Nan Liujing Between Two Girls

Aolai City was a small place wearing the skin of a city but was actually little more than a town. In terms of administrative ranking, it was second from the bottom.

Its permanent population was around seventy thousand. Two main roads and seven smaller streets basically defined its layout.

The Soul Guidance Vehicle drove into the city, and the driver naturally headed toward one of Aolai City's more famous bay scenic areas.

As they passed by, the occasional resident glanced over, but after a few looks, they shifted their gaze away.

Though Aolai City was small, luxury vehicles were not uncommon. That was because Aolai Bay had many seafood restaurants famous even in Eastsea City. Quite a few wealthy people did not mind driving an hour to eat there and sightsee along the way.

Gradually, the Soul Guidance Vehicle slowed down.

Two hundred meters ahead, a dense crowd had gathered. They were all parents waiting to pick up their children from school, chatting amongst themselves.

A long barred gate separated the buildings inside from the waiting crowd outside. On the tall gate wall beside it were four large words: Red Mountain Academy.

The driver and the middle-aged Soul Master did not react much, but Nan Liujing narrowed his eyes as a series of "clang, clang, clang" sounds rang in his ears.

It was the dismissal bell from Red Mountain Academy.

The Soul Guidance Vehicle struggled through the crowd, and Nan Liujing saw a steady stream of students in uniforms walking out through the gates, their laughter still childish.

There were ordinary students, as well as students carrying the aura of Soul Power.

Students at a junior academy were comparable to elementary school children. They were all young, and as soon as they left the school gates, quite a few clung to their parents and begged to be taken to the convenience store for snacks.

Some students had no parents picking them up, so they strolled home in groups with their friends. There was not a trace of worry about the future on their faces—only the carefree ease of youth.

The person he wanted to see had yet to appear. Nan Liujing frowned and subconsciously turned his head to look left, only giving it a brief glance.

"Stop." Just as the Soul Guidance Vehicle was about to drive away, Nan Liujing suddenly spoke.

The driver immediately hit the brakes. "What are your orders?"

Nan Liujing said nothing. His burning gaze fixed on a nearby street. From the narrow gap between two buildings, a silver-haired figure suddenly emerged.

The tiny figure seemed almost unconscious. She sat blankly by the roadside, her head lowered as she stared at the ground.

Some students and parents noticed the little figure, but perhaps because of her tattered clothes and somewhat messy hair, no one dared approach her.

After following Nan Liujing's gaze, the driver shook his head and sighed. "This child might be sick and abandoned by her parents. Cases like this have happened many times, even in Eastsea City."

"If you wish, I can notify the Aolai City orphanage to take her in. Curing her may not be possible, but at least she will have enough to eat."

"Let's wait and see," Nan Liujing said, steadying the two of them while hesitation flickered in his eyes.

Red Mountain Academy had just let out, and Na'er, one of the female leads, had appeared right on cue. All that remained was for Tang Wulin to arrive and drive off the thugs trying to abduct someone outside the academy. It was hard to say that no one was arranging this behind the scenes.

If he intervened now, would there be some hidden danger?

Should he just run away instead?

After all, the time he had arrived in Aolai City differed from his original plan. Trying to prevent the two of them from meeting now would be terrifyingly difficult.

"An opportunity lies before you. Aren't you going to try and seize it?"

A calm voice suddenly rang out within Nan Liujing's spiritual sea.

His pupils contracted. He had not expected the mysterious person to appear again.

The calm voice continued, "I told you before that those who inherit the Heavenly Tribulation Bead must face the baptism of heavenly lightning. But when that baptism arrives differs for every person who has obtained the Heavenly Tribulation Bead. And now, your chance to undergo your first heavenly lightning baptism has come."

Nan Liujing mentally set down the bucket he had picked back up, gathered his courage, and said solemnly, "May I ask what I should do, Senior?"

"This city is shrouded in two auras, one bright and one hidden. The brighter one may be related to that little girl. As for the other aura concealed in the dark, its vitality is so vigorous that it rivals a second-class god. Heh, now that is interesting. It seems the laws are no longer valid in the wake of its unrest."

