Reunion with an Old Friend

"Ling... Bro Lingyun?"

The tentative call, filled with immense uncertainty and faint surprise, drifted softly through the corridor's dim yellow light.

Xue Lingyun released the doorknob and looked at the thin youth before him, who was more than half a head shorter than himself, with slightly messy short blue hair and a bruise at the corner of his mouth.

The silent little boy from his memories, whose eyes had hidden a stubborn flame, overlapped with the disheveled yet bright-eyed face before him.

"Yuhao?" A faint curve appeared on Xue Lingyun's lips. "So it really is you."

His gaze swept over Huo Yuhao.

His rough clothes were stained with dust, the bruise at his mouth had yet to fade completely, and he carried the exhaustion of someone who had just argued with another person. Yet the instant he recognized Xue Lingyun, those deep blue eyes lit up with startling brilliance.

Huo Yuhao blushed and scratched his head awkwardly. "I... had a little conflict with my new roommate."

He paused, his eyes still sparkling as he looked at Xue Lingyun, unable to hide his delight. "Bro Lingyun, why are you here? Are you here to..."

"To study." Xue Lingyun answered simply, though his gaze lingered on Huo Yuhao's face for a moment.

Huangji Jingshi silently began to operate.

At that moment, the scene of fortune above Huo Yuhao's head was even clearer and more astonishing than it had been years ago, like a giant lightbulb.

A golden pillar of fortune shot into the sky, so solid it was almost tangible. Mysterious halos flowed around its edges, signaling the arrival of an immense opportunity. Several white threads of different natures coiled around the pillar.

Two of them were particularly striking: one was brimming with vitality, long and resilient, while the other was deeply rooted in Huo Yuhao's Sea of Consciousness, extending straight upward until its end disappeared into the void. It radiated ancient, dormant, yet indescribably wise fluctuations.

Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's contract, Electrolux's remnant soul... both were already within him.

Xue Lingyun understood.

When he had examined him at the White Tiger Duke's Mansion years ago, the thread belonging to the Holy Necromancer had only vaguely connected to the heavens, like a silent yet persistent navigation beacon, guiding that dormant remnant soul across time and space.

Even then, he had seen that the karma involved was far too immense. If he rashly intercepted something that had come from beyond this world, disrupting its course and drawing the attention of someone from the God Realm would truly have been more trouble than it was worth.

Now, it seemed that the beacon had perfectly aligned with its target.

But what interested Xue Lingyun more were the traits revealed beneath the foundation of Huo Yuhao's fate:

Loyalty etched into his bones, the potential to rise against the odds in desperate circumstances, an apparent inborn tendency to need the support of a stronger person and be guided—or "suppressed"—by them... as well as a vague sense of "restraint" that had yet to fully take shape within his fate.

Xue Lingyun silently raised an eyebrow. Strictly speaking, this "suppression" and "restraint" did not specify who had to impose them.

So then, whoever got there first could do it, couldn't they?

The thought caused an almost imperceptible smile to curl his lips.

It was a bit like finding out who would become emperor in the future, then running over to become his father first. The analogy was crude, but the principle was the same.

That was also one of the reasons he had been willing to casually form a good connection back then, and was now happy to continue maintaining it.

During the few seconds he spent examining Huo Yuhao's fate, somewhere deep within the Sea of Consciousness, a plump white worm sleeping soundly suddenly curled up without warning. In a groggy muddle, it muttered, "...Did something just sweep past me? That felt chilly... Was it just my imagination?"

"How did you end up like this?" Xue Lingyun asked in his usual tone, interrupting Huo Yuhao's daze.

"We just... shoved each other a few times." Huo Yuhao lowered his head awkwardly. "He was a little rude."

"A small dispute is nothing. You'll be living together from now on, so try to get along." Xue Lingyun did not comment further. He naturally wrapped an arm around Huo Yuhao's shoulders. "Come on, I'll take you to get something to eat."

Huo Yuhao was startled by the familiar gesture, then warmth welled up in his heart.

After drifting about outside and losing his mother, it had been a long time since anyone had treated him with such natural closeness.

"Bro Lingyun, how can I let you spend money on me again..." he hurriedly said.

"Spend money? What money?" Xue Lingyun took out the Black Meal Card and waved it before Huo Yuhao's eyes. "Special approval from the dean. I can eat whatever I want at the Canteen, completely free. Why not take advantage when there's free food?"

