(Mu Xi · illustration)
Dusk fell.
Su Chen showed Na'er around Su Mansion. After dinner, they went back to rest.
Su Chen slept in the master bedroom, while Na'er slept in the second bedroom next door.
Soul Masters could get by on less sleep, but Su Chen was still young, so he kept a normal schedule.
In the middle of the night, Su Chen was fast asleep when, half-dreaming, he felt something soft and squishy wriggle into his arms.
It carried a familiar milky scent, and the even, quiet sound of its breathing brushed against his chest with every breath.
"Na'er..."
Su Chen's voice was thick with sleep and tinged with helplessness. "Why have you crawled over here again..."
This had happened several times already.
Su Chen sighed. His body reacted faster than his brain.
He reached out, trying to peel the little body clinging to him like an octopus off himself.
"Mmm..." Half-asleep, Na'er's voice was sticky and sweet, as if she had candy in her mouth. "I just want to sleep with Big Brother..."
Su Chen woke up a little more. Looking at the fuzzy little head in his arms, he felt both amused and helpless.
Su Chen turned onto his side and watched Na'er's peaceful sleeping face in the moonlight.
Her long lashes cast a little shadow beneath her eyes. Her nose was small and pert, and her lips were slightly parted. She slept without a care in the world.
Her astonishingly clear violet eyes were closed now, making her look even more like a delicate porcelain doll.
Sleeping with such a soft, sweet-smelling little girl in his arms was certainly comfortable, especially on a late-autumn night like this, with the covers all warm and snug.
Su Chen admitted to himself that it wasn't bad.
But he had his own secrets and privacy, too. Sometimes, it wasn't very convenient.
"Fine, fine. From now on, I'll sleep with you at most three days a week. You need to learn to be independent..." Su Chen said helplessly.
"Mm... mm..."
Na'er mumbled her agreement, though it was hard to tell if she had even heard him.
Now that Su Chen had returned to the Su Family, his life naturally had to get back on track.
First of all, there was school every day.
Su Chen had dropped out earlier to look for Na'er.
After all, at this stage, cultivation still depended on resources and one's own hard work.
The Primary Soul Master Academy taught nothing but kindergarten-level lessons. It didn't matter whether he went or not, and it certainly wasn't more important than his Na'er.
But now that he was back, he still had to go to school.
Na'er was a special case. She hadn't awakened her Martial Soul, so she couldn't attend a Soul Master Academy.
After all, Na'er had her own way of growing stronger, and Su Chen didn't understand it at all. He wouldn't interfere and risk something going wrong.
Silver Dragon King was a First-Level God, after all. She'd surely made all the arrangements. He was just a little kid; he wouldn't go sticking his nose into it.
Eastsea Academy had a middle-level Soul Master Academy and an advanced Soul Master Academy, but no primary-level Soul Master Academy.
There were too many students at primary-level Soul Master Academies, so they had to be spread out among different schools.
The school Su Chen attended was called Eastsea First School, the top primary Soul Master Academy in Eastsea. Anyone who could get in was either rich or influential.
They didn't care about talent there, only connections.
As soon as he entered the classroom, Su Chen ran into a few close friends from other families.
"Young Master Su, you're back!"
"Young Master Su, long time no see! We thought you didn't want to hang out with us anymore!"
"Young Master Su, it's been a few months, and you seem even stronger. What's your Soul Power Level now?"
Several boys crowded around him, chattering away.
As a transmigrator with decent talent, Su Chen had a lot of clout among peers from second-rate families.
He had quite a few friends around him, and they often went out and had fun together.
"It was boring at home, so I came to experience the life of a student."
Su Chen answered casually.
"Heh heh, Young Master Su, you must've come to watch the senior girls perform," one boy chuckled mischievously.
"What senior girls?"
Su Chen was a little confused. He'd simply been bored and wanted to experience the fun of going to school, and see his old friends while he was at it. That was all.
"Young Master Su, you really didn't know?"
A little boy eyed him suspiciously.
"The third-years are graduating, and there's a graduation party tonight! We get to see those genius senior girls dance!"
Another boy hurriedly explained.
"So that's why. I came back at just the right time."
The corner of Su Chen's mouth lifted slightly.
