Chapter 17: The Advancing Supporting Character

Over the following month, Zhou Yi continued to weed out ten more students using her eccentric running tests, leaving the entire Class One in a state of constant trepidation and anxiety.

Students from other classes and grade levels often caught sight of these frantic figures darting across the campus; whether they were eating, attending lectures, or bathing, this group seemed unnervingly diligent.

Even if you happened to run into four or five of them out trying to relax, you only needed to walk up to them and drop a single reminder: "I think I saw someone from Class One running back to the dormitory to cultivate."

You could then watch them scramble to their feet and dash back, locking themselves in their rooms to meditate for hours on end.

Except for two people.

One was a student who wore old, faded clothes. He spent all his time disappearing into the woods, only to emerge hours later with a pale face, clutching at trees for support. After a week of this, he somehow found a straight wooden staff and spent his days leaning on it as he trekked back and forth incessantly.

As for the other one...

"Don't eat so fast! You'll choke," Tang Ya said, watching Xiao Xiao with a touch of concern.

The latter was currently hunched over, wolfing down her meal, preparing to leave before much time had passed. "Teacher Tang, I'll be heading off now. There's still a bit of time before afternoon class, and I want to take the opportunity to cultivate for a while."

"Wait! Hold on..." Tang Ya quickly spoke up, reaching into an unknown pocket to pull out several soft golden beads. "These are one of the Tang Sect's famous hidden weapons, the Dragon Whisker Needles. Keep them for self-defense; think of it as a gift from your big sister."

"Thank you, Teacher!" Xiao Xiao’s expression was moved, and she bowed sincerely in gratitude.

"Hmm-hmm?" Tang Ya tilted her head.

"Oh, right... thank you, Sister! Goodbye, Sister!" Xiao Xiao giggled, sticking her tongue out. She waved and darted out of the canteen, heading straight for the track against the flow of the crowd.

It must be said that she was likely responsible for more than half of the competitive atmosphere that had swept through Class One.

For the past month, she had insisted on running morning, noon, and night, rain or shine. Whenever she had a moment, she could be seen sprinting around the track. Her foundation was indeed weak, but her level-twenty soul power was undeniable.

After the initial adjustment period of the first two weeks, a mere thirty-pound weight was no longer enough to satisfy her needs. To compensate, Xiao Xiao had taken the initiative to add a layer of iron armor, stubbornly bearing sixty pounds of weight as she ran until she reached the point of total exhaustion.

"That little girl is running again..." A girl with short, crimson hair rested her hands behind her head as she strolled with a companion. "I heard she’s a student from Class One? She certainly is hardworking."

Her words sounded like praise, but her expression carried a hint of mockery.

The iron armor Xiao Xiao wore was indeed heavy, but that was a trivial matter to her. Her innate, top-tier beast soul gave her a physical constitution that naturally towered over the rest; even without training, she could easily overwhelm any tool-type soul master.

Moreover, Xiao Xiao on the track was most likely an auxiliary-type soul master.

What was the point of training the body so hard? Could she ever hope to catch up to a beast-type soul master of the same rank?

"Wu Feng! Don't look down on others so easily." Ning Tian frowned. "Anyone who can get into Shrek Academy is not as simple as the people out there."

"Fine~" Wu Feng lowered her head obediently, but the look of defiance in her eyes remained.

*Hoo... hoo...*

Xiao Xiao, on the track, had no way of knowing what the onlookers thought of her; she only knew that she was pushed to her absolute limit.

The meal she had consumed earlier had already been burned up by a body running on empty. Now, with every step she took, her body groaned like an overloaded machine, struggling to squeeze a sliver of soul power from the Mysterious Heaven Technique to support one more stride.

The physical limit was also straining her spirit.

Her vision was darkening, blinding her to the path ahead. She could only move her legs, which had lost all sensation, in a mechanical rhythm. She was on the verge of collapsing.

*Thud.*

She took her final step, her body leaning forward faster than her feet could follow. As her consciousness drifted away, Xiao Xiao fell toward the ground.

*Clack.*

A dull sound of a staff hitting the ground echoed, followed instantly by a sharp, cool sensation piercing her mind like a needle.

Weightless, Xiao Xiao snapped her eyes open at the stimulation. She saw the ground rushing up to meet her and let out a startled cry: "Ah..."

Then, she was suspended in mid-air.

Someone had appeared beside her, leaning on a wooden staff, and had reached out to grab her by the collar of her iron armor, hoisting her up.

"Hu... Huo Yuhao?" Xiao Xiao’s eyes widened as she looked at the person before her.

...

Back in the canteen, it was Xiao Xiao’s turn to watch someone else wolf down their food.

Huo Yuhao was shoveling food into his mouth like a starving man, though he carried a distinct, rich aroma of seasonings.

"Why are you only eating now?" Xiao Xiao looked at the sparsely populated canteen. "If you had been just a few minutes slower, you probably wouldn't have gotten any food at all."

"The food is too expensive." Huo Yuhao spoke the truth. "A slightly better medicinal meal costs several silver or gold coins per serving. The gold soul coins I had didn't last long, so now I set up a stall near the school gate from time to time to earn money for meals."

"I see..." Xiao Xiao murmured. She gathered her courage and suddenly looked up. "Um... how about I pay for your meals?"

As soon as the words left her lips, she realized something was off. She blushed, waving her hands in a panic. "I—I meant, think of it as a thank-you gift for your advice on my cultivation."

"No need." Huo Yuhao shook his head, pointing at himself with a grin. "Though it might sound like I'm bragging, my skills are actually quite good. Every time I set up my stall, it’s packed. As long as I spend the time, I don't have to worry about sales."

"Really?" Xiao Xiao rested her arms on the table, watching him with an involuntary smile. "Then I'll have to patronize your business!"

"Don't worry~ I guarantee your satisfaction."

Just as Huo Yuhao was feeling happy about gaining another customer (and earning more money), a pink-and-blue-haired figure quietly appeared before him.

"Oh? You two seem to be having a lovely chat." Wang Dong looked at them with a smile, his gaze shifting with a subtle nuance to Huo Yuhao. "Didn't you say you were going to cook a special meal for me after eating? How did you end up flirting with this little girl?"

*Flirting...*

The corner of Huo Yuhao’s mouth twitched a few times.

"We were desk-mates for a day or two when school first started. I just happened to run into her on the track, so I took the opportunity to chat for a moment." As he spoke, Huo Yuhao finished off his last few bites and nimbly cleaned his lunchbox. "Done!"

"Shall we go, then?" Wang Dong nodded at Xiao Xiao, then pulled Huo Yuhao out of the canteen with long strides.

"Wait? Why are you walking so fast... I didn't even get to say goodbye."

"I'm starving!"

"...You didn't eat?"

"What else? I saved my appetite for you, only to find you chatting up some little girl..."

Their voices faded as they walked further away.

Xiao Xiao stood where she was, her expression stiff, and she gave a small wave. "G-goodbye?"