Forty-One

Afternoon sunlight filtered through the sparse leaves over Shrek Academy's training grounds, scattering dappled light spots. At the start of the new term, the air still carried the laziness of the holiday, but even more so, a faint anticipation for a new beginning.

Ning Xiaochuan, Oscar, and Ma Hongjun were gathered together, discussing the latest improvements to the sausage soul skill—trying to add some Spirit Concentrating Herbal Powder in hopes of briefly enhancing mental focus. Milk Dragon lay lazily curled beside his feet, its palm-sized body tucked into a ball. Golden markings flowed with a warm sheen beneath the sunlight, and it occasionally let out soft, contented snores, seemingly entirely uninterested in its master's "chemical experiments."

Ning Rongrong sat on a swing nearby, swaying idly as her glass-like long hair fluttered in the breeze. She appeared to be daydreaming, but her gaze kept drifting toward Ning Xiaochuan. A smile lingered at the corners of her lips, one she had not even noticed herself. Since returning from the Blue Silver Altar, there seemed to be an indescribable understanding between them. Though that final veil had yet to be pierced, this ambiguous yet peaceful daily life made her feel incomparably at ease.

Just then, the academy's creaking old wooden gate was pushed open.

Headmaster Flender walked in first, his face carrying a complicated expression that mixed shrewdness with solemnity. The figure following behind him immediately drew everyone's attention.

It was a maiden.

Her fitted black outfit outlined her already well-developed, slender figure, yet she exuded an icy aura that kept strangers at a distance. Her features were exquisite, and her catlike eyes were a clear pale green, though utterly devoid of ripples, like a frozen lake. Her long hair reached her waist, black as ink, making her skin appear even fairer than snow. Yet the most striking thing about her was the silence and indifference that did not suit her age, as if she were a walking iceberg that shut out all warmth.

"Come over here, everyone. Let me introduce a new student," Flender said, clapping his hands to break the brief silence.

Ning Xiaochuan and the others gathered around. Milk Dragon was awakened as well. It drowsily lifted its little head, its golden pupils looking toward the newly arrived maiden.

At that very moment, an unexpected change occurred!

"Roar!"

The originally docile Milk Dragon suddenly let out a sharp, warning growl. The soft, fine scales all over its body instantly stood on end, like a little beast whose fur had bristled in the face of an enormous threat! It sprang from the ground and landed on Ning Xiaochuan's shoulder, its body taut as it stared fixedly at the maiden in black. A continuous, hostile rumble came from its throat.

Ning Xiaochuan was startled. This was the first time Milk Dragon had displayed such an intense and unmistakable Rejection Reaction! Through their subtle martial soul fusion connection, he could even sense the extreme vigilance it conveyed, along with a trace of... indescribable agitation.

"Xiaochuan, what's wrong with your dragon?" Oscar asked in surprise.

Ning Xiaochuan shook his head. As he gently patted Milk Dragon's back to soothe it, he looked at the maiden with equal confusion. What kind of martial soul did she possess? How could it provoke such a powerful reaction from Milk Dragon?

Flender did not seem to care much about the little incident. He cleared his throat and introduced her. "This is Zhu Zhuqing, a new work-study student. Zhuqing, these are..."

Before Flender could finish, another figure entered through the gate, his expression complicated. It was Dai Mubai.

Zhu Zhuqing's gaze paused briefly on Dai Mubai. A faint ripple seemed to pass through her frozen eyes, but it quickly returned to lifeless stillness, becoming even colder than before. She gave everyone a slight nod, her voice so chilly that no emotion could be heard within it. "Zhu Zhuqing."

Short and concise, without even an extra "please take care of me."

Ning Rongrong also walked over, curiously examining this new classmate with such a distinctive temperament. A girl's intuition made her unconsciously move one step closer to Ning Xiaochuan.

Just then, Dai Mubai seemed to want to say something to Zhu Zhuqing. He stepped forward, and the Soul Power within him stirred slightly. "Zhuqing, I..."

Almost at the same time, a trace of dim light instinctively flashed around Zhu Zhuqing's body. A cold yet nimble aura flickered in and out of existence—it was her martial soul, the Hell Spirit Cat!

However, at the instant when their auras drew one another in, seeming about to collide or resonate—

"Buzz!"

Milk Dragon on Ning Xiaochuan's shoulder let out another low growl. A Dragon Might far more intimidating than its tiny body suddenly spread outward! That pressure was not directed at everyone, but rather pressed with extreme precision onto the subtle Soul Power Connection Point between Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing!

