A Girl Next Door Comes of Age

In Ning Tian's luxurious courtyard.

Ning Wuque deeply despised this kind of behavior—giving up strength for appearance. It was absolutely not because he did not want to waste money on such things, nor because he lacked the talent to support doing so. Absolutely not!

Based on Ning Wuque's original estimate, Wu Feng's body should have been able to withstand a thousand-year Dragonkin Soul Ring as soon as she reached Level 20. Yet she had stubbornly held herself back for several months before finally meeting the standard.

That was right. Wu Feng had already reached Level 20 when she was just over ten years old. Even if she loved to play, her Rank 8 Innate Soul Power was still incredibly impressive.

Combined with the intense training Ning Wuque had put this Little Red Dragon through over the past year or so, her breaking through to Level 20 had been only natural.

But for the sake of a thousand-year second ring—one of high-quality Dragonkin Soul Ring lineage—she had no choice but to postpone absorbing a Soul Ring and endure for several months until her physical condition reached a "stable" standard.

"All right, put on your training gear first. Have you picked a target for your Soul Ring? Are you going with your family?"

After moving around a little, Ning Wuque took out a Compressed Meatball to restore his strength. He casually took a sip of water and washed it down in one gulp.

He had long grown accustomed to this efficient way of eating.

Across from him, Wu Feng silently nodded. Then, in just a few steps, she reached an open space not far from them and picked up the pieces of Forced Training Gear one after another, beginning to put them on.

Unlike Ning Wuque's training gear, Wu Feng's father was far wealthier than Zhang Can. To give his daughter a more beautiful future, her gear was not only a complete set of Level 7 Soul Tools, but also divided into twelve separate pieces!

Forearms, upper arms, upper torso, waist ring, thighs, calves, ankles.

Putting them on was quite troublesome, but they allowed Wu Feng to maintain a perfect figure after training.

As she put on the gear, she said:

"My father picked out a target for me half a year ago. It's the lower-ranked Dragonkin Tyrant Dragon you mentioned before—the Dire Dragon.

"I've been pretty lucky. With the sect's help, we successfully found a Dire Dragon that had just entered the thousand-year level. It's in the Dragonkin Mountain Range of the Star Dou Great Forest."

Perhaps Ning Wuque's training had finally taken effect these past days, or perhaps persistent exercise simply left people with no room to overthink.

Wu Feng no longer spoke as sharply as she had when she was little. So long as Ning Wuque did not deliberately tease her, aside from occasionally bickering with him in front of Ning Tian, she usually spoke calmly whenever she was alone with him.

Training for a long time and persistently doing the same thing could truly change a person greatly.

It taught people patience and rid them of impatience.

"My father originally wanted to capture that thing and bring it back for me himself, but I refused. I only asked him to throw it into the sect's Soul Hunting Forest."

Her words came to an abrupt stop. Wu Feng seemed to have more she wanted to say but could not bring herself to speak.

With her back turned toward him, Ning Wuque could not see her expression. But after spending so much time with her, he had already figured out Wu Feng's personality.

She was actually a shy little girl around those close to her—useless but loved playing around. Whenever she encountered something embarrassing, she would become flustered and helpless like an idiot. At the same time, she was obedient toward people she liked and acknowledged.

So Ning Wuque spoke up:

"What, are you planning to challenge your limits and take on that kind of creature? Listen to me. If you can last three minutes against a thousand-year Dragonkin Tyrant Dragon, I'll already be impressed."

What he really meant was that she had no chance at all, so she should hurry up and ask her "master" for help!

Since she had adopted his custom training method, she counted as having entered his school. Even if Wu Feng stubbornly refused to admit it, Ning Wuque would still occasionally joke that he was her master.

Turning around, Wu Feng had already finished putting on all her training gear. The upper-body pieces neatly covered her athletic top.

She wore a pair of fiery black-and-red leather shorts below, and her slender pencil legs were adorned with two pairs of leg rings, one large and one small.

She looked every bit like a spicy young beauty. Unfortunately, Ning Wuque's moral bottom line was a little too high, and he had no thoughts about her whatsoever.

Come on, this kid was only eleven years old. Don't be a creep!

"When the time comes, I'll have Ning Tian help me. As for you..."

Wu Feng looked Ning Wuque up and down, then said with feigned disdain:

"You can just stand to the side and watch this lady's performance. Who needs your help? Hmph~"

"Tsundere."

"Who are you calling tsundere?!"

"Whoever got triggered is who I mean."

Ning Wuque smiled as he bickered with Wu Feng. This was an essential source of entertainment during his breaks from daily training. Every time he watched this Little Red Dragon get so angry that she turned red, it was incredibly fun.

Sure enough, the moment Wu Feng heard Ning Wuque say the word "triggered," she immediately gritted her teeth and puffed out her cheeks—she was furious!

"Wuque, Feng Mei, have you finished training?"

"Ning Tian!"

"Ning Tian."

In the distance, Ning Tian slowly approached from the gate. She wore a simple blue-and-white dress and waved to greet them.

She had just returned home from school. The moment she reached the entrance, she saw Wu Feng's furious expression from afar. Ning Wuque must have been teasing her again.

"Ning Tian, I'm planning to go Soul Hunting in a couple of days. Can you come with me? It'll be in the Soul Hunting Forest."

Jogging over, the tall Wu Feng, standing at one meter seventy, clung to Ning Tian's left arm and rubbed herself against her like a little bird seeking comfort. The young girl, now beginning to mature, had also reached a respectable height of one meter sixty.

Feeling the softness against her arm, Ning Tian lowered her head and glanced at her own rather barren chest. Though she felt a little self-conscious, she still smiled and said:

"Of course, Feng Mei. Oh, right, Wuque, do you want to come too?"

After agreeing to Wu Feng's request, she turned and proactively invited Ning Wuque.

She understood Wu Feng too well. If they wanted Ning Wuque to join the team, only she could ask him. Wu Feng would never be able to say something like that herself, no matter what; she could only hint at her attitude.

Yes, or no.

"Mm, I happen to need a sparring partner to help me break through to Level 20."

"You're about to reach Level 20? Congratulations!"

Hearing that, Ning Tian beamed as she congratulated Ning Wuque. He had taken another great step toward his dream!

Across from her, Ning Wuque returned her smile.

If not for Ning Tian's support, he would not have reached Level 20 so quickly. It would have taken him until around age twelve at the very least. After all, his innate talent was simply too poor.

"Oh, right, Ning Tian. When will you break through to Level 30?"

Ning Wuque suddenly asked.

Though Ning Tian found it strange that Ning Wuque would care about this, she still answered directly:

"Half a year. I'm already Level 29. At most, I'm confident I can break through the Level 30 bottleneck within half a year. What, do you want to help me plan how to obtain my third Soul Ring?"

"I see. If you're willing, you can leave it to me. I do have a few ideas."

At the end of the previous chapter, I added a picture of Wu Feng. I wonder whether it can pass review.