Tang Wutong's Unease

The sun slowly sank, and the moon gilded all of Shrek with a silver sheen.

Xiao Yi slowly walked up to Dorm 108. These past few days, he had practically replaced sleep with meditation. He had been lazy for years, so this change had actually taken some getting used to.

A flash of silver light came from the Storage Soul Tool, and Xiao Yi took out his key and unlocked the door. The room was pitch-black and seemed empty.

"Not here?" Xiao Yi pushed the door open and went inside. When he switched on the light, he was dumbstruck. Tang Wutong, dressed in men's clothes, was lying fully clothed on his bed, hugging his pillow and fast asleep.

Several question marks slowly appeared over Xiao Yi's head: ???

Hearing the door close, Tang Wutong sat up and rubbed her bleary eyes. She stared at Xiao Yi in a daze, a pink-and-blue cowlick sticking up from her head and drooping like a pink-and-blue doll that hadn't been switched on.

When she saw Xiao Yi staring straight at her, she still hadn't quite come to her senses.

"Xiao Yi, you're back. Why are you staring at me?" She even forgot to change her voice, and spoke in a clear, feminine tone. Xiao Yi didn't pay this any mind. He already knew she was a girl; he was just messing with the fool.

"Why do you think I'm staring at you? Why are you sleeping in my bed?" Xiao Yi said irritably.

Tang Wutong's face reddened. She hurriedly scrambled off the bed and patted down her slightly rumpled uniform, quickly regaining her usual haughty expression.

"I... I was just a little tired from class, that's all. I accidentally lay down on your bed and fell asleep." Her voice lacked conviction. That wasn't what had happened at all. The feeling that she had lost a beloved toy had only grown stronger after Xiao Yi left.

She could only fall asleep by climbing onto Xiao Yi's bed and breathing in the scent he had left behind.

Xiao Yi looked at Tang Wutong, sitting on her knees on his bed with a slightly adorable, dazed expression. The corner of his eye twitched. That pitiful look paired with her men's clothes felt a little strange.

"Forget it. Go sleep in your own bed. We're both guys anyway, so it doesn't matter if you sleep here for a bit." Xiao Yi spoke rather casually.

Tang Wutong began to fidget again, too embarrassed to say anything. How could she possibly tell him that she couldn't sleep now that she couldn't smell him? Her pride kept her from speaking.

Tang Wutong got up from Xiao Yi's bed and moved back to her own. But before long, her little mouth started chattering nonstop.

Ever since Xiao Yi had left, she told him practically everything, down to the smallest detail. She recounted everything from the day someone had invited her to eat to what she had done in class each day, pouring it all out in one breath.

A little girl who had grown up sheltered beneath her parents' wings had found the one friend she truly accepted, and suddenly she had so much to say.

Xiao Yi was probably the only person in the world who had ever seen Tang Wutong this talkative. At that moment, she was nothing like the icy girl she appeared to be in public.

As the night deepened, Xiao Yi slowly fell asleep. Tang Wutong lay in her own bed, feeling that she had overlooked something, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't remember what it was.

Listening to his breathing gradually grow steady, she murmured,

"What was it again?" The moment she spoke, Tang Wutong's whole world fell apart. Her voice was clear and pleasant, utterly girlish. She had been speaking in that voice all night.

Tang Wutong froze completely. Xiao Yi had been away Soul Hunting these past few days, so she hadn't needed to keep her voice lowered in the dorm. It was uncomfortable, after all, even though her voice was naturally youthful at her age.

Besides, while Xiao Yi was away, she had performed a Martial Soul Fusion with Huo Yutong, and had let her guard down a little.

Early the next morning, Tang Wutong, looking distinctly listless, followed Xiao Yi downstairs. The two headed for the classroom.

Although Xiao Yi was no longer the man he used to be, he still had to attend class.

For a Soul Master like him, who had come up by an unconventional path, this knowledge was still important. He had no other way to get his hands on this kind of information.

Otherwise, Xiao Yi wouldn't have chosen a Red Fire Python as his first Soul Beast. He'd paid the price for his lack of knowledge; after all, it was a Soul Beast with relatively weak bloodline and potential.

Walking beside him, Tang Wutong kept sneaking glances at Xiao Yi from the corner of her eye. Seeing him remain completely unmoved, she grew rather irritated.

