Chapter 97: The Grand Competition Begins

If Arthas were told that she was currently living in a flesh toilet, the enraged and humiliated Arthas would probably execute him on the spot.

Perhaps he would find a good opportunity later...

The generation gap was truly terrifying.

Then there was the problem of getting Arthas back to the hotel.

Qin Ye had not yet sunk so low as to hail a taxi while carrying an inflatable doll. What if Little A found the ride uncomfortable and shifted slightly, just as the driver happened to look back? Would he gently pat her and say, “You’ve been naughty,” or knock the driver unconscious on the spot?

Either option was equally terrible!

So he found a suitcase and, without giving her any chance to object, stuffed Arthas inside. She was extremely dissatisfied and kept muttering, “What’s wrong with carrying me in your arms? This is the blessing you earned through your past life!”

“Are you questioning My Lady’s eye for choosing a body?”

“This beautiful body is more than worthy of you!”

How annoying!

Yes, it was more than worthy of anyone. She was practically available to every man alive!

When Qin Ye carried Arthas into the room, he saw the last person he wanted to see.

Wang Chenghao had some inexplicable faith in him. He was sitting on the bed playing on his computer, surrounded by a mountain of empty KFC containers.

“What’s that? Need help?” Wang Chenghao immediately sprang to his feet when he saw Qin Ye carrying in the suitcase.

“No need.” Qin Ye calmly brushed his hand aside. “Did you finish reviewing what I told you to study? Once First Cultivation University opens, you’re going there to take your exam... No, seriously, can you stop making me worry about everything? Being a father is exhausting!”

“Oh...” Wang Chenghao, a tall and burly young man, scratched his head and cast a puzzled glance at the suitcase. “Then I’ll be going?”

“Get lost!”

The instant the door closed, Qin Ye turned around and saw that the suitcase had opened. There was nothing inside.

His soul nearly left his body. What if the hotel staff saw a walking flesh toilet? How would he explain that?

He took a careful look around and found Arthas sitting by the window, gazing melancholically at the world outside.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t visited the mortal realm in several centuries. Nor have I personally experienced what it feels like to possess a body... What are you doing?!”

Before she could finish, a blanket dropped over her head. Qin Ye grabbed her and threw her under the bed.

“Qin! I think you’re courting death! Don’t assume I wouldn’t dare kill you!” Arthas’s voice erupted through clenched teeth.

“Grandmother! Great-aunt!” Qin Ye felt as though he had picked up an enormous burden. Bowing with cold sweat covering his forehead, he pleaded, “Do you have any idea how horrifying you look right now? If you don’t want the Special Investigations Bureau coming to your door, please, for the love of all that’s holy, keep quiet!”

Arthas fell silent for several seconds.

“Hasn’t Bao’an City already entered the age of cultivation? You can simply say that I’m your puppet. Are you secretly skilled in the art of puppetry?”

What the hell kind of puppet was made from silicone?!

You may have no shame, but I still have a reputation to protect! I’m an instructor now! Do you understand what that means?!

Years later, on the honor roll of First Cultivation University, an instructor would point calmly at a photograph of the university’s first faculty and explain to his students, “This is the renowned Mr. Qin, one of our first instructors. He stands over six feet tall, looks remarkably lifelike, and specializes in the use of a silicone puppet...”

The shame would be enough to pierce the heavens!

For the sake of his life, Qin Ye did not dare explain. In a flash of inspiration, he pressed down on Arthas, who was trying to crawl out from under the bed.

“It’s like this... You’ve been cut off from mainstream society for far too long. I think what you need most right now is to understand the modern age.”

He almost wanted to applaud his own cleverness.

“And?” Arthas asked, puzzled. “Shouldn’t you take me outside to see the modern world?”

Take you outside? In your dreams!

“...Actually, there are more comfortable ways to learn about the modern world. For example... for example... for example... That’s it!”

“I’m going to fetch a few things. Stay right here. Don’t move.”

“...”

Qin Ye dashed out of the room. When he returned, he was carrying Wang Chenghao’s MacBook. He dropped it in front of Arthas and let out a long breath of relief.

“Come on. I’ll teach you how to use it... First, let me introduce you to one of the most classic tools: Penguin Messenger.”

Arthas immediately became interested.

“And this is Wonder Video. I’ll register an account for you right now... This is the web browser. You can search for anything you want...”

Qin Ye explained most of the available functions to her, and the lesson lasted two or three hours. After wiping away nonexistent cold sweat, he discovered that Arthas, a woman from several centuries ago, had finally become absorbed in surfing the Internet. She could no longer be bothered to raise her head and look at him.

A mysterious, unfathomable smile crept across his lips.

Heh heh heh... You’re just an old auntie born in the nineties. How dare you challenge me?

Once I introduce you to Alipay and WeChat, I refuse to believe you’ll ever make it out that door!

The greatest distance in the world is not the distance between you and me, but the distance between a shut-in and the door.

No... Wait. This old monster had an astonishing capacity for learning, a terrifying ability to understand, and rigorous logic. These things alone would not be enough to make her completely addicted...

After a moment of silence, Qin Ye’s smile became as warm as spring sunshine.

“Little A, what I’ve shown you so far is only the most basic material. Now I’ll explain the advanced section.”

Arthas, on her first journey through the Internet, finally lifted her mesmerized eyes. Qin Ye glanced at the screen, and his eyelids began twitching.

