Wang Dong's Protective Instinct, Wu Feng's Resolve

It had been nearly a week since the incident between Wu Feng and Huo Yuhao.

During this week, Huo Yuhao's life had been unexpectedly peaceful.

No one came to talk to him, no one came to hold him accountable, and there were no disciplinary actions whatsoever.

Even Mu Jin taught her classes as usual, never once seeking him out.

It was as if nothing had happened at all.

Wu Feng also attended class as usual, though her expression was even sourer than before. Whenever she saw Huo Yuhao, she would turn her head and walk away, unwilling to spend even a second longer in the same space as him.

Huo Yuhao felt no ripples in his heart regarding this.

He had a rough guess as to what was going on.

It seemed that Wu Feng had suppressed the matter herself.

That was fine, too.

Huo Yuhao had no mood to worry about her for the time being, so the matter was considered temporarily closed.

As for why Wu Feng would do such a thing?

Huo Yuhao felt it was unimportant.

As long as Wu Feng stopped acting out against him, Huo Yuhao couldn't be bothered to look for trouble with her either.

Of course, if Wu Feng still wanted to continue courting death, that would be a different story.

What bothered Huo Yuhao the most right now was still that old thing inside his Sea of Consciousness.

Ever since the Ghost Demon Venerable had shown his true colors, he had retreated back into the Black Cyclone to pretend he was in seclusion.

This made Huo Yuhao very uncomfortable.

It was like having a venomous snake loose in the house.

It might not bite you, but it was lurking right there, watching you with sinister eyes.

You never knew when it might lunge out to take a bite.

This had caused Huo Yuhao to be much more cautious when practicing the Ghost Killing Art recently, terrified that some strange change might suddenly occur while he was training.

Fortunately, there were no abnormalities for now.

At least, that was how it appeared on the surface.

Shrek teaching building, inside the Freshman Class 9 classroom.

Huo Yuhao had just sat down when Ning Tian walked over with a face full of smiles.

"Classmate Yuhao, morning."

She had changed her hairband today, looking even more refined than usual.

Huo Yuhao was just about to respond when Wang Dong, sitting beside him, slammed her book onto the desk, directly blocking the space where Ning Tian was approaching.

Slap.

The seat was gone.

Ning Tian stopped in her tracks, while Wang Dong sat down right there.

Without a hint of politeness.

She sat down very naturally, as if it were only right and proper, as if that seat had been hers since the academy was founded.

She even greeted Ning Tian in passing.

"Class Monitor Ning, morning."

Wang Dong's tone was quite polite.

But the way she emphasized the words "Class Monitor" made Ning Tian's temple throb, and she nearly couldn't resist slapping her across the face.

Is this a provocation?

This is definitely a provocation, right?!

Ning Tian looked at her, forced out a fake smile, and asked through gritted teeth.

"Wang Dong, do you have some kind of problem with me lately?"

"Not at all."

Wang Dong blinked, looking completely innocent.

"I'm just sitting next to my roommate, is there a problem with that?"

Thinking of her status as class monitor, Ning Tian had to suppress her anger and whispered.

"You weren't like this a few days ago!"

Wang Dong opened her book without even lifting her head, responding indifferently.

"Class Monitor Ning, people always grow up."

Huo Yuhao almost lost his composure.

Growth?

Is this what you call growth?

You might as well have "Beware of Ning Tian" written across your face.

Ning Tian was so choked up by Wang Dong's words that she couldn't respond for a long time; she wanted to retort, but couldn't find a single point to strike back with.

Just then, Mu Jin walked in carrying her books, signaling that it was time for class.

Ning Tian had no choice but to temporarily abandon the idea of sitting next to Huo Yuhao.

At the same time, she secretly steeled herself.

Well played, Wang Dong! I'll remember this!!

You can't possibly guard Huo Yuhao forever, can you?

Don't you dare let me catch you slipping!!

When the morning classes ended, Huo Yuhao packed his things, preparing to leave the classroom.

Ning Tian approached him as naturally as ever.

"Classmate Yuhao, shall we go to the cafeteria together for lunch?"

Her voice was soft, and her posture was perfectly measured.

She didn't seem sycophantic, nor did she seem distant.

This was the level of poise expected of the young mistress of the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect.

Even when building connections, she did it in a way that left no room for criticism.

Unfortunately, the moment she stepped closer, a figure blocked her path.

Wang Dong stepped forward and hooked her arm through Huo Yuhao's, her beautiful face broadcasting four words:

In your dreams.

"He's busy at noon."

Ning Tian's smile didn't falter, though she struggled to keep her eyes off the other girl.

