Tang San: "A selection?"
Wang Sheng cleared his throat, trying hard to put on a serious expression.
"New brothers, allow me to introduce myself—"
He pointed to himself. "My name is Wang Sheng, my Martial Soul is War Tiger, and I'm an eighth-rank Battle Soul Master. I'm the acting dorm leader of Dorm Seven."
Then he pointed to the children beside him. "This is Gou Dan, this is Er Gou, this is San Wa, this is Tie Zhu, this is Shi Tou..."
He rattled off seven or eight names, but Tang San didn't remember a single one.
Su Mo, on the other hand, remembered a few—mainly because their names were so distinctive.
Gou Dan, Er Gou, San Wa, Tie Zhu, Shi Tou...
The naming style in this dorm was remarkably consistent. It had a distinctly rustic, farmer-like feel.
After Wang Sheng finished introducing everyone, he said solemnly, "Our Dorm Seven has a rule."
Tang San asked curiously, "What rule?"
Wang Sheng took a deep breath, his voice growing impassioned.
"New roommates have to take on the whole dorm! If they win, they become the new dorm leader! If they lose, they listen obediently!"
Tang San blinked. "Why do you do that?"
Wang Sheng's gaze grew profound.
He spoke slowly, his voice carrying a world-weary air far beyond his years.
"Because Notting Academy is a miniature Soul Master World!"
Tang San's expression turned serious.
Wang Sheng continued, "The weak are prey to the strong, and the strong are revered! We Work-Study Students are at the bottom of the academy. We're the most vulnerable group! If we can't stand united and choose the strongest leader, we'll end up like humanity in ancient times—"
He paused, his voice rising.
"Enslaved by all races! Bullied by the strong! Abandoned by the world!"
Tang San's eyes lit up.
Wang Sheng grew more and more excited as he spoke. "That's why we have to use battle to choose the strongest dorm leader! Someone who can lead us through this perilous Notting Academy and help us survive!"
When he finished, he clenched his fists, his gaze burning bright.
The dorm fell silent.
Tang San clenched his fists too, his gaze burning bright. "So the Soul Master World really is just as I imagined! Brother Wang Sheng, I understand you! The path of a Soul Master is one of endless struggle! Every step is fraught with danger!"
"Exactly, exactly! You understand me, brother!"
The two six-year-old boys gazed into each other's eyes as if they'd found kindred spirits, their meeting long overdue.
Su Mo watched them from the side and fell silent.
Life in Holy Soul Village had been so peaceful that he'd almost forgotten he was in the perilous world of Soul Masters.
But something about this didn't feel right...
He couldn't help asking, "Wang Sheng, where did you hear all that?"
Wang Sheng replied as if it were obvious, "In storybooks!"
Su Mo: "..."
Wang Sheng said, "Soul Master Anecdotes, Legend of Douluo Heroes, Legend of the Seven Devils... There are tons of them!"
They were all local Douluo storybooks.
Su Mo fell silent.
He'd nearly been led astray by these two chuunibyou kids.
Wang Sheng continued, "Especially Battle Through the Heavens. Xiao Yan is so cool! 'Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river. Don't bully a poor young man!' Too bad my copy's incomplete. I still haven't read the whole thing!"
Tang San's eyes shone even brighter. "You've read it too?!"
Wang Sheng nodded. "You've read it too?!"
"My master wrote it!"
"Your master?!" Wang Sheng looked at Su Mo, his expression changing instantly.
Su Mo: "..."
He suddenly had a bad feeling.
Wang Sheng took a deep breath and was about to say something when Gou Dan timidly spoke up beside him.
"Um... Brother Wang Sheng, aren't we getting off track?"
Wang Sheng froze.
Gou Dan pointed at Big Black Ox. "We all just ganged up on it, and it won. So... it should be the new dorm leader, right?"
Everyone looked at Big Black Ox.
Big Black Ox held its head high, its tail sticking up even higher.
"Moo." (That's right. It's me.)
Wang Sheng's face fell.
A cow as dorm leader?
How could that work?
Cows couldn't talk. How could one lead them?
Tang San saw his dilemma and suddenly had an idea.
"Brother Wang Sheng, I have a plan!"
Wang Sheng looked at him.
Tang San pointed at Su Mo. "Big Black Ox belongs to my master! So we can make my master our leader instead!"
Su Mo froze.
Wait.
What had he just done?
He'd only stood at the door watching. He hadn't done anything.
How had he suddenly become the leader?
He opened his mouth to refuse. "No, I—"
"Boss Su!"
Tang San thrust his arm into the air and shouted.
"Boss Su! Boss Su!"
Wang Sheng joined in.
"Boss Su! Boss Su! Boss Su!"
Gou Dan, Er Gou, San Wa, Tie Zhu, Shi Tou... Everyone joined the chant.
Su Mo: "..."
Before he could say another word, a group of kids had already lifted him into the air.
"Woo-hoo! Boss Su! Boss Su!"
They hoisted him onto their shoulders and paraded him around the cramped dorm, their cheers shaking the rafters.
Su Mo lay suspended in the air, staring at the swaying ceiling with a look of utter despair.
All he'd wanted was to quietly watch the show.
How had he ended up being thrust into the spotlight?
Big Black Ox watched from the side, its tail swishing merrily.
"Moo." (Serves you right.)
After circling the room several times, they finally put him down.
Wang Sheng was panting, but his face was alight with excitement. "Boss Su! From now on, you're the leader of Dorm Seven! We'll all follow your lead!"
Su Mo rubbed his dizzy head and replied weakly, "...Fine."
Wang Sheng looked at Big Black Ox again, his eyes full of reverence.
"Boss Su, with a senior like Big Black Ox being so powerful, it must be your bodyguard, right?"
Su Mo glanced at Big Black Ox.
Big Black Ox looked back at him, a hint of anticipation in its eyes.
Bodyguard?
That was a pretty good title.
Su Mo thought for a moment, then said,
"It's not my bodyguard."
Wang Sheng froze. "Then what is it?"
Su Mo replied without expression,
"Emergency food."
Big Black Ox's expression froze on the spot.
"Moo???"
(What the heck???)
Wang Sheng and the others were stunned too.
Emergency food?
To eat?
Eat beef?
They looked at Big Black Ox, then at Su Mo, then back at Big Black Ox, their expressions growing more and more complicated.
Big Black Ox panicked.
"Moo, moo, moo!" (Explain yourself! Who are you calling emergency food?!)
Su Mo patted its head. "I'm joking."
Big Black Ox glared at him.
"Moo." (You'd better be joking.)
"Is anyone here? Is this Dorm Seven?"
A clear female voice suddenly rang out.
Su Mo turned at the sound.
Then he froze.
A girl stood in the doorway.
She looked about six or seven years old, with a long scorpion braid and a pair of clear, bright eyes. A faint pink blush colored her cheeks, and she looked like a fresh, just-washed peach.
Most importantly—
That face.
Su Mo's pupils contracted sharply.
Lin Xiaowu.
It was Lin Xiaowu.
The girl who had confessed to him in the library, the student he'd fought desperately to save, the figure he'd clutched protectively to his chest as he fell—
At that very moment, she stood before him.
Only a few sizes smaller.
Like a miniature version of herself.
Su Mo's mouth moved faster than his brain.
"Xiao Wu?!"
The girl froze.
She tilted her head and blinked those big eyes, looking puzzled.
"You know me?"
The girl walked in without a hint of shyness, her braid swinging behind her.
"My name is Xiao Wu—the Wu in 'dance'! What's yours?"