
".We'll meet again, Senior."
After leaving those words behind, the two of them went their separate ways and soon vanished from sight.
No one knew that the academy's two goddess-like School Belles had crossed paths.
And that they had set out on opposing paths.
Please bookmark! Please recommend! Please support!
Before you continue