"I was asking Classmate Yuhao, not you."

Wang Dong lifted her chin, speaking without a hint of politeness.

"I'm answering for him."

Ning Tian finally lost her patience, turning to glare at the person who had thwarted her time and time again.

"Classmate Wang Dong, you and Classmate Yuhao are just roommates, right?"

"That's right."

Wang Dong remained completely righteous.

"That's exactly why I know his schedule better."

"He's busy at noon!"

Ning Tian was almost driven to laughter by sheer frustration.

What kind of twisted logic was this?

A grown man, sticking to another man all day long.

And guarding him like he was a thief.

Absurd.

Absolutely absurd!

Huo Yuhao sat to the side, watching the two of them trade barbs as he silently packed his books.

He was used to it by now.

Ever since Wang Dong found out that Wu Feng had come to cause trouble because of Ning Tian, she hadn't given Ning Tian a single pleasant look.

According to Wang Dong's logic:

Ning Tian herself might not be at fault, but the trouble had followed her.

Therefore, staying away from her was the right thing to do.

Huo Yuhao thought the logic was surprisingly sound.

But he couldn't help but feel that this was just an excuse Wang Dong used to protect her territory.

Wang Dong noticed that Ning Tian hadn't left yet, so she looked at her, feigning confusion.

"Class Monitor Ning, is there something else?"

She emphasized the word "Monitor" lightly, but to Ning Tian, it sounded like a thorn in her ear.

She endured and endured, but in the end, she managed to maintain her composure.

"It's nothing."

Then, she turned and left.

Ning Tian was afraid that if she stayed any longer, she wouldn't be able to stop herself from getting into a fight with Wang Dong.

Even though she would most likely lose to her.

Seeing this, Wang Dong let out a soft huff, feeling as pleased as if she had just won a small battle.

Wu Feng had been standing not far away the whole time.

Seeing Ning Tian return, she immediately went up to meet her.

Suppressing her anger, Ning Tian began to vent fiercely to her good friend.

"Wu Feng, don't you think Wang Dong is sick in the head?"

"Huh?"

Wu Feng was stunned, looking a bit confused.

"A man, fighting me for a man every single day."

The more Ning Tian thought about it, the angrier she became.

"What exactly is he after?"

Wu Feng opened her mouth, but couldn't find a response.

Ning Tian turned to look at her.

"Wu Feng?"

"Hmm?"

Wu Feng snapped back to reality and looked at Ning Tian as well.

"What's wrong?"

Seeing Wu Feng like this, Ning Tian couldn't help but frown and ask suspiciously.

"Wu Feng, what's been going on with you these past few days? Why have you been so distracted?"

"It's nothing."

Faced with Ning Tian's questioning, Wu Feng guiltily turned her head away before answering.

Ning Tian stared at her for a moment, her voice dropping lower, her tone becoming more certain.

"Wu Feng, are you hiding something from me lately?"

Hearing this, Wu Feng tightened her fingers, then quickly relaxed them, deliberately feigning a relaxed demeanor.

"There's nothing."

"Nothing?"

Ning Tian tilted her head to look at her, her eyes still full of suspicion.

"You can fool others, but you can't fool me."

Faced with a Ning Tian like this, Wu Feng had no choice but to avoid her gaze.

"There really is nothing, I'm just a bit tired from cultivation."

Ning Tian stared at her for quite a while.

Wu Feng usually had a fiery temper and couldn't keep things to herself.

The way she was acting now clearly meant something was wrong.

But since she didn't want to talk, Ning Tian didn't want to push her too hard.

"Fine."

Ning Tian withdrew her gaze and couldn't help but grumble in a low voice again.

"That Wang Dong! He's not even anything to Huo Yuhao, so what right does he have to block me every day?"

The more Ning Tian thought about it, the angrier she got.

"It's one thing that he's pretty, but he's stuck to Huo Yuhao every single day!"

"Tell me, what is he after? It's not like he's a woman."

Wu Feng fell silent for a moment.

She really wanted to remind Ning Tian that sometimes it wasn't necessarily just women who would compete with her for a man; men might do it too.

But without any evidence, and given it was just a feeling in Ning Tian's heart, saying it out loud would make her sound like she had gone crazy.

What's more, the name Wu Feng least wanted to hear right now was Huo Yuhao.

The moment she heard those three words, her mind would flash back to the stone bricks from that day.

The pain was gone, at least.

But the humiliation was all too real.

Wu Feng gritted her teeth, secretly making a vow.

Next time.

Next time, she would definitely defeat Huo Yuhao head-on.

Absolutely!!