There was even a hint of emotion in the mysterious person's voice.

Nan Liujing chose to remain silent and continued listening.

"Regardless of their aims, as an interloper, the slightest mistake could make them take notice of you and cost you your life. But you can gamble—gamble that they restrain each other and cannot act against you. Once this performance begins, appear and disrupt it."

"Your choice will allow the Heavenly Tribulation Bead to seize some benefits for you. They will automatically merge into your body. Even I do not know what exactly they will be. Within three days afterward, lightning will strike you. This is the so-called heavenly lightning baptism. It is highly dangerous, but if you endure it, you will understand its benefits."

"Opportunities are rare. Whether you act or not, choose carefully."

The admonishing voice gradually faded away.

Nan Liujing's expression remained calm on the surface, but his heart had long been in turmoil.

As expected, he had not guessed wrong. Someone had deliberately guided Na'er and Tang Wulin's encounter behind the scenes.

Interfering could bring disaster. Yet if he did not interfere, he was unwilling to let this opportunity slip away, even if he had no idea whether it was truly a good one.

As for the identity of the mysterious person hiding within his spiritual sea through the Heavenly Tribulation Bead, he already had an almost certain guess.

As he thought, Nan Liujing turned back to glance at the entrance of Red Mountain Academy. The instant he did, his eyes changed slightly.

A little boy was walking out of the academy alone with his head lowered. His features were exceptionally handsome, especially his large, bright eyes. His short black hair made him look clean and neat.

Tang Wulin walked out of the academy in low spirits. Seeing a pebble by his foot, he kicked it several meters away as if venting his frustration.

The reason for his dejection was simple. His martial soul had awakened yesterday, and school had officially begun today. The novelty in his heart had already faded. In just one day, he had personally experienced inequality.

It was something Tang Wulin, who had been cared for by his parents since birth, had never encountered before.

Simply because he had revealed that his martial soul was Blue Silver Grass, every classmate looked down on him openly or secretly, even though some of them had lower Innate Soul Power than he did.

Even when teaching the meditation cultivation method, the teacher had shown him less attentiveness than any of the other students.

Was the Blue Silver Grass martial soul really only fit for feeding pigs, as they said?

As Tang Wulin muttered to himself in disappointment, a faint blue glimmer suddenly flashed through the corner of his eye. He turned to look.

Between the cracks of a stone slab, a stalk of Blue Silver Grass grew proudly. When the wind came, it swayed gently. Under the sunlight, its blades seemed faintly crystalline and rather beautiful.

Tang Wulin stopped. As if sensing something, he raised his right palm. Soul Power surged, and a similarly pale-blue blade of grass rose from his hand.

As though answering the call of Tang Wulin's Blue Silver Grass martial soul, several soft points of light quietly rose from the grass on the ground and flew onto his palm. They circled gently in the air before finally merging into his martial soul.

Watching this, Tang Wulin suddenly grinned, revealing a trace of cheerful determination. "Even Blue Silver Grass growing in the cracks between stone slabs can grow and shine with its own brilliance. Why can't I? They all say Blue Silver Grass is a useless martial soul, but I'll prove them wrong."

Grrrrumble.

Before his excitement could fade, an abrupt sound rang out. Tang Wulin's little face reddened. He subconsciously withdrew his martial soul, rubbed his stomach, and said helplessly, "I'm hungry again. I wasn't this greedy before. Oh, right, there are still plenty of the scallion oil crackers Mom bought at home."

His eyes lit up, and he happily jogged ahead.

What Tang Wulin did not see was that, as he left, the Blue Silver Grass growing in the stone slab's crack strangely transformed into blue-gold motes of light. They drifted into the distance like dandelion seeds, yet not a single passerby could see them.

Within a folded spatial rift, several figures had gathered together.

Before them was an illusory screen of light displaying Aolai City.

Surprisingly, the person standing at the forefront was a little girl who appeared to be only five or six years old.

