A figure stood with its back turned, clad in a grey-blue Daoist robe, tall and imposing...
Chen Zhezhe wanted to walk around to get a clear look at the person's face, but after circling halfway, he found that the person's back was still facing him.
A wave of immense pressure surged from this person, making Chen Zhezhe feel breathless and unable to speak—
Ring, ring, ring!
Chen Zhezhe suddenly opened his eyes. It turned out he had fallen asleep sitting up for the entire night, and his clothes were soaked through with cold sweat, clinging to his body wet and sticky.
"Damn! It was just a dream!"
Chen Zhezhe reached out to turn off the alarm clock, only to suddenly see Qin Xin sleeping right beside him...
The girl was lying on her side on the bed, her curvaceous figure making hearts race. Her hair bun was disheveled, her face flushed, and her clothes were torn, exposing patches of snow-white skin that looked almost translucent.
"Oh god! What heinous atrocities did she commit against me?"
It's over. I've let down my parents who passed away early, my sister who worked to put me through school, and the teachings of my teachers. I... I actually lost my virginity to a flower-picking thief...
The person I've failed the most is the flight attendant; I didn't get to use any of the things from the instructional videos she personally demonstrated!
He looked down to check his clothes—they were still exactly the same as yesterday. He pulled open his pants to take a peek and found himself naturally pitching a full tent.
He cast a resentful glance at Qin Xin. This female flower-picking thief was truly an old hand, destroying all the incriminating evidence.
Oh no.
I'm going to be late!
Chen Zhezhe leaped up, ripped off his clothes, and rushed into the bathroom bare-chested to wash up. It took him only five minutes to dash back to the bedroom, pull a set of clothes from the wardrobe, and start putting them on, completely forgetting about the sleeping beauty nearby.
Qin Xin was jolted awake by the commotion. The moment she opened her eyes, she saw Chen Zhezhe in his underwear, pulling up a pair of jeans...
"Ah! What are you doing?" Feeling her heart pounding wildly, Qin Xin hurriedly covered her eyes.
"I'm changing my pants!" Chen Zhezhe pulled up his pants without even turning his head.
Covering her eyes with one hand, Qin Xin scolded, "Shameless, utterly shameless!"
"Damn it! This is my house. I'm changing clothes in my own house, and not only are you peeking, you're also calling me a pervert. Haven't you heard the saying?" Chen Zhezhe picked up his belt from the bedside table.
"What saying?"
"Whoever strips isn't the pervert; whoever looks is the pervert!"
Qin Xin made a couple of disgusted spitting sounds. Seeing that Chen Zhezhe had already put on his pants and was turning to leave, she blurted out:
"Hey! Where are you going?"
If he left, what would happen to her?
Qin Xin's mind raced. Right now, her True Essence was completely drained and her cultivation was entirely gone; any enemy could easily finish her off. But he was currently in the Qi Refining Realm—if she stayed by his side, he could block enemies while she made her escape!
Besides, she hadn't settled the score for him harassing her yet.
Once she recovered her True Essence, she would definitely have to teach him a good lesson.
"I'm going to school, I'm going to be late!" Chen Zhezhe stepped into a pair of sneakers and reached for the door.
Qin Xin had already made up her mind. Seeing that he was about to leave, she grabbed him by the arm. "I'm going with you. You have to take responsibility for me, don't even think about running off."
Qin Xin meant that Chen Zhezhe had broken her magic treasure and wasted a large bottle of her pills, but Chen Zhezhe thought that this girl believed something had happened between them yesterday and wanted him to take responsibility.
"Then hurry up and keep up!"
Qin Xin gave a soft acknowledgment and followed right behind him.
Chen Zhezhe looked her up and down a few times, then burst out laughing, pointing at Qin Xin and asking, "You're planning to go out with me looking like this?"
Qin Xin looked down and saw that the clothes around her chest and shoulders were tattered, exposing a large expanse of delicate skin. Her face instantly flushed crimson. "Stop looking, you lewd scoundrel!"
Seeing that Chen Zhezhe was still staring fixedly, an indignant Qin Xin reached out to cover his eyes.
"I'll go find you some clothes!"
