Late-Night Visitor

After seeing Huo Yuhao off, Xue Lingyun closed the door and sat down on the sofa. "Now that I've caught up with the Child of Destiny, it's time to get to work."

He took off his outer robe, revealing a close-fitting dark silver Soft Armor vest beneath it. It covered the vital areas of his chest, abdomen, and back, while intricate Soul Tool patterns glimmered faintly under the lights.

Ingeniously designed metal rings were also fitted around his wrists and ankles.

This was no ordinary armor. It was Adjustable Soul Tool Weight-Bearing Armor, something he had designed and repeatedly refined during his travels by combining his Soul Tool knowledge with Huangji Jingshi's insight into energy flow.

Besides the Soft Armor, the Bracelets and anklets around his wrists and ankles, which looked like metal guards, were actually part of the same series.

Was weight training useful?

Of course it was.

But the prerequisite was that it had to be "scientific."

Xue Lingyun had always believed that even though he could transform into a Super Saiyan, he could still wear weights during his daily training. The proportions simply had to be precise.

Every time his Soul Power rose by a level, he made minor adjustments to these Soul Tools.

He increased or reduced the internal Weight Modules and optimized the balance between the Soul Power Circuits' support for his muscles and bones and their pressure on them, ensuring the weight always remained in the golden range—enough to effectively stimulate growth, but not enough to overly burden his meridians and disrupt the natural circulation of Soul Power.

Wearing them almost twenty-four hours a day produced genuine long-term improvements to his physical abilities. Of course, the price was that his actual strength and speed were greatly restricted in his everyday state, which was exactly what he intended.

His true strength only needed to be unleashed when the time came.

At that moment, he needed to make fine adjustments to several points based on the changes in his body after reaching level 35. Sitting on the edge of the bed, he began dismantling and debugging the tiny Weight Modules and Soul Power Circuit crystals embedded within the equipment.

Xue Lingyun had just fitted the last module back into place when someone knocked on the window.

"Tap, tap-tap."

Three knocks in a steady rhythm.

Xue Lingyun frowned. His dorm was on the first floor, with a lawn directly outside the window.

Who would knock on his window at this hour?

He put on the vest and walked over to the window. Just as he pulled open the window bolt—

Crash!

The window bolt gave a faint groan under the strain before being forced open from outside by brute strength.

The instant the night wind rushed in, a scorching figure carrying a blazing aura lunged straight through the window!

Xue Lingyun reacted swiftly, taking half a step back to disperse the force as his hands instinctively caught the person flying at him.

That was the benefit of long-term physical training: his stance was stable enough.

If it had been an ordinary soul master, getting pounced on by a girl with wildly surging Soul Power and such an alarming body temperature would likely have sent them both sprawling. Their clothes would have burned through next, making things awkward—and causing their relationship to advance at a rather "rapid" pace.

But he had at least kept his footing!

She was scorching hot to the touch. Even through their clothes, he could feel the restless heat beneath her skin.

Ma Xiaotao.

Her face was frighteningly flushed, the hair at her forehead plastered to her cheeks with sweat. Her breathing came in ragged gasps, and her eyes were slightly unfocused, though she barely retained her clarity.

Her hands clutched Xue Lingyun's arms tightly, her nails nearly digging into his flesh. Biting down on her lower lip, she forced out fragmented words through clenched teeth.

"Give me... ice... quickly..."

Her Evil Fire had flared up again, and it was even more violent than it had been in Star Dou Forest.

Xue Lingyun did not waste any words.

His First Soul Ring rose instantly, dark purple patterns faintly flowing through its profound yellow light.

He did not use the offensive Evil Tiger Crushing Pulse. Instead, he completely transformed his Soul Power into the purest, ultimate cold originating from the Ice Prison Dragon King's essence. Through the conversion and harmonization of the Primal Heart, it became a power as cool as an icy spring, yet extraordinarily gentle.

He also cleverly used the properties of his First Soul Skill, Imprint Penetration, allowing that icy power to more easily pass through her surface defenses and reach deep into Ma Xiaotao's meridians.

