Master of Nine Stars

Taotao: "She didn’t. I was ordered by the group admin to drag him in. @Xing’Er, you’re really something else. You actually managed to talk a tough-as-nails guy from the Northwest, @Haitang, into changing his name to Haitang?"

Jiao Tengda looked up at Zhao Tang, who was across the dining table, and said, "Taotao’s talking to you."

"Huh?" Zhao Tang put down his chopsticks, stopped eating, and took his phone out of his pocket.

After all, he only had a right hand; his left arm was severed below the elbow.

Zhao Tang looked at his phone and typed a message: "@Tao’Er, want to set up a match sometime?"

Tao’Er: "Crabapples are fruit, Rosehip Fruits are fruit, and ’Fruit Salad’ sounds so much better. @Xing’Er, what’s with this ’Flower-Fruit Mountain’ theme you’re trying to pull?

What’s that supposed to mean? That everyone in the group is a monkey, and they all eat peaches? Is this aimed at me?"

"PFFT..." Jiao Tengda quickly turned away, spraying out a mouthful of chili pepper.

Zhao Tang’s eyes, however, caught the small lines of text continuously popping up at the bottom of his phone screen.

"Xing’Er" changed the group name to "Nine Souls and a Glutton."

"Li Zi" changed the group name to "Nine Little Souls, One Glutton."

"Xing’Er" changed the group name to "Got Sugar in My Pocket."

"Li Zi" changed the group name to "Offering of Love."

There it is! The treacherous couple’s combo attack!

Tao’Er has left the group chat...

Zhao Tang’s expression was priceless. ’Whoa~ This little couple’s firepower wasn’t this intense during the finals this morning, was it?’

’They’re on a damn rampage!’

Rong Taotao has joined the group chat.

"Pfft... BWAHAHAHA..." Jiao Tengda couldn’t hold it in anymore and burst out laughing. Rong Taotao had clearly been dragged back into the group by Sun Xingyu.

Gao Lingwei: "Let’s go with ’Fruit Salad’. It sounds nicer."

Jiao Tengda’s expression froze. Li Ziyi and Sun Xingyu, who were holding their phones, were also stunned...

In an instant, the group fell silent, all activity ceasing completely.

Three seconds later, a small line of text appeared: "Xing’Er" changed the group name to "Fruit Salad."

...

Back in his room in the Martial Arts Hall, Rong Taotao was even more bewildered.

He quickly sent a private message to Gao Lingwei: "You’re back?"

Gao Lingwei: "I’m at Hundred Corps Pass right now. I just got out of the Snowfield yesterday. I’m sorting through data with Professor Zheng."

Rong Taotao: "Hey, why didn’t you tell me?"

Gao Lingwei: "I wanted to see the look on your face when you suddenly saw me."

Rong Taotao scratched his head, his fingers tapping away at the screen: "So how much longer will you be busy over there?"

Gao Lingwei: "Just a day or two. You should get some sleep, it’s late. I have to get back to work."

Rong Taotao pouted, put down his phone, and flopped onto his bed.

’Oh well, it’s good for my goddess to start working and earning money to support the family early. After all, I have a pretty big appetite...’

...

「The next morning」

Rong Taotao heard some faint rustling sounds. He figured it was Si Huan Nian getting up at four o’clock, right on schedule.

"Is it time?" Rong Taotao stretched with all his might, asking groggily. Just as he was about to sit up, a hand pressed against his face, pushing his head back onto the pillow.

The hand was ice-cold, jolting Rong Taotao instantly awake.

With his eyes covered, Rong Taotao asked curiously, "What’s wrong, Coach Si? Acting up again? I didn’t do anything to provoke you!"

Unexpectedly, the cold palm on his face squeezed slightly.

Rong Taotao: ???

CLICK! That was the sound of the bedside lamp turning on.

The slender fingers of the cold hand covering his face parted slightly. Rong Taotao opened his eyes and, through the gaps between the fingers, saw a familiar figure in the dim, yellow glow of the lamp.

"You’re back? So soon?" Rong Taotao said, his face lighting up with pleasant surprise.

Gao Lingwei pulled her hand back. Looking at Rong Taotao, she said, "You’ve slacked off a lot since returning to school. It’s already 7 AM."

"Huh?" Rong Taotao frowned. Si Huan Nian was as punctual as clockwork, always up at four. Plus, she was never one to be quiet—the sounds of her washing up would have been enough to wake him.

’But... how did I not react at all this morning?’

Gao Lingwei asked curiously, "What’s wrong?" 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Rong Taotao’s expression wasn’t great. "I think there might be something wrong with my body. Yesterday, I took a nap after lunch and ended up sleeping straight through until dinnertime."

Hearing this, Gao Lingwei nodded thoughtfully. "Come on, let’s get washed up and go eat first. If you don’t replenish your energy soon, you’ll probably fall asleep again."

"Yeah, let’s go." Rong Taotao didn’t have time to worry about anything else and hurried to the bathroom.

When he came out after washing his face and brushing his teeth, his mood had improved considerably. Seeing Gao Lingwei waiting quietly, he said a little sheepishly, "It’s good that you’re back. It’s good that you’re okay."

Gao Lingwei glanced at Rong Taotao with a smile. ’Your concern is so timely~’

The two of them walked out of the Martial Arts Hall and saw their classmates training on the outdoor field. Seeing them all panting and drenched in sweat made Rong Taotao feel deeply guilty.

’This can’t go on!’

’I’ll have to ask Si Huan Nian to wake me up tomorrow. I already slept for a long time after absorbing the new Lotus. If I keep sleeping like this, I’m really going to fall behind my classmates.’

On their way from the Martial Arts Hall to the cafeteria, they took the main road, which was lined with bright streetlights.

The snow wasn’t heavy today, just a few scattered flakes dancing in the wind. The nighttime scenery was beautiful under the glow of the lights.

"Did your mission go smoothly?" Rong Taotao turned to look at Gao Lingwei and asked curiously.

"Mhm." Gao Lingwei nodded lightly. "It was perilous, but the outcome was good in the end."

Rong Taotao pursed his lips. "I see..."

Gao Lingwei suddenly said, "The Snow Burning Army wants to make an exception and recruit me for early enlistment."