She had thought about it all night and decided Xiao Yi must already know she was a girl. But why hadn't he reacted? Why hadn't he done anything?

Tang Wutong, with her head full of romance, couldn't understand. He spent all day talking with her and had even saved her from a Soul Emperor's attack. Didn't that mean he liked her? Now that he knew she was a girl, shouldn't he immediately confess to her, and then she could give him a chance?

Xiao Yi: What kind of simp behavior is this?

The instant they entered the classroom, countless gazes turned toward Xiao Yi. Most held fear and admiration, though two were especially different.

Xiao Yi walked straight over to Huo Yutong and Xiao Xiao. The little blue-and-green pair were still as cute and easy on the eyes as ever.

"Xiao Xiao, Yutong." Xiao Yi smiled and greeted them. Huo Yutong's eyes practically glued themselves to him. She answered in a quiet voice and edged a little closer. Feeling his presence, she was filled with peace and happiness.

Ever since she had watched Xiao Yi stand on the stage and stand up for her, her heart had begun to ripple. But she was so insecure that she never dared get close.

"Brother Xiao Yi is already a Four-Ring Soul Master, but I'm only a One-Ring Soul Master..."

"Little Yutong, don't worry. I told you that once you obtain your Second Martial Soul, you'll definitely catch up with him." Just as Huo Yutong was sinking into sorrow, Tian Meng's voice sounded in her heart.

"Back in my day, I was just like you—so insecure I didn't dare pursue the love I wanted. But I worked hard and became the unprecedented million-year Soul Beast. Then I was the one being pursued!" Tian Meng's tone was impassioned, brimming with encouragement.

As for how she was pursued, don't ask. Being hunted down still counted as being pursued, didn't it?

Huo Yutong took Tian Meng's words to heart and encouraged herself too. Her bright eyes settled firmly on Xiao Yi.

Xiao Yi, who was chatting with Xiao Xiao in front of him, felt Huo Yutong's gaze. Smiling, he patted the little cutie's head, all the while warning himself: That's a shock waiting to happen. Resist.

Tang Wutong watched the three of them getting along so happily and fumed, cursing Xiao Yi furiously.

You jerk! Flirting with other girls right in front of me. Just wait until I get my real appearance back. I'll make you regret it!

"By the way, Brother Xiao Yi, what are you planning to do about teams for the Freshman Grand Competition? Yutong, Wulin, and I already teamed up." Xiao Xiao's voice rang out, bringing Tang Wutong back to herself. Seeing Xiao Yi look her way, she gave an annoyed snort, but still nodded slowly.

Xiao Yi was a little surprised. He hadn't expected those three to end up together, just like in the original story.

"Oh, right, Brother Xiao Yi. While you were gone, Wulin and Yutong developed a Martial Soul Fusion Skill." Xiao Xiao said this excitedly. Afterward, she looked uneasily at Xiao Yi with an apologetic little expression. She had taken advantage of Xiao Yi being away; otherwise, there was no way she would have gotten to team up with those two.

Xiao Yi was even more surprised. The Divine Realm was gone, yet those two could still perform a Martial Soul Fusion Skill? Wasn't Tang Wutong complete? What was going on? Could they really have been born capable of fusing their Martial Souls? That couldn't be right.

Of course, the two of them hadn't originally been able to fuse their Martial Souls. But God King Tang had been reaching for Huo Yutong, the Child of Destiny, from the very beginning. He had made his preparations before Tang Wutong descended to the mortal realm.

Looking at Xiao Xiao, who seemed a little embarrassed, Xiao Yi patted her head.

"It's fine. You don't need to worry about this." He also planned to ask his good-for-nothing senior brother what was going on.

Hearing this, Xiao Xiao felt reassured. That was true. With Brother Xiao Yi's strength, he probably didn't need to participate in the Freshman Grand Competition anyway.

Huo Yutong and Tang Wutong, meanwhile, were communicating through glances.

It seemed Tang San had spent so long as a God King that his peerless wisdom had developed one enormous flaw—or perhaps he simply didn't know, since his teacher back in the day had been Gang Zi.

A Martial Soul Fusion Skill required communication between Martial Souls and souls. In other words, the instant Huo Yutong and Tang Wutong fused their Martial Souls, they learned each other's gender.

Looking at Tang Wutong's eyes, Huo Yutong understood. You two are really something. I want in, too.