Ever since he had served as a human cushion in the Crown Prince's Residence's back garden that day, Meng Chen's good days had come to a definitive end.
Ning Fengzhi had barely left Heaven Dou City with his daughter.
Less than two days later, that luxurious carriage adorned with seven-treasure tassels returned.
For the next two weeks and more, Ning Rongrong became a regular visitor to the Crown Prince's Residence.
Whenever the elders of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect let their guard slip, or Ning Fengzhi entered the palace to discuss state affairs with Xue Ye,
the Little Demoness would sneak into the Crown Prince's Residence.
Meng Chen truly felt like dying.
Inside the small courtyard residence, on a spacious, cushioned couch,
Meng Chen clutched his head with both hands, curling himself into a ball.
He kept the two ears atop his head tightly protected.
Beside the couch, Ning Rongrong stood with her hands on her hips.
Her pale yellow pleated dress swayed slightly with her movements, and her pretty face was full of smug delight.
"Meng Chen, let go already."
"I brought preserved fruit from the Jade Scenery Pavilion today. Just let me rub them, and this whole box is yours."
Ning Rongrong coaxed him while repeatedly reaching for his head.
"No! Don't!"
Meng Chen gritted his teeth and buried his head even lower.
This girl was an ear-rubbing fiend!
Last time, he had let his guard down for a moment, and she had held him against her chest and rubbed his ears for a whole hour.
By the time she left, thoroughly satisfied, the rabbit ears atop his head had practically been rubbed raw.
If word of this got out, where would he hide his face?
Seeing that gentle persuasion was getting her nowhere, Ning Rongrong's spoiled, willful streak immediately flared up.
She kicked off her leather shoes and climbed onto the couch. Taking advantage of her petite size, she sprawled across Meng Chen's back and reached out to pry his arms apart.
"I don't care!"
"You promised Brother Crown Prince last time that you'd play with me!"
"If you won't let me touch them, I'll tell Brother Crown Prince you bullied me!"
Meng Chen inwardly lamented his rotten luck.
This Little Demoness was practically unbeatable at turning the tables and blaming the victim!
And to maintain her Xue Qinghe persona, Qian Renxue could hardly afford to offend Ning Fengzhi's precious darling.
Whenever Ning Rongrong came to make trouble, Qian Renxue, disguised as the Crown Prince, would tell him to entertain her properly, only to turn away and stifle a laugh.
Just as the two remained locked in their struggle on the couch, the door was gently pushed open.
Dressed in moon-white robes, Xue Qinghe strolled inside, his refined, handsome face bearing a gentle smile of barely suppressed amusement.
"All right, Rongrong. Stop tormenting little Chen."
Qian Renxue walked slowly forward and made what seemed like a casual scooping motion. A strand of soul power gently lifted Ning Rongrong off Meng Chen's back.
Looking down at Meng Chen's flushed face, Qian Renxue's eyes flickered with amusement as she reached out to straighten his collar.
While she was at it, she discreetly brushed a finger over the little fellow's rabbit ear.
Meng Chen shuddered at once and looked up to glare resentfully at Qian Renxue.
Are you here to rescue me, or to take advantage of the opportunity to cop a feel?
Pretending not to notice his protesting gaze, Qian Renxue turned to Ning Rongrong, whose lips were stuck out in an enormous pout, and said with a gentle smile,
"Little Sister Rongrong, I'm afraid he can't fool around with you today."
"The new term at the Heaven Dou Royal Junior Soul Master Academy is about to begin."
"I've already completed little Chen's enrollment paperwork. He'll be reporting to the academy first thing tomorrow morning."
Ning Rongrong's eyes widened at the news.
"The academy? That Heaven Dou Royal Junior Soul Master Academy?"
"Yes."
Qian Renxue nodded, her expression gentle.
"Little Chen is six now, and he has already obtained his first soul ring. This is the time for him to build his foundations and meet soul masters his own age. Staying shut away in the Crown Prince's Residence all the time won't benefit his cultivation."
Meng Chen was instantly overjoyed!
Going to school!
Doesn't that mean I can escape this clingy, spoiled Young Miss Ning?
This is the best news imaginable!
Meng Chen nearly dropped to his knees and kowtowed to Qian Renxue right then and there.
He immediately leaped off the couch and dusted off his robes.
"Brother Xue is right. A soul master should make diligent cultivation his foundation. How could I spend all day indulging in fun and games?"
