Stepping on the Demoness to become the strongest

When Yan Yu found Zhao Yuanzhen, she was lying in her dormitory, watching videos on her phone.

"There's something," Yan Yu said as he came to her bed.

"What is it?" Zhao Yuanzhen continued to lie on her bed, lazily adjusted her position, and kept staring at her phone.

"You talk to me with that attitude?" Yan Yu narrowed his eyes.

"What else?" Zhao Yuanzhen asked absentmindedly.

A mere thief, now that I'm no longer seeking your protection in your cave abode, what can you hold over me?

"Since that's the case, I can only report to Master," Yan Yu turned to leave, "Such an ignorant creature, huh..."

Zhao Yuanzhen jerked into action, flipping off the bed at lightning speed and grabbing onto Yan Yu's lower leg.

"Master has commanded, and this humble girl dares not disobey!" She swore and cursed, all but ready to spill her guts on the spot, "Please allow this humble girl to toil like a dog or horse!"

"Bullshit, you also dare to call him 'Master'? Just go back and wait for death," Yan Yu disdainfully pushed her hand away. Zhao Yuanzhen took the opportunity to get up, shamelessly wrapped her arms around his waist, and wouldn't let him go.

Seeing her clinginess, Yan Yu realized the Demonic Sect Enchantress was indeed afraid, and he softened his tone as he spoke:

"Master's predictions encompass heaven and earth, peering into the divine secrets. He foresees that next month, the Linghai will surge, and famous mountains and rivers will emerge one after another. This is the 'Bewitching Heart Guardian' era; the world will become turbulent. He commands us to prepare immediately."

"I will certainly prepare!" Zhao Yuanzhen said, her voice filled with excitement as she clenched her fist.

"Do you know what preparation?" Yan Yu scoffed at her, "You don't know anything and still dare to say 'certainly'?"

Zhao Yuanzhen was momentarily speechless at his words, then she hehe laughed and said:

"You and I are dual cultivation partners. Whatever Master entrusts you with, I'll follow along."

Her response was logical and well-founded, and even Yan Yu couldn't find fault with it, so he said stiffly:

"If someone from above comes and asks whether you want to join my battle team, just agree to it—don't cause me any trouble!"

"Understood, understood," Zhao Yuanzhen nodded repeatedly.

Only after Yan Yu had left the dorm did her expression suddenly turn serious.

Bewitching Heart Guardian, an era of great contention—Zhao Yuanzhen might not have witnessed it firsthand, but she had already glimpsed some clues from ancient texts.

With the lands in upheaval and a hundred years' worth of continents submerged, one has to swim against the tide to fight for that slim chance of survival!

Mei Yingxue, wait until my demonic skills are fully accomplished, and that will be the day you hand over your life!

Wahahahahahaha!

No sooner had Yan Yu left the dormitory building than he saw Lin Ning running over hurriedly from the opposite direction.

The girl was still dressed in a sports bra and shorts, with a shirt thrown over her shoulders, and her tied-up ponytail had come undone, adding a natural, untamed beauty to her pure appearance.

"Yan Yu!" Lin Ning called breathlessly, "Stop right there!"

"I wasn't planning to run," Yan Yu asked with a frown, "What do you want?"

"You, you, you..." Lin Ning took a while to catch her breath before angrily asking, "What you told me before was about... regional discrimination, wasn't it (lia)?"

Yan Yu: ???

"What regional discrimination?" he asked, puzzled, "Minhai's economy is thriving, there are plenty of handsome men and beautiful women, and the Min language sounds pleasant. Plus, Minhai produced you, an outstanding young cultivator like Lin Ning. Why would I discriminate against the people of Minhai? This is nonsensical!"

"Uh." Lin Ning was at a loss for words.

"Speaking of that, I was actually looking for you," Yan Yu said seriously, "Since you've joined our battle team, there are some tasks I need to entrust you with."

"Our team's roster is now set, you go report the list to Instructor Qi Changping and then ask him what procedures and processes we need to follow to establish our team and what materials we need. You'll be responsible for taking care of all of that for me."

