529. Eating for Free

Title debate was only temporary.

Qian Renjue didn’t dwell on it and softly asked Bibi Dong,
“By the way, Mother, what about the Evil Spirit Orca King’s corpse?”

“Don’t worry, everything useful and useless has already been cut up.”

Bibi Dong replied with a playful smile.

Noticing Qian Renjue hesitating to speak, she reached out and pinched his ear.

“Hiss—”

Qian Renjue immediately stood on tiptoe and spoke bluntly,
“Mom, Sister, I’m going to the Extreme North to find Snow Empress and break through to Title Douluo.”

Bibi Dong, still holding his ear, snorted,
“Hmph! Is that such a difficult thing to say?”

“No!”

“Then why not just say it outright? Do you think your mother and Xiao Xue are that unreasonable?”

“Of course not!”

Qian Renjue, driven by his survival instincts, shook his head frantically.

“Haha, serves you right.”

Qian Renxue chuckled as she playfully pinched Qian Renjue’s cheek, clearly enjoying his predicament.

Hu Liena covered her face, giggling softly.

Bibi Dong let go and huffed,
“Go if you want, just come back quickly and stay safe.”

“And don’t end up in someone else’s bed halfway there!”

Qian Renxue added with a smirk.

Uh…

Qian Renjue’s face turned slightly red. He rubbed his ear and nodded with a smile.

“I’ll come back soon.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he took the initiative to step forward and embrace Bibi Dong, whispering softly,
“Goodbye, Mom.”

“And Sister~”

Qian Renjue repeated the gesture, hugging Qian Renxue, gently patting her back, and rubbing his cheek against hers.

Bibi Dong caressed his warm face and exchanged a glance with Qian Renxue.

A radiant smile bloomed on their faces.

“Senior Brother~”

Hu Liena called out softly as Qian Renjue was about to leave.

“I understand.”

Qian Renjue nodded to himself, assuming Hu Liena just wanted a simple farewell.

Without hesitation, he strode forward, lifted her chin, and kissed her lips.

“Mmm~”

Hu Liena was momentarily dazed. Then her eyes turned misty with allure, wanting to deepen the kiss.

But before she could even part her lips, Qian Renjue quickly pulled away and tapped her forehead.

“Satisfied now?”

“Mmm! Mmm!”

Hu Liena beamed with joy. This was an unexpected bonus for her.

Qian Renjue then called out,
“Ice Empress, let’s go.”

“C-Coming!”

The Ice Empress quickly stepped forward and, to his surprise, grabbed his hand.

She looked as if she had made a life-or-death decision, her face tinged pink.

But before Qian Renjue could let his ego swell, two soft giggles rang out.

Qian Renxue, touching her flushed cheek, grinned,
“Jue~ It’s already dark outside. Why don’t you leave tomorrow instead?”

“Xiao Xue is right.”

Bibi Dong nodded in agreement. She was quite pleased with Qian Renjue’s display of affection earlier.

Her gaze was full of warmth as she spoke with concern,
“You’ve spent so long absorbing that soul ring, aren’t you hungry? I’ll personally cook for you tonight.”

“Gurgle~”

The moment Bibi Dong mentioned food, Qian Renjue’s stomach let out a growl, as if suddenly remembering its needs.

“…”

Qian Renjue froze for a moment, looking at their smiling faces.

So all those goodbyes… were for nothing?

Hu Liena lowered her head, fiddling with a lock of hair by her ear, looking a little shy and innocent.



"Senior Brother, Nana was actually trying to remind you earlier, but you just went ahead like that."

"Oh, I think you were enjoying it."

Qian Renjue rolled his eyes.

All of them—so cunning, always scheming to get free food and benefits.

Only Ice Empress and her kind were truly pure.

Qian Renjue didn’t insist further and turned to look at the twin-tailed green-haired girl beside him.

"Ice Empress, let’s just head over tomorrow then."

"No problem."