"I'll report to the academy first thing tomorrow. I'll eat and sleep there, and I won't return to the residence until the holidays!"
Seeing how Meng Chen looked ready to pack his bedding and flee that very night, Ning Rongrong stamped her feet in anger.
Then her bright, clever eyes darted around, and the little abacus in her mind began clacking away.
Outside Heaven Dou City, at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's headquarters.
As one of the Upper Three Sects renowned throughout the continent, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's castle was a glittering display of gold and jade, extravagant to the extreme.
Yet at that moment, a clear, piercing tantrum had turned the sect's innermost Council Hall upside down.
"I won't listen! I won't listen! I don't care!"
"I want to go to school!"
"Daddy, if you don't agree, I'll hide all of Grandpa Sword's swords, then go pull out Grandpa Bone's beard!"
Ning Rongrong rolled around on the hall floor, kicking her little legs wildly.
She had been wailing for ages without shedding a single tear.
Yet the sheer volume made the crystal chandelier overhead tremble.
In the center of the hall, Ning Fengzhi, sect master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, sat in a rosewood chair.
His normally composed, refined face now wore a helpless, bitter smile.
He rubbed his temples, unable to decide whether to put down the Jade Marrow Folding Fan in his hand or keep holding it.
Beside Ning Rongrong, two supreme experts famed throughout the continent were even more at a loss.
"Oh, my little ancestor!"
"Get up, get up! The floor is cold!"
An old man with a withered frame and face was beside himself with distress. He hurriedly bent down to pick Ning Rongrong up.
He was none other than the level ninety-five Titled Douluo, Bone Douluo Gu Rong!
The Bone Douluo, whose very name usually struck terror into countless soul masters, was now utterly abject.
Ning Rongrong slapped away Gu Rong's outstretched hand, turned her head aside, and kept flailing.
"I won't get up!"
"Grandpa Bone, if you won't speak up for me, I'll never talk to you again!"
Gu Rong stamped his feet anxiously, then turned to glare fiercely at Ning Fengzhi.
"Fengzhi! Look at what you've driven this child to! Doesn't she just want to attend that lousy junior academy?"
"What harm would there be in agreeing? With this old man and that old sword bastard protecting her in secret, who would dare touch Rongrong?!"
"Uncle Gu, please don't add to the trouble."
Ning Fengzhi sighed helplessly.
"Rongrong, listen to Daddy."
"Our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect has deep foundations. Our library holds countless texts gathered from across the continent, and the Mimicry Training Ground in the rear mountains is the finest in the entire empire."
"If you want to cultivate, Daddy will teach you personally. Grandpa Sword and Grandpa Bone will guide you, too."
"The strongest teachers at the Heaven Dou Royal Junior Soul Master Academy are merely a few Soul Ancestors and Soul Kings. How could they know more than your two grandpas?"
"Studying here in the sect would be wonderful. Why insist on going somewhere with such a mixed crowd?"
Just then, a white-robed old man who had been standing silently in the shadows of the hall slowly opened his eyes.
His hair and beard were pure white, and his entire body radiated a fierce sword intent that could cleave the heavens. He was none other than Sword Dao Chen Xin.
Chen Xin walked slowly forward, a trace of puzzlement in his eyes.
Watching Ning Rongrong wheedle and roll around on the floor, he frowned in thought for a moment before speaking slowly.
"Rongrong, your father is right. That academy is a place where fish and dragons mingle, and its food and lodgings fall far short of what we have here."
"You normally find even morning training too tiring. I'm rather curious-just what treasure does that Heaven Dou Academy hold?"
The Sword Douluo's eyes were exceptionally sharp; a single remark struck straight at the heart of the matter.
Gu Rong froze for a moment, then widened his aged eyes.
"Wait! You're right, you old sword bastard!"
"Why is Rongrong suddenly making such a fuss about going to the academy? Fengzhi, did Rongrong sneak off to Heaven Dou City again a couple of days ago?"
"Could some blind little brat from an aristocratic family have used honeyed words to lure our Rongrong?!"
Boom!
A chilling surge of killing intent erupted from Gu Rong.
"Rongrong is only six! If some family's beast dares harbor crooked intentions, I'll cut them down with a single stroke!"
Murderous intent likewise surged in Chen Xin's eyes, and the phantom of the Seven Kill Sword flickered behind him.
Before you continue