"Senior Chu, this should be the Sky Azure Tree, right? Is this your soul skill?"
Temporarily setting aside her doubts, Ning Rongrong recognized the Sky Azure Tree Summoning beside them, which had yet to be put away by Chu Chengzhou, and curiously asked.
If she wasn't mistaken, the soul skill effect of Senior Chu's True Spirit Banner Martial Soul was to command soul beasts in battle?
"Yes, my martial soul is quite special. Its soul skill effect is summoning soul ring beasts to fight."
Chu Chengzhou nodded.
Upon hearing this, Ning Rongrong was shocked, and Zhu Zhuqing, who was beside her, was also surprised, her small mouth slightly agape.
Neither of them came from ordinary civilian backgrounds; their prestigious family backgrounds gave them a vision far beyond that of ordinary soul masters.
A soul skill that summons soul ring beasts—if one day Chu Chengzhou managed to obtain a 100,000-year soul ring, wouldn't he be able to dominate most of the titled Douluo on the continent?
No, he wouldn't even need a 100,000-year soul ring. If he found a 90,000-year soul beast with a strong bloodline to use as his soul ring, he could already rival many titled Douluo.
After all, barring any surprises, a 17-year-old at Rank 34 would most likely not become a nine-ring Titled Douluo.
Becoming a titled Douluo seemed unlikely, but reaching the rank of an eight-ring Soul Douluo was still possible. And at Rank 80, it wasn't impossible to obtain a 90,000-year soul ring.
"By the way, Xiao Wu, I was just about to arrange dormitories for the two junior sisters. But you know the state of the academy dorms—Rongrong wants to stay in our wooden house. What do you think?"
Putting away the Sky Azure Tree Summoning, Chu Chengzhou pointed to the two shabby wooden houses they had previously stayed in and asked Xiao Wu.
"Rongrong, you want to stay in our wooden house? No problem! Dean Flender is such a cheapskate. He has money but refuses to renovate the dorms. Those rundown houses leak wind and rain— even a dog would find them unlivable!"
Xiao Wu agreed without hesitation and even took the opportunity to complain about Flender's stinginess.
"Hehe~ Thanks a lot, Xiao Wu!"
Ning Rongrong grinned and thanked her.
"Zhuqing, what about you? Want to stay with us?"
Xiao Wu turned to ask the usually quiet Zhu Zhuqing.
"This..."
Zhu Zhuqing hesitated.
She had come to Shrek Academy to find Dai Mubai. If the wooden house only housed Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong, or if all students in the academy lived there, she wouldn't have hesitated.
But the wooden house belonged to Chu Chengzhou, and he was the only male living there. As the future princess consort of Star Luo, would it really be appropriate for her to move in? What if Dai Mubai misunderstood?
At this moment, Zhu Zhuqing had no idea that Dai Mubai had already fallen into depravity.
Even though Dai Mubai's reputation in the Star Luo City circles was terrible, and even her elder sister Zhu Zhuyun called him a coward with no sense of responsibility, Zhu Zhuqing still held hope for him.
She hoped that his presence at Shrek Academy was not an act of cowardice but a show of determination to grow stronger—to cultivate diligently, accumulate strength, and one day defeat his much older brother Davis, seize the imperial throne, and change his fate from being stripped of his soul power or even being killed.
"Zhuqing, counting you and Rongrong, our academy only has three girls. We should all live together!"
Seeing Zhu Zhuqing's hesitation, Xiao Wu quickly tried to persuade her.
Since the academy had so few students, Xiao Wu felt that being the "big sister" wasn't as fun.
Now that she finally had two new female companions, how could she not look after them?
"Xiao Wu, did you say our academy only has three girls?"
Ning Rongrong caught onto the key detail.
"Yeah! Before you two arrived, there were only five students in total, including me and my brother. I was the only girl."
Xiao Wu nodded.
Instantly, both Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing were stunned.
Was this Shrek Academy some kind of joke?
The school was already rundown enough, but it barely had any students! What gave the dean the confidence to keep running this place?
After getting over their initial shock, Ning Rongrong also began persuading Zhu Zhuqing.
