Chapter 8: World and Moon
"Uh... did you two fight?"
Dorm 108 hung heavy with silence.
A girl and a loli sat on separate beds.
Tension thickened the air.
An Zhen's sharp eyes noted their disheveled clothes—echoing their canonically violent first meeting.
"Mmh." The loli nodded meekly.
"Hmph." The young mistress turned away, nose lifted.
"Why fight?"
Likely diverged from original plot. Both were girls. Wang Dong'er had a spoiled streak but was kindhearted—she'd carried a "boy" during drills in the original. Huoyu Tong was simpler: beyond buried hatred, pure as blank paper.
"Wang Dong said you help me only because you have ulterior motives," the blue-haired loli explained.
The trigger was simple. Wang Dong, curious why the frail Huoyu Tong disguised as a boy (like a tragic novel heroine), voiced concern. This kindness sparked conversation. When talk turned to An Zhen, Wang Dong insisted his lavish spending—not on cultivation—proved ill intent. Huoyu Tong defended him fiercely. Wang Dong felt spat upon. Words became blows.
"Ulterior motives?"
An Zhen's gaze drifted to dainty feet in pure white socks. He nodded thoughtfully. "That part's true."
"An Zhen ge!"
The loli's flustered cry summoned memories of those socked soles pressing his chin.
"Still, I'm hardly a villain, right?" An Zhen scratched his cheek.
"You just admitted it!"
Hands on hips, the dashing young mistress stood atop her bed, looking down imperiously.
"Whatever. Explaining's pointless. Wealth comes from earning, not scrimping. Wang Dong—seeing is believing."
The stipend's source was unexplainable (Sun Moon Empire ties).
An Zhen beckoned Huoyu Tong. "Come, Xiao Tong. Found you a job. Good pay."
———
When An Zhen exited, two followed.
Wang Dong trailed him, hands in pockets, smirk mocking. "Show me this 'earning.'" Beside her, a sickly boy pulled a cart.
"Still using the Glutton Douluo's name? Not afraid of expulsion?"
Wang Dong was baffled. Spine of adamantium?
"Hmph, what if he permitted it?"
"The Glutton Douluo... endorsing a street stall?" Wang Dong nearly laughed, her handsome features softening into girlish charm.
"Why not?"
"Not even Star Luo Auction House qualifies."
"True." An Zhen nodded. "Figures like that need no money. They'd never stoop to this."
"Unless it's to humor a favored junior."
"To them, this isn't commerce. It's a child's game."
Wang Dong fell silent.
School Gate.
"Solid foot traffic."
An Zhen surveyed approvingly.
Two carts, three exceptionally handsome "boys"—the combo drew stares. Eyes snagged on the signboards.
"Glutton Douluo!"
A senior gasped.
"Classmate... is this real?" A bespectacled senior in purple approached warily.
"Everyone knows the Glutton Douluo is Shrek's strongest—openly. Would I spread lies? Would you?"
"...I wouldn't," the senior conceded.
"Try some?"
Eyeing the menu, he ordered original flavor.
"Yu Tong, copy me."
Simple process—memorize the recipe. Huoyu Tong replicated it flawlessly.
"Go."
Star power proved potent. With the Glutton Douluo's "endorsement," even plain water drew crowds. By Huoyu Tong's first finished cup, a line snaked behind her.
"How's it taste?" An Zhen asked Wang Dong, who nibbled her straw.
"Sweet. Not bad." Sugar soothed her mood.
"But... profitable?"
"Why not? Teens crave sweets. Cash-flush crowd. Glutton Douluo's seal. Guess the cost per cup?"
Confidence radiated from him.
"You do have designs on her."
"Beauty inspires possession. Mutual attraction's normal—no force, no lies."
His bluntness stunned her.
The young mistress glanced at the busy girl. Maybe I overstepped.
———
Dusk settled. Sales boomed. An Zhen restocked twice. The sharp-tongued Wang Dong, inexplicably, began helping Huoyu Tong.
There we go.
An Zhen watched, satisfied.
Just kids—barely eleven. No room for lasting grudges.
A silver moon drifted close.
"You peddle goods at the gate?"
"Against rules? The handbook's silent."
Unmentioned. Audacity deterred by common sense.
Shrek's Head Senior materialized silently. Only An Zhen noticed.
"I have a question."
The raven-haired beauty held half-finished milk tea. Her eyes were still wells.
"Shouldn't you introduce yourself first?"
"Zhang Lexuan."
"An Zhen."
"Your Martial Soul intrigues me."
"Oh."
"Materializing objects ex nihilo... potent. Could evolve further."
"Oh."
"To evade a Titled Douluo's senses... formidable. With consent, the academy would invest."
"Oh."
...
"Lady, are you faculty?" Sun Wukong's pain, An Zhen mused.
"No. But I will be."
"Curious? Experience it firsthand."
She nodded serenely. "Very well."
THUD!
"Kid! I'll wreck this stall!"
"Xu Sanshi! What are you doing?!"
Chaos erupted.
An Zhen rushed over. A hulking black-haired youth in Martial Soul form wielded a tortoise-shell shield, confronting a furious Wang Dong. Bei Bei shielded Huoyu Tong. Spilled milk tea pooled across the counter.
Before the stall stood a golden-haired beauty—tall, snow-skinned, eyes like clear lakes. A gentle, noble orchid.
"Martial Soul combat is forbidden within Shrek City."
A serene yet icy voice cut through. Students scrambled back. Newbies froze; seniors yanked them clear.
"Head Senior!"
"Head Senior!" Respect rippled through the crowd.
Shrek Academy's top Outer Court beauty and top Inner Court beauty stood united.
(End of Chapter)