Fighting for Seats

Xue Wu followed close behind, striding out of the formation with a bold smile on her lips.

Once all the new students above rank twenty-five had taken their places at the very front of the square, Wu Changkong swept his gaze over them without a change in expression.

Out of two hundred and thirty new students, fewer than thirty were above rank twenty-five.

These twenty-odd students were the pinnacle of this year's pyramid, Skywater Academy's most elite force among the new intake.

Shui Qinghan's gaze paused on each of them in turn. When it finally settled on Wu Changkong, it lingered for two extra seconds.

She lowered her head, opened the roster in her hands, and began reading aloud.

"Elite Class, the following students..."

"Wu Changkong."

"Present."

"Shui Bing'er."

"Present."

"Xue Wu, Yu Hairou, Qiu Ruoshui, Shen Liuyu, Gu Qingbo, Shui Yue'er... Zhou Lin, Zhao Ya."

After reading all twenty-five names, Shui Qinghan closed the roster.

"The above students will be assigned to the Elite Class, with Teacher Ling Shuang serving as their homeroom teacher."

"Teacher Ling Shuang is one of our academy's most senior Soul Saint-level instructors, as well as the dean of academics."

After saying that, she nodded toward the side of the platform.

At that moment, a woman wearing gold-rimmed glasses walked out from the side of the stage.

She looked to be in her thirties, tall and slender, dressed in a fitted black short dress, black high heels, and black stockings that encased her long, straight calves.

Her features were proper, even rather attractive, but the stern, imposing aura between her brows made her appearance especially oppressive.

The eyes behind her glasses narrowed as her gaze swept across the twenty-five new students below the stage.

Shui Yue'er shrank her neck and leaned close to her sister's ear, muttering, "She looks so fierce. I feel like she'd shave three days off my life just by glaring at me once."

"A strict teacher produces outstanding students. It means a teacher like her is both responsible and capable."

Looking at Ling Shuang's unsmiling expression, Wu Changkong couldn't help but picture Tang Wulin in his mind.

He seemed to have been like that in the past too, yet he had raised an outstanding disciple.

Shui Qinghan continued presiding over the class assignments. The orientation carried on amid the calls of names, while the Elite Class students were already being led by an upperclassman toward the main teaching building.

The Elite Class classroom was located at the end of the second-floor corridor in the main teaching building.

When they pushed open the door, a spacious, bright classroom appeared before them.

The desks and chairs were arranged in three rows, with six double desks in each row. At the front stood a dark blackboard and a lectern.

Wu Changkong stood at the doorway, his gaze sweeping across the classroom.

He suddenly recalled the first time he had entered Shrek Academy in his previous life.

Back then, he had been a proud and unruly youth who believed the whole world lay beneath his feet.

Later, he had met Long Bing there, along with those companions who had fought at his side...

Now, he stood in a classroom at Skywater Academy. Before him were unfamiliar desks and chairs, while not one of those old friends who had vanished into the river of time remained.

His gaze casually passed over the front row and happened to meet a pair of clear, watery eyes.

Gu Qingbo sat in the middle seat of the row by the window, having taken her seat at some point.

She had been secretly watching Wu Changkong, her eyes carrying innocent shyness.

When she saw his gaze turn toward her, she quickly twisted her head away again.

At the same time, Shui Yue'er skipped over to her sister and Wu Changkong, pointing toward the window seats in the last row.

"Sis, Changkong, let's sit in the back."

"Sure."

The three of them headed toward the back of the classroom.

Shui Yue'er took the window seat herself, Shui Bing'er sat on the outside, and Wu Changkong sat in the row directly behind Shui Bing'er, beside the window against the back wall.

The view from this spot was excellent. The moment he raised his head, he could see Heavenwater Lake's vast, shimmering waves outside the window.

Wu Changkong had just sat down when a fiery figure strode over.

Immediately afterward, Xue Wu unceremoniously pulled out the chair from beneath the desk and dropped into the empty seat beside Wu Changkong.

She draped one arm over the back of her chair, crossed her legs, and even flashed Wu Changkong a cocky smile.

Wu Changkong said nothing, merely giving her a calm glance.

But Shui Yue'er, sitting in front of him, had a much bigger reaction.

Shui Yue'er glared at Xue Wu indignantly. "Hey, who said you could sit here?"

"No one's sitting here. Why can't I sit here? Does it have your name written on it?"

"No, but you still can't sit here!"

"Oh~"

"You like him?"

The instant she said that, the entire class turned toward the back row in unison.

The girls who had been searching for seats and chatting all perked up their ears.

Shui Yue'er hesitated. "I..."

She choked on her words. What could she say?

Say yes? That obviously wasn't true.

Say no? Then why was she stopping Xue Wu from sitting there?

"Hehe, I got it right, didn't I?"

"You got shit right! It's because my sister likes him!"

In an instant, everyone let out a collective gasp. Wu Changkong looked at Shui Bing'er, his heart pounding.

Shui Bing'er looked embarrassed and tugged at her sister's sleeve. "Yue'er, what nonsense are you talking about?"

Shui Yue'er looked at her sister with a wronged expression. "I was doing this all for you, Sis, and you're still being mean to me."

At that moment, Wu Changkong had a sudden idea and went with the flow. "Yue'er meant well. How about this? I'll switch seats with Yue'er."

"Fine, Sis will grant your wish."

Shui Yue'er rose from her seat and grabbed her little cloth bag in one motion, not forgetting to wink at her sister.

"Hey..."

Shui Bing'er raised a hand, intending to stop her sister and say forget it, there was no need to make such a fuss.

But Shui Yue'er had already reached the back row. She set her cloth bag on the desk and plopped down in Wu Changkong's original seat.

Watching the white-haired, cold-faced handsome boy beside her suddenly turn into the chattering Shui Yue'er, the cocky smile on Xue Wu's face visibly collapsed.

She snorted. "You're so boring."

"What kind of expression is that? Are you really that unhappy about sitting with me?"

"Happy."

"Thrilled."

Meanwhile, at the front, Wu Changkong had already settled securely into the seat beside Shui Bing'er.

"Bing'er."

"Mm? Why did you suddenly switch seats with Yue'er? Could it be..."

"Could it be what?"

Shui Bing'er's lips moved, but she swallowed the words that had reached her mouth.

She had wanted to ask, Do you like me, so you deliberately sat beside me to get closer to me?

But then she suddenly thought that if Wu Changkong said, "No," wouldn't that be unbearably awkward?

It was only their first day of school, and they would be desk mates for who knew how long. If such a misunderstanding really happened, where would she put her face?

"Nothing..."

Watching her flushed cheeks, Wu Changkong explained on his own, "I saw that Yue'er and Xue Wu had a conflict, so I had them sit together and cultivate their relationship."

"So that's how it was."

Shui Bing'er nodded, yet felt a little disappointed for some reason.

"Of course, there's another reason."

Shui Bing'er's ears perked up. "What reason?"