With only three girls in the entire academy, wouldn't it seem unfriendly if they didn't live together?
Under their combined persuasion, Zhu Zhuqing no longer refused and decided to move into the wooden house with Ning Rongrong, hoping to develop their tentative "plastic sisterhood."
They had only just met today—barely even an hour ago—so any sisterhood was definitely still "plastic" at this stage.
Whether it would remain superficial or turn into a true sisterly bond would depend on their future interactions.
"By the way, Zhuqing, your martial soul is the Nether Spirit Cat. This martial soul seems to only exist in the Nether Spirit Cat Clan of the Star Luo Empire. Why did you come to Shrek Academy?"
Suddenly, Ning Rongrong remembered something important and looked at Zhu Zhuqing in confusion.
As the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Ning Rongrong had her flaws, but her knowledge—especially about martial souls—was extensive.
"I get it! Our academy has a student named Dai Mubai, and his martial soul is the White Tiger."
At this moment, Chu Chengzhou spoke up.
"Dai Mubai? White Tiger Martial Soul? Zhuqing, could it be that you have some connection with this Dai Mubai?"
Ning Rongrong asked Zhu Zhuqing curiously.
If she remembered correctly, the White Tiger Dai Clan of the Star Luo royal family had a tradition of intermarriage with the Nether Spirit Cat Zhu Clan.
"Yes, I have a marriage engagement with him."
Since her connection had been guessed, Zhu Zhuqing did not hide it and nodded.
"No way! Zhuqing, you're engaged to that perverted tiger, Dai Mubai?"
Xiao Wu's eyes widened in disbelief.
That playboy who changed girlfriends more often than his clothes—was he really worthy of her new sister?
"Perverted tiger?"
Zhu Zhuqing was momentarily stunned. It seemed Dai Mubai had left a bad impression on Xiao Wu?
Meanwhile, Ning Rongrong's eyes sparkled with excitement, looking eager for some juicy gossip.
There are certainly people in the world who dislike gossip, but as a mischievous little princess who thrived on chaos, Ning Rongrong was not one of them.
She immediately began piecing things together in her mind.
Was this a case of Dai Mubai messing around with too many women, and his fiancée, Zhu Zhuqing, chasing him all the way from Star Luo to confront him?
"Zhuqing, listen to me—Dai Mubai is a total womanizer! According to Ma Hongjun from the academy, he sometimes even has three dates in a single day!
A guy like that isn't worth your time. I think you should break off your engagement as soon as possible!"
Xiao Wu earnestly advised Zhu Zhuqing.
She had always thought Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun were equally perverted.
But now, it seemed Dai Mubai was even worse than Ma Hongjun! At least Ma Hongjun had no engagement—his romantic affairs were his own business.
But Dai Mubai? He had a fiancée, yet he still played around. What did that make Zhu Zhuqing?
Chu Chengzhou pulled Xiao Wu aside and said, "Xiao Wu, you shouldn't say such things. Dai Mubai isn't just anyone—breaking off an engagement isn't that easy."
"Why not?"
Xiao Wu was confused.
"Dai Mubai is the third prince of the Star Luo Empire. Publicly breaking the engagement would be a slap in the face to the royal family. The only way to force it would be to have a powerful person put a blade to the emperor's throat."
Based on the domineering nature of the White Tiger Dai family, Chu Chengzhou was certain that the royal family agreeing to annul the engagement was impossible.
Unless an external force intervened—and this force couldn't be weak, not even an ordinary Title Douluo would be sufficient.
Successfully bringing Miss Yourong into his "fishpond" would be a long and arduous task.
Of course, it wasn't necessary to completely overthrow the entire Star Luo Empire; as long as they could render the empire powerless to respond, that would be enough.
Even if the royal family were to suffer a severe humiliation, if resolving the situation required paying a price that the Star Luo royal family could not afford, they would most likely choose to ignore it.
At the end of the day, Zhu Zhuqing was merely a prospective princess consort, and that too for a prince who wasn't even highly valued.
A little loss of face was nothing—the Star Luo royal family had been humiliated plenty of times before.
