"Heh." Xu Qingjia smiled faintly, his gaze settling on the White-Haired Dumpling "bouncing around" on his bed. "Little sister Na'er," he said in a languid voice, "you wouldn't want to go without Potato Chips forever, would you?"
"Huh?" The smile froze on Na'er's face.
A smile played at Xu Qingjia's lips. His tone sounded casual, but his words struck precisely where he intended. "We're almost out of snacks at home. I was going to send a maid out to buy some more, but-"
Before he finished, a breeze carrying a sweet, milky fragrance brushed his face. A moment later, a soft, fragrant White-Haired Dumpling had nestled beside him. Her slender arms hugged his arm tightly and shook it gently, her limpid eyes shining with anticipation.
"Big brother~" Na'er parted her rosy lips. Her clear, soft voice was as sweet as though it had been soaked in honey, making Xu Qingjia feel as if his bones were melting. "You wouldn't be so cruel to your adorable little sister, would you?"
"Keep going." Xu Qingjia closed his eyes, his face full of contentment as he enjoyed her wheedling.
"Big brother~"
"Big brother~"
Like a little angel descending to earth, the White-Haired Dumpling called to him in an endless stream of soft, sweet appeals, her small hands kneading his shoulders with a touch of inexperience.
The brat had transformed into a considerate little sister.
"All right." Seeing that it was almost time for breakfast, Xu Qingjia signaled for Na'er to stop.
He stood up and looked at the White-Haired Dumpling sitting with her legs folded outward at the edge of the bed. A teasing smile curled his lips, then he adopted an air of righteous indignation. "Na'er, just for a bite to eat, you actually called me big brother without a second thought. You're no longer the Na'er who wanted me to call her big sister!"
"Huh?" Na'er froze at his words.
As though standing atop the moral high ground, Xu Qingjia delivered his final judgment. "I despise you!"
With that, Xu Qingjia dashed out the door.
Na'er remained seated on the edge of the bed, taking a second or two to process what had happened.
"Aaaah!" The White-Haired Dumpling erupted in thunderous fury, her cheeks puffed out in anger. "Xu Qingjia, stop right there! I'll fight you to the bitter end!"
Without even putting on her shoes, Na'er wanted only to make that scoundrel who had deceived an innocent girl understand just how serious the consequences could be.
The two "Great Emperors" launched into a furious melee on the living room sofa, one worthy of "grinding the Great Dao into oblivion." In the end, only by sacrificing his portion of braised pork hock did Xu Qingjia "barely" escape the "humiliating" fate of being straddled and trampled underfoot by the White-Haired Dumpling.
"Hold still." Xu Qingjia stood behind Na'er, his fingertips gliding through her silky silver hair. A faint milky fragrance lingered around his fingers as he deftly divided her hair into two sections and braided them.
"Done." Xu Qingjia raised a hand and lightly tapped Na'er's forehead.
"You'll have to learn to tie your own hair eventually. I won't always be by your side."
"Hehe~" The White-Haired Dumpling hummed happily as she gnawed on the braised pork hock. "Why wouldn't you?" she mumbled. "Isn't a big brother supposed to take care of his little sister?"
At that, Xu Qingjia helplessly gave Na'er's tender cheek a light pinch. "When you need something, I'm your dear big brother. When you don't, I'm Xu Qingjia."
"Hehe~" Na'er stuck out her little tongue, using her cuteness to get herself off the hook, and blissfully enjoyed Xu Qingjia's portion of braised pork hock. Beneath the table, her small feet in white stockings, exquisite as works of art, swung gently.
Her bottom line was flexible. How could a dragon be as rigid as that Gu Yue?
After a sumptuous breakfast.
The White-Haired Dumpling gently stroked her little belly and lay on the sofa in complete contentment, looking even more like a big white cat. Catching sight of Xu Qingjia beside her, Na'er lifted her white-stockinged legs slightly and rubbed her pearl-like toes against his thigh. "What's the plan for today?"
