Tonight, Xiao Chenyu's Courtyard, Ning Rongrong, Come Alone

"Then you'd better keep up."

Su Hang led Xiao Wu toward the exit of the training grounds, his pace unhurried.

Xiao Wu pressed against his side, her body nearly blocking his front, making it clear she didn't want Ning Rongrong getting too close.

Ning Rongrong followed, clutching the Seven Treasures Token. She first glanced at their joined hands, then looked at Xiao Wu.

"You're being pretty obvious about guarding him from me."

Xiao Wu shot back immediately.

"I am being obvious, so what?"

Ning Rongrong gave a light huff.

"I'm not trying to steal him, you know."

Xiao Wu pulled Su Hang's sleeve even tighter.

"You were trying to buy him for half the day just a moment ago."

Ning Rongrong stopped in her tracks and turned back to look at the center of the training grounds.

The Sleeve Arrows, fine needles, and small mechanisms on the ground had already been collected one by one by Tang San into a cloth bag.

Tang San's movements were steady, as if using poison-tipped arrows to strike vital points had been nothing more than a standard sparring match.

Ning Rongrong tucked the Seven Treasures Token back into her waist and spoke with her chin held high.

"Tang San."

Tang San paused his packing.

"Does Miss Ning have further business?"

Ning Rongrong pointed at the cloth bag at his waist.

"Where did those things come from?"

Tang San placed the final Sleeve Arrow inside.

"Self-made."

Ning Rongrong continued to press him.

"The arrowheads were poisoned, and the needles were hidden behind grass blades. You call this a sparring match?"

Tang San smoothed out his cuffs.

"In a spirit master's battle, one relies on their own methods."

As these words fell, the students on the sidelines began to whisper among themselves again.

Xiao Chenyu immediately leaned in toward Wang Sheng.

"Did you hear that? 'Rely on one's own methods.'"

Wang Sheng hugged his bag of steamed buns to his chest.

"Then from now on, I'll rely on my own methods when I eat, so don't you go stealing my buns."

Xiao Chenyu nearly choked.

"Can you have a little more ambition?"

Ning Rongrong did not laugh.

She walked back to the edge of the training grounds and stopped a few paces in front of Tang San.

"If this were a life-or-death struggle, you could use whatever you wanted."

"But Su Hang set this up as a verification match."

"You agreed to it verbally, yet you used poison arrows to strike at his ribs. How is that any different from a sneak attack?"

Tang San did not answer immediately.

Yu Xiaogang walked over from the side, the dust still clinging to his sleeves.

"Miss Ning, it is quite common for spirit masters to use auxiliary items in battle."

"Many spirit masters carry medicinal powders, short blades, or ropes; the rules of combat do not forbid them."

Su Hang stopped walking.

Xiao Wu stopped as well, immediately standing right by his side.

Su Hang turned around and looked at Yu Xiaogang.

"Fine, then let me ask you."

"If that poison arrow had actually struck my ribs, who would be responsible for the antidote?"

Yu Xiaogang's words cut off.

The edge of the training grounds grew significantly quieter.

Su Hang raised a hand and pointed at the short arrow on the ground that had been struck down by lightning.

"You'll take responsibility?"

"Tang San will take responsibility?"

"Or should we let the teachers at Notting Academy take responsibility?"

Yu Xiaogang raised his hand, unable to find a response.

Tang San finally spoke up.

"I have a way to neutralize the poison."

Su Hang looked at him.

"Just because you have a cure, does that mean you can just go around poisoning people?"

Xiao Wu immediately chimed in.

"Before you launched that sneak attack earlier, you didn't ask Brother Su Hang if he was willing to let you 'cure' him."

"You talk about rules, but your hands are full of dirty tricks."

Xiao Chenyu immediately slapped his thigh.

"Well put!"

Wang Sheng also shouted along.

"Blue Silver Grass leaks air, hidden weapons finish the job!"

The surrounding students burst into laughter.

"That's catchy."

"From now on, when Tang San fights, check if his grass is leaking first, then check if there's anything in his sleeves."

"Don't talk nonsense, he calls it 'relying on one's own methods'."

Xiao Chenyu waved his hand.

"Got it, the new meta: Blue Silver Grass leaks air, hidden weapons patch the windows."

Xiao Wu almost laughed out loud but quickly held it back, looking up at Su Hang.

"Brother Su Hang, that was quite a burn."

Su Hang replied indifferently.

"But accurate."

Tang San tied his cloth bag shut and did not argue further.

He stood where he was, his right hand hanging beneath his sleeve.

The sensation of his Blue Silver Grass being controlled by Su Hang remained in his meridians.

The feeling of having one's martial soul suppressed by someone else was even more uncomfortable than the backlash of a First Spirit Skill.

Ning Rongrong had originally only come to see Su Hang.

Now, she also stood on Su Hang's side.

