Don't Believe His Nonsense

Xiao Wu instinctively felt this was a scam. But the ability to transmit sound directly into one's mind via a crystal ball was not something an ordinary con artist could pull off. And that penalty in the non-disclosure agreement—having one's soul power reduced to level 1?

Just thinking about it sent a chill down her spine.

"A bit interesting," Xiao Wu muttered, looking up at the expectant young boss behind the counter. "Then I'll try the normal section first. How do I pay?"

"Just hand the gold soul coin to the crystal ball," Qin Chuan said.

Xiao Wu took out a gold soul coin. The moment her fingertips touched the crystal ball, the coin was sucked inside, and immediately after, three copper-colored game tokens rolled out from the bottom of the sphere.

Xiao Wu picked up the tokens and walked to the first machine in the normal section.

She inserted one.

The machine lit up, and the joystick popped out.

Xiao Wu gripped the stick with both hands and wiggled it left and right; the mechanical claw above her head moved accordingly. She aimed at the pink rabbit pendant, held her breath, and pressed the button.

The mechanical claw descended slowly, its three iron fingers opening, then closing—it had caught it!

"Wow, I caught it!"

The mechanical claw began to rise, the little rabbit swaying in mid-air. Xiao Wu stood on her tiptoes, her hands clasped together.

Halfway there, the iron fingers loosened just a crack.

Clatter, the rabbit fell back down.

"Ah~!" Xiao Wu stomped her foot. "So close!"

She inserted the second game token.

This time she got smart, moving the claw directly over the rabbit and waiting two seconds before pressing the button.

The mechanical claw grabbed the rabbit by the ears and lifted it up. It wobbled all the way toward the exit, but once it reached the edge of the hole, it loosened again.

The rabbit did a somersault and got stuck on the edge of the exit, just a finger's width away.

Xiao Wu was so anxious she slapped the glass. "You did that on purpose, didn't you!"

Qin Chuan watched from the side, amused, but didn't dare laugh out loud for fear of scaring away his only customer.

"Last time..." Xiao Wu took a deep breath and inserted the final game token.

She pushed the joystick to the limit, aligning it precisely.

She pressed the button.

The mechanical claw descended, snatched the rabbit by the waist, and lifted it steadily. Xiao Wu didn't dare blink the entire time, watching that rabbit pass the center line, pass the two-thirds mark, and reach the top of the exit before the claw released.

The rabbit fell into the exit.

Thump.

A ring of colorful lights lit up the retrieval bin at the bottom, followed by a crisp ding-dong.

"I got it, I got it, I got it!" Xiao Wu squatted down, pulled the pink rabbit pendant from the bin, and hugged it to her chest, her eyes curving into crescents as she smiled.

Qin Chuan was happy for her as well. "Congratulations, congratulations! The first customer to win a prize, what good luck."

He was genuinely happy. The doll was gone, and it would automatically reset at dawn tomorrow; he hadn't lost anything. The key was—someone had spent money, so he would have food to eat today.

However, just as Xiao Wu held the rabbit pendant in her hand, a new voice flooded her mind.

[Congratulations to player Xiao Wu, you have obtained one small rabbit accessory!]

[Bonus prize: Soul power level +8! Applied immediately!]

Xiao Wu's smile froze on her face.

She looked down at the palm-sized pink rabbit in her hand, then felt the soul power within her body.

A warm current surged from her dantian, spreading along her meridians to every limb and bone; every inch of muscle and every meridian was frantically absorbing this power.

Level 62 to level 70.

Eight levels.

A chasm that others might not cross even after three or five years of bitter cultivation, and she had reached it just by winning a doll.

Xiao Wu's hands began to tremble.

She quickly stuffed the rabbit pendant into her clothes, and by the time she looked up, her expression had returned to normal.

"Thank you, boss, I'll come back tomorrow!"

"You're welcome, come back anytime!" Qin Chuan waved with a smile.

Xiao Wu turned and walked out, her pace quickening until she nearly bumped into the sign of the pharmacy next door upon exiting the shop.

She didn't notice at all that Qin Chuan had no idea what prize she had received.

After Xiao Wu left, Qin Chuan couldn't wait to press his hand onto the crystal ball to pull up the settlement.

The crystal ball vibrated and spat out two silver soul coins.

Sales commission, twenty percent.

Qin Chuan clutched the silver coins in his palm, nearly kissing them.

"Starving for three days, I can finally have a full meal." He locked the shop door and strode toward the beef noodle shop next door owned by Old Wang. "Old Wang! Two bowls! Large! Extra meat!"

Meanwhile, Xiao Wu had already returned to the academy.

On the sports field at dusk, the setting sun dyed the ground orange-red, and students chatted in twos and threes along the track.

From a distance, Xiao Wu spotted a figure that made her stomach churn.

Tang San.

The man was half-kneeling in the center of the field, holding a bouquet of wildflowers he'd swiped from somewhere, gazing affectionately at a girl with a ponytail.

