The moment Xu Sanshi saw Mo Yuan and Han Ruoruo, who was standing beside him in her red school uniform, his heart sank halfway. He felt that nothing in the world could be more terrifying.
Mo Yuan patted Xu Sanshi on the shoulder and asked with a fake smile, "Do I look like an idiot to you?"
"N-no, you don't..."
Xu Sanshi was close to tears. After hearing Mo Yuan's words, he immediately felt a huge red character appear above his head.
Danger!
On the other side, Jiang Nannan, who had already walked some distance away, stopped when she heard the commotion. Seeing the usually overbearing Xu Sanshi being handled like a little chick by Mo Yuan, a first-year student, she couldn't help growing curious and stopped to watch.
"I never knew you had such a domineering side, Xu Sanshi. How come I didn't see you act that way toward Ma Xiaotao yesterday?"
"B-big brother, please be the bigger person and let this little guy off..." Xu Sanshi was close to tears as he tried to save himself from a beating.
"I can let you off. You get three sentences to convince me. If you do, I won't beat you up."
Xu Sanshi froze, then brightened with hope. He blurted out, "Really?!"
"One."
Mo Yuan spoke calmly as he began rolling his wrists. If Xu Sanshi couldn't move him, he'd treat Xu Sanshi's backside to a blast of Jun Yan and the Ice Emperor, so he could experience the joys of being caught between ice and fire.
Xu Sanshi stared at him in disbelief. "Wait, big brother, that counted as one sentence?!"
"Two."
Damn it!
Xu Sanshi started to panic. Cold sweat seeped from his forehead and slid down his cheeks. With danger closing in, he unleashed his inner potential, his mind racing as he tried to find a glimmer of hope.
After a while, just as Mo Yuan was affectionately rubbing Xu Sanshi's head and thinking about where to start, Xu Sanshi's eyes suddenly lit up.
He brushed his hand over the Storage Soul Tool at his waist, and a translucent white jade bottle appeared in his palm. Then, with an ingratiating smile, Xu Sanshi held the bottle out to Mo Yuan in both hands.
"Big brother, this is the Xuan Water Pill, a unique medicine of the Xuanming Sect. It's renowned across the continent and worth a fortune! As your little brother, I'm offering it to you today. Please be the bigger person and forgive this little guy!"
Mo Yuan glanced at the bottle Xu Sanshi offered, raising an eyebrow slightly. He knew about the Xuan Water Pill. It could raise a Soul Master's Innate Soul Power by one level, and it was famous throughout the continent.
Unfortunately, he already had Innate Full Soul Power, so it wouldn't do him much good. Its only real use might be to help him win over other talented commoners.
Mo Yuan took the bottle and pulled out the wooden stopper. Through its opening, he saw a deep blue pill about the size of a cherry, its surface crossed by numerous white lines.
The moment the stopper came out, a fresh, fragrant aroma drifted through the air, soothing to the senses.
"Very good."
Mo Yuan glanced at the grilled fish in Xu Sanshi's hand, then turned to Han Ruoruo, who had been watching quietly beside him, and asked,
"Senior, would you like some grilled fish?"
Han Ruoruo looked at the grilled fish, which had gone a little cold after all the commotion, and shook her head, disappointed.
"I'll pass. Eating greasy food at night isn't good for your skin."
Mo Yuan nodded and stopped bothering Xu Sanshi. He'd already finished extorting him, but he didn't leave. Having read the Original Work, he knew that, if nothing unexpected happened, another big scene was about to unfold.
Seeing that Mo Yuan hadn't taken his grilled fish, Xu Sanshi felt a rare glimmer of comfort. He turned toward Jiang Nannan, who stood some distance away, put on his usual puppy-dog smile, and hurried over.
But before he could hand the grilled fish to Jiang Nannan, Beibei and Tang Ya stopped him, both looking furious.
