After spending the entire night talking with Ma Xiaotao, Zhu Ziyang intended to return to his room for a short rest. But before he could even close his eyes, something happened that once again interrupted his rest.
Inside his room, the cocoon of light that Xingcai had formed nearly four years ago finally began to stir. Cracks appeared one after another across its surface, and rich light energy burst forth from the fissures—radiant and captivating.
Zhu Ziyang froze momentarily, then quickly composed himself and focused on the cocoon that was on the verge of hatching. Honestly, with his current strength, even if Xingcai had undergone a complete metamorphosis and progressed rapidly, she was still little more than a mascot to him. Unless this little one reached the level of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, she wouldn't be of much real help.
Of course, he hadn't expected her to help him anyway.
The cracks grew more numerous, and finally, under Zhu Ziyang's gaze, the cocoon shattered with a loud crack, revealing a magnificently divine unicorn. The unicorn stood over three meters tall and five meters long, its body covered in golden fur. A pair of radiant, rainbow-hued wings grew from its flanks, and atop its head shimmered a crystal horn glowing with multicolored brilliance. Its eyes were a deep, captivating amber gold.
It was a fully grown Radiant Unicorn.
"Xingcai, congratulations—you've come of age!" Zhu Ziyang was filled with emotion. Honestly, he hadn't expected Xingcai to reach maturity purely through cultivation. Even though she was still effectively just a mascot, it was a remarkable feat.
"Hehe! Thank you, Lord Ziyang!" Xingcai's voice hadn't changed much—it still carried that innocent and childish tone.
"No need to thank me. In the end, it was your own hard work," Zhu Ziyang said with a smile, stroking her head and horn.
Four years of slumber had allowed Xingcai to leap past the threshold between thousand-year and ten-thousand-year soul beasts. She now had a cultivation nearing fifteen thousand years. Furthermore, she had successfully refined the inheritance of the Unicorn King left by her mother. As of now, she could rightfully be called the true Unicorn Queen.
"Lord Ziyang, I want to go out for a run," Xingcai said hopefully. As a unicorn, after being asleep for several years, the yearning for freedom and speed was burning within her.
"Alright, let's go!" Zhu Ziyang agreed with a laugh and led her out of the room.
Outside, he leapt onto Xingcai's back. She let out a melodious cry, flapped her seven-colored wings, and soared into the air, carrying both herself and Zhu Ziyang toward the grasslands beneath the Golden Ancient Tree.
The Radiant Unicorn galloped across Tianyuan Island, drawing the attention of many inner courtyard students. The older ones were unfazed—they recognized Xingcai as Zhu Ziyang's pet. But the newer students who had joined in the past three years were wide-eyed with surprise, stunned by the sight of a ten-thousand-year soul beast openly running across Tianyuan Island.
Zhu Ziyang and Xingcai paid no attention to the stares. Still, knowing it wasn't appropriate to continue running here, they soon flew across Seagod Lake and into the outer courtyard. Compared to the inner courtyard, the outer courtyard was truly vast and sparsely populated, with wide forests and meadows—perfect for a unicorn's gallop.
Xingcai had a blast running wild in the remote clearings of the outer courtyard, and once she was satisfied, Zhu Ziyang brought her back to the inner courtyard.
Just as they returned, they ran into Ma Xiaotao and Diwu Huan'er.
"Ziyang, is that Xingcai?" Ma Xiaotao was visibly surprised. "How did she get so big?"
"She received a gift from our teacher. Her cultivation improved rapidly, and she's been sleeping for the past three years. She just woke up this morning," Zhu Ziyang explained with a smile. "You two heading for breakfast?"
"That's right," Xiaotao nodded. "I'm showing Huan'er around the inner courtyard."
"Is that a Radiant Unicorn?" Diwu Huan'er's eyes were fixed entirely on Xingcai, filled with a strange light as she murmured.
"Yup. Ziyang brought Xingcai back from the Star Dou Great Forest. She was just a foal back then, with a cultivation of only four or five thousand years. Hard to believe she's grown so much," Xiaotao explained with a hint of emotion.
"Oh!" Huan'er nodded, a subtle smile appearing on her lovely face. For some reason, that smile made Zhu Ziyang feel a strange curiosity and suspicion.
Following Huan'er's gaze, he noticed that Xingcai was also staring intently at her, golden eyes filled with puzzlement and curiosity.
"Well, we'll head off for now, Ziyang!" Xiaotao said as she pulled Huan'er along and walked away.
Zhu Ziyang watched the two girls leave and then whispered, "Xingcai, what's up? You seem very interested in Huan'er."
