"Su Wanwan looked at Ma Kun, panicked and terrified."
"‘Give it back to you? How can you prove this is your money? Tell it to call out, and see if it answers you.’"
"Ma Kun looked at Su Wanwan with a lecherous gaze."
"‘I……’"
"Su Wanwan cast a pleading look at Ning Chen, who was sitting at a nearby table. The young man was flipping through a novel page by page, showing no intention of helping her whatsoever."
"She bit her cherry lips hard and glared at Ma Kun. ‘This is my money!’"
"‘Little sister, you're so cute.’"
"Ma Kun reached out to tease her."
"Su Wanwan slapped his hand away. ‘Give me the money, or I'll call the police!’"
"‘Oh ho, calling the police? Come on, I'll lend you a phone. Go ahead and try calling the police.’"
"Ma Kun casually reached to grab Ning Chen's phone."
"Expecting that this young brat wouldn't dare to refuse, he was met instead with an annoyed glare. ‘What do you think you're doing?’"
"Just as Ma Kun was about to blow his top, Li Mei heard the commotion and hurried out."
"Seeing her daughter Su Wanwan exposed to the gaze of a group of hooligans, she rushed forward. ‘Brother Kui, everything is pretty much ready, we can eat soon—’"
"‘Eat my ass!’"
"Ma Kun raised a hand and slapped Li Mei across the face, saying viciously, ‘Let me tell you, starting today, every shop on Shuiyue Street has to pay an extra four thousand yuan in management fees every month. This is Brother Xiao's order!’"
"‘Mom!’"
"Su Wanwan cried and hugged Li Mei."
"Disregarding the injury on her face, Li Mei said in terror, ‘Brother Kui, you... you are cutting off our means of survival! Four thousand yuan, how am I supposed to afford that?’"
"‘Can't afford it? How about this, have your daughter become my sworn younger sister, and that way you'll be my sworn mother from now on. I guarantee no one on this street will dare bully you ever again, what do you say, Sister Mei?’"
"As Ma Kun spoke, his eyes remained fixed on Su Wanwan. That slender figure and pure face were truly enough to tempt a man to sin."
"‘Brother Kui, Brother Kui, please spare our mother and daughter. I'm begging you on my knees, Wanwan is only eighteen and just got accepted into Qingzhou University.’"
"Knowing full well what Ma Kun was after, Li Mei dropped to her knees to beg for mercy."
"‘Mom, Mom, don't kneel!’"
"Su Wanwan's face was covered in tears as well."
"Seeing this, Ning Chen still maintained a completely expressionless face."
"Having lived for over two thousand years, he had witnessed countless similar incidents in the cultivation world."
"On Earth, there was at least still some law. In the cultivation world, there was truly nothing at all: if you took a fancy to something you seized it, if anyone dared to block you you killed them, and if they said they would slaughter a village they slaughtered it without the slightest hesitation."
"Save them?"
"Sigh, how could one possibly save all of them?"
"‘Boss Lady, how much do I owe for these?’"
"Ning Chen intended to pay and be on his way."
"He wanted to go back and finish reading this novel."
"‘Young man, you……’"
"Li Mei looked at Ning Chen uncomprehendingly."
"Su Wanwan also thought this person was very strange, but she still managed to say, ‘Five hundred and thirty yuan in total.’"
"Just as Ning Chen was about to scan the code to pay, Ma Kun swung his palm and aimed a slap right at his face. ‘Did I tell you to scan, you piece of—’"
"The next second, Ning Chen grabbed his wrist and gave it a gentle squeeze."
"With a crisp *crack*, Ma Kun's wrist bone snapped. Screaming in agonizing pain, he collapsed onto the floor and rolled around."
"‘Payment received, five hundred and thirty yuan.’"
"The broadcast chime sounded from the cashier counter."
"Su Wanwan was completely dumbfounded."
"What was happening?"
"This guy had beaten Ma Kun to the ground while calmly finishing his payment?"
"‘Paid, alright.’"
"Ning Chen tucked his phone back into his pocket and prepared to head home."
"‘Beat him to death for me!!!’"
"Lying on the floor, Ma Kun let out a howl like a slaughtered pig."
"The five punks immediately pulled vicious grimaces and threw punches at Ning Chen all at once."
"‘Are you annoying or what?’"
"Ning Chen frowned and lashed out with a backhand slap."