Though still young, her features were ethereal and exquisitely beautiful, as though she did not belong to the mortal world. Her long silver hair nearly reached her ankles, gleaming like a galaxy. Her silver dress trailed along the ground, suffused with faint light like countless elements repelling yet merging with one another. Only her calm, rippleless violet eyes carried an indescribable elemental pressure, making her seem nothing like a child.

She was Gu Yue, the main personality of the Silver Dragon King.

At this time, her appearance had not been altered into the simple, delicate look she possessed in the original timeline.

"My Lord, once this human carrying the Golden Dragon King Bloodline appears, can't we simply act directly? Why go to such lengths and use a Subordinate Personality to test him?" the bald, powerfully built man, nearly three meters tall, respectfully asked the little girl at the front.

At those words, the other men and women all looked over.

This Subordinate Personality carried a trace of the Silver Dragon King's origin bloodline, as well as the last remnant of the Power of Destiny from the Star Dou Great Forest. She was extremely important. They also did not understand why their leader was doing this.

Gu Yue said calmly, "Other than me, there is only one kind of person capable of enduring the Golden Dragon King's bloodline: an ordinary person who has a God King's seal planted inside their body and possesses no divine power of their own. A God King's seal can suppress it for a time, but not forever. If the fused person possessed divine power, their divine core would be continuously drawn by that divine power and ultimately self-destruct."

"Combined with the fact that I cannot sense the Divine Realm's existence, there is only one possibility. Before the Divine Realm vanished, a God King secretly sealed the divine core, hid it within this ordinary person, and then sent him to the Douluo Continent."

"That God King possesses sealing abilities, so his strength cannot be underestimated. He most likely left contingencies behind as well. Whether he knows I am on Douluo Star or not, I cannot act rashly. Rather than having the main body make direct contact, it is better to use this Subordinate Personality to test him."

"Besides, this personality has only just been separated. I can control her for three years. If anything goes wrong during the test, I can immediately call her back."

The burly man suddenly understood. Scratching his round head, he laughed foolishly. "My Lord truly considers everything thoroughly. I was ignorant."

Gu Yue ignored his flattery and stared at the light screen. On it, a little silver-haired girl sat alone by the roadside.

After thinking for a moment, fine silver gleams strangely surfaced in Gu Yue's violet eyes. An invisible force pierced through space, flew from the air, and instantly entered Na'er's body.

An intangible aura began spreading from Na'er's body, enveloping the entirety of Aolai City almost instantly.

The Silver Dragon King's bloodline aura would silently draw in the person carrying the Golden Dragon King's bloodline aura.

If that person had no contingency left behind by a God King, she could rest easy. Once she gained the strength to ignore the God King's seal, she could simply take the bloodline directly.

Thinking about the scallion oil crackers at home, Tang Wulin's steps were noticeably lighter than usual. But as he passed the road, he happened to glimpse a sleek, glossy-black Soul Guidance Vehicle parked by the roadside. His steps paused slightly.

It was the kind of Soul Guidance Vehicle Dad liked.

Tang Wulin's eyes lit up. Back home, his father always liked watching television advertisements featuring this kind of Soul Guidance Vehicle, but it was simply too expensive.

"I heard Soul Masters are very good at making money. I need to work even harder. When I grow up, I'll make money and buy Dad a car. I'll also buy all the cosmetics Mom can't bear to buy."

Tang Wulin encouraged himself inwardly, then looked away and entered a narrow street.

As he walked, Tang Wulin's gaze was involuntarily drawn to a flash of silver beneath the sunlight.

He blinked his big eyes and looked over curiously.

It was a little girl with her head lowered, so he could not see her face clearly. Her hair color was so rare, though—it was actually silver.

The instant Tang Wulin looked over, a faint trident-shaped phantom quietly surfaced on his forehead, only to vanish again at once.

After that, fine dragon scales appeared over the skin hidden beneath his clothes.

Somewhere beyond perception, a resonance intertwined in the air.

