Chapter 28: The Villain’s Embarrassment and a Friend’s Absurd Advice

The sunlight of Starlight Academy streamed through the glass window, casting its warmth upon the desks.

Ye Xingchen rubbed his temples, the cloaking effect of Dumen receding like a tide.

The boisterous chatter from the playground once again flooded his ears, as if the breathtaking display of intimidation at the Duke’s mansion had never even occurred, so seamless was the transition back to normalcy.

Ye Xingchen’s fingers tapped unconsciously against the tabletop.

Then, abruptly, he covered his face, and even the tips of his ears began to flush a faint red.

‘What the hell? I’m Protector Xiao of the Soul Palace… How did that just slip out?’

‘And that demonic “Jie jie jie” laugh, paired with a villainous persona I just threw together, recalling it now, the sheer mortification was overwhelming.’

“That was so chuunibyou…” Ye Xingchen muttered to himself.

He could have simply resolved the issue by exerting the pressure of a powerful cultivator.

Yet, as if possessed by some mischievous spirit, he had inexplicably put on a villainous act instead.

What was most infuriating, however, was this: witnessing Duke Xiao and the old man beside him, both utterly terrified, the effect had been surprisingly good?

Ye Xingchen gazed at his fingertips, which he had just used to move mountains and fill seas.

A soft chuckle suddenly escaped him.

‘Honestly, this move is quite effective.’

Moreover, since the deed was already done, so be it.

After all, didn’t the Xiao father and son revel in bullying others with their influence?

This time, it was only fitting that they, too, experienced the terror of being dominated by an even more formidable villain.

***

“Yueyue~”

Mu Wanqing blinked her large, innocent eyes, her small hand gently poking Su Liyue’s soft waist.

“Look… isn’t that Ye Xingchen?”

“How did he suddenly appear? Did you notice?”

Su Liyue awkwardly laughed it off.

“Ah, haha… Qingqing, why are you suddenly so concerned about him?”

She calmly smoothed her hair, feigning composure.

‘How was she supposed to explain this to her?’

‘She couldn’t possibly tell her that she naturally knew when she herself would return, could she?’

‘Would she even believe such an outrageous claim?’

‘Moreover, her best friend’s shift in attitude was far too sudden, wasn’t it?’

“I’m just worrying about you! After all, you two are going to have a baby soon~” Mu Wanqing puffed out her cheeks.

Then, with an affectionate gesture, she wrapped her arms around Su Liyue’s arm.

“I said we’re not having one! Besides, what if he falls for another girl and changes his mind then?” Su Liyue felt a surge of exasperation.

‘How much did she want her to have a child!’

“Another girl?!”

Mu Wanqing’s eyes suddenly widened.

She then adopted an expression of sudden realization and spoke.

“Oh~ I get it! Yueyue, are you talking about… a passionate threesome?”

Even Jiuwu, the phoenix, suddenly lifted their head from the textbook.

They glanced between the two girls.

Then, silently, they formed a ‘3’ gesture with their wing.

“Pfft—”

Not far away, Ye Xingchen, who had just sat down and was drinking water, nearly spat out a mouthful of water, drawing surprised glances from the surrounding students.

Jiuwu, who had quickly flown back to Mu Wanqing’s shoulder, swiftly covered their eyes with a wing.

Their small head shook like a rattle drum.

“These young humans nowadays…”

Meanwhile, Su Liyue, flustered, had just begun to attempt an explanation, only to see Mu Wanqing excitedly pull out a small notebook, asking with fervent enthusiasm.

“Quick, tell me! Are you looking for a fire-element junior or a water-element senior?

Honestly, I think a ‘Heaven of Ice and Fire’ (TL Note: A Chinese idiom referring to contrasting experiences, often used humorously in a suggestive context) pairing of a junior and a senior would be even more exciting…”

“Qingqing!”

Su Liyue snatched the notebook from her grasp, stamping her foot in exasperation, she declared.

“What I meant was, what if he falls for someone else and doesn’t want me anymore?!”

Mu Wanqing suddenly gasped, drawing a sharp breath.

She covered her mouth with both hands.

“Could it be… this is what you once taught me about ‘a threesome inevitably leading to one being cuckolded?!”

‘Am I cuckolding myself?!’

‘My dear best friend, you’re truly a ‘steadfast friend, flowing Qingqing’ (TL Note: A play on the idiom ‘tiě dǎ de yíngpán, liúshuǐ de bīng’, meaning ‘iron-clad barracks, flowing soldiers’, adapted here to humorously imply a loyal friend who is constantly misunderstood or misinterpreting things)!’

‘If they were on Earth, she would suspect this girl had consumed countless R-rated doujinshi to develop such an outrageous thought process and an endless stream of lewd remarks!’

‘Uh… though, to be fair, most of those lewd remarks were probably her own doing.’