"An exam," Xu Qingjia said calmly.
"Combat?"
"Academics!"
Besides classes on the supernatural knowledge of Soul Masters, Soul Master schools also taught academic subjects.
Basic language and mathematics, along with subjects branching out from them such as politics and history, were among the cornerstones of human civilization. Simply knowing how to read and count was not enough. In modern society, that would leave someone practically half-illiterate.
Fortunately, there were no foreign languages to study. The original inhabitants of the other two continents had once spoken different languages, but after the two great empires migrated there, those peoples had either been assimilated or wiped out. None of their culture had survived.
Although Na'er was an avatar of the Silver Dragon King and possessed her memories, rather than being an ordinary human child, humans and true dragons spoke different languages. Her knowledge of human academic subjects was even more limited.
After learning about Na'er's educational level, Shen Xi had specifically hired several private tutors.
"Huh?" The happiness on Na'er's face instantly crumbled.
Was mathematics really something a dragon could learn?
What kind of person filled a swimming pool while draining it at the same time? Were they sick from having too much time on their hands?!
How much did the shirt cost?
With amusement in his eyes, Xu Qingjia took two sets of exam papers out of the Sun Moon Crown.
At the sight, a flicker of delight crossed Na'er's eyes. "You have to take an exam too?"
"No." Xu Qingjia shook his head gently.
With the memories of his first life, he had finished these courses long before his Martial Soul Awakening.
"This set is for Nether Moon."
Xu Qingjia circulated his Soul Power and released a large silver eyeball.
Nether Moon: (=^・w・^=)?
The large eyeball looked at Xu Qingjia curiously.
"An exam." Xu Qingjia pointed to the papers and pen on the table.
Nether Moon: (๑`･ᴗ･´๑)
Nether Moon radiated obvious delight, and a silver tentacle curled around the fountain pen.
Nether Moon's progress in her studies lately had surprised Xu Qingjia.
Her enthusiasm for encountering and learning new things far exceeded his expectations. In just a few months, starting from absolutely nothing, she had used her intelligence, no lower than that of a ten-year-old human child, and her powerful memory to reach the equivalent of a fourth-grade student from Xu Qingjia's previous life in human literature and mathematics. Her progress could only be described as astonishingly swift.
"Na'er." Xu Qingjia smiled at the White-Haired Dumpling beside him. "Don't let Nether Moon score an excellent mark while you only scrape a pass."
Of course, since their educational levels differed, the papers he had prepared for them differed in difficulty as well. It hardly counted as true "fair competition."
"That won't happen!" Na'er puffed out her cheeks angrily.
She was just a little Evil Eye.
One dragon and one Evil Eye worked on their exam papers.
Xu Qingjia maintained the Soul Spirit summoning. Just then, his Soul Guidance phone received a text message. He left the Bedchamber and went out into the small courtyard.
Led by a maid, an honest-looking middle-aged man entered with a restrained manner.
"Mr. Zhao," Xu Qingjia greeted him with a smile.
"Sorry for the trouble, but I'd like your help testing the effects of my Soul Skill."
The man was named Zhao Youji. His Martial Soul was the Great Strength Vajra Bear, and he was a level 71 defensive Soul Saint, one of the Xu Family's guards.
"No trouble at all, no trouble at all." Zhao Youji stood at attention. "Serving the young master is my duty."
Xu Qingjia said no more. Soul Power circulated within him, and an inhuman calm and divine indifference surfaced in his eyes. The aura of a level 22 Soul Grandmaster burst forth, and two deep purple Soul Rings appeared beside his hand.
Immediately afterward, the bright purple second Soul Ring flared. A pitch-black writing brush appeared in Xu Qingjia's hand. The energies of life and death intertwined around it, condensing into a drop of rich black ink, like a Sword of Judgment poised to strike.
"Second Soul Skill, Judge's Brush: Conviction!"