Chapter 143: Whispers of Cultivation

[Over the past few days, Miss Jiang’s hometown has faced attacks and slanders from rival forces. This incident was troublesome, so you decided to slip out alone under the cover of night and quickly resolved the issues with those enemies.]

[Then, you teamed up with the Empress of the Imperial City and Madam Wang to officially establish a cultivation sect called Zheng Shi Sect. This marks a major milestone on your path of cultivation.]

[During your collaboration with the Empress, she personally made and shared a small bottle of golden red naoliquid with you. After tasting it, you gained one level in spiritual energy and three points in strength.]

[From this adventure, you gained another level in spiritual energy, one point in energy, five points in stamina, and as you’re about to found the sect, your All Things Affinity level increased by one.]

[Your current spiritual energy level is fifty-nine. You’re on the verge of breaking through the Qi Refining stage.]

[Your current attributes are]

[Strength: Ninety. You’ve unlocked the ability for strength not to decline and immunity to diseases.]

[Stamina: Eighty-one. You’ve unlocked the ability to exceed lifespan limits, enhance physical toughness, and double cultivation speed.]

[All Things Affinity: Level Two. Your All Things Affinity level has improved.]

[Intermediate Affinity: You have an extremely strong talent for all things, equivalent to thirty years of proficiency for those with talent. Even without signing contracts with disciples, they gain a noticeable boost in learning speed when you teach them—about 1.4 times the normal rate.]

[Fairies who have signed contracts with you will see their learning speed triple.]

Today is Friday.

Lin Zheng Ran finished listening to the system’s description and thought the triple learning boost would make his cultivation progress even more exaggerated. Plus, he was just one level away from sixty—things were looking up.

He got dressed and headed downstairs from the dormitory, only to spot Han Wenwen, Lily, and Xiao Qingqing right at the door.

The three women stood there anxiously, drawing curious stares from the guys around who wondered who these pretty girls were waiting for.

As soon as they saw Lin Zheng Ran step out, they hurried over.

“Zheng Ran!”

“Lin Zheng Ran!”

“Lin Zheng Ran, classmate!”

Lin Zheng Ran asked curiously, “What’s up with you three? You all seem so worried?”

The three glanced at each other.

Xiao Qingqing spoke timidly but with clear concern, “Lin Zheng Ran, where have you been these past few days? We haven’t seen you for two days.”

Lily chimed in quickly, “Did something happen over the last two days, Zheng Ran? The teacher said you were resting in the dormitory, but I asked around—you weren’t there. People said you went out.”

Han Wenwen didn’t say much, but her eyes were full of worry.

“What’s going on?”

Lin Zheng Ran looked at the three women showing their concern, and at the speechless expressions on the guys around the dormitory building. Those guys seemed to be thinking, ‘Why do all these gorgeous girls fall for this one guy?’

The guys’ faces said it all: ‘Sure, he’s handsomer, taller, smarter, better at sports, more charismatic, and richer than us—what else does he have? We’re not buying it!’

Lin Zheng Ran ignored the jealous looks from the guys around and gave the three women a simplified version of what had happened over the past two days.

Of course, he kept it vague.

The gist was that Lily’s studio had run into some trouble, so he helped sort it out.

As for how he handled it, his description was so fuzzy that the three young women just nodded along, half understanding.

Lin Zheng Ran said, “Anyway, it’s all sorted now, so I won’t need to take any more leave.”

Xiao Qingqing murmured, “Oh, so that’s what happened. You’re not sick, right?” She didn’t really get the part about the studio; she just cared about his health.

Nothing else mattered to her.

Lin Zheng Ran replied matter-of-factly, “Of course I’m not sick. That was just an excuse to skip school.”

Xiao Qingqing relaxed instantly, clutching her chest as she let out a big sigh and grinned, “That’s a relief! No issues then. I was so worried.”

The other two also breathed easier—that was their main concern.

But Lily pieced some of it together: “No wonder my song got taken down the day before yesterday, and the charts wouldn’t load. I couldn’t even reach Wang Jie on the phone. So, it was trouble at the studio, and you went to help?”

Lin Zheng Ran asked, “It should be back up now, right? How’s the ranking?”

Lily said excitedly, “Yeah, it’s back, and it’s still number one!”

Han Wenwen, linking arms with Xiao Qingqing, added, “Lin Zheng Ran, next time you’re busy, could you at least give us a heads-up? We’ve been so worried. You only sent short replies to our messages.”

