Chapter 54: Ye Lengleng's Secret Crush

Hearing someone calling out the name Nianyun, Ning Rongrong cast her gaze toward Nianyun, who was already standing up upon hearing the commotion.

"Looking for something with me?" Nianyun asked in a very firm tone, looking entirely disdainful of the troublemaker.

"Step outside, I want to have a word with you." Tai Long still spoke, flexing his well-developed muscles.

"If it's just a word, we can talk right here. If we go outside, only one of us will be left standing." Nianyun's tone remained uncompromising, causing the challenger to lose face.

Before Ning Rongrong could even process this, whispers echoed from all around.

"This guy really doesn't know what's good for him. Challenging Tai Long on his very first day."

"Tai Long is our academy's senior student chief, and already rank thirty-seven. This guy is being a bit too presumptuous."

Hearing such disparaging remarks about Nianyun stirred up Ning Rongrong's temper.

*Smack!*

"What do you guys know! Nianyun, go beat that ape up and show them who the real chief is."

Ning Rongrong's words ignited Tai Long's fighting spirit, and her exquisite face made Tai Long blush. "Nianyun, let's spar then. Do you dare?"

"Gladly."

...

Tai Long was indeed a prominent figure in the academy. Just as the two decided on a location, word had already spread throughout the campus. Soon, a spacious clearing was surrounded by a crowd of onlookers, among whom were a few teachers and the rest of the Shrek crew.

"Second brother, do you know who this ignorant fool is that dares to challenge Nianyun?" Ma Hongjun walked over to Oscar and asked.

"I have no idea, but I do know that guy is about to have a terrible time." Oscar found the match rather uninteresting.

In the center of the arena:

"Kid, I'll give you another chance, otherwise, it's going to hurt in a moment." Tai Long stretched his body, flexing his muscles as he spoke.

"Save those words for yourself."

*Boom!*

Tai Long waste no more time. He summoned his martial soul, the Power Orangutan, and threw a punch straight at Nianyun.

Nianyun stood his ground, raising his left hand wielding the 'Zhongyan', causing a massive boulder to rise from the grass in front of him to block the attack.

Fist and stone collided. After a crisp sound, Nianyun tilted his head slightly to the left as the wind from the punch brushed past his face. He clenched his right fist, pulling back to store up power.

Just as he wanted to dodge, he found his feet already bound by stone blocks.

*Bang!*

A heavy, direct punch landed squarely on Tai Long's face, sending his entire body staggering backward a few steps along with that visage.

Sensing that Nianyun was no ordinary opponent, Tai Long's second spirit ring rose. "Bursting Giant Strength!"

*Stomp! Stomp!*

Nianyun placed his right hand behind his back and extended his left hand forward. "First Spirit Skill, Yuzhang Rock Shield!"

*Bang—*

The punch struck the rock shield on Nianyun with tremendous momentum, yet not the slightest trace of a scratch was left on the shield.

Nianyun chuckled, slightly flicking the fingers of his left hand. Beneath Tai Long, the ground caved in, and massive chunks of stone surged upward, enveloping Tai Long entirely, leaving only his head exposed.

*Thud!*

The stone sphere crashed heavily onto the ground.

"Hahaha, stone ape, stone ape!"

Oscar and Ma Hongjun outside the ring burst into laughter, which quickly spread to the surrounding student spectators.

Hearing the laughter from outside, Tai Long grew frantic, but no matter how hard he struggled, he couldn't free himself from the stone prison.

"You can't beat me. But you can call for backup; I'll wait." After squatting down to say those words, Nianyun stood up and walked away.

Ning Rongrong exchanged a high-five with Nianyun, made a playful face at Tai Long, and then happily followed Nianyun away. Not long after the two left, the stones binding Tai Long slowly loosened.

*Bang!*

After delivering a heavy punch to the ground, Tai Long glared at Oscar and the other before storming off. "Nianyun, you wait for me!"

---

Heaven Dou Imperial Academy

"Your Highness, that Yun Nian is here again." A lackey ran into the classroom with a tearful expression and reported.

Xue Beng panicked as if he had heard of a plague god, hurriedly sending his lackey to block the door while trying to sneak toward the back exit.

Nianyun, who had just reached the entrance, noticed Xue Beng running away, gave a faint nod, and turned back. "The effect is pretty good."

Holding a small bag of snacks, Nianyun walked over to another classroom door and waited. Soon, the door was pulled open.

Ye Lengleng emerged dressed in black, her eyes darting away nervously as she looked at Nianyun. "Is the captain looking to go inside?"

"Hmm~~, no, waiting for you." Nianyun's tone was remarkably flat.

"Me?"

Before long, the two walked out of the teaching building.

"Is there something the captain wanted with me?" Ye Lengleng lowered her head and asked softly.

"I went to look for Xue Beng just now, but he ran off the moment I arrived. Thinking it's almost noon, I wanted to find a dining buddy. Care to join?"

Ye Lengleng was thoroughly startled by Nianyun's words, freezing in place for a second.

Noticing Ye Lengleng had stopped, Nianyun turned back. "If it's inconvenient, that's fine too."

Those words pierced Ye Lengleng's heart like a needle. Before Nianyun could finish, she nodded hurriedly. "No, it's fine, Captain." With that, she quickened her pace to follow him.

Neither spoke for the rest of the walk, though Ye Lengleng's pretty face gradually flushed with a faint red.

After a simple meal, Nianyun led Ye Lengleng to a deserted open space and handed her a small box. "Here, I thought this suited you quite well, so I'm giving it to you."

Ye Lengleng slowly took it, nodded at Nianyun, and asked, "Captain, what is this?"

"No need to call me captain, just call me by my name. While this isn't some kind of immortal herb, it should still benefit you quite a bit."

At Nianyun's prompt, Ye Lengleng opened the box.

A purple-colored glossy ganoderma appeared in her sight. "Nine-Rank Purple Ganoderma!"

"?. You recognize this medicinal herb?"

"Mm, my mother once told me that the Nine-Rank Purple Ganoderma is immensely beneficial to our martial soul. It's just that such herbs are extremely rare, and coupled with our family's declining influence, we had no power to compete for it. I never expected..."

As she spoke, Ye Lengleng's clear eyes lit up with brilliance.

"Alright then, absorb it properly. I'll stand guard for you."

"Cap—Yun Nian, is this really for me?"

"Of course. If not you, who else would I give it to? If you feel it's too valuable, just pay more attention to me during spirit battles and toss me an extra heal."

With that, Nianyun walked over to a nearby spot, squatted down, and started watching some ants on the ground, while Ye Lengleng's heart was already fluttering wildly like a trapped deer.

System: "Goddess Ye Lengleng's favorability toward the host +20, current: 55."

"Ah, how did it go up so fast?"

System: "Every goddess has different standards. Ever since the host entered the academy and through the spirit battles, Ye Lengleng's favorability toward you has been in a naturally continuous upward state. To put it commonly, it's called a secret crush."

"Well, if I hadn't shown up, Ye Lengleng's presence in this world would indeed have been a bit low. Wait, you suddenly popped up to say all this—must be a quest, right?"

System (smiling face): "Naturally. Hidden quest unlocked upon reaching 50 favorability with Ye Lengleng: [Quest: Obtain Ye Lengleng's mother's approval]. Reward: Exclusive plant-type spirit bone trigger rate +10%, spirit power +1 rank."

"The approval you're talking about... couldn't possibly be *that*, right?"

System (knowing smile): "Yes, exactly *that*."