Tang Wulin and Xie Xie

"Rank-three innate Soul Power."

"Looks like this child must have something special about him."

Wu Changkong fell silent for a moment, then slowly spoke.

Rank-three innate Soul Power wasn't exactly enough to make even a dog shake its head, but it was only on par with six Grandmasters from twenty thousand years ago. His talent was admittedly limited. If the other man thought so highly of him, he must have other strengths.

"Exactly. He's a very interesting child. Once you meet him, you're sure to like him."

Lu Li nodded with a smile, then added.

"Oh?"

Wu Changkong was taken aback. A little fellow who'd earned his approval? He didn't believe it.

"Xie Xie, even if you're from a big city, you can't go around picking on people!"

Just then, a wronged voice rang out.

From where Lu Li stood, he could see Long Hengxu near the dormitory building in the distance, his face full of anger. Two young boys stood beside him.

Tang Wulin was one of them.

"I didn't expect to see this scene too."

As Lu Li watched, his gaze settled on the timid, cold and haughty boy beside Tang Wulin. That had to be Xie Xie.

"Xie Xie..."

"Even people from big cities can't bully others."

At that moment, Tang Wulin stood there with his fists clenched, looking like a victim. In truth, he was one, but...

The cold and haughty boy beside him already had a bruised and swollen face. One of his green eyes was much smaller than the other, making him look rather comical.

"Would you look at you two? Fighting on your very first day here. What am I supposed to do with you..."

Long Hengxu sighed and spoke with exasperation.

"Teacher, he stepped on my blanket. My big brother told me that you don't have to go looking for trouble, but you can't be afraid of it either. He was asking for it..."

"So I let him feel my fists."

Tang Wulin spoke earnestly, his expression unchanged. He'd already held back. If he hadn't remembered that the other boy was only a Soul Master, he would've swung his hammer.

"..."

Xie Xie said nothing. Humiliation was written all over his face as he gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, furious.

How could he accept being beaten by someone weaker than him, whose Martial Soul was Blue Silver Grass of all things?

He was a genius with Twin Martial Souls!

Who was supposed to be getting beaten up here?

"Fighting is one thing, but you also damaged the dormitory's shared facilities. So, what are you going to..."

"Teacher Lu Li!"

Long Hengxu was about to say something when he glanced over at Lu Li. His eyes instantly lit up, and a smile spread across his face as he greeted him.

"Are you touring the academy with Teacher Wu?"

His gaze swept over Wu Changkong beside Lu Li. As expected of someone from Shrek Academy—he seemed to have a good relationship with Lord Lu Li.

"Teacher Lu Li...?"

"Ah, Big Brother Lu Li! What are you doing here?"

Hearing that familiar name, Tang Wulin jolted. He followed the direction of the person beside him, and his face immediately lit up with joy.

"Director Long."

"What happened to these two children?"

Lu Li gave a slight nod and smiled at Tang Wulin, then turned to Long Hengxu and asked with feigned confusion.

"Teacher Lu Li, well..."

"This child got on the little fellow's bad side, and they got into a fight. I was just about to deal with it."

Long Hengxu's eyes darted about as he spoke.

Since the child called Tang Wulin knew Lu Li, he couldn't possibly have been the one at fault. It had to be Xie Xie.

Xie Xie, you'll have to take responsibility for your own actions!

"..."

Xie Xie remained silent as he looked at Director Long. You weren't saying that just a moment ago. Why the sudden change?

"Director Long, leave these two to me."

"Sure thing."

As soon as Lu Li said that, Long Hengxu hurried off without the slightest desire to stay.

He was eager to get ahead.

"Big Brother Lu Li, are you working as a teacher at Eastsea Academy now?"

Tang Wulin looked at Lu Li expectantly and asked.

"Yes. I'll be in Donghai for a while. This is Teacher Wu. You'll be seeing him often from now on."

Lu Li answered with a smile, briefly introduced Wu Changkong, who stood beside him, then continued.

"Big Brother Lu Li, here's what happened."

"We're roommates. I was unpacking earlier, and he stepped right on my blanket..."

"Then we started fighting."

Tang Wulin spoke angrily and earnestly.

"Is what he said true?"

Lu Li nodded slightly, turned to Xie Xie, and asked.

"Mm..."

"Yes."

Xie Xie nodded, his expression cold.

"So..."

"That was rather rude of you, wasn't it?"

A benevolent smile appeared on Lu Li's face as he glanced at Xie Xie and spoke calmly.

His voice was remarkably even, but to Xie Xie, it sounded just like the call of death.

At that moment, a single look from Lu Li was enough to make Xie Xie's body tremble uncontrollably.

He'd sensed a powerful pressure within Lu Li from the very first moment he saw him. The instant Lu Li fixed his gaze on him, that pressure only grew stronger.

Just what level of cultivation did Teacher Lu Li...

"Teacher Lu Li, this..."

"It was really just a misunderstanding."

A flicker of awkwardness crossed Xie Xie's face. His hands shifted uneasily as he spoke.

"Did you step on his blanket?"

Lu Li remained calm and continued.

"Yes..."

"Then let me guess. After he told you not to step on it, you kept doing it anyway?"

"Mm..."

A flush of shame crossed Xie Xie's face.

Even without Lu Li spelling it out, he realized he'd handled things badly. He really had been acting like a jerk.

"Then apologize to him."

Lu Li spoke calmly.

Refusing to correct your mistakes wasn't something a genius should do. Well... Xie Xie probably didn't really count as a genius.

"Sorry, Tang Wulin."

"I didn't do it on purpose."

Under the pressure Lu Li exerted, Xie Xie had no choice but to look toward Tang Wulin and offer an awkward apology.

"It's fine. I forgive you."

"I'll just wash it myself when I get back."

Tang Wulin didn't dwell on the matter. Seeing that Xie Xie had apologized, he immediately waved his little hand and said with a smile.

"Hm? You're not mad at me anymore?"

Xie Xie asked in surprise.

"What's there to be mad about?"

"We're roommates, not enemies, right? As long as you know you were wrong and fix it, we can still be good friends."

Tang Wulin gave him a doubtful look and blinked.

"Isn't that right?"

"Yeah..."

Is that how it works?

Xie Xie didn't know what to say. He nodded woodenly as he looked at the boy standing calmly before him. The boy seemed to be glowing.

Especially when he'd said they could be good friends. Xie Xie was genuinely touched.

"Wulin really is a good kid..."

Watching Tang Wulin's magnanimous display, Lu Li chuckled. It was also why he'd gone to Aolai City to help him three years ago.

First, Tang Wulin's Martial Soul was an upper-tier version of his own, and he was bound to surpass Lu Li in the future. Naturally, Lu Li wanted to leave a good impression on him from an early age.

Second, Tang Wulin really was the most upright protagonist of the third generation. Unlike Tang San, who had no parents, or Dai Yuhao, whose mother had died right before his eyes, Tang Wulin had been raised by foster parents...

At least in the early stages, he was as upright as they came.