So long as the other party did not deliberately dispel it and he did not actively detonate it, this gentle, healing-oriented imprint could remain in the target's body for quite some time, continuously suppressing the condition.

"Urgh—!"

Ma Xiaotao's body suddenly stiffened, and a moan that seemed both painful and relieved escaped her throat.

The abnormal crimson hue on her body faded at a visible rate. The restless flames beneath her skin seemed as though they had been doused with a bucket of ice water, swiftly calming down.

Her grip on Xue Lingyun's arms loosened as well, and her entire body went limp as she slumped forward.

Xue Lingyun supported her and helped her sit on the sofa. Ma Xiaotao panted heavily, her chest rising and falling violently. It took her quite a while to recover.

"Th-thank you..." Her voice was still weak, but her eyes had regained their focus. She looked up at Xue Lingyun, only then noticing his current state—

He was not wearing an outer shirt, only that unusual dark silver close-fitting Soft Armor vest.

His well-proportioned, lean muscle lines were clearly visible beneath the lights. His shoulders were broad, his waist and abdomen taut, and the smooth curves of his body held the sense of power of a panther. Sweat slid down from his collarbones and disappeared beneath the edges of his Soft Armor.

Compared to the boy who had still carried a trace of childishness when they first met in Star Dou Forest two years ago—

Xue Lingyun had clearly matured greatly. He stood tall, his facial features more sharply defined. Especially those calm eyes—when they looked at her, they carried a steadiness beyond his age.

Ma Xiaotao felt her cheeks heating up again—though this time, it was not because of her Evil Fire.

"C-could you put some clothes on first?" She turned her gaze away, her voice sounding slightly unnatural.

Xue Lingyun looked down at himself and finally realized.

Ma Xiaotao had burst in so suddenly that he had immediately used his Soul Power to suppress her Evil Fire, completely forgetting about that.

"Wait a moment." He turned and walked into the bedroom, casually pulling a loose training outfit from the wardrobe and putting it on.

When he came back out, Ma Xiaotao was already sitting upright, pressing the back of her hand to her cheeks in an attempt to cool them down.

"Feeling better?" Xue Lingyun sat down across from her.

"Mm, much better." Ma Xiaotao took a deep breath and looked at him seriously. "I really have you to thank this time. I heard from Teacher Yan today that you'd come to the academy, and I couldn't resist coming to find you... I didn't expect my Evil Fire to become uncontrollable on the way."

"It was nothing." Xue Lingyun said. "But the frequency and intensity of your Evil Fire flare-ups seem more troublesome than they were two years ago."

Ma Xiaotao gave a bitter smile. "Yes. Teacher Yan said that as my cultivation grows, the source of my Evil Fire grows stronger too. Ordinary Ice Attribute soul masters can barely suppress it now. Even if they can, they only treat the symptoms, not the root cause."

She paused, her eyes lighting up. "But your ice is different. I could feel it—that cold energy of yours... it's especially 'clean,' especially 'high.' It feels like it was born to restrain the evil nature inside me. That cool feeling is still lingering in my meridians now. It feels better than any suppression I've experienced before."

She stood and gave Xue Lingyun a solemn bow. "Xue Lingyun, if you need anything at the academy from now on, come find me. Your business is my business. Ma Xiaotao always keeps her word."

Xue Lingyun waved a hand. "No need to be so formal. We're just helping each other."

Ma Xiaotao straightened, a smile appearing on her face. "Then it's settled. Oh, are you living here now? This dorm..." She looked around and noticed something was off. "Why is it so big?"

"The dean arranged it." Xue Lingyun vaguely brushed the matter aside.

The two chatted a little longer about the academy. Seeing that it was already late, Ma Xiaotao got up to leave. When she reached the door, she suddenly turned back and blinked. "You've trained your body pretty well."

Without waiting for Xue Lingyun's response, she pulled open the door and ran off in a flash.

Xue Lingyun: "..."

He shook his head and closed the door. A lot had happened today, and he needed to sort through his thoughts.

(Author's note, latter half