What a Troublesome Little Brat

They walked along, stopping now and then.

But the farther Ye Lingling followed, the more she looked like she wanted to say something but held back.

"Lingling, just say whatever you want to say."

"You need to have more confidence."

"Um..." Ye Lingling gathered her courage and asked, "Why does it feel like... you're not very familiar with Spirit City either?"

"That's because I only arrived a few days ago too."

"I only know how to get around, along with some shops recommended by His Eminence Yue Guan."

After explaining, Yu Xiaogang immediately asked, "Did the academy arrange your dormitory according to the reply they gave you?"

"Um... it's all arranged."

"Are we going to the academy dorms now?" Ye Lingling had already memorized the route Yu Xiaogang had taken her through that morning.

It was indeed about time to go to the academy.

"More accurately, you're going. I'm heading to the Mimicry Training Room to cultivate later."

"I'll introduce you to someone in a moment. She'll help you familiarize yourself with daily life at the academy."

"It wouldn't be appropriate for a grown man like me to take you to the girls' dormitory."

It was still the same excuse.

Whether anyone else believed it or not was none of his concern. That was what he was saying, anyway.

Because he had sensed Hu Liena's aura in Spirit City, with two others beside her.

One of those auras shared a bloodline connection with Hu Liena. That was probably the Xie Yue Bibi Dong had mentioned.

As for the other aura... he didn't know it.

"Mm-hmm." Ye Lingling naturally agreed.

There really was nothing wrong with that reasoning.

Yu Xiaogang led Ye Lingling in the direction Hu Liena and the others were heading.

"Grandmaster! Good morning! Are you heading to class too? And this is...?" Hu Liena spotted that conspicuous tuft of white hair at once.

Looking closely, it really was Yu Xiaogang.

But there was also a delicate-looking girl beside him.

"Mm, good morning, Nana." Yu Xiaogang was planning to teach Hu Liena some things, so he used the same form of address as Bibi Dong.

The instant that name left his mouth, he clearly saw a flash of displeasure cross the face of the little brat he didn't recognize.

But he couldn't be bothered to care.

He then introduced Ye Lingling to Hu Liena. "This is Ye Lingling, a friend of mine. Her martial soul is the Nine-Hearted Begonia, and she'll be joining your class as a transfer student."

Hu Liena greeted Ye Lingling. "Hello, I'm Hu Liena. Since you're a friend of Grandmaster's, you're my friend too. You can call me Nana normally."

"Mm... hello. You can call me Lingling too..."

One look at Ye Lingling's manner told Hu Liena everything. No wonder Grandmaster had asked her for help. "This is my brother, Xie Yue. And this... you can call him Yan. He's our classmate."

Xie Yue did not show much expression, merely nodding. "Hello, Grandmaster, Ye Lingling."

But Yu Xiaogang detected a trace of longing in Xie Yue's eyes.

A longing to grow stronger.

Seeing this, the corners of Yu Xiaogang's lips curved slightly.

It seemed Hu Liena had mentioned him to Xie Yue after returning home.

In that case, it was only natural for Xie Yue to call him Grandmaster too.

"No, isn't he younger than us? Why are you two calling him Grandmaster? Could that actually be his name?"

Yan, on the other hand, looked thoroughly unconvinced.

"Yan!" Hu Liena snapped.

"Am I wrong? He looks like he's only six! Why does he get to be called Grandmaster? How does he dare accept a title like that? And why does he get to call you Nana?"

Seeing this, Ye Lingling instinctively took a step back behind Yu Xiaogang.

It felt like... her new classmate was a little hard to get along with...

How could Yu Xiaogang fail to understand what was happening?

To put it in the most direct and straightforward terms, this brat Yan had taken a liking to Hu Liena and wished that no men besides Xie Yue would get close to her.

Xie Yue was the exception because he was Hu Liena's biological brother.

Hu Liena became angry as well. "What does my relationship with Grandmaster have to do with you? And what exactly is your relationship with me?"

Yan was clearly the one pestering her.

Xie Yue's face was filled with helplessness. He gave Yu Xiaogang and Ye Lingling an apologetic look before stepping in to mediate. "All right, both of you, calm down."

"Yan, who Nana makes friends with and spends time with is her freedom. I hope you understand that."

But when it came time to speak to Hu Liena, Xie Yue's expression became much gentler. "Nana, it isn't appropriate to argue in the street. Things aren't like before. You're now His Holiness the Pope's disciple, and when you're out in public, you represent His Holiness the Pope in a way too. Understand?"

Hu Liena snorted, but still agreed. "Got it, Brother."

"Sorry, you two. You had to witness that." Once both of them had settled down, Xie Yue apologized again to Yu Xiaogang and Ye Lingling.

He was truly a little exhausted.

There was no shortage of people pursuing Hu Liena at the academy. There were heaps of them.

Yan was one of them.

But Xie Yue had directly turned most of them away.

Yan... had decent talent. Though he couldn't beat Xie Yue, he had toned it down after getting beaten up by him a few times. Still, he kept trying to stick close to Nana, and Xie Yue truly had no way to deal with him.

Besides, he really didn't understand it. They were only this old.

Shouldn't cultivation be their main focus right now?

Once the three of them had calmed down enough, Yu Xiaogang finally spoke. "Nana, take Lingling and help her get familiar with the academy first."

"Okay." Hu Liena agreed without a second thought. She did not want to look at Yan right now. "Lingling, shall we go?"

Ye Lingling first looked at Yu Xiaogang.

Only after seeing him nod did she agree. "Mm, sorry for the trouble, Nana."

"It's fine. Maybe we'll even be teammates someday. I heard the Nine-Hearted Begonia's healing ability is exceptionally powerful, so I'll be relying on you whenever I get hurt in the future~"

As the Pope's disciple, she naturally knew more than most people.

In her view, she and Ye Lingling would very likely become teammates.

When they competed in the Advanced Soul Master Tournament later on, Grandmaster would definitely be their captain. Among those their age, he was the strongest and the most knowledgeable. There was no doubt about that.

"Um... I suppose that's only natural?"

"Come on, come on. I'll take you to buy some daily necessities first."

"Aren't we going to the academy?"

"The academy doesn't have daily necessities specially for girls. Taking care of your skin is important too."

"There shouldn't be a day off today... does this count as skipping class...?"

"What are you talking about? I'm helping a new classmate! The academy teachers will understand."

Hu Liena did not care in the slightest.

This was something Grandmaster had asked her to do. Even if the teachers learned she had skipped class, they would not say anything to her.

The academy teachers would have even less reason to object.

And so, under Hu Liena's eager invitation, Ye Lingling followed along half-willingly.

The moment Yan saw Hu Liena leave, he started again. "Kid, I don't care whether you're some Grandmaster or whatever. Stay away from Nana from now on. Hear me?!"

Xie Yue helplessly covered his forehead. Here we go again. What a pain. I'm exhausted. I don't want to deal with this anymore.

Yu Xiaogang had only one thought. What a troublesome little brat.