That voice was so flirtatious it was nauseating. A shiver ran down Zhao Yuan's spine, the hairs on his body standing on end as goosebumps instantly broke out all over. He cursed, "Fourth Brother, are you in heat or something? Talk normally, can't you? Stop being so disgusting!"
Meanwhile, their other roommates, Liu Zhu and Wang Rongfeng, simultaneously backed away from Wu Yan, terrified that this guy, who had suddenly started acting frisky, might pounce and have his way with their backsidesā¦
"Now it's my fault?" Wu Yan said testily. "You promised this evening that you'd teach me how to train tonight. I turned down a date with a girl and waited for you in the dorm, but you only just got back."
Zhao Yuan slapped his forehead. So many unexpected things had happened tonight, he'd completely forgotten about it.
"I'm really sorry. I didn't expect to run into so many things tonight." After apologizing, Zhao Yuan asked, puzzled, "Hey, wait a minute. Didn't a girl just slap you this afternoon? Where'd this date come from? Did you manage to pick up a new girl that fast?"
"So what if I was just talking big?!" Wu Yan grumbled.
"Fourth Brother got slapped by a girl? What's that about? Doesn't he always claim to be a Casanova? How could he get slapped? Third Brother, spill the details!" Liu Zhu and Wang Rongfeng immediately closed in, pestering him for the story. Gossip was always the most interesting thing.
"This idiot recited a dirty little poem to a girlā¦" Zhao Yuan sold out Wu Yan without a second thought, telling them the whole story. Wu Yan tried to stop him but was firmly held down by Liu Zhu and Wang Rongfeng, leaving him to lament woefully, "I really chose my friends poorly!"
After hearing the whole story, Liu Zhu and Wang Rongfeng simultaneously gave him a thumbs-up, saying with genuine admiration, "Reciting a dirty poem to a girlā¦ Fourth Brother, you're one of a kind. When it comes to digging your own grave, you're the undisputed master!"
Wu Yan grew a bit embarrassed and forced a change of subject. "Alright, alright, enough of this crap. Third Brother, just hurry up and teach me the technique! Once I get an eight-pack, I won't need to recite poems to pick up girls. I'll just lift up my shirt and show them my amazing body. I'm sure they'll scream when they see it!"
"Oh, they'll scream alright. They'll think they've run into a perverted flasher," Zhao Yuan retorted.
"A technique?" Liu Zhu asked curiously. "What kind of technique?"
Before Zhao Yuan could answer, Wu Yan cut in impatiently, "First Brother, haven't you noticed? Third Brother's gotten stronger and more ripped lately! I asked him about it this afternoon. He said it was because of a technique he's practicing, and he promised to teach me this Cultivation Technique!"
"Really?"
Liu Zhu had been playing basketball with Zhao Yuan almost every day recently, so he'd seen firsthand how powerful his physique had become. He had always been curious about why Zhao Yuan was so strong but never found the right time to ask. Hearing that it was due to a training technique, his interest was immediately piqued.
"Third Brother, what technique are you practicing? Can you teach me?"
Wang Rongfeng chimed in as well, "I want to learn too, Third Brother. You can't play favorites and forget about me."
"No problem. If you want to learn, I'll teach you," Zhao Yuan said, nodding with a smile.
"Awesome!"
Liu Zhu, Wang Rongfeng, and Wu Yan all cheered in unison.
After the excitement died down, Liu Zhu asked curiously, "By the way, Third Brother, what Cultivation Technique are you practicing? The Shaolin Temple's Muscle-Strengthening Scripture? The Wudang Sect's Tai Chi Heart Method? Or maybe the Huashan Sect's Purple Mist Divine Technique?"
"First Brother, have you been reading too many martial arts novels?" Zhao Yuan chuckled and said, "The Cultivation Technique I practice is one you've all seen before. It's the Four Saints Techniqueāthe one you all thought was just square dancing!"
"What? That square dancing thing?"
"But those movements are so simple. Can they really make you stronger?"
Liu Zhu and Wang Rongfeng were both surprised and confused, their faces full of disbelief. Wu Yan, having already been surprised once this afternoon, was quite calm now.
"Simple?" A corner of Zhao Yuan's mouth twitched into a smirk. He chuckled. "Heh, let's see if you still say that after you start training."
The three of them clearly didn't take Zhao Yuan's words seriously. They started tidying up the dorm to make space to practice the Four Saints Technique. In the process, Liu Zhu suddenly asked, "Third Brother, when did you get a pet?"
"Get a pet?" Zhao Yuan faltered. "I don't have a pet."
Liu Zhu pointed. "Isn't that cat your pet? It ran into our dorm this afternoon and has been curled up on your desk ever since. I thought it was yours."
"A cat?" Zhao Yuan turned his head and saw the White Cat he had performed surgery on, lying lazily on his desk. Seeing him look over, it let out two soft MEOWS.
"You little thing, how did you find my dorm?" Zhao Yuan walked over, stroking the White Cat as he asked.
Thanks to Zhao Yuan's care over this period, the wound on the White Cat's back had already healed, though its fur hadn't completely grown back yet.
The White Cat clearly enjoyed Zhao Yuan's touch. It closed its eyes and let out a series of satisfied MEOWS.
"You don't really want to stay with me, do you?" Zhao Yuan asked with a smile.
Wang Rongfeng snorted with laughter. "Third Brother, do you have to be so ridiculous? You're talking to a cat. There's no way it can understand you!"
He had barely finished speaking when the White Cat let out a MEOW and nodded its headā¦
"Am I seeing things?" Wang Rongfeng's jaw dropped, and he rubbed his eyes hard. "Did that White Cat just nod? A coincidenceā¦ It must be a coincidence!"
'This is no coincidence,' Zhao Yuan thought. 'This White Cat is far more intelligent and aware than an ordinary cat. It seems to have some extraordinary abilities!'
"Since you want to stay with me, then stay. I can afford to keep one cat," Zhao Yuan said with a smile, rubbing the White Cat's little head.
Liu Zhu frowned and said, "Third Brother, are you really planning to keep this cat? We don't mind, but we're worried the dorm supervisor will find it during a room check and make you get rid of it."
Zhao Yuan wasn't worried about that; worst case, he would just keep it at his rented place instead of the dorm. But, as if it could truly understand human speech, the White Cat acted the very moment Liu Zhu finished speaking. It stood up, hopped off the desk, opened a cabinet, and ducked inside. Once hidden, it reached out with a small paw and pulled the cabinet door shut.
This series of actions was executed so smoothly that all four of them could only stare, dumbfounded.
"Holy shit, this cat is way too smart!"
"It can't actually understand human speech, can it?"
After a moment of shock, a series of astonished cries erupted in Dorm 301. The White Cat, with its intelligence, had completely won over Liu Zhu and the other two.
When the White Cat emerged from the cabinet, the three of them couldn't wait to pull out their own snacks and present them as offerings.
The White Cat held its small head high, looking utterly arrogant, as if to say, 'You foolish bipeds. Now you know how amazing I am, right?'