[Reboot Arc] Chapter 232: Misunderstanding a Girl's Heart

Watching Captain Huo and the campus security team walk away, Mianhua shook his head and remarked, "We promised to be each other's little angels, yet they didn't call me when there was a mission."

"Uh..." Mo Xing was momentarily speechless, wondering why Senior Mianhua had suddenly said something so cheesy.

"It seems I'm not that close with him after all," Senior Mianhua sighed. "Relatively speaking, the big boss trusts you more. As they say, do not doubt those you employ, and do not employ those you doubt."

"I feel like the campus security team is quite imposing. When you and that passerby were about to fight, you both stopped the moment you heard he was coming," Mo Xing mused. "Especially Captain Huo; he carries an aura of royalty with him."

"You probably don't realize how powerful the campus security team is at our school; every one of them is an elite," Senior Mianhua leaned in. "Take Captain Huo, for example—he had already reached the Honglan stage when he first enrolled. According to school history, there have only been three people like him."

"Is he that amazing?" Mo Xing asked, surprised.

"Definitely. He became the captain of the campus security team right after graduation, and he occasionally stands in for instructors who are away on business. It’s said that he has now reached the Purple Cauldron stage and can go head-to-head with Teacher Tianqi," Mianhua marveled. "You should feel honored to know such a powerful big shot."

"My goodness!" Mo Xing exclaimed in shock.

As of now, he had befriended the Student Union President, the great Zhang Zhihao, and now the leader of the campus security team, Captain Huo. He felt like the protagonist of a hot-blooded campus novel, protected by the heads of major factions. With such strong connections, who would dare mess with him?

"By the way, you wouldn't mind getting to know another big shot, would you?" Senior Mianhua suddenly smiled. "Come join the singer’s team, and I’ll introduce you to our King of Song!"

"Ah..."

Mo Xing snapped back to reality. Remembering the high membership fee and his own empty wallet—he was a pauper, after all—how could he possibly afford that?

"Next time, Senior! I’m going to grab something to eat!" Mo Xing waved him off and left.

The afternoon was reserved for practical combat class.

Having learned his "lesson" from the morning theory class, Mo Xing headed straight to the Hades Training Grounds after lunch and found a pavilion for a short nap.

Hearing a stir, Mo Xing slowly opened his eyes to see other freshmen entering the grounds one after another.

This time, Mo Xing was lucky enough to snag a spot in Teacher Tianqi’s public practical combat class. Each student was entitled to five minutes of one-on-one coaching. When it was Mo Xing's turn, the student and teacher greeted each other.

"Teacher Tianqi, I would like to change my career choice," Mo Xing said. "I don't think an Elemental Mage suits me."

"Oh, is that so?" Teacher Tianqi nodded. "What career path do you want to take?"

"A Magic Swordsman."

"Compared to a staff, I feel more accustomed to using a sword, but a standard warrior requires a level of perseverance and technique that doesn't quite fit me," Mo Xing paused. "The Magic Swordsman profession combines blade and magic, leaning more towards guerrilla tactics and crowd control—"

"Mm-hmm, I was just about to give you a weapon."

Teacher Tianqi took a long sword from his storage bracelet and handed it to Mo Xing.

"This is..." Mo Xing took the sword and felt a unique aura. A blue-and-white gemstone was embedded in the center of the gold hilt, and the silver-white blade bore elegant markings, with blue light flowing through them.

The exquisite craftsmanship and comfortable grip were worlds apart from the novice training weapons he had used before!

Mo Xing dared to bet that this was a divine artifact!

"Blue luster revealed, like frost and brilliance," Teacher Tianqi said. "This weapon is named—God’s Frostless."

"Thank you for your gift, Teacher, I shall accept it." Mo Xing took "God’s Frostless" and swung it gently; the air nearby seemed to be sliced apart.

Divine artifacts were indeed different!

Mo Xing practiced repeatedly, unleashing various skills with ease. He felt this sword was truly meant for him!

Mo Xing did not know that Teacher Tianqi was actually quite surprised. In truth, this artifact was not something an ordinary person could even lift. He had only intended to let Mo Xing try it out, never expecting that not only could he lift it, but he could manipulate it as easily as chopping vegetables.

It seemed his previous hypothesis was correct. During the freshman registration test for Dragon God Power, Mo Xing was not at level zero, but at Green Wood stage level 60!

Logically, when Dragon God Power reaches Green Wood level 60, the clock hand returns to zero and the crystal ball shatters. But that hadn't happened back then. There was a miraculous restorative force inside Mo Xing that stabilized the fluctuations of the crystal ball, preventing it from breaking and causing his misjudgment.

Fortunately, the kid had spirit; he hadn't become discouraged, had pushed through the freshman assessment, silenced his critics, and successfully proven himself. This child might not be the strongest yet, but he was absolutely the one with the most potential. If his ability were likened to a river, it would flow calmly at times, rush rapidly at others, and surge powerfully when necessary.

But he believed that his ability was not just a river, but an ocean!

A bright future awaited him!

Two hours later.

Mo Xing walked along the path to the campus hospital.

He had gained quite a lot from today’s practical class—that divine artifact alone was worth a hundred million! His techniques were becoming increasingly proficient under his own exploration. He had wanted to learn more, but Teacher Tianqi had been pulled away by other students. It really was only five minutes of individual guidance per person; it was hard to get extra help.

He wondered how Shiyan was doing. She should be fully recovered and discharged today, so he decided to visit her.

About twenty meters from the hospital, Mo Xing broke into a run.

Suddenly, a figure appeared around the corner. Mo Xing stopped abruptly, but inertia took hold; his center of gravity tilted forward, and just as he was about to collide with the person ahead, he was enveloped in a current of air, hovering in mid-air.