"Lord Ziyang, her aura feels so familiar… Have we met her before?" Xingcai's voice was filled with uncertainty.
"Are you sure?" Her words sent a jolt through Zhu Ziyang. He had also sensed a strange familiarity with Diwu Huan'er, and now it seemed that she and both he and Xingcai had crossed paths before!
"Who could she be…?" Zhu Ziyang murmured as he led Xingcai back to their room, searching his memories for any possible clues.
"…Diwu Huan'er… Fifth…" He mulled over everything he knew about her, and then something clicked. "Sister Xiaotao said her martial soul is Suanni… Suanni… the fifth child of the Dragon God… born of the Dragon God and a Golden Lion… a Dragon-Lion!"
"Three-Eyed Golden Lion!" Zhu Ziyang's body shook as he instantly made a connection. Diwu Huan'er's martial soul was Suanni, the ancestor of dragon-lions. Combined with the strange familiarity between her, Xingcai, and himself, it all pointed to one possibility: the Imperial Auspicious Beast—Three-Eyed Golden Lion—that had once been subdued by Xingcai's mother, Luo Xingxiya, in the Star Dou Great Forest, and whose fate had intertwined with his own.
"But… why?" Even though he was eighty percent sure now, Zhu Ziyang only felt more confused. "That Three-Eyed Golden Lion's cultivation was no more than fifty thousand years. How could she take on human form? Her state clearly isn't one of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast taking on human form, nor is it a beast-turned-human like the savage beasts. She even evaded my detection as a Titled Douluo… how is that possible?"
He really wanted to go confront Diwu Huan'er right now and interrogate her. But that was just a passing thought—he couldn't act so rashly. Not only was her relationship with Xiaotao a factor, but the fact that she was chosen by the Fire God to assist in the divine trial meant she wasn't someone he could casually touch for now.
"Forget it… I'll deal with it later," Zhu Ziyang muttered. Now that she had joined Shrek Academy, he'd have plenty of time to investigate slowly and discreetly.
After returning Xingcai to the Golden Ancient Tree and letting her roam beneath it, Zhu Ziyang turned around and headed to the cafeteria. He couldn't rest, but he could at least eat.
At the cafeteria, he happened to run into Jiang Nannan, Tang Ya, Xue Weiwei, and Xiao Xiao. Smiling, he walked over and said, "What a coincidence."
"Brother, you haven't eaten either!" Jiang Nannan beamed and patted the seat beside her. "Come, sit!"
Zhu Ziyang didn't hesitate and sat beside her, chuckling, "What were you all talking about? You looked so happy."
"Zhu Ziyang, guess what—Xu Sanshi and Weiwei agreed to join the Tang Sect battle team!" Tang Ya said excitedly.
"Really? How did you persuade Xu Sanshi?" he asked curiously.
"Hehe! I didn't. Beibei did," Tang Ya admitted sheepishly. She felt a bit guilty about being such a hands-off leader.
"Oh!" Zhu Ziyang smiled meaningfully. "Not bad. What about you, Xiao Xiao? You and Wang Dong planning to join the team?"
"Me?" Xiao Xiao paused, then said shyly, "Sister Ya asked, but I'm not sure. I want to wait for Yuhao to return and ask his opinion."
"That's fine. Once you decide, just let Elder Xuan know," Zhu Ziyang replied with a smile. He understood her thoughts very well. "Elder Xuan already spoke to me about it. Looks like he's on board."
"Really? That's great!" Tang Ya said in delight. "I was worried the elders wouldn't agree. Honestly, the way Beibei and I are doing things… kind of feels ungrateful."
"Don't think like that. The revival of the Tang Sect is also beneficial to our academy." Seeing her awkward smile, Zhu Ziyang offered a word of comfort, then changed the subject. "Nannan, you still haven't told me what you were all laughing about earlier."
"It's like this…" Jiang Nannan leaned in close and whispered into Zhu Ziyang's ear.
"Oh? So she finally decided to come clean!" Zhu Ziyang raised an eyebrow but didn't seem surprised.
"You're not shocked, Zhu Ziyang?" Tang Ya was stunned by his calmness.
"Well… it's something I've known for a long time. Why would I be shocked?" Zhu Ziyang shrugged helplessly.
"Huh?" Tang Ya was completely taken aback. "How did you know?"
"Read more books, Chief Tang!" Zhu Ziyang looked at her, utterly speechless.
(End of Chapter)
---
This Fanfiction Has Been Completed on Patreon, There is 2 Chapters Ahead of Release for Free Members on my Patreon.
Support me if you like this Fanfiction.
Patreon,com/Fallen_Archangel_
(Remove comma for dot.)
Leave a 5 star Review and a Power Stone.