Zhao Wuji swept the corner of his eye over the group. Aside from Li Xiaoyao, everyone else was panting like dogs. Zhu Zhuqing in particular looked like she was about to stick out her tongue and roll her eyes.
"Enough! Rest where you are!"
"We'll set out again in an hour!"
At Zhao Wuji's words, everyone found a place to rest. Only Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing remained frozen where they stood.
"Zhuqing!"
"Who told you that I didn't buy cultivation resources for you?"
Dai Mubai's expression darkened. Anger churned in his mismatched eyes as he voiced the doubt that had been weighing on his heart.
Zhu Zhuqing let out a cold laugh, her phoenix eyes filled with mockery.
"Heh. What?"
"You're allowed to do it, but no one else is allowed to say it?"
Zhu Zhuqing's undisguised mockery and distance made Dai Mubai clench his fists tightly. Soul Power surged uncontrollably through his body, and even the air around them seemed to grow heavier.
He turned to look at Tang San in the distance, his gaze filled with undisguised hostility, as though he had already decided Tang San was the one who had leaked the information.
"Why is Dai Mubai looking at me like that?"
Tang San noticed Dai Mubai's unfriendly stare and frowned slightly, thoroughly confused. How had he offended him?
"Why is Dai the Boss looking at Tang San like that?"
"Could he suspect that Tang San was the one who told Zhuqing about what happened at the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Hotel yesterday?"
Oscar noticed that something was wrong as well. He moved beside Li Xiaoyao and scratched his head.
"Who knows about something like that?"
Li Xiaoyao held Ning Rongrong in his arms while watching the drama unfold with great interest.
Zhu Zhuqing was the first to attack. She sneered, narrowed her eyes, and spoke in a tone so cold it seemed ready to freeze into frost.
"Heh. Young Master Dai really knows how to put on an act. Back in the Star Luo Empire, you ignored me and abandoned me. When you ran away alone, you cared even less whether I lived or died."
"I came all the way to Shrek Academy, yet you were unwilling to spend even enough for a single cultivation resource on me. And you still have the nerve to call yourself Zhu Zhuqing's fiancé?"
"Since that's the case, why are you still pretending to be deeply devoted in front of me, Dai Mubai? Do you really think I, Zhu Zhuqing, am someone you can summon at will and dismiss whenever you please?"
"Enough! It wasn't that I was unwilling!"
"I didn't have enough money. There was nothing I could do about it!"
Dai Mubai growled, his tone full of pent-up grievance. The veins at his temples bulged slightly, and his clenched knuckles turned white.
"If I bought one finished cultivation resource first, at least I could quickly raise my Soul Power Level. If I waited until I had enough money for two, who knew how long that would take?"
"It would take too long to gather enough for two. By then, not only would I be stuck at the same level, but your strength would also remain stalled in the same realm."
"In two years, we'll face the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament. Every bit of strength could decide victory or defeat. Do you want to watch us lose to Dai Weisi and Zhu Zhuyun?"
"I was already planning to gather more money and find a way to buy you a finished cultivation resource later. Who knew someone would expose all this to you and deliberately make you misunderstand me?"
After saying that, Dai Mubai's gaze intentionally—or perhaps unintentionally—swept over Tang San, carrying obvious hostility.
Tang San: "Huh???"
Well, well.
What was Dai Mubai supposed to mean by that?
Was he saying that I, Tang San, who am Pure and Clean, was the one who leaked the secret?
According to Article Three of the Tang Sect's Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record, once an opponent had been confirmed as an enemy, if they had chosen the Way of Seeking Death, then one must show no mercy. Otherwise, they would only bring trouble upon themselves!
Clearly, Dai Mubai had slandered his innocence. He had already chosen the Way of Seeking Death!
Oscar scratched his head and muttered softly.
"Boss Xiaoyao, could it be just as Dai the Boss thinks? Was it really Tang San who privately told Zhuqing about this?"
Noticing that Dai Mubai suspected Tang San, Oscar wisely did not step forward to say anything more.
He was not one to gossip in the first place. From last night through this morning, he had never interacted with Zhu Zhuqing alone, much less spoken a single word to her.
"Little Ao, let me teach you a lesson!"
Li Xiaoyao's words drew a curious look from Oscar.
Li Xiaoyao curled his lips into a playful smile before adding,
"Before you have strength, you need to know how to keep a low profile!"
"Once you have absolute strength and can announce to the whole world that you don't eat beef, then you can do whatever you want!"
Those words left Oscar completely speechless.
As time passed, Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing's argument grew fiercer and fiercer.
"Dai Mubai, let me tell you this!"
"I, Zhu Zhuqing, don't need your fake concern, much less your money-driven 'pity'!"
Zhu Zhuqing sneered and stepped back, widening the distance between them with a resolute posture.
"Zhuqing, enough!"
"I already told you, it was a misunderstanding!"
"Someone deliberately drove a wedge between us in front of you!"
Dai Mubai stared fixedly at Tang San. The suspicion in his heart deepened, and the rage in his chest nearly burst forth, only to be forcibly suppressed when he saw the determination in Zhu Zhuqing's eyes.
"Heh. A misunderstanding?"
"I think it's the truth!"
Zhu Zhuqing sneered.
"Dai Mubai, you don't need to make excuses, and you don't need to blame others for talking too much. I can see through your little thoughts perfectly well!"
Zhu Zhuqing's words were like a basin of cold water, extinguishing Dai Mubai's desire to explain himself.
"Think whatever you want."
Dai Mubai took a deep breath, his voice hoarse.
There seemed to be no point in pursuing who had revealed it now. After all, Zhu Zhuqing's disgust was written plainly across her face.
"Everything I've done has been to grow stronger and then defeat Dai Weisi and Zhu Zhuyun."
"On that one matter, my conscience is clear, and it will never change!"
"As for those cultivation resources, if you want them, I can think of a way to solve it. There's no need for you to sulk and argue with me here."
"No need."
Zhu Zhuqing turned and walked away, her back utterly resolute.
"I'll earn what I need myself. I won't trouble Young Master Dai with it. And next time, before you suspect someone else, think first about what you've actually done!"
Knowing he was in the wrong, Dai Mubai stood frozen in place. He watched Zhu Zhuqing's departing figure, then looked toward the cold-faced Tang San, fury filling his mismatched eyes.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk! A single penny really can stump a hero. That saying wasn't wrong after all!"
Ma Hongjun had a sausage in his mouth, chewing it with noisy smacks, his eyes full of amused gloating.
"Dai the Boss, you're a prince of the Star Luo Empire, yet a hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins have you trapped with nowhere to advance or retreat. People would laugh their teeth out if they heard that!"
Swish—
Dai Mubai's sharp gaze shot toward Ma Hongjun. With a belly full of anger and nowhere to vent it, he flashed a vicious grin.
"Heh! Fatty! Looks like you've gotten a little too full of yourself lately. Let's have a spar!"
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