Chapter 18: Become Popular
"You were away for so many days. What have you been doing?"
The following week, Lin Shen returned to class. Just as he sat down, Zheng Hongsheng and Xu Yuan came over and asked why he had been absent.
Lin Shen could only repeat the excuse and tell them he was moving house.
Zheng Hongsheng didn't suspect anything and seemed surprised.
"I didn't know working as a training partner could be so profitable!"
After the initial surprise, Zheng Hongsheng forgot about it and changed the subject with a smile.
"Xu Yuan was going to buy us dinner last week, but you just happened to be away, so he had to postpone it. Now that you're back, we can have a feast after school today!"
"Bullshit!" Xu Yuan glanced at Zheng Hongsheng and scolded him jokingly, "I only said I would treat you guys to karaoke, which doesn't include dinner. I'm not as rich as you, Tycoon Zheng!"
Zheng Hongsheng shook his head and chuckled. He didn't mind being called "Tycoon Zheng" and was rather smug about it.
He patted Xu Yuan's shoulder and winked. "I know you've gotten a girlfriend recently, and your expenses have increased a lot. Alright, I understand. I'll buy you dinner, but I won't let you off for karaoke!"
Xu Yuan scolded with a smile and agreed. Then, he looked at Lin Shen. "Lin Shen, what do you think? Are you free tonight?"
Lin Shen thought about it. Recently, he had spent all his time cultivating, moving house, and working part-time. Even with the help of his clones, he still felt overwhelmed. It had indeed been a long time since he had relaxed.
Thinking of this, he nodded and said, "It's fine with me!"
Lin Shen rarely participated in such activities in the past. Seeing that he had agreed, Zheng Hongsheng and Xu Yuan were very happy.
"Alright, it's settled then. After school, we'll pick up Xu Yuan's girlfriend first before going to dinner!"
After they decided to go out at night, Zheng Hongsheng and Xu Yuan became noticeably restless. They fidgeted the entire day and even made frequent mistakes in cultivation class. Kong Hong reprimanded them.
The contrast was especially obvious when compared to Lin Shen.
Because it was widely known that he had reached Level 5 in the Qi Transformation Stage, Lin Shen didn't use Mortal Restrain to conceal his cultivation level.
However, when he was practicing the Blazing Sun Palm in the cultivation class, he deliberately lowered its level and pretended he was still at Beginner.
Otherwise, he would attract too much attention if they noticed he had made breakthroughs in both his cultivation and his palm technique in a week.
After school, Xu Yuan went to pick up his girlfriend first, while Lin Shen and Zheng Hongsheng went to the entrance of the academy, where they had agreed to meet.
While waiting, Lin Shen casually asked about Xu Yuan's girlfriend.
"Her name is Qian Hui. She's from Class Two. Her family background is about the same as Xu Yuan's. As for her cultivation level, she's at the third level of the Qi Transformation Stage, like Xu Yuan. I guess you can say they're of equal social status, right?" Zheng Hongsheng said slowly.
At this point, Zheng Hongsheng elbowed Lin Shen in his rib, revealing his signature mischievous smile.
"What about you? Do you have any girls you like? Recently, many girls have been asking Xu Yuan and me about you. I think they're very interested in you."
"Me?" Lin Shen was a little surprised. He had no idea at all.
As if seeing through Lin Shen's doubts, Zheng Hongsheng said impatiently, "Of course, you don't know. You leave for the martial arts school as soon as our class ends. They didn't even have the chance to get closer to you.
"To be honest, a few of them are really nice. Do you want to give them a go?"
Zheng Hongsheng's tone was filled with envy.
Although Lin Shen was handsome, he didn't have a good family background and was only a mediocre student. In the past, his reputation among the girls in his class was ordinary at most.
But recently, he suddenly displayed his exceptional talent. With his accumulation, his cultivation level soared to the fifth level of the Qi Transformation Stage in a short period of time. He had caused quite a stir in the third grade and had suddenly become a popular person among girls.
Compared to his good looks and outstanding talent, the shortcoming of having a poor family background wasn't worth mentioning.
Lin Shen didn't know he had unknowingly become a rising star in the eyes of girls. He was a little surprised when he heard this.
However, he shook his head decisively.
"Forget it. Please turn them down for me."
He didn't have the energy to waste on romance right now.
Zheng Hongsheng rolled his eyes. He really couldn't understand what Lin Shen was thinking.
"What fun is there in cultivating all day long? Getting a girlfriend and spending some quality time with her is much happier. It won't take up too much cultivation time either."
Seeing Zheng Hongsheng's expression, Lin Shen guessed what he was thinking, but he didn't explain further. He turned to look into the distance, and his pupils contracted a little.
"They're here."
Zheng Hongsheng turned around and saw Xu Yuan and a girl walking toward them, holding each other's hands.
"Let me introduce you to my girlfriend, Qian Hui."
Xu Yuan pointed at the girl and spoke to Lin Shen and Zheng Hongsheng with a smile. Then, he pointed at them and introduced them to the girl.
"This is Zheng Hongsheng, and this is Lin Shen. They are the friends I told you about."
Qian Hui wasn't very pretty, but she was a petite girl with delicate facial features. She was the type that boys wanted to protect.
After hearing Xu Yuan's introduction, she greeted them with a smile. Her gaze focused on Lin Shen for a moment, and her sparkling eyes flickered with curiosity.
"You're Lin Shen? I've heard about you. Mr. Kong often praised you in class, saying that you're down-to-earth and have great perseverance. That's why you were able to accumulate strength and break through two levels in a short period of time. He even asked us to learn from you!"
Lin Shen didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
It turned out his "reputation" was spread by Kong Hong!
"Mr. Kong spoke too highly of me." Lin Shen waved his hand, not wanting to talk about this topic anymore. "It's getting late. Let's go."
Zheng Hongsheng had already decided where to eat. It was in a nearby restaurant, and the four of them immediately headed for their destination.
Unlike her appearance suggested, Qian Hui was rather talkative. Zheng Hongsheng's buffoonery also helped, and everybody enjoyed the meal.
The only thing that made Lin Shen feel a little awkward was that during the meal, Qian Hui had been enthusiastically trying to introduce her friends to him. Lin Shen had spent a lot of effort to brush her off.
After dinner, everyone happily proceeded to the next venue, which was the Blue Rose Karaoke near Willow Academy.
Because it was closer to the academy, most of the customers were students from the academy.
The owner seemed to consider the students to be his target customers from the start. The decoration here was on the refreshing and simple side. It did not have the dark and ambiguous atmosphere of ordinary karaoke.
Xu Yuan had booked a private room in advance. After the group arrived at Blue Rose, they directly entered the room. The waiter served them soft drinks and snacks, and they began to sing to their hearts' content.
Lin Shen wasn't very good at singing, but he didn't want to disappoint the others. Under the cheers of the crowd, he sang two songs. As expected, Zheng Hongsheng and Xu Yuan laughed at him. Qian Hui was also amused and giggled.
Just as they enjoyed the lively atmosphere, the door of the private room was suddenly pushed open. A tall and burly young man with a gloomy expression rushed in with a few others.
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