A Different Way of Combing Hair

The quality of Teacher Xiao Wu's private tutoring was truly beyond reproach.

The first lesson was about falling.

This fall served to curb arrogance and impatience.

In a way, this was the hidden objective of the first lesson.

To learn grappling techniques well, one must first possess at least a basic sense of reverence for them.

If one did not take grappling seriously, there would be no need for Xiao Wu to put in such dedicated effort; she could have just continued the playful, lighthearted bickering from before.

Jiang Jiu's performance undoubtedly satisfied Xiao Wu, which in turn gave her a greater sense of accomplishment as a teacher.

"That's enough for today. Let's go take a bath and change our clothes," Xiao Wu said, clapping her hands.

There were no private bathrooms in Dorm Seven; to bathe, one had to fetch water and wash in the communal bathhouse.

The bathhouse was, at least, divided by gender.

As someone who had once lived in the south, Jiang Jiu was, to be honest, very unaccustomed to such bathing conditions, though fortunately, there was no one else in the bathhouse at this hour.

It looks like I'll have to start waking up early to bathe from now on.

Jiang Jiu even toyed with the idea of renting a room outside.

Setting aside these distracting thoughts, he began to recall Xiao Wu's "instruction."

His shoulders, back, buttocks, legs, chest, and sides were all hot and flushed.

One of the core concepts of the falling technique Xiao Wu taught was to maximize the contact area between the body and the ground while protecting vital areas, such as the head, neck, and important joints.

This was what is known as "ukemi."

She had yet to teach him more advanced techniques for dissipating force, but he had managed to figure out a few things about how to circulate his soul power to protect his body in time.

When he was forced into the air, his body had reacted faster than his brain could process, with his soul power responding before his conscious mind.

For a commoner soul master like Jiang Jiu, being able to direct soul power at will—gathering it in whichever part of the body he desired without using a martial soul avatar—was not something that came naturally.

It required long-term exploration and practice.

Those without formal training could only practice bit by bit on their own.

Fortunately, he, Jiang Jiu, now had a "mentor," even if that mentor was a hundred-thousand-year soul beast in human form.

One could learn a few things at a primary soul master academy, but learning anything tailored to one's specific needs was unlikely.

If one's innate talent wasn't outstanding, one would end up just like everyone else at an advanced academy: ignored and obscure.

A good one-on-one teacher was far too important.

After bathing, Jiang Jiu met up with Xiao Wu again.

Xiao Wu's hair was now loose, and her small, fair face had a healthy flush.

"Hmm, Xiao Jiu, you should grow your hair out as long as mine, too? Hehe, my scorpion braid is a lethal weapon in actual combat, you know."

Looking at Jiang Jiu's long golden hair, Xiao Wu intended to have him style it into a scorpion braid as well.

That would make them a proper master and disciple, wouldn't it!

"Will it really not break? Or get pulled by someone?"

Although he knew Xiao Wu had a specific combat technique involving her scorpion braid to lock an opponent's neck, in Jiang Jiu's ingrained perception, hair was truly a weakness—like the classic hair-pulling move.

Unless one's hair was their martial soul, possessing the ability to grow freely and self-repair after damage.

However, if one spoke of weaknesses, close-quarters combat was already inherently high-risk; every part of the body could potentially be a point for an opponent to land a critical strike, so having an extra means of attack was a good thing.

"Dummy, we're using grappling techniques. The same escape skills can be applied to hair, as long as you infuse it with soul power," Xiao Wu said, flicking her long hair, which rippled as if it had a life of its own.

"I'll show you in a bit."

Back in Dorm Seven, Xiao Wu took a comb from her small bundle and began to groom her long hair.

As she combed, she said to Jiang Jiu, "Watch closely. This is how you weave a scorpion braid."

As Xiao Wu set down the comb, her hands began to weave the braid.

"Like this... like this... and then like this. Finally, tie it off with a cloth strip, and it's done!" Xiao Wu playfully flicked her long scorpion braid, which was now secured with a pink cloth strip.

"Did you understand?" She looked back at Jiang Jiu.

"Not at all." Jiang Jiu remained silent for a moment before giving this answer.

He couldn't tell if Xiao Wu simply lacked any talent for teaching hair braiding, or if Jiang Jiu's talent for grappling was just vastly superior to his talent for styling hair.

Jiang Jiu felt it was Xiao Wu's fault.

"Forget it, I'll braid it for you myself."

Xiao Wu looked at the small purple comb in her hand and hesitated for a moment.

"Can we not?"

"Sit still!" Xiao Wu pressed Jiang Jiu down onto the bed, leaned in close, and began to carefully comb through his hair.

"Your hair quality is quite good," Xiao Wu remarked, feeling that Jiang Jiu's golden hair had a wonderful texture, a different kind of comfort compared to her own black hair.

Jiang Jiu felt the movement of the comb and the touch of Xiao Wu's palms, and that illusion of reversed roles returned once more.

Did we get this backward?

Before he could dwell on it, Xiao Wu's hands began grabbing and sectioning his hair.

His thick, silky long hair made braiding a delight for Xiao Wu; no matter how she styled it, it looked good.

"Mm, finished." There was a hint of lingering enjoyment in Xiao Wu's voice.

"How should I put this... it doesn't seem quite right?" She then scrutinized her work and spoke up.

Xiao Wu's signature scorpion braid was better suited for someone fresh and playful, as it made a person look exceptionally delicate and cute once finished.

Clearly, Jiang Jiu's temperament did not fall into that category.

After a moment of thought, Xiao Wu began making adjustments.

She took a new strip of cloth from her bundle, twisted it by hand, and slowly converted Jiang Jiu's scorpion braid into an updo, leaving a small cowlick on the crown of his head and bangs hanging on both sides of his cheeks, revealing a gentle yet firm, regal temperament.

Xiao Wu pulled back to look, nodded in satisfaction, and then snuck back in to adjust the cloth ribbon at the back of Jiang Jiu's head into the shape of a bow.

"Perfect!" She clapped her hands.

Jiang Jiu felt as if he were sitting in a barbershop, bored out of his mind. He couldn't see exactly what his hair looked like, but perhaps it was better than watching a failed gacha pull in the mirror?

"Why did you put my hair up?" He could perceive that much clearly.

"It looks better this way, though it doesn't look much like us Soft Bone Rabbit soul masters anymore..." Xiao Wu began to mutter with a hint of resentment.

"Practicality is more important, isn't it?" Jiang Jiu had a different opinion.

"Don't worry, once you untie your ribbon, it'll be a scorpion braid just like mine. Untie it for training and actual combat, and keep it like this for daily life."

"You're the teacher, I'll listen to you."

"Then let's go out and play! Hmph, why haven't Wang Sheng and the others shown their faces? Do they not have me, their boss, in their eyes?" Xiao Wu's topic jumped abruptly.

Jiang Jiu rolled his eyes.

In his memory, Wang Sheng and the others had returned, but that was when they saw him being thrown around by a gleeful Xiao Wu at the door; they were likely scared off by her.