The examination ended. Li Yusong left Zhao Wuji behind and led the four of them through the dilapidated village toward the so-called dormitories.
Along the way, Ning Rongrong stuck to Su Chen like a piece of chewing gum, her big, watery eyes blinking nonstop.
"Brother Chen~, I was flying so high just now, my legs went all wobbly."
Her sickly-sweet, cutesy voice drifted through the air.
The sugar content was off the charts—enough to give someone diabetes on the spot.
She called him "Brother Chen" over and over, drawing out the last syllable until Su Chen's bones nearly melted.
Su Chen marveled inwardly: Good grief, is this what a top-tier support type is capable of?
But Xiao Wu, hanging off his left arm, wasn't having it.
Her back teeth ground together with a click. Where'd this little green tea come from?
They'd only just met, and she was already trying to steal her man.
"Hey, what do you mean, 'Brother Chen'? You think you can just call my boss whatever you want?" Xiao Wu glared at her, puffing up with anger.
Ning Rongrong acted as though she hadn't noticed Xiao Wu's murderous hostility. She even deliberately let her foot slip, cried, "Oh!" and leaned against Su Chen again.
"Sister Xiao Wu~, don't be so fierce. I've only just arrived, so I don't know anything yet. I just think Brother Chen is kind and makes me feel safe. I only want to be friends with him."
"You're so understanding, Sister. You definitely don't mind, right?"
Ning Rongrong lowered her head slightly and twisted the hem of her clothes between her hands, looking utterly pitiful, as though she'd suffered a terrible injustice.
That "Sister" made Xiao Wu feel sick.
She narrowed her eyes and sized Ning Rongrong up, her gaze finally settling on the other girl's chest.
Just a pair of A cups! Not worth having!
Xiao Wu puffed out her own modestly endowed chest.
With that little bit of nothing, there wasn't even a gap big enough to stuff a carrot into. And she thought she could steal her boss?
As they spoke, the group arrived at the dormitory area.
Calling them dormitories was generous. They were just wooden farmhouses.
The four stopped and looked ahead. Ning Rongrong's pitiful little face immediately fell, faster than the walls of Shrek.
"This is the dormitory? Is this even fit for people?"
Xiao Wu and the others pursed their lips in disgust, too.
Li Yusong flushed and hurriedly tried to smooth things over. "Well... the academy's funds are tight. Besides, the dean said it would 'temper your will and harden your body.'"
"Don't let the leaks in the roof and the drafts under the floor fool you. It's well ventilated! You'll be able to get closer to nature and feel the Soul Power of heaven and earth while you sleep!"
Su Chen rolled his eyes. Getting closer to nature, my ass. If a heavy storm hits tonight, we'll be getting close to the Dragon King.
Seeing their expressions, Li Yusong immediately added, "Don't worry, I'll go find the dean and ask him to get you a better brick house."
Su Chen waved a hand, cutting off Li Yusong's plan. "No need to go to all that trouble."
He walked over to an empty patch beside the wooden house, took a small metal sphere out of the system, and tossed it casually onto the ground.
"Your turn, fully furnished luxury villa!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, blinding light burst forth. Countless metal components unfolded, connected, and assembled in a dizzying blur!
Rumble!!
In less than thirty seconds, a three-story European-style mansion spanning more than three hundred square meters appeared before them.
It had marble Roman columns, floor-to-ceiling panoramic windows, and an enormous open-air terrace on the top floor.
Two Soul Tool night lamps even hung beside the front door, casting a gentle glow.
Beside this mansion, the row of ramshackle wooden houses instantly looked like dog kennels in a refugee camp.
The whole place fell silent.
Li Yusong's jaw nearly hit the ground. He'd lived for half his life and had never seen anything so absurd!
Just who was this kid? He'd pulled a whole house out of thin air!
And it wasn't just Li Yusong. Even Ning Rongrong, who'd seen her fair share of wonders, was dumbstruck.
She was born into the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and had seen more rare treasures than fish swimming across a river.
But she'd never seen anyone casually conjure up a house!
Yet amid her shock, the light in Ning Rongrong's eyes only grew brighter.
That casual display was further proof that Su Chen's origins were shrouded in mystery!
I'm going to have this man!
"Brother Chen~" Ning Rongrong raised her voice into an even more saccharine pitch, taking tiny steps over to Su Chen, stars sparkling in her eyes.
