The Dragon of Annihilation

On the seventh day after leaving Dragon City, Xue Yuheng returned from Beiyuan City with Xiao Xiao, who had gone there the night before. Xue Qingwu had come with them, too.

Xue Qingwu regretted Ice Empress's death, but she knew the truth: Ice God was an ancestor of her Ice and Snow Elf clan.

Ice Empress had become Xue Yuheng's Wisdom Soul Ring, and there was still hope of reviving her. That was far better than her soul scattering completely, as it had originally seemed.

Early that morning, Xiao Xiao stretched, got up, and headed to the Earth Dragon Gate cafeteria to buy breakfast.

In the rear courtyard of the small compound Nan Shuishui had arranged for them, pear blossoms drifted down. Xue Yuheng and Xue Qingwu came out of their rooms and sat down in the pavilion for breakfast.

Xue Yuheng had brought back the True Dragon-level Soul Beast blood needed for Nan Qiuqiu's Martial Soul Evolution. It was blood the Snow Empress had "borrowed" from the Ice Dragon clan.

They had spent the whole previous night using the Power of Creation to soak the Vermilion Fruit in dragon blood and ripen it into a Dragon Blood Fruit.

Today was the day Xue Yuheng would help Nan Qiuqiu evolve her Martial Soul.

The pavilion, at the dining table.

"Xiao Xue, don't tell me you're planning to keep me by your side forever?" Xue Qingwu took a bite of a large meat bun. It was delicious and juicy—she hadn't tasted one in ages.

Xue Yuheng shook his head. "You're completely human now. Even a Limit Douluo wouldn't be able to tell you used to be the Snow Empress.

"But you're still so young. Maybe you could study at some academy until you're eleven or twelve. Then we can go to Shrek together. After all, right now you're basically an undocumented person."

When Nan Shuishui had met Xue Qingwu the previous night, she'd assumed she was Xue Yuheng's younger sister or some other relative. Xue Yuheng had kept trying to explain.

They couldn't just claim any old relation. They might end up getting struck dead by some merciless hand later.

Watching the two of them act so lovey-dovey made Xiao Xiao feel awful. She remembered Xue Yuheng's explanation from the night before.

Using the Snow Empress? Xiao Xue's fallen for this old woman...

But when Xue Yuheng put it that way, Xiao Xiao—being human, and Xue Yuheng's Crown Princess—could hardly object.

Xiao Xiao knew the Snow Empress was a powerful ally.

Her Four Symbols Heaven-Suppressing Cauldron still hadn't finished evolving, and her current Innate Soul Power was only Level 15. The Snow Empress's Goddess of Ice and Snow Martial Soul, on the other hand, was already a genuine God-Level Martial Soul.

Innate Level 20 Soul Power—according to Xiao Xue, that meant she was certain to become a god.

Xiao Xiao didn't want to push such a terrifying figure into opposition with her and Xiao Xue.

Yet Xue Qingwu, who had lived for seven hundred thousand years, seemed not to notice Xiao Xiao's jealousy at all. She called her "Xiao Xue" over and over, with great affection.

Xiao Xiao and Xue Yuheng had both gotten the wrong idea. For now, Xue Qingwu's feelings for Xiao Xue were mostly familial.

During the hundred years of the Snow Empress's Heart Tribulation illusion, Xue Qingwu had always seen Xue Yuheng as family.

In her heart, the very idea of a romantic partner seemed not to exist.

She had been alone for seven hundred thousand years.

"So, Xiao Xue, which academy do you want me to attend?" Xue Qingwu asked.

"Tianzheng Academy, in the Heaven Dou Empire, northeast of the Star Dou Forest." Xue Yuheng's answer came as a surprise.

Xiao Xiao lowered her head even further, feeling miserable. She'd thought that "going to Tianzheng Academy" was a secret that belonged to her and Xue Yuheng alone.

Xiao Xiao remembered Nan Qiuqiu's words: "Men are all pigs." She couldn't help but snort with laughter.

Xue Yuheng looked puzzled. "What's wrong, Xiao Xiao?"

Blushing, Xiao Xiao shook her head. "Nothing. I choked on my soy milk."

Xue Qingwu was a little puzzled, too. By rights, Xue Yuheng should have recommended Douling Royal Academy, but she didn't object.

For Xue Qingwu, it made no difference which academy she attended to get an "official" identity.

There was no one on the continent who could teach her.

After breakfast, Xiao Xiao took Xue Qingwu around Dragon City. Strangely enough, the latter seemed even more familiar with the city than she was.

Meanwhile, Xue Yuheng went to Nan Qiuqiu's training room to help her evolve her Martial Soul.

With the Dragon Blood Fruit as the core ingredient, along with the help of numerous treasures,

Nan Shuishui's Rouge Dragon Martial Soul successfully evolved into the first Dragon of Annihilation ever to appear on the continent.

It was a quasi-God-level Martial Soul, and no tribulation descended.

Nan Qiuqiu's Innate Soul Power also rose from Level 9 to Level 15.

This gave Xue Yuheng a clearer understanding of the Martial Soul talent tiers described in the Wordless Heavenly Book.

There was a quasi-God level between the demigod and God levels.

"Qiuqiu, how do you feel? Confident you can beat Yu Tianlong?" Xue Yuheng kneaded Nan Qiuqiu's shoulders. She was nine, the same age as Xu Sanshi, so calling her "big sister" wasn't unreasonable.

