Chapter 130: Su Cheng, Stop Pretending

"Don't let me interrupt your conversation, feel free to find me if you need anything."

Dugu Bo glanced at Su Cheng's expression and knew there was a story behind it.

With a slight movement of his lips, he disappeared like a phantom, leaving no trace behind.

"Is there anything else you need, young lady?" Su Cheng looked bewilderedly at Zhu Zhuqing.

"Su Cheng, stop pretending!" Zhu Zhuqing's anger surged upon seeing his feigned confusion.

She gritted her teeth and took a few steps forward, closing the distance between them to less than two feet.

Her once cold cheeks twisted slightly, her eyes widened, eyebrows raised high, a mixture of complex emotions like anger, resentment, surprise, and excitement reflected in her gaze.

In front of this person, she could no longer maintain her previous calm demeanor.

The memories, longer than her own life, surged like a volcano, suppressed deep in her heart to prevent them from erupting.

If the others from Shrek Academy saw her strange expression now, their jaws would drop.

Zhu Zhuqing's voice trembled slightly, with a hint of anticipation.

"Do you dare say that those strange memories of mine, those inexplicable dreams, have nothing to do with you?!"

Unlike Qian Renxue's situation.

In Qian Renxue's perception, Su Cheng appeared at the wrong time.

In reality, Su Cheng was too young.

In her view, given a few more decades, Su Cheng would naturally grow into the appearance of that teacher from her memories.

His premature appearance meant meeting the right person at the wrong time, a kind of wonderful fate.

She wouldn't consider that the dreams actually originated from Su Cheng.

As for Su Cheng's abilities and talents far surpassing ordinary people in reality, it was also because, like her, he possessed memories from the dreams.

But Zhu Zhuqing was different.

Su Cheng was the same age as her in the simulated world.

When they were young, he not only acted as her childhood friend but even pretended to be her father, secretly guiding her.

Furthermore, he taught her the Nirvana scripture cultivation method, told her how to absorb soul rings beyond the age limit, and finally imparted to her the method of seizing bloodlines, helping her cultivate the Hell White Tiger martial soul and ascend to the title of Douluo.

All of these things were clearly beyond what Su Cheng could do at his age.

And she couldn't understand why Su Cheng did all of that.

Especially after she woke up, she realized something was wrong.

There was clearly no such person in reality, yet all the martial arts techniques and skills from her memories were undeniably real.

Until today, after seeing Su Cheng, she instantly became certain that her guess was the truth.

Or rather, she hoped it was the truth.

—All these changes must be related to Su Cheng.

Su Cheng inwardly acknowledged this.

He had noticed something was off when they were inside the house.

Whether it was Zhu Zhuqing's reaction upon seeing him or her unreasonable level of cultivation, it was evident.

Of course, the most crucial factor was that unique aura, too similar to the Zhu Zhuqing from his memories.

"Seems like a situation similar to Little Snow's, but not as severe as schizophrenia." Su Cheng thought to himself, "Does this mean the longer I interact with someone in the simulated world, the more it affects them, and the more related memories they have?"

Thinking this, he couldn't help but be vigilant, wondering what Bibi Dong's current situation would be like.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" Zhu Zhuqing stared at Su Cheng, "Aren't you good at pretending? Keep pretending!"

Upon hearing her angry rebuke, Su Cheng temporarily pushed aside his thoughts and looked at the slightly excited Zhu Zhuqing in front of him, smiling softly, "So, what did you come out to find me for?"

Zhu Zhuqing was stunned.

Yeah, why did she come out?

She hadn't thought about it at all, just acted on a difficult-to-restrain instinctive impulse, and didn't even know why she chased after him like this.

She just wanted to talk to him, or maybe ask him a few questions.

But now that she had seen him and vented her emotions, she suddenly didn't know what to do or say next.

Looking at Zhu Zhuqing, Su Cheng suddenly felt a stir in his heart, and a bold plan began to take shape in his mind.

"You joined Shrek Academy for that White Tiger Martial Soul, right?" Su Cheng asked.

Zhu Zhuqing stared silently at him, then nodded after a moment of silence.

"You want to become stronger?"

"Of course."

"Why? Is it for your family's decaying competition rules, or to control the Star Luo Empire in the future?"

"For neither. I simply want to become stronger, without needing any other reasons," Zhu Zhuqing said coldly. "What about you? Are you planning something again? This time, I won't listen to you."

"Haha, no, of course not." Su Cheng laughed heartily at her response.

"I think you said it well. Too well. Just because of that, I can help you again."

Zhu Zhuqing was stunned.

Su Cheng's reaction was completely different from what she had imagined.

But what she had just said was indeed the truth, not just empty words.

Defeating Dai Weisi and others was just incidental, a reward for using the White Tiger Martial Soul.

But family rules, the throne of Star Luo, she didn't care about any of those things.

The grand scheme in her dreams, the lifelong lie, had made her weary of such matters.

"I can help you greatly improve your cultivation in a short time, with no hidden dangers, and even help you solidify your foundation. You should be aware of my abilities," Su Cheng said seriously.

"However, there is one condition: you must ensure that your academy's team advances to the finals of this year's Soul Master Grand Competition."

Zhu Zhuqing raised an eyebrow at the statement, but didn't inquire further for the time being. She simply said, "How will you help me?"

"I'll explain in detail later. For now, go request a long leave from the teachers at your academy. Let's say three months, tell them you need to practice alone for that time."

