The whole group went in a grand procession to eat at the biggest restaurant in Suotuo City. Naturally, Young Master Chen picked up the entire bill.
People always said a bunch of kids couldn't eat that much, but that only applied to normal children. For Soul Masters, that rule didn't hold.
"Phew, that still stings a little."
When the children heard the dean was treating, of course they were going to fleece him for all he was worth.
So fourteen children managed to eat like a spectacular crowd of forty-four. Fortunately, the owner was a man of the world and had seen real young masters treating before, so he wasn't scared enough to come over and ask what was going on.
"But at least we're not short on Gold Soul Coins anymore." Chen An smiled.
It wasn't as if he was especially pained by the expense. This dean was very generous when it came to food.
"Master, why didn't you come in and eat with everyone?"
Zhu Zhuqing hadn't seen Chen An around for a while, and since she still wasn't used to that sort of occasion, she slipped out to find him.
He was a little surprised to see her come looking for him. He'd thought she hadn't noticed him deliberately "vanishing" today.
"It's nothing. How come you slipped out too?" Chen An turned and saw that she had come up behind him. He ruffled Zhu Zhuqing's hair and spoke gently.
"I'm still not used to that kind of atmosphere."
There was no need for a master and disciple to hide things from each other. Zhu Zhuqing walked over to Chen An, rested her arms on the railing, and spoke plainly, a drink in hand.
How could he not know what Zhu Zhuqing was like? In crowds, she was usually cool and distant. She was more relaxed when there weren't many people around.
"You seem to have something on your mind. What is it? Is it because you faced Dai Mubai again today?"
Zhu Zhuqing had never gone into detail about her own affairs, but Chen An knew most of the story. So they both tacitly assumed the other already knew.
"Mm, it is related."
She sighed first, then admitted it.
Chen An's lips curled into something like a wry smile. He'd only guessed, and he hadn't expected to hit the mark so perfectly. No wonder the girl seemed a little down, just as he'd suspected.
"Go on, tell me. What's troubling my brilliant eldest disciple?"
He joked a little to ease the mood. It was far too gloomy, as if the sky were falling and the world was about to end. That wouldn't do.
"Master, you know I'm from the Zhu Family, and Dai Mubai is from the Dai Family. He and I were betrothed from the start." Zhu Zhuqing thought over how to phrase it before speaking.
"And it's all because of that piece of paper? Then tear it up." Chen An said it nonchalantly.
He'd never liked arranged marriages, much less political marriages between families.
But when Zhu Zhuqing heard those words, she was shaken. Even though she often heard rebellious things like that, she still wasn't quite used to it.
"Master's right." Zhu Zhuqing didn't deny it. She'd had the same thought; she'd just never managed to say it aloud.
In other words, traditional thinking and new ideas were at war inside her. Why else would she hesitate? By his way of thinking, if she didn't want to marry him, then she shouldn't.
"Don't worry. The day you go back to the Zhu Family and flip the table, I'll be there, along with your junior brothers and sisters, to back you up."
Chen An said it outright before Zhu Zhuqing could speak, sparing her from having to ask.
Zhu Zhuqing froze for a moment. She hadn't expected her master to say it first, seeing right through her little worry.
But warmth still bloomed in her heart. A breeze brushed her face, and she tucked back her hair with a smile.
"Okay, Master. You'd better not go back on your word."
What else could she say? Chen An had said as much, and the last of her worries had disappeared.
This had always weighed on her, but now the pressure was becoming an obstacle. Chen An had brought it into the open so she wouldn't sink into gloom.
"Don't worry. When have I ever failed to do what I said?"
Hearing that, Zhu Zhuqing's little face turned serious, as if she were carefully considering the matter.
"Let me think. I don't think you have."
She was only pretending to think. Chen An was sure that when it came to sneaking food, he might trick someone or fail to keep his word, but with anything else, he would never say one thing and do another.
"Then, Master, what will happen with Shrek?"
After they'd joked around for a while, Zhu Zhuqing remembered how strange things had seemed during their match against Shrek that day, so she asked.
Chen An thought it over. It was hard to predict, so he recalled the whole affair.
"They might have taken a blow to their confidence. It depends on how Shrek's teachers guide them."
He'd kept targeting Shrek because he thought they were suited to being whetstones.
Judging by the results, they'd made excellent whetstones. He just hadn't expected their confidence to be so shaky. Now they might be worn out.
"Hmm? A blow to their confidence?"
For once, Zhu Zhuqing wore a puzzled expression. She seemed to be wondering how they could have been shaken when she hadn't even fought at full strength.
Chen An wasn't surprised by her expression. He'd been thinking the same thing.
He'd even told his disciples not to give it their all. Why couldn't those chosen ones take it? He'd wanted to let the children taste a little defeat, so they would work harder.
This was ridiculous.
After thinking it over, he came up with an explanation and spoke helplessly.
"They might have been beaten by the same group again and again. You crushed them in both the two-person and five-person matches. What's more, you beat them head-on, and even defeated them one-on-one. They also think very highly of themselves."
How could a prodigy not think highly of himself? Shrek might not have taken it to the extreme, but they had shown signs of believing they were invincible among their peers.
Now they'd lost to Zhu Zhuqing and the others. How could they not feel resentful? Let that happen again and again, without anyone helping them process it, and they'd start doubting their teachers, then their teammates.
"Oh, I get it."
After that explanation, she understood at once. But she felt no guilt, and she was sure her junior brothers and sisters wouldn't feel guilty either.
In the arena, everyone was an opponent. If you kept getting beaten, all you could do was admit you weren't good enough. And if you got spun around like a top, that only proved how bad you were.
What was there to pity? They'd fought each other inside Phantom Star plenty of times. Had she ever seen her junior brothers show those signs? Besides, they went even harder on their own people.
Especially when they ran into each other in singles or doubles. They treated each other like sworn enemies. The classic example was Ruan Feng running into Le Yan, the captain of a higher-tier team.
"I'm curious what they'll be like the next time we meet."
Zhu Zhuqing said with a smile. Chen An didn't reply. He was curious too—what would happen the next time they crossed paths?
Would God King Tang discover how useless his teacher was, or would he fall out with his brothers?
The latter part of the story would be hard to see. The former, though, was easy enough to witness.
All they had to do was compare Shrek with Phantom Star. With his eye for people, he'd understand the gap as soon as he reflected on it. After all, it wasn't being bad that was frightening; it was being compared. Without comparison, there was no hurt.
"Crash!"
As they chatted and enjoyed the quiet, a burst of commotion broke out, shattering the peace.
"What's going on? Why is it so noisy?"
Chen An was a little displeased at being interrupted. He was just an ordinary person—or, more precisely, a human being—so he still had human emotions.
"Come on, let's go see what's happening."
This time, he had the feeling he'd had when he first met Little Stone. He ought to be able to take on a new disciple here—though he'd need to have a look at the disciple first.
He'd go see what was going on. Somehow, he had a feeling there'd be something entertaining to watch.
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