The Mystery of the Stone Mushroom Intestine

The two of them reached the vicinity of the dormitory building and finally couldn't hold it in any longer.

Xiao Wu plopped down onto the steps, laughing until she was out of breath. Her scorpion braid swung behind her, and she stretched out her legs, the heels of her crystal high heels clicking twice against the edge of the step.

"Hahaha! Oscar ate a rock today! His front teeth even flew out!"

Ning Rongrong couldn't hold back either; she crouched down beside Xiao Wu, her shoulders shaking with laughter. She covered her mouth with one hand while steadying herself by holding onto Xiao Wu's arm with the other.

"Did you see his expression? When he was biting down on that rock, that face... hahaha!"

"He actually thought he'd run into a ghost! 'Ah, there's a ghost, there's a ghost!'" Xiao Wu mimicked Oscar's tone and movements, crawling around on the ground while backing away, her impression vivid and lifelike.

Ning Rongrong laughed until tears streamed down her face, wiping the corners of her eyes with the back of her hand. "Let's see if he dares to say those snide, sarcastic things to me again."

"He won't dare, he won't dare. His front teeth are gone; he'll probably whistle when he talks from now on."

The two of them laughed on the steps for a good while before heading back into the dormitory.

Xiao Wu looked at the empty room. "Hey, why haven't Zhu Zhuqing and Bai Chenxiang come back yet?"

Ning Rongrong replied, "Them? They're cultivation maniacs. They're probably still training in the academy library at this hour. The library has specialized cultivation rooms; they often soak in there, practicing until the lights go out before they return."

Xiao Wu curled her lip upon hearing this.

"Oh my, how diligent. We've found a shortcut now, so why bother suffering through that grueling cultivation?"

Xiao Wu held up two fingers and waved them in front of Ning Rongrong.

"One day of our work is worth a year of theirs."

Ning Rongrong thought about it, and it really was true. She had spent over half a year cultivating just to climb from level 57 to 59, but today, after catching a ragdoll cat, she had jumped straight to level 61, with an 8,000-year spirit bone thrown in for free.

This efficiency was at least a year faster.

"That's true, that's true." Ning Rongrong nodded repeatedly, then lowered her voice. "Hey, by the way, when they get back, should we tell them this secret?"

Xiao Wu tilted her head and thought it over.

The non-disclosure agreement only stated that she couldn't tell any males. Zhu Zhuqing and Bai Chenxiang were both girls, so it wouldn't violate the rules.

"Let's tell them," Xiao Wu said. "After all, we're roommates living in the same room. Besides, they're often bullied by the F4; Zhu Zhuqing is pestered by Dai Mubai every day, and Bai Chenxiang has been harassed by Ma Hongjun several times. If they can become stronger too, they won't have to suffer that indignity anymore."

Ning Rongrong agreed. "Mm, that's what I was thinking too. Then we'll wait until they get back to tell them."

Xiao Wu flopped onto her bed, lying prone and stretching out in a long, satisfying yawn.

"Ah, today was just too great."

Ning Rongrong placed her notebook on the desk, sat on the edge of her bed, and bent over to undo the buckles of her ankle boots.

The moment the boots were off, her ankles were finally released. Ning Rongrong wiggled her toes a few times and sighed in comfort.

"Do you think that Boss Qin Chuan just stays in that shop every day, knowing nothing at all?"

"Who knows." Xiao Wu shoved her pillow behind her head. "Anyway, the crystal ball said that the better we treat him, the better our luck at catching dolls will be. I plan to bring him something to eat tomorrow."

Ning Rongrong glanced at Xiao Wu. "You're certainly attentive."

"Of course, this concerns my spirit power level! Being good to him is being good to myself; I can do that math just fine."

Ning Rongrong didn't speak. She lowered her head and fished the little white cat pendant out of the pouch at her waist.

The velvet felt soft and warm, as if it had just been basking in the sun.

Ning Rongrong's fingers slowly stroked the cat's ears, her mind replaying the contents of the transmission from the crystal ball.