"Huo Wu, my feelings for you are sincere. From the moment I saw you in the classroom, I knew you were the one I wanted to protect for the rest of my life."

There were quite a few students watching, and a few girls had already covered their mouths, sighing, "How romantic."

Huo Wu was a new student who had transferred from the Heaven Dou Empire last month. A level 55 Soul King with a solid foundation and a decent thousand-year soul ring.

"But... we've only known each other for three days..." Huo Wu hesitated.

Tang San offered a gentle smile. "Three days is enough. I am a level 69 Soul Emperor and a direct descendant of the Clear Sky Sect. I swear, I will protect you for the rest of my life. I can help you adjust the compatibility issues with that thousand-year soul ring of yours."

As soon as these words were spoken, Huo Wu's eyes wavered.

Her third soul ring did indeed have compatibility issues that had troubled her for a long time. If someone could really help...

"Pah!" A crisp sound exploded from behind the crowd.

Xiao Wu pushed through the onlookers and walked in, hands on her hips, her scorpion braid swung to the front, looking at the half-kneeling Tang San with utter disgust.

"Pulling this act again? Huo Wu, don't believe him."

"Who are you?" Huo Wu was stunned.

"My name is Xiao Wu. You can go ask around what kind of person he is." Xiao Wu held up three fingers. "Since the start of this school year, he's chased six girls, all of them new transfers. It's the same script every time. And the result? Either he's after their soul rings or he's after their bodies."

The sports field erupted in an uproar.

"Is... is this true?" Huo Wu took a step back, her gaze toward Tang San shifting.

The gentle expression on Tang San's face cracked. He stood up, crushing the bouquet until it was deformed, and gritted his teeth as he squeezed out a few words: "Xiao Wu, don't you dare slander me."

"Slander? Should I call over Meng Yiran, whose soul ring you swindled last month, to confront you face-to-face?"

The surrounding crowd began to whisper, and those who knew Meng Yiran were already nodding.

Huo Wu's face turned pale, and she turned and ran.

Tang San watched Huo Wu's back disappear into the crowd, the muscles at the corner of his mouth twitching twice. He whipped his head around, staring daggers at Xiao Wu.

"You're really going to make this difficult for me today, aren't you?"

He threw the flowers aside and flexed his wrists. The watching students instinctively backed away—they had seen Tang San in action; as a level 69 Soul Emperor, he walked all over the academy.

"I wanted to deal with you at noon, but I gave you some face for the sake of being classmates." Tang San said coldly. "A level 62 Soul Emperor, and you think you can jump around in front of me?"

Xiao Wu tilted her head, a smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth.

Level 62?

Sorry, that was half an hour ago.

"If you want to fight, then come." Xiao Wu tossed her scorpion braid behind her. "The sports field isn't a classroom; there are no teachers here to stop you."

Tang San stopped talking, his right hand flipping as soul power surged.

His Blue Silver Grass martial soul was instantly activated, and dozens of blue grass stalks spread from his palm, expanding rapidly across the ground. Five soul rings—[Yellow, Yellow, Purple, Black, Black] (with one empty slot remaining)—lit up in sequence, standing out sharply in the twilight.

"Fourth soul skill, Blue Silver Cage!"

Over twenty thick stalks of Blue Silver Grass erupted from the ground, weaving into an airtight cylindrical cage within a three-meter radius around Xiao Wu.

Each stalk was coated in a pale blue light, with barbs growing on the surface that would inject paralyzing toxins upon contact.

The cage formed in less than a second.

The watching students gasped; this move had trapped several soul masters of the same level in the academy, and no one who had been locked inside had ever managed to break free within ten moves.

Tang San smiled, crossing his arms, ready to enjoy watching Xiao Wu struggle in the cage.

Then, he heard a soft chuckle.

It came from inside the cage.

"Is that it?"

Xiao Wu's voice carried a clear sense of amusement.

"Third soul skill—Teleport."

Her figure vanished from the cage.

No breaking the cage, no brute force, she simply disappeared.

In the next instant, Tang San's peripheral vision caught a pink afterimage appearing on his right.

Smack!

A kick landed squarely on his waist.

Tang San went flying sideways, rolling three times across the ground before crashing into a row of wooden weapon racks at the edge of the training field. Long spears and short swords clattered down all over him.

The training field was silent for two seconds.

Then, it erupted.

"What the hell?"

"Xiao Wu kicked Tang San flying?"

"Isn't she only level 62?"

"Tang San is level 69, a seven-level gap!"

Tang San hit the ground, his head buzzing.

He clearly remembered that when school let out at noon today, he had tugged on Xiao Wu's braid in the hallway. Xiao Wu had been so angry she tried to kick him, but he had caught her foot with one hand and mocked her for being weak.

But this kick just now—was this really the strength of a level 62?

Tang San climbed to his feet, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and glared at the girl opposite him, who was flicking her scorpion braid with a smug look on her face. For a moment, he wondered if some powerhouse was in disguise, or if this was Xiao Wu's older sister, Da Wu?

"Who... exactly are you?"