The little princess of the Seven Treasures Glazed Sect brought the issue of the hidden weapons to the forefront with a single sentence.

Tang San noted this debt.

Su Hang.

Xiao Wu.

Ning Rongrong.

These people had already banded together.

Seeing Tang San's silence, Yu Xiaogang stepped forward, trying to regain control of the situation.

"Today was just a sparring match between young people; there's no need to blow things out of proportion."

"Tang San's First Spirit Skill still needs training, and the hidden weapons are merely an auxiliary method."

Ning Rongrong interrupted him directly.

"I understand now."

"The Blue Silver Grass is unstable, so he has to rely on hidden weapons as a safety net."

Yu Xiaogang's hand froze in mid-air.

Ning Rongrong turned to look at Su Hang, her interest piqued once more.

"You mentioned verifying the fate of the Seven Treasures earlier."

"Can we start now?"

Xiao Wu immediately stepped in front of Su Hang.

"What's the rush?"

Ning Rongrong spread her hands.

"I ran all this way, surely not just to watch Tang San flip his car?"

Xiao Chenyu added from the side.

"Actually, it's worth the price of admission."

Wang Sheng nodded.

"The training ground is even livelier than the soul fighting arena today."

Ning Rongrong ignored them, staring only at Su Hang.

"Su Hang, how exactly are you going to verify this?"

"Can you explain the limitations of the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda?"

"And that matter about the sect bloodshed, how will you prove that?"

Xiao Wu paused in her movements when she heard about the sect bloodshed.

She looked at Ning Rongrong, her words becoming fewer.

"Is that why you came?"

Ning Rongrong lifted her chin, but this time she didn't act tough.

"I want to know if those things are true or false."

Su Hang walked back to the stone steps, picked up the cooled teacup, and set it down casually.

"We won't verify the Seven Treasures today."

Ning Rongrong was immediately dissatisfied.

"Are you playing with me?"

Su Hang pointed toward Tang San's direction.

"Let's first see if he continues to pretend to be righteous."

Ning Rongrong was stunned for a moment, then she chuckled.

"You really are quite asking for a beating."

Xiao Wu immediately stepped in front of Su Hang.

"You are not allowed to hit him."

Seeing her protective stance, Ning Rongrong deliberately moved half a step toward Su Hang.

"I happen to want to try."

Xiao Wu also pushed forward half a step.

"Go ahead and try."

Su Hang raised his hand to press on Xiao Wu's head, pulling her slightly to the side.

"If you two keep arguing, I'll change the verification to seeing who gets tired first."

Ning Rongrong gave a light huff.

"This young lady doesn't argue with rabbits."

Xiao Wu retorted immediately.

"You're the rabbit."

As soon as the words left her mouth, she stopped herself.

Su Hang glanced at her.

Xiao Wu immediately turned her face away, pretending she hadn't just made a slip of the tongue.

Ning Rongrong didn't notice this small detail and just pulled the topic back.

"Then how long do you plan to drag this out?"

Su Hang picked up the Seven Treasures Token from the table and tossed it back into Ning Rongrong's arms.

"Tonight."

"Location, Xiao Chenyu's small courtyard."

"As for people, you can only bring yourself."

Ning Rongrong caught the token.

"Just me alone?"

Xiao Wu immediately wrinkled her nose.

"You still want to bring a carriage full of people?"

Ning Rongrong tucked the token away.

"Fine, one person it is."

"But if you can't explain things, I really will tear your bed apart."

Xiao Chenyu's face turned green behind them.

"Little Princess, I was the one who paid for that bed."

Ning Rongrong turned back.

"Pay for another one, then."

Xiao Chenyu immediately shut his mouth.

Wang Sheng patted him on the shoulder.

"Accept your fate. The meta-answer just met the power of money."

Su Hang stopped teasing them and led Xiao Wu out of the training grounds.

Ning Rongrong followed behind, her steps much lighter.

This trip to Notting Academy today had yielded more than she expected.

Su Hang would seize Tang San's Blue Silver Grass.

Tang San would hide poison arrows and hidden weapons.

Yu Xiaogang could make excuses, but they were very forced.

The things written in the diary were matching up with reality bit by bit.

She wanted to know even more now just how much more Su Hang could reveal about the Seven Treasures Glazed Sect.

On the training grounds, the onlookers slowly dispersed.

Xiao Chenyu grabbed Wang Sheng and chased after Su Hang, not forgetting to hug the bag of steamed buns before leaving.

Yu Xiaogang stood where he was, looking at the grass leaves scorched by lightning on the ground. After a long while, he turned to Tang San.

"Let's go back first."

Tang San did not move immediately.

He bent down to pick up the thin needle, wiped it clean carefully, and placed it back into the deepest part of his cloth bag.

Yu Xiaogang lowered his voice.

"As for today's events, endure it for now."