Sparring!

The next day.

After finishing his morning meditation, Xu Tianyang arrived at the private training room within the residence. Xu Yunxiao had specially built it for cultivation; it could withstand a Soul Emperor's attacks without being damaged.

After parting the previous night, father and son had agreed on a time to assess Xu Tianyang's growth over the past year and offer him some guidance in his cultivation.

Upon arriving at the training room, Xu Tianyang first spotted that familiar blue figure—his fiancée, Xu Nianshuang.

She was still dressed in that fitted white outfit, with the ever-unchanging blue hat atop her head, looking valiant and dashing.

"..."

"Have you been here long?" The two stood in silence. The change in their relationship left Xu Tianyang unsure how to begin. After a long while, he was the first to speak.

In his memories, this was the first time he had ever spoken with Xu Nianshuang. At school, she had always been cold and solitary, keeping to herself to the point that she did not even have anyone to talk to.

"Just arrived!" Xu Nianshuang's crystal-like eyes had not left Xu Tianyang since he entered. Hearing his question, she replied coolly.

Xu Tianyang nodded, feeling a little troubled. Neither of them was the proactive sort, and he had no idea how they should get along. Fortunately, at that crucial moment, Xu Yunxiao walked in from outside, followed by Feng Tianxiang.

"Very good. Neither of you slacked off or arrived late."

"Father!" "Uncle Feng!"

"Uncle Xu!" "Uncle Feng!"

The two greeted them. Xu Tianyang had not expected Xu Nianshuang to know Feng Tianxiang as well, but thinking of how inseparable he was from his father, it did not seem so strange after all.

"Before cultivation, eat this first." Xu Yunxiao looked at the two with a smile and reached out to take a box from Feng Tianxiang.

The box opened to reveal several dark, round lumps. They looked like black steamed buns, and it was impossible to tell what they were made from.

Neither asked any questions. They took the buns and began eating. Although the buns looked strange and black, they were soft and chewy once they entered the mouth, and did not taste strange at all.

"Don't let their appearance fool you. These are made from Thousand Year Ghost King Whale and Ten Thousand Year Wood Soul Flood Dragon meat. Just a few of these would sell for tens of thousands of Gold Soul Coins. You normally wouldn't get to eat Ten Thousand Year soul beast meat. You two are lucky this time."

Upon hearing Xu Yunxiao's introduction, Xu Tianyang and Xu Nianshuang's eyes immediately lit up, and they quickened their pace. These were all good things.

After finishing the bun in just a few bites, Xu Tianyang felt a distinct warm current flow down his throat. In an instant, it filled his body and spread through his limbs and bones.

The blood and qi fluctuations radiating from both of them also grew increasingly powerful.

"Now that you're done eating, come with me. Only in actual combat can those ingredients unleash their true energy. Let me see how strong you are now."

Seeing Xu Yunxiao standing off to the side without moving, Xu Tianyang, who had already walked into the center with Xu Nianshuang, asked in confusion, "Father, aren't you going to fight personally?"

"What are you thinking?" Xu Yunxiao rolled his eyes at Xu Tianyang and said disdainfully, "How old are you two? You're only Soul Masters. Do I need to step in personally just to guide you?"

"I already heard about you two from the academy. You have no opponents in the first year, and you've fought each other in actual combat before. I heard it was quite a match."

"But hearing is one thing, seeing is another. You two will fight each other now. Your Uncle Feng and I will naturally be able to see exactly how strong you are."

"Only in battles between evenly matched opponents can one's unknown potential erupt."

Hearing his father's words, Xu Tianyang nodded and turned toward Xu Nianshuang. A fierce fighting spirit burst from her eyes, making his heart turn solemn. It seemed her strength had improved again.

But I haven't been standing still either.

"Xu Nianshuang, Level 15, one-ring Battle Soul Master!"

"Xu Tianyang, Level 16, one-ring Battle Soul Master!"

"Coming!" After politely introducing themselves, Xu Nianshuang adjusted the brim of her hat with her left hand. At some point, her right hand had already drawn that ice-blue longsword from before. Her figure flashed as she charged toward Xu Tianyang.

"Then let's test our swordsmanship first!" Seeing that Xu Nianshuang had not summoned her martial soul, Xu Tianyang did not summon his either. Instead, he excitedly drew a Soul Tool longsword and swiftly slashed upward from below.

Clang! A crisp explosion rang out. Feeling the force transmitted through his blade, Xu Tianyang was somewhat surprised. Her strength was far greater than before.

Had she suffered a disadvantage in physical strength during their previous fight, so she had improved this much in just three months?!

Xu Nianshuang pointed her longsword forward, and a massive blade of sword light instantly tore through the air, crossing dozens of meters as it descended in a vertical slash toward Xu Tianyang.

Xu Tianyang gripped the Level 2 Soul Tool Longsword he had recently completed with both hands and swung it horizontally. Another enormous blade of sword light burst forth.

The clash of vertical and horizontal was also a collision between the attributes of their martial souls—the powers of ice and fire.

The two blades of sword light collided and shattered in midair, turning into specks of light that filled the sky.

The spreading Soul Power Fluctuations made the ground beneath both of them tremble.

Xu Nianshuang's delicate brows furrowed slightly. Her feet shifted, and in the next moment, she appeared in front of Xu Tianyang. The tip of her azure sword trembled lightly, transforming into countless sword shadows.

Xu Tianyang pushed the dynamic vision granted by his martial soul to its limit. He skillfully evaded while using the sword in his hand to make one exquisite block after another.

This exchange between the two left Xu Yunxiao and Feng Tianxiang, who were watching, repeatedly astonished. Even when they had been Soul Masters themselves, they had not possessed such strength.

