Meng Yiran stepped forward, covering her mouth, her shoulders bouncing. She wanted to laugh but didn't dare.
"How dare you! You dare tease my grandmother!"
Ji Ye shrugged.
"I wasn't joking."
Zhao Wuji stood behind them to the side, looking from Ji Ye to Snake Granny, the corner of his mouth twitching twice.
This kid really was bold.
Then he walked over to Ji Ye and cupped his hands.
"I'm Zhao Wuji. My student misspoke. Please don't take offense, senior."
"Zhao Wuji? So you're the famous Immovable Wisdom King."
Snake Granny took several deep breaths before she managed to suppress her anger.
She had lived through most of her life and weathered all kinds of storms, yet she'd never expected a little kid to leave her speechless today.
She glared at Ji Ye.
"Enough, enough. For the Immovable Wisdom King's sake, I won't hold it against you. Since you've absorbed the snake, let's consider the matter settled."
She turned and tossed a remark over her shoulder.
"Kid, when we meet again, I'll have to get properly acquainted with that friend of yours."
"Don't worry, senior. Of course."
"Hmph."
The grandmother and granddaughter had only taken a few steps when Meng Yiran couldn't resist glancing back.
After hesitating a moment, she ran over to Ji Ye.
Summoning her courage, she leaned close to Ji Ye's ear and kissed him.
Then she hurried off.
Ji Ye didn't mind.
He casually wiped the spot on his cheek where she'd kissed him.
He turned around and was about to walk back to the group when he suddenly stopped.
Two gazes were fixed squarely on his face.
Ning Rongrong had her hands on her hips, her cheeks puffed up like a pufferfish, her eyes wide and round, and her lips pressed into a tight line.
She stared at Ji Ye's face for several seconds, then turned and shot a fierce glare in the direction Meng Yiran had disappeared before turning back again. Her look seemed to say, You sure enjoyed that, didn't you?
Zhu Zhuqing stood beside Ning Rongrong. Her expression wasn't as obvious as Ning Rongrong's, but the light in her catlike eyes was a few degrees colder than usual.
She glanced at Ji Ye, her lips moved slightly, but she said nothing. Then she turned her face away.
Ji Ye felt the weight of those two gazes, but he didn't turn around or offer an explanation.
He walked back to the tree he'd been leaning against, leaned against it again, and folded his arms, as if nothing had happened.
Ning Rongrong stamped her foot.
"Ji Ye!"
"Hmm?"
"You..."
After a long struggle, Ning Rongrong managed to spit out one sentence.
"You didn't wipe your face clean!"
Ji Ye raised a finger and wiped it again.
"Now it's clean."
Ning Rongrong glared at him, her chest rising and falling a few times. Finally, she huffed and turned her head away.
Zhu Zhuqing continued looking elsewhere, but the corner of her mouth curved ever so slightly. It was hard to tell whether she was relieved or something else.
Ma Hongjun crouched nearby, watching the whole scene from beginning to end, practically drooling.
He nudged Dai Mubai with his elbow and lowered his voice.
"Damn, Ji Ye really is... His luck with women is just ridiculous."
Dai Mubai didn't answer. He was watching Zhu Zhuqing, watching her little gestures, and feeling a little sour inside.
He lowered his head and stared at the fallen leaves by his feet for a while, a bitter smile flickering across his lips.
Tang San stood to one side, watching everything with a calm expression. His gaze lingered on Ji Ye's face for a moment, then moved away.
Just then, the purple light encircling Oscar as he absorbed his Soul Ring began to fade.
He let out a long breath and slowly opened his eyes, looking down at the three Soul Rings at his feet.
Yellow, yellow, purple.
"I did it!"
He jumped up and stretched, his joints cracking all over.
"My third Soul Ring is from a Thousand-Year Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent. Guess what my third Soul Skill is?"
Ma Hongjun was the first to rush over.
"Quit keeping us in suspense. Hurry up and tell us!"
Oscar gave a cheeky grin and turned his palm over, conjuring a sausage a bit larger than before.
It was golden yellow, with a faint sheen across its surface. It looked like a much higher-grade sausage than the first two.
"Third Soul Skill—Flying Mushroom Sausage! Eat it, and you grow a pair of wings and fly at the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent's speed. It lasts for one minute."
Without another word, he stuffed the sausage in his hand into his mouth, chewed twice, and swallowed.
The next moment, the back of his clothes bulged. With a poof, a pair of translucent wings spread from his shoulder blades. Their wingspan was nearly two meters, and the thin membranes glimmered faintly gold in the sunlight.
Oscar's feet left the ground, and he rose into the air. He circled the group twice at incredible speed, streaking through the forest in trails of afterimages.
"How about that! Pretty awesome, huh?"
Ma Hongjun tilted his head back, his mouth forming an O.
"Damn! That's so cool!"
Ning Rongrong also looked up at Oscar, her eyes lighting up with curiosity and surprise.
Oscar noticed her gaze and straightened his back. He flew another circle, deliberately sweeping over Ning Rongrong's head and stirring up a breeze that lifted the hair above her forehead.
"Rongrong, what do you think? Pretty impressive, right?"
The corner of Ning Rongrong's mouth twitched. She smiled.
"Not bad. Pretty impressive."
Oscar's heart skipped a beat.
He landed, folded his wings away, and couldn't keep the smile off his face.
Since he'd arrived at Shrek, this was the first time Ning Rongrong had spoken to him in that tone.
He secretly clenched his fist, thinking that today really was a good day.
Zhao Wuji walked over to Oscar and patted him on the shoulder, an unusual hint of approval on his face.
"Not bad. You absorbed the Thousand-Year Soul Ring smoothly, and your Soul Skill is practical too. Keep training. You have a bright future."
Oscar nodded.
"Thank you, Teacher Zhao!"
Zhao Wuji was about to say they should move on when the ground suddenly trembled.
It wasn't a slight shake.
The rumble came from deep beneath the earth, dull and powerful, as if some colossal creature had turned over underground.
The whole ground shuddered. Fallen leaves rustled through the forest, and flocks of birds burst from the treetops, surging into the sky.
Everyone's smiles froze at once.
"What's going on?" Dai Mubai clenched his fists and scanned their surroundings.
Zhu Zhuqing had already leapt back onto the treetops, her catlike eyes locked on the direction of the disturbance, her pupils narrowed to slits.
"Something... big..."
Tang San's hand was already on the mechanism of a Hidden Weapon at his waist, his expression darkening.
"Teacher Zhao, it's straight ahead. It's coming closer."
Zhao Wuji's expression changed too. He spun around and stepped in front of all the students, growling,
"Back! Stand back-to-back!"
They quickly formed a circle, standing back-to-back, each facing a different direction and taking a battle stance.
Ji Ye remained leaning against the tree, unmoving, his gaze calm as he watched the woods ahead.
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