"That slap was as fast as lightning, striking the faces of all five punks in rapid succession: slap, slap, slap, slap, slap—a five-hit combo! Boom, headshot!"
"More than a dozen blood-stained teeth went flying through the air."
"The five thugs collapsed beside Brother Kui, clutching their bleeding cheeks and howling in misery. Some were even crying from the pain of their dislodged jawbones."
"By the time Su Wanwan and Li Mei regained their senses, Ning Chen had already left."
"He wanted to hurry home and read his novel."
"‘W-Wait!’"
"When he reached the intersection, Su Wanwan chased after him, breathing heavily."
"Chapter 6: An Awkward Misunderstanding"
"*Why does he walk so fast!*"
"Resting her hands on her knees, sweat dripping, Su Wanwan stood before Ning Chen."
"In just this short while, he had actually walked all the way to the intersection."
"‘A-Are you an athlete? You walk so fast,’ Su Wanwan panted heavily."
"‘If you're trying to thank me for what just happened, don't bother,’ Ning Chen stated flatly."
"‘Uh……’ Su Wanwan froze, momentarily not knowing what to say."
"‘Goodbye.’ Ning Chen turned around and walked away."
"Once upon a time, he had also been a warm-hearted, helpful young man who leaped to draw his sword against injustice upon the road."
"But any job grown tiresome after being done for too long."
"Some people he had rescued came to rely on him from then on, even taking his help for granted."
"When Su Wanwan returned to the shop, she found that Ma Kun and his thugs had all boarded an ambulance, their mouths twisted, faces slanted, and limping heavily."
"‘Doctor, Doctor, look at my mouth! Why is it stuck crooked?’"
"‘Me too, I can't turn my neck anymore.’"
"‘Brother Kui, are we going to have to live our whole lives with crooked mouths?’"
"Several of the thugs wailed together."
"This was the first time the emergency room doctors had ever seen such a case."
"The mouths and necks of all six men were severely misaligned, and their bones had somehow already set in that position. For a condition like this, unless they were smashed apart and reset……"
"And all of this, naturally, was Ning Chen's doing."
"Consider it a little malicious whim of his to punish evil."
"‘It's eighty percent that brat's handiwork! Damn it, this isn't over!’"
"Not only was Ma Kun's mouth and face crooked, but he also sported a pair of crossed eyes as he spoke viciously."
"……"
"At a little past ten, Ning Chen carried several large bags of groceries and strolled leisurely back to Rose Garden."
"He pulled out his key and poked it in twice."
"The door was double-locked?"
"Ning Chen wasn't annoyed either. He hooked the index finger of his right hand, and a wisp of True Qi slipped into the keyhole."
"‘Shuyan, aren't we going a bit too far like this?’"
"In the living room, Jiang Tang asked Xu Shuyan."
"‘What's going too far? He might have killed people, you know. How can I possibly live under the same roof as a murderer?’"
"Xu Shuyan sat on the sofa, holding a cup of milk tea."
"‘Hey, the guy was probably just joking,’ Jiang Tang rolled her eyes."
"‘Ah!’"
"While drinking her milk tea and playing a mobile game, Xu Shuyan accidentally spilled the tea all over her pajamas."
"‘Damn it, my newly bought pajamas! Xiao Tang, help me throw these in the washing machine. My match is about to start.’"
"‘Then take them off.’"
"‘Hee hee, Xiao Tang, you're the best.’"
"The game was about to begin, and Xu Shuyan didn't want to drag down her teammates, so she hurriedly stripped off her pajamas."
"At that exact moment, Ning Chen opened the door and walked in."
"The moment he walked straight into her view, her brain suffered an instant oxygen blackout."
"How could this be!"
"The front door was clearly double-locked; how did this bastard get in?"
"‘Ahhh—Don't look!!’"
"Xu Shuyan clutched her body, shrieking as she spun around."
"What made matters even worse was that she tossed her pajamas right onto Jiang Tang's head. Jiang Tang hadn't seen Ning Chen enter and assumed Xu Shuyan was talking to her."
"‘I didn't look!’"
"She cried out in alarm, ‘Ning Chen! Y-Y-You... how did you get in?’"
"‘I didn't see anything.’"
"Ning Chen gave a light cough, turned around, and walked into the kitchen."
"Young people really do have a lot of energy."
"A moment later."
"Upstairs in the bedroom, Jiang Tang knelt by the bedside to apologize."
"‘Shuyan, I didn't mean to, please forgive me……’"
"‘Speaking of which, wasn't the door double-locked? How did he get in?’"