"Xia Ningxin? Oh, no, Miss Xia!"

Mo Xing recognized the person before him and, realizing his slip of the tongue, immediately corrected himself.

"Here."

Xia Ningxin handed him a business card, her expression indifferent; she didn't seem to care about the previous address.

"This... what is this?" Mo Xing frowned as he took the card. It had a location written on it: Shopping West Street—No. 198.

"An invitation," Xia Ningxin replied coolly.

"This... what is this for?" Mo Xing scratched his head, looking completely bewildered.

"What do you think?"

Faced with Xia Ningxin’s counter-question, Mo Xing was at a loss and blurted out, "Don't tell me you're inviting me to dinner?"

The moment the words left his mouth, Mo Xing regretted it. What was he saying? Would someone as noble and elegant as Miss Xia treat someone as tacky as him to dinner? A toad lusting after swan meat? Have some self-awareness! Mo Xing, oh Mo Xing, wake up!

"Student Mo Xing, you really are different from the others." Xia Ningxin smiled faintly. "Then it's settled. The location on the card."

"Saturday night at seven o'clock. Don't be late."

"Huh?"

Mo Xing was stunned. Miss Xia wanted to take him to dinner? What was going on?

Xia Ningxin ignored him and turned to leave.

"Student Xia, wait!" Mo Xing struggled in mid-air. "You haven't put me down yet!"

Xia Ningxin turned slightly, and Mo Xing slowly descended from the air.

"Phew, that was a close one."

When Mo Xing looked up, he found that Xia Ningxin had already vanished.

"She truly is the woman in black," Mo Xing sighed. He brushed off his pants and headed to the hospital.

Just as Mo Xing reached the entrance, he saw Shiyan walking out.

"Long... long time no see, Shiyan." Mo Xing waved to greet her.

"Mo Xing, long time no see!" Shiyan also saw Mo Xing and smiled. "What brings you here?"

"I heard from the doctor that you might be discharged today, so I came to check on you." Mo Xing scratched his head.

"I see. That's very thoughtful~" Shiyan narrowed her eyes, her long lashes looking so charming under the sunset that Mo Xing felt his face grow hot.

"Th-that, Shiyan, you look much better." Mo Xing stammered.

"Haha, really?" Shiyan smiled. "Let's walk and talk."

"Sure." Mo Xing nodded, and they walked down the stairs together.

"The forbidden drug incident has been cleared up, and Li Qingchi has been arrested," Mo Xing said.

"Yes, I heard some student council cadres talking about it these past two days." Shiyan shook her head and sighed. "I didn't expect Chen Anye to be a mole for the Dark Sect, either."

"I don't know his exact whereabouts; the school doesn't seem to have announced that part yet," Mo Xing added.

"The school is probably still meeting to discuss it; they'll announce the results eventually," Shiyan said.

"By the way, how did your freshman assessment go?" Shiyan suddenly asked.

"I barely passed with a score of 666," Mo Xing said.

"Huh? That's impossible. I thought you would get much higher," Shiyan said, her face full of disbelief.

"I didn't perform well in the individual competition..."

Mo Xing whispered. He had been too worried about Shiyan at the time, which caused him to lose focus. Of course, he wouldn't tell her that directly, or she would laugh at him.

"I see." Shiyan paused. "Well, congratulations on passing the assessment. Let me treat you to dinner tonight!"

"Huh? That wouldn't be right!"

Mo Xing was shocked. Shiyan had treated him to breakfast last time, and he hadn't had a chance to return the favor yet. Now she wanted to treat him to dinner again.

He felt too embarrassed!

He was a boy; how could he keep letting a girl pay? But he didn't have the money to treat Shiyan back right now!

"Why do you say that?" Shiyan puffed out her cheeks, looking puzzled.

"Uh... how do I explain this?" Mo Xing was at a loss for words.

"Is it because you have something on tonight?" Shiyan asked.

"Ah, I suppose so..." Mo Xing scratched his head. Too embarrassed to refuse, he decided to "fudge" it this way.

"Alright." Shiyan nodded.

"Then how about Friday night? Let's have dinner together on Friday night."

"Huh? About that, I have things to attend to that day too," Mo Xing said. He had already promised Captain Huo to assist the campus security team in a bandit-suppression operation; he simply couldn't get away.

"Fine. Your freshman class really does have a lot going on during the start of the semester," Shiyan paused.

"Yeah, I think so too," Mo Xing echoed.

"Then let's do the weekend," Shiyan said. "Everyone is free on the weekend; let's have dinner together on Saturday night."

"This..."

Mo Xing didn't know what to say. He had already made plans with Xia Ningxin for that same time. If he went to dinner with Shiyan, he would break his promise; if he went with Xia Ningxin, he would be rejecting Shiyan yet again. He was truly caught between a rock and a hard place!

"Let me think about it."

After a long silence, that was all Mo Xing could manage.

"Hmm..." Shiyan looked a bit down. "You have plans with someone else, don't you..."

"No, no!" Mo Xing explained, feeling guilty. He felt like a scoundrel, lying everywhere. Would his nose grow long?

"Okay, I understand." Shiyan suddenly stopped. "I'll leave it here. I'm going back to the dorm."

"Shiyan, you aren't mad at me, are you..." Mo Xing asked.

He noticed Shiyan was in a bad mood; she must be angry with him, considering how many times he had declined her invitations.

"No, why would I be?" Shiyan rubbed her eyes and turned away. "Let's eat together when you have time next time."

Mo Xing watched Shiyan’s retreating figure, which looked somewhat lonely under the glow of the sunset.

She really seemed angry...

Why was he so bad at understanding girls?

A sense of emptiness welled up in his heart.