If they truly valued their pride that much, they would have long since engaged in all-out war with the Spirit Hall.
Star Luo was strong, while Heaven Dou was weak. Over the years, Star Luo had multiple opportunities to annex Heaven Dou, but each time, their plans were ruined by the Spirit Hall.
If not for the Spirit Hall's overwhelming power, Star Luo would have already ground them into dust.
One could say that the faction that hated the Spirit Hall the most wasn't the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, whose wealth was constantly coveted, nor was it the Heaven Dou Empire, whose interests were being plundered. Instead, it was the Star Luo Empire, whose repeated attempts at continental unification had been thwarted, and the Clear Sky Clan, which had been forced into seclusion over a decade ago.
Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan: ??? What about me?
"Holding a blade to the Star Luo Emperor's throat?"
Ning Rongrong had a strange expression—Senior Chu's thinking was a little dangerous!
But despite the risk, the idea resonated with her.
After all, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan was a staunch ally of the Heaven Dou Empire. Every time the two empires clashed, her clan was obligated to assist the weaker Heaven Dou Empire.
And in war, there were always casualties. Over the centuries, countless ancestors of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan had died at the hands of Star Luo's army.
If one were to truly calculate grievances, Star Luo was their greatest enemy.
However, since Heaven Dou had not fallen, Star Luo had never been able to make a move against the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan. This allowed the Spirit Hall, which coveted their vast wealth, to become their primary adversary instead.
"Xiao Wu, can you tell me about Dai Mubai?"
At this moment, Zhu Zhuqing spoke with a cold expression.
"My brother and Dai Mubai have quite a few conflicts, and I don't like him either. Plus, I'm not very familiar with him, so my opinion might be biased. Why don't you ask Ma Hongjun and Oscar at the academy later?"
After some hesitation, Xiao Wu suggested that Zhu Zhuqing seek out Ma Hongjun and Oscar instead.
After all, even if she spoke the truth, Zhu Zhuqing—being Dai Mubai's fiancée—would likely assume she was deliberately slandering him. It would be better for her to get answers from others.
"Alright."
Zhu Zhuqing nodded indifferently, but she gained a bit more respect for Xiao Wu.
Although she was young, she had already seen the harshness of the world.
From Xiao Wu's tone, she could tell that she had a very poor impression of Dai Mubai, even to the point of disgust.
Xiao Wu could have outright slandered Dai Mubai, but she didn't, which showed her integrity.
And when choosing friends, wasn't it best to befriend those with good character?
The wooden house Chu Chengzhou had built was quite large. The first floor consisted of a living room, bathroom, forging room, and a temporarily unused bedroom planned as a storage room. The second floor had a small lounge and four bedrooms.
Chu Chengzhou had planned things carefully. One room for himself, one for Xiao Wu, and one each for Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing—perfectly filling up the four bedrooms on the second floor.
Now, things were playing out just as expected, with Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing moving into the remaining two rooms upstairs.
Just as Chu Chengzhou was considering whether he should drop by their rooms at night, Xiao Wu suddenly frowned, as if she had remembered something.
"Brother, all three of us girls are staying on the second floor, but you're the only guy. Why don't you move to the empty room downstairs?"
Xiao Wu suggested to Chu Chengzhou.
Immediately, Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing agreed with this idea.
It made sense—having a single guy stay upstairs while the three girls were there was inconvenient.
If there were no empty rooms downstairs, they wouldn't have minded. After all, guests should respect the host, and it wouldn't be right to force him out.
But since there was a vacant room downstairs, wasn't it only logical for the only guy to move?
Besides, this wasn't even their idea—another host, Xiao Wu, had suggested it, so it couldn't be said that they were forcing him out.
Chu Chengzhou looked at Xiao Wu in disbelief, feeling as if he had been stabbed in the back.
Why had he built this wooden house in the first place? Aside from the terrible dorms at Shrek Academy, wasn't it also so he could have more opportunities to interact with the "little rich lady" (Ning Rongrong) and "Miss Yourong"? (T/N: I'm pretty sure Miss Yourong is Zhu Zhuqing)
Now that the "little rich lady" and "Miss Yourong" had arrived, he was being kicked out?
