Daybreak arrived.
When Su Mo opened his eyes, the space beside him was empty. The faint sound of someone washing up came from the bathroom.
This was the first time Su Mo had ever slept while holding a girl—with a man’s soul in a woman’s body. Yet, his mind was free of impure thoughts. To him, Xia Qingqing was like a little sister.
Of course, all of this was only possible thanks to Ye Qingyi’s body. If it had been his own, well… that might have been a different story.
He sat up and couldn’t help but glance down at his current body, clicking his tongue in amazement. “What a flawless jade-like figure—utterly perfect, like a work of art. Truly impeccable.”
As if hearing his muttering, Xia Qingqing’s voice came from the bathroom: “You’re awake!”
“Mhm.”
The sound of washing intensified.
“Xiao Wan just texted. She might be running late, so she asked us to pick up her military training supplies for her.”
“Of course, we should.” Su Mo replied absentmindedly.
He threw on his clothes in a hurry, splashed some water on his face, and was about to head out when he noticed a message from Ye Qingyi on his phone, sent at around 5 AM.
Ye Qingyi: “When you wake up, remember to wash your face. First, use… (a long list of steps omitted). After washing, make sure to… (another long list omitted). Remember to comb your hair and put on makeup, but don’t make it too heavy… (yet another long list omitted).”
Su Mo’s head spun just reading it. He typed a quick “Got it” and went to comb his hair.
Women are so troublesome!
In the end, Xia Qingqing had to comb his hair for him—he didn’t know how. It wasn’t just that he couldn’t get it neat; the real problem was that every time he tried, he’d yank out a few strands. He was afraid he’d end up bald.
As for washing his face properly or applying makeup? Su Mo pretended he never saw those instructions. He’d rather die than go through all that hassle.
His explanation to Xia Qingqing was simple: “True beauty doesn’t need embellishment.”
After breakfast and picking up their uniforms, they returned to the dorm, where their other roommate, Lin Rou, had already arrived.
Lin Rou was introverted, socially awkward, loved reading novels, and was a total homebody.
Su Mo greeted her, then went about his own business. Xia Qingqing, however, enthusiastically helped her settle in.
Sitting at his desk, Su Mo skimmed through the files Ye Qingyi had sent—all about her identity and background. He had no choice but to read them.
“This woman is so complicated—so many connections and obligations. Not like me. Even my own mom barely checks in on me.” He couldn’t help but grumble internally. But complaints aside, he still got the job done.
As Xia Qingqing helped Lin Rou unpack, she suddenly lowered her voice conspiratorially. “I’ve got a secret to share, but you can’t tell anyone, okay?”
Her mysterious tone instantly caught Su Mo’s attention. His gossip-loving heart stirred with curiosity.
“Do you believe supernatural beings exist in this world?”
“No way.” Su Mo played along, fully embracing his role as the skeptical audience.
“Hehe, I knew you wouldn’t believe me.” Thrilled by their reactions, she continued excitedly, “I have a close friend whose older brother is a supernatural being. He can breathe fire and often grills barbecue for her!”
“Impossible. That’s not scientifically sound.” Su Mo feigned disdain, putting on his best “science above all” act.
“You just don’t know yet, but supernatural beings really do exist!” she insisted proudly. “I heard there’s a gang leader who’s also a supernatural. He used his powers to cause havoc everywhere, until another supernatural law enforcer arrested him.”
“And then?”
“Then he got locked up, obviously. What else would a college student like me know?”
Su Mo scoffed. “Where’d you even hear this nonsense? You make it sound so real.”
“Because it IS real!” she huffed, stopping what she was doing to argue with him. Her earnest expression made it seem like she truly believed every word.
Lin Rou, on the other hand, hadn’t said a single thing the entire time, as if completely uninterested in the topic. This piqued Su Mo’s curiosity. “Rou—Rou’er, you don’t seem surprised at all.”
(“Rou’er” was what Ye Qingyi called her—Su Mo hadn’t forgotten.)
“Since it’s all fake, why would I be surprised?” she replied flatly, her demeanor exuding a maturity far beyond her years.
“Alright then.”
Xia Qingqing suddenly stopped helping and stomped back to her desk, sulking.
Su Mo found it both amusing and exasperating. This girl really wears her heart on her sleeve.
Lin Rou, however, struck him as excessively cold. Not only had she never initiated conversation, but she hadn’t even smiled once. Her blunt responses had clearly “offended” Xia Qingqing.
“Ding, ding, ding…” All three of their phones chimed simultaneously—a message in the school’s group chat.
Su Mo opened it to find a 12-second video. In it, a young man—likely a student—stood on the sports field, spewing flames from his mouth. His face was flushed, his control shaky, and the flames occasionally veered toward the crowd. It was unclear if anyone had been hurt.
“This place looks familiar… Holy crap, it’s OUR school—Jingjiang University!” Su Mo blurted out, forgetting all pretense of ladylike composure.
Luckily, the other two were too engrossed in the video to notice.
Xia Qingqing was ecstatic, already yelling about going to see the spectacle. Lin Rou, however, only frowned slightly before her expression returned to its usual frostiness.
Su Mo caught that subtle reaction but pretended to be just as shocked as the others, keeping his observations to himself.
Soon, every group chat was exploding with discussions about the video.
“Let’s go check it out before it’s over!” Xia Qingqing urged.
Young and curious, Su Mo agreed. “Fine, but we’re keeping our distance. I don’t want to get burned.”
Even Lin Rou was dragged along by Xia Qingqing, their earlier “conflict” seemingly forgotten.
The football field was packed, with only a small clearing in the center. Some reckless onlookers shoved forward, prompting a mix of curses and gasps from the crowd.
“I can’t see anything!” At 5’7″, Su Mo could barely make out heads over the sea of people. Xia Qingqing, being shorter, was completely swallowed by the crowd.
Before long, a black van pulled up, and four men in black suits stepped out, each wearing a badge shaped like the Big Dipper. One of them shouted, “Disperse! Official business. Everyone, back off!”
His voice was loud, but the crowd was louder, and his command went ignored.
Then, the loudspeaker from the main stage crackled to life. Everyone turned to see a stern-faced military officer—the head training instructor—standing atop it.
“Students!” he barked. “I am your chief drill instructor. I order you to evacuate the field in an orderly manner immediately. If you don’t, you’ll fail this year’s training—and we’ll do it all over again next year!”
The threat worked. The crowd began to disperse—except for a few upperclassmen who weren’t fazed.
Seeing this, the instructor added, “If you behave, tomorrow’s training session will feature your instructors performing a girl group dance!”
“DEAL!”
Whether it was the allure of watching their tough drill instructors dance or the threat of repeating training, even the reluctant upperclassmen were promptly dragged away by their peers.
“Sorry, senior, but I really wanna see those instructor shake it tomorrow!” Similar exchanges happened all around.
The four men in black saluted the stage, then moved through the path the students had cleared. Only then could they see the fire-breathing student at the center.
The boy lay collapsed on the ground, weak and barely conscious, flames still flickering from his mouth and nose.
The leader of the group hauled him up, ignoring the heat, and pressed a finger against the boy’s abdomen. Instantly, the flames stopped.
“Administer a stimulant shot.”