Applied Immortality

After accommodating Wu Shiqin, Wang Qi turned his attention to the other three in the room. “She has a screw loose, but she is still a disciplinary officer, making her presence justifiable. Now why the hell are the rest of you here?”
Of the three, two men and one woman, the one cowering behind two of them was the supposed leader trying to urge Wang Qi into fighting at the porridge stall.
The man among the two in front had character, standing tall and dignified, while the girl was carefree and casual. Their temperaments alone spoke of their talents. The man was Long Shulin and the girl Liu Shu, two among the best Argent Apex Immortal Institute disciples.
Not like they had any chance against yours truly.
[Wu Shiqin can be said to be buddy-buddy with me, making her visit a given. I’m curious just what got these two, with whom I barely interacted and even rebuffed them earlier, to drop by. Everything points against this visit.]
Wang Qi’s eyes roamed over the cowering youth. Long Shulin and Liu Shu were worthy of having their names remembered, somewhat, while this no-name and negligible guy was labeled as an ‘unworthy loser.’ The only reason he even recalled his face was thanks to his wailing and whining this morning.
[Did he come for a fight?]
As Wang Qi’s thoughts slipped into dangerous territory, Long Shulin explained, “Brother Wang, we have no ill will.”
Liu Shu added. “We came to thank you.”
Long Shulin smiled at his frown. “Zhao Jianming told us what you said.”
Liu Shu said, “It was a marvelous argument, especially about seeking Dao and face.”
“Your distinguished words have left me in shame.” Long Shulin cupped his hands. “The fine line eluded us so, that we ended up crossing it in this brawl…”
Wang Qi stared at the two. “How long have you been married?”
The blunt digression left them unresponsive.
Liu Shu lowered her head. “Don’t joke Brother Wang. I haven’t married…”
“We’re not like that!” Long Shulin’s outburst spoke otherwise.
“You were better off not saying anything.”
“But we’re not…”
Wang Qi huffed. “You sure got the script down pat. If you’re not joined at the hip, how do you explain the casual back and forth? Besides, what’s your real angle?”
Long Shulin sighed. “Brother Wang’s astuteness…”
“Save it, just how much do you underestimate my emotional intelligence? When thanking, you don’t rehearse your speech, I know that much.”
Liu Shu was blunt. “We actually do have a request.”
Wang Qi nodded. “Go ahead.”
“It’s about Ai Changyuan.”
“Who’s that?”
“Langde Immortal Institute’s strongest, from Cracked Peak’s Ai clan.”
[So that’s his name.] Wang Qi recalled the apple.
“What do you want to know about him?”
Liu Shu replied, “Anything. Brother Wang, you’re the only one on friendly terms with him. Anything you know about him…”
Wang Qi exclaimed. “That’s why you clashed with Langde Immortal Institute this morning, so you could get their info and gain the upper hand in the examination.”
Long Shulin turned awkward. “To be honest, we’re not as gifted as Brother Wang. He’d crush us to a paste no matter what he throws at us. We just want to increase our chances of winning.”
Long Shulin felt pained inside as he finished. Why couldn’t he be as honorable and forthright as Wang Qi when it came to shoving people? Such was the cruelty of talent distribution.
The youth on the bed nodded. [Hardworkers, even underachievers, won’t go pissing people off.]
“I only know one thing about Ai Changyuan.” Wang Qi said. “Never go into melee with him. Try as much as possible to deal with him from afar with ranged magical arts.”
Wu Shiqin got curious. “Is his martial skill that strong?”
He nodded with certainty. He ate half of Newton’s apple and already felt improvements, while Ai Changyuan had so many of them he passed them around like candy, albeit a potent one. Not to mention he had the leisure to borrow its power for big arts instead of gaining insight. Who knew how many he ate, or how high his martial skills were?
Wang Qi would rather not think about it.
His mind was set. If he met Ai Changyuan in the martial examination, he’d use Grand Ripple Enigma on the spot. The guy was a bloody cheat, so using his personal hack cultivation method wouldn’t undermine this bookworm’s dominating panache.
Liu Shu and Long Shulin left, having gotten what they came for. Wu Shiqin left soon after, leaving Wang Qi alone with Mao Zimiao.
He asked, “Zimiao, aren’t you hitting the books?”
She rested her elbows on the table and her head in her palms as she stared back. “It doesn’t matter, nya. Little Qi, you always say that forcing the issue isn’t good, nya.”
“That’s me, which you aren’t!” Wang Qi was amused. “I’m not going to die anytime soon, so go and study.”
“Don’t wanna, nya.” Mao Zimiao pouted. “Little Qi, you never look after yourself, going as far as hurting yourself as you practiced the blade.”
“I’m more uneasy with your math.” He shook his head. “Fine, I’ll take a step back and help you study.”
“Nya!”