Chapter 33:
After finding a way to safely preserve the evil spirit, Lin Bai returned to his regular routine — though now, he added the Tiger Body Refining Technique to his daily training.
Maybe it was the evil spirit's tempering properties, but Lin Bai felt his soul power becoming more condensed and compressed. He was already aware that cultivating an ultimate martial soul meant painfully slow progress. Even after an entire year, both he and Xiao Wu had only just broken through to Level 27.
That afternoon, the two of them sat together on a bench in the academy's garden. A small jade bottle sat beside them, emitting wisps of smoke that drifted into Xiao Wu's body and circulated between their palms.
After so much time spent dual cultivating, Xiao Wu had become rather skilled with it. Though even then, she couldn't resist complaining.
"Lin Bai," she muttered, distracted, "do you actually think I'm your maid? When's it going to be your turn to fuse with that evil spirit and feel what it's like?"
Lin Bai lazily cracked an eye open, letting the warm sunlight fall on his face. "Didn't I tell you? I'll give you a way to grow stronger, but you have to endure the pain that comes with it. You agreed, remember? You're my number one general now — a future powerhouse has to learn to both enjoy and endure hardship. You've still got a long road ahead."
Xiao Wu wrinkled her nose at him. "Only weirdos enjoy pain. You just don't want to deal with it yourself."
Lin Bai wasn't bothered by her mockery. He was already hooked on the feeling of growing stronger. Besides, even if Xiao Wu refused, she wouldn't leave. And only he could safely absorb evil spirits. If he couldn't stomach a little pain, how could he possibly chase after greater power?
They bantered back and forth, both in high spirits. No other students dared approach them. Even when the two casually sparred in the open, no one said a word about it.
Once, Tang San had asked Yu Xiaogang about their unusual training method. Yu Xiaogang could only guess that their martial souls were highly compatible, letting them cultivate faster together — though this explanation only frustrated Tang San, who felt himself slowly falling behind.
Elsewhere in the garden, Xiao Chenyu was sparring with his followers. As the city lord's son, he kept a low profile in the academy, training diligently.
But talent was talent — no matter how hard they worked, their progress paled next to Lin Bai and Xiao Wu. It was an impossible gap.
Sensing his leader's gloomy mood, one of Xiao Chenyu's underlings quickly changed the subject.
"Boss, I heard a bigshot arrived in Notting City yesterday. Can you tell us about it?"
Xiao Chenyu perked up at the chance to show off and raised his eyebrows. "Since you're asking, let me open your eyes a little."
He cleared his throat and recounted what he'd seen.
"You wanna know what a real bigshot is? This woman's the daughter of a general from the Star Luo Empire. Came here to meet with the Heaven Dou Empire. And get this — she's got two Soul Sect bodyguards. When it was time to break through, she just captured a soul beast and stuffed it into a cage like it was nothing. That's what a powerhouse looks like."
His little followers sighed enviously.
Imagining someone catching soul beasts for them to help with breakthroughs sounded like a dream — though, deep down, they knew even if someone did, their mediocre talents wouldn't be enough to absorb them.
Three long sighs were carried away by the wind.
Not far away, Lin Bai overheard the conversation and his eyes narrowed slightly.
So, Zhu Zhuqing really had arrived in Notting City, and brought a soul beast with her as promised. With how much commotion she'd stirred up, word of it had already reached him.
"Xiao Wu," Lin Bai called lazily, "come with me later. I'll introduce you to a new friend."
Xiao Wu tilted her head, puzzled. "A new friend? You never leave the academy. Who could it be?"
She didn't dwell on it though and agreed easily. "Fine. But once we're back, we're done for the day. This endless training is killing me. I don't even need to work this hard to level up."
"Hard work always makes you stronger faster," Lin Bai replied in a perfunctory tone. "Think of your enemies. Now quit whining."
"I don't even know how you learn this stuff…" Xiao Wu muttered.
Half an hour later, the two of them arrived outside the city lord's mansion.
Notting City was a small border town, and though the city lord's estate covered a lot of ground, it was more like a sprawling manor than a grand palace — nothing like the luxurious estate where Lin Bai had once killed that slave trader.
Standing by the city wall, Lin Bai released his mental power. Thanks to the Shenlong Visualization Technique, his spiritual strength hadn't faced the same bottleneck as his soul power. It only grew stronger by the day, to the point where even ordinary testing stones couldn't measure his upper limit anymore.
By his estimate, he could probably take down a Five-Ring Soul King without much trouble now.
Lin Bai quickly locked onto a familiar, subtle presence within the city lord's estate — a weak life force, carefully suppressed, lurking quietly in the shadows. It was a talent unique to someone who'd awakened the Shadow Hell Civet Martial Soul: constantly reducing one's presence, even subconsciously.
"Zhuqing, I'm outside the mansion," Lin Bai sent a sound transmission using his spiritual power, his voice gently reaching Zhu Zhuqing's ears.
Inside, Zhu Zhuqing froze mid-cultivation, startled.
"Miss? What's wrong?" a woman's voice came from the corner of the room.
A woman in her thirties appeared. This was Gao Wen, a Soul Sect bodyguard sent by the Zhu family to protect Zhu Zhuqing. Even though Zhu Zhuqing had been cast aside politically, her status and talent still made her worth safeguarding.
A male guard named Sun Wu stood watch outside. Both were Four-Ring Soul Sects — enough to keep her safe as long as they didn't cross any real heavyweights.
"It's nothing, Aunt Wen," Zhu Zhuqing replied calmly, though a faint tremble in her eyes betrayed her emotions. "The person I'm waiting for is already here. We can go."
Gao Wen was startled. She'd been by the young lady's side all day — how did she suddenly know?
But she didn't ask. She quietly made the preparations to leave.
Zhu Zhuqing had a storage soul tool given by her father, Zhu Lingtian. There was nothing for her to pack. She left the room quickly, leaving Sun Wu behind to handle their formal farewell to the city lord.
She couldn't wait to see him.
Not just because she needed Lin Bai's help to absorb her second soul ring — but because without him, she wouldn't be who she was today.
Stepping out of the city lord's mansion, she immediately spotted the two figures standing in the sunlight.
A young man and a girl stood together, their breathing in sync. The harmony between them was so natural that anyone would have thought them a perfect pair.
Zhu Zhuqing's heart sank for a moment, but she quickly dismissed it. She didn't believe her senior would be so easily tied down.
Lin Bai squinted at her with a sly grin and slowly raised a hand. The Ruyi Qiankun Staff floated from his palm, shining like burnished gold under the sun.
The sight made Zhu Zhuqing's heart race. She recognized it instantly. That was the weapon she remembered.
At last, she understood the teasing, the arrogance, and the disdain her "senior" had shown toward the Zhu family.
So young.
Still, she never doubted him. The familiarity in those eyes could fool no one.
Stopping a short distance away, she asked carefully, "Senior… is it you?"
Lin Bai sighed, a little disappointed. "Tch — you actually figured it out? I was hoping to give you a good surprise."
If he'd known this would happen, he would've come alone and made a proper scene of it.
None of them noticed the faint spatial ripples gathering beneath their feet. The ground shimmered and slowly turned to nothingness.
Today… was Lin Bai's ninth birthday.
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