The reality, however, was that while Rong Taotao’s nutritional needs were immense, they weren’t quite as massive as one might think.

Ultimately, the newly added Prison Lotus... seemed to have shackled the unruly Sinful Lotus. Now, the two Lotus petals were very stable and showed a degree of restraint, so they wouldn’t join forces to instantly drain Rong Taotao’s body.

"Anyway, if you want snacks in the future, just come to me. I’ll always have some ready for you, hee hee." Shi Lan scratched her head, giggling foolishly. It was a shame her aloof and beautiful face belonged to such a person...

Clearly, for Stone Tower and Shi Lan, their feelings for Rong Taotao went beyond being classmates. They also felt a debt of gratitude to him for saving their lives. If there was a way to help him, they were more than willing to do it.

"Thanks." Rong Taotao changed the subject. "How’s the competition going? Have all our classmates advanced?"

"Mhm, for this competition, they’re taking the top three teams for a round-robin tournament. My team with Lanlan, and Jiao Tengda’s team have both advanced." Stone Tower crossed her arms, looking at the distant Martial Arts Arena. "This is the last match. If Sun Xingyu’s team also advances, then there won’t be any changes to the Soul Class roster next semester."

Rong Taotao felt greatly relieved and said, "I heard it was an elimination tournament. I was worried our class would have to face each other early on."

Her older sister, Stone Tower, said with a smile, "That won’t happen. Because we’re already Soul Class students, we’re considered seeded teams. So we were placed in three separate brackets. The eliminations happen within the brackets, so we won’t face each other before the group stage finals."

"Oh, right, Juanjuan, what about you? You’re not taking the exam, so you don’t have a score..." Shi Lan looked at Rong Taotao with a worried expression and asked, "Are you going to be moved to the Martial Arts Class?"

Rong Taotao quickly said, "Ah, it’s fine. The school gave me an exemption. I’m not part of the rankings, and I’m not being moved. I’m staying in the Soul Class."

Shi Lan immediately let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, oh, that’s good, that’s good..."

"Heh, figures you’re a child of privilege. An exemption, tsk tsk..." A voice, dripping with Yin-Yang Strange Qi, suddenly sounded from behind.

Even though the Martial Arts Arena was very lively, the voice from behind was quite loud. It wasn’t a quiet mutter; it was intentionally spoken loudly for Rong Taotao to hear.

Rong Taotao frowned and turned to look, only to see a boy with a crew cut.

At his side were two companions, a boy and a girl.

Rong Taotao’s expression soured. "What did you say?"

The crew-cut boy stared directly at Rong Taotao and said, "I said you have connections, a powerful background! You can transcend the school’s rules, no assessment needed, and stay right in the Soul Class! What? Don’t you understand English?"

The boy’s voice was so loud that after he finished speaking, the surrounding people quickly fell silent, all turning their heads to look at Rong Taotao.

Rong Taotao was stunned!

’This bastard... is seriously ballsy!’

For the crew-cut boy to say that meant he knew Rong Taotao had a powerful background and connections, yet he still called him out.

And he had said it loudly, making sure everyone around could hear!

The boy and girl at the crew-cut boy’s side not only didn’t stop him, but also glared at Rong Taotao with angry expressions, as if they believed the world was deeply unfair.

"And here I was wondering who it was. So it’s Ji Qingmei." Shi Lan looked at the crew-cut boy with disgust. "You’re all talk and no skill. What, are you still salty that I knocked your team out?"

"Hmph." The boy named Ji Qingmei snorted coldly. He glanced at Shi Lan but didn’t engage with her, instead turning back to Rong Taotao. "Did you understand what I meant?"

Rong Taotao looked at this so-called "Qingmei" and said, "This was the school’s decision. I was hospitalized for a serious injury. I was in the school hospital for half a month and only woke up yesterday."

Ji Qingmei said, "That’s your problem, not anyone else’s. If you’re a man, you should have the guts to admit you failed the assessment—that you didn’t even get a score!

Whatever the reason, you got injured, so you should be responsible for the consequences. Don’t go blaming it on the school’s decision.

By your logic, if we’re worried about getting kicked out of the Martial Arts Class or flunking out because of bad grades, should we just intentionally get injured during the final exams?"

"Hey, you foul-mouthed bastard..." Shi Lan was instantly pissed. She might have let it slide if it were someone else, but the one being insulted was Rong Taotao. She took a long stride forward.

With quick reflexes, Rong Taotao hastily put a hand out to block Shi Lan, but her momentum carried him forward, causing him to stumble...

"Whoops." Shi Lan quickly turned and supported Rong Taotao by the shoulders. Beside them, her older sister, Stone Tower, watching the reckless Shi Lan, couldn’t help but kick her on the butt.

Uh...

’What a sister! Kicking her like that in public? Couldn’t she spare her little sister some dignity?’

Rong Taotao had actually recovered quite well and wasn’t particularly weak. It was just that Shi Lan was a bit too hot-headed...

Rong Taotao steadied himself and said, "The only reason I’m even bothering to explain is because you have the nerve to stand here and question me to my face. Otherwise, I wouldn’t waste my breath on you.

But that’s as far as my explanation goes. I’m not going to defy the school’s decision just because of a few words from you.

If you think it’s unfair, take it up with the school. You can’t vent your anger on me!"

"Fine by me! I can make that call!" Suddenly, a familiar male voice called out.

Rong Taotao was dumbfounded. Without even turning his head, he knew who had just spoken!

It had to be Xia Fangran!

Sure enough! Xia Fangran pushed through the crowd and came before them. He glanced at Rong Taotao with a grin, clearly enjoying the drama, and said, "As a Soul Martial Artist, when you’re faced with a challenge, you have to fight back. There’s no reason to just swallow your grievances, is there?"