Over the next few days, Su Yan and Xiao Wu continued their nightly escapades.
Xiao Wu enjoyed them so much it was almost frightening. She'd lived among Soul Beasts for most of her life—food was food. But the human world?
The human world had choices.
Sweet things. Salty things. Soft things. Crunchy things. Things that looked innocent and then turned out to be spicy enough to make her eyes water while she stubbornly insisted, she was fine.
Su Yan, for his part, was learning an important truth:
If you feed a rabbit girl good snacks at midnight, she will begin to treat you like a personal supplier.
Unfortunately, something else was escalating, too.
The bullying.
It wasn't new—Nuoding's noble students had always enjoyed reminding work-study students of "their place." But after Xiao Wu moved into Dorm Seven, it got worse. The nobles didn't just insult them anymore. They provoked them openly, more frequently, and with growing confidence, as if daring her to react.
Su Yan tried to smooth things over when he could.
But Xiao Wu's personality simply didn't allow "keeping the peace."
Every taunt was a spark. Every shove was a challenge.
And the more they pushed, the more her temper climbed—until, finally, she snapped.
It happened in the courtyard after class.
A noble student sneered something crude. Someone laughed. Xiao Wu's braid flicked like an angry tail.
Then she stepped forward and pointed straight at the one standing slightly ahead of the others—the one the nobles naturally clustered around.
"You," Xiao Wu said, voice sharp. "Fight me."
A ripple ran through the crowd.
That boy—tall for his age, neatly dressed, face set in practiced composure—lifted his chin as if granting her an audience.
Xiao Chenyu.
Rank 11 Spirit Master.
Martial Soul: Wolf.
Su Yan recognised him immediately.
Not the loudest bully.
Not the dumbest bully either.
The kind who let others bark while he stayed clean—until it was time to remind everyone who actually had teeth.
Work-study students gathered quickly, like iron filings to a magnet. Some looked anxious. Some looked excited. Most looked fed up.
Wang Sheng pushed through the crowd, face tense.
"Big Sis Xiao Wu…" he started, like he wanted to talk her down.
Xiao Wu didn't even glance at him.
The noble students, unwilling to be outdone, formed their own line opposite the work-study students—throwing insults like they were tossing stones. The courtyard tightened into a ring of bodies, students pressing in from every angle.
Su Yan stood near the edge, arms folded, watching.
This is going to be ugly, he thought.
For them.
Xiao Wu and Xiao Chenyu stepped into the centre.
Xiao Chenyu's expression stayed calm, almost bored, as if he were dealing with a child throwing a tantrum.
Xiao Wu looked like she was one more insult away from actually biting someone.
Xiao Chenyu spoke first, voice clear and formal.
"Xiao Chenyu. Rank 11 Spirit Master. Martial Soul: Wolf."
He released his Soul Ring.
A white ring rose beneath his feet.
Ten years.
A few nobles cheered. More than a few work-study students scoffed.
Then Xiao Wu grinned—bright and sharp, like she'd been waiting for this.
"Xiao Wu. Rank 13 Spirit Master. Martial Soul—Soft Bone Rabbit!"
She released her Soul Ring.
A yellow ring.
One hundred years.
The courtyard exploded.
"What?!"
"Yellow?!"
"She has a hundred-year ring?!"
Nobles stared like they'd been slapped.
Work-study students shouted so loud Su Yan's ears rang.
Xiao Chenyu's eyes narrowed, composure cracking for the first time.
"Looks like I underestimated you," he said, voice tighter. "Fine. I'll get serious."
His posture shifted.
Spirit Power surged through him, his muscles swelling as his wolf traits became more pronounced.
"First Soul Skill—Wolf's Feral Rush!"
He launched forward.
Fast.
Too fast for most students to even track.
He aimed to seize her arm—control her, drag her into his pace, make her fight on his terms.
Xiao Wu didn't oblige.
She sprang upward lightly, slipping over the charge as if gravity was optional.
"Ha! Too slow!" she taunted.
Then she dropped a hard kick into his back.
Xiao Chenyu stumbled forward, boots scraping. He recovered quickly—better balance than most nobles had any right to possess—and whipped around with a swipe, then another.
Xiao Wu danced away from every hit.
Left.
Right.
Backstep.
Twist.
She was smaller, lighter, and somehow always one breath ahead.
The crowd roared at every miss.
Xiao Chenyu's face darkened.
He pressed harder, trying to trap her with speed and reach, trying to force a mistake—
But Xiao Wu's expression didn't change.
If anything, she looked like she was getting bored.
Finally, she stopped dodging.
She jumped.
High.
So high that for a split second she was above everyone's heads, braid whipping behind her like a banner.
Then she dropped—legs snapping around Xiao Chenyu's neck in a clean clamp.
He stiffened in shock.
Xiao Wu's voice rang out, bright and confident.
"First Soul Skill—Waist Bow!"
Her body bent backward with terrifying flexibility.
Spirit Power surged.
Xiao Chenyu's feet left the ground.
And then Xiao Wu rotated—fast, controlled, ruthless.
She flipped him over her back and slammed him into the ground.
Boom.
Dust puffed.
The impact echoed.
Xiao Chenyu lay there for half a heartbeat, stunned and winded.
Xiao Wu landed lightly, as if she'd just finished a performance.
She turned and struck a neat little V-sign toward the work-study students.
The response was immediate.
"BIG SIS XIAO WU!"
"BIG SIS XIAO WU!"
"BIG SIS XIAO WU!!"
The nobles looked horrified.
Some of them took a step back without realizing it.
Xiao Wu smiled—sweet and smug in the way only she could manage, like a rabbit showing teeth.
She pointed at them.
"Now," she said, "who's your Big Sis?"
The nobles swallowed.
"…Y-you," one of them managed.
Then the rest followed, voices merging into one reluctant chorus.
"You… you are Big Sis Xiao Wu."
Xiao Wu nodded as if this was simply the natural order of the world.
"Good."
She paced a small circle in front of them, hands behind her back like she was an instructor.
"No more bullying the work-study students."
The nobles glanced at Xiao Chenyu—who was being hauled upright by two of them, face pale and clenched.
They didn't argue.
"…We agree," they said, stiffly.
"And," Xiao Wu added, eyes bright, "you're going to help with the work the work-study students do."
That got a reaction.
A noble student's mouth opened—clearly about to protest—
Then Xiao Wu tapped her foot impatiently, staring him down like she was daring him to try.
He shut his mouth.
"…We will follow Big Sis Xiao Wu's arrangement," the nobles said, almost in unison.
They gathered Xiao Chenyu and withdrew, quieter than they'd arrived.
The work-study students watched them go—
Then erupted again.
Cheering.
Laughing.
Some of them lifted Xiao Wu right off the ground, tossing her up and down until she squealed and laughed with them, braid flying wildly.
Xiao Wu beamed, basking in the limelight.
Su Yan exhaled through his nose, a small smile tugging at his mouth.
Well… that solved one problem.
Or at least forced the nobles to swallow it.
As the crowd began to break apart, Su Yan's eyes drifted across the courtyard—and caught on a familiar figure a short distance away.
Tang San stood there quietly, hands at his sides, as if he'd been passing by and simply… stopped.
When the students surged around him, he didn't move much. He just watched the place where Xiao Wu had fought, then looked up as she laughed in the middle of the cheering.
For a moment, his usual calm seemed to soften.
Not wary.
Not cold.
Just openly impressed—like he couldn't quite help it.
And when Xiao Wu flashed that bright, unrestrained smile, Tang San's gaze lingered a little longer than it should have before he finally looked away.