Dai Mubai grunted. The Soul Power he had been about to gather was forcibly interrupted by the sudden, noble Dragon Might, causing his aura to stall. The dim light around Zhu Zhuqing also vanished instantly. Her pale green cat eyes snapped toward Milk Dragon, and for the first time, a clear look of astonishment appeared on her cold face.

The Dragon Might vanished in a flash. Milk Dragon seemed to have exhausted its strength as well, and its scales slowly settled down. Yet it still glared warily at Zhu Zhuqing, unwilling to relax.

The atmosphere became awkward and silent for a moment.

Ning Rongrong's eyes darted about. Then she suddenly reached out and naturally looped her arm through Ning Xiaochuan's, nearly leaning half her body against him. With a radiant smile, she said to Zhu Zhuqing, "Welcome, Zhu Zhuqing! I'm Ning Rongrong, and he's Ning Xiaochuan. We... hmm, are the best partners!" She deliberately emphasized the word "best," as though declaring some kind of ownership.

Ning Xiaochuan stiffened slightly. The soft touch against his arm and the faint fragrance from the girl made his ears warm. He turned to look at Ning Rongrong's bright smile, feeling both helpless and amused. This girl, she doesn't need to go this far just to be friendly to a new classmate, does she? She really is childish. She must be trying to welcome her warmly so that Milk Dragon's rudeness and that awkward silence earlier won't make her uncomfortable.

He completely interpreted Ning Rongrong's sudden intimacy as his "younger sister" working hard to help him get along with the new classmate, expressing a friendly kind of "friendship."

Zhu Zhuqing's gaze rested for a moment on Ning Rongrong's arm around Ning Xiaochuan's. Then she swept her eyes lightly over Ning Xiaochuan and the still-tense Milk Dragon on his shoulder before returning her gaze to Ning Rongrong's face. She remained as cold as ever, merely nodding slightly in response.

Flender stepped in to smooth things over. "All right, all right. There will be plenty of chances to get acquainted later. Zhuqing, your dormitory is..." He led Zhu Zhuqing toward the dormitory area.

Dai Mubai watched Zhu Zhuqing's retreating figure with a complicated expression. In the end, he did not follow her. He turned and left, his back looking somewhat heavy.

Once the crowd dispersed, Ning Rongrong finally released Ning Xiaochuan's arm. A faint blush flashed across her face, but she deliberately put on a stern expression and poked Milk Dragon's little head. "You were so rude just now! What if you scared the new classmate?"

Milk Dragon gave a wronged little whimper and rubbed its head against Ning Xiaochuan's cheek. It seemed confused by its own excessive reaction, but when its golden pupils looked toward the direction Zhu Zhuqing had left, wariness still remained.

"It's not its fault." Ning Xiaochuan stroked Milk Dragon thoughtfully. "It seemed to be some kind of reaction on the martial soul level... It's strange. I've never experienced anything like it before." He recalled the moment Milk Dragon's scales had stood upright, as well as the fleeting aura of Zhu Zhuqing's Hell Spirit Cat. "That feeling... wasn't entirely rejection. It was more like... the vigilance of encountering something of the same kind, yet completely different?"

He could not make sense of it and could only temporarily attribute it to some special sensing mechanism that might exist between top-tier martial souls.

"Oh, right." Remembering Ning Rongrong's "enthusiasm" from earlier, Ning Xiaochuan smiled and rubbed her hair. "Thanks, Rongrong. You even knew to help your brother ease the atmosphere."

Ning Rongrong's slightly smug expression instantly froze. Looking at Ning Xiaochuan's pleased smile that clearly said, "My little sister is so sensible," she angrily stomped her foot under her breath. Her glass-like eyes glared at him as she tossed out, "Idiot Xiaochuan!" before turning and running away.

Ning Xiaochuan: "???"

What had he done to offend this little ancestor now?

He shook his head helplessly. Girls' thoughts really were impossible to understand. Holding the still somewhat uneasy Milk Dragon, he prepared to leave as well.

At the moment he turned around, the corner of his eye accidentally caught sight of something in the distance—Zhu Zhuqing, who had already reached the corner of the dormitory corridor, seemed to be slightly turning her head, her gaze directed toward them.

The afterglow of the setting sun happened to brush past the graceful curve of her neck.

At that instant, Ning Xiaochuan's pupils abruptly contracted.

He clearly saw a faint, thin dark marking flash across the skin at the back of Zhu Zhuqing's fair neck! Its twisted, strange shape was unexpectedly similar to the golden markings on Milk Dragon's scales at his fingertips, carrying a heart-pounding...