Ice Empress responded decisively.

Before she even finished speaking, she hurriedly disappeared from Qian Renjue’s side.

"Huh?"

Qian Renjue lifted his right hand, recalling the delicate sensation from before, a strange look in his eyes.

Ice Empress actually took the initiative to hold his hand…
Had the proud little scorpion changed her ways?


---

Meanwhile, at Shrek Academy:

By the time Qian Renjue successfully replaced his second soul ring, across the continent at Shrek Academy—

Yu Xiaogang’s nearly three-month-long hellish training had just come to an end.

Of course, unlike before—

Zhu Zhuqing and the other two girls had not participated in that physically exhausting training, which yielded little benefit for them.

When Yu Xiaogang questioned them, Zhu Zhuqing simply displayed her body’s strength, which far surpassed that of an ordinary Soul King.

That was enough to shut him up.

As for the origins of their over-the-limit soul rings,

Yu Xiaogang would never get an answer from Zhu Zhuqing.

He could only bury himself in research, trying to find an explanation.

They didn’t need the endurance training meant to improve team cohesion.

But they occasionally joined the combat drills—
Just to take the chance to mess with Dai Mubai and the others.

After all, with Oscar always stuffing recovery sausages into their mouths, there was no need to worry about breaking anything.


---


With training completed, Yu Xiaogang granted them a seven-day break.

And so, the repressed, chubby "little chicken" immediately flew back to his nest.

Under the high-hanging night moon—

Inside Shrek’s cafeteria, Dai Mubai was eating heartily, but his expression was gloomy.

His gaze frequently drifted to the side.

Over there, Ning Rongrong and the other two girls were gathered around a table, chatting and laughing.

The table was filled with luxurious dishes—
All generously paid for by the great Miss Ning.

"Rongrong, why did you only buy what I like again?"

Zhu Zhuqing’s face turned red.

How many times did she have to say it before they believed she didn’t have any special secret?

If it was just about food…

She had eaten and used more of her teacher’s resources than her own family’s.

Yet, her teachers hadn’t grown like her.

It was pure natural talent.

"Hmph~ Isn’t it only right for your teacher's wife to take care of you? Stop complaining when you’re getting spoiled."

Ning Rongrong pouted, still acting on her own terms.

Avoiding Zhu Zhuqing’s gaze with a flushed face, she pulled out a carrot and stuffed it into Xiao Wu’s mouth.

A teasing smile spread across her face.

"Be a good bunny~ Here, have a carrot~"

"Rongrong, I’m not your pet, stop teasing me like that!"

Xiao Wu puffed up her cheeks in protest.

"Haha~"

Ning Rongrong giggled and pushed the carrot deeper, making Xiao Wu’s cheeks bulge.


---


Suddenly—

"Damn! Fatty, what the hell happened to you?"

Dai Mubai’s exclamation caught the attention of the three girls.

Looking towards the entrance—

Three figures were walking in.

The widest among them staggered forward, looking absolutely miserable.

It was none other than Ma Hongjun.

His round face was swollen, dark circles under his eyes, and dried blood stained the corner of his lips.

As for the other two—

One was Oscar, with his signature peach-blossom eyes and white hair.

The other was Tang San, his lower body visibly weak and unsteady.

Upon spotting Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun immediately put on a pitiful face—

Crying out in misery:

"Boss Dai, you have to stand up for your brothers!"

"Look at how they beat me! Even my handsome face is ruined! How am I supposed to pick up girls now?!"

"Pfft—hahaha!"

Ning Rongrong couldn’t hold back and burst into laughter.

She mercilessly mocked:

"Handsome face? Please. You look like a dead pig’s head."

"Shameless."

"Exactly, exactly. Thick-skinned as always."

Xiao Wu added, munching on her carrot.

She exchanged glances with Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong.

The three of them shared a knowing look.

A mischievous glint flashed in their eyes.

It looked like they had found another opportunity for some fun!