The White Lurking Fish-Wolf was only a little over a thousand years old.
So Shui Yue'er had no trouble absorbing it.
Before long, she had finished absorbing her third Soul Ring.
A brilliant purple Soul Ring now circled her.
When she heard that Yu Shuangbai and the others would be traveling with them to Heaven Dou City,
Shui Yue'er was overjoyed.
All the way there, she propped her chin in her hands, never once taking her eyes off Yu Shuangbai.
Snow Empress found it displeasing.
She didn't think a green little girl like Shui Yue'er posed any threat.
But the lovestruck way Shui Yue'er looked at Yu Shuangbai still rubbed Snow Empress the wrong way.
It was as if someone else were coveting what belonged to her.
Only when Shui Bing'er coldly called, "Yue'er," in a warning tone
did Shui Yue'er sheepishly withdraw her gaze.
She did, however, stop staring quite so brazenly.
Out of the corner of her eye, she still couldn't help glancing toward Yu Shuangbai.
Shui Rou'er could only sigh inwardly.
Her good student Shui Bing'er had shown an uncharacteristic boldness because of Yu Shuangbai.
And her mischievous student Shui Yue'er was even worse; she looked as if she wanted to glue her eyes to him.
Shui Rou'er glanced at Yu Shuangbai, who was gazing at the scenery slipping past outside the carriage. His jawline was sharp and chiseled, his nose straight.
Even Shui Rou'er, a beautiful middle-aged woman, had to admit that she'd never seen a boy so handsome.
She couldn't help sighing to herself:
A handsome face, a ruinous curse!
Though each of them had different thoughts on their minds,
the journey remained peaceful enough.
From time to time, Shui Bing'er would find a topic of conversation and subtly probe for more details about Yu Shuangbai, satisfying her curiosity.
She thought she was being discreet with her indirect questions.
But Shui Rou'er saw the understanding in Yu Shuangbai's eyes as clear as day.
She let out a quiet sigh.
Silly girl. He knows perfectly well what you're doing; he just hasn't called you out on it.
The carriage raced onward.
The horses pulling Shui Rou'er and the others' carriage were no ordinary steeds.
They were century-old Red Horse Soul Beasts, a relatively docile breed.
Compared with ordinary Soul Beasts, they were far less wild.
Their stamina and speed also ranked among the best for Soul Beasts of their level.
With a great deal of labor and resources, they could be tamed into excellent mounts.
But they cost a fortune to raise, so they weren't commonly used.
Only people from certain powerful factions could afford to keep them.
With the century-old Red Horses galloping along,
the group reached Heaven Dou City in about a day.
As the imperial capital of the Heaven Dou Empire,
Heaven Dou City was, without dispute, the empire's greatest city.
It stood alongside Star Luo City and Spirit City as one of the continent's leading metropolises.
It was a city of breathtaking prosperity.
The Heaven Dou flags on the walls snapped in the wind.
Each bore a Swan Emblem embroidered in gold thread, and whenever the breeze passed, the whole city seemed ready to spread its wings and take flight.
The city gates were wide enough for four carriages to pass through side by side.
It was the busiest time of day for merchant caravans entering the city, and the wheels rumbled over the drawbridge.
The central Imperial Avenue was almost extravagantly broad. Its jade-green flagstones shone like mirrors, reflecting the figures passing over them.
The music of flutes and strings spilled down from the upper floors of restaurants, mingling with the crisp clatter of chips tumbling over in gambling dens and the rising bids from the auction houses.
All of it blended into a roaring tide of sound, carrying the city deeper into the night.
The air around them was filled with the bustle of the crowd.
"Is this Young Master Yu's first time in Heaven Dou City?"
Shui Bing'er noticed Yu Shuangbai's subtle reaction and asked in puzzlement.
"Mm."
Yu Shuangbai lifted one corner of the carriage curtain and looked out at the scenery, nodding slightly.
This really was his first time in Heaven Dou City.
Compared with the border towns of the Far North, it was like another world.
The border towns of the Far North weren't exactly desolate, but they were certainly quiet.
Usually, the only people to be seen were the soldiers stationed there and merchants who came to buy local specialties and resell them elsewhere for a profit.
They were utterly unlike the bustling, crowded Heaven Dou Imperial City before him.
"That's all right. My sister and I have both been to Heaven Dou City before."
Shui Yue'er piped up eagerly beside them.
"We know the city well. We can show you around and help you get familiar with it, Young Master."
Shui Yue'er wasn't good at hiding her intentions.
It was plain as day that she had ulterior motives.
"Perhaps another time," Yu Shuangbai replied softly, showing little interest.
He let the curtain fall and looked away.
Yu Shuangbai was far more concerned with business than with that sort of thing.
"Dean Shui, may I ask where Heaven Dou Royal Academy is?"
"Young Master Yu, are you going to Heaven Dou Royal Academy?"
Shui Rou'er paused in surprise.
Could it really be such a coincidence?
Yu Shuangbai's destination wasn't merely Heaven Dou City. He was headed for Heaven Dou Royal Academy, just like them?
"Could it be that you're going there to enroll?"
Considering Yu Shuangbai's age, that was the only explanation Shui Rou'er could come up with.
He was indeed at the perfect age to join an advanced Soul Master academy.
Whatever its actual standards, Heaven Dou Royal Academy's reputation in the Heaven Dou Empire was undeniable.
It made sense that this "young master from a hidden family" would come there because of its fame.
For a moment, Shui Rou'er felt envious.
The current generation of core students at Heaven Dou Royal Academy was already exceptionally talented.
If a hidden prodigy like Yu Shuangbai joined them, they would surely shine at the next Continental Advanced Soul Master Tournament!
If Skywater Academy weren't a girls-only school,
Shui Rou'er might have tried to snatch him up along the way.
She had been green with envy at his peerless mastery of the ice element!
Skywater Academy had always been renowned for its ice- and water-element Soul Masters.
But across the entire academy, she couldn't find a single student whose mastery of ice could compare with Yu Shuangbai's.
Only the older generation of experts could surpass him, relying on their cultivation and years of accumulated experience.
Sometimes Shui Rou'er truly couldn't understand how Yu Shuangbai had cultivated such mastery, or what kind of terrifying talent he possessed to reach such a level at his age.
In truth, there were several reasons Yu Shuangbai had achieved such mastery.
Part of it was indeed inseparable from his talent.
His divine-grade Ice Dragon King Martial Soul meant that Yu Shuangbai was destined to progress far faster than others.
But a large part of it also came down to his education.
Skywater Academy was already the institution in the Heaven Dou Empire with the deepest understanding of ice and water elements.
Yet its strongest members were only Soul Douluo.
Ever since the Ice Dragon King Martial Soul had fully awakened, Yu Shuangbai had received personal instruction from the Ice and Snow Emperors.
How could a Soul Douluo's understanding of ice compare to that of the Ice and Snow Emperors, two Super Douluo—and even Limit Douluo—with more than a hundred thousand years of accumulated experience?
There was the difference in talent.
And then there was an educational background worlds apart from everyone else's.
Even though Yu Shuangbai had wasted nearly two years before his Ice Dragon King Martial Soul awakened, he had still surged ahead with unstoppable momentum!
With so many extraordinary factors at play, it was only natural that Shui Rou'er, an ordinary person, couldn't understand.
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