After completing his enhancement, Xiao Chenyu launched himself forward with a burst of strength, throwing a straight punch toward Huo Yu'er's face.
Though Ye Wen wasn't an expert in martial arts, he could tell this was nothing more than a clumsy "turtle fist."
Moreover, Ye Wen's sharp eyesight allowed him to notice that Xiao Chenyu had closed his eyes while throwing the punch.
Had Xiao Chenyu deduced that Huo Yu'er's first soul skill affected vision and thus abandoned his sight, relying instead on his beast-type martial soul's heightened sense of smell or hearing to locate her?
It showed some intelligence, but it was futile.
Ye Wen shook his head almost imperceptibly.
In Ye Wen's view, Huo Yu'er had only used her first soul skill because she was too lazy to fight directly and wanted to protect Wang Sheng.
Otherwise, even if Liu Long's staff techniques were impressive, what did it matter? He would have been subdued in moments!
Furthermore, though Huo Yu'er had reached Level 10 shortly after enrolling, she hadn't claimed to have full innate soul power. This led Ye Wen to another hypothesis: even if she didn't have full innate soul power, her initial soul power upon awakening must have been quite high.
As everyone knew, the quality of a martial soul was tied to innate soul power.
"So, does Huo Yu'er possess a super martial soul with built-in soul skills?" Ye Wen speculated.
If Ye Wen remembered correctly, the Spiritual Pupil martial soul belonged to Huo Yuhao, the protagonist of the Peerless Tang Sect era. Though his soul power at awakening was only Level 1 due to postnatal damage, his unparalleled visual enhancement made him extraordinary. Thus, Huo Yu'er likely possessed similar innate abilities.
Though the Douluo series never explicitly stated it was a world ruled by bloodlines, it was obvious to anyone with eyes: unless one's parents were exceptionally powerful, their martial soul could only rely on mutations.
However, most mutations resulted in cases like Ye Wen's malignant variation—though transitioning from no soul power to having soul power was an improvement, the potential remained limited. Still, for commoners, it was already a significant achievement.
Of course, such martial souls were considered absolute garbage by large sects and noble families. Without a strong backing, breaking through to Level 10 would be difficult.
During his cultivation, Ye Wen had also discovered another function of his own martial soul: an acute sensitivity to elemental perception. Huo Yu'er's Spiritual Pupil martial soul was undoubtedly the purest form of a body-type martial soul, without any mutations.
Could Huo Yu'er come from a prominent family or sect? Ye Wen pondered silently.
A continent-renowned failure, the son of the greatest criminal of Douluo Continent, the Pope-Hammering Douluo Tang Hao, a hundred-thousand-year soul beast in human form with a blood feud against the Spirit Hall—and now, a mysterious girl with a background tied to a rare body-type martial soul. Ye Wen's lips twitched involuntarily.
This world truly valued the small Nuoding Academy, throwing so many individuals with significant destinies into one place. It was exhausting for someone like Ye Wen, who simply wanted to survive until the end of the story.
The man named Ye Wen had no grand ambitions; he merely wanted to live a peaceful life.
Thus, he resolved to lay low even further in the coming days.
While Ye Wen's mind wandered, Huo Yu'er had already incapacitated Xiao Chenyu with a series of intricate punches, leaving him stiff as a board and collapsed on the ground like a zombie.
When Ye Wen snapped back to reality and saw this, his suspicions were confirmed. Huo Yu'er was definitely unusual. A self-created soul skill? That was an advanced technique—far beyond what commoners could achieve.
At this moment, Huo Yu'er crossed her arms, her small frame stepping firmly onto Xiao Chenyu's chest as she coldly asked:
"Want to keep fighting?"
Xiao Chenyu, beaten into submission, quickly snapped out of his existential crisis. He had expected to overpower her but was instead thoroughly humiliated. With a strained smile, he said:
"I yield, I yield, Sister Yu'er. From now on, you're the undisputed leader of Nuoding Academy. We'll all obey you. I was careless earlier and offended you—please forgive me and don't hold it against me."
Huo Yu'er didn't say much. After nodding slightly, she stepped off him and turned to return to the work-study group. However, she paused mid-step, as if remembering something.
"Forget about being called 'big sister.' But I hope you remember this: I don't want to see any of you bullying the work-study students again. If I find out anyone has laid a hand on them, I'll come back and make sure all of you regret it!
Understood?"
Though Huo Yu'er's voice still carried a hint of childishness, the aristocratic students, now thoroughly awed by her strength, nodded vigorously and promised they wouldn't repeat their past mistakes. Only then did Huo Yu'er leave, satisfied.
The work-study students erupted in cheers, shouting praises like "Sister Yu'er is mighty!" and "Sister Yu'er is domineering!"
But Ye Wen opened his mouth, unsure what to say.
Wait! Huo Yu'er, didn't you forget something?! You haven't transferred the work-study duties to the aristocrats yet!
Of course, Ye Wen couldn't voice these thoughts. All he could do was swallow his frustration. After going through so much trouble to become a work-study student, he was still stuck doing meaningless cleaning duties.
Such a loss!
Now, Ye Wen wished he could switch to being a self-paying student, but he wasn't sure if there was a precedent for such a change. Moreover, switching sides would draw unwanted attention and invite trouble.
For now, Ye Wen could only endure in silence, unable to express his grievances.
This experience further reinforced Ye Wen's realization that he was no protagonist. After reading so many novels, which protagonist suffered as much as he did?
Under the teacher's arrangement, Ye Wen received his work-study assignment: sweeping the academy's playground with Huo Yu'er every afternoon after school.
This task originally belonged to Xiao Wu and Tang San in the original story, but those two had been reassigned elsewhere.
However, if Ye Wen remembered correctly, the work-study assignments should have been handed out yesterday when the teacher gave Tang San his bedding.
Yet here he was, receiving the notice today. Something felt off, but lacking crucial information, Ye Wen decided not to dwell on it. For now, staying under the radar was his priority.
Other work-study students expressed envy toward Ye Wen, seeing it as a golden opportunity to spend time alone with the "big sister."
When Ye Wen later learned of their thoughts, he didn't say much, only inwardly sighing. Unlike Tang San, Ye Wen didn't entertain romantic notions about cute little girls.
In Ye Wen's opinion, even finishing the work alone wouldn't have mattered. But Huo Yu'er clearly had other plans.
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