Chen Zhezhe led her into the bedroom his sister used to occupy, took a few of his sister's old clothes out of the wardrobe, and tossed them to Qin Xin.
"You can't wear those clothes anymore... put these on instead?"
Qin Xin protested, "I won't wear someone else's clothes!"
"Suit yourself. My sister hasn't worn these. If you think running around with your backside exposed in those tattered clothes is breezy, be my guest!" Chen Zhezhe's eyes swept once more across the damaged part of Qin Xin's outfit...
What a magnificent view!
She shoved Chen Zhezhe hard out of the bedroom. "Wait outside, I'm changing clothes!"
Chen Zhezhe helplessly rubbed his nose. This woman had really forgotten whose house this actually was!
Inside the room, Qin Xin clattered around noisily for a moment before pushing the door open and walking out. "These clothes are so ugly..."
Uh...
Chen Zhezhe helplessly scratched the back of his head and tapped her chest. "Uhm, those are underwear; they're supposed to be worn underneath..."
"Ah?"
Horrified, Qin Xin covered herself and bolted back into the room like a fleeing rabbit. At least this time she didn't make a fool of herself.
She was slender with pretty facial features. The jeans and simple T-shirt looked a bit large on her, but her ethereal temperament gave her an otherworldly air, making her look like a fairy descending to the mortal realm.
Without eating breakfast, the two went downstairs and out onto the street. As they walked, Qin Xin asked Chen Zhezhe, "What's your name?"
"My name is Chen Zhezhe. My nickname is Hubby—just call me Hubby!"
"Oh!"
Unfortunately, as soon as the two stepped through the school gates, several people blocked their path...
"I didn't expect you little bastard to have the guts to show up at school."
The leading girl was scantily clad, tall, and wore exaggerated heavy makeup. She was precisely the woman who had shaken him down for three thousand yuan yesterday—Chen Zhezhe recognized her as Zhang Zhi's girlfriend, Liu Huanhuan.
Chen Zhezhe felt a surge of deep regret. Qin Xin's distraction had made him forget that he had just offended Zhang Zhi yesterday; it was only natural that they would have people waiting to ambush him at the school gates.
Pulling Qin Xin behind him, Chen Zhezhe muttered in a low voice, "Run as soon as I give the word!"
"Why should I run?" Qin Xin looked at these people with curiosity.
"I told you to run, so you run!"
Their whispering was not lost on Liu Huanhuan. The moment she caught sight of Qin Xin's looks, displeasure flared in her heart. "How come he brought a woman along? Is she his girlfriend, or some hooker he picked up last night?"
Qin Xin didn't understand what a "hooker" was, but she knew it wasn't anything nice. Figuring she couldn't go wrong just hurling insults right back, she pointed at Liu Huanhuan and snapped, "You're the hooker! Your whole family are hookers!"
Seeing the surrounding guys stunned by Qin Xin's appearance, Liu Huanhuan felt even more displeased. She kicked the male student beside her. "Go get Zhang Zhi right now, and tell him we've caught that kid from yesterday."
The male student nodded, pretending to start walking while his eyes remained glued to Qin Xin.
"She's just a hooker! What are you staring at?"
The male student mumbled a response, but still couldn't tear himself away, sneaking glances at Qin Xin as he walked.
Liu Huanhuan was the type of woman who looked like nobody without makeup and impossible to look at with it, which was why she favored heavy cosmetics, hiding her own deep insecurities behind layers of makeup while jealously eyeing girls prettier than herself.
"Total bitch, watch how I deal with you! What are you stiffs standing around for? Go get her! Strip that stinking bitch's clothes off—let's see her seduce men!"
Qin Xin understood that last sentence loud and clear. She stepped forward, one pace at a time. "If you've got the guts, say that again."
"Did I say something wrong? Look at you, all decked out in fancy clothes, you're nothing but a bit—"
Slap!
Even as Liu Huanhuan was screeching at the top of her lungs, Qin Xin's hand whipped across, landing a heavy blow right on her face.
Zhang Zhi's lackeys were dumbfounded. The boss's woman had just been hit?
After delivering the slap, Qin Xin disgustedly flicked her hand to shake off the various cosmetics that had stuck to her palm.