Ten-thousand-year spirit rings, thousand-year spirit bones, innate full spirit power, a 100x spirit power absorption buff.

Any one of these things, if brought out into the wider Douluo Continent, could spark a war. Yet in that little twenty-square-meter shop, these items were stuffed inside ragdolls, and one could have a chance to obtain them for a single gold spirit coin.

It was insane.

Ning Rongrong took a deep breath and tucked the cat back into her pouch.

Regardless of anything else, this secret had to be kept.

At the same time, on the other side of the academy.

Oscar stumbled back to the male dormitory building, clutching his mouth the entire way. Blood seeped through his fingers, and everyone he passed assumed he had gotten into a fight and been beaten up.

In fact, that wasn't entirely wrong.

The door to the room at the very end of the third floor of the male dormitory was not shut tight.

Oscar kicked the door open and rushed inside.

Tang San was sitting on the bed by the window, legs crossed in meditation, healing his injuries. He opened his eyes upon hearing the commotion.

"Oscar, what happened to you?"

Oscar hunched over, hands braced on his knees, gasping for air. Bloodstains still hung from the corner of his mouth, and there was a gap where his left front tooth should have been, causing him to whistle when he spoke.

"I... I ran into a ghost today."

"What? What on earth happened?" Tang San flipped off the bed and walked over to Oscar, his brow furrowing into a knot as he looked at the mouth missing a front tooth.

Oscar swallowed a mouthful of blood-flavored saliva, his voice trembling.

"Just now... I ran into Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong downstairs, and then I got into a scrap with Ning Rongrong. Guess what happened?"

Tang San remained silent for two seconds, his mind automatically filling in the blanks.

"She suddenly got stronger and beat you up?"

"No, no, no." Oscar shook his head violently. "If it were just that, I could accept it."

Tang San's brows furrowed even tighter. "What exactly happened?"

Oscar extended his right hand and opened his palm. There was nothing in it, but his fingers were still trembling.

"The Speedy Flight Mushroom Sausage I created with my third soul skill, for some reason, turned into stone!"

Tang San's expression froze.

"What? It turned into stone?"

"Yes, it's absolutely true!" Oscar pointed to the gap in his mouth. "My tooth was knocked out by that stone! Look, my front tooth is gone!"

Tang San stared at Oscar's toothless mouth for several seconds, his expression shifting from shock to confusion, and then from confusion to gravity.

Xiao Wu's sudden eight-level jump was already absurd enough.

Now, the things created by Oscar's soul skill could turn into stone out of thin air?

"Make another one and let me see."

Oscar nodded, stood up straight, and circulated his soul power.

"Third soul skill, Speedy Flight Mushroom Sausage!"

A grayish-brown mushroom sausage appeared in Oscar's palm.

Tang San leaned in to examine it closely and reached out to pinch it. It was soft and springy, carried the distinct scent of mushrooms, and its surface shimmered with a faint luster of soul power.

Normal. Completely normal.

Oscar couldn't believe it either; he hesitated for a moment before stuffing the mushroom sausage into his mouth and taking a bite.

Nothing happened. He chewed twice and swallowed. His back began to itch, and a pair of transparent wings sprouted from his shoulder blades, flapping twice and blowing the papers on the table away.

He could fly. There was no problem at all.

"Oscar, are you possessed? This flight mushroom sausage is perfectly fine."

"I'm not! Third Brother, please believe me!" Oscar's voice went out of tune from anxiety. "My tooth really fell out, and I really bit into a stone!"

Tang San fell silent, leaning against the bed frame, his right hand unconsciously pressing against the spot on his waist where Xiao Wu had kicked him; it was still throbbing with pain.

The two of them were lost in their own thoughts, and the room fell quiet for a short while.

Footsteps and laughter drifted from the hallway, growing louder as they approached.

The dormitory door was pushed open, and two people walked in one after the other.

Leading the way was Ma Hongjun, short in stature with a round face and small but bright eyes, wearing a red academy jacket and walking with a swagger.

"Brothers, night has fallen, time to go out and relax!"