One Year Later

Xiao Wu's attacks were incredibly fast, nearly comparable to an agility-attack Soul Master of the same rank.

Tang San had thought that this was Xiao Wu's top speed.

By common logic, if a close-combat assault-type fighter wanted to defeat a control-type fighter, they had to close the distance immediately so they could attack the control-type Soul Master as quickly as possible.

Tang San had thought the same, so he instinctively judged that Xiao Wu's earlier speed had been her limit.

It was not just him. Even the surrounding students watching the fight thought so.

But just as he thought victory was in his grasp and began considering how to go easy on her, Xiao Wu's speed suddenly surged.

Her already swift figure practically left behind an afterimage as she darted through before the Blue Silver Grass in front of her could form a blockade.

This caught not only the onlookers off guard, but even Tang San himself.

The guy was still basking in his own fantasy.

One second, he had been dreaming about how to go easy on Xiao Wu and draw her attention. The next, Xiao Wu's dainty little foot slammed straight into his abdomen.

No one could have imagined that such slender, long legs could unleash such terrifying strength.

This was the result of Xiao Wu's two months of special training.

The effects of her Waist Bow had actually been quite good, and she had a solid grasp of how to use her strength.

But after her first battle with Lu Shiyuan, she realized that against a powerful opponent, the Waist Bow was practically useless.

And after accepting Lu Shiyuan as her brother, Xiao Wu had instinctively begun to reject the fighting style of wrapping her legs around an enemy, even without anyone telling her to.

In her mind, if she was going to wrap her legs around anyone, they could only be wrapped around her brother's waist.

So, after two months of Lu Shiyuan's revisions, Xiao Wu changed the way she used the Waist Bow.

She retained its waist-driven characteristic while making greater use of leg strength. The original Waist Bow used the waist to fling enemies away, then pursued them after they lost the ability to move.

Now, after improving her leg strength, Xiao Wu could send a Soul Master at Tang San's level flying with kicks alone.

As long as he was sent into the air, the effect was the same anyway.

Most importantly, the improved Waist Bow not only made perfect use of waist strength, but after her leg strength increased, its burst speed underwent a qualitative leap as well.

Its short-range instantaneous acceleration in particular had explosive power comparable to an agility-attack Soul Master of the same rank.

Lu Shiyuan watched everything on the field with satisfaction. Xiao Wu's control over the rhythm had improved by another level.

A person's maximum speed was limited. Just as some people could never break ten seconds in the hundred-meter dash, while others could set new world records again and again.

So when maximum speed was limited, how could one use speed to catch an opponent off guard?

The answer was simple: use changes in rhythm.

Fast one moment and slow the next, impossible to predict—then the enemy would be unable to accurately judge your speed.

Tang San thought Xiao Wu had gone all out from the start, never realizing that the speed she had displayed then was only seventy percent of her maximum.

The remaining thirty percent was Little Rabbit's wild card.

The beating on the field continued, and the familiar sight made everyone recall what had happened two months ago.

Only this time, the protagonist on the field had changed from Lu Shiyuan to Xiao Wu.

Quite a few people sighed inwardly that this brother and sister were truly cut from the same cloth when it came to violence. The brother was vicious, and the sister was no less so.

There had originally been quite a few people in the academy lusting after Xiao Wu's beauty. She was an adorable, delicate little girl with a pair of outrageously long legs. How could those spoiled young masters ever have seen such a beauty?

Although their families had warned them not to offend Lu Shiyuan, some people could not resist sneaking looks.

Well, after today, anyone harboring improper thoughts would have to consider whether they could withstand Xiao Wu's kicking techniques.

Seeing that the fight had gone on long enough, Lu Shiyuan said, "Xiao Wu, come back."

Xiao Wu decisively gave up her next attack and leaped back to Lu Shiyuan's side in a few bounds.

Looking at the sweet smile on Xiao Wu's face, the onlookers all began to question reality.

Was this adorable little girl really the violent maniac from the field just now?

"Brother, was I amazing?" The little girl's eager expression made Lu Shiyuan laugh. Seeing Tang San beaten up again also left him feeling refreshed.

"Not bad. As expected of my sister." He pinched Xiao Wu's soft little cheek in an intimate gesture.

Xiao Wu beamed happily. "Hehe, mainly because Tang San is too weak. There was no challenge at all. It wasn't even as good as sparring with you, Brother."

Tang San, who had been beaten so badly that he could not get up, nearly fainted from rage.

I'm too weak?

Then what did that make Xiao Chenyu, whom I defeated just now? The weakest of the weak?

Lu Shiyuan did not even glance at Tang San, who lay on the ground like a dead dog. He waved at the students around them. "The show's over. Everyone, go back to class."

Lu Shiyuan's strength was obvious to all, and his background was equally formidable. Even Xiao Chenyu, the city lord's son, did not dare provoke him lightly, so the surrounding students naturally agreed.

Besides, Lu Shiyuan was unlike Tang San. He did not use his background or strength to bully fellow students. On the contrary, he was extremely patient when answering their questions. Coupled with his outstanding appearance, he was quite well-known at Nuoding Academy.

Tang San, on the other hand, had ruined his reputation on the first day of school. Aside from the people in Dorm Seven, hardly anyone was willing to talk to him.

In the end, Yu Xiaogang learned of the matter and hurried over, taking Tang San away while he still looked like a dead dog.

Time passed swiftly, and in the blink of an eye, a year had gone by.

"Brother, I'm level 20!" Early in the morning, Xiao Wu kicked open Lu Shiyuan's bedroom door. Over the past year, unless one of them was making a breakthrough in cultivation, she slept in the same bed as Lu Shiyuan at all other times.

Yesterday, Xiao Wu sensed signs that her cultivation had loosened, so she simply stayed up all night. Early that morning, she successfully broke through to level 20.

Three months before her breakthrough, Lu Shiyuan had also reached level 20. He simply had not received a mission from the system, so he had not obtained a Soul Ring.

The groggy Lu Shiyuan was nearly scared out of his wits. He irritably pulled the blanket over his head, his voice muffled. "Then condense your Soul Ring."

Before reaching maturity, Xiao Wu, as a transformed Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, could condense Soul Rings on her own without needing to hunt Soul Beasts.

Xiao Wu lifted a corner of the blanket and slipped underneath with practiced ease, forcefully squeezing her petite body into Lu Shiyuan's arms and wrapping both arms tightly around his waist.

"Brother, are you stupid? Sister Fei Yu still hasn't returned. If I condense a Soul Ring now, how am I supposed to explain it to everyone else?"

Right. They were so familiar with each other that Lu Shiyuan had forgotten.

If he somehow obtained a second Soul Ring for no reason, wouldn't it cause an uproar if someone with ulterior motives found out?

But now that he thought about it, a whole year had already passed. Sister Fei Yu should be back soon, right?

Thinking of that tall, stunning figure, Lu Shiyuan became much more awake.

Just as he was preparing to get up, a clear, pleasant, and cool voice suddenly sounded from outside the room.

"Xiao Yuan, are you still sleeping in?"

Lu Shiyuan's eyes flew wide open.