Brainwashed Ye Xinglan

Afterward, Cao Xin withdrew his gaze.

No matter what the truth was.

It was never wrong to be careful.

He would never assume that Tang Hao or Tang San...

Would simply sit by and watch him become a god.

Even if, in theory, they were on the same side.

When it came to a godhood, so-called friendship and alliances were far too fragile.

So before that...

He had to make himself stronger—strong enough to handle any situation that might arise.

Just as Cao Xin was planning to find a Six-Ring Soul Emperor from Shrek Inner Academy to test his skills against, Ye Xinglan and Xu Lizhi, who had just left, walked back toward him.

Ye Xinglan walked in front. Her face was still cool and aloof, but her steps were slightly faster than before.

Xu Lizhi followed behind, panting heavily. Confusion and unease filled his round face, and he clearly did not understand why Ye Xinglan had suddenly turned back.

Ye Xinglan stopped in front of Cao Xin.

"Who are you?"

"Why have I never seen you before?"

Cao Xin paused slightly, then frowned.

His brows creased faintly as he looked at the girl before him, whose expression was indifferent and whose tone was stiff. A trace of displeasure rose in his heart.

"Who I am seems to have nothing to do with you."

"Does it matter whether you've seen me before?"

At this moment, Xu Lizhi caught up as well.

He ran to Ye Xinglan's side, panting, his round face piled with a placating smile.

"Yeah, Sister Xinglan."

"You don't even know him..."

"Why ask him that?"

His tone carried an attempt at persuasion and comfort. Clearly, he wanted to ease the tension.

At once, a flash of anger passed through Ye Xinglan's eyes.

She had come to Shrek Inner Academy last year, when she awakened her Martial Soul.

Xu Lizhi had arrived at the Inner Court half a year after her.

But for some reason...

The moment Xu Lizhi entered the Inner Court, he had clung to her constantly, calling her Sister Xinglan every day.

Whether she went to practice swordsmanship, eat, or attend class, Xu Lizhi could always find some excuse to appear at her side, smiling as he called her "Sister Xinglan," as if they shared some close relationship.

She had told him many times...

To stop clinging to her.

But Xu Lizhi acted as though he could not understand...

And continued doing as he pleased.

That only made Ye Xinglan even angrier.

She had always liked peace and quiet, practicing her sword alone.

Her Stargod Sword required focus. Any outside disturbance would affect her perception and comprehension of Sword Intent.

Xu Lizhi being beside her would only disrupt her.

Yet the Inner Court teachers kept saying.

"Xinglan, Lizhi is extremely talented. It's practically certain that you two will form a team in the future."

"Xinglan, you need to learn how to get along with others. You can't always be alone."

"Xinglan, that's just Lizhi's temperament. Spend more time with him, and you'll get used to it."

But Ye Xinglan felt wronged.

Why should she accept Xu Lizhi?

Accept a fat guy?

As she thought that, her gaze inadvertently swept over Xu Lizhi's round face, which was filled with an ingratiating smile.

The resistance and irritation in her heart deepened even further.

Because of the Inner Court teachers, her temper had been terrible for the past half year.

The feeling of being arranged, decided for, and constantly told what she should be like was like a thorn lodged in her heart, making her increasingly irritable.

Because of that, she had challenged nearly everyone in the Inner Court who could fight. Sometimes, even winning did not calm her down. Losing only made her more frustrated.

By now, whenever people saw her...

They would immediately avoid her.

They were terrified that she would drag them off to serve as her punching bags.

In the end...

She no longer even had a way to vent.

Thinking of that...

Her fists clenched even tighter.

As it happened, this unfamiliar person before her looked about the same age as her. He was probably an Inner Court disciple too, and she had never seen him before. He would be perfect for some practice.

So she looked at Cao Xin and said directly.

"Want to fight?"

Xu Lizhi hurriedly said.

"Sister Xinglan, don't be like this."

"He doesn't even know you..."

Before he could finish.

The string in Ye Xinglan's mind snapped.

At that instant, the irritation, grievance, and pent-up frustration she had accumulated over half a year...

Exploded like gunpowder that had been ignited.

"Get the hell away from me!"

She roared.

Xu Lizhi looked at Ye Xinglan with a hurt expression. The smile on his round face froze, and his lips moved as if he wanted to say something, yet he did not know what to say.

In the end, he merely stood there blankly...

His eyes revealing a wounded look.

That made Cao Xin, who was watching from the side, frown as well.

How strange.

He remembered that when these two first appeared in the original story, their relationship had been quite good, hadn't it?

Although Ye Xinglan had a cold personality...

She had gotten along fairly well with Xu Lizhi.

One was aloof, while the other was enthusiastic...

They had been a complementary pair.

Why did they now seem like mortal enemies?

Looking at Ye Xinglan's slightly reddened eyes from anger and Xu Lizhi's face full of grievance, he simply could not connect the scene before him with the well-coordinated partners he remembered.

This was actually because Ye Xinglan and Xu Lizhi had already been ten years old when they first appeared in the original story.

More than three years had already passed.

During those three years...

The people around her had constantly urged her to accept Xu Lizhi and repeatedly criticized her arrogance and coldness.

Those words, which had originally only been meant to bring them together as good partners, gradually changed in meaning through years of repetition, making Ye Xinglan feel that her refusal and resistance had become a fault.

After all, Ye Xinglan was still a child.

A seven-year-old child, no matter how gifted or cold-tempered she was, had not yet formed a sufficiently solid sense of self.

After being brainwashed like that year after year...

Even her subconscious began to waver, and she began to wonder whether her persistence was truly wrong.

And so...

For no apparent reason, she accepted Xu Lizhi.

She even began to follow the Inner Court teachers' wishes and take the initiative to care for Xu Lizhi.

That concern was reluctant at first.

But at some point later...

It truly became a habit.

As for the reason, it was not that complicated.

At Shrek Academy, talent spoke for itself.

Whoever had greater talent...

Would receive more resources and attention.

After all, Xu Lizhi was a Food-type Soul Master with Innate Full Soul Power.

Even in Shrek Academy's records, Food-type Soul Masters with Innate Full Soul Power were exceedingly rare.

That meant his potential for future growth was extremely high.

Therefore, in the eyes of the Inner Court teachers...

Xu Lizhi was an uncut jade that needed to be carefully nurtured.

And so, Ye Xinglan became the one who was repeatedly persuaded and repeatedly told to "cooperate" and "accept."

Her own emotions and personal wishes...

Were repeatedly pushed into a secondary position before the "greater good."

Ye Xinglan continued roaring, as though she wanted to release all the emotions she had suppressed for half a year in this very moment.

"Can you stop clinging to me?!"

"I'm really sick of you!"

"Do you know that?!"