Lin Yi was speechless when he heard Shui Bing'er's words.
What does she mean, if I don't like being a Guest Elder, I can take another identity?
I don't want to get involved with you people at all, okay?
And who would believe in a Guest Elder barely over ten years old?
Besides, if I become a Guest Elder at Skywater Academy, how am I supposed to keep a low profile?
I need to think of a way...
Just as he was considering how to refuse tactfully, Xiao Wu excitedly jumped into the conversation.
"Sister Shui, does Skywater Academy really only accept female students? Wouldn't that mean it's all girls?"
Shui Bing'er nodded with a smile. "Yes. That is one of our academy's defining traits, and also our tradition."
Xiao Wu's eyes lit up as she turned to Zhu Zhuqing. "Zhuqing, what do you think?"
Zhu Zhuqing fell silent for a moment before asking softly, "How are the cultivation resources?"
Although she wanted to follow Lin Yi, what she cared about most was becoming stronger.
"Very good." Shui Yue'er answered first. More lively than Shui Bing'er, she eagerly said, "Most of our resources focus on ice and water attributes, but the other resources are excellent as well. We have everything, including Mimicry Fields..."
Zhu Zhuqing nodded thoughtfully, then asked, "Is the competition intense?"
"Of course there is competition." Shui Bing'er took over, her tone candid. "But we never engage in infighting. Skywater Academy's tradition is for sisters to stand united: competing outwardly and helping one another within."
Zhu Zhuqing's gaze shifted slightly at those words.
She thought of the open and covert struggles within the Zhu Family of the Star Luo Empire, and of the insurmountable gulf between herself and her sister.
Sisters standing united?
That phrase was far too unfamiliar to her.
Noticing the change in her expression, Xiao Wu reached out and squeezed her hand before looking at Shui Bing'er. "Sister Shui, if we join, we won't be bullied by students from other academies, right?"
Shui Bing'er smiled faintly. "At Skywater Academy, only we bully others. No one gets to bully us."
Listening from the side, Lin Yi inwardly complained again.
Listen to that. Anyone who didn't know better would think they were some kind of gang.
Still, Skywater Academy does have the confidence to say that. They've consistently made the top eight in the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament, and occasionally even reached the top four. They really aren't weak.
But you're all chatting so enthusiastically—have you considered how I feel?
I'm a man headed to Heaven Dou City to enjoy myself, not someone here to attend a girls' academy with you.
As he pondered this, Xiao Wu suddenly turned toward him with a beaming smile.
"Lin Yi, what do you think?"
Lin Yi's mouth twitched. "What am I supposed to think? You can talk among yourselves. What does it have to do with me?"
"How does it not?" Xiao Wu said matter-of-factly. "Wherever you go, we'll go."
Lin Yi said, "So?"
"So if you don't join Skywater Academy..." Xiao Wu blinked. "Then we won't go either. Think about it yourself."
Zhu Zhuqing lightly nodded beside her, showing her agreement.
Lin Yi took a deep breath.
So in the end, it still comes down to me?
But I don't want to. I just want to live quietly by myself.
He rubbed his temples, helpless. "Xiao Wu, Zhuqing, you really don't need to consider me. Skywater Academy is indeed suitable for you. Going there would benefit both of your development."
"What about you?" Xiao Wu countered.
"Me?" Lin Yi spread his hands. "I'll just find somewhere to get by. I'm an auxiliary-type Soul Master anyway. My future is probably just that, so it doesn't matter where I go."
My plan was to find a place, open a little shop, and live a peaceful life.
After all, aside from Twin Martial Souls, I don't have a cheat like Tang San's.
Hearing this, Xiao Wu secretly laughed, though she wore a serious expression. "That won't do. You're my exclusive support. How can you just drift wherever you please?"
Lin Yi looked at her speechlessly. "When did I become your exclusive support?"
"From the day you charged me up," Xiao Wu said as though it were only natural. "Look, you helped me break through my bottleneck. I have to take responsibility for you, don't I?"
Lin Yi's mouth twitched even harder.
Take responsibility for me? Why does that sound so strange?
Just as he was about to refute her, Shui Bing'er spoke.
"Classmate Lin Yi, I understand your concerns." Her tone was very sincere. "A Guest Elder in their teens is indeed rare, but not unprecedented. Skywater Academy once invited an exceptionally gifted auxiliary-type Soul Master to serve as a Guest Elder. He was only fifteen at the time."
Lin Yi froze for a moment. "Really?"
That wasn't mentioned in the original story, was it?
She must have noticed Little Rabbit's and Zhu Zhuqing's talents and wants to drag me in too.
Still, if they go to Skywater Academy, their future cultivation might yield unexpectedly good results.
Shui Bing'er was briefly stunned, then quickly reacted and said evenly, "Of course it's true. There is no reason for us to lie to you."
She paused before continuing, "If that truly won't work, you can take another identity instead. For example, you could become an unaffiliated student of the outer academy, or the personal disciple of our dean..."
Lin Yi inwardly complained again.
The dean's personal disciple?
Girl, you really have a lot of ways to keep people around, don't you?
More importantly, what ability or potential do I have to become your dean's disciple?
Just because of my Twin Martial Souls?
But without sufficient strength, if that secret gets exposed, ten lives wouldn't be enough to save me.
As he thought this over, Shui Yue'er suddenly leaned closer and asked curiously, "Classmate Lin Yi, what is your martial soul? Can you show us?"
Lin Yi looked at Xiao Wu, then Zhu Zhuqing, and finally nodded as he extended his right hand.
The Myriad Star Core appeared in his palm, its silvery-white light gently spreading outward.
"Myriad Star Core," he introduced simply. "My first soul skill, Starlight Sharing, can enhance a teammate's overall attributes. My second soul skill, Starlight Charge, can replenish a teammate's Soul Power."
Though he did not explain in great detail, it was already enough to pique the interest of everyone from Skywater Academy.
Shui Bing'er's eyes brightened slightly. "Enhance all attributes? Replenish Soul Power?"
"The effects are limited," Lin Yi hurriedly added. "The enhancement is roughly ten percent, and as for charging... it consumes a lot, so it can't