Chapter 32: Why Are You Still Holding Onto Me?
On the other side of the training field—
With the crisis finally resolved, the surrounding students began excitedly discussing the astonishing scene they had just witnessed.
Xiao Wu, however, was still immersed in the lingering fear from moments ago.
She was just about to pat her little chest to calm herself down, hoping to expel that suffocating sensation from earlier.
But the moment she moved, she felt that something was wrong.
Her hand seemed to be… welded to something?
Lowering her head, she saw—
Her soft, boneless little hand was tightly wrapped inside a broad, warm palm.
Not just holding hands either—it was fingers interlaced!
"Y–Yah!"
Xiao Wu let out a small cry and reflexively tried to pull her hand back, as if she'd been electrocuted.
But that big hand was incredibly strong, like iron tongs—she couldn't pull free at all.
The warm sensation of their palms pressed together traveled straight up her arm and burned onto her face.
"U–Um…"
Xiao Wu's face flushed red like a ripe apple. She lowered her head, her voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz:
"The crisis… the crisis is already over…"
"Why are you still holding onto my hand?"
"Didn't you say it yourself… that men and women shouldn't touch casually…"
Hearing this, Lin Yuan not only failed to let go—he even went a step further and deliberately squeezed her soft little hand.
He turned his head to look at the bunny girl in front of him, who looked like she was about to steam, his expression utterly righteous.
"Yeah, I did say that."
"But you were the one who grabbed my hand first just now."
"I'm a rather passive person. Since you held my hand, I naturally have to take responsibility and protect you all the way."
"Who knows if those old monsters in the sky might suddenly come back for round two?"
Xiao Wu: ???
This counts as a reason?!
She felt that Lin Yuan was being utterly shameless!
"But… but everyone's watching!"
Xiao Wu glanced around in a panic. Although most people were busy discussing what had happened in the sky and weren't paying attention to them—
Holding hands in public like this still sent her embarrassment straight through the roof.
"So what if they're watching?"
Lin Yuan shrugged indifferently, leaned closer to her ear, and chuckled softly:
"Everyone already knows I'm a 'pervert.' What's wrong with a pervert holding someone's hand?"
"But you, Xiao Wu…"
"Your palm seems a little sweaty?"
"Are you feeling too nervous?"
Boom!
Xiao Wu felt her head buzz loudly.
This bad guy!
Wasn't it because he was holding her hand so tightly?!
She wanted to retort, wanted to step on his foot.
But for some reason, listening to that teasing voice by her ear, feeling the warmth coming from his palm—
Her wildly pounding heart inexplicably felt a hint of sweetness.
"Hmph… hooligan!"
In the end, Xiao Wu could only scold him with a soft, coquettish huff.
Yet the hand being held was very honest—it didn't struggle anymore.
And Lin Yuan, utterly shameless as he was, directly held Xiao Wu's hand and walked back to Dormitory Seven.
On the way back, he also took advantage of the free time to write today's diary entry.
[Didn't expect Spirit Hall to move this fast. From the time I sent that anonymous letter until today, it's only been five days. Their efficiency is pretty impressive!]
At this very moment, far away in the Pope's Palace, Bibi Dong looked at this line and curled her lips into an amused, cold smile.
"Efficient?"
"Little one, you're still far too naive."
Her slender fingers gently tapped against her staff.
"That anonymous letter only reached my hands today."
"The reason I was able to dispatch people five days in advance was purely because I read your diary and prepared ahead of time."
"After all, if you really ran off into seclusion with that hundred-thousand-year rabbit, how would I obtain my diary rewards?"
To keep Lin Yuan—this walking "spoiler plug-in"—she had no choice but to cooperate with his script and put on a show.
Over these past few days, Lin Yuan had been writing mainly about his cultivation routine, as well as Tang San, Yu Xiaogang, and Xiao Wu.
Others were mentioned occasionally, but far less frequently.
Even though the system had stated that the one mentioned most often wouldn't necessarily receive rewards—
Even so, during these five days, Xiao Wu had received the most rewards among them all!
Naturally, this caused quite a bit of dissatisfaction.
Some people hadn't received a single reward yet!
For example, the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and Dugu Bo's granddaughter, Dugu Yan.
Of course, the system didn't always hand out top-tier rewards. Over these few days, what Xiao Wu received were mostly Gold Soul Coins, as well as some experience related to cultivating the Shadowless Kick, assisting her training.
[This lineup was actually pretty interesting.]
[Aside from Bibi Dong's trusted Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo, there was unexpectedly another lance user.]
[If I'm not mistaken, that should be Snake Lance Douluo She Long, who's been stationed long-term in the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace as Qian Renxue's bodyguard, right?]
[Tsk tsk, looks like that tsundere young lady Qian Renxue couldn't sit still either.]
Reading the diary, Qian Renxue wasn't surprised that Lin Yuan had recognized Snake Lance Douluo.
On the contrary, it boosted her trust in him by another notch.
"If you could recognize She Long, that means you were indeed present."
"And She Long appearing there also indirectly confirms that Tang Hao was in Nuoding City."
"Lin Yuan…"
Golden light flickered in Qian Renxue's eyes.
"It seems the future predictions written in your diary aren't groundless after all."
At this moment—
Both Bibi Dong and Qian Renxue's trust in Lin Yuan's diary crossed the 60% threshold.
No longer treating it as a joke, they began to seriously evaluate the intelligence value contained within.
Of course, this excluded certain completely unacceptable "emotional gossip."
For example, Yu Xiaogang approaching Bibi Dong with ulterior motives.
On this point, Bibi Dong remained skeptical.
"Xiao Gang may be somewhat extreme in his theories, but his character…"
Bibi Dong frowned slightly, still harboring a trace of wishful thinking.
However, Lin Yuan's next battle-power analysis directly poured a bucket of cold water over the three Titled Douluo's operation.
[I wonder if those three Titled Douluo will actually be able to keep Tang Hao there.]
[Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo do at least have the Polar Static Domain—hopefully they won't be too stingy to use it.]
[If they think Tang Hao suffered heavy injuries back then, has hidden wounds, and can't exert his full strength, then they're dead wrong!]
[Tang Hao is best at erupting in desperate situations!]
[Don't assume that just because he has lingering injuries, he can't use Ring Explosion or the Great Sumeru Hammer—he actually used them in the original work during the Soul Master Tournament finals.]
[In the original story, during the finals a few years later—]
[Tang Hao, relying on his crippled body alone, smashed through Spirit Hall's defenses right in front of Bibi Dong and several Titled Douluo!]
[That single hammer strike could easily be described as world-shattering!]
[The Soul Power barrier jointly erected by Bibi Dong and several other Titled Douluo shattered instantly—like paper!]
…
End of Chapter