"Love" from Mom

Douluo Continent, Nuoding Academy.

"Wang Dong'er... um, I... I like you."

Looking at the handsome "young man" with blue-pink hair before her, Xiao Wu lowered her head in shyness, her fair cheeks flushed with a deep crimson as her fingers nervously picked at her palms.

Yet, the one named "Wang Dong" was even more nervous than Xiao Wu.

His expression remained calm and composed, steady as a rock, but a stormy sea was already raging within his heart.

Xiao Wu was exceptionally beautiful, the recognized goddess of Nuoding Academy.

Those long, fair, and shapely legs had haunted the dreams of countless people in secret.

Not to mention, she was a hundred-thousand-year soul beast in human form; if a life-or-death crisis truly arose, she could even sacrifice herself to protect another.

Such a girl could almost be called perfect.

But how could Wang Dong'er dare to accept these feelings?

After all, she was a girl herself, her real name being Wang Dong'er.

More importantly, her relationship with Xiao Wu was, well... sigh!

Wang Dong'er, originally named Wang Dong, was a transmigrator.

After accidentally hitting the jackpot and transmigrating to Douluo, she lost her "dragon" and became Wang Dong'er. Even more unexpectedly, she had transmigrated into the timeline of the first Douluo series.

After awakening the Radiant Goddess Butterfly and Clear Sky Hammer martial souls at age six, she came to Nuoding Academy as a work-study student.

Over the past six years, she had steadily cultivated to become a two-ring Great Soul Master, and her relationship with Tang San and Xiao Wu was decent... after all, without a golden finger or a backer, and with Tang Hao behind Tang San, she dared not suppress them casually.

How could Xiao Wu inexplicably confess to her just as graduation was approaching???

"You... why are you just standing there like a fool? Say something."

Xiao Wu's voice trembled slightly, her nerves stretched to the breaking point.

Wang Dong'er snapped back to reality, casting a complex look at Xiao Wu. After a moment of silence, she let out a long sigh.

"Xiao Wu, what... what exactly do you like about me?"

"Does liking someone need a reason?" Xiao Wu's voice grew softer, her ears and neck turning bright red. "I don't know why either, but every time I see you, my heart can't help but race, and I always have this... urge to cherish you."

"Oh, don't change the subject. Just tell me if you like me or not."

"If you dare to reject me... I, I'll beat you up!"

Holy crap!

Wang Dong'er wailed in her heart.

Right now, only three paths lay before her.

The first path was to commit an act of defiance against nature... that was absolutely impossible.

The second path was to expose her female identity.

The reason she had enrolled in boys' clothing was to avoid harassment from male students and to eventually hide her identity, only to restore her female form later and use her second martial soul, the Clear Sky Hammer, to suppress Tang San.

If she had known that dressing as a boy would attract such a massive headache as Xiao Wu, she would never have chosen this path.

The third path was to have a complete showdown with Xiao Wu and reveal her true identity.

But this was her greatest secret, one that could never be easily shown to others.

It seemed she had no choice but to expose it...

"Hurry up and say it!" Xiao Wu's face was as red as a ripe apple. She raised her hand and lightly punched Wang Dong'er's chest, acting like a spoiled young girl.

Helpless, Wang Dong'er took Xiao Wu's hand and led her all the way back to the work-study dormitory.

It was currently the holiday; classmates had either gone home or graduated, leaving the dormitory completely empty.

"Wang Dong, what... what are you doing bringing me here? We, we are still young, we absolutely cannot do that kind of thing..."

Xiao Wu was flustered, not daring to look up at Wang Dong'er. Cook the raw rice into cooked rice? She simply couldn't cross that hurdle in her heart.

If only she were human, perhaps she could be without such reservations.

"Xiao Wu, you've misunderstood. I just wanted to find a place where no one else is around to talk to you seriously about us."

Wang Dong'er took a deep breath and spoke slowly: "I'm sorry, Xiao Wu, I cannot accept your feelings."

"Why?" Xiao Wu was stunned at first, the girl's shyness fading instantly, replaced by a heart-wrenching sadness. "Could it be... that you think I'm not good enough for you?"

"No, no, no. You are, of course, wonderful and excellent, and I like you very much too. It's just that the way I like you is only the kind of liking between friends."

"As for why it can only be friends, it's because..."

As Wang Dong'er explained, she leaned in close to Xiao Wu's ear to whisper something, just in case.

A faint fragrance and warm breath washed over her, making Xiao Wu's cheeks burn even hotter.

But when she clearly heard the reason for Wang Dong'er's rejection, she was struck as if by lightning, standing completely petrified on the spot.

"Wang Dong, do I look that stupid to you? How could I possibly believe such an absurd excuse? You aren't even willing to lie to me properly... I, I really misjudged you."

Xiao Wu felt incredibly aggrieved, her voice hoarse and choked with sobs as she fought to keep the tears swirling in her eyes.

"I really didn't lie to you." Wang Dong'er's thoughts stirred, and her short hair rapidly grew, cascading down to her waist.

Immediately after, she unbuttoned her top and began unwinding the chest binder she had worn for six whole years, layer by layer.

The moment it was undone, she let out a long, deep breath. She had worn this thing for six years—six full years—keeping it tightly constricted, never once able to breathe freely. Now, she finally felt at ease.

She had always possessed an androgynous, extraordinarily handsome appearance; now, with her long hair falling down and her chest revealed, she was unmistakably a stunning young girl.

Xiao Wu, having witnessed all of this with her own eyes, turned to stone once again. She stood frozen in place for a long, long time, unable to utter a single word.

"I'm sorry, Xiao Wu, for deceiving you for so long. So, it's not that I don't like you, it's just that the two of us... really can't be together."

"You liar..." Xiao Wu threw herself onto the bed, burying her face deep into the pillow as she began to sob.

No matter how Wang Dong'er tried to comfort her or apologize, it was to no avail.

Outside the work-study student dormitory.

Tang San's legs went weak, and he collapsed to the floor as if drained of all strength.

From Xiao Wu's confession to Wang Dong'er's rejection, he had heard it all.

His heart felt as though it were being gripped by a giant hand, aching so intensely he couldn't breathe.

He didn't know why, but he had an indescribable, inexplicable feeling toward Wang Dong'er.

Upon realizing his own thoughts, Tang San scrambled to his feet in a panic.

The reason he felt so distressed was actually because of Wang Dong'er, not Xiao Wu—this was just too strange!

It was all because Wang Dong'er was too beautiful; he would have to find an opportunity to see a psychiatrist...

Tap, tap, tap!

Hearing footsteps, Tang San hurriedly utilized Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track to distance himself from the area.

Just as Wang Dong'er pushed the door open and stepped out, he happened to appear within her line of sight.

Seeing Tang San, Wang Dong'er felt a subconscious twinge of guilt, but the moment she recalled how, during the Peerless Tang Sect era, Tang San had split his own psyche and erased his memories to use her as a leash to tether the Child of Destiny, that small sliver of guilt vanished into thin air.

By now, she had returned to her male attire. She lifted her chin and greeted Tang San as if she were speaking to one of her brothers.

"Xiao San, didn't you go to find the Grandmaster? How come you're back so soon?"