Liu Erlong saw Deng Tianxin wake up and stopped cultivating, asking curiously, "Tianxin, what's wrong?"
Deng Tianxin instinctively rubbed his bottom and said, "Nothing. I dreamed that the old witch was spanking me."
Liu Erlong froze for a moment at his words, then burst out laughing, rocking back and forth, her shoulders trembling.
Once she started laughing, she couldn't stop. Her hearty laughter bounced around the carriage, even shaking the curtains a few times.
"Just how much does your teacher like spanking you?" Liu Erlong wiped away the tears of laughter at the corners of her eyes. "You even dream about it. Have you been traumatized?"
"What are you laughing at? If you're still clinging to me when she comes back, she'll spank you too." Deng Tianxin rolled his eyes at her and wriggled out of Liu Erlong's arms, straightening his rumpled clothes.
The lipstick marks on his face had nearly faded, leaving only a faint reddish trace on his cheek. You could barely see it unless you looked closely.
Liu Erlong waved a hand, unconcerned. "Your teacher's the Spirit Hall Saintess, not mine. She can't tell me what to do. Besides, you're not her personal property. What's wrong with me hugging you?"
Though she said that, she inexplicably felt a little uneasy inside.
Of course she'd heard of Bibi Dong: the youngest Saintess in Spirit Hall's history, a peerless genius with Twin Martial Souls. You could count on one hand the people among the younger generation across the continent who could match her.
If it came to a fight, Liu Erlong's strength wouldn't even be enough to get between her teeth.
But then she thought about it again. She hadn't done anything wrong. She'd only hugged the little guy and kissed him a couple of times. So what?
Could the Spirit Hall Saintess really come after her just because someone had kissed her disciple?
At that thought, Liu Erlong immediately felt justified again.
Watching her act as if she feared nothing under heaven, Deng Tianxin silently grumbled to himself.
That was only because she'd never seen the old witch smiling while she beat someone.
She looked elegant and dignified on the surface, but she didn't hold back when she hit. He knew that from experience.
The carriage trundled onward over the uneven road. Outside, the driver called in a somewhat weary voice, "You two, there's a small town up ahead. It's getting late, too. Shall we stop for the night?"
Liu Erlong lifted the curtain and looked outside.
The sun had already sunk completely behind the mountains. Far away, at the foot of the hills, scattered lights outlined what seemed to be a town.
"We'll stop there for the night." Liu Erlong made the decision for Deng Tianxin.
Deng Tianxin didn't object.
He felt much better after a nap, but after a whole day in the carriage, every bone in his body felt like it was about to rattle loose.
All he wanted now was to find somewhere to eat a hot meal, then lie down in bed and sleep until he woke naturally.
The carriage stopped in front of an inn at the entrance to town.
The inn was small, with an old wooden sign hanging above the door. Faded paint spelled out the words Fu Lai Inn.
The door was half-open, and the orange glow of oil lamps spilled through the gap. There weren't many customers inside, only seven or eight people including the innkeeper. They were all traveling merchants, each bent over his dinner.
Liu Erlong asked for two rooms, ordered a few home-style dishes, then led Deng Tianxin to a table in the corner on the first floor.
The food came quickly: a plate of braised tofu, a dish of stir-fried greens, a bowl of egg soup, two chickens, and two bowls of white rice. It wasn't exactly a feast, but it was steaming hot—and a hundred times better than dry rations.
Deng Tianxin was genuinely hungry. He grabbed one of the chickens and tore into it, devouring half in no time.
Liu Erlong wasn't much more refined than he was when she ate. There was a natural, uninhibited ease to the way she ate.
Her chopsticks darted quickly and accurately. As she chewed, her cheeks puffed out, and her eyes kept sweeping over the food left on the table, as if she were counting the spoils of war.
There were two chickens, one for each of them. Deng Tianxin had already picked his clean, leaving only bones. Hers was nearly finished too, and the chicken bones were stacked neatly along the edge of the plate.
"Eat more slowly," Deng Tianxin said, unable to help himself as he watched Liu Erlong devour her food. "No one's fighting you for it."
"And you have the nerve to say that about me?" Liu Erlong glanced at the chicken bones in front of him. "You ate yours even faster."
"I'm still growing."
"I'm seventeen. I'm still growing, too," Liu Erlong said without batting an eye.
Deng Tianxin was at a loss for words. The woman's logic was unexpectedly flawless.
At seventeen, she really was still growing. He couldn't exactly say that only seven-year-old kids deserved chicken legs.
"Have you heard? That good-for-nothing from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan came up with something called the Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul."
"I know. His name's Yu Xiaogang."
The conversation at the next table carried just far enough for Deng Tianxin and Liu Erlong to hear.
The speaker was a middle-aged traveling merchant, holding a wine cup and wearing a tipsy look. He was bragging to his tablemate about what he'd heard.
"The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's one of the Upper Three Sects, after all. Having a good-for-nothing like that come out of it must be the worst luck in the world. A direct descendant of the Dragon Clan, and his Martial Soul mutated into a pig. He's been stuck at level twenty-nine and can't break through..." The merchant took a sip of wine and clicked his tongue twice. "But it's strange. The good-for-nothing can't do anything else, but he did write a book called The Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul. I hear it's pretty famous among Soul Masters."
"What good is being famous? He's still a good-for-nothing," the person across from him scoffed. "What future can a man who studies theory have? In this world, strength matters, not the written word."
Deng Tianxin was surprised, and at the same time a little puzzled. Had the Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul appeared this early?
Honestly, he couldn't take Yu Xiaogang's Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul seriously.
But when he thought of the person Yu Xiaogang was based on, it seemed perfectly normal.
Curious, Liu Erlong quietly asked Deng Tianxin, "Tianxin, do you know what the Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul are?"
Hearing Liu Erlong's question, Deng Tianxin set down his chicken leg and wiped the grease from his mouth with his sleeve. A rather peculiar expression appeared on his little face.
"Of course I know," Deng Tianxin said, undisguised scorn in his voice. "Yu Xiaogang wrote it. He's from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, a level-twenty-nine theoretical master. How should I put it? It's not all nonsense, but it's not much use either."
As he spoke, his gaze drifted toward Liu Erlong.
According to the original story, Liu Erlong would fall in love with Yu Xiaogang in the future, loving him so deeply she couldn't live without him. When they were about to marry, Yu Xiaogang would learn that Liu Erlong was his cousin and leave without hesitation.
Then Liu Erlong would go mad and slaughter Soul Beasts everywhere.
"Oh?" Liu Erlong raised an eyebrow, apparently surprised by his assessment. "What do you mean?"
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