[Outer Court – West Practice Grounds]
The air buzzed with leftover awe from Xu Shaotian's public defeat.
Disciples still whispered about it in corners, repeating the line "Send someone who doesn't flinch like a dog."
But amidst the crowd, one girl wasn't whispering.
She was watching.
From the shade of a peach blossom tree, Qin Shiyu, 2nd-year alchemy disciple and rising beauty of the Outer Court, observed Ye Feng with narrowed eyes and folded arms.
Her lips curved—not quite a smile, but not far off.
"That wasn't just luck. That was precision."
She had noticed the timing. The distance. The exact pause before the insult, the fluid momentum of the slap. She'd seen a hundred arrogant inner sect elites duel, but never one slapped into silence by a drenched former genius with blood on his lip.
That slap had rhythm.
And Ye Feng? That cold, unreadable expression?
It wasn't just handsome.
It was dangerous.
[System Notification: Female Gaze Detected]
Ye Feng glanced in her direction, brows raising slightly.
She tilted her head.
"What are you looking at?" her eyes seemed to say.
Ye Feng's gaze lingered a beat too long.
Then he walked away.
[Later – Marketplace Edge]
Ye Feng was browsing the scrap section—his silver pouch barely had a few spiritual coins left—when a calm voice interrupted him.
"Looking for broken pills or broken pride?"
Ye Feng turned.
Qin Shiyu.
She stood with a casual elegance, robes fluttering slightly from a summer breeze. Her long black hair was pinned up with a jade needle, and her eyes sparkled with mischief.
"You're the one who slapped Xu Shaotian, right?"
"Wasn't me," Ye Feng deadpanned. "Must've been my evil twin."
"Oh? He slaps and jokes. Impressive."
System Alert: Banter Detected
She walked beside him now.
"Ye Feng," she said suddenly, "You were in Azure Class, right?"
"I was."
"You know, I used to think you were just another glory-hungry Outer Court wannabe."
"Thanks," Ye Feng replied flatly. "Means a lot."
"But now I think… you might be a very dangerous kind of idiot."
He raised a brow. "And you hang out with dangerous idiots?"
"No," she said, lips curving. "But I might watch one from time to time."
System Update:
Their eyes met for a moment.
Ye Feng looked away first.
"Don't follow me," he said.
She smirked. "Who said I was following?"
[Meanwhile – Lin Ruyan's Courtyard]
The mirror trembled.
Lin Ruyan's fingers clenched the edge of her vanity as she replayed the footage for the tenth time.
Ye Feng.
Walking confidently.
Joking.
And now—another girl at his side?
That alchemist girl from the Outer Court?
"He was supposed to fall apart…"
The bitterness in her throat burned hotter than any pill she'd ever swallowed.
[Next Day – Sect Gardens]
Qin Shiyu leaned on the stone rail, watching koi swim.
Ye Feng sat nearby, polishing his old, cracked sword handle.
She tossed him a green gourd. "Healing tonic. Tastes like dog spit, but it'll fix those cracked ribs."
Ye Feng took it, eyebrows raised. "What's the catch?"
"Just keep slapping arrogant nobles," she said. "It's good for the sect's air quality."
System: You're officially on someone's radar now.
Ye Feng: "So?"
System: So now there are two girls who want you. One wants to slap you, the other wants to slap you then date you.
Ye Feng: "...I prefer swords."
System: Sure. And I'm a pacifist spirit jellyfish.
[End of Chapter 4]