Nightfall.
Xiao Wu lay sprawled on her soft bed, dressed in a pair of pink shorts. Her slender legs kicked lazily in the air, while her fair, round little feet pointed at the ceiling.
She rested her chin in her hands, tilting her head as she watched Qi Lin lying quietly beside her, seemingly lost in thought. Her large, bright eyes sparkled.
"Brother Qi Lin, what are you thinking about? You awakened with innate full soul power, but you don't seem very happy."
"That brat Qi Yue only awakened with half a rank, but he looked over the moon."
Qi Lin was snapped out of his daze by her voice. He turned his head and asked instinctively, "Ah? Xiao Wu, were you talking to me?"
"Sorry, I didn't catch that—could you say it again?"
The moment he spoke, Xiao Wu's legs stopped swinging. With a whoosh, she flipped off the bed and stood up with her hands on her hips, towering over him.
Her tiny nose scrunched up slightly, and her cheeks puffed with frustration.
Finally, she huffed in a mock-petulant tone, "Brother Qi Lin, I'm mad at you!"
Seeing her dramatic pose, Qi Lin chuckled.
He knew if Xiao Wu were really angry, she'd do much more than just pout.
Without hesitation, Qi Lin slowly raised a single finger.
The meaning was obvious—one carrot.
Xiao Wu blinked, a little confused at first, but then her clever little mind connected the dots. Her face lit up with delight.
She could finally sleep in the same bed as Brother Qi Lin!
For some reason, whenever Xiao Wu was close to Qi Lin, she always felt an irresistible urge to snuggle up to him—like something about him drew her in.
These past few days, Xiao Wu had been begging to cuddle him at night, but Qi Lin never agreed.
Now he was finally giving in!
But one night wasn't enough!
She quickly held up her fingers—ten!
Qi Lin's eyes twitched. This cheeky little bunny wanted ten carrots?
Sure, he could afford ten carrots, but if he gave in now, wouldn't she just push further as she got older?
No way. He couldn't spoil her.
He responded firmly—one carrot!
Xiao Wu frowned cutely. Brother Qi Lin is so stingy—he won't even agree to ten days!
Left with no choice, she showed another number—eight!
"One."
"Five!"
"One."
"Three!"
After a long back-and-forth...
Xiao Wu puffed her cheeks and pouted. "Fine! One day!"
Then thud!—she bounced off her bed and landed right on Qi Lin's, throwing her arms around him and snuggling close.
"Hey—Xiao Wu! What are you doing?" Qi Lin panicked.
Xiao Wu pouted even more. "You already agreed to let me sleep with you for one night. You're not allowed to go back on your word! I won't allow it!"
With that, she tightened her grip.
Qi Lin was speechless.
"What do you mean sleep with me? I said one carrot!"
"Go back to your bed—you're a girl, this isn't appropriate."
Xiao Wu shook her head furiously like a rattling drum. "Nope, not going! You didn't make yourself clear, and besides, I'm not letting one carrot buy me off!"
Her grip tightened even more.
And truth be told, ever since awakening her full innate soul power, Xiao Wu's strength wasn't low. Qi Lin was practically being crushed.
He had no choice but to gently tap her slim waist. "Alright, alright! One night it is!"
While speaking, Qi Lin's brain turned rapidly.
'Xiao Wu is technically a hundred-thousand-year soul beast in human form, so she's a "legal" loli, right? I don't need to be so cautious...'
Thinking this way, Qi Lin relaxed.
'Fine, let her hug me.'
"Hehehe!" Xiao Wu giggled like a little rascal and even sniffed around his neck before repeating her earlier question.
Qi Lin raised an eyebrow, scratched his head, and said, "You're wondering why I don't seem happy?"
"It's probably because I already knew this would happen."
Xiao Wu pouted. "No way! How could you know you'd awaken with full innate soul power if you hadn't tested it yet?"
Unless you're a soul beast in disguise...
She swallowed the second half of her sentence.
"See? I told you, and you still don't believe me," Qi Lin said indifferently.
Xiao Wu mumbled under her breath, "So stingy…"
Not long after, Qi Lin was still awake, but Xiao Wu had already dozed off.
Looking at her soft, rosy face, Qi Lin reached out and pinched her cheek on instinct.
Compared to anime girls in his past life, she was even cuter—and the feel of her skin was addictively soft.
After two squeezes, he retracted his hand and turned off the light.
The room plunged into darkness.
Qi Lin didn't sleep right away. His thoughts wandered to his martial spirit—mutated Blue Silver Grass.
It looked like a four-leaf clover, but it was blue.
Qi Lin had always been curious about new things, and his own spirit was no exception.
Even though he'd been laid-back before, after arriving in Douluo Continent, he had still been curious about what kind of martial spirit he'd awaken.
His father had a sickle spirit, and his mother had Blue Silver Grass—both considered useless spirits, and neither had innate soul power.
According to Douluo Continent's logic, his spirit should've been either the sickle or Blue Silver Grass, with no soul power unless a rare beneficial mutation occurred.
The odds were incredibly low.
But Qi Lin had never been worried.
Because based on his instincts, he knew his martial spirit would mutate—and it would be a good one. His innate soul power wouldn't be low, either.
And as expected—
Things turned out exactly as he had imagined.
Now that he had both spirit and power, it was time to think about what kind of soul beast to hunt for his first ring.
He couldn't just sit around and hope the perfect soul beast showed up at his doorstep, right?
...Though with his luck, that might actually happen.
"Nope! Can't just wait around!"
Qi Lin shook his head. I may be chill, but I'm not lazy!
He cast away the thought of waiting for a "delivery soul beast" and decided he'd personally seek out the perfect soul ring.
He wanted to enjoy the process, not just the result.
Three days later—
Two familiar figures arrived at Qi Lin's home.
One was Su Yuntao, the Soul Hall officer who had come to awaken the kids' martial spirits three days ago.
The other was a tall, curvy young woman in a white Spirit Hall uniform—Sisi, Su Yuntao's girlfriend.
Sisi waved at Qi Lin with a charming smile. "Little Qi Lin, we meet again! Did you miss me?"
"You're so pretty, Sister Sisi. Of course I did."
"Haha, such a sweet talker, just like before."
She then turned to the adorable girl beside Qi Lin.
"This must be Xiao Wu, right? Yuntao told me about you—you really are cute."
Xiao Wu blinked and said playfully, "I've heard about you too, Sister Sisi. Brother Qi Lin talks about you."
"Oh? He didn't say anything bad about me, did he?" Sisi teased.
"No way! Brother Qi Lin said you're very nice, and I'd definitely like you."
Xiao Wu raised her chin proudly. She wasn't making it up—Qi Lin really had said that.
"Little Qi Lin, looks like I didn't dote on you in vain."
Sisi's smile deepened. Then she placed several large gift bags down in the living room.
Ever since meeting Qi Lin, Sisi's fortunes had turned. Not only had her cultivation caught up to Su Yuntao's, she'd even made a small fortune.
She believed her good luck was thanks to Qi Lin—so she grew increasingly fond of him.
Qi Lin had long gotten used to her bringing gifts.
His parents, Qi Tian and Xu Qian, stepped out to lightly scold her.
"You're always welcome, but why bring so many things every time?"