Huo Yuhao looked at the finely patterned card in his hand, then at Xue Lingyun's matter-of-fact expression, and once again sighed inwardly. Bro Lingyun... no matter where he is, he always seems amazing.

On the way to the Canteen, Xue Lingyun asked Huo Yuhao about how he had been doing.

"Mom... her old illness relapsed a year ago, and she couldn't hold on." Huo Yuhao's voice lowered as his fingers unconsciously curled. "Bro Lingyun, sometimes I wonder... if I had forced mom to leave the White Tiger Duke's Mansion back then, would things have been..."

Xue Lingyun fell silent for a moment, then raised a hand and patted his back.

He recalled their brief encounter years ago in that rundown wooden shack on the outskirts of the White Tiger Duke's Mansion.

At the time, he had been traveling through the area when he saw the frail little boy and his mother.

He had read the woman's features and complexion. Her illness had plagued her for a long time, and the knot in her heart ran even deeper.

He had spoken to her frankly, telling her that perhaps the person she was waiting for did not even know they existed, that waiting like this might be meaningless, and that perhaps they could go elsewhere and begin a new life. He could even offer them some help.

But the woman had merely shaken her head gently yet stubbornly. Her eyes held a persistence he did not understand and could not be bothered to think too deeply about.

Still, judging from the situation at the time, perhaps her body was not the only thing that had collapsed. Mentally, she had likely broken down long ago. If not for the child by her side, she probably would not have been able to endure any longer.

If others insisted on living as they wished, he would not waste his energy meddling. Better to respect their fate.

When he left, he said nothing more. He only secretly left behind an inconspicuous low-grade Storage Soul Tool containing some ordinary medicinal herbs for restoring health and several hundred Gold Soul Coins.

Not too much and not too little—just enough to slightly improve their lives, without drawing unnecessary trouble through sudden wealth or burdening them psychologically. It was an investment in a good connection, after all. That giant lightbulb was not going anywhere.

"Don't dwell too much on the past," Xue Lingyun said. "Your mother had her own choice. What you need to do now is carry her share with you and keep moving forward."

"Mm." Huo Yuhao nodded firmly. His eyes were slightly red, but his gaze was resolute. "I'll definitely become a powerful soul master. I won't let mom down."

The two ate at the Canteen.

Xue Lingyun ordered quite a few dishes. Huo Yuhao was somewhat reserved at first, but under Xue Lingyun's teasing that not eating would be wasting food, he gradually relaxed.

There were not many people in the Canteen. Under the dim yellow lights, they ate and chatted. Huo Yuhao spoke about his experiences getting into Shrek, while Xue Lingyun briefly mentioned his travels over the past two years.

After the meal, Xue Lingyun brought Huo Yuhao back to his dormitory.

"Come in." He opened the door to Room 106.

Huo Yuhao walked in, saw the living room's furnishings and the additional doors on both sides, and his eyes widened again.

The living room was not luxurious, but it was clean and orderly, with a sofa, coffee table, and bookshelf all in place. Compared with his standard dorm room, which contained only two hard plank beds and an old table, it was practically another world. What stunned him even more were the extra doors on either side.

"This... Bro Lingyun, how is your dorm..."

"Special treatment from the dean." Xue Lingyun pushed open the door on the right. "Bathroom and toilet." The white tiles inside, the bathtub, and the small Soul Guide Water Heater made Huo Yuhao freeze again.

Xue Lingyun then opened the door on the left. "Bedroom and Cultivation Room. They knocked through the interior walls of Rooms 104 through 107, but the original room numbers are still hanging outside."

Huo Yuhao took several seconds to process it before he understood just how special this "special treatment" was. "Four rooms... they're all yours?"

"Mm." Xue Lingyun poured him a glass of water and sat down on the sofa. "They originally only promised me a single room. I didn't expect them to turn it into this. If you need to use the bathroom or toilet, come by anytime. It's better than the public ones."

Huo Yuhao blushed slightly. He had already experienced the crowding in the public bathhouse that day. More than two hundred people on one floor shared those few stalls. He had queued for nearly half an hour, and even bathing had to be timed.

"Th-thank you, Bro Lingyun..." he said softly, draining the glass in one breath. "Then I... I'll head back first and won't disturb your rest."

"Why be so polite? You should get some rest early too." Xue Lingyun patted his shoulder.

(Brothers, take a look at the author's note and give me some suggestions. The second half is in the next...)