I'm Honestly Done With You, You Sneaky Little Devil

"What a cultivation maniac..." she couldn't help muttering under her breath, rubbing her eyes. Just then, her stomach gave a loud rumble. The gnawing hunger reminded her that she must have been asleep for a long time.

She quietly lifted the covers, ready to get out of bed and find something to eat. As she turned around, her gaze fell on the food sitting on the desk.

Wang Dong wasn't stupid. She could naturally guess that Su Chen had brought it for her. There were only the two of them in the dormitory. Who else could it have been besides that annoying creep?

She paused, looking at the food, still faintly warm. A complicated mix of emotions welled up inside her. She was a little surprised, a little awkward, and there was also a trace... an extremely faint warmth that she herself didn't even want to examine too closely.

Who would've thought that this ill-tempered, sharp-tongued bully who threw his strength around... could also be so... considerate?

Just then, Su Chen finished cultivating and slowly opened his eyes, calmly looking at Wang Dong, who was still standing there in a daze.

"You're awake?" he said, his voice carrying a trace of coolness after cultivation.

"..." Wang Dong jumped at the sudden sound. Her body stiffened slightly, and she instinctively avoided his gaze, lowering her head to stare at her toes. Her voice was as quiet as a mosquito's buzz. "Mm."

After a pause, she seemed to summon all her courage before quickly adding two words. Her voice was still soft, but clear enough to hear. "...Thank you."

The thanks were naturally for the food.

Su Chen looked at her awkward, embarrassed expression—she wanted to look at him but was too shy, and even thanking him seemed like a "humiliation." A barely perceptible trace of amusement flickered in his eyes.

"All right." Su Chen got out of bed and walked to the middle of the room, regarding Wang Dong at his leisure. "Since you're awake, we need to clear up a few important things first."

Wang Dong's internal alarm bells immediately began ringing. She had a bad feeling.

Sure enough, Su Chen raised one finger, his tone calm but leaving no room for argument. "First, you'll be responsible for keeping the dormitory's common areas clean from now on."

"What?!" Wang Dong immediately balked. Her pink-blue eyes widened as she demanded angrily, "Why am I the only one doing it? Aren't we supposed to take turns?!"

Su Chen looked at her puffed-up cheeks and drawled, "I won."

Wang Dong: "...?"

"According to our bet, you lost, so you have to listen to me." Su Chen continued as if it were only natural. "So you're responsible for cleaning. That's perfectly reasonable."

Wang Dong: "..." She was instantly struck dumb, like a little swan with its neck caught in someone's grip.

She had indeed lost yesterday's fight. She'd lost completely. So was this... a case of digging a hole for herself? She'd issued the challenge and agreed to the bet herself, and now he was using it to hold her in his grasp?

"Th-then how is that any different from forcing me?!" Wang Dong shot him a resentful look, her little face scrunched up in defiance and irritation.

"No difference." Su Chen answered crisply, even nodding. "I'm just telling you in advance what you'll have to do in this dormitory from now on."

Wang Dong: "!!!"

She was so angry! And yet she couldn't beat him! This feeling of being furious to the point of death but utterly helpless made her want to fly into a rage!

Yesterday, she'd acted on impulse. She'd thought Su Chen was just an ordinary new student who was a little handsome and had some presence, but probably wasn't as strong as she was. She could easily keep him in line and establish herself as the "dormitory boss." And the result... she'd brought it all upon herself!

Watching Wang Dong grit her teeth in frustration, forced to accept her fate, Su Chen's amusement deepened. He raised a second finger.

"Second, you can bring people back to the dormitory, but there's one restriction."

Wang Dong was still reeling from the first rule. At his words, she looked up and asked without thinking, "What restriction?"

Looking at her, Su Chen said clearly, one word at a time, "They can't be men."

"Huh?" Wang Dong froze, confusion and bewilderment filling her pink-blue eyes. "Why...?"

What a strange requirement. Did she have to sort her friends by gender before bringing them back to the dormitory?

Meeting her puzzled gaze, Su Chen answered directly and frankly, with a hint of self-righteousness. "Because I like women, and I'm not interested in men at all. So I don't want to see other men in the dormitory."

Wang Dong: "..."

Because I like women...

What kind of lousy reason was that?! Did he have to be so willful? So blunt? So... completely unreasonable?

He'd made up rules based entirely on his own preferences and temperament! Was there any justice in this world? Any law? Was this dormitory for the two of them or just for him?!

Wang Dong's pretty little face shifted through a series of expressions: confusion, shock, speechlessness, and indignation, until it finally settled into a complicated look that said, I'm honestly done with you, you sneaky little devil. Su Chen finally couldn't hold back. The corners of his mouth lifted into a clear, teasing smile.

"Got a problem with it?" he asked, entirely at his leisure, then offered a simple, blunt solution. "Sure. As long as you can beat me, you can make the rules in this dormitory from now on. I'll do as you say."

"Hmph!" Wang Dong huffed angrily, clenching her fists like a kitten whose tail had been stepped on. "Don't get cocky! I... I'll definitely beat you someday!"

One defeat didn't mean anything! She, Wang Dong, was a genius! The little princess of the Clear Sky Sect! She believed in her own talent—it was second to none!

This temporary humiliation was only for the sake of rising again in the future! She swore she'd cultivate hard from now on, and sooner or later she'd trample Su Chen underfoot... no, make him submit beneath her and show him what was what!

"Then do your best." Su Chen shrugged, completely unconcerned. His tone was as casual as if he were saying, "The weather's nice today." He even twisted the knife. "Though as far as I'm concerned, you'll never be able to beat me."

"You—!" Wang Dong was choked into silence, her chest rising and falling violently, the curves beneath her school uniform becoming even more apparent. She took several deep breaths and forced down the urge to hit him, then suddenly remembered an important question.

"Su Chen," she said, staring at him, her pink-blue eyes filled with curiosity and defiance. "Just how strong are you? Yesterday... why couldn't I last even one move against you? What level is your Soul Power?"

Su Chen glanced at her and said three words: "Soul Grandmaster."

"What?!" This time, Wang Dong was genuinely shocked. Her eyes widened as she stared at him. "You're a Soul Grandmaster too?! You... you're not lying to me?"

She was a twenty-three-level Soul Grandmaster, with a thousand-year Second Soul Ring! Among those at the same level, she was confident she was in the very top tier! Yet Su Chen was a Soul Grandmaster too? Then what level was he? Twenty-five? Twenty-six? Even if he was a few levels higher, that shouldn't have been enough for her to lose so miserably, should it?