Nan Qiuqiu took her match against Yu Tianlong tomorrow very seriously.

The honor of the Earth Dragon Gate was at stake.

Before, Yu Tianlong had been a formidable rival her own age.

After her Martial Soul evolved, Nan Qiuqiu couldn't help wondering if she was bullying a little kid.

Her two Hundred-Year Soul Rings had evolved to a quality of one thousand and three thousand years.

Her Soul Power had risen from Level 21 to Level 30.

The Dragon of Annihilation had an inherent annihilation attribute. Its attack power was more than ten times that of the Rouge Dragon, and it also had the absurdly tough physique of a quasi-God-level Martial Soul.

They both had dragon-type Martial Souls, yet Nan Shuishui could even feel the pressure her daughter exerted on her.

If even a high-ranking Soul Douluo was affected, what chance did Yu Tianlong, a mere Soul Grandmaster, have?

This wasn't an adult bullying a child. It was Tyson bullying a child.

"Beating Yu Tianlong is no big deal.

"Maybe I should challenge one of the experts from Hidden Dragon Hall," Nan Qiuqiu said, lifting her chin.

Hidden Dragon Hall was similar to the Dou Ling Empire's Elite Hall. It was where the geniuses of the Heavenly Dragon Gate gathered.

"Ahem. I don't think that's necessary. Let's keep a low profile. You don't want my Martial Soul Evolution Ancient Method getting discovered, do you?" Xue Yuheng said awkwardly.

Xiao Xiao's Martial Soul Evolution still needed one last piece of Dragon Clan Essence. If he took Nan Qiuqiu to challenge the Hidden Dragon Hall elites now, it would offend the Heavenly Dragon Gate.

That could make it harder to borrow what they needed.

The Earth Dragon Gate had similar treasures, but none met the Wordless Heavenly Book's standards.

The book's requirements for Xiao Xiao's dragon attribute were extremely strict. Even the Earth Dragon Gate's seventy-thousand-year-old dragon Soul Bone was useless.

Xue Yuheng believed that with his "ancient method" of Martial Soul Evolution, their trip to the Heavenly Dragon Gate would succeed.

Earth Dragon Gate, the training arena.

The sun was setting. There were two people in the arena and three below it.

Nan Qiuqiu and Xue Qingwu were facing off, while Xue Yuheng, Xiao Xiao, and Nan Shuishui watched.

After hearing that Nan Qiuqiu had evolved into a quasi-God-level Martial Soul, Xue Qingwu had felt a little eager to fight.

"Xiao Xue, who do you think will win?" Xiao Xiao asked, wrapping her arms around Xue Yuheng's.

"Xue... Qingwu."

Ahem. Xue Yuheng had nearly let the name slip.

Xiao Xiao gave a little "oh." What was that? So confident, he couldn't even pretend to think it over... The Snow Empress really mattered that much to him, huh? Bad Xiao Xue... Bad Xiao Xue...

At that moment, Xiao Xiao desperately hoped Nan Qiuqiu would win.

Unfortunately, she knew how terrifying the seventy-thousand-year-old human-shaped monster was. Perhaps only Xiao Xiao, using "Goddess Transformation," could match her.

Wait... They both had God-Level Martial Souls. Could the Goddess of Ice and Snow have an awakened talent skill, too?

Xiao Xiao looked at the graceful figure on the arena, lost in thought.

Hearing Xue Yuheng's answer, Nan Shuishui, as Nan Qiuqiu's mother, wasn't too pleased.

Her daughter had always been a genius among her peers, and now she had a quasi-God-level Martial Soul. Even Nan Shuishui, an eighty-eighth-level Soul Douluo, felt intense pressure from the Dragon of Annihilation.

Surely beating a six-year-old girl would be easy?

How long had the girl even had her Martial Soul? Even if she had Innate Full Soul Power, she could only be around Level 10 or so, right?

At the same level, Qiuqiu was bound to win.

Nan Shuishui had guessed correctly: Xue Qingwu and Nan Qiuqiu were indeed at the same level. Both were two-ring Soul Grandmasters.

"Careful, little sister Qingwu," Nan Qiuqiu said calmly. The next moment, her right hand, covered in black dragon scales, shot toward Xue Qingwu.

Nan Qiuqiu wanted to teach the six-year-old girl a lesson, to show her that not just anyone could challenge her.

Thud—

She went flying.

Nan Qiuqiu went flying.

The six-year-old girl she'd looked down on had knocked her flying with a single finger, using nothing but pure physical strength.

Nan Qiuqiu plowed a hundred meters across the training ground before finally scrambling to her feet, covered in dust.

"Impossible!"

"That's absolutely impossible!"

Stubbornly refusing to accept that she'd already left the arena and lost, Nan Qiuqiu again met Xue Qingwu's palm head-on.

Thud—

Nan Qiuqiu went flying again.

Xue Yuheng struggled to hold back his laughter. In truth, he had arranged for Xue Qingwu and Nan Qiuqiu to spar on purpose. He wanted Nan Qiuqiu to understand:

There was always someone stronger.

After evolving her Martial Soul, Nan Qiuqiu had gotten too full of herself.

Xue Yuheng could have stepped in himself, of course. After all, he now had a forty-thousand-year Soul Ring and was a One-Ring Soul Master.

But Xue Yuheng was just a support-type Soul Master. He'd better keep his own trump cards hidden.

He was going to give the continent's geniuses a tiny little shock.