"Xu Shuyan buried her head in the quilt, her pretty face burning red hot."
"Remembering the scene just then made her wish she could just drop dead!"
"‘Picking the lock! He must have called a locksmith!’"
"Xu Shuyan bit her cherry lips hard and said with bitter humiliation, ‘Xiao Tang, I don't care, you have to think of a way to kick him out, otherwise neither of us will be safe here anymore!’"
"‘Alright, alright, I'll think of one, I'll think of one right now.’"
"Jiang Tang quickly set her brains to work. ‘Got it! Rent! We'll make him pay ten thousand yuan a month in rent. He's just a student, he definitely won't have that kind of money.’"
"‘Good idea, you go ask him! But ten thousand a month is too little. Two thousand... No, thirty thousand!’"
"Jiang Tang had no choice but to go redeem herself."
"As soon as she stepped downstairs, she was drawn by a strange, mouth-watering aroma wafting from the kitchen."
"‘Wow, so fragrant, who's cooking……’"
"Having eaten dinner a little past seven, she was already starving."
"‘Good heavens, Ning Chen, you even know how to make soup?’ Jiang Tang poked her little head out from the doorway."
"‘Mm, want to have a bowl together?’ Ning Chen actually had a fairly favorable impression of Jiang Tang."
"‘Yes please!’ Jiang Tang instantly forgot the original purpose of her trip downstairs."
"She swore that she had never tasted such delicious chicken soup in her entire life; she nearly swallowed her tongue along with it."
"This wasn't just any ordinary chicken soup; it was a medicinal broth simmered with seventeen different Chinese herbs!"
"It's just that the chicken itself was too trashy. If it had been brewed with the Snow Feather Chicken from their cultivation world, that truly would have been a peerless delicacy of the mortal realm."
"After finishing the soup, Jiang Tang returned to her room looking utterly satisfied."
"Xu Shuyan stood at the doorway with her hands on her hips, glaring at her with utter indignation:"
"‘Jiang! Tang!’"
"……"
"All the way through the next day, Xu Shuyan refused to give Jiang Tang the time of day."
"She had agreed to demand rent, yet she ended up drinking that brute's chicken soup instead?"
"Have some spine!"
"Thinking this, Xu Shuyan glared at Ning Chen through the rearview mirror of the Rolls-Royce."
"Glaring at him for over ten minutes straight."
"All the way from home right up to the gates of Qingzhou University."
"‘I wasn't trying to do that on purpose yesterday.’"
"‘Ah, shut up! You're not allowed to speak!’"
"Xu Shuyan covered her ears, dying of shame and anger."
"The driver was sweating profusely; the amount of subtext in these words was a bit too massive……"
"‘Don't worry, we won't be living together forever. I promise.’"
"Ning Chen already had a plan in mind."
"‘That'd better be the case!’"
"Xu Shuyan crossed her arms and turned her head away, her cheeks flushed with anger."
"Ten minutes later, the Rolls-Royce Cullinan stopped at the gates of Qingzhou University, drawing the sideways glances of the crowd."
"Especially Xu Shuyan as she stepped out of the car."
"Dressed very prettily today, with carefully curled champagne-colored long hair, facial features accented by Korean-style makeup, and paired with an academic-style pleated skirt, her head-turning rate was one hundred percent."
"Jiang Tang, with her angelic face and devilish figure, also pulled away a considerable share of the gazes."
"Ning Chen held his phone, reading a novel as he walked, yawning from time to time."
"Someone had sneaked downstairs in the middle of the night to steal his chicken soup, keeping him awake and ruining his sleep."
"Not long after entering the school gates, five or six decent-looking boys came up to strike up a conversation. Without exception, all of them were rebuffed by Xu Shuyan and Jiang Tang."
"‘Wah, goddesses! Brother Liu, look over there!’"
"Along the shaded path, there were many campus recruitment club booths."
"A boy with a DSLR camera hanging around his neck stared at Xu Shuyan's legs, which could only be described as works of art, drool practically leaking out."
"Liu Di was also dumbstruck."
"As the vice president of the photography club, he had photographed countless pretty girls, yet none of them matched the beauty of the one right before his eyes."
"Without even thinking, he walked right up."
"‘Hi there, beauty. Are you... a freshman?’"
"A trace of wretchedness leaked through Liu Di's smile."
"‘Is something the matter?’"
