Moving Out, a Two-Person Dorm with Xiao Wu

After that fight, Xiao Wu did not give Lin Chen a pleasant look all day.

At mealtime, she carried her bowl to the farthest corner from Lin Chen and squeezed in with several other girls. When Lin Chen greeted her, she merely huffed and turned away, her braid swinging like an unhappy tail.

Lin Chen found it amusing and did not try to coax her.

That night, snores rose and fell throughout Dormitory Seven. More than a dozen children were crammed into one large room, where foot odor, sweat, and the sour stench of half a steamed bun someone had hidden beneath a bed and left to ferment all mixed together. It was enough to knock someone over.

Lin Chen lay on his wooden bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.

It was not that he disliked the poor conditions. In his previous life, he had spent plenty of nights working overtime and sleeping on the company floor. This little hardship was nothing. The problem was that he needed his own space.

During the day, he had to maintain his image around others. At night, he still needed to study his martial soul and the power of laws.

In a communal dorm like Dormitory Seven, forget cultivation—even if he pulled out a book to read, someone would come over and pester him with questions.

And besides...

Lin Chen turned his head and glanced at Xiao Wu, who was several beds away.

The little girl was curled up beneath her blanket, sleeping soundly with her mouth slightly open, revealing a sliver of small white teeth. Moonlight streamed through the window and fell across her face, making her porcelain-pale skin seem almost translucent.

This girl really was beautiful.

But that was not the point.

The point was that if she stayed in Dormitory Seven, she would inevitably have dealings with Tang San.

Lin Chen had noticed it that afternoon. The way Tang San looked at Xiao Wu was not quite right.

That look of curiosity and admiration was all too familiar to Lin Chen. In the novels he had read in his previous life, that was exactly how Tang San had started falling for Xiao Wu.

No.

He had to find a way to get Xiao Wu out of Dormitory Seven.

Early the next morning, Lin Chen went to the Academic Affairs Office.

Principal Li was drinking tea and reading the newspaper in his office. When he saw Lin Chen enter, he immediately set down the paper and greeted him with a smile. "Lin Chen, what is it? Are you getting used to living here?"

"Principal Li," Lin Chen said bluntly, "I want to change dormitories."

Principal Li froze. "Is Dormitory Seven uncomfortable? Or is there some other problem?"

"Yes." Lin Chen nodded. "There are too many people in Dormitory Seven. It is too noisy and affects my cultivation."

"This..." Principal Li scratched his head. "The academy's conditions are what they are. We really do not have single rooms. How about I add a bed for you at the end of the corridor? It should be a little quieter there."

"There is no need to go to so much trouble." Lin Chen said, "I heard there is a row of vacant staff dormitories behind the academy. Could you clear one out for me?"

Principal Li looked troubled. "Those are reserved for teachers. Although they are vacant now, it would be against the rules to let students stay there..."

"Principal Li," Lin Chen interrupted calmly, "I have innate soul power level thirty."

Principal Li opened his mouth, then swallowed the words that had reached his lips.

What did innate soul power level thirty mean? It meant this child would become at least a Title Douluo in the future, perhaps even reach level one hundred and become a god. For a small place like Nuoding Academy to produce such a student would be a blessing beyond measure.

If he offended him over a single dorm room and the child transferred schools in anger, where would he go to cry?

"Fine." Principal Li gritted his teeth. "I will arrange a room for you. But this cannot be publicized. The other students will have complaints if they find out."

"No problem." Lin Chen nodded. "Oh, and I want to bring someone with me."

The teacup Principal Li had just lifted nearly slipped from his hand. "You want to bring someone too? Who?"

"Xiao Wu."

"Xiao Wu? That little girl who arrived yesterday?" Principal Li set down his cup and wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Lin Chen, you have only known each other for one day, and you already want to move in together. This... this does not seem appropriate, does it?"

"What is inappropriate about it?" Lin Chen's expression did not change. "She is my younger sister."

"Your younger sister?" Principal Li looked at him suspiciously. "Aren't you from Holy Soul Village? Is she from Holy Soul Village too?"

