Stepping on the Demoness to become the strongest

Yan Yu helped Su Yunjin pick up her books, really without any ill intentions.

Unlike Chen Lingyun, his impression of Su Yunjin in his past life was quite favorable. A well-behaved Miss from a family of scholars with a sense of propriety—who would dislike such a person?

Another reason was... Su Yunjin died too tragically in the end.

In an era of great contention, not competing means being eliminated. Su Yunjin herself lacked ambition and a utilitarian mindset, and on the battlefield, she tended to overthink yet lacked the decisiveness needed to make swift decisions.

When given commands, she was the perfect chief of staff. But without leadership, she would fall into the "hesitation conundrum" typical of gentler people.

... The more she tried to save everyone, the less she was able to save anyone, and in the end, she even lost her own life.

In contrast, Chen Lingyun's decision to give up on her at that time was actually the wisest act of bravery.

Although it was a pity indeed.

Hmm, maybe this time around he could find a way to have Su Yunjin become his secretary.

Chen Lingyun was not exactly a good leader. Her command skills were passable, but her actual strength was a glaring weakness, sometimes failing to protect her subordinates.

Yan Yu was the type with a strong propensity for action; once he made a decision, he immediately took out his cellphone and sent a message to Su Yunjin:

"How about joining me?"

On the other end, Su Yunjin, upon receiving the message, was baffled for quite a long time.

"Huh?"

"It means exactly what it says," Yan Yu typed, "I need someone to help me deal with some miscellaneous matters, and you just entered school today with no specific goals, right?"

"Actually, I can tell that you don't really want to attend this university. You're the type who loves literature, and the Chinese Language and Literature major would have suited you best. It's just unfortunate that our university is quite special, with those chosen having no right to refuse."

After about two or three minutes, Su Yunjin replied:

"So what?"

"So, if you follow me, maybe you could break free from your confusion and find the meaning in studying here," Yan Yu quickly typed.

Many freshmen experience such a period of confusion: Having been focused on sprinting towards a single goal during their senior year of high school, they feel lost once they get to university not knowing what to do.

For Su Yunjin, the situation was even more severe, as her goal had always been the Chinese Language and Literature Department of Gusu University. However, her sudden discovery of a Spirit Root forced her to sign an enrollment agreement with Zhendong National Defense University—completely crushing her expectations for university life.

"Hahaha, I've been quite confused recently," Su Yunjin replied, "I didn't expect everyone to notice."

Yan Yu frowned slightly and typed:

"Did Chen Lingyun also come to you?"

"Yes," Su Yunjin felt somewhat puzzled, how did he know?

"She said similar things to me, offering similar advice."

"And your response?"

"I said," Su Yunjin typed, "that I need to think about it."

From childhood, she had always followed the trajectory laid out by her parents, never daring to overstep. Now that she had entered this military-affiliated university, her academic-circle parents could no longer be of much help.

If she didn't know what to do next, then perhaps it was worth trying to follow in someone else's footsteps... But whose?

From a female perspective, of course, she leaned more towards the same gender, Chen Lingyun, after all, constantly being seen with boys could lead to being misunderstood as being in a romantic relationship.

But Chen Lingyun's smile made her somewhat uneasy.

"I see." Yan Yu's message came through, "Then take your time to think about it. However, if you decide to follow Chen Lingyun, you can't just always follow her orders, you need to have your own ideas and thoughts."

Su Yunjin's next reply, however, leapt to a change of topic:

"Yan Yu, are you very familiar with Chen Lingyun?"

"Not really," Yan Yu pondered for a moment before typing, "It's just an acquaintance."

"But that's not what she says."

Yan Yu: ???

Immediately following, a video chat invitation from the cunning woman popped up at the top of the screen.

He silently tapped accept, and Chen Lingyun's sweet smile appeared on the screen, with a visibly embarrassed Su Yunjin at her side, who mouthed a silent apology with a bitter smile.

Judging by the background in the video, the two of them seemed to be in Su Yunjin's single room at the dormitory.

"Yan Yu," Chen Lingyun said with a twinkle in her eye, "trying to steal her away from me on the first day of school, huh?"

"Don't make it sound so dramatic," Yan Yu waved nonchalantly, "She hasn't agreed to you yet."

"This kid was my pick first." Chen Lingyun's smile remained steady, "And I issued my invitation before you did. Plus, as a guy, to brazenly invite a girl to hang out with you, it's hard not to suspect you have ulterior motives, isn't it?"

"Hey, don't unjustly tarnish my reputation!" Yan Yu immediately retorted with wide eyes, "I just can't bear to see her fall into your hands and then be played around by you."

"How interesting," Chen Lingyun narrowed her eyes and smiled, "So in your heart, I'm the kind of bad woman who bullies her classmates?"

"Aren't you?"

"You're not allowed to answer a question with a question~"

You two really have a good relationship... Watching their skillful interaction, Su Yunjin really wanted to make a comment, but good upbringing held her back.

From the content and tone of their conversation, they were clearly more than just friends, but there was no hint of flirtation or intimacy, so what exactly was their relationship?

"I'm not going to talk to you anymore, I'm going to the dining hall to eat," Yan Yu, noticing Su Yunjin's odd expression, waved his hand impatiently, "That's it, hanging up."

"We're about to go eat too," Chen Lingyun said with a smile, "together?"

Yan Yu's first instinct was to refuse, but he quickly reconsidered.

If Chen Lingyun was actively inviting him to eat, then it definitely wasn't just for a meal or to cultivate a relationship, but because she had something to discuss with him.

"Then let's meet at the dining hall entrance."

————————

The extravagance of the Cultivator Academy's dining hall couldn't quite match the dormitories, but most of the cost was actually invested in the kitchen—the chef team was the same one that had managed the Asian Games at Lin'an Prefecture a few years before.

Yan Yu met the two girls at the entrance of the dining hall: Chen Lingyun was dressed in a pleated skirt that fell past her knees and a simple blouse, topped with a cute gray beret.

Su Yunjin had also changed clothes, wearing a blouse, form-fitting pants, and canvas shoes. Though her outfit wasn't as elaborate as Chen Lingyun's, she carried a different kind of classical beauty.

Additionally, when these two girls stood side by side, Chen Lingyun's petite stature immediately became apparent. Su Yunjin, who was not particularly tall among her peers, was still half a head taller than her; her height of one meter fifty-six was indeed a bit... cute.

"Oh my, where did this elementary school student come from?" Yan Yu teased, finding it amusing as he regarded Chen Lingyun, "Are you coming to eat at the dining hall with your sister?"

"See that?" Chen Lingyun wasn't upset, instead she said to Su Yunjin, "If you chose to follow him back then, you'd now be harassed by such outrageous comments."

"Yan Yu," Su Yunjin said awkwardly, "it's impolite to joke about someone's height like that, isn't it?"

"...Sorry."

Facing Chen Lingyun, the cunning woman, Yan Yu could let loose without restraint, but with Su Yunjin, the gentle and kind young lady from a good family, he admittedly felt a bit embarrassed to tease her too much.

Bullying a virtuous young lady is no fun at all, not nearly as amusing as kneading a cunning woman.