"Xu Shuyan saw through his intentions at a single glance and didn't break her stride."
"‘Don't misunderstand, junior. We're from the Qingda Photography Club, and we specialize in taking photos for handsome guys and pretty girls. I was wondering if I might have the honor of taking a couple of pictures of you.’"
"Liu Di and several photography club members followed along beside them."
"‘Let me show you our Douyin account, it's a huge channel with over a million followers, you know.’"
"Xu Shuyan's lovely eyes rippled, and she came to a halt."
"‘Just as I thought, pretty girls all love taking pictures. Good thing I studied photography back then.’"
"Liu Di smiled inwardly and smoothly pulled out his phone. ‘Come on, junior sisters, this is our Douyin account, "Qingda Photography Chronicle." You're so pretty, anything we shoot of you will instantly go viral.’"
"‘Shuyan, their technique actually looks pretty good, their videos have over a hundred thousand likes.’"
"Jiang Tang scrolled through a couple of videos. ‘Should we do it?’"
"Xu Shuyan gave a slight nod of her pretty head. ‘Then let's just take a couple of casual shots.’"
"Chapter 7: Big Brother Dali"
"Got 'em!"
"A smile surfaced on Liu Di's face."
"As long as he could start a conversation, whatever came next would be easy to handle."
"Soon, Xu Shuyan and Jiang Tang followed the photography club to a pavilion by the lake and began taking pretty pictures."
"At first, everything was normal."
"Every time they took a shot, Liu Di would heap on the praise: natural beauty, fairy descending to earth—basically laying it on thick with all kinds of flattery."
"But as they shot more, Liu Di's demands grew increasingly out of line!"
"‘Are you out of your mind?’"
"Xu Shuyan had long since had enough of this greasy fellow; she tossed her head and turned to leave."
"‘What's wrong, junior? I'm not done shooting yet.’"
"Liu Di hurried up to apologize. ‘If you're feeling too uptight, forget it. Let's shoot a few in a different style, I've got plenty of ideas.’"
"‘I'm not taking any more.’ Xu Shuyan glared with her lovely eyes, standing tall and graceful. ‘Step aside!’"
"‘Alright, alright, if you don't want to shoot anymore, that's fine too. Just pay up then.’ Liu Di blocked the entrance of the pavilion."
"‘Pay? Pay for what?’ Xu Shuyan frowned."
"‘Come on, junior, so many of us spent half the day accompanying you, don't that cost money?’"
"Liu Di smiled craftily. ‘And it's not even expensive—five hundred yuan a print, and we've shot around a hundred pictures or so.’"
"‘Five hundred a print? You might as well just go rob someone!’"
"Xu Shuyan was fuming. ‘You were clearly the ones who begged me to let you take pictures!’"
"‘Shuyan, let's go, don't mind them.’"
"Jiang Tang felt disgusted."
"To run into this kind of creep on her very first day at school—what bad luck."
"‘If you're not going to pay, then finish taking the photos, otherwise we'll be taking a huge loss.’"
"Liu Di's lecherous gaze swept toward Xu Shuyan's legs."
"‘Tsk tsk, such pretty legs. If we shoot a themed series, it'll definitely rake in a ton of followers. Cooperate a little, junior.’"
"‘You!’"
"Xu Shuyan stamped her little foot, just about to unleash a torrent of abuse."
"Suddenly, Liu Di's feet left the ground as someone grabbed him by the back and hoisted him up."
"‘W-Who... who's that?! Are you looking to die, put me down right now!’"
"Standing at one meter sixty-eight, Liu Di thrashed about in midair."
"With a loud *thud*, he was tossed out, slamming hard into the pillar on the left side of the pavilion and tumbling down with stars dancing in his vision."
"‘Ning Chen?’"
"Xu Shuyan looked at the suddenly appearing youth, a faint blush involuntarily creeping onto her cheeks."
"‘Ning Chen, you're here!’"
"Jiang Tang cheered in surprise, her bright eyes sparkling as if looking at a hero."
"‘Damn it, where'd this guy pop out from? Get him, trash him!’"
"Liu Di grimaced and crawled up from the ground."
"Yet these photography club members, who spent their days snapping pictures and picking up girls while lacking any real exercise, had witnessed Ning Chen hoist a man with one hand—how could any of them dare to step up now?"
"‘You're the one who wants to trash me?’"
"Ning Chen walked right up to Liu Di and delivered a kick."
"Bang!"