"A distant cousin."

"..."

Principal Li was silent for a long while before finally sighing. "Fine, fine. I should not meddle too much in you young people's affairs. But Lin Chen, I have to remind you—if anything goes wrong, I will not be able to cover for you as principal."

"Do not worry. Nothing will go wrong."

As Lin Chen left the Academic Affairs Office with the key in hand, he happened to run into Xiao Wu in the corridor.

Xiao Wu was holding a bowl of soy milk, her cheeks puffed out as she chewed on something. When she saw Lin Chen, she froze for a moment, then quickly turned her head away and pretended not to see him.

"Xiao Wu."

"...What?"

"I'm taking you somewhere."

Xiao Wu turned back and looked at him warily. "Where?"

"You'll know when we get there."

After saying that, Lin Chen did not wait for her answer and headed straight toward the dormitory area. Xiao Wu hesitated where she stood for a few seconds, but in the end, her curiosity won out. Holding her soy milk, she jogged after him.

"Where exactly are you taking me?" Xiao Wu followed behind him, still chewing. "I haven't even finished breakfast."

"We're here."

Lin Chen stopped in front of a two-story building. It was much newer than Dormitory Seven, with freshly painted white walls and intact doors and windows. There was even an osmanthus tree in front, blooming with flowers and filling the air with fragrance.

"This is..." Xiao Wu was stunned.

Lin Chen took out the key and opened the door to the room on the left side of the first floor.

The room was not large, but it was neatly cleaned. Two beds stood side by side, each with a cabinet at its head. The window was large, and sunlight streamed in, making the entire room bright. There was even a private washroom in the corner. At Nuoding Academy, this was absolutely top-tier accommodation.

"We'll be living here from now on," Lin Chen said.

Xiao Wu stood at the doorway for a long while before reacting. "W-we?"

"Yes."

"Why should I live with you?" Xiao Wu's face flushed bright red. "I don't want to live with you!"

"Dormitory Seven smells too bad." Lin Chen walked into the room and pushed open the window. The fragrance of osmanthus drifted in. "Didn't you smell it last night?"

Xiao Wu opened her mouth, wanting to argue, but swallowed the words before they came out.

Because she really had smelled it.

The night before, the foot odor had also kept her tossing and turning. She had only barely fallen asleep after becoming utterly exhausted. When she woke up that morning, she had even thought she had been knocked unconscious by the smell.

"But... but boys and girls should keep their distance!" Xiao Wu argued, blushing.

"You're six, and I'm six. What distance is there to keep?" Lin Chen sat on the edge of a bed and looked up at her. "Besides, don't you want a quiet place to cultivate? Dormitory Seven is so noisy that you cannot even settle down to meditate."

Xiao Wu fell silent.

She had to admit that Lin Chen made sense. Dormitory Seven really was too noisy. She had tried meditating for a while the night before, only to be disturbed by the snoring of several boys nearby until she nearly suffered a backlash.

"And," Lin Chen added, "there is a private washroom here. You won't have to fight others for the latrine."

Xiao Wu's eyes lit up.

The night before, she had waited in line for nearly fifteen minutes just to use the bathroom and had almost been unable to hold it. She had not told anyone about that, because she found it embarrassing.

"...Fine, then." Xiao Wu finally relented, though her little face remained stern. "But I'm warning you, if you dare do anything bad to me, I'll beat you into a pig's head!"

"Can you beat me?"

"You—!"

Xiao Wu stomped her foot angrily, carried her soy milk into the room, and plopped down onto the other bed. The bedframe creaked loudly from the force.

"This bed is softer than the one in Dormitory Seven," she muttered.

Lin Chen smiled but said nothing.

Meanwhile, back at Dormitory Seven, Tang San had just returned from washing up and discovered that both Lin Chen and Xiao Wu were gone. He asked Wang Sheng, who said he seemed to have seen them heading toward the Academic Affairs Office.

Tang San stood at the entrance of Dormitory Seven, clutching a towel in his hand, feeling inexplicably empty inside.