Early the next morning.
The opening ceremony ended in the morning, leaving the students with nothing to do that afternoon. Most of them had returned to their dorms or gone home.
After all, according to the school's usual routine, they wouldn't start classes until the next day.
"Ah! Xiao Hao! I'm so bored..." In the villa bedroom, Du Hao propped his chin on his hand and watched Xiao Wu roll around on the bed.
"Bored? How about we go wander around Nuoding City? We've got nothing else to do." Watching Xiao Wu roll about, Du Hao closed the thick book in front of him, rubbed his temples, and made the suggestion.
This Introduction to Soul Power Manipulation and Burial was giving him a headache. He knew all the characters, but put together, they might as well have been another language.
It felt just like math in his previous life.
"Sounds great! Zhuqing, want to come too?" Xiao Wu sprang up from the bed and looked over at Zhu Zhuqing, who was practicing nearby, seeking her opinion.
"No, you two go ahead." Zhu Zhuqing shook her head. Feeling Soul Power surge within her, she said she still needed to practice.
Her eyes inadvertently slid toward Du Hao, a hard-to-read look in them.
As though she'd seen right through something.
"Then Xiao Hao and I are heading out!" Xiao Wu grabbed Du Hao, who was sitting by the desk, and swiftly pulled him toward the door!
Xiao Wu was a hundred percent on board with Du Hao's suggestion. After all, she was a rabbit~
It was only natural for her to be lively and active.
She couldn't wait to get outside.
Feeling the touch of her little hand, Du Hao smiled faintly behind her.
The little rabbit had fallen into the trap!
He turned back and gave Zhu Zhuqing a thumbs-up, signaling his admiration for her plan, then pointed at the book he'd just closed.
Silently, he mouthed, "Deal done!"
"..." Zhu Zhuqing opened her eyes and gazed at the closed door. She sighed without a sound.
"Master... no, I should call him Brother Hao now. I wonder if this is the right thing to do..." She sat in the spot where Du Hao had been, staring blankly at the book's cover as if recalling the scene from last night.
"Forget it. I'll let things take their course."
From the moment Du Hao and Xiao Wu left together, they kept holding hands like childhood sweethearts, drawing frequent glances from the people on the street.
The whole afternoon.
Xiao Wu dragged Du Hao all over the streets. No matter what caught her eye, she pulled him along to take a look. They didn't skip the snacks either, buying several portions of each to sample.
By the time the afternoon was over.
Du Hao's smiling face had vanished. He covered his face, feeling as though his legs no longer belonged to him.
As expected, online novels from his previous life hadn't lied to him.
Women truly were marvelous creatures. After shopping for hours, he was completely numb.
But Xiao Wu still had energy to spare, showing no sign of fatigue at all. Her stamina was terrifying!
Even Du Hao, whose will had been tempered by over a century of swordsmanship, was starting to feel a little restless.
"Xiao Hao? Why do you look so listless?" Back in the academy villa dormitory, Xiao Wu bounced over to Du Hao, her big eyes wide with curiosity.
"That's because the pasta got mixed with concrete number 42, which caused the Doria effect. Then the Ote factor led to..." Du Hao sprawled on the living room sofa and spun an utterly straight-faced nonsense story.
"Hm? What kind of nonsense are you talking about?"
In just two days, Xiao Wu and Du Hao had grown much closer, thanks to Du Hao's efforts and Zhu Zhuqing's help.
"Once the meat in the bowl is cooked through, it'll be time for me to dig in. Heh heh~" Du Hao gloated inwardly.
After these few days together, Du Hao and Zhu Zhuqing had taken excellent care of Xiao Wu. The little rabbit was deeply touched!
During this time, Du Hao had managed to change the way Xiao Wu addressed him from "Xiao Hao" to "Brother Hao"—a great success!
As for cultivating Soul Power?
What a joke. He already had Innate Soul Power. If he weren't waiting to improve his physical fitness, he would have gone to obtain his First Soul Ring ages ago.
Of course, a little laziness played a part too. After all, physical training wasn't the only way to earn rewards. He could train on his own if he wanted.
He'd just been through too many hard days and wanted to slack off for a while.
If he could lie down and earn rewards, why work so hard?
It seemed, though, that his little stash of Gold Soul Coins had been shrinking rather quickly lately.
It wasn't that Du Hao had been spending much himself.
In fact, he rarely spent money. The biggest expenses were Zhu Zhuqing's growing appetite, along with Xiao Wu's food and entertainment. The money was flowing out like a rushing stream.
A mere hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins wasn't nearly enough.
"Sister Xiao Wu! Have you seen Boss Tang San?" Just then, one of the kids from Dorm Seven suddenly knocked on his door and called out, asking where Tang San was.
"What's wrong? Why are you in such a hurry?" Xiao Wu opened the door and asked the kid outside.
"Wang Sheng's been cornered by Xiao Chenyu and his people! Sister Xiao Wu, do you know where Boss Tang San is?" The kid was obviously frantic, and had almost lost his composure.
"Xiao Chenyu? Are they picking a fight for no reason?" Du Hao asked curiously.
"Yeah! For no reason at all. Those people just can't stand us work-study students. Boss Wang Sheng got ambushed this time, and we can't help him at all! Sister Xiao Wu, could you go help Boss Wang Sheng?"
"Of course! They dare bully one of my underlings? Come on, show me the way! I'll teach them a lesson!" Xiao Wu immediately bristled with anger, her eyes alight with the flames of battle!
Although she hadn't been living in Dorm Seven these past few days, Tang San had become its dorm leader, making Xiao Wu the big sister to everyone through their complicated ties.
Now that one of her own had been bullied, how could Xiao Wu stand by? She was ready to go stand up for him at once!
"That's great, Sister Xiao Wu!" Just when all hope seemed lost, the kid nodded eagerly and led Xiao Wu, Du Hao, and Zhu Zhuqing along.
Beside Xiao Wu, Du Hao had already taken out his Green Onion, which he'd infused with Soul Power, making the Emerald Green Onion harder and more useful.
Even Zhu Zhuqing wore a cold expression now, following close behind Du Hao, ready to fight at any moment.
In no time, the four of them arrived at the scene.
Wang Sheng and the others were facing off against a group of people. Neither side was giving an inch, and the atmosphere was tense.
When one side saw the four of them approaching, they immediately burst out laughing!
"Wang Sheng, you're going backward with age! Can't believe you only called over some little kid. What, you bringing them along to take a beating for you?" Xiao Chenyu jeered.
The more than twenty people behind him also burst into mocking laughter, not taking the group in front of them seriously at all.
"Hmph! What's so great about you?" Xiao Wu waved her fist fiercely and taunted them. "Think you can take Sister Xiao Wu? I'll knock every last one of you flat!"
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