晏娇娇 instantly had a bad premonition.
As expected, she heard Sheng Mobai declare loudly, "If I have done anything that caused misunderstandings in the past, then from today onwards, I clearly tell everyone, my heart belongs only to my fiancée, Yan Jiaojiao."
As soon as Sheng Mobai said this, Yan Jiaojiao's first reaction was to look to her left.
She saw Yan Ruxue's complexion wasn't good, but she managed to suppress the jealousy that ached in her heart. Tang Xiye's face, however, could only be described as deathly pale.
Yan Jiaojiao closed her eyes in despair, finding it extremely difficult not to stab Sheng Mobai with her sword.
Yet Sheng Mobai looked smug, clearly pleased with his public declaration.
Yan Jiaojiao took a deep breath. She couldn't stay any longer and turned to leave.
"Where are you going?"
Sheng Mobai's peripheral vision caught Yan Jiaojiao leaving, and he quickly abandoned his pretense and chased after her.
"Get lost!" Yan Jiaojiao resisted with disgust.
Sheng Mobai paid no heed. He walked alongside Yan Jiaojiao, looking back and shouting to everyone, "Anyone who bullies Yan Jiaojiao from now on is crossing Sheng Mobai!"
Yan Jiaojiao almost ran, shouting back without looking, "Scram!"
Sheng Mobai, as usual, shamelessly replied, "That won't do, it's not elegant. Jiaojiao, wait for me..."
Watching the two of them walk further and further away, Tang Xiye's features contorted. She had just issued an "academy ban" against Yan Jiaojiao, and now Sheng Mobai was repeatedly slapping her face, even casting aside her genuine feelings. It made her so miserable she wanted to kill someone!
Yan Ruxue stood behind, observing all this. Her gaze finally landed on Tang Xiye, and the corner of her mouth curved imperceptibly...
Finally managing to escape back to her room, Yan Jiaojiao was free from Sheng Mobai's incessant chatter and let out a long sigh of relief.
Sheng Mobai had followed her all the way, and Yan Jiaojiao had a clearer understanding of the situation.
It turned out Sheng Mobai was indeed the second senior brother of the Jin Sect. His absence from the academy recently was due to Gonan Academy's long-term missions of subduing demons and exorcising evil. One particularly thorny matter had been assigned to Sheng Mobai.
Thus, Yan Jiaojiao double-checked the timeline and confirmed that the person she saw in the market that night was indeed Sheng Mobai, not her imagination.
But because she asked this one question, Sheng Mobai became even more shamelessly insistent that Yan Jiaojiao liked him, leading to her dreaming of him and encountering him by chance when she went out. He even complained that Yan Jiaojiao hadn't called out to him then, so he could have seen her before leaving the academy.
Thinking of this, Yan Jiaojiao pressed her forehead with a headache. Although she couldn't fathom Sheng Mobai's true motive for confessing publicly, she was certain that he did indeed have a layer of intent to protect her from humiliation.
However, this method of protection troubled Yan Jiaojiao greatly.
"Woof!"
Xiao Hei, the little black dog lying on the bed, let out a soft bark. Yan Jiaojiao snapped back to attention. Her gaze fell upon Xiao Hei, and a wave of tenderness washed over her. She quickly stepped forward and carefully picked him up.
The little black dog lay obediently in her arms, allowing Yan Jiaojiao to gently scratch his ears as she whispered, "Xiao Hei, I've kept you waiting. I encountered some flies on the way, and they were quite bothersome, going around in circles."
Who would be delayed by flies? Dongfang Cangwu instantly understood. Yan Jiaojiao had been troubled by someone, and that was why she looked displeased when she entered.
After complaining a few more words to the little black dog, Yan Jiaojiao took out the wound medicine given by Xu Changzong to reapply it to Xiao Hei.
Xiao Hei sniffed the bottles of medicine, confirming there was nothing unusual, and then obediently let Yan Jiaojiao attend to him.
When Yan Jiaojiao removed the bandages, she discovered that the deep scar Xiao Hei had yesterday was now only a shallow fissure. This powerful recovery ability immediately reminded her of another person with an equally strong recovery ability.
She wondered how Dongfang Cangwu's injuries were and if he was still being chased by that black cloud monster.
The sudden pain on her fingertip made Yan Jiaojiao startled. She looked down and saw the little black dog gnawing discontentedly at her finger, seemingly displeased by her repeated distraction.
Yan Jiaojiao smiled, tied the knot on the bandage, completing the last step of dressing the wound, and said, "Don't worry, I won't hurt you again while I'm thinking."
The little black dog arrogantly released his mouth and turned his head away. Hmph! Who said this Master was afraid of pain?
In the following days, Yan Jiaojiao continued to focus on researching her cultivation techniques as before.
The more familiar she became with the five sects' cultivation methods, the smoother her spiritual energy circulation became. Although she could only draw a thin line from the stagnant spiritual energy and slowly absorb it into her core, it was still much better than the trembling pain she felt when trying to use her past life's spiritual energy.
However, since her confrontation with Tang Xiye, the "academy ban" she had issued had spread.
Even with Sheng Mobai's public declaration, it couldn't completely stop those who sided with Tang Xiye. They had added quite a bit of "flavor" to Yan Jiaojiao's life during this period.
These students had only lived for a mere decade or so. Yan Jiaojiao never paid attention to such childish pranks, dealing with them as they came, and never allowing them to succeed.
Just like today. Although Xiao Hei's external wounds had healed, to supplement his nutrition, Yan Jiaojiao still insisted on buying food from the academy's dining hall daily to continue nourishing him.
Knowing Xiao Hei was a picky eater, she was engrossed in choosing what to order when her peripheral vision caught sight of a few students in a corner of the dining hall. They were gathered together suspiciously, and Yan Jiaojiao immediately knew they were up to no good.
Yan Jiaojiao pretended not to notice, ordered her food, and sat aside to wait, while still keeping an eye on the students. She witnessed them entering the dining hall's kitchen.
Would it be another laxative or something similar?
Yan Jiaojiao was already tired of this trick.
But this food was for Xiao Hei, and Yan Jiaojiao dared not neglect this little master. After all, her body, having consumed the God Devouring Grass, was resistant to poison, but the demon beast Xiao Hei might not be. With this thought, Yan Jiaojiao had to get up and follow them in.
Indeed, the few students were peeking around in the kitchen.
The kitchen chefs were busy preparing food for Yan Jiaojiao. Two layers of food were already prepared in the adjacent food basket, with only the last one remaining.
The three students exchanged glances. One of them walked up to chat with the chef, another stood by the food basket to block the view, and the remaining one quickly opened the last layer of the food basket, reached in to place an object, and then covered it. The three then tacitly prepared to leave.
However, they turned around and saw Yan Jiaojiao!