Old Huo: This Can't Be Real!

Tang Wutong narrowed her beautiful eyes and instantly noticed something odd about Xiang Jun.

You won't let me see? Then I'm definitely looking!

"What do you mean it's not suitable for this princess? Now I have to see it!"

Tang Wutong bared her little canine teeth, sprang off the bed, and lunged at Xiang Jun.

"Whoa!"

Caught completely off guard, Xiang Jun stumbled. Tang Wutong seized her chance and straddled his waist, her hands searching all around him.

"What are you hiding? Let this princess see!"

"Huh? You're pretty solid, aren't you?"

"Let this princess see!"

Tang Wutong kept feeling around Xiang Jun's body. His sharply defined muscles stirred a feeling she had never known before, and her movements grew bolder.

"No... Wait, why are you tearing my clothes?!"

"Hey, you've got some nerve. You know you're playing with fire, right?"

"Hmph! This princess has plenty of nerve!" Tang Wutong thrust out her chest in challenge and looked down at Xiang Jun, a flash of disdain crossing her pretty face.

Hm?

Is she looking down on me?!

Xiang Jun froze. Did she just look down on me?

Looks like I'll have to put you firmly in your place!

Xiang Jun exerted a little force and easily broke free of Tang Wutong's grip.

The tables had turned!

Tang Wutong, who had been taunting him a moment ago, felt her mind go blank. When she came to, Xiang Jun had pinned her firmly to the bed, with both her hands held behind her back.

Tang Wutong immediately struggled, but his scent washed over her and sent a tingling weakness through her body. She could barely muster any strength.

"You... How dare you! Let this princess go!" Tang Wutong lay facedown. After struggling to no avail, all she could do was cry out with more bravado than conviction.

Still raising your voice at me? You really do have some nerve!

Xiang Jun glanced at the feet kicking furiously behind her and grinned. Ignoring Tang Wutong's protests, he raised his hand high.

Smack!

A crisp sound rang through the room. Tang Wutong's shouting stopped dead.

I... I got spanked?!

The stinging sensation filled Tang Wutong's eyes with shock. Yet beneath the pain, a strange feeling stirred inside her, as if some mysterious switch had been flipped.

"Had enough?"

"I have..." Tang Wutong buried her head deep in the pillow. Even without looking at Xiang Jun, she could feel his teasing gaze.

"Will you do it again?"

"I'll do it again..."

"That's more like—wait, what did you say?"

Smack!

"Waaah! I won't! I won't!"

Only then did Xiang Jun nod in satisfaction.

Words don't work on problem children. Sometimes you need a firmer hand!

As soon as Xiang Jun released her hands, Tang Wutong sat up and clutched her bottom, glaring at him resentfully.

That rotten jerk! How dare he hit this princess there...

Even Mom and Dad have never hit me!

The more Tang Wutong stared at Xiang Jun's broad back, the angrier she became.

While Xiang Jun was distracted, she launched herself at him again and landed squarely on his back.

"You rotten jerk! This princess is going to bite you!"

"Today's grilled fish sold out too. Before long, I'll be able to give Brother Xiang Jun a decent present." After a hard day's work, Huo Yuhao walked quietly along a path through the academy.

As he looked at the red glow rising on the horizon, Xiang Jun's face appeared in Huo Gua's mind. A sweet smile touched her lips, and she held several skewers of steaming grilled fish.

Huo Yuhao returned to the freshman dormitory by a familiar route. Just as he reached for his key, he heard laughter coming from inside.

Huh?

That voice... Tang Wutong?!

What is she doing here?!

Huo Yuhao's pupils contracted, and a sudden sense of dread seized her.

She hurriedly opened the door. The sight inside shattered Huo Yuhao's composure, and the grilled fish slipped from her hand and scattered across the floor.

A pair of crystal high heels lay carelessly discarded on the floor, while Tang Wutong was sprawled across Xiang Jun's back. The two looked so much like lovers that Huo Yuhao stood frozen in the doorway.

As a spirit-type soul master, Huo Yuhao could even make out the red bite mark on Xiang Jun's neck.

"Brother Xiang Jun... This can't be real!"

Huo Yuhao felt the motivation that had sustained her for so long collapse in an instant. Tears welled in her eyes.

Hm?

Huo Gua?

Sensing something was wrong, Xiang Jun stopped what he was doing and instinctively looked toward the door.

What he saw gave him a fright.

Huo Yuhao stood silently in the doorway, lips pressed together. Her dark blue, slightly long hair hid her eyes, but her clenched fists made it clear that Huo Gua was far from calm. Beneath her feet, the golden, crispy grilled fish lay scattered across the floor.

The terrifying surge of spiritual power even made Xiang Jun's blood run cold.

If he hadn't known that Huo Gua's Martial Soul wasn't the Sharingan, he might have wondered whether she was about to awaken the Mangekyo on the spot.

Wait, wasn't Old Huo's first Spirit Ring from a three-hundred-year-old Spirit-Peering Deer? Where is this terrifying surge of Soul Power coming from?!

"Yuhao, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

"I'm okay..."

Huo Yuhao forced a faint smile and said dejectedly, "Sorry. I interrupted you two..."

With that, she ran out of the room without looking back.

Xiang Jun blinked, then turned to Tang Wutong, who was straightening her clothes. "What's gotten into her?"

"How would this princess know?"

Tang Wutong rolled her eyes and said sarcastically, "Maybe your little boyfriend got the wrong idea and is jealous. Why aren't you running after him?"

Little boyfriend, my ass!

Xiang Jun's eye twitched. He decided to ignore Tang Wutong.

Sure, Huo Yuhao is pretty cute and thoughtful... Wait!

What am I thinking?

Anyone with that thing swinging around can't be cute!

Night fell. Huo Yuhao sat alone on a bench in Shrek Square, staring blankly at the distant Seagod Statue. She never noticed that her Soul Power had reached rank sixteen.

"I suppose Tang Wutong is beautiful and exceptionally talented. She and Brother Xiang Jun really are a perfect match..."

Huo Yuhao drew up her legs and hugged her knees tightly. Though she tried to console herself, resentment still rose in her heart.

"If only my talent were as outstanding as Brother Xiang Jun's. Then I could avenge Mom, and I wouldn't have to keep hiding."

As the child of a servant, she knew that having even a little beauty often led to a grim fate.