Nan Shuishui calmed her emotions.
In her eyes, Nan Qiuqiu had always been outstanding enough.
But now, looking at Yu Tianhuang and Ye Guyi, who were far superior to Nan Qiuqiu in ways she couldn't even quantify, she couldn't help but reflect—had she been too indulgent with Nan Qiuqiu in the past?
It seemed she would need to be stricter from now on.
Nan Shuishui nodded to herself in secret.
Nan Qiuqiu, who had excitedly returned to her room, had no idea that she had just inexplicably fallen victim to an undeserved calamity.
Putting aside her thoughts, Nan Shuishui turned back to Xu Zihuang and asked softly,
"Tianhuang, after coming to Dragon City, have you gone back?"
"Nan Aunt, you mean the Heavenly Dragon Sect," Xu Zihuang replied calmly.
Nan Shuishui slowly nodded, letting out a wistful sigh.
"I've dealt with Old Heavenly Dragon for decades. Although the Heavenly Dragon Sect has strict rules, Old Heavenly Dragon himself isn't completely unreasonable."
She said this because she had come to approve of Yu Tianhuang and now treated him as a close junior.
If possible, she still hoped that Yu Tianhuang could have a proper, rightful identity.
"Actually, Guyi-jie and I went to the Heavenly Dragon Sect before, but no one was willing to receive us," Xu Zihuang said with a self-mocking smile.
"In that case, why humiliate yourself?"
Nan Shuishui opened her mouth, but as an outsider, she truly couldn't say more. She could only sincerely sigh,
"If Qing'er were still in the Heavenly Dragon Sect, you might not have suffered so many grievances these past years."
"Qing'er?" Ye Guyi's gaze sharpened, her hands unconsciously clenching.
Though Xu Zihuang's reaction wasn't as strong as Ye Guyi's, his eyes also involuntarily fell on Nan Shuishui.
Seeing the confusion in their eyes, a look of reminiscence appeared in Nan Shuishui's eyes as she gently explained,
"Qing'er's full name is Yu Qing'er; she is Old Heavenly Dragon's younger sister, and your aunt, Tianhuang. Back then, Qing'er and I were very close sisters, so I knew many things about the Heavenly Dragon Sect. However, nineteen years ago, Qing'er left Dragon City."
Ye Guyi quickly asked, "Nan Aunt, can you tell me more in detail about Qing, about Tianhuang's aunt?"
Ye Guyi was clearly very emotional, but Nan Shuishui didn't think much of it.
In her view, given the relationship between Ye Guyi and Yu Tianhuang, it was normal to care about Yu Qing'er's affairs.
Nan Shuishui smiled faintly.
"Then I'll start from the beginning and tell you both."
"In terms of age, I'm two years older than Qing'er. But we can be said to have grown up together. Back then, my father was still alive, and like Qing'er's father, he was a Titled Douluo-level powerhouse. The Earth Dragon Sect at that time was far stronger than when I took over; it was truly a powerful sect on equal footing with the Heavenly Dragon Sect." At this point, a trace of bitterness and shame appeared in Nan Shuishui's glistening pink eyes. Her father had placed great hopes on her, yet to this day, she had not broken through to the Titled Douluo realm and led the Earth Dragon Sect back to prosperity.
"The Heavenly Dragon Sect and Earth Dragon Sect occupy the south and north of Dragon City, respectively, you know that. Although our two sects often competed, our relationship has always been relatively harmonious. When we were still children, Qing'er and I would often run into each other in Dragon City. We shared similar interests and naturally became close friends who could talk about anything."
"Qing'er's cultivation talent was even slightly better than mine. Though she was two years younger, our soul power levels were always close. We often cultivated together, went on adventures together, and progressed together..."
Nan Shuishui immersed herself in memories, speaking on her own.
Xu Zihuang and Ye Guyi listened attentively. Under the table, their hands were interlocked, fingers tightly clasped. From the slight trembling of those hands, it was clear their hearts were not as calm as they appeared on the surface.
From dusk until nightfall, the three continued talking.
Soft soul guide lights illuminated the spacious rear courtyard brightly. All around were vibrantly colored, rare flowers, their fragrance drifting in the air.
A sumptuous spread of dishes had been placed on the stone table in the center of the courtyard, steaming hot.
Nan Shuishui smiled as she stood up, gesturing for Xu Zihuang and Ye Guyi to take their seats.
"Tianhuang, Guyi, come eat. It's just a simple family meal, don't be formal."
Xu Zihuang and Ye Guyi exchanged a glance and followed behind Nan Shuishui.
Xu Zihuang, Ye Guyi, Nan Shuishui, and Nan Qiuqiu, who had been called over by Nan Shuishui, sat together for this dinner. The topics shifted to lighter ones, and the atmosphere was very harmonious.
During the meal, Nan Qiuqiu simply ate quietly. Though her gaze toward Xu Zihuang still held some wariness, it was no longer as intense as at the beginning.
Afterward, Nan Shuishui personally escorted Xu Zihuang and Ye Guyi, along with Nan Qiuqiu, to the main gate of the Earth Dragon Sect.
After some warm farewells, the four parted ways.
Xu Zihuang and Ye Guyi walked hand in hand through the bustling central streets of Dragon City.
Ye Guyi sighed, "I never expected that Nan Aunt and Aunt Qing actually had such a connection."
At a street intersection, Xu Zihuang stopped, forcing a smile.
"This might just be fate. Didn't you become friends with Nan Qiuqiu, too, Sister Lingyi? The friendship of the previous generation has carried over to ours."
"Zihuang," Ye Guyi murmured, her face full of concern.
"I'm fine."
Xu Zihuang wrapped his arm around Ye Guyi's slender waist. The smile on his face faded, replaced by a gaze filled with killing intent.
"Alright, let's head back. Rest early. Tomorrow we'll prepare to enter the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well."
It was time to "renew ties" with those hundred-thousand-year plant-type spirit beasts inside the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
At the same time, he retracted his released spiritual force. For caution's sake, whenever the two spoke privately, Xu Zihuang would release his spiritual force to monitor their surroundings.
A night passed.
Early the next morning, Xu Zihuang and Ye Guyi left the city.
The wings of their flying soul tools unfolded behind them, two brilliant trails of light streaking across the sky as they flew southwest.
The Sunset Forest was near the Heavenly Soul Empire's capital, Heaven Dou City, which lay in the north-central part of the Heavenly Soul Empire, not too far from Dragon City. At Xu Zihuang and Ye Guyi's flying speed, in less than two hours, the outline of Heaven Dou City appeared in their sight.
Ever since flying soul tools became widespread, countries have imposed increasingly strict airspace controls, especially over cities.
To avoid unnecessary trouble, Xu Zihuang and Ye Guyi deliberately skirted around Heaven Dou City.
After flying at full speed for nearly another quarter of an hour, a vast forest gradually came into view in the distance.
This was their destination for this trip, the Sunset Forest.
The two landed on an open hill outside the Sunset Forest with a clear view.
"Sister Lingyi, let's rest a bit first."
Thanks to his spiritual attribute soul core, Xu Zihuang's soul power had remained at peak condition throughout the journey. Although Ye Guyi's soul power level was higher than Xu Zihuang's, her foundation was still somewhat inferior, and without the aid of a soul core, she had consumed quite a bit of soul power.
The spirit beasts in the Sunset Forest were of lower quality than even the mixed zone of the Star Dou Great Forest, so Xu Zihuang naturally had no concerns about them. The reason he had Ye Guyi recover her soul power was mainly to better deal with those hundred-thousand-year plant-type spirit beasts in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Even though he had many trump cards, it was always better to be cautious.
"Mm." Ye Guyi responded, sitting cross-legged and entering a meditative cultivation state.
Xu Zihuang stood beside Ye Guyi, looking toward the nearby Sunset Forest and smirking.
Returning to the Sunset Forest after five years, compared to back then, his strength had increased countless times. This time, the roles were reversed.
Half an hour later, Ye Guyi opened her radiant golden eyes. Sensing the shift in aura, Xu Zihuang instinctively turned to look at her.
Ye Guyi nodded slightly.
"Let's go, Zihuang."
The two leaped into the air, continuing to use their flying soul tools to fly deeper into the Sunset Forest.
...
This was a modest-sized valley. The sky above the valley displayed a strange seven-colored hue.
The entire valley was filled with rich life energy, giving birth to countless plants of various colors, heavy with fruit and radiating treasure light, clearly extraordinary heavenly materials and earthly treasures.
Most shocking of all, at the center of these plants was a lake sharply divided into two halves: one side ice-white, the other fiery red. Halos of light circulated and intertwined, extraordinarily divine.
This was the supreme treasure ground, the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Many of these heavenly materials and earthly treasures had evolved into plant-type spirit beasts, gaining intelligence. These plant-type spirit beasts swayed gently, their bodies flashing with light as if communicating.
At the center of the red lake water, a fully fiery-red plant twisted its light slightly, and an intensely scorching aura instantly swept out.
This plant was nearly ten feet tall, shaped like a cabbage, as if carved from ruby.
The hundred-thousand-year Blazing Apricot Vegetable Delicate.
The Blazing Apricot Vegetable Delicate's valiant voice carried a hint of dissatisfaction.
"Xiangxiang, you woke everyone up this time again because of that human?"
Though dissatisfied, she was still very wary of Xu Zihuang. After all, the talent Xu Zihuang had displayed was too astonishing, and he possessed that white whale that could mobilize the dragon souls of two Dragon Lords.
For this reason, after Xu Zihuang left last time, these hundred-thousand-year immortal herbs had discussed and prepared countermeasures. They might not be able to fight the dragon souls of two Dragon Lords, but at the very least, they could force that human to retreat.
A golden tulip unfurled its vine-like canopy of roots and leaves; it was the hundred-thousand-year Beautiful Tulip.
The Beautiful Tulip said gravely, "I don't know why, but today I have a bad premonition."
"Xiangxiang, I'm timid, don't scare me!" A pale pink, large flower trembled as it spoke fearfully.
She was the one who had first interacted with Xu Zihuang, the Youxiang Beautiful Tulip Immortal Product.
"The last time you had this feeling, our Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well was nearly destroyed. That time, we relied on the special properties of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and joined forces to suppress that guy's intelligence, barely escaping disaster."
The Youxiang Beautiful Tulip Immortal Product's talkative nature remained unchanged.
"If you ask me, we should have dealt with that guy in advance. Otherwise, before that human even arrives, we might all be in danger."
Opposite the Blazing Apricot Vegetable Delicate, at the center of the white lake surface, a herb that looked like a large white flower swayed slightly. This herb was about the same size as the Blazing Apricot Vegetable Delicate, octagonal in shape, with its center glittering like ice crystals and no fragrance leaking out. The hundred-thousand-year Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass.
"Youyou, but that guy is our only countermeasure," the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass said in an icy voice.
"Among the hundred-thousand-year plant-type spirit beasts, you and Xiangxiang are not suited for combat, while Ajiao's and my abilities would be greatly suppressed by the two Dragon Lords' dragon souls. Even if we join forces with the others, our combat power is limited."
What these hundred-thousand-year plant-type spirit beasts did not notice was that deep underground, a suppressed consciousness harbored deep resentment and anger toward them.
At the same moment, Xu Zihuang and Ye Guyi's figures descended from the sky.
Having concealed their auras, the two released their martial souls just before landing.
With angelic wings flapping behind her and bathed in sacred golden light, Ye Guyi was imposing, but her soul ring configuration was at least the standard two yellow, two purple, two black.
As for Xu Zihuang, the moment his first soul ring rose, it brought an overwhelmingly oppressive aura.
Black! Black! Black! Black! Black! Red!
Six soul rings rose in succession, slowly revolving around Xu Zihuang. The blood-red light of the hundred-thousand-year soul ring illuminated his face, yet that gentle, spring-breeze-like smile sent chills through the hearts of the plant-type spirit beasts present.
"Ey."
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