The Bottom-Level Code Kicked In?

Under the moonlight, Xiao Yi could clearly see the figure before him. Her black hair was still tied in that energetic high ponytail, though it was somewhat disheveled now, as if she had tied it up in a hurry.

A faint blush stained her pretty face, though it was unclear whether it was from shyness or some other reason.

Tang Ya looked down guiltily a couple of times, as if confirming something.

What on earth was Tang Ya trying to do?

Xiao Yi crossed his arms, watching Tang Ya's guilty, thief-like demeanor with a look of curiosity; he was truly intrigued.

Only after Tang Ya confirmed that she hadn't disturbed Bei Bei did she let out a sigh of relief, patting her already developing chest. Then, she raised her eyes to meet Xiao Yi's playful gaze and lowered her head again in embarrassment.

After taking a few deep breaths, she puffed out her chest and looked at Xiao Yi with a determined expression.

"Xiao Yi, I know our Tang Sect has nothing left now, and there's nothing that can attract you, but I really need someone to help me revitalize the Tang Sect."

Xiao Yi glanced downward.

"Isn't there Senior Bei Bei? With Huo Yutong as well, revitalizing the Tang Sect shouldn't be a problem, right?"

Xiao Yi found it strange. Logically, the other party should have given up after his refusal; this seemed to be another situation that differed from the original story.

Hearing this, Tang Ya lowered her head, looking lonely and somewhat sorrowful—the sorrow of discovering she was dispensable, and that Bei Bei had approached her with ulterior motives.

"Bei Bei's situation is a bit complicated. He was sent by his elders and cannot be considered one of our own. Huo Yutong's potential is limited; her first soul ring is only white, so her future achievements won't be very high."

Xiao Yi gave Tang Ya a surprised look. This girl seemed to know more than he had imagined. As for her remarks about Huo Yutong, Xiao Yi simply took them as a joke.

"Back to the same question, Senior Tang Ya, what do I get if I join the Tang Sect?" The main concern was that joining the Tang Sect might attract the attention of Tang San from the God Realm, and Xiao Yi didn't want to take that risk.

"As long as you join the Tang Sect, I will do whatever you ask. Even the position of Tang Sect Master can be yours." Tang Ya seemed to have made a great resolution to say this, and after finishing, she looked at Xiao Yi with a glimmer of hope.

She felt that Xiao Yi was unwilling to join the Tang Sect because he didn't want to be subordinate to others. If giving up the position of Tang Sect Master could revitalize the sect and avenge her parents, then so be it.

As for the other way to seek revenge, Tang Ya didn't want to resort to it; that power was too dangerous and too easy to get lost in. Once touched, there would be no turning back.

Hearing this, Xiao Yi was stunned. "Whatever you ask" sounded a bit strange.

As for the position of Tang Sect Master, he was naturally uninterested, but he was very interested in the Tang Sect Master herself.

If Bei Bei and Tang Ya were in a romantic relationship, Xiao Yi wouldn't even give her a second glance. But as it stood, this seemed different from the original work; the two had a rift and weren't together at all.

There was no reason not to eat the meat delivered to his mouth. Besides, since he had transmigrated, if cultivation wasn't for the sake of beautiful women and showing off, what was the point?

Xiao Yi took a step forward, closing the distance to Tang Ya until he could smell her scent.

It was a very fresh fragrance, like the first ray of sunlight in the morning.

Seeing that Xiao Yi didn't answer but suddenly moved closer, scrutinizing her from head to toe before finally fixing his gaze on her face, Tang Ya felt a jolt in her heart.

The sudden proximity startled her. She realized the ambiguity in her words and wanted to explain, but swallowed the words back. She instinctively took a step back, only to feel empty air beneath her feet.

Tang Ya let out a cry of surprise, feeling the weightlessness of her body. Her face turned deathly pale; although soul masters had better physical fitness than ordinary people, falling from this height would still result in injury.

In truth, Tang Ya could have used her Blue Silver Grass to wrap around something and maintain her balance, but at this moment, she closed her eyes, appearing to give up on struggling.

Xiao Yi felt helpless, but he couldn't just watch her fall, so he grabbed her arm and pulled her back up.

Feeling the force of Xiao Yi pulling her up, Tang Ya, as if possessed, leaned into his embrace.

"So, the 'Tang Sect Master' Senior Tang Ya mentioned wasn't the position, but herself? Starting to throw yourself into my arms so soon?"

"I..." Tang Ya wanted to refute it; it was clearly him who had been looking at her with that kind of gaze.

However.

The moonlight filtered through the branches, casting mottled shadows on Xiao Yi's face. His peach-blossom eyes, which always looked affectionate even when looking at a dog, appeared even softer and more moving in Tang Ya's eyes.

Looking at his handsome face, Tang Ya was momentarily stunned.

It seemed... not a bad deal?

Seeing Tang Ya's glistening, watery eyes gradually lose focus, as if she had wandered off into her own thoughts again, Xiao Yi set her upright.

After confirming she wouldn't fall again, Xiao Yi nodded.

"Be careful, we're in a tree."

Hearing Xiao Yi's reminder, Tang Ya snapped back to reality. Feeling bashful, she quickly averted her gaze, grabbed the Blue Silver Grass she had used to climb up, and slid down in a flash, running toward the resting tent with her ponytail bobbing behind her.

Xiao Yi shook his head. Moving closer earlier had been purely out of playfulness, a way to divert her attention so she wouldn't keep trying to pull him into the Tang Sect. As for what happened afterward, he truly hadn't expected it.

Although Tang Ya hit all the points Xiao Yi liked, it wasn't enough to make him fall in love at first sight.

Without dwelling on it further, he continued to calculate which soul beast he should hunt for his second martial soul.

Tang Ya huddled inside the tent for a long while, looking through the night at the figure in the tree, her heart still unable to calm down.

Recalling her own actions and the "throwing yourself into my arms" comment he made, she couldn't help but examine her own heart.

She naturally knew of Bei Bei's feelings for her, but upon learning that he had been arranged by his elders, Tang Ya felt her heart being pierced painfully. From then on, she had started keeping her distance from him.

Even if she knew he liked her, so what? She needed someone who could help her take revenge, not someone who, like the Shrek of the past, would stand by and watch her suffer.

Back then, she had exhausted every effort to come to Shrek for help, only to receive almost no assistance at all.

Tang Ya took a deep breath and made up her mind.

If Xiao Yi knew what she was thinking, he would probably sigh that it truly was a "Romance Continent"—even in a galgame, it wouldn't be this easy to conquer someone.

A few days later, the four of them finally arrived at Shrek City, with nothing of note occurring along the way.

"Little Brother Xiao Yi, let us part ways here. We shall meet again at the academy."

After circling around the city to reach the gates of Shrek Academy, Bei Bei spoke his farewells, as they still needed to take Huo Yutong to register through the Tang Sect's exemption quota.

Xiao Yi, however, had to register through the standard process, so he nodded with a smile and headed alone toward the academy's freshman registration area.

Tang Ya gazed at Xiao Yi's departing back with a somewhat distracted expression.

Bei Bei reached out to take Tang Ya's hand, but she dodged him without a trace of emotion, instead smoothly hooking her arm through Huo Yutong's.

"Let's go, Yutong. This Sect Master will take you to register."

Bei Bei sighed inwardly but did not say anything more; he did not know when it had started, but Tang Ya had become somewhat distant toward him, and these past few days had been particularly abnormal.