Na'er, sitting alone by the roadside, blinked her beautiful eyes and subconsciously began to raise her head.

Just as their gazes were about to meet, several figures suddenly stepped in front of Tang Wulin, blocking his view.

The resonance that had just begun to form snapped apart with a crash.

Having observed from the side for quite some time, Wang Cheng and the others had confirmed that the little girl sitting alone by the roadside had no one with her. Each of them approached her with ill intent.

Naturally, their movements did not escape the notice of nearby parents with children. But once they recognized the thuggish appearances of these men, their expressions changed slightly.

Aolai City was not large. Setting decent people aside, these hoodlums were infamous throughout the city. They never committed murder or arson, only petty theft and similar misdeeds.

They would be locked up, then released again after a while.

Offending them would only make life difficult afterward.

Since this little girl was not the child of any neighbor, many nearby adults would rather avoid trouble. They turned away or hurried off with their children, leaving this troublesome place behind. Still, some took out their phones and called the security officers.

Facing the cluster of figures that had suddenly appeared before her, Na'er tiredly raised her head. Her little face was still fair and delicate despite being smeared with dust. Her violet crystal-like eyes looked clear and deep beneath the sunlight, unforgettable at a glance.

Wang Cheng and the other thugs' eyes immediately lit up.

Top-quality goods.

After whispering among themselves for a few moments, Wang Cheng immediately put on a smiling expression and crouched down to ingratiate himself with her. The others formed a circle around them, completely blocking the outside world's view.

"They're the human traffickers Dad told me about." If Tang Wulin still did not understand, then he would truly be an idiot. Just as he was about to shout and stop them, a whistling sound suddenly came from behind him.

The sound was strange, like a sharp screech, especially piercing.

Wang Cheng and the others, who had been about to seize the girl and carry her away, suddenly felt as though their ears had been jolted by electricity. Their bodies trembled, and they turned around in alarm and anger.

They looked left and right, but only saw a big-eyed little boy glaring furiously at them from nearby, along with another boy farther behind him.

"Fuck, you scared the hell out of me."

When Wang Cheng saw this, his face could no longer hold up. He strode forward and viciously kicked Tang Wulin.

No matter that Tang Wulin had awakened Soul Power, he was still just a child. He had no time to react before being kicked away.

With a thud, he was sent flying two meters.

Nan Liujing, who had just arrived and was channeling Soul Power to trigger a resonance with the lightning elements in the air, twitched slightly at the corner of his mouth.

"Why the fuck are you still staring? Take her and go!" After kicking Tang Wulin away, Wang Cheng saw that his lackeys were still frozen in place and immediately cursed.

The men came back to their senses and prepared to pick up Na'er, who had been frightened into curling up on the ground, before fleeing.

But Wang Cheng seemed to have some kind of compulsive need. Seeing Nan Liujing walk past Tang Wulin, he insisted on kicking him too.

"Watch out!" Tang Wulin, still hurting, hurriedly warned him. But in the next second, he froze.

Wang Cheng, who had kicked out, seemed to have had the pause button pressed. Like a statue, he remained motionless in his kicking posture. Not only him—the other traffickers preparing to take the little girl away had also stiffened in place.

The boy Tang Wulin had warned calmly passed through the other thugs and arrived before the girl, who had nearly curled into a ball from fright.

"What's going on?" Tang Wulin was stunned. The nearby residents who had not dared step in were equally shocked by this bizarre scene.

A wisp of dark-blue Soul Power scattered from Nan Liujing's right palm like windblown mist. He lowered his head and looked at Na'er, who was curled up on the ground. A layer of tears had risen in her eyes as she stared at him with grievance and fear.

With a sigh in his heart, he realized he had still gotten involved in this trouble.

This opportunity had better be damn good, or I'm going to start cursing.

In the original work, Gu Yue only learned that Tang Wulin carried the Golden Dragon King Bloodline around a hundred chapters later, I think. I changed it here as a secondary setting, because there were too many coincidences in the original work, and that made it feel off.