People on this continent matured early. Even at this age, they were already starting to yearn for the opposite sex.
Of course, these little brats were still young. They only yearned from afar; they were all fledglings.
Before long, evening came.
Su Chen and the other young masters naturally chose the best seats.
Music began, the host took the stage, and the senior girls and boys put on all kinds of performances they had organized themselves.
Some showed off flashy Martial Soul techniques, while others sang and danced. The whole party was lively.
"Young Master Su, look! It's Senior Mu Xi!"
A little boy nudged Su Chen and called out excitedly.
"I can't believe Senior Mu Xi is performing at the graduation party too. This was totally worth coming for!"
"And Senior Ouyang Zixin! She's so pretty!"
It wasn't just the boys around Su Chen. The boys throughout the whole school cheered at the sight of the senior girls dancing.
After all, these senior girls were usually treated like geniuses. Now that they were performing, who wouldn't get excited watching them?
"Mu Xi..."
Su Chen gazed at the dazzling girl among the dancers and murmured her name.
The girl had long golden hair and a stunningly beautiful face, but there was a cool air about her.
Clearly, she wasn't the type who enjoyed performing.
Still, to adults, primary school students were all children, so there was nothing wrong with them putting on various shows.
If Su Chen remembered correctly, Mu Xi was the only daughter of Mu Chen, the president of the Blacksmith Association.
When Su Chen got the system, he had considered her, but her background was too prestigious for him to make any plans in advance. He hadn't expected to run into her here.
She should have been around ten years old, making her his senior.
Without hesitation, Su Chen took out his Camera, switched to telephoto, aimed it at Mu Xi, and pressed the shutter...
"Click—"
"Click—"
The camera kept snapping.
Of course, Su Chen wasn't the only one. Plenty of boys had brought out their camera Soul Tools; some took photos, while others filmed.
So Su Chen's picture-taking didn't stand out in the slightest.
[ Ding! Detected an S-rank target who meets the registration requirements!] [Scanning... Scan complete!] [Congratulations, host! You have successfully registered the S-rank goddess—Mu Xi!] [Registration reward: Talent—Metal Affinity] [Metal Affinity: You have an exceptionally strong affinity for metal. When forging any metal, your success rate increases greatly.]
"Metal Affinity. Am I a forging genius now?"
Su Chen hadn't expected a pleasant surprise as soon as he returned to school.
He had been planning to pay a steep price to hire a few famous Grandmasters to teach him forging techniques.
Now it seemed there was no need. He could just find a few blacksmiths in the family and learn the basics.
Su Chen was generous, but forging was extremely expensive, so it was best to save where he could.
"Young Master Su, so Mu Xi is your type, huh? I like Senior Ouyang Zixin. She's gentle and virtuous. My dad says girls with that sort of personality are better," a boy beside him said with a grin when he saw Su Chen taking pictures of Mu Xi. His eyes were fixed on the girl.
He showed Su Chen the picture he'd taken of Ouyang Zixin.
"Ouyang Zixin..."
Seeing the girl in the photo, Su Chen remembered her too.
Ouyang Zixin seemed to have been Tang Wulin's first love in the original story.
Every boy had a senior girl he secretly admired.
Ouyang Zixin had been Tang Wulin's senior when he was young. After all, boys always liked girls who were a little older and more mature than them...
But that relationship eventually came to nothing.
Mainly, they just weren't fated to be.
If Ouyang Zixin had been willing to accept Tang Wulin when he confessed, it would have been a different story...
But once Tang Wulin grew up, he and Ouyang Zixin were no longer part of the same world.
Su Chen took out his Camera and snapped a photo of Ouyang Zixin too.
[ Ding! Detected an A-rank target who meets the registration requirements!] [Scanning... Scan complete!] [Congratulations, host! You have successfully registered the A-rank goddess—Ouyang Zixin!] [Registration reward: Soul Power Level +1]
"Right, A-rank must be the lowest level for the illustrated guide. The reward's nothing special, but taking photos every day should still be worthwhile."
Su Chen thought it over without feeling too disappointed.
As for their current affection levels, they were all at zero.
But they were all in Eastsea City, so they were bound to cross paths often. They'd have plenty of chances to meet again.
Before you continue