Oscar looked utterly dejected.
He couldn't accept that the once charming and adorable little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had become like this.
"She's no longer our partner."
Dai Mubai's voice was hard.
"From the moment she betrayed Shrek, she stopped being one."
"Seven days from now, we're going to win!"
He clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white.
"We'll show everyone who the number-one academy on Douluo Continent really is!"
"Damn right! Let's beat the hell out of them!"
Ma Hongjun said viciously.
Tang San alone remained silent.
Two images kept replaying in his mind.
One was Chen Xuan's casual remark, which had made his Blue Silver Domain collapse completely.
The other was the blue-dressed woman, who had stirred something deep in his soul.
Blue Silver Academy... Chen Xuan...
And that woman...
Tang San disappeared around the corner at the academy gate.
Inside the bamboo house, after Ning Rongrong and Dugu Yan respectfully took their leave, only Chen Xuan and Ah Yin remained.
Ning Rongrong and Dugu Yan walked side by side along a flagstone path. Blue Silver Grass swayed around them, and the air was filled with a refreshing fragrance.
"Senior Sister, were you really confident just now?"
Ning Rongrong asked softly. She was referring to Dugu Yan taking it upon herself to accept the teacher's challenge.
"Confident?"
A cold smile played at the corner of Dugu Yan's mouth.
"Why would I need confidence to deal with a few ignorant brats?"
She paused, a sharp glint flashing in her emerald eyes.
"I just thought that our teacher... didn't seem to want to."
"So it's only fitting that we, his disciples, step forward."
Ning Rongrong nodded thoughtfully.
"True. We can't presume to understand what the teacher is thinking."
She recalled the unfathomable methods her teacher had displayed when she first joined the academy, and felt an even deeper reverence.
"But even with Leng Leng, there are only three of us."
Ning Rongrong raised a practical concern.
"They have five people, and they work together seamlessly."
"As for people..."
Dugu Yan stopped and looked toward Heaven Dou City, her expression haughty.
"Didn't the teacher say we could just find two?"
"In a city as vast as Heaven Dou, how hard could it be to find two capable and obedient Soul Masters?"
"Come on, junior sister. Accompany me to the Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena. It's time those self-proclaimed geniuses saw what a true monster looks like."
Ning Rongrong smiled.
"Of course, senior sister."
Ever since her Martial Soul Evolution, she had never gone to a place like that again.
Now it was time for the world to learn once more just how powerful the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and a disciple of Blue Silver Academy were.
The two graceful figures turned into streaks of light and vanished at the end of the academy.
Silence returned to the bamboo house.
Ah Yin sat on the Warm Jade Chair, holding a teacup in both hands. Her blue eyes still held some of the innocent wonder and curiosity of a newborn.
She could sense that both of the "senior sisters" from earlier possessed formidable power.
Especially the green-haired woman. Something terribly fearsome seemed to lie dormant within her.
"From today onward, forget the past, and forget the cultivation methods of Soul Masters."
Chen Xuan's voice brought Ah Yin's thoughts back.
Ah Yin raised her head and looked at Chen Xuan.
"Teacher?"
"You're not a Soul Master. You're the Blue Silver Emperor."
Chen Xuan walked to the window and stood with his hands behind his back, gazing out at the boundless sea of Blue Silver Grass.
"Soul Masters cultivate by absorbing the power of Soul Beasts and making it their own. But you were born an emperor. Your power comes from this land, and from every strand of Blue Silver Grass in the world."
His voice was calm, yet it seemed to hold some profound truth.
"Close your eyes," Chen Xuan said.
Ah Yin obediently closed her eyes.
"Don't circulate your Soul Power. Don't think about Soul Skills. Use your heart to feel."
"Feel the earth beneath your feet, feel the breathing of this bamboo house, feel... your subjects outside."
Ah Yin's eyelashes trembled slightly.
She held her breath and immersed all her attention in her senses.
At first, the world was pitch-black and utterly silent.
Gradually, a faint pulse came from deep beneath the earth.
"Thump... thump... thump..."
The pulse was steady and powerful, like the earth drawing breath.
Then countless faint emotions, full of joy and affection, surged toward her from every direction like a rising tide, gently enveloping her.
It was... Blue Silver Grass!
Each strand of Blue Silver Grass had its own consciousness, yet through some wondrous connection, they formed an immense collective mind.
And she was the core of that collective.
Their empress.
"Can you feel it?"
Chen Xuan's voice seemed to ring out from the depths of her soul.
"Mm."
Ah Yin answered softly, her voice trembling slightly.
The feeling was so wondrous, as if in an instant she had gained billions of clones, spread across every corner of the academy.
"They're calling to you. They're cheering for you."
"Now, answer them."
Chen Xuan raised his hand and touched a finger to Ah Yin's brow.
"Hum!"
A pure, immense tide of life energy surged into Ah Yin, like a flood bursting through a dam, instantly connecting her with the entire sea of Blue Silver Grass.
Ah Yin's body shuddered. Her long, silky blue hair stirred in a windless room.
She abruptly opened her eyes.
At that moment, every strand of Blue Silver Grass throughout Blue Silver Academy seemed to have been given a soul!
They were no longer ordinary plants swaying in the breeze, but soldiers trained to perfection.
They rose and fell in perfect unison with Ah Yin's breathing, sending wave after wave of emerald-green ripples across the grounds.
Then, under Ah Yin's astonished gaze, countless strands of Blue Silver Grass began growing wildly, sending out new vines and blooming into clusters of crystalline blue flowers.
The rich aura of life turned into a visible pale-green mist, swirling around the entire bamboo house.
"This..."
Ah Yin held out her hand and stared at the emerald-green drop that had appeared in her palm. Feeling the surging vitality within it, she was too stunned to speak.
"This is your power."
Chen Xuan withdrew his finger, his tone indifferent.
"You have a far deeper command of the domain than that boy named Tang San. He merely borrowed the domain's power, while you are the domain itself."
"Wherever there is Blue Silver Grass, it is your kingdom."
Ah Yin looked at Chen Xuan, her blue eyes full of gratitude and admiration.
This teacher was opening a door for her to an entirely new world.
Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena.
It was always one of the liveliest places in Heaven Dou City. Shouts, roars, and the clashing of metal mingled into a blazing wave of sound that surged straight into the sky.
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