"It directly sent him flying with two streams of bloody mucus, clutching his nose as he wailed on the ground."
"The remaining photography club members collectively took a step back, their faces drained of color."
"This guy played so rough, kicking people right in the face without a second word."
"‘If this were the Little Southern Heaven Realm, your head would already be separated from your neck.’"
"Dropping this nonsensical remark, Ning Chen delivered a few more kicks to him and turned to leave."
"In agonizing pain and supported by a few of his lackeys, Liu Di headed off to the school infirmary."
"‘He's definitely not an ordinary student; he must be mixed up with the underground world, Xiao Tang, do you believe me?’"
"Following at a distance behind Ning Chen, Xu Shuyan whispered her speculation."
"‘I don't know, but he was so cool just now……’"
"Jiang Tang crossed her hands, looking at him with utter adoration."
"‘Cool? He is not cool at all, not cool in the slightest!’"
"Xu Shuyan would rather die than admit this bumpkin was cool."
"A dozen minutes later."
"With bruises all over his body and smeared with iodine, Liu Di walked out of the school infirmary and dialed the phone number of his good buddy from the Sanshou Club."
"‘Hello, Brother Peng?’"
"‘Your buddy just got beaten up! Brother Peng, you have to avenge me, otherwise I won't be able to rest in peace even in death!’"
"Hearing this, the photography club members standing nearby changed expression."
"Zhao Lipeng, the core member of the Sanshou Club!"
"This guy was an outright heavy-hitter on the Qingda campus!"
"Word was he had practiced martial arts since childhood and had once won a municipal sanshou championship; ten ordinary people rushing him together wouldn't be able to beat him."
"Moreover, his uncle was a school administrator; as long as he didn't poke a hole in the sky, his uncle could cover for him."
"‘That guy is screwed……’"
"……"
"‘We're here.’"
"Ning Chen escorted Xu Shuyan and Jiang Tang to the entrance of the Art Department classroom, an expression of impatience showing on his face."
"‘You two keep a low profile and stop stirring up trouble. I am not your bodyguard.’"
"Jiang Tang gave a crooked, sloppy salute. ‘Will do, Big Brother Dali!’"
"Three black lines popped up over Ning Chen's head. ‘Uh, what kind of nickname is Big Brother Dali?’"
"Jiang Tang giggled cutely. ‘Hee hee, you're so strong, so I'm going to call you Big Brother Dali from now on!’"
"Ning Chen wasn't particularly fond of this moniker."
"Yet he couldn't be bothered to argue with Jiang Tang over such a trivial matter."
"Before leaving, he exhorted them once more, ‘Remember, don't stir up trouble. I hate trouble the most.’"
"‘Humph, this young lady will do whatever she pleases, why should I listen to you!’"
"Xu Shuyan crossed her arms, instantly displeased upon hearing those words."
"‘If it weren't for Aunt Qiao, I wouldn't even bother managing you.’ Ning Chen walked off without looking back."
"‘Who asked you to manage me, jerk!’"
"Xu Shuyan yelled at Ning Chen's receding back, stamping her little foot hard."
"‘Does she honestly think that movement makes her look cute?’"
"Ning Chen shook his head."
"Strolling all the way, he arrived at the Medical Department classroom to check in."
"The utterly unremarkable Ning Chen failed to attract the slightest bit of attention."
"He randomly picked a seat and sat down, pulling out his phone to play."
"‘Bro, what are you looking at? You're so engrossed.’"
"Barely ten minutes into reading, the bespectacled little fatty in front of him turned around."
"‘Reading a novel.’ Ning Chen didn't even raise his head."
"‘What kind of novel could be better-looking than the campus belles?’ The fatty said, ‘Let's get acquainted, I'm Fang Tao, you can just call me Fang the Fatty.’"
"‘Ning Chen.’"
"‘Did you vote, Ning Chen?’ Fang the Fatty asked."
"‘What vote? Not interested.’ Ning Chen shook his head."
"‘You definitely will be interested!’ A hint of wretchedness laced Fang the Fatty's smile. ‘The campus forum is holding a vote for the campus belle. Don't you want to see what the campus belles look like? One of them is actually right here in our class, you know!’"
"He pointed forward."
"A pretty girl with a pure appearance was currently surrounded by a bunch of male and female classmates, being asked all sorts of questions. Her face was quite red and a bit shy."
"‘Really not interested.’"
"Ning Chen figured reading his novel was still much more entertaining."