Ning Rongrong's Heart in Turmoil, Ma Hongjun Breaks Through

Ning Rongrong froze.

She opened her mouth, only to find that she had no answer.

She admitted that Dai Mubai had indeed attracted her. She admired his strength, looks, and the innate dominance and composure he carried.

She had originally thought that one day, she could bring Dai Mubai back to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and make him her father's ideal son-in-law.

She would have found a partner she liked and who suited her, while also bringing an unparalleled genius to the sect. Her father and two grandfathers would surely have been very pleased.

But now, none of that was possible.

Dai Mubai was a prince of the Star Luo Empire, and he already had a marriage contract. He could not marry into the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, nor could he be her man alone.

Proud as she was, could she truly accept sharing one man with other women?

But if she gave up... she was unwilling to accept it. If she did not give up, how was she supposed to explain it to her sect and her father?

Although Ning Rongrong was spoiled and willful, she had always placed the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect first in her heart.

In the original story, although she fell for Oscar, she had not disregarded her sect for him. She only finally accepted him after he gained the abilities of a Battle Soul Master through his training.

That was not heartlessness. On the contrary, it showed that she was someone with a strong sense of responsibility and fundamental principles.

Those who always shouted about "throwing everything aside" were the truly unreliable ones. If they encountered someone better, they might very well "throw everything aside" all over again.

"I... I don't know..."

Ning Rongrong lowered her head, her thoughts a tangled mess.

Seeing her distraught appearance, Zhu Zhuqing sighed softly, walked over to Ning Rongrong, and gently patted her shoulder.

"Alright, I've explained everything clearly to you. Think over what you want to do yourself. The choice is in your hands."

Ning Rongrong slowly rose to her feet and walked toward the door, utterly absent-minded.

When she reached the door to her room, she looked up toward the boys' dormitory.

A moment later, Ning Rongrong withdrew her gaze, pushed open her door, and went inside.

This was destined to be a sleepless night.

The next day, Dai Mubai got up early as usual and arrived at the training ground.

However, to his surprise, Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong had arrived even earlier than he had.

Dai Mubai raised his brows and smiled. "You two are up this early?"

Zhu Zhuqing looked at Dai Mubai and gave a faint smile. The coldness that usually filled her eyes had vanished without a trace.

Ning Rongrong put her hands on her hips, lifted her chin, and pouted at Dai Mubai. "Of course! I absolutely refuse to let you all look down on me! Starting today, I'll get up earlier than every one of you!"

Was she competing now?

Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing exchanged glances, and both saw a trace of helplessness in the other's eyes.

Who knew what madness this little witch was up to again!

"Fine, that's some backbone." Dai Mubai laughed, bending down to secure the weighted iron blocks around his calves. "Then let's begin. We won't wait for them!"

"Alright!" Ning Rongrong replied.

The three began running along the track.

Dai Mubai still ran in front, with Zhu Zhuqing close behind him. Ning Rongrong gritted her teeth and stubbornly followed behind the two of them.

After a few laps, Oscar and Xiao Wu arrived one after another. Tang San probably would not come; he needed to train his Purple Demon Eyes.

"Well, did the sun rise in the west today? Ning Rongrong actually got up this early?" Oscar was thoroughly surprised.

The five of them ran roughly twenty laps around the training ground as the sky gradually brightened.

Strangely, Ma Hongjun never appeared, even after the morning run ended.

"Where's Fatty?" Oscar asked between breaths. "That guy might occasionally go blow off some steam, but he's never missed training."

"Maybe... he's breaking through." Dai Mubai removed his weights and put them aside before answering.

He knew Ma Hongjun too well. Though the fatty occasionally complained, he had never slacked off in training over the past three years. His absence this morning definitely was not because he had gone off to indulge himself.

Oscar nodded. "That's possible. He's been stuck at level twenty-nine for three months. By my count, it's about time."

Everyone went to the cafeteria, hurriedly ate breakfast, then returned to the training ground to prepare for the morning lesson.

Flender stood on the platform with his hands behind his back. His gaze swept over the group, and he frowned. "Mubai, where's Hongjun?"

Ma Hongjun was Flender's personal disciple. Though Flender usually scolded him harshly, he held extremely high expectations for this student.

"Dean, we didn't see him this morning either. I suspect Fatty may be breaking through the level-thirty bottleneck." Dai Mubai's tone was certain.

At those words, anticipation flashed through Flender's eyes, though his face remained stern. "Hmph. It had better be."

"Teacher! Boss Dai!"

Before his words had even faded, Ma Hongjun came sprinting over from the distance.

His face was flushed red, and his expression was brimming with excitement. From far away, he shouted at the top of his lungs, "Teacher! I've broken through level thirty! I've broken through level thirty!"

Flender's eyes clearly lit up. Seeing his personal disciple reach level thirty so quickly put him in an excellent mood.

"Good! Good! Good! Hongjun, you haven't disappointed your teacher! You are the third among the current students to reach level thirty! On behalf of the academy, I congratulate you!"

It was rare for Ma Hongjun to receive such praise from Flender. His already small eyes crinkled so much with his smile that even his eyeballs could no longer be seen.

Dai Mubai smiled and patted Ma Hongjun on the shoulder. "Congratulations, Fatty!"

"Fatty, congratulations! You're about to catch up to me. The future is yours!" Oscar also came over, spouting nonsense with a straight face.

Tang San and Xiao Wu, standing nearby, were shocked. Ma Hongjun was a few months younger than both of them, yet he had broken through level thirty before them. This stirred a competitive feeling in Tang San, who had always considered himself to possess top-tier talent.

Ma Hongjun felt a little embarrassed from all the praise. Scratching his head, he said, "I still have to thank Teacher and Boss Dai for pushing me to cultivate. Otherwise, how could I have achieved what I have today?"

Flender cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention away from the joy of Ma Hongjun's breakthrough.

He coughed lightly. "Alright, now that everyone is here, let's begin class."

After a pause, he continued, "According to the usual lesson schedule, you should have been doing pressure-resistance training under Teacher Zhao Wuji's gravity Soul Skill this morning. However, Teacher Zhao is still feeling somewhat unwell today, so it isn't convenient for him. Therefore, I will be arranging today's lesson as well."

"Teacher Zhao still isn't better? It's already been two days!" Ma Hongjun scratched his head.

Flender glared at him, and Ma Hongjun immediately shrank his neck.

Flender slowly paced before the group and asked, "Before we officially begin, I want to ask something. Among you, who still hasn't eaten Oscar's sausage?"

Tang San and Xiao Wu exchanged a look, then raised their hands at the same time. Zhu Zhuqing raised her hand as well.

Flender nodded and was about to speak when Dai Mubai reminded them, "Tang San, Xiao Wu, during your entrance examination, you both passed out. Oscar already fed you his sausages. Otherwise, how could you have recovered so quickly?"

"W-what?"

Xiao Wu's hand froze in midair. Then she suddenly covered her mouth, bent over, and began dry-heaving violently. "Bleurgh! Bleurgh, bleurgh, bleurgh!"

Tang San's face also turned pale. Nausea churned in his stomach, and he covered his mouth, nearly vomiting up the breakfast he had just eaten.