The thunder of Royal Knights' hooves shattered the morning stillness.
Five hundred fully armed knights escorted the fifteen academy teams that had advanced, rolling out of Heaven Dou City in a grand procession.
Banners blotted out the sun, and armor gleamed brightly.
It was quite the display, giving them all the prestige they could ask for.
The citizens along the road lined both sides to see them off, some even shouting Shrek's name.
After all, the starlight of that night and the Demon Empress's fall had become the hottest topic of conversation.
At the very center of the procession was a specially made luxury carriage.
Crown Prince Xue Qinghe had prepared it specifically for Shrek Academy.
It was spacious and comfortable, with thick soft cushions spread inside, practically a tiny room on wheels.
Yet the atmosphere inside the carriage was somewhat... strange.
"Um... Teacher Leng, aren't you hot?"
Ma Hongjun huddled in a corner, fanning himself as he asked cautiously.
Although it was already early summer and the weather was beginning to warm up,
the temperature inside this carriage felt as though the strongest air conditioner imaginable had been turned on.
It was even colder than that.
The source of the chill was, naturally, Leng Yuebai, seated beside Han Yuchen.
She wore a simple white dress today, her silver hair casually draped over her shoulders.
She ignored Ma Hongjun.
She did not even raise her eyelids.
She merely sat quietly, pressed tightly against Han Yuchen.
Both hands clung desperately to Han Yuchen's arm as if they had grown there.
Her head tilted slightly, resting against his shoulder.
If one ignored her breathtakingly beautiful yet expressionless face, as well as the icy aura around her that warned strangers away,
the scene looked exactly like a clingy little girlfriend in the throes