Move or not move?
Did he even have a choice?
Of course not! He had to move downstairs.
There was no other option—he was the only guy here. Even if he objected, he was outnumbered three to one, especially with Xiao Wu supporting the decision. He would lose outright.
"Xiao Wu, you're really my 'good' little sister, huh?"
Chu Chengzhou gritted his teeth as he ruffled Xiao Wu's rabbit ears.
You ruined my plans—I'll deal with you later, little bunny!
"But I am your good little sister!"
Xiao Wu acted innocent, pretending not to catch the hidden meaning.
She had done this on purpose.
With Chu Chengzhou staying downstairs, he would have fewer chances to interact with Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing, lowering the risk of him being stolen away.
Some things couldn't be shared, even with good friends! Let alone "plastic friendships."
Around noon, as lunchtime approached, Xiao Wu took Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing to the cafeteria.
Meanwhile, Chu Chengzhou, now forced to move to the first floor, followed behind them with an unhappy expression.
As they entered, they spotted Ma Hongjun and Oscar devouring their meals at a table.
"Rongrong, Zhuqing, the chubby one is Ma Hongjun, and the skinny one is Oscar."
Xiao Wu introduced them.
Her voice caught Ma Hongjun and Oscar's attention. Looking up, they immediately noticed Zhu Zhuqing.
Ma Hongjun's eyes nearly popped out as he ogled Zhu Zhuqing's black tight-fitting outfit, which accentuated her fiery figure.
"Fatty, where are you looking? If you keep staring at Zhuqing like that, be careful, or Sister Xiao Wu will teach you a lesson!"
Xiao Wu scolded him.
Looking at pretty girls was normal—it was human nature. But staring in such a lecherous way? That was unacceptable.
"My bad, my bad, Sister Xiao Wu. Are these two beauties our new academy students?"
Ma Hongjun asked with an awkward chuckle.
"Hmph~! Rongrong, Zhu Zhuqing, let me tell you, when my brother and I first arrived last year, this little rascal tried to flirt with me. But in the end, my brother beat him up so badly that his head swelled up like a pig's!"
With a cold snort, Xiao Wu ignored Ma Hongjun and turned to Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing, recounting Ma Hongjun's embarrassing incident.
"Boss Chu, are these the new junior sisters who just arrived today?"
Glancing at the noble-looking Ning Rongrong and the curvaceous Zhu Zhuqing, Oscar quietly asked Chu Chengzhou.
"Yeah."
Chu Chengzhou nodded.
"Boss Chu, you already have Xiao Wu. You wouldn't compete with me, would you?"
Oscar probed.
"You? No chance!"
Chu Chengzhou raised an eyebrow and then shook his head.
"Uh, Boss Chu, that's not fair. Sister Xiao Wu is so amazing—how can you have food in your bowl while still eyeing the pot?"
"Don't make me sound so depraved. I'm not lying to you—you really don't stand a chance!"
Chu Chengzhou straightened his expression and spoke seriously.
Though that was indeed what he thought, he couldn't admit it outright. Otherwise, Xiao Wu wouldn't let it slide—he had to take things slowly.
"Why?"
Hearing that he truly had no chance, Oscar was baffled.
He had innate full soul power and was one of the best-looking guys around. How could he not stand a chance?
"Ning Rongrong is an auxiliary-type soul master, while you're a food-type soul master. You don't fit within her criteria for a partner."
Chu Chengzhou pointed at Ning Rongrong, ready to shatter Oscar's hopes directly. He wasn't lying.
Ning Rongrong was from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, which had a rule for direct disciples—those who awakened the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda martial soul had to choose a partner with combat ability.
Otherwise, if both partners were purely supportive, how would they protect each other in the future?
"Tsk~ what a pity. What about the other one?"
Feeling a bit regretful, Oscar glanced at Ning Rongrong one last time before turning his gaze to Zhu Zhuqing.
"Her name is Zhu Zhuqing, but you can forget about her too. As for why, you'll find out soon enough."