"You dare hit me? I'll fuck your mother's cunt!" Liu Huanhuan shrieked. But when she saw Qin Xin standing there looking so delicate and pretty, she somehow felt a head shorter than her opponent and didn't dare retaliate.
After a moment of hesitation, she wiped away a tear and wailed, "Zhang Zhi, get your ass over here right now! I'm being bullied!"
"Huanhuan? Someone bullying you?"
Zhang Zhi ambled over. Catching sight of Chen Zhezhe, he flashed a grin. "Kid, you still walked right into my hands after all. If I don't make you crawl out of this school gate today, I'll write my family name backwards!"
His gaze shifted to Qin Xin, and he instantly turned into a statue.
Seeing his reaction, Liu Huanhuan flew into a rage. "You bastard! Your eyes are popping out of your head looking at this little slut? When you were chasing me, how come you were pestering me every day to take me out to dinner, you motherfucker, you even slipped drugs into my drink—"
"Shut your fucking mouth!" Finding Liu Huanhuan's words increasingly unpalatable, Zhang Zhi landed a hard slap across her other cheek.
Liu Huanhuan's mouth snapped shut instantly.
Zhang Zhi stared greedily at Qin Xin for a few moments, then sneered at Chen Zhezhe, "I haven't settled yesterday's score with you yet, and now you hit my girlfriend. Either cough up five thousand yuan, or have this chick accompany me..."
Oh no!
He's got his eyes on Qin Xin!
Chen Zhezhe pulled Qin Xin behind him and whispered, "I'll hold them off later, you run away fast and don't let them catch you."
Qin Xin gave Chen Zhezhe's back a perplexed tug and murmured, "Run? If you can fight them, why run?"
He was already someone in the Qi Refining Realm—why was he still scared of mere mortals?
Qin Xin suddenly realized: he didn't even know she was a half-baked cultivator yet, and still thought she was just an ordinary person!
"Such a fool!" Qin Xin hid behind Chen Zhezhe, yet felt a wave of gratitude.
She recalled how, when she was ambushed yesterday, the senior brother who usually fawned over her had run away first, whereas this shameless scoundrel actually wanted to shield her when danger struck...
"This jerk..." Qin Xin muttered under her breath again, though who she was actually cursing remained a mystery!
Zhang Zhi was robust and naturally combative. Seeing Chen Zhezhe hesitate, he grew even more excited.
A fight!
He cracked his knuckles, making a popping sound, and sneered at Chen Zhezhe, "To be honest, I was hoping you'd say no so I could give you a real beating. We've had guys refuse to bow to me before, but they all ended up in the hospital."
He pointed down condescendingly at Chen Zhezhe. "I'll give you one last chance. If you end up dead or crippled, don't go crying about it."
This wasn't Liu Huanhuan's first time watching Zhang Zhi fight. She had fallen for him back then after seeing how cool he looked showing off his prowess in fights, and she knew just how vicious he could get once he lost his temper. She had once witnessed Zhang Zhi shatter a guy's teeth with a single punch. In her eyes, Chen Zhezhe was done for, and it had been a long time since Zhang Zhi had been this furious.
Zhang Zhi reached out to stop his basketball team lackeys. "You guys stay out of this. Just make sure he doesn't run off like he did yesterday. Trash like this—I can take ten of them by myself."
"Run!" Chen Zhezhe spun around and shoved Qin Xin, then charged straight at Zhang Zhi.
The moment Chen Zhezhe lunged forward, he saw Zhang Zhi's fist growing larger and larger in his field of vision.
He tilted his head. The fist grazed past the corner of his eye, sending a surge of heat and tears streaming down his face.
Yet this split-second opening gave Chen Zhezhe his chance. He was no novice at street fighting; squinting his eyes to seize the advantage, he drove his foot straight into Zhang Zhi's crotch!
"Fuck!"
Zhang Zhi let out a roar, his face turning the color of a pig's liver as he clutched his groin and doubled over.
His lackeys nearby were struck dumb with shock. "Brother Zhang? Brother Zhang, what's wrong?"
One of them yelled out, "He kicked Brother Zhang's balls! Beat him up!"