“You’re overthinking it!” Su Liyue gnashed her teeth, brandishing her small, delicate fists.

“If he dares to cheat, he shouldn’t be surprised if someone breaks his third leg!”

‘It seemed the only way to get by was to improve her acting skills.’

Upon hearing this, Mu Wanqing suddenly fell silent.

She propped her chin in her hand, a thoughtful expression gracing her face.

“So Yueyue was worried about that… Then… why don’t we strike first?

Tonight, let’s secretly go over and… him…”

Su Liyue’s eyes widened in alarm as she hastily hugged her chest and asked.

“W-what do you want to do?!”

‘This girl is actually so ruthless?!’

‘Is she planning to sneak into the boys’ dormitory in the middle of the night to castrate him?’

“Yueyue~” Mu Wanqing suddenly spoke with a serious expression.

“Mom said that children are the best bond to maintain a relationship! And—”

‘Deep brotherhood, why don’t we have a child to maintain the current relationship between brothers?’

An absurd meme from her past life suddenly flashed through Su Liyue’s mind.

The crucial point was that this ‘brother’ was herself!

‘What even was this?’

‘Not only was she self-producing and self-selling, but also self-attacking and self-receiving, self-entertaining, and self-impregnating?!’

“I’m just looking out for my best sister!” Mu Wanqing declared righteously.

Jiuwu, perched on her shoulder, had already covered their entire face with their wings, their small body visibly trembling.

Even though they were a noble Xuanxiao Divine Phoenix, they were now being pushed to their absolute limit trying to suppress their laughter because of these two humans.

“What’s more~ the future little Xingchen’s magical talent is crucial to the empire’s future!”

“Oh, stop it!” Su Liyue pinched her best friend’s cute, plump cheek.

“You’re practically drooling, you know that?

And you’re clearly desperate to get a free ‘godmother experience card,’ aren’t you!?”

“Wow! Yueyue, you’re so smart! You even guessed that!” Mu Wanqing’s eyes sparkled.

“Truly worthy of being the academy’s number one genius!”

‘No, I just said that offhand…’

Su Liyue’s mouth twitched.

‘She wondered why this girl was suddenly so insistent on becoming a godmother.’

“If you want to be a mom, why don’t you have one yourself?

Why are you so dead set on setting me up with Xingchen?”

“It hurts so much to give birth yourself! I heard labor pain is like breaking twenty bones at once…” Mu Wanqing pouted.

Then her eyes suddenly lit up, and she continued.

“And you and Xingchen have been ‘quantum entangled’ for so long now, wouldn’t having a child be a perfectly natural progression~” She deliberately emphasized a certain word.

Su Liyue nearly choked on her own saliva.

“W-we haven’t even reached the legal age for marriage yet, alright! Or… how about this?” She then suddenly said with a mischievous grin, “I’ll talk to Xingchen and let you have a little Xingchen for me?”

“Eh, eh, eh?!” Mu Wanqing’s face instantly flushed crimson, she stammered incoherently.

“Yueyue, so your threesome partner was me all along?”

She then frantically waved her hands, “Mom said that there are some things good sisters shouldn’t share, like… like having a child together!”

“Your mom is absolutely right.” Su Liyue nodded.

“But did she tell you that you also shouldn’t force others to have children?”

“How can this be considered forcing?” Mu Wanqing puffed out her chest with righteous indignation.

“Marriage, consummation, childbirth—isn’t that a perfectly natural process~ And it’s a civic duty that every citizen of Aetherland should fulfill~”

Su Liyue and Ye Xingchen, who was still in the distance, instantly fell into a state of petrification simultaneously.

The “natural process” this girl spoke of was more assertive than a magical contract.

‘If she had a copy of an “Otherworld Marriage and Childbirth Guide” in her hand right now, she would definitely perform a live paper-shredding spell on the spot!’

“And Mom specifically warned,” Mu Wanqing suddenly raised her index finger and wiggled it, “Not only should you be wary of boys, but you should keep your distance from girls too~” She lowered her voice, “Especially best friends who ‘quantum entangle’!”

“Girls too?” Su Liyue’s pupils instantly constricted as if an earthquake had struck.

A complete guide to yuri strategies from her transmigration master suddenly flashed through her mind.

‘Wait, how exactly did those transmigration masters manage to turn straight girls gay?’

‘By giving them roses?’

‘Sharing lipstick?’

‘Or bathing in hot springs?’

Just then, she quickly noticed a flicker of suppressed laughter in Mu Wanqing’s eyes.

‘Good heavens! This girl was clearly just messing with her!’

“Qingqing!” Su Liyue suddenly wore a dangerous smile.

“You wouldn’t happen to be making fun of me, would you?”

“Uh… was I found out?” Mu Wanqing blinked her innocent, large eyes, her lips, however, couldn’t help but curl upwards.

“Who told Yueyue to say she wanted me to have a child for her…”