"Damn it, how can this woman just vanish into thin air?" the young man exclaimed in shock.
With a sudden wave of his hand, all the vines instantly formed a bell-shaped shield to protect him.
He knew he couldn't track the enemy's movements—defense was his only option.
Otherwise, being careless would only lead to defeat.
After all, he was a seasoned warrior.
"Buzz..." Suddenly, Xiao Wu flashed behind the young man's plant shield.
"Rip..." In an instant, six clones merged into her.
"Boom..." She launched a powerful kick, infused with soul power and secret techniques, causing a massive explosion.
"Bang..." With a deafening crash, a large hole was blasted in the vine shield.
"Bang..."Xiao Wu's fierce kick slammed into the young man hiding inside the shield, sending him flying and snapping vines in his path.
"Ahhh..." the young man screamed in pain.
If the vines hadn't absorbed some of the impact, he would've been knocked out cold.
He hadn't expected her kick to be so powerful.
His expression changed slightly.
"Whoosh whoosh..." Vines sprang up ahead of his flight path, forming a wall to prevent him from flying out of bounds.
"Clang..." But five spinning blades sliced through the vine wall in an instant.
"Whoosh..."Xiao Wu teleported again and landed another kick.
"Ahhh..." The young man was sent flying out of the arena, landing face-first in the dirt like a dog eating shit.
"Damn woman!" he growled, not expecting her leg techniques to be this fierce.
And she could turn invisible and launch blade attacks.
He was completely outmatched.
Especially that lightning-fast kick—its power was insane.
Then, another member from the Botany Academy stepped up.
But the result was the same—easily defeated by Xiao Wu.
Xiao Wu soloed four opponents in a row.
The remaining three were left to Zhu Zhuqing.
Zhu Zhuqing soloed all three as well.
A clean and easy victory.
"Shrek Academy wins!" the referee announced.
The Shrek team was elated.
Tang San, Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and Oscar could only watch as Zhang Fan and the others stole the spotlight.
Their faces were gloomy.
Later, they all returned to their camp to rest.
Shui Bing'er and Shui Yue'er came to see Zhang Fan at Shrek Academy.
"Is Zhang Fan here?" came Shui Yue'er's cheerful voice.
"I'm here!"Zhang Fan pulled aside the curtain and saw the calm Shui Bing'er and the lively Shui Yue'er standing side by side.
They looked very alike—one with blue hair, the other with black—and both had knockout figures.
"Good morning!"Shui Bing'er gave Zhang Fan a sweet smile.
"Morning to you too!"Zhang Fan shrugged. "What brings two beautiful ladies to see me? Come in!" He lifted the flap and welcomed them into the tent.
It was a simple, temporary setup.
Inside were a few chairs and a table.
Zhang Fan poured three cups of tea.
Of course, the tea was brewed with two leaves from celestial herbs.
The aroma alone was beyond imagination.
They sniffed the fragrant tea, surprised by its scent.
"What kind of tea is this? Why does it smell so amazing?"Shui Yue'er asked curiously, as it was her first time smelling something this delightful.
"Flower tea,"Zhang Fan replied calmly. "Give it a try." He picked up a cup and took a sip.
Shui Bing'er and Shui Yue'er also gently sipped their tea.
"Wow, this tea tastes incredible!"Shui Yue'er exclaimed, excited.
Shui Bing'er nodded. "It's really good. Today, your opponents are from Thunder Academy."
"Yep, but I think we can beat Thunder Academy easily,"Zhang Fan said confidently.
"True. With your strength, it shouldn't be a problem."Shui Yue'er sipped her tea, feeling completely relaxed. "This tea is too good..." Her eyes widened slightly as if she were ascending to heaven.
"Yeah, this is the best tea I've ever had!"Shui Bing'er praised.
"Glad you like it,"Zhang Fan shrugged.
"Ding, mission triggered: Modify Dialogue."
[Shui Yue'er: Thank you for saving us earlier. A toast to you.] – Four words can be modified.
Zhang Fan didn't expect another mission to pop up. He immediately changed "a toast to you" to "drink cross-cupped tea."
"Ding, dialogue modification successful. Minor plot twist. Reward: 50 modification points."
Shui Yue'er picked up her cup with a bright smile. "Thank you for saving us earlier. Let's drink cross-cupped tea."
In the next moment, she stepped in front of Zhang Fan.
Shui Bing'er didn't hear the cross-cupped tea part.
She thought Shui Yue'er was just offering a toast and frowned slightly.
Zhang Fan smiled and picked up his cup.
Shui Yue'er brought Zhang Fan's cup to her lips and offered her cup to his.
"Gulp..." She drank.
"Uh..."Shui Bing'er was stunned. Was this cross-cupped tea? Her beautiful eyes widened—she hadn't expected Shui Yue'er to do something like this.
This was ridiculous!
It was basically like a wedding ritual... or close to it.
Her breathing quickened.
She grabbed at Shui Yue'er.
"Sis, what are you doing?"Shui Bing'er tried to pull her aside but couldn't budge her. She was speechless.
And just like that, they finished the cross-cupped tea.
Shui Yue'er snapped out of it.
She looked down and saw their intertwined cups, stunned.
Her eyes widened. "Ah... What did I just do?"
"You insisted on drinking cross-cupped tea with Zhang Fan... and being the gentleman he is, he went along with it. Lucky you!"Shui Bing'er said seriously.
"Ah..."Shui Yue'er hadn't expected herself to do something so outrageous and embarrassingly intimate.
She was utterly flustered.
But... thinking about it, it wasn't so bad.
Zhang Fan was handsome and talented. Drinking cross-cupped tea with him? That was pure luck.
Though she'd just had a little moment of madness, it wasn't the end of the world.
Blushing, she said shyly, "Sorry, I didn't expect to go a little nuts just now!"
"It's fine. Drinking cross-cupped tea with a beautiful girl—how could I complain?"Zhang Fan smiled warmly at her.
Shui Yue'er blushed even deeper, her heart racing.
Did he like her? Otherwise, why say something so sweet?
His words made her heart flutter.
"Alright, we're gonna head out now!"Shui Bing'er quickly pulled Shui Yue'er and turned to leave.
They had to get out of there before things got even more embarrassing.
After all, she had once kissed Zhang Fan in a moment of impulse.
Now Shui Yue'er had drunk cross-cupped tea with him?
She couldn't even look anymore.
The two ran out of Zhang Fan's tent and back to their own.
"Sis, what was that? I'm still dazed!"Shui Yue'er said, cheeks flushed, heart still pounding. Just thinking about how close she'd just gotten to Zhang Fan made her heart race even faster.
(End of Chapter)