"Ah, right now?" Lin Ning asked in surprise.

"Right now? Where's your head at!" Yan Yu scolded her, "Are you planning on going out soaked in sweat? Hurry back and take a shower and change clothes!"

"I'm on it!" Lin Ning immediately ran towards the direction of the dormitory building.

Upon returning to her room and shedding her sweat-drenched clothes, Lin Ning twisted up her long hair at the back of her head, covered it with a shower cap, and then began showering.

The call with her father hadn't really touched on much about the military; after all, he couldn't distinguish between "military academy training" and "joining a team," so he just said, "It's up to you to decide."

What really irritated Lin Ning was that her father had started asking her again whether she was in a relationship.

It's been less than a month since I started school!

The nudging, always nudging! It makes me want to curse out of irritation. How many times do I have to say it? Right now I only want to become a qualified cultivator as soon as possible; I have no time to think about anything extra, hmph.

After quickly washing up, Lin Ning stood in front of the mirror, staring at her reflection for a while.

Alright, I've joined the team, I need to work hard too!

Lin Ning patted her cheeks, and silently made up her mind.

Cleaned and dressed in simple sports pants, a shirt, and canvas shoes, with her hair tied back into a ponytail, Lin Ning left the dorm building and headed for the administrative building where the instructors were located.

"Oh?" After hearing Lin Ning's report, Qi Changping was also very surprised.

Chen Lingyun, Su Yunjin, Zhao Jiuzhen, and Lin Ning—Oi, Yan Yu, is everyone on your team besides yourself a girl?

This isn't necessarily a problem. Our Lu Country's traditional spirit is "Women can hold up half the sky," although your team seems to be holding up two skies, which is indeed a bit outrageous... Oh! I get it now! No wonder you insisted on absolute control over team personnel—it's for the casting couch, isn't it?

Kid, you're really playing the field!

Having strong suspicions about this, Qi Changping obviously couldn't make baseless accusations, so he could only hint subtly to Lin Ning by saying:

"If you suffer in the team, you can report to us instructors."

If it were Chen Lingyun or Su Yunjin here, they might have grasped his implication, but Lin Ning, with her straightforward personality, was not one to overthink. Upon hearing this, she responded seriously:

"Please rest assured, Instructor. As a soldier, no matter how much hardship I face or how tired I get, it's no excuse for grievance or complaint!"

Qi Changping: .........

He scrutinized Lin Ning's expression carefully, saw that she apparently had no other intention, pondered for a moment, and quickly came to an understanding.

This girl's naivety is almost like being clueless. If Yan Yu were to take a fancy to her, wouldn't she be devoured without leaving any scraps behind? She might even end up giving herself to him and then ask her family for a dowry.

"How's your relationship with Chen Lingyun?" Qi Changping asked again.

"It's pretty good," Lin Ning responded, not understanding the reason for the question, and then quickly added, "Instructor, about the procedures for establishing the team..."

"Ah, wait a moment. Let me get a form for you." Qi Changping thought to himself that knowing each other was fine—if anyone in the team could stop Yan Yu, it would definitely be Chen Lingyun, for this girl's strength lies not within the team, but without. "Fill out this form, have all team members sign at the bottom, and submit it to the archive room in Building 2...

No, forget that, I'll go submit it. Just hand it to me once you've gathered all the signatures."

"Sure." Lin Ning started to study the form.

"And, tell Yan Yu something for me," Qi Changping continued, "He'll have the team's absolute personnel authority if the higher-ups agree to it, on the condition that he wins battles."

"Sure," Lin Ning, of course, understood what "the team's absolute personnel authority" meant, but she didn't read too much into it. Or perhaps, up to this point, the impression Yan Yu had left on her wasn't bad, and it didn't make her interpret it in that way, "I'll tell him."

"Mhmm." Qi Changping sighed inwardly, but he didn't continue with the hints.

All he could hope for now was that Yan Yu would behave honorably and not end up causing all the girls in the team to become pregnant, igniting a major scandal, and eventually dragging the instructors into the mess.