The Chanel flagship store on the online marketplace...

What could he say?

A woman’s innate nature?

“Come, take a look at this...” With unfathomable intentions, he opened two links. “This is called a game. This one is the most popular game right now, League of Legends. This one is a battle royale game. And this is the Blizzard platform. I’ve downloaded them all for you, so go ahead and play. If you run out of skins, call me... No, call Wang Chenghao. He’ll buy them for you.”

Arthas shot him a sidelong glance.

“Why are you being so attentive today?”

“Nothing... Hahaha! When am I ever not attentive to you?”

Once Arthas had truly begun playing online, Qin Ye finally rubbed his aching lower back and straightened up.

At last, she was pacified...

However, he had no idea that this was only the beginning of the nightmare.

That night—

“What the hell? Why does his Lux look different from mine? Her damage seems so much higher!”

The furious clatter of the keyboard made Qin Ye’s temples throb.

He had forgotten that this idiot did not need to sleep.

A catastrophic mistake!

“Huh? They dare flame me? Get up! Tell me how to type!”

“Why can’t my champion kill anyone?”

“They’re calling me a newbie? What’s a newbie? Did I buy the wrong items?”

At two in the morning, Qin Ye covered his ears and writhed beneath the blankets like a worm.

At three, he stared blankly at the ceiling, utterly devoid of hope.

At four, he picked up his quilt and headed toward Wang Chenghao’s room, only for Arthas to drag him back.

“What do runes mean?”

At five, he stared at the flickering screen with two dark circles beneath his eyes and the expression of a man on the verge of death.

At six—

“Trash game.”

Arthas sighed in relief, tapped the mouse with her silicone finger, and triumphantly shut down the computer. Then she looked at Qin Ye as though he were some kind of ghost.

“Why aren’t you asleep yet?”

Qin Ye fell silent.

He rubbed his brow in despair. That night, he gained a profound understanding of what it meant to bring disaster upon oneself.

“You can sleep. I’m going to watch some television... Come to think of it, we’ve known each other for so long, and you’ve finally done one good thing.”

The next moment—

“The cool night stretches into a river of longing for you, turning into spring mud to shelter me... Shallow years brush against my beloved’s sleeves, petal after petal drifting into the water...”

Aaaaaah!

Qin Ye furiously smashed his head into the pillow.

What kind of Judge of Hell stayed up all night gaming with a group of university students and then watched Eternal Love? How was this even real?!

Time passed quickly. Qin Ye did not dare move into Wang Chenghao’s room. Who knew what trouble might arise if he left this centuries-old female ghost alone in there?

On the second night, after he gave Arthas a pair of premium headphones and put in earplugs and an eye mask himself, things finally became somewhat bearable.

On the morning of the third day, Qin Ye had just opened his bloodshot eyes after sleeping for three hours. The ceiling seemed to be spinning around him when someone suddenly knocked on the door.

“Who is it?” he asked weakly.

“Mr. Qin.” A steady male voice came from outside. “I’m the driver responsible for picking up the instructors of First Cultivation University. I was the one who drove you previously. Do you remember me?”

Qin Ye yawned, reached into his loose shorts to scratch an itch, and began rubbing facial cleanser onto his face.

“Is something wrong?”

There was silence outside for three seconds.

“Mr. Qin... Have you forgotten? Today is the interdepartmental competition for all the instructors of First Cultivation University. After the competition, everyone will be going to Mount Dai Anhui University to study at the main campus.”

Qin Ye’s hand paused as he rubbed in the cleanser.

Ten seconds later, he appeared at the door looking refreshed.

“Sorry to keep you waiting. Shall we go?”

Soon, the two of them were in the car, heading straight for First Cultivation University.

As for Arthas?

Heh heh heh... At this point, perhaps only Professor Yang could awaken that lost girl.

The car quickly arrived at First Cultivation University. Qin Ye’s expression had already grown solemn.

The university now possessed a certain imposing air. Soldiers patrolled everywhere, and a murderous atmosphere struck him head-on.

The vehicle drove directly onto the main athletic field. There were no banners or slogans. Cultivators were not bound by convention. Apart from a fifty-meter-wide arena in the very center, there was nothing else.

The arena was made of stone, ancient and dignified. More than a hundred people stood around it, stretching and warming up. Auras at the Soul-Seizing level filled the entire campus. Qin Ye could also sense a gaze above the Soul-Seizing level watching this place at all times.

Fifty percent of the nation’s elite Soul-Seizing cultivators had gathered here!

Fighting spirit burst forth with the morning air. People stood in groups of three or five, talking among themselves. Even a deep breath seemed to draw in the heat of battle.

His drowsiness slowly faded. Qin Ye discreetly assessed everyone present, then stepped aside and began loosening his muscles and bones.

This competition was extremely important.

First Cultivation University had not said so outright, but they had hinted at one thing: there would be rankings.

And what did rankings determine?

Resources and authority!

That was precisely what he had wanted most when joining First Cultivation University.

He had spent quite some time inside Di Ting’s domain. Since the competition was beginning now, it proved that after being swept away and carried back, he must have remained unconscious for several days.

Then...

A glint flashed in his eyes.

“The New Netherworld... should have finished expanding by now!”

“Once this competition is over, I’ll redeem all my merit points. The Netherworld... it’s time to make the ghosts remember us once more!”