"As long as you don't tell anyone," Ning Rongrong said, her voice trembling, "I'll agree to whatever you want."
"Really?" Ye Yin's eyes gleamed as he rubbed his hands together and slowly approached her. "You'll agree to anything I want to do?"
Ning Rongrong instantly hugged herself tightly, a deep blush appearing on her face. "No," she stammered. "Not that."
Ye Yin chuckled. "Then I'll just go tell Oscar..."
"Oscar..."
Ning Rongrong gritted her teeth in frustration. "Fine! I'll agree, okay?!"
Ye Yin nodded in satisfaction. "Good. You said it yourself. My current request is for you to put away your spoiled young lady's temper."
Ning Rongrong just stared at him, completely stunned. She had prepared herself for the worst, and all he wanted was for her to behave?
Ding!
[Resentment from Ning Rongrong +36!]
"That's your request?" she asked in disbelief.
Ye Yin nodded like a chick pecking at rice. "Yeah. What did you think it was?"
Ning Rongrong's face turned an even deeper shade of red. "No, nothing..."
"Oh!" Ye Yin suddenly exclaimed, his eyes wide. "Could it be that you meant that! Ning Rongrong, oh Ning Rongrong, I never expected you to be such a person!" He launched back into his dramatic monologue. "This is simply a decline in public morality, a degradation of our ethics! The hearts of men have changed, the world has grown cold!"
Ding!
[Resentment from Ning Rongrong +40!]
"I never would have thought," he continued, shaking his head. "Ning Rongrong, you're actually this kind of person! You wouldn't want this to get out, would you?"
Ding!
[Resentment from Ning Rongrong +45!]
A strange sense of déjà vu washed over Ning Rongrong. The scene, and even the words Ye Yin was using, were exactly the same as before.
"Ye Yin, I hate you!" she roared, her pride finally snapping. She turned and continued running, leaving him behind.
Ding!
[Resentment from Ning Rongrong +44!]
[Resentment from Ning Rongrong +43!]
A steady stream of resentment points began to flood the system.
"Did you learn anything?" Ye Yin asked Oscar. "See how simple it is?"
Oscar just frowned. He felt like he was missing something important.
"Just do it the same way I did," Ye Yin instructed.
Oscar nodded, steeling his resolve. "Okay, Yin Ge. I'll try again. This time, I'll definitely succeed!"
Ye Yin patted his shoulder. "Good. I'm rooting for you. But this is your last chance. If you don't succeed this time, Ning Rongrong will be mine."
Ding!
[Resentment from Oscar +20!]
Oscar felt like he was just a pawn in some strange game between Ye Yin and Ning Rongrong, but he had no proof. "I will definitely succeed!" he declared, grabbing his Big Recovery Sausage and rushing over to her again.
"Rongrong! I have a Big Sausage, want some? Guaranteed to be very effective."
Ning Rongrong was already fuming. The moment she heard those familiar words, her anger flared.
Ding!
[Resentment from Ning Rongrong +34!]
"Go eat your mother's!" she snapped.
Oscar was stunned. Why isn't she following the script? But then he remembered how the first exchange had gone. This is just like last time! His face lit up. "Good!" he replied confidently.
This time, it was Ning Rongrong's turn to be stunned. "Then you go do it," she said, before quickly running away, leaving Oscar standing awkwardly in place once again.
"Alas," Ye Yin sighed. "Little brother, my teaching ability is clearly not enough for you. You should find a more capable master."
That day, Oscar was thoroughly depressed.
...
In the evening, Ning Rongrong successfully finished her twenty laps. Soon after, another person became depressed: Flender. He had received a letter from Ning Fengzhi of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School, asking him to discipline Ning Rongrong and help change her spoiled personality. Flender had planned to monitor her run and seize the opportunity to criticize her when she inevitably gave up. He had even prepared his lines. But thanks to Ye Yin's "help," Ning Rongrong had completed the task, ruining his entire plan.
Ding!
[Resentment from Flender +15!]
"The three of you performed very well," Flender announced to the support masters. "It's impressive that you were able to complete such high-intensity training. You can go rest. The rest of you, come with me."
The others followed Flender out of the academy.
"We have nothing to do anyway," Ye Yin said. "Should we follow and watch?"
Oscar shook his head repeatedly. "No, no. I'm half-dead from exhaustion. I'm going back to rest. They're just going to the Great Spirit Arena for a spirit battle." With that, he trudged back to the dormitory.
"Are you going?" Ye Yin asked Ning Rongrong.
She gritted her teeth. "Yes!" Although she was tired, she wasn't going to miss out on the excitement.
The group soon arrived at the Great Spirit Arena, where Flender stated the academy's graduation requirements: reach Level 40 by age twenty and obtain a Silver Spirit Badge.
"Our age and talent are unusual," Ye Yin reminded everyone. "It's best if we wear masks on stage to hide our identities." It was especially important for him; his two thousand-year spirit rings would cause endless trouble if they were seen. Flender agreed that it was a sensible precaution.
The group chose their nicknames. Tang San's was "Thousand Hand Asura". Ye Yin's was "Sunny Happy Big Boy."
Xiao Wu couldn't help but ask, "Yin Ge, does that nickname have anything to do with you?"
"Of course it does," he replied with a straight face. "It's the most perfect interpretation of me."
Dai Mubai suddenly chimed in, "In that case, I think your nickname should be Yang Jian."
"Good idea!" Ye Yin nodded. "But changing names costs money, so forget it."
Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and Tang San all chose to participate in solo battles. As a support-type, Ye Yin could only choose the two-person competition; solo support masters were forbidden from participating. Ning Rongrong was too tired, so Ye Yin's gaze fell on Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing.
"Xiao Wu," he said, "Zhuqing's strength is a bit lower than ours. I'll team up with her for the two-person competition to help guide her."
Ding!
[Resentment from Xiao Wu +22!]
[Resentment from Xiao Wu +23!]
Ye Yin leaned close to Xiao Wu and whispered in her ear, "I'll give you a special blessing when we get back."
Xiao Wu's pout immediately vanished, replaced by a brilliant smile. "Yin Ge, that's how it should be!" she said sweetly. "You should definitely guide Zhuqing more."
Zhu Zhuqing, who wasn't yet familiar with their dynamic, just whispered to Xiao Wu, "Thank you."
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