After staring at Su Cheng for a while, she nodded gently. "Alright."

Once Zhu Zhuqing left the area and returned to the Education Committee, Dugu Bo suddenly appeared next to Su Cheng from somewhere.

Obviously, he hadn't gone too far before and had been lurking somewhere, observing the situation.

"You seem to care a lot about this girl," he suddenly exclaimed.

"Is that so?" Su Cheng was taken aback.

"You don't seem to be this happy often," Dugu Bo scrutinized him with a probing gaze, "do you admire her?"

"Indeed," Su Cheng nodded candidly, "don't you find her pure?"

To be honest, he hadn't expected Zhu Zhuqing to say something like "becoming stronger doesn't need a reason." But whether Zhu Zhuqing was pure or not was clearly not Dugu Bo's focus, as a sly smile crept onto his face.

Looking at Su Cheng, he asked, "What about the Martial Soul Hall?"

"What about it?"

"Don't play dumb, it's obvious there's something between you and that girl," Dugu Bo remarked.

Su Cheng's expression turned slightly awkward, earnestly saying, "You wouldn't understand."

"It's a good thing I didn't introduce you to Yan Yan. I can see that neither of these girls is easy to handle, you'll have your hands full in the future," Dugu Bo chuckled, seemingly amused.

He had no prejudice against Su Cheng for knowing many girls or the relationships between them. But in his eyes, none of these people were comparable to Dugu Yan.

Su Cheng didn't have to wait long before Zhu Zhuqing walked out of the Education Committee and approached him.

In the past year, Zhu Zhuqing had often taken such breaks for solitary practice, and the teachers at the academy couldn't control her, so they let her be.

As Dugu Bo had already left, Su Cheng had taken his bag of tricks before he departed.

"Come with me, I'll take you somewhere first."

Seeing Zhu Zhuqing ready, Su Cheng wasted no time and turned to walk out of the academy, preparing to take her to the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Eyes.

During the journey, Zhu Zhuqing's gaze kept drifting towards Su Cheng from time to time. Her mood was far from as calm as she had just shown.

"Why did you say I should lead the team to help Shrek Academy reach the finals? " she asked.

"I need someone from your team to confront the Martial Soul Hall," Su Cheng replied.

"Heh," Zhu Zhuqing smirked sarcastically, "aren't you supposed to be from the Martial Soul Hall yourself?"

"Not yet," Su Cheng's expression stiffened, surprised that she remembered such details.

Zhu Zhuqing didn't dwell on the matter, instead provocatively asking, "What if I can't do it?"

"Nothing will happen," Su Cheng replied casually, "I've already given you the benefits in advance, and if you can't do it, I can't do anything about it."

Turning to look her in the eye, he added, "But I'll be very disappointed."

"Hmph," Zhu Zhuqing coldly scoffed, "whether you're disappointed or not has nothing to do with me."

"Indeed," Su Cheng smiled, unconcerned.

"Now that Miss Fourth is so carefree, she doesn't need to care about anyone else's opinions."

"As long as you know," Zhu Zhuqing turned her head to look ahead, "if you dare to deceive me, I won't let you off so easily."

"I, Su Cheng, never tell lies voluntarily."

Hearing this, Zhu Zhuqing immediately glared at him.

Su Cheng quickly added, "Realities that haven't happened don't count."

Sunset Forest, in the deep valley where the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Eyes were located.

Su Cheng and Zhu Zhuqing stood side by side by the spring.

As they gazed at the spectacular sight of ice and fire merging before them, Zhu Zhuqing couldn't help but be mesmerized for a moment.

After a while, she glanced at Su Cheng beside her and lowered her eyes, lost in thought.

Su Cheng didn't notice her expression at this moment, instead pointing to a beautiful scene in the valley.

"Zhuqing, do you see all the rare and exotic plants here?

"Some of them are immortal herbs. Consuming just one can change one's destiny. It's possible to achieve the rank of Titled Douluo in the future. Their effects are far superior to the potions I once brewed.

"However, many of these herbs are not suitable for everyone. If consumed improperly, they can not only damage the body but also ruin one's cultivation, and even endanger one's life.

"And, I want to tell you something."

Su Cheng turned to look at Zhu Zhuqing seriously. "I've never consumed any of the immortal herbs here."

Zhu Zhuqing was startled by the revelation.

Since the immortal herbs here were so powerful, why didn't Su Cheng eat them?

"My cultivation path is different from ordinary people. My body is my foundation, and the effects of these immortal herbs are too strong. It's difficult for anyone to fully digest them, and there will inevitably be a large amount of medicinal residue remaining in the body, which would disrupt my physical balance.

"You, on the other hand, are different. You will achieve the Hell White Tiger martial soul in the future, and your focus will be on the martial soul. Moreover, beast martial souls are inherently different from tool martial souls. So, these immortal herbs will greatly assist you. But whether or not to use them is entirely up to you.

"If you don't want to use the immortal herbs, I can also brew potions from the other herbs here for you. Their effects far surpass your usual cultivation methods, and there will be no medicinal residue."

Speaking, Su Cheng stared at Zhu Zhuqing with a serious expression.

Zhu Zhuqing's gaze lingered on his face for a moment before turning her head away, avoiding his gaze, and murmured softly, "Your suggestion is for me to use the immortal herbs?"

"Yes."

"Then let's use the immortal herbs."