Little Fatty and Little Skinny

Hearing Lin Yan's calm retort, the skinny guy beside Little Fatty hurriedly waved his hands and said with a smile plastered across his face, "Brother, don't misunderstand. We don't mean anything by it!"

"It's just that we'll be seeing each other all the time from now on. We should get to know each other's family situations so we can look out for one another at the academy, right?"

Little Fatty hurriedly nodded along as well. His tiny eyes in that round face carried a shrewd, appraising look as he rubbed his chubby hands together and echoed, "Right, right, exactly!"

Lin Yan looked at the two of them and saw through their insincerity at a glance.

Still, he was curious about what these two, fat and skinny, were plotting. With a faintly amused smile, he said casually, "My family is nothing special. Just a viscount in the Heaven Dou Empire."

The moment he finished speaking, the fat and skinny pair exchanged looks. Relaxed smiles immediately appeared on their faces, and their tones became noticeably more carefree.

Little Fatty raised his brows, the contempt in his voice gradually surfacing. "A viscount... not bad, I suppose. But compared to the two of us, that's still far behind."

Little Fatty patted his belly, growing more confident. His tone even carried a hint of matter-of-fact command. "Brother, we're not bragging. My father and his father are both marquises of the Heaven Dou Empire, influential figures even in the imperial capital!"

"From now on, as long as you behave and listen to us, we brothers will look after you! But things like fetching water and sweeping the floor..."

Just as Little Fatty was getting into the swing of things, the skinny guy beside him caught sight of Lin Yan's composed expression from the corner of his eye, and his heart inexplicably skipped a beat.

He quickly tugged at Little Fatty's sleeve and leaned close to whisper, "Fatty, something's not right. This kid is way too calm."

Little Fatty froze when he was tugged, then followed the skinny guy's gaze toward Lin Yan—sure enough, Lin Yan looked utterly unruffled, with an unreadable hint of scrutiny on his face.

A trace of doubt immediately rose in his heart. Most of his earlier arrogance vanished in an instant, and his tone weakened.

Then Little Skinny cleared his throat. His tone softened, and after giving an awkward laugh, he probed, "Brother, we haven't asked yet. What's your martial soul? What level is your Soul Power? We really don't mean anything by it, just getting to know each other, that's all."

Little Fatty hurriedly nodded too. "Right, right, just getting to know each other. After all, strength is important at the academy too."

Watching their ridiculous ability to bend and straighten at will, Lin Yan secretly shook his head and smiled faintly.

He had thought this would turn into the classic novel routine of "provocation—face-slapping—showing off." He had not expected these two to be so quick-witted.

Looking at the pair before him, Lin Yan lost interest in teasing them further and said mildly, "Level 32, Soul Elder. How is that? Am I worthy of your notice now?"

"A... Soul Elder?"

The expressions on the fat and skinny pair's faces instantly froze, as though they had been hit by a petrification spell. Neither of them moved.

The skinny guy's hand, which had been tugging at the fat guy's sleeve, stopped in midair. His mouth hung wide enough to fit an egg inside, and both their flashy bangs drooped down.

The air remained silent for a full three seconds before the skinny guy reacted first. A fawning smile instantly filled his face, his waist bending nearly double as his hands rubbed together nonstop. He deliberately raised his voice as he said, "Brother! Brother! A Soul Elder is great, a Soul Elder is absolutely wonderful! Please forgive our disrespect, please forgive us!"

Little Fatty snapped out of it right after him, squeezing an even uglier smile than a crying face onto his chubby cheeks.

He hurried forward and attentively used his little fat hands to brush nonexistent dust from Lin Yan's shoulders, his tone overflowing with flattery.

"Right, right! Brother, what I actually meant was that from now on, dorm cleaning, fetching water, and all those chores can be left to the two of us! You can focus on cultivating in peace and won't have to worry about anything!"

