Reborn as the Black Moonlight of the Male Lead in a Wish-Fulfillment Novel - Chapter 7

If he never came into contact with food, Xiao Nian’s endurance could hold out for a long time. But the moment he caught a whiff of it, his willpower plummeted.

His stomach let out an undignified growl. Xiao Nian instinctively looked up and met the eyes of the little freak staring at him.

Confirmed it was deliberate.

He didn’t bring it up, and Shu Chen didn’t mention it either.

“What’s your name?” The system had already told him the male lead’s name, but in reality, he still had to go through the motions.

“Xiao Nian.”

Shu Chen: “Oh. Be careful the pomegranate juice is dripping out. What a waste.”

For a split second, Xiao Nian wanted to raise the thing over the little freak’s head and crush it.

“I’ve never done something this useless before. You’ll have to bear with me.”

Shu Chen didn’t take offense at the veiled jab. Only when Xiao Nian finally finished peeling the entire pomegranate did he say flatly, “You didn’t wash your hands. I don’t want it anymore.”

Xiao Nian grabbed a handful of pomegranate seeds and stuffed them into his mouth. “You’re way too high-maintenance.”

Shu Chen propped his chin on his hand and said seriously, “Then do you think eating and sleeping are troublesome? I can skip meals that saves me a lot more trouble than you.”

“You should stop eating too, starting today. I’ll teach you fasting cultivation.”

Yesterday they were at each other’s throats, and after one night he’d had a change of heart?

Xiao Nian assumed he was talking nonsense.

But Shu Chen was clearly not just saying it casually. He immediately pulled Xiao Nian into the study, made him sit on the floor, and arranged a circle of spirit stones around him.

Bad luck Xiao Nian, fresh from the mortal realm, had run into Shu Chen and been dragged into his residence. His knowledge of the cultivation world was pitifully sparse. At the moment, he just thought the stones were flashy and impractical, with no idea of their true value.

The dense spiritual energy put Shu Chen at ease, and he found himself looking at the male lead with a bit more favor.

“Try absorbing this spiritual energy like I do.”

Xiao Nian said nothing. He was afraid that if he opened his mouth, the only word that would come out was “idiot.”

[He’s still in the transition period. Don’t skip steps he won’t understand.] The system couldn’t bear to watch and chimed in.

Shu Chen: “Isn’t absorbing spiritual energy as simple as breathing? What’s there to skip?” Even he, a non-native, could pick out the spiritual power in the air and naturally draw it into his body. Was the male lead really slower on the uptake than him?

[Oh? Then you’re quite special.] The system’s voice sounded distant, as if lost in thought.

Xiao Nian picked up a glittering spirit stone, looked up, and softened his tone. “I’m not too bright. Could you demonstrate for me personally… how to absorb the spiritual energy here?”

Shu Chen recalled the original owner’s experience no one had taught him, and he’d absorbed spiritual energy naturally without any instruction.

A genius wasn’t necessarily a good teacher. He couldn’t understand why someone with poor aptitude would struggle with such a simple problem.

“Wait here. I’ll go ask around for you.”

If he couldn’t solve it, he’d call in reinforcements. Between both parents and all the experts in the residence, surely someone knew how.

Only after watching the little freak leave with his own eyes did Xiao Nian collapse to the ground in agony, all pretense of composure gone.

Part of the reason he’d suddenly gone along with the little freak was that he genuinely had no energy left to escape. That nameless thing was still desperately trying to seize his body.

In the fierce tug-of-war, he felt like his head was about to explode.

Even so, when he heard footsteps approaching, he swallowed the blood surging up his throat, wiped his face, and sat back up.

Unexpectedly, the thing inside his body also inexplicably calmed down the moment the little freak entered.

Shu Chen came in carrying a stack of books, frowning. “How did you get your clothes dirty again?” The male lead must have been up to something behind his back while he was gone.

Xiao Nian’s breathing was unsteady, his voice weaker than usual. “My wound reopened. I’ll wash the clothes later.”

Given that he was at least behaving himself, Shu Chen endured the smell of blood and explained the key points.

It was a completely unfamiliar field, and Xiao Nian studied earnestly, not speaking until the other had finished. “Does cultivation have no prerequisites? How do you know I’m qualified?”

Shu Chen: “Just try my method and see if you can draw spiritual energy into your body that’ll tell you if you have the aptitude.” If you’re not qualified, then who is?

“Alright, I have things to do. Figure out the rest yourself.” For the male lead, even with the wrong method, he’d stubbornly work out a correct and efficient entry technique on his own. He shouldn’t stick around and interrupt the male lead’s cheat-mode development.

Xiao Nian called out to Shu Chen as he rose to leave. “Wait.”

Shu Chen looked back. “Hm?”

Xiao Nian hesitated for a moment, then asked, “What’s in it for you?”

Shu Chen said without batting an eye, “You’re too weak right now. Not fun to play with.”

Xiao Nian’s expression turned cold. “You can leave now.” He shouldn’t have held any hope for this freak.

Ghost energy and spiritual energy could not coexist. The remnant soul inside Xiao Nian’s body fiercely resisted when he attempted to draw spiritual energy in, becoming the first obstacle on his cultivation path.

To suppress the remnant soul, Xiao Nian expended considerable effort. By the time Shu Chen walked in carrying a roast chicken, he’d only just begun to grasp the thread of it.

The aroma filled the air. Shu Chen sat down across from the male lead and said slowly, “What are you looking at? Did it work?”

Xiao Nian knew he was doing it on purpose and couldn’t even be bothered to fake a smile. “Didn’t you say you don’t need to eat?”

Shu Chen tore off a drumstick. “I still have some cravings, after all. Occasionally, I like to enjoy good food.”

Xiao Nian let out a “hmph” and turned his back to him. Because of the little pervert’s arrival, the remnant soul had gone back into its playing-dead state, so he needed to seize the time to sort out his thoughts.

It wasn’t to satisfy the little pervert’s desires, but for himself. Not needing to eat was indeed very important to him.

Shu Chen sat behind the male lead, took a bite of the chicken leg, and lost interest. It smelled fragrant, but it was too greasy for him, easy to get sick of.

With nothing to do, he witnessed the male lead’s transformation process. The pile of high-grade spirit stones on the ground visibly shrank until they disappeared entirely.

Sensing the decrease in “food,” Xiao Nian opened his eyes and stared at his own hands in disbelief.

“I think I.”

Shu Chen: “It’s not ‘I think’ you really did succeed. You ate a huge pile of my spirit stones.”

Having officially crossed that threshold, Xiao Nian felt the scenery before him looked different now.

“I’ll pay you back later.”

Shu Chen: “Not interested.”

Xiao Nian: “Tsk, this young master is in a good mood, so I won’t quibble with you.”

Shu Chen picked up a chicken bone and tossed it at him. “That’s not how you should talk to your master.”

Xiao Nian was in high spirits, so he didn’t think Shu Chen was all that bad anymore. He bent down, picked up the bone, walked over, and set it down properly. “Then how should I speak, master?” His voice carried a smile, the ending drawn out, as if he were teasing the other.

Shu Chen looked at the bone he’d picked up and had a sudden thought. “You just looked like a dog playing fetch with its master.”

Xiao Nian straightened up, his expression shifting. “You really know how to kill the mood.”

Shu Chen pushed the roast chicken toward him. “Right back at you.”

Xiao Nian’s gaze flicked between him and the chicken twice before he finally reached for the plate. Free food was free food.

Shu Chen leaned back comfortably in his chair, glanced at the sky outside, and said to the male lead who was eating the chicken, “Come out with me for a bit later.”