Beibei didn't waste words. "Xu Sanshi, give Yuhao his grilled fish back! And you bullied my junior fellow disciple, so you owe us an explanation!"
Xu Sanshi frowned, displeased. He pointed at Huo Yuhao, who looked angry but hadn't said much. "He's a disciple of the Tang Sect?"
"Yes! He's my new disciple!" Tang Ya spoke up for Huo Yuhao. She gave Xu Sanshi a cold smile. "You're supposed to be one of the Outer Court Twin Stars, just like Beibei, yet you're stealing a new student's things. Have you no shame?!"
"Don't make baseless accusations, Tang Ya. It's just two grilled fish, and I already paid for them."
Tang Ya snapped, "Yuhao was saving them for me! Beibei, why are you still wasting your breath? Beat him up so badly he can't take care of himself, and I'll let you kiss me."
Beibei had been holding himself back, but when he heard Tang Ya, the Little Demoness who loved stirring up trouble, his facial muscles twitched.
"You heard her. Enough talk! Let's fight at the Battle Soul Arena. If you lose, you owe Yuhao a Xuan Water Pill as compensation!"
Xu Sanshi sneered. "You think two grilled fish are worth a Xuan Water Pill? Still, it's been a while since we fought. The Battle Soul Zone, right? Let's go!"
He'd backed down to Mo Yuan because he knew how formidable Mo Yuan was. But Beibei was his equal, one of the Outer Court Twin Stars, so he wasn't afraid of him!
But even as he agreed to fight, Xu Sanshi didn't forget his original purpose. He carried the grilled fish over to Jiang Nannan, and the stern look on his face instantly softened into tenderness.
"Nannan, here. The grilled fish you wanted. I'm going to the Battle Soul Arena to fight Beibei now. Could you come cheer me on?"
"Why should I?"
Jiang Nannan replied coldly. She glanced at the grilled fish, then turned and walked into the crowd without looking back, leaving Xu Sanshi with only the sight of her retreating figure.
Xu Sanshi froze. The tenderness on his face stiffened, and the grilled fish fell from his hand to the ground.
Then he threw his head back and cried, "No!!! Nannan!"
Seeing this, Mo Yuan suddenly remembered something and couldn't help smiling. A song seemed to ring in his ears.
Snowflakes flutter down, the north wind howls, the world is vast and white; a plum blossom stands proudly in the snow...
Seeing Mo Yuan's expression, Han Ruoruo asked curiously, "What are you smiling about, junior?"
"Nothing. I just remembered a joke from before," Mo Yuan said. "Would you like to watch them Soul Fight, senior?"
"Of course. How could I refuse an invitation from you, junior?" Han Ruoruo clasped her slender hands behind her back and gazed at Mo Yuan with a beaming smile.
Mo Yuan was taken aback by her answer, unsure what Han Ruoruo was thinking.
Just then, Tang Ya and Huo Yuhao came over to them. Tang Ya thanked Mo Yuan,
"Thank you for standing up for Yuhao just now, junior Mo Yuan. Otherwise, Xu Sanshi would definitely have taken advantage of him."
Huo Yuhao glanced cautiously at Mo Yuan. He had watched the whole process as Mo Yuan effortlessly handled Xu Sanshi.
He wasn't stupid. Xu Sanshi was a powerhouse on Beibei's level, yet in front of Mo Yuan, he'd cowered like a coward.
And Huo Yuhao knew Mo Yuan didn't come from some great family, so Xu Sanshi couldn't have backed down because of his background. That left only one possibility: Mo Yuan had forced Xu Sanshi to yield through his strength.
A first-year student being stronger than a sixth-year senior sounded unbelievable. But as the saying went, once you eliminated the impossible, whatever remained, no matter how incredible, had to be the truth.
That realization filled Huo Yuhao with a new, unsettling fear of the unknown when it came to Mo Yuan.
"Th-thank you, B-Brother Yuan."
"We're all new students. Helping each other is only right," Mo Yuan said warmly.
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