LIGHTNOVELSTORY Chapter 15: Xiaowu, do you want more?
"What do you think?" Ye Feng countered.
"I... I don't know," Xiao Chenyu stammered hesitantly.
"If I had lost today, my black card would have been yours. Now that you've lost, do you expect to just walk away without any consequences? The world doesn't work that way," Ye Feng said mockingly.
"What do you want?" Xiao Chenyu asked, frowning.
"It's simple. If you want to leave, hand over 500 gold soul coins," Ye Feng replied.
"500 gold soul coins? Are you robbing me?" Xiao Chenyu exclaimed indignantly. Even as a young master of a wealthy family, his entire lifetime's allowance didn't amount to 100 gold soul coins. Ye Feng's demand felt outrageous.
"One minute ago, weren't you trying to do exactly that to me?" Ye Feng said evenly, his sharp gaze boring into Xiao Chenyu.
Xiao Chenyu flinched at Ye Feng's words, rendered speechless. It was true—just moments ago, he had attempted to rob Ye Feng of his black card.
"I... I don't have that much money," Xiao Chenyu mumbled, lowering his head, unable to meet Ye Feng's eyes.
"That's fine. Just write an IOU and explain the reason," Ye Feng said with a faint smile.
Under Ye Feng's instructions, Xiao Chenyu begrudgingly wrote an IOU. To Ye Feng's amusement, he had Xiao Chenyu name Xiao Wu as the creditor. Furthermore, the note explicitly stated that the debt was due to Xiao Chenyu's attempt to steal Ye Feng's black card.
"Can we leave now?" Xiao Chenyu asked, his hands clenched tightly behind his back.
"Sure," Ye Feng said with a nod and a smile.
"Let's go!" Xiao Chenyu barked, turning to lead his group away.
"Wait!" Ye Feng's calm voice halted their departure.
"What now?" Xiao Chenyu asked, his face darkening.
"You can leave," Ye Feng said, "but I never said they could leave." His finger pointed toward the six senior students accompanying Xiao Chenyu.
"Huh?" The group of seniors froze, exchanging nervous glances.
"We don't have to write IOUs too, do we?"
"We didn't do anything! At most, we just cheered him on..."
"Right!" Another chimed in. "That doesn't warrant this treatment!"
Ye Feng smiled coolly. "True, you didn't fight. How about this: each of you owes 50 gold soul coins. As for the two unconscious ones, they'll owe 100 gold soul coins each. Wang Sheng, fetch some water and wake them up," Ye Feng instructed.
"Fifty gold soul coins?!" one of the seniors cried out in dismay.
"I'm already being generous," Ye Feng replied with a smirk. "That's a 10% discount compared to what your boss owes. Consider yourselves lucky."
The seniors groaned, realizing there was no escaping Ye Feng's "generosity." Under his persistent pressure, all of them, including Xiao Chenyu, reluctantly wrote IOUs.
Later that day, Sword Douluo Chen Xin came to find Ye Feng. The elder informed Ye Feng to prepare for a journey. After the academy's opening ceremony the next day, Chen Xin would accompany Ye Feng to the Spirit Hunting Forest to hunt for his first spirit ring.
That evening, Ye Feng went to Dormitory 7 to find Xiao Wu. However, when he arrived, she wasn't there. Instead, he spotted her returning from outside with Tang San.
"Xiao Wu, it's settled. I'll head in first," Tang San said with a smile.
"Alright," Xiao Wu replied. She turned to Ye Feng. "What do you want to talk about?"
"Xiao Wu, I'll be leaving the academy tomorrow. Can you help handle my work-study duties for a few days? When I return, I'll finish all the remaining work for the semester and even give you half the wages," Ye Feng explained.
"You're leaving too?" Xiao Wu asked, surprised.
Ye Feng raised an eyebrow. Her words hinted that Tang San must have spoken with her earlier. It seemed Tang San would also be heading to the Spirit Hunting Forest with Grandmaster.
"Yes," Ye Feng confirmed. "Is that okay?"
"No, I can't. I already promised Tang San to help him with his tasks. He even said he'd finish all my work this semester when he returns," Xiao Wu replied.
Ye Feng thought for a moment before responding. "How about this: when I return, I'll take care of all your tasks next semester. Does that work?"
Xiao Wu's eyes lit up. "Deal!" she agreed cheerfully. Free benefits were not something she would pass up.
"Good. Here, take this," Ye Feng said, pulling out Xiao Chenyu's IOU.
"This... you're giving it to me?" Xiao Wu's rabbit ears twitched slightly, and she stared at Ye Feng in surprise.
"Of course. Your name's on it, and it's only fair you keep it," Ye Feng said with a grin.
"Well, I'll accept it then!" Xiao Wu laughed, happily accepting the IOU worth 500 gold soul coins.
"Alright, it's getting late. Let's head back," Ye Feng said.
"But... I still want to spar with you!" Xiao Wu declared, her expression suddenly serious.
"Spar again?" Ye Feng blinked. He assumed she had already sparred with Tang San, as the original story went.
"Yes! Come on, let's do it," Xiao Wu urged.
"Fine," Ye Feng agreed with a faint smile.
Xiao Wu took a step closer, her movements light and deliberate. Before Ye Feng realized it, she was so close he could feel her breath on his face.
"What are you doing? Didn't you say you wanted to spar?" Ye Feng asked, confused.
Xiao Wu giggled mischievously, her lips brushing close to Ye Feng's ear. "I am sparring," she whispered.
Before Ye Feng could react, Xiao Wu's long scorpion braid whipped around and coiled tightly around his neck. Using the momentum, she attempted to hurl him across the ground.
Ye Feng adapted quickly, using his agility and martial arts skill to land gracefully. Deciding not to overpower her with brute strength, he employed the precision of the Eye of Hell to prolong their sparring session. Together, they exchanged blows, their match turning into an exhilarating display of technique and speed.