Every time she paid the bill, Wang Dong felt as though her heart were bleeding.
Although she had the Clear Sky Sect behind her and certainly could never lack money, there was still a limit to how much pocket money she could spend at any one time.
A single meal for Nan Zhuliu cost her nearly two hundred gold soul coins. Anyone would have felt the sting, let alone her, who had to treat him for an entire week.
Especially when Nan Zhuliu still looked as though he wanted more after finishing, Wang Dong nearly shattered her teeth with how hard she clenched them. She even felt like killing someone.
How could this guy eat more than her eldest dad and second dad combined?
"Thanks for the meal."
With several plates of top-grade hundred-year Soul Beast meat in his stomach, Nan Zhuliu felt warm all over. A warm current kept coursing through his meridians, leaving him exceptionally comfortable.
At those words of thanks, a nameless fire suddenly shot up in Wang Dong's heart. She said sarcastically, "With an appetite like that, I thought you could eat the entire cafeteria bare."
Nan Zhuliu replied casually, "If you don't mind washing dishes in the cafeteria with me, I could always give it a try tomorrow."
Wang Dong choked on her words.
After leaving the cafeteria, Nan Zhuliu headed straight for the academy gates.
Although Wang Dong wondered where he was going, she did not give it much thought and headed back toward the dormitory alone.
When Nan Zhuliu arrived, Huo Lingtong was packing up.
At the sight of Nan Zhuliu, Huo Lingtong grew especially excited. "Zhuliu, I made quite a bit of money again today. Let's go get something good to eat later."
Nan Zhuliu smiled. "Someone just treated me to a feast in the academy cafeteria, so I'll pass."
Huo Lingtong stiffened, then lowered her eyes in disappointment. "All right..."
Watching Nan Zhuliu begin helping her pack, Huo Lingtong slowly loosened her grip on what she was holding. Her knuckles had gone somewhat white from how hard she had been gripping it.
When she heard that Nan Zhuliu had eaten with someone else, her chest suddenly felt terribly tight, and waves of sourness rose in her heart.
Huo Lingtong did not know why she felt this sorrow, but she knew she could not bring these feelings to Nan Zhuliu.
On the way back, Huo Lingtong was unusually quiet, as though something were weighing on her mind.
Somewhat puzzled, Nan Zhuliu asked, "What's wrong?"
Hearing Nan Zhuliu's voice, Huo Lingtong came back to her senses and gently shook her head. "Nothing. I was just thinking that once school starts, my schedule will get really tight. To catch up with the other students, I'll definitely have to spend more time cultivating, so I was wondering how many fish I should sell then."
"Twenty or thirty should be about right. If that isn't enough, you can borrow from me."
In the original story, Huo Yuhao had also started with twenty fish and later increased it to thirty. At five copper soul coins per grilled fish, plus the monthly subsidy of one gold soul coin from the academy, he had just enough to cover his daily living expenses.
Now, at one silver soul coin per grilled fish, thirty fish a day meant an income of three gold soul coins, enough for her to live comfortably.
Meanwhile, Wang Dong, who had stayed in the dormitory, found things a little strange.
She had thought Nan Zhuliu would return before long, but even at this hour, there was still no sign of him.
Wang Dong did not dwell on it. Nan Zhuliu's absence was a good thing for her anyway. Surely someone his age could not get himself lost.
The next day, Huo Lingtong set up her grilled fish stall outside the academy, while Nan Zhuliu went to the dormitory to cultivate as usual.
When he arrived, Wang Dong was still sleeping soundly.
Nan Zhuliu could not help marveling at how good it was to have a background that reached all the way to the heavens. Even a lazy dog like Wang Dong could become the Second-Class Butterfly God.
And if she had not been so lazy, it might even have been possible for her to inherit the two God King positions of Destruction and Life together with Huo Yuhao.
Clearing the jumble of thoughts from his mind, Nan Zhuliu took off his shoes and began circulating his cultivation method and meditating.
Before long, Wang Dong opened her eyes, feeling thoroughly refreshed after a good sleep.
The moment she opened her eyes, she saw Nan Zhuliu cultivating across from her.
When did this guy come back?
Wang Dong instinctively lowered her head to check her clothes.
Thankfully, she had dressed herself neatly before going to sleep precisely to guard against situations like this, where Nan Zhuliu suddenly came charging back into the dormitory.
Unlike yesterday, Wang Dong did not go looking for trouble for herself. After tidying herself up briefly, she went out to find food.
Naturally, Nan Zhuliu once again "mooched" his dinner off Wang Dong.
Watching her little treasury shrink by another sizable amount, Wang Dong bitterly regretted what she had done.
For several days in a row, Nan Zhuliu ate dinner in the academy cafeteria, leaving Huo Lingtong somewhat uneasy.
But this was Nan Zhuliu's private business, after all, so she could hardly say anything. Still, it always left her feeling a little sad.
The day before school started, when Nan Zhuliu came to the dormitory as usual, he was shocked to discover that, for the first time, Wang Dong had not slept in until this hour. He could not help sighing.
After cultivating for a while, it was time for him to go help look after Huo Lingtong's grilled fish business as usual, yet Wang Dong still had not returned. He had no idea where she had gone.
As soon as Nan Zhuliu stepped out through Shrek Academy's gates, he saw a crowd gathered around Huo Lingtong's stall.
A bad premonition suddenly arose in his heart, and Nan Zhuliu hurried over.
Just as he approached, he heard a voice filled with anger suddenly ring out. "You dare refuse to sell?"
Nan Zhuliu abruptly pushed the crowd aside and charged in.
The people he pushed aside had curses on the tips of their tongues, but when they saw what Nan Zhuliu looked like, they immediately forced their unspoken words back down.
Huo Lingtong had never imagined that somewhere like Shrek Academy, where every inch of land was worth its weight in gold and students spent lavishly, there would actually be another student as strapped for cash as she was.
Even though the other person was right that she could still profit by selling her grilled fish for three copper soul coins, Nan Zhuliu had set the price, and this money was important to her too. She would not change it lightly.
Huo Lingtong had just refused the girl before her, who had drawn almost every gaze on the entire street, when a deep, resonant voice filled with anger suddenly rang out.
"You dare refuse to sell?"
A speck of golden light immediately shot toward her.
With the slowing effect of her Spirit Eyes, Huo Lingtong clearly saw that the speck of golden light was actually a gold soul coin.
The gold soul coin was simply too fast. Huo Lingtong, who had never been in a fight and had no combat experience, felt her heart clench, her body utterly unable to react.
"Get lost!"
A large, fair-skinned hand suddenly reached out and effortlessly caught the gold soul coin that streaked like golden light.
It was none other than Nan Zhuliu.
Nan Zhuliu violently hurled the gold soul coin back, considerably faster than before. Its piercing whistle through the air made everyone nearby uncomfortable.
The gold soul coin struck the newcomer's tall body.
Under everyone's astonished gazes, that tall figure was sent flying backward.