“I was swamped, but as long as I replied, that means I was fine, right?”

Lin Zheng Ran led the way, saying, “Alright, let’s grab breakfast. Then we can head to class together.”

“Okay,” the three replied in unison.

The four of them chatted and laughed their way to the cafeteria, drawing envious glances from the guys around.

When Lin Zheng Ran returned to the classroom, Jiang Qian and Fang Meng were deep in conversation.

Seeing him back, Jiang Qian stood up at once: “You’re back?”

Lin Zheng Ran acknowledged it and sat down, but as soon as he did, Fang Meng checked his pulse.

Jiang Qian asked Fang Meng, “How is he?”

After examining him, Fang Meng was a bit shocked at how strong his pulse was and whispered, “No problems at all. He’s incredibly healthy—way healthier than the average person.”

Lin Zheng Ran asked curiously, “What are you two up to?”

Fang Meng pulled back her hand and explained, “Jiang Qian has been really worried about you these past couple of days. We were about to track you down if you didn’t show up today.”

Jiang Qian flipped through her book with a cool, indifferent air, as if she was just relieved he was okay.

Everything went back to normal.

Lin Zheng Ran politely thanked them, “Thanks for your concern, you two. I’m fine.”

Jiang Qian didn’t respond, but Fang Meng smiled at him and returned to her seat.

Friday passed in unusual harmony. Maybe because Lin Zheng Ran was back, everyone seemed happier, chatting and laughing more than usual.

Saturday morning.

Today was the day Lin Zheng Ran had promised to spend alone with Han Wenwen.

So, early that morning, the little fox eagerly got up, rushed to freshen up, and picked out her clothes.

Xiao Qingqing groggily crawled out of bed, rubbing her eyes in a daze, and asked, “Wenwen, why are you up so early?”

Han Wenwen was already dressed, sitting on her bed and fixing her hair in the mirror.

The fox’s eyes sparkled with barely contained excitement—she’d been looking forward to this day for ages.

“Yeah, I need to head back to my rental house to shoot some game videos this week, so I have to leave early.”

Heqing glanced at Han Wenwen’s polished appearance, then lay back down, eyeing her for a moment before closing her eyes again. “So, you won’t be around to hang out this week. And Lin Zheng Ran is resting too—I have nothing to do.”

Han Wenwen laughed, “Xiao Qingqing, you’ve just won that competition, so you should rest up in the dormitory. Do you really need something to do?”

She remembered something, set down the mirror, and pulled a novel from a box under her bed.

Grinning slyly, she walked over to Heqing’s bed and said in a soft, meaningful voice, “Xiao Qingqing, if you’re bored these next couple of days, I have a novel for you to read.”

Heqing slowly opened her eyes, “A novel? What kind?”

“You’ll see—it’s really interesting.” She leaned in close, covering her mouth as she whispered in Heqing’s ear, “This one’s pretty steamy, though.”

A brief silence followed.

Then Heqing’s face turned red as she perked up, eyes wide. “Wait, Wenwen, what did you say?”

Han Wenwen tucked the novel into Heqing’s covers. “I won’t repeat it. You heard me the first time. Just take your time with it— it’ll come in handy someday.”

Heqing knew that when Han Wenwen called something steamy, it really was.

“Wenwen, where do you even find books like this?”

Han Wenwen stood up. “I bought it online. Don’t worry, it’s basically a normal romance novel. There are just a few spicy scenes—nothing major, just for flavor.”

Once she had everything packed, she waved. “Alright, I’m heading home, Xiao Qingqing. Enjoy the book while you’re here. Bye!”

Heqing, still blushing, waved her hand back. “Bye, Wenwen. Take it easy on the way.”

“Will do!”

Han Wenwen left the dormitory and hurried downstairs to meet Lin Zheng Ran.

Heqing glanced at the other roommates—some were sleeping, others packing to leave—so she pulled the covers over her head and stared at the novel’s title.

The book was titled ‘My Husband Says I’m So Sexy’.

Though Heqing thought she knew a lot, there was still plenty she didn’t understand—especially compared to Han Wenwen. “What kind of novel is this? Such a weird title?”

She flipped it open and skimmed a few pages.

Instantly, she entered a whole new adult world.

“What is all this? Is this even something you can write about?!” She blushed furiously, mouth agape, hardly believing such plots existed.