Lingling's Reciprocity

After the banquet.

Zhao Manyan said goodbye, then left with the married woman he'd picked up somewhere.

Dongfang Chen glanced at Mu Nu Jiao and Ai Tu Tu, whose face still had a few little tear gems on it.

"Where are you two going? I'll give you a ride."

Ai Tu Tu didn't say anything. Instead, she hid behind Mu Nu Jiao, her adorable little face still streaked with tears, trembling with each sob.

The look she gave Dongfang Chen was complicated. It was hard to tell whether she was scared or embarrassed.

Mu Nu Jiao looked at Ai Tu Tu helplessly.

What was she supposed to say? How could she have dared to provoke this Great Demon King? She was such a wimp, yet always looking for trouble.

"Take us back to our dorm," Mu Nu Jiao said.

She and Ai Tu Tu were roommates.

Mingzhu Academy required New Students to live on campus for at least half a year before they could rent a place off-campus.

So Mu Nu Jiao and Ai Tu Tu were both staying in the student dorms for now.

That rule obviously didn't apply to Dongfang Chen, though.

With his talent, it wasn't unreasonable for him to enjoy a few "privileges."

That was why he'd moved out with Ye Xin Xia and Ding Yumian on the very first day of school.

"By the way... what about your family?"

Mu Nu Jiao asked.

She'd actually come to meet Dongfang Chen today on her family's orders.

Although they'd already confirmed their relationship—and even kissed—Mu Nu Jiao didn't know what Dongfang Chen really thought. Was he just playing around, or was he serious?

"What, are you afraid I'll dump you? You're already mine. Don't even think about running away."

Dongfang Chen smiled mischievously.

Mu Nu Jiao blushed under his gaze.

For a moment, she really had thought he might just be playing around.

"Then I'll tell my family the truth."

"No problem."

After finishing his conversation with Mu Nu Jiao, Dongfang Chen turned to Ai Tu Tu with a grin.

"Come on. What are you still standing there for? Doesn't someone need to go back and change?"

"You!!!"

Ai Tu Tu's big eyes immediately filled with tears again.

That awful man! It was bad enough that he'd smacked her butt, but he'd even made it...

All Ai Tu Tu wanted now was to get back to the dorm as quickly as possible and change out of her wet clothes.

"All right, all right. I'm done teasing you."

Dongfang Chen joked.

Then he took the two girls to the parking lot.

He'd driven to the banquet that evening.

Normally, Grandpa Sai would have been the one to drive, as the family's butler.

But ever since Dongfang Chen had come to Magic City and advanced to Dou Wang, he'd stopped having Butler Sai accompany him.

He was now strong enough to protect himself, so Butler Sai, an Archmage, could simply stay home and enjoy his retirement.

After dropping the two girls off at school,

Dongfang Chen's life settled down.

During the day, he went to school to flirt with the girls. At night, he went home to build his relationship with Yumian and snuggle up with Xin Xia in every way imaginable.

A few days of peaceful living passed before a phone call interrupted it.

"Dong! Fang! Chen!"

As soon as Dongfang Chen picked up, Lingling's furious voice came through the phone.

"You big liar! You said you'd come do a mission with me when you had time, but so much time has passed and you haven't come to see me even once! I'm never talking to you again!"

Lingling sounded utterly indignant.

She'd been looking forward to doing missions with Dongfang Chen for ages.

But all these days, he'd only kept in touch with her on his phone. He hadn't come to the Hunter Station to see her even once!

So she'd been stuck going to school every day, miserable as could be!

"Ahem. I've been pretty busy these past few days."

Dongfang Chen laughed awkwardly.

He'd actually gone to Qingtian Hunter Club to look for Lingling.

But she hadn't been there at the time, and he'd run into Leng Qing instead.

Leng Qing had said she wanted Lingling to attend school for a few more days and wouldn't let her take on any missions.

So Dongfang Chen had kept his distance.

"I don't care! You have to come keep me company today, no matter what!"

Lingling's angry voice came through the phone.

Even when she was mad, her voice was still lovely.

"Fine. What mission did you get?"

"Come to the Hunter Station first. I'll tell you when you get here!"

"All right."

"Why are you so late?"

Lingling stood outside Qingtian Hunter Club with her hands on her hips, her cheeks puffed up like a little hamster.

She might not be as mature and alluring as her older sister, but she was still a cute girl in her own right.

Did Dongfang Chen really care so little about her?

"Sorry I'm late."

Dongfang Chen patted Lingling's twin tails, then took a neatly wrapped cardboard box out of his Storage Ring.

"Here. I went to buy you a present. See if you like it."

Lingling froze for a moment, then took the box from Dongfang Chen.

"Wow! It's the latest Display Card I've been wanting!"

As a skilled hacker, Lingling replaced her computer parts almost every year.

But Leng Qing wanted her to focus on her studies, so she rarely gave her extra pocket money to upgrade her computer.

So Lingling had always taken jobs from the Hunter Station, using the rewards she earned to improve her computer.

Lately, Leng Qing had been forcing her to go to school, and Lingling's savings had nearly run out. Naturally, she had no spare money to buy the latest Display Card.

"Hehe. Since you gave me a present, I'll forgive you for being late."

Lingling jumped onto Dongfang Chen, wrapped her short legs around his waist, then gave him a quick kiss on the cheek with a little "mwah."

Before Dongfang Chen could really savor the moment, Lingling had already dropped back to the ground.

"Hurry inside. The Hunter Station just got a new request."

With that, Lingling quickly turned and went back into the Hunter Station.

But Dongfang Chen had sharp eyes and caught a glimpse of her flushed face as she turned away.

He chuckled to himself. That little girl.

Then he followed her inside.

Old Man Bao was still lying in his chair when Dongfang Chen entered the Hunter Station.

After greeting him, Dongfang Chen sat down beside Lingling.

Lingling was talking with a well-dressed woman, who was the client.

"So you're saying... your husband might be a Demon?" Lingling stared at the beautiful woman, her thoughts unclear.

"Yes, yes... I suspect he goes out to kill people in the middle of the night. Every time he comes home, his clothes are covered in blood. I'm certain it isn't human blood, but the blood of some kind of animal..."

After talking for a while, the beautiful woman asked the Hunters to send someone to protect her, but Lingling refused.

Their conversation ended on an unpleasant note.

"Did you notice anything?"

After watching the beautiful woman leave, Lingling asked Dongfang Chen.

She knew he had strong Mental Power. Maybe he'd picked up on something.

"I noticed something."

Dongfang Chen lifted Lingling onto his lap.

Lingling pouted but didn't struggle.

"That woman's a Demon," Dongfang Chen said.

She was probably the Scale Skin Demon Mother from the Original Work, the one that could infect and parasitize people through blood.

Under Dongfang Chen's Soul Perception, the Scale Skin Demon Mother lurking inside her was completely exposed.

"You're sure?"

Lingling asked in surprise.

"Actually, her husband came to the Hunter Station not long ago, too. He said he suspected his wife was the Demon. So it looks like the husband was right, and the wife was the real Demon?"

Lingling had some suspicions about the case, but without more evidence, she didn't dare jump to conclusions.

"No. Both of them are Demons."