Tang Ya's Arrival

"Ha... ha, I'm not too late, am I?"

Tang Ya leaned against the door with one hand and wiped the sweat from her forehead with the other. Her blue-and-white training clothes were soaked with sweat and clung to her skin. She let out a heavy sigh, not bothering to hide how exhausted she was.

In this state, Tang Ya was bound to set people's imaginations running!

"You're not late. Come on in first."

Click~

The door closed, and the quiet freshman dormitory erupted in an instant.

"Whoa, who was that?"

"I don't know the guy, but wasn't that Senior Tang Ya?"

Everyone who'd eaten Huo Yu'er's grilled fish the day before yesterday had seen Tang Ya beside her. After all, even if they didn't know Tang Ya, they'd know Bei Bei, who was always with her.

Bei Bei was known as one of the Twin Stars of the Outer Courtyard, alongside Xu Sanshi, so naturally everyone knew who he was. Some people had even bought such expensive grilled fish just because of his reputation.

"Wait, isn't Senior Tang Ya going out with Senior Bei Bei? How could she be involved with a new student?"

"Maybe we're reading too much into it. What if they're just siblings?"

"Oh, get out of here. If they were siblings or just ordinary friends, why would she be in such a hurry? No, we have to tell Senior Bei Bei about this!"

Bei Bei was quite popular around the outer courtyard, and these new students admired him too. Faced with such juicy gossip, they naturally weren't going to keep quiet. They wanted to make sure he knew.

The two inside the room had no idea someone had gone to rat them out. But even if they had known, it wouldn't have mattered. Tang Ya had already decided to put some distance between herself and Bei Bei.

Chu Mo glanced at Tang Ya, still wrapped in sweat, and pressed his lips together before suggesting, "Why don't you take a shower first?"

Tang Ya's delicate body trembled at his words. She bit her soft lower lip. She'd known on the way over that nothing came for free, but now that the moment was here, she was still a little nervous.

Not that she regretted it. It was just her first time, after all, and she'd hoped they could make it feel more formal. Besides, Huo Yu'er was right there!

"Th-this is a little... Isn't it too soon to shower together?"

Tang Ya lowered her head and clasped her hands behind her back, just above her hips. She spoke shyly.

"Okay, we should at least wait until tonight."

Chu Mo was completely dumbfounded.

She was covered in sweat. Wasn't it better to shower before cultivating? Sure, it was tempting, but she couldn't cultivate while drenched in sweat.

By nightfall, she'd be marinated!

"You've got the wrong idea. I only meant you should take a shower. You're covered in sweat, and cultivation will take at least a few hours. It'd be better to wash up first."

Only then did Tang Ya realize how badly she'd misunderstood him. A blush quickly spread across her whole face.

"Oh, oh. Sorry to trouble you, then?"

She naturally had a change of clothes in her Soul Tool. Battles could leave you bruised and battered, so who wouldn't keep spare clothes in a Soul Tool?

Chu Mo watched her head into the bathroom, then turned his gaze to Huo Yu'er.

Her expression was different from the timid look she'd had when they first met. She was serious now. Hatred hadn't blinded her, but it was still a burden weighing on her heart.

Splash, splash!

Water ran in the bathroom. Tang Ya had started showering.

With nothing to do, Chu Mo opened the Chat Group.

[Ice Frog is Stronger than Poison Frog: Image (A lavish spread, with all sorts of dishes: rich meat and fish, as well as light stir-fries).]

[Ice Frog is Stronger than Poison Frog: How's tonight's dinner look?]

[Revenge Girl: Looks great. Unlike me, all I can eat right now is oranges...]

Seeing her dinner, Chu Mo glanced out the window. It was only four or five in the afternoon at most. Wasn't it a little early to eat?

More than forty minutes later...

Splash~

At the sound, Chu Mo sat up from the bed and looked over.

The bathroom door opened, and a rush of steamy air scented with body wash poured out, raising the temperature in the room by a few degrees.

Tang Ya emerged from the steam, her cheeks flushed. She looked like a celestial maiden who'd descended to earth. But the Tang Sect uniform she'd changed into didn't suit her very well, and she seemed to be in a hurry. Her wet hair was still dripping, and her fresh clothes showed signs of getting damp too...

"I'm done."

Chu Mo gave a soft "Mm" and glanced toward the bathroom. The steam had already cleared, and it was obvious that she'd cleaned up inside.

"Here, these are the pills I made to improve cultivation speed. Hold on to them for now. You can start once Yu'er's finished cultivating."

He handed Tang Ya the pills he'd taken out earlier and explained the plan.

"Mm, thanks."

Tang Ya accepted the pills and tucked them against her chest. In a sweet voice, she said,

"No problem. Friends in the group help each other out."

Chu Mo waved a hand. He might have had some impure thoughts, but he wasn't going to make a move on her now. At the very least, they had to settle her grudge first.

"Get some rest for a bit."

"Mm."

After Chu Mo finished, he was just about to lie down when Tang Ya ran her fingers through her hair and sat beside him. The scent of her body wash drifted into his nose, along with the delicate fragrance that was uniquely hers.

Tang Ya didn't seem to notice what she'd done. She looked at Xiao Lu and asked curiously,

"Is that an externalized Martial Soul?"

"Mm. I don't have any friends, so Xiao Lu keeps me company."

Chu Mo stretched. It wasn't exactly a loud confession, but it wasn't a quiet one either. His Martial Soul was unusual, so it was only natural that people looked at him strangely. And as a transmigrator, he was already somewhat withdrawn. It was only natural that he didn't have friends. Still, he wasn't so immature as to hold a grudge against children.

But Tang Ya heard it differently. The Tang Sect had records of Yu Xiaogang's experiences. After awakening the Martial Soul Luo Sanpao, he'd spent the first half of his life being mocked.

When she looked at Chu Mo again, his eyes seemed to hold the same feeling of kinship. Because of her Blue Silver Grass and Hidden Weapons, people had always looked at her strangely too. She only had two friends, Jiang Nannan and Bei Bei.

Even Xu Sanshi, one of the famous Twin Stars and Bei Bei's best friend, looked down on her, openly and behind her back. Tang Ya hadn't failed to notice.

"From now on, we're friends. Am I your first friend?"

Tang Ya shook off her earlier dejection and slapped Chu Mo's thigh with a bold, casual air.

"Could you add one more word?"

"What word?"

Tang Ya paused, not quite understanding.

"Girl."

"Girlfriend!"

"That's... that's too fast..."

The teasing made Tang Ya's bold demeanor crumble. Her delicate, fair face, freshly washed, flushed red again, smooth as porcelain. She was practically a steam engine!

"Mm."

Chu Mo sat up again and leaned closer to Tang Ya. Her delicate fragrance grew stronger, and he gazed at her intently.

Embarrassed, Tang Ya lowered her eyes and didn't dare look at him.

"You're right. It is a little fast. But you're already my woman, so it doesn't matter how fast we go. I can wait."

Chu Mo naturally wasn't going to let her off the hook. If he could tease her, he would. He'd win her heart first; otherwise, if someone else stole her away, he'd be the one losing out.