Ning Rongrong swallowed, her voice barely above a whisper. "Soul Power Level +2... and a Soul Bone from an 8,000-year-old beast. From the Medusa clan. A head Soul Bone."
Xiao Wu's mouth fell open in an O. "A Soul Bone?!"
"Shh!" Ning Rongrong quickly covered her mouth. "Keep your voice down!"
Xiao Wu mumbled twice, then slapped Ning Rongrong's hand away. "Oh my god, Rongrong! An 8,000-year-old Soul Bone! You traded one Gold Soul Coin for an 8,000-year-old Soul Bone! Do you know how much one of the same age would cost on the market?"
"At least 500,000 Gold Soul Coins, and you couldn't find one even if you had the money!" Ning Rongrong's voice trembled as she said the amount.
The two stared at each other in the alley, speechless for a long moment.
Then they burst out laughing at the same time.
Xiao Wu threw an arm around Ning Rongrong's shoulders. "I told you that shop was incredible! I gained eight levels, and you gained two and got a Soul Bone on top of it. That's just ridiculous!"
Ning Rongrong nodded vigorously.
As they left the alley, Ning Rongrong suddenly stopped. "Wait... does the owner know about the prizes?"
"No. He's just an ordinary person, and the bonus prizes are passed down to women, never men," Xiao Wu explained.
"An ordinary person opened a shop that gives away Ten Thousand Year Soul Rings and Thousand-Year Soul Bones." Ning Rongrong quietly repeated the words.
They exchanged a glance. The more they thought about it, the deeper the waters seemed.
"Who cares?" Xiao Wu waved a hand. "The Confidentiality Agreement says we can't tell men, so we'll just go in secret. I'm going again tomorrow!"
"I'm going too." Ning Rongrong clutched her purse. The little white cat inside felt soft and warm to the touch.
"But..." Ning Rongrong thought it over. "Should we tell Zhu Zhuqing about something this good?"
"Zhuqing?" Xiao Wu's eyes lit up. "Oh, right! She's a girl too, so it won't violate the agreement. And hasn't she been driven crazy lately by that scumbag Dai Mubai? If she could get stronger..."
"Let's invite her along tomorrow."
"Deal!"
The two girls walked shoulder to shoulder back toward the academy, chatting away. Their laughter drifted far through the dusk.
Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong walked arm in arm along the academy's flagstone main road toward the dormitories.
The streetlamps were already lit, casting warm yellow light from above and stretching their shadows long across the road.
Xiao Wu's Scorpion Braid rested over her shoulder, swaying with every step. The pink ribbon at its tip stood out beneath the lamplight.
Ning Rongrong still had the notebook she'd nearly lost tucked under her arm. Her legs, clad in white stockings, moved lightly beneath her skirt.
They whispered to each other all the way, bursting into laughter now and then.
"Rongrong, do you think the owner really doesn't know about those prizes?"
"He really didn't seem to. He's an ordinary person, without even a trace of Soul Power, and he was just sitting there chewing on a wrap."
Xiao Wu clicked her tongue. "That's absurd. He runs a shop that gives away Ten Thousand Year Soul Rings, yet he's still worrying about what to eat."
"That's all the more reason not to let anyone else find out." Ning Rongrong lowered her voice. "If those boys discover it, who knows what kind of trouble they'll cause."
"Relax, relax. The bonus prizes are passed down to women, never men."
"Still, we can't let our guard down." Ning Rongrong shook her head. "You don't know Tang San and the others. If they found out about something this good, even if they couldn't use it themselves, they'd find some way to sabotage us."
Xiao Wu thought it over, decided she had a point, and nodded.
They turned past the corner of the teaching building. The girls' dormitory stood fifty meters ahead. The streetlamps shone brightly on its white walls, warm light spilling from the second- and third-floor windows. The sound of people chatting drifted faintly from inside.
Just then, a figure rose from behind a stone bench by the roadside and blocked their path.
"Stop!"
Xiao Wu's steps faltered.
The newcomer had a head full of tousled blond hair and an unlit cigarette dangling from his mouth. His academy uniform sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, three buttons at the collar left undone, and he leaned lazily against a lamppost.
Oscar.
He'd just walked Tang San back to the dormitory and had already made his way to the girls' dorm, hoping to run into Xiao Wu.
Xiao Wu raised an eyebrow, a smile playing on her lips. "Well, well. Look who it is. One of the F4, Oscar."
F4 was the nickname the academy girls had privately given Tang San, Dai Mubai, Oscar, and Ma Hongjun. It wasn't a flattering name. The girls used it mockingly because the four of them were always getting together to stir up trouble.
Oscar pushed himself upright and took the cigarette from his mouth, twirling it between his fingers as he grinned at them.
"That's me."
Oscar's gaze swept over Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong twice before settling on Ning Rongrong's fair, oval face.
"Rongrong, want to try my Big Sausage? Haha!"
Ning Rongrong's face fell at once.
"Ugh! What a creep!"
This was exactly the kind of thing Ning Rongrong hated most.
As a food-type Soul Master, Oscar's Martial Soul produced all kinds of sausages. He just had to use that line to hit on every girl he met.
The whole academy knew about his bad habit. Behind his back, they called him Big Pervert.
Oscar didn't look embarrassed at all. If anything, his grin widened. "Ooh, ooh, someone's angry."
Ning Rongrong pulled the notebook from under her arm and gripped it in her hand. Her stocking-clad legs tensed, and the heel of her short boot clicked against the stone.
"Get out of my way! If you don't leave, I'll flatten you!"
Oscar picked at his ear, looking completely unconcerned. "What? You're going to hit me?"
He stuck the cigarette back in his mouth, folded his arms across his chest, and narrowed his eyes at Ning Rongrong, looking down on her.
"I'm a level 64 Soul Emperor, after all. I'm not afraid of Xiao Wu, so why would I be afraid of a level 59 Soul King like you?"
He wasn't wrong. In Oscar's mind, Xiao Wu's fight with Tang San had been a fluke. Who knew what crooked trick she'd used to beat him?
But Ning Rongrong was different. She was an Auxiliary Soul Master, the young lady of the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda Sect. Her fighting ability had always been at the bottom of the class.
A level 59 Soul King didn't even have the right to fight back against him.
Xiao Wu perked up at his words.
She tossed her Scorpion Braid behind her, planted her hands on her hips, and tapped the toe of her crystal high heel against the ground twice.
"Fine, then, Oscar. Enough talk. If you're a man, fight Ning Rongrong."
Xiao Wu tilted her head and jerked her chin toward the heart of the academy. "Let's go to the sports field. How about it?"
"No problem." Oscar took the cigarette from his mouth and flicked it away with his thumb. "Assuming Ning Rongrong isn't scared."
Ning Rongrong lifted her chin and spat out a single word.
"Let's go!"
The three headed toward the sports field.
Xiao Wu walked beside Ning Rongrong, then leaned close to her ear and whispered so quietly only the two of them could hear.
"Rongrong, does your Medusa's Gaze work on people?"
Ning Rongrong barely moved her lips. "No, but I know how to handle him."
Xiao Wu's eyes rolled, and the corners of her mouth slowly curled upward.