Chu Chengzhou said mysteriously.
"Boss Chu, and you still say you don't have your eyes on her?"
Seeing Chu Chengzhou being secretive, Oscar was even more convinced that he was being greedy.
He didn't believe it—this girl had such an impressive figure, and Chu Chengzhou wouldn't be tempted?
"Oscar, stop talking nonsense! I'm not that kind of person!"
Noticing Xiao Wu glancing in his direction, Chu Chengzhou immediately put on a serious face and refuted Oscar's words.
"Fatty, Oscar, have you seen Dai Mubai?"
At this moment, Xiao Wu asked the two of them.
It wasn't that she cared about Dai Mubai—she was asking on Zhu Zhuqing's behalf.
"Dai Mubai? Haven't seen him since this morning. He probably ran off to Soto City for a date."
Without much thought, Ma Hongjun replied directly.
Zhu Zhuqing's expression instantly darkened.
The fact that Ma Hongjun answered so effortlessly showed that Dai Mubai's behavior was exactly as Xiao Wu had previously described.
For Dai Mubai to leave such an impression on his classmates, his lifestyle must be quite questionable.
She had endured years of judgment and ridicule back in Star Luo City, thinking that Dai Mubai had come to Shrek Academy to better himself.
But who would've thought that instead of striving for strength, this scoundrel was here to enjoy his last moments of freedom?
"Alright, alright, let's hurry and eat before the food gets cold."
Seeing Zhu Zhuqing's foul mood, Xiao Wu quickly changed the topic.
"Boss Chu, does this girl have something to do with Dai Mubai?"
Observing Zhu Zhuqing's reaction closely, Oscar whispered to Chu Chengzhou.
"Yeah."
Chu Chengzhou gave a simple nod.
"Tsk~ poor girl!"
Oscar cast a look of pity toward Zhu Zhuqing.
He knew what kind of person Dai Mubai was.
And he also knew a bit about Dai Mubai's background—he was a prince of the Star Luo Empire.
If Zhu Zhuqing had some connection with Dai Mubai, it was likely due to a family-arranged marriage.
With no emotional foundation, a forced union was already unpleasant enough. On top of that, she was paired with someone like Dai Mubai?
In Oscar's eyes, Zhu Zhuqing's parents had basically pushed their daughter into a fire pit.
Although Oscar had whispered, Zhu Zhuqing was a Soul Grandmaster with two soul rings—her hearing was much sharper than an ordinary person's.
Since they weren't far apart, she naturally heard everything.
This made her feel even more sorrowful.
If only Chu Chengzhou were closer to the big cat by now, he'd definitely pull her into his arms and comfort her properly.
That afternoon, with nothing else to do and no interest in training, Xiao Wu felt a little bored. She decided to invite her two new friends to go shopping in Soto City.
Ning Rongrong agreed immediately—after all, she loved to have fun.
Zhu Zhuqing, however, wasn't too eager.
She was a hardworking girl. Otherwise, she wouldn't have a soul power level higher than Ning Rongrong's despite being younger and having less innate talent.
But after considering that this was an invitation from her new classmates—and that Ning Rongrong was going—she didn't want to seem antisocial, so she ultimately agreed.
"Brother, we're going to Soto City for some shopping. Do you want to come?"
Coming downstairs, Xiao Wu saw Chu Chengzhou training behind the wooden building and asked.
"I'll pass. Don't stay out too late."
Glancing at the three of them, Chu Chengzhou declined.
If it were just Xiao Wu, he would have gone.
But since it was all three of them, he decided against it.
Why would he, a guy, tag along while they shopped? To discuss which store had the prettiest clothes?
"Oh~ then we're leaving!"
Waving goodbye, Xiao Wu led the two girls out of the wooden building.
"Xiao Wu, what was Senior Chu doing just now?"
After leaving, Ning Rongrong curiously asked.
"Training his body~"
Xiao Wu blinked playfully, not revealing the full truth.
But technically, she wasn't lying.
After all, body training techniques did strengthen the body—the only difference was that the effects were far stronger than ordinary training.