"Tianxiang, where did Yang'er learn his swordsmanship? Did you teach him in private?" Xu Yunxiao turned back and looked at Feng Tianxiang in confusion.

"This subject has never taught His Highness swordsmanship." Feng Tianxiang shook his head. After observing for a moment, he said, "In this subject's view, Her Highness Nianshuang's swordsmanship has a foundation in the military, so she must have learned it while she was in the army. As for His Highness the Grandson's swordsmanship, it is clear that he only knows the most basic sword moves. This subject guesses that he relies on the innate advantages of his martial soul to intercept his opponent's sword techniques in advance. He is fighting entirely through the advantages of his martial soul."

"Heh, that brat is quite lucky." Xu Yunxiao smiled and shook his head. Then he looked at Xu Nianshuang with astonishment. "But Shuang'er has given me a great surprise. That is the embryonic form of Sword Intent, isn't it? She truly is a natural swordswoman. What a pity that her martial soul is unsuitable."

Feng Tianxiang nodded. He too looked at Xu Nianshuang in amazement, secretly lamenting the pity of it. She did not possess a sword martial soul. Even if she comprehended the embryonic form of Sword Intent, so what? This world ultimately revolved around martial souls. In the future, Xu Nianshuang's progress in the sword path would eventually fail to keep up with her martial soul cultivation and would be abandoned.

Boom!

A loud explosion sounded. The two had already stopped limiting themselves to swordsmanship and had begun using their martial soul abilities.

Xu Nianshuang swept her right foot against the ground in a long arc, kicking toward Xu Tianyang. An icy thorn burst from the ground, forming a wall of ice spikes in the direction of her kick. Xu Tianyang flashed aside and dodged.

The yellow Soul Ring around Xu Nianshuang lit up, and the sky was instantly layered with icy blue. Cold air spread in all directions. Her martial soul was pure ice element, and controlling ice was her most basic ability. With the boost of her First Soul Ring, she could instantly create a vast world of ice and snow.

"Mental Power Field!"

Obscure crimson patterns flickered in Xu Tianyang's eyes. His sole Soul Ring lit up as well, and terrifying mental power enveloped the entire field.

That familiar sensation spread through Xu Nianshuang's body once more.

The battle ended quickly. At the low-rank Soul Master stage, mental power attacks were practically an unsolvable move against ninety-nine percent of Soul Masters.

Without using their martial souls, Xu Tianyang and Xu Nianshuang were roughly a seven-to-three matchup. But once they used their martial souls, it became a complete ten-to-zero.

"Are you all right?"

Xu Nianshuang, who sat on the ground with her Soul Power exhausted, looked at the hand extended before her. Raising her head to meet Xu Tianyang's concerned gaze, she felt a little happy. Having defeated her twice, Xu Tianyang had left an indelible impression on her. Because of her past experiences, she deeply admired the strong. Mu Mengyu was the kind of person she aspired to be.

That was why she usually imitated Mu Mengyu's mannerisms.

Ever since Mu Mengyu had saved her and helped her take revenge, she had secretly sworn in her heart that she would repay her with everything she had, even if it cost her life.

When Mu Mengyu had asked whether she was willing to become her daughter-in-law, Xu Nianshuang had agreed without hesitation, even though she had not met Xu Tianyang at the time. Mu Mengyu had told her then that she would not force her if she was unwilling.

Yet Xu Tianyang had been the first person she truly kept in her heart.

Then came the first time she met Xu Tianyang after enrolling at the academy. At the time, Xu Nianshuang had felt nothing special toward him, until he defeated her for the first time.

Xu Tianyang had barged into her heart with an overbearing force.

This was the second time she had lost to Xu Tianyang. Looking at the concern in his eyes, it felt as though a string in Xu Nianshuang's heart had begun to tremble.

She placed her hand in his and rose to her feet, doing her best to hide the joy in her heart. Her voice remained cool as she said, "I'm fine. I'll be all right after resting for a while."

"Mhm." Xu Tianyang said nothing more. In his view, given Xu Nianshuang's personality, she probably would not lie.

"Splendid. I never expected you two to possess such strength at this age. Your father couldn't have done better than you when I was young." Xu Yunxiao's delighted voice came from the distance.

Looking at the two of them, Xu Yunxiao was extremely excited. Xu Tianyang and Xu Nianshuang were far more outstanding than he and his wife had been. He truly wanted to see what things would look like twenty years from now.

"Although your eye martial soul has enormous potential, it lacks sufficient offensive methods in the early stages. Soul Tools can make up for that weakness. Your idea is good, but your swordsmanship has not undergone systematic training, so you cannot bring out the full potential of this body. During the upcoming break, let Tianxiang teach you swordsmanship."

After speaking to Xu Tianyang, Xu Yunxiao turned to Xu Nianshuang beside him and praised, "Shuang'er, even I have to marvel at your talent in the sword path."

"However, it is a pity that your martial soul is not a sword martial soul. The path of studying the sword is not suitable for you." Seeing Xu Nianshuang open her mouth to say something, Xu Yunxiao raised a hand to stop her. "Swordsmanship is still a good offensive method in the early stages. You don't need to answer me now. You have plenty of time ahead of you to decide what you want in the future."

"Remember, you must choose what your heart truly desires. Yang'er, the same goes for you."

Looking at Xu Yunxiao's serious expression, Xu Tianyang and Xu Nianshuang both nodded solemnly in acknowledgment.

"It's good that you understand. From now on, Shuang'er, you and Yang'er will study the sword path under Tianxiang during the day. At night, I will guide your martial soul and Soul Tool cultivation."