"That ramshackle wooden house is filthy. Can I live with you?"
The moment Xiao Wu heard that, her possessive instincts kicked in.
She stepped in front of Su Chen, blocking him with her body.
This flat-chested nobody couldn't even squeeze out a cleavage, and she already wanted to waltz right in and claim the place?
Did she think the hundred-thousand-year Rogue Rabbit was a pushover?!
"My boss doesn't take in flat-chested weirdos of unknown origin. Want a bed? Turn left at the door and sleep in the vegetable patch!"
Ning Rongrong's face stiffened, and anger flashed in her eyes.
You're the flat-chested weirdo. Your whole family is!
But for the sake of her goal, she forced down her anger and clung to Su Chen's arm, continuing to wheedle.
"Please, Brother Chen? I've been pampered since I was little. If I have to stay alone in that dark wooden house, I'll be scared at night."
As the saying went, a woman who knew how to act cute was the luckiest—and the deadliest.
Nearby, Zhu Zhuqing rubbed her arms hard, sending goosebumps cascading everywhere.
That coy, sugary manner made the cool catgirl feel sick.
However, faced with the sugar-coated bullets, Su Chen calmly slipped his arm free.
"With a mansion this big, you can stay if you want."
Ning Rongrong's face lit up at those words, while Xiao Wu grew so anxious she stamped her feet.
Su Chen pointed at Xiao Wu.
"To get the right to stay, go pay the rent to the financial officer. No money, no deal."
Xiao Wu immediately caught on. She raised her chin proudly, held out her little hand, and wore an expression that said, "Broke people, keep out."
"Money?"
Ning Rongrong paused, then burst into laughter.
If it were a contest in anything else, she might have had to think twice.
But a contest of wealth on Douluo Continent? The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had more than enough of that useless scrap metal!
She lifted her wrist elegantly and plucked a high-grade card with black and gold trim from her shimmering storage bracelet as casually as if it were nothing. Then she gave Xiao Wu's outstretched palm a light smack with it.
"You should've said so earlier! There's ten thousand Gold Soul Coins on this. It works at every Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect bank on the continent. Consider it my rent for the semester. If it's not enough, I'll add more!"
Ning Rongrong's tone was offhand, her generosity like that of some top livestream donor tossing out tips.
Xiao Wu held the feather-light card, her fingers trembling.
T-ten thousand Gold Soul Coins?!
She'd collected protection money at Nuoding City's elementary school for five years, working from dawn to dusk without a day off, and the little nest egg she'd saved wasn't even half that much.
This little green tea could pull out ten thousand just like that?
"Does this card really have ten thousand on it?" Xiao Wu could barely get the words out.
Ning Rongrong couldn't be bothered with the country bumpkin's clueless expression. She pushed the door open and went inside.
Her feet sank into the soft carpet, and stars practically burst from her eyes. Now this is a place fit for people!
The young lady of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect would rather die than live in a ramshackle wooden house.
"Wow! Brother Chen! The sofa in the living room is so big and soft!"
Her cries of amazement rang out from the living room. She made herself at home and dashed off to pick a room on the second floor.
Xiao Wu stood rooted to the spot, her miserly instincts triumphing over everything else.
"Hey, hey, don't run off so fast! You haven't told me where I can withdraw the money!" Xiao Wu chased her into the mansion.
Green tea or no green tea, it all had to take a back seat when money was involved.
As long as the money was good, even green tea could be a best friend!
Su Chen beckoned to Zhu Zhuqing, who was still standing there in a daze. There was a teasing note in his voice.
"Hey, little wildcat, what are you standing around for? Aren't you going to pick a room? Or would you rather stay in the dorm next door?"
"Y-you... who are you calling a little wildcat?!"
A blush spread across Zhu Zhuqing's cool, fair cheeks, and her delicate ears burned.
Being called a little wildcat made her feel utterly unsettled. Her heart even skipped a beat.
She'd meant to retort coolly and preserve her aloof Hell Spirit Cat image.
But after comparing the mansion to the drafty, ramshackle wooden house next door, Zhu Zhuqing strode off toward the second floor without a word, her long legs straight and graceful.
Dignity is precious, backbone more so, but for a big, soft bed, both can be tossed aside!