Lin Yan lightly pushed aside Little Fatty's greasy hand, looked at the two of them, and said coolly, "Enough with that. Tell me, what's your situation?"

Their movements instantly stiffened, and awkward smiles appeared on their faces. Little Skinny spoke first. "Brother, my name is Ye Liangchen, and his name is Chen Beixuan."

After Ye Liangchen finished, the little fat Chen Beixuan took over. "I'm level 18 this year, and he's level 19."

Through the two of them smoothly playing off each other, Lin Yan came to understand the situation with these two "talents."

Simply put, they were two rich young masters sent in by their families to pad their credentials, looking for a lackey to handle chores. Still, they had some sense and knew to investigate someone's background first.

As for why they had folded so smoothly after learning Lin Yan was a Soul Elder, the reason was simple: first, they were afraid of getting beaten up; second, they did not want to offend a genius for no reason.

In Little Fatty Chen Beixuan's own words, "We may throw our weight around and be lazy good-for-nothings, but we're not idiots."

"Brother, if you can cultivate to Soul Elder at this age, then regardless of whether you have a background or not, your talent has to be top-tier. I'd have to have something wrong with my brain to keep acting arrogant and courting death!"

As for why the dorm had still been so filthy when Lin Yan first arrived, it was because the two of them had not come to the dorm at all after registering that morning.

They had slipped out to experience some of Shrek City's "special" offerings and had only just returned.

Then came what happened afterward: the two of them had eagerly run back to recruit a lackey, only to crash right into him.

Having figured out the whole story and seeing how docile the two of them had become, Lin Yan no longer held their earlier offense against them.

After all, as a Heaven Dou noble in this life, Lin Yan knew only too well what the noble offspring of the Douluo Continent's three great empires were like. Throwing their weight around and acting arrogant and overbearing was simply commonplace.

Besides, Little Fatty and Little Skinny had surrendered far too quickly.

Shouldn't villains be shouting threats! Shouting threats! Then shouting even more threats!

Questioning him! Questioning him! Then questioning him some more!

Then, after getting punched in the face, they should cry out, "I'm sorry! I was wrong!"

They had no self-awareness as villains at all. Now, even if Lin Yan wanted to stretch his limbs a little, he had no suitable excuse!

Pah! Terrible review!

The dorm was not large to begin with, and with the fat and skinny pair working hard, it was cleaned up in no time.

As for Lin Yan?

Under the fat and skinny pair's "reasoned insistence," he "reluctantly" took on the role of supervisor.

Thus, the three of them had clearly divided up their duties, each doing their part.

A cause for celebration, truly a cause for celebration!

After cleaning the dorm, Chen Beixuan and Ye Liangchen crowded around Lin Yan. They winked and wore expressions any man would understand as they eagerly said, "Brother Lin, Shrek City has plenty of 'special' services. Want to try some tonight? Our treat!"

Looking at the two of them patting their chests with bold expressions, Lin Yan lightly waved them off in disdain. "You two go ahead. I'm not going."

Seeing Lin Yan refuse, neither of them urged him further. Little Fatty Chen Beixuan put on a look of sudden realization and slapped his forehead. "Right! With our Brother Lin's looks, of course you wouldn't fancy those common women!"

"Then, Brother Lin, we'll be going first!"

"Go on, go on."

After seeing the two off, Lin Yan packed up his belongings and left the dorm to buy some daily necessities. He also casually wandered around Shrek Academy to familiarize himself with the surroundings.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye, and soon it was the day classes officially began.

At that moment, in the first-year teachers' office area, an elderly woman with crane-white hair and wrinkled skin held a list of new students, her sharp gaze sweeping over every name.

Lin Yan... martial soul Emperor Flame... Level 32 Soul Elder...

Her gaze paused on Lin Yan's name for a moment. A strange smile curled across Zhou Yi's usually frightening face, and a flash of excitement gleamed in her eyes.

"A Soul Elder... Such a genius belongs in my, Zhou Yi's, class! Hehehe!"