Xiao Wu, the 'Wu' of Dance

Gu Han walked to the door of Dorm Seven, took a deep breath, and pushed open the somewhat dilapidated wooden door. A wave of noise instantly flooded his ears.

Several children of similar age were crowded into the large dormitory. Hearing the sound, their gazes collectively focused on the newcomer, Gu Han.

A tall, sturdy boy walked over, arms crossed, with a hint of provocation:

"A new work-study student? I'm Wang Sheng, the boss of Dorm Seven."

"According to the rules, newcomers have to show their strength. Come on, let's spar."

Gu Han had anticipated this and nodded calmly: "Gu Han."

Before he could even finish speaking or settle into a stance, the door behind him was pushed open again, and a crisp, slightly willful voice rang out: "Who is the boss here? Come out!"

Everyone turned at the sound to see a pretty little girl standing at the doorway.

She was not tall, dressed in a pink outfit. Her delicate face was fair with a rosy flush, and her long black hair was styled into a scorpion braid that hung past her hips. A pair of large, watery eyes looked inside with curiosity.

Wang Sheng was stunned for a moment and instinctively replied: "I am. What do you want?"

The little girl blinked her large eyes and walked straight in. Her gaze swept over the crowd before finally landing on Gu Han and Wang Sheng, who were standing in the center:

"What are you doing? Fighting? That sounds fun, I want to join too! If I win, does that mean I'm the boss?"

Wang Sheng felt a bit awkward, just about to explain that this was the rule for work-study students.

But the little girl couldn't wait. With a flash of movement, she charged straight toward Gu Han. She seemed to have an intuition that Gu Han, standing there, was the strongest one present.

Before Gu Han could even observe Xiao Wu, she had suddenly lunged at him.

"Hey, fight me!" Xiao Wu shouted, her slender legs carrying a gust of wind as she delivered a whip kick straight toward Gu Han's face.

Gu Han's eyes narrowed. She really was a rabbit; this speed far exceeded that of an ordinary person.

Although he was not skilled in direct hand-to-hand combat, his observational skills were far beyond the norm.

In his field of vision, Xiao Wu's movements became exceptionally slow and clearly visible.

However, he did not take the hit head-on. He shifted his feet and leaned back slightly, dodging the kick.

Xiao Wu's attack missed, a flash of surprise crossing her eyes, but her next move was even faster. Her other leg followed like a whirlwind, her offensive fierce.

Gu Han still chose not to meet force with force. He simply continued to dodge and parry with concise movements.

To outsiders, it seemed as if he could always predict Xiao Wu's attacks a step in advance, making the scene appear somewhat eerie.

After a series of failed attacks, Xiao Wu grew annoyed. Her offense became more urgent, and she lost her footing.

Gu Han spotted this flaw and finally made his move.

He didn't use any soul skills; he simply used his hand to precisely tap a joint connection on her lower leg.

"Ouch." Xiao Wu felt a numbness in her lower leg, her strength instantly dissipating. Losing her balance, she stumbled back two steps. Just as she was about to fall, Gu Han lunged forward and caught her.

Once she stood steady and rubbed her numb leg, she glared at Gu Han, pouting. However, there was less contempt in her eyes and more unwillingness:

"You... you cheated! You didn't fight me head-on, just kept dodging."

Gu Han said calmly: "Winning is all that matters."

"By the way, let me introduce myself. My name is Xiao Wu, 'Wu' as in dance." Xiao Wu reached out her hand toward Gu Han.

"I'm Gu Han." He also reached out and shook Xiao Wu's hand, though he only stated his name flatly.

According to the rules of Dorm Seven, whoever defeated the former boss became the new one.

Although Gu Han hadn't directly defeated Wang Sheng, the strength he displayed had already convinced all the work-study students. Even Wang Sheng scratched his head, accepting Gu Han's status.

Although Xiao Wu had lost, her lively nature meant she quickly cast the unpleasantness aside and instead became interested in Gu Han.

She looked at the only empty bed in the dormitory, which happened to be next to Gu Han's, and leaned in close to him, saying in a tone that was both coquettish and matter-of-fact:

"Um... I see the bed next to you is empty. Can we push our two beds together?"

As soon as she said this, the surrounding work-study students burst into laughter.

Gu Han frowned slightly and refused without hesitation: "No. You sleep in that empty bed yourself."

The smile on Xiao Wu's face stiffened. From the time she was little, she had never been rejected so bluntly. A sense of grievance mixed with embarrassment welled up in her heart. She stomped her foot and flicked her scorpion braid:

"Hmph! Who cares about sleeping next to you! You're a block of wood!" After saying this, she angrily grabbed her small bundle and walked toward the empty bed, though she snuck glances at Gu Han from time to time, hoping he would change his mind.

The next afternoon.

Gu Han, Xiao Wu, and the work-study students of Dorm Seven were preparing to head to the cafeteria.

However, they were blocked at the edge of the playground by several students wearing expensive clothes who were a head taller than them.

"Yo, isn't this the poor work-study trash?"

"What, did a pretty little girl join this year?" The sixth-grade student's gaze swept over the work-study students' simple clothes with contempt.

Finally, his eyes landed on Xiao Wu's delicate face, and he wore a malicious smile: "Little sister, what's the point of hanging out with these poor losers? Why not come and play with us instead?"

Xiao Wu's brows shot up, and she was about to lash out.

Gu Han stepped forward, shielding Xiao Wu slightly behind him, and looked at the sixth-grade student with calm, emotionless eyes: "Move."

"Heh, a work-study student with quite the attitude?" The student felt he had lost face and, unable to let it go, reached out to shove Gu Han.

Just then, a voice called out: "What are you doing?"

Everyone turned at the sound to see Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang and Tang San approaching. The Grandmaster looked at the sixth-year students with a stern expression.

Those students clearly recognized the Grandmaster; though reluctant, they reined themselves in and muttered, "Consider yourselves lucky," before sullenly leading their group away.

The Grandmaster looked at Gu Han and Xiao Wu, nodded, and then said to Tang San and Gu Han:

"Your soul power has reached level ten. I will take you to the Soul Hunting Forest tomorrow to absorb a soul ring; otherwise, your soul power will remain stagnant. Gu Han, you should come along as well."

Gu Han nodded. "Alright."

Though he appeared calm on the surface, his heart was in turmoil. He had not expected that even after he had weakened Tang San's soul power to level seven, it had recovered to level ten in just a single day.

As expected of the Child of Destiny. After sighing to himself, Gu Han looked at Xiao Wu and spoke slowly: "Xiao Wu, do you want to come with us?"

Upon hearing Gu Han's words, a flash of panic crossed Xiao Wu's face, and she shook her head before running off into the distance.

Gu Han certainly knew the reason why, but that was a secret only he could know.