Xiao Yu

Xiao Lei soon returned to his drafty little house. His parents had died, and although the Xiao Clan took him in because he was one of their own, clan rules said he shouldn't be living in such a rundown place. But rules were rules, and when it came to putting them into practice, things always fell short.

"This system may be ridiculously overpowered, letting me gain cultivation directly, but the conditions aren't simple either!"

"Ts—ow!"

Sitting on his bed, Xiao Lei gently rubbed the bruises he'd gotten from being beaten up. The pain made him bare his teeth.

"This damn system is such a pain! Why does staring at someone make them feel uncomfortable? It's practically asking them to catch me!"

The Watcha Lookin' At System had one infuriating flaw: when Xiao Lei copied someone, the greater the gap between them, the more uncomfortable the other person felt.

Compared to that, things like how a greater difference in strength or constitution made the copying take longer were no big deal.

Taking a long time didn't matter. At worst, he just had to stare for a little longer and his eyes would get dry.

But the other person feeling uncomfortable? That was a real problem!

That was why, despite having the system for a while, Xiao Lei had only managed to copy one Dou Zhe mercenary—and then gotten beaten up by the other mercenaries.

Those mercenaries were so quick to throw a punch. They'd noticed him staring, felt uncomfortable, and immediately swung at him.

They really had no sense of honor. Fortunately, Xiao Lei was a Dou Zhe now too. In a few days, he'd be able to beat them right back.

"The Coming-of-Age Ceremony is a golden opportunity. I hope it lasts long enough for me to copy Xiao Zhan!"

So far, Xiao Lei could think of only one way to copy someone despite a vast difference in strength: catch them when they couldn't move around freely.

At the ceremony, Xiao Zhan and the other elders would all have to sit and watch.

That would be his best chance. Even if Xiao Zhan sensed Xiao Lei staring at him in front of everyone, even if he felt uncomfortable, he wouldn't leave or lose his temper and beat Xiao Lei up—not at such an important event.

It was the perfect opportunity!

If Xiao Lei succeeded, he'd gain Da Dou Shi cultivation at just sixteen. It'd be ridiculously sweet!

"Heh... hehehe!"

Just thinking about it made Xiao Lei laugh out loud.

"Little pervert, what are you yelling about in there?" Just as Xiao Lei was imagining himself successfully copying Xiao Zhan's Da Dou Shi cultivation, a voice suddenly came from outside his house.

The voice interrupted Xiao Lei, but he didn't get angry. Instead, he looked surprised, then slapped his forehead.

"In the original story, Xiao Yu came back before the Coming-of-Age Ceremony!"

Xiao Yu was one of the few friends Xiao Lei had in the Xiao Clan.

The story of their friendship went back years. Back then, Xiao Lei had run into Xiao Yu near a hot spring in the hills behind the Xiao Clan. Knowing the plot, he'd guessed that this was probably when Xiao Yan had sneaked a peek at Xiao Yu bathing in the original story.

So he'd warned Xiao Yu, then left on his own. After all, he was nobody important, and plenty of people didn't care what he had to say.

Xiao Lei didn't know what happened after that. He only knew that afterward, the nickname "little pervert" hadn't gone to Xiao Yan. It had landed on him instead.

Talk about repaying kindness with ingratitude!

But it looked like he'd ruined one of Xiao Yan's good times!

"The door's unlocked. Just come in!"

Creak, creak!

The door to Xiao Lei's shabby house was practically just for show. Xiao Yu had knocked only to be polite.

"Little pervert, why are you still living in this remote place? And in such a ramshackle house, too!"

As soon as Xiao Yu came in, she launched into a nonstop stream of complaints.

"I've told you I have a name. It's Xiao Lei, not 'little pervert'!" Xiao Lei said helplessly. He'd lost count of how many times he'd told her, but Xiao Yu never listened.

Xiao Yu wore a simple white dress, without any flashy adornments. Yet her pale, shapely legs kept appearing and disappearing beneath the hem, and Xiao Lei's gaze was drawn to them.

"You've been staring at my legs since I got here, and you still claim you're not a little pervert?" Xiao Yu shot Xiao Lei an exasperated look, but made no effort to hide her legs.

Xiao Lei had to give her credit for that!

"Ahem! I'm appreciating beauty! Otherwise, those lovely legs would be wasted!"

Xiao Lei had once said that when you looked at a girl, you should look at her eyes first. If she wasn't looking back, then you could look at her chest or legs...

Today, Xiao Lei had miscalculated. He'd been drawn to her legs and caught red-handed. Fortunately, Xiao Yu wasn't going to shout about gouging out his eyes, and he had thick enough skin to handle it.

"You always have some excuse. Anyway, what's your cultivation like now? Can you meet the clan's requirements?" Xiao Yu asked with some concern. If Xiao Lei failed the clan's assessment, they'd send him off to manage some business in a far-flung backwater.

By then, even after Xiao Yu graduated from Jia Nan Academy, she probably wouldn't get to see Xiao Lei much.

"Grown-up business is none of your concern, kid!" Xiao Lei teased her, and couldn't help feeling a little warm inside. In the whole Xiao Clan, Xiao Yu was the only one who cared about things like this.

At that, Xiao Yu glared at Xiao Lei, then demonstrated a little chokehold on him.

"Who are you calling a kid? I'm a few years older than you! You should be calling me big sister!"

With her arm locked around Xiao Lei's throat, Xiao Yu threatened him.

Xiao Lei scoffed inwardly. With his strength, he could easily pry Xiao Yu's hands away, but there was no need. They were only messing around.

"What big sister? Our ancestors were generations apart. By seniority, your grandfather and I are the same generation. You dare make me call you big sister?"

"Still, you're certainly not little!" Feeling the softness pressing against his back, Xiao Lei spoke from the heart.

"Hmph! And you still say you're not a little pervert!"

Xiao Yu gave a soft snort and tightened her hold. Xiao Lei pretended to be beaten, then took the chance to turn the tables on her.

"Big sis—sis, let go! We can fool around, but let me breathe!"

Seeing Xiao Lei at a disadvantage cheered Xiao Yu up, so she finally let him go.

"See? That wasn't so hard! Here, I brought you a knife as a gift!" Xiao Yu said, unfastening the scabbard from her waist and holding the knife out to Xiao Lei.

"This is a Magic Core weapon. You'd better thank me!"

Xiao Yu puffed out her chest—though it didn't amount to much—and lifted her chin, waiting proudly for Xiao Lei to praise her.

Xiao Yu had known Xiao Lei liked knives for years, but she had always

After a long while, nothing happened...

Xiao Yu turned around, only to find Xiao Lei staring at the treasured blade in his hands as if entranced.

"You! You..." Xiao Yu saw this and suddenly didn't know what to say.

He liked a knife better than her!

"Fine, go live with your knife!" Xiao Yu said, then clomped off.

Xiao Lei wasn't worried in the slightest. She'd come back on her own next time, so there was no need to fret.

When you were the one chasing after someone, you'd fret over every little thing that made them mad... Xiao Lei had a friend who'd completely lost it over that...

As far as Xiao Lei was concerned, Xiao Yu wasn't really angry. She just wanted him to coax her.

And sure enough...

Outside, Xiao Yu saw that Xiao Lei still hadn't come out, so she raised her voice and yelled into the house.

"Little pervert, just you wait!"