After returning to Soto City, the three of them first stopped by the blacksmith's shop to pick up the weighted wrist and ankle braces that had been made, and they immediately strapped them on.
Watching Su Xiaoqi slowly walking toward them, Ning Rongrong couldn't help but ask,
"Zhuqing, are you sure he's okay? That's a full forty kilograms of weight!"
Out of curiosity, she had tried them herself just now, and as a result, after strapping just the ankle weights onto her legs, she couldn't take even a single step.
Now she finally understood why Su Xiaoqi was so strong even without using soul power.
Zhu Zhuqing replied nonchalantly,
"He'll adapt to that weight very quickly."
For someone like Su Xiaoqi, a Saiyan, this amount of weight was nothing. That Saiyan named Son Goku had trained under **100 times gravity**, after all.
Ning Rongrong glanced back and forth between Su Xiaoqi and Zhu Zhuqing, and finally made up her mind.
"Zhuqing, once you stop using your current set of weights, can I use them?"
"Flender was right about one thing—without someone to protect me, I'm useless as a support-type soul master."
"You two are my most important friends now. I don't want to drag you down, so I want to become stronger too."
Su Xiaoqi's set of weights was definitely too much for her, but Zhu Zhuqing's current 12 kg set was just barely manageable.
Zhu Zhuqing gave Ning Rongrong a deep look, then nodded.
"Sure."
"Hehe!" Ning Rongrong smiled sweetly and said,
"Then you can just call me Rongrong from now on. Once we get back to the hotel, I'll write a letter to my father like Su Xiaoqi suggested, and tell him the truth about Shrek Academy."
"I know you two will leave this place eventually. When the time comes, I'm coming with you. I don't want to stay in this dump even a minute longer."
Ning Rongrong wasn't stupid. She could tell that Su Xiaoqi and Zhu Zhuqing had no emotional attachment to this academy. They were just staying for now to slap Dai Mubai in the face. Once that was done, they'd be gone.
Zhu Zhuqing replied calmly,
"I follow him. Wherever he goes, I go."
"You two have such a good relationship." Ning Rongrong sighed, then linked arms with her and grinned.
"Since we're waiting for him anyway, tell me—how did he save you back then? And who fell for whom first?"
That question really stumped Zhu Zhuqing. She couldn't tell Ning Rongrong about the chat group, and unlike Su Xiaoqi, she wasn't good at making up stories. In the end, she could only dodge the question by saying it was a private matter between the two of them.
Ning Rongrong didn't press the issue. She'd already noticed that Zhu Zhuqing was a quiet person who mostly only talked when she was with Su Xiaoqi.
---
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
Su Xiaoqi caught up with the two girls and apologized. He'd been getting used to the extra 40 kg on his body.
Zhu Zhuqing smiled,
"It's fine. Should we go back to the hotel first or eat?"
Su Xiaoqi thought for a moment,
"Let's eat first. Afterward, I want to do some training before heading back. Watching your fight earlier made my hands itch."
"Alright."
Zhu Zhuqing smiled again. She knew that Su Xiaoqi, being a Saiyan, would feel uncomfortable if he didn't train. Ning Rongrong didn't mind either—she wanted to get stronger too, so she could put that old geezer Flender in his place.
So, the three of them headed to the same restaurant they visited yesterday.
When the waiter saw the big eater Su Xiaoqi walk in again, he greeted him with a big smile. This customer needed to be treated well—his solo meal spending matched nearly an entire day's revenue.
---
After a satisfying meal, Su Xiaoqi patted his stomach contentedly. Ning Rongrong insisted on paying, saying that friends shouldn't be formal, especially since Su Xiaoqi had helped her so much today.
After a short rest, they headed back to their usual training spot from the previous day.
Su Xiaoqi had Zhu Zhuqing start getting used to the added weight like he did. Only after fully adapting to it would they begin actual combat training. As for Ning Rongrong, he told her to train using her usual method.
In his view, the most important thing for a support-type soul master was to raise soul power first. If they wanted to increase combat strength, they could acquire offensive-type soul bones. Physical improvements were a bit secondary.
That said, if Ning Rongrong wanted to build up her stamina, Su Xiaoqi invited her to go running with him the next morning.
Naturally, Ning Rongrong listened to everything he said. She agreed to meet him for a run the next morning, then sat down cross-legged and began meditating.
Meanwhile, Su Xiaoqi and Zhu Zhuqing started jogging. At first, things were normal. But as they ran, Su Xiaoqi began to get distracted, his eyes frequently drifting over to Zhu Zhuqing.
Zhu Zhuqing had noticed his gaze long ago. At first, it made her feel shy and a little pleased—but as it grew more blatant, her face reddened and she softly muttered,
"What are you looking at, you perv..."
"Uh, I'm gonna speed up now. You keep running."
Su Xiaoqi quickly picked up the pace. He just couldn't handle the, uh... *visual distractions* from Zhu Zhuqing's *bouncing movements* while running.
"He already adapted to the weights this fast?"
Watching Su Xiaoqi quickly pull away from her, Zhu Zhuqing was stunned. From when he put on the weights until now, it had only been two or three hours.
Unaware of her thoughts, Su Xiaoqi was clenching his teeth and pushing through. With Zhu Zhuqing no longer *distracting* him nearby, he could finally focus entirely on his training.
From jogging, to push-ups, to punching drills—Su Xiaoqi did each exercise with total focus. He had already been able to control a tiny bit of **ki** in the morning, and now he was getting more and more adept at it.
---
**"Weird... why can't I fly yet?"**
After several failed attempts at flight, Su Xiaoqi fell into deep thought.
He remembered in the original *Dragon Ball Z*, when Gohan taught Videl how to control ki, she managed to float in just a few hours. As a Saiyan, there was no way he'd lose to a regular Earthling!
Unwilling to accept this, Su Xiaoqi spent **498 points** to get a monthly pass, then opened up *Dragon Ball Z* to review the exact scene where Gohan teaches Videl.
**"So that's it... now I get it."**
He removed his weights and, following Gohan's instructions, calmed his mind and slowly guided the power within his body.
Moments later, under Zhu Zhuqing's stunned gaze, **Su Xiaoqi began to float**—and he kept rising higher and higher.
**"Zhuqing! Look, look! I can fly now! Hahaha!"**
Su Xiaoqi happily soared in circles through the air. His loud shouts woke up Ning Rongrong from her meditation.
When she opened her eyes and looked up following Zhu Zhuqing's gaze, she saw Su Xiaoqi flying above them. Her eyes went wide. She rubbed them to make sure she wasn't hallucinating, then shouted in disbelief:
**"Su Xiaoqi, how the heck are you flying?!"**