When Long Xiaoyao met Ye Xishui again, his reaction was even more intense than Ye Xishui's own.
He hadn't anticipated that just two pills could bring about such a dramatic transformation in Ye Xishui. It felt as though time had rewound, taking them back to the past—when both of them were still Soul Sages.
"Xishui, how do you feel?" Long Xiaoyao walked over, his voice trembling with excitement.
"My body has changed significantly. Not only has my appearance reverted, but my internal organs have rejuvenated as well. Based on my current state, I think I've gained at least fifty more years of life," Ye Xishui replied with a gentle smile. Such positive changes in her body had brightened her mood considerably.
"Really? That's wonderful, truly wonderful. It seems Qianran wasn't lying," Long Xiaoyao said, his excitement causing his entire body to tremble. The smile on Ye Xishui's face made him feel that all his years of protecting her had been worth it.
If he consumed the same pills, wouldn't the two of them finally be a perfect match?
He couldn't help but feel overjoyed—this was Ye Xishui at her most beautiful. Back then, he hadn't fully appreciated her radiance before Zhongli Laogui had forcibly taken her away.
Now, two centuries later, seeing Ye Xishui in her most tender and radiant state again, Long Xiaoyao could no longer maintain his composure. At this moment, his gratitude towards Qianran deepened immensely.
To witness Ye Xishui's dazzling smile once more before his life reached its end was enough for this lifetime.
"What are you staring at?" Ye Xishui asked, slightly uncomfortable under Long Xiaoyao's fervent gaze, though a trace of secret delight lingered in her heart. With her peak beauty restored, her mindset had also become much more youthful.
The years of Long Xiaoyao's unwavering devotion and companionship had deeply moved her.
In truth, Ye Xishui had always loved only Long Xiaoyao. As for Mu En, she had never truly cared for him. Back then, after being forcibly taken by the Holy Spirit Cult's leader, Zhongli Laogui, she had been coerced into sowing discord between Long Xiaoyao and Mu En.
Under Zhongli Laogui's manipulations, Ye Xishui feigned affection for Mu En and, during a night of heavy drinking, pretended to mistake her partner, ultimately entangling herself with Long Xiaoyao. This fabricated misunderstanding plunged Mu En and Long Xiaoyao into agonizing conflict.
From that incident, Ye Xishui even bore Long Xiaoyao a child.
The entanglements between Ye Xishui, Zhongli Laogui, Long Xiaoyao, and Mu En were so melodramatic that they rivaled the most scandalous family dramas. If one were to liken it to anything, it was on par with the convoluted paternal mysteries in the classic drama Princess Pearl.
Ultimately, Long Xiaoyao died as a result of Ye Xishui's recklessness. To test his love, she deliberately fell into Xu Tiannan's trap, underestimating its danger. The resulting ambush claimed both their lives.
Even Qianran couldn't help but suspect that Long Xiaoyao's generation had consumed one too many melodramas.
"Ye Xishui, you're stunning. You remind me of how you looked in that dress back then," Long Xiaoyao said tenderly.
"Hmph," Ye Xishui huffed softly, draping a dark cloak imbued with a chilling aura over herself, hiding her beauty once again.
If outsiders discovered that the Supreme Elder of the Holy Spirit Cult—the mighty queen of the Evil Soul Masters—was such a stunning beauty, few would believe it. Even her descendants might not recognize her.
"That type of pill—he should have more. What does he want in exchange?"
"He wants a Rank 9 Soul Tool. He likely knows you're a Rank 9 Soul Engineer and is taking advantage of that," Long Xiaoyao replied warmly.
"Fine. I'll go find him," Ye Xishui agreed.
Crafting a Rank 9 Soul Tool wasn't too much trouble for her. Now that her body felt decades younger, she was bursting with energy and even considered attempting to craft a Rank 10 Soul Tool.
Meanwhile, Qianran's life remained largely unaffected by the presence of Long Xiaoyao and Ye Xishui.
Sensing his cultivation reaching a bottleneck, Qianran smoothly broke through to the Soul Emperor rank. With ample reserves of spirit rings and skills in his system space, all he needed to do was absorb and fuse them.
This breakthrough speed wasn't slow by any means. Within just half a year of arriving at Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy, Qianran had advanced from Soul King to Soul Emperor—a leap so dramatic that few would believe it.
Moreover, Qianran felt that his cultivation speed hadn't decreased with the rise in rank but had instead accelerated. He estimated that advancing from Soul Emperor to Soul Sage wouldn't take him too long.
After confirming his relationship with Ke Ke and Juzi, Qianran began transferring his advanced Soul Engineer knowledge directly into their minds.
Because Ke Ke and Juzi lacked strong spiritual power, Qianran worried about overwhelming them. Thus, he only imparted knowledge up to Rank 7 Soul Engineer levels within their specialties, giving them enough material to study for a long time.
At the time, both Ke Ke and Juzi were merely Rank 5 Soul Engineers. Thanks to Qianran's teachings, they progressed rapidly.
Naturally, Qianran didn't exclude Meng Hongchen. When she approached him for guidance, he also shared his knowledge with her. Understanding her character well, Qianran wasn't concerned about her divulging his secrets to the Mingde Hall.
As a result, all three women made remarkable progress in Soul Engineering. Ke Ke and Juzi quickly began experimenting with Rank 6 Soul Tools after consolidating their new knowledge, while Meng Hongchen, already ahead of them, further honed her mastery at Rank 6.
During this time, Meng Hongchen even moved into the same laboratory as Qianran and the others. Other students in the lab were reassigned, leaving Qianran with a private workspace.
It was almost ironic: Qianran, supposedly an exchange student from Shrek Academy, had essentially become a mentor to the future elites of Mingde Hall.
Within three days of Qianran sharing his knowledge, Ke Ke and Juzi had already earned their Rank 6 Soul Engineer badges from Mingde Hall.
"Qianran, hehe, Juzi and I have our Rank 6 badges now!" Ke Ke beamed as she opened the door, her finger lightly touching her lower lip. Dressed in a navy-blue sailor uniform with white knee-high socks, her attire exuded youthful charm. Her white blouse revealed slender arms, and a closer look would reveal the pink lingerie she wore that day.
Recently, Ke Ke had developed a penchant for wearing these playful sailor outfits to entice Qianran.
In retrospect, their advancement from Rank 5 to Rank 6 had been astonishingly quick. All thanks to Qianran, who not only enhanced their cultivation but also effortlessly imparted Soul Engineering knowledge. Now, they hardly needed to consult Xuan Ziwen; they simply relied on Qianran to feed them the answers directly. Learning had never been easier.
This method of direct knowledge transmission was so revolutionary that it left Ke Ke and Juzi awestruck. With such convenience, it was no wonder they no longer valued the lessons from Mingde Hall's instructors.
(End of Chapter)