His troubles had been resolved right away, but new ones had taken their place. How was he supposed to keep the conversation going? For Huo Yuhao, who rarely spoke with outsiders, it was a difficult problem. Without interaction, he had no experience, and despite having been at school for so many days, he had barely made any new friends. The only one, Xu Sanshi, had been introduced to him by Bei Bei.
It wasn't that this behavior was bad. Every behavior had its advantages and disadvantages. You had to judge whether it suited the situation and analyze each problem on its own merits. One key opened one lock; you had to find the approach that fit best. But that depended on one prerequisite: you had to know how.
Whether to do something was one question; whether you could do it was another. Being able to came before choosing to. You didn't have to do it, but you had to be capable of it. Huo Yuhao lacked that ability, and so he had landed in this predicament. The pauses in the conversation were suffocating, and the unbearable awkwardness made him call for backup.
Wang Yi, who had been reading a historical novel, jumped at the thought that something had happened. But when he found out it was only this, he grew irritated. "Get lost. You seemed to be getting along just fine with Xu Sanshi."
"You called me over for something this trivial? How are you going to face people in the future? You'll lose the ability to function in daily life."
With no other choice, Huo Yuhao had to keep making awkward conversation. At least, that was how it felt to him. He didn't have to come up with topics; the other person brought them up. All he had to do was answer as usual, then politely ask a few questions in return.
As everyone knew, if someone was interested in you or wanted to get closer to you, they would make an effort to talk to you. The reverse was true as well. The clearest example was when you met someone you liked: you couldn't help wanting to get closer to them. Even just talking with them made you happy.
There was just a fine line. Stay on one side and it was love; cross it, and there was a specific word for it. These days, it was called being a simp. Who could tell the difference between devotion and being a simp? So if a girl never once initiated a conversation with you, you might as well give up on romance with her. Being friends was a perfectly good outcome, wasn't it?
Wang Yi thought back on the turbulent years of his past, which now seemed like a lifetime ago. Watching Huo Yuhao handle himself so awkwardly softened him a little. Everyone went through this stage, didn't they? Maybe there really were a few people born with a special talent for it. But they were outside the scope of the discussion. He could exclude them from the category of ordinary people, and then the theory would have far fewer flaws.
"Yuhao, stop forcing the conversation. Why not suggest that you go train? Ask Bei Bei—actually, forget it. Don't ask him. Xiao Xiao is in the Control System."
Huo Yuhao didn't understand what those things had to do with each other, but Wang Yi had given him a way out of his predicament. He didn't have time to ask questions; he immediately suggested to Xiao Xiao that they go train.
Xiao Xiao was surprised by Huo Yuhao's sudden change of topic. She hadn't expected someone who'd been so flustered just moments ago to come up with a topic on his own. But it was clearly a spur-of-the-moment idea, and he hadn't thought it through.
"Don't we have to register with a teacher before we can team up? Did you forget?" Xiao Xiao chuckled.
Huo Yuhao's face flushed when he realized he hadn't thought of that. But now he had somewhere to go instead of being stuck making awkward conversation. After registering, he left the classroom and waited for Xiao Xiao. The cool breeze outside swept over him, making the sweat on his body evaporate faster and sending a shiver through him. He'd worked up so much sweat in such a short time.
But now he was free as a fish in the sea and a bird in the sky. Once Xiao Xiao finished writing down her answer, she went out to meet Huo Yuhao, and the two headed for the Martial Arts Arena.
Even now, Huo Yuhao was still confused. He couldn't figure out why Xiao Xiao had asked him to team up with her. She knew he'd offended Dai Huabin, so why still ask him? What did he have to offer? As his reason returned, all sorts of questions came to mind, but he was too embarrassed to ask. He hadn't asked at the beginning, and now it was even harder to bring it up.
In truth, Huo Yuhao hadn't yet adjusted his perspective. He'd grown up in an environment more like that of a servant. His upbringing had limited his point of view. The Evil Eye White Tiger was a powerful clan, but there were plenty of other clans like it, just not as famous. Having major historical figures in your family had its perks, and that was one of them.
Xiao Xiao's family wasn't particularly powerful, but the most important affairs of a state were sacrifices and warfare. As long as order remained, sacrifices would never disappear; they were the source of a regime's legitimacy. Clan politics only deepened their importance. Even if the sacrificial rites weren't among the most powerful, they were still one of the highest authorities in the rules.
As an important state vessel, the cauldron represented legitimacy. Whether or not that legitimacy was real didn't matter; the proper process still had to be followed. The process itself wasn't that important. As long as you held things together, you could claim that you'd followed it. That was where this Martial Soul came in: bring it out and perform the rites, making up for what had been missing before.
Clan and state were bound together. Even without much real power, no one could shake their position. To move against them was to strike at the foundation of the imperial family. Was that a bid for rebellion?
That was why Xiao Xiao wasn't afraid of the clans behind people like Dai Huabin. At her age, the only person she couldn't afford to offend was her homeroom teacher. If she got expelled, no one could save her. So you couldn't just look at your own efforts; you also had to consider the course of history. Did everyone else work hard? Some people were definitely no worse than Huo Yuhao. Could Xiao Xiao's family background and resources compare with those of the great clans? No, they couldn't.
But Xiao Xiao had a good eye—or perhaps it was just luck. She and Huo Yuhao had been assigned to the same class after the entrance exam. That was what led to everything that followed. Just like any tournament, there was no way every spot on the team would be uncontested. In the end, personal connections still mattered. Whoever got along best with the players already chosen would have their preferences honored. And so the gears of fate began to turn.
In truth, Xiao Xiao was undoubtedly exceptional. Huo Yuhao hadn't yet emerged from his cocoon, but he would in time. Now, the two were dominating the training field, winning match after match. Xiao Xiao was having a great time, but Huo Yuhao was suffering. Maintaining Spiritual Detection Sharing for so long was exhausting.
The Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldron's biggest drawback was its slow speed. Xiao Xiao had to predict her opponents' movements to maintain a good hit rate. Huo Yuhao's Soul Skill met all her needs and made up for her weakness. Her second Soul Skill, Cauldron Ripple, dealt more than enough damage to a single target. It was just slow. Now that speed was no longer an issue, Xiao Xiao was delighted.
After Xiao Xiao sent another opponent flying off the platform, Huo Yuhao finally asked to stop and rest for a while. Xiao Xiao had clearly forgotten that Huo Yuhao was still a One-Ring Soul Master.
When Xiao Xiao realized, she hurriedly apologized. But Huo Yuhao wouldn't let such a small thing come between them.
Neither of them had taken their opponents in those matches seriously. For Xiao Xiao, that was only natural. Huo Yuhao simply hadn't realized how strong he already was. The fights he'd taken part in over the past few days had all been at a much higher level.
While they rested, Xiao Xiao asked whether Huo Yuhao was interested in competing in the end-of-term tournament. The prizes were pretty good every year.
That was when Huo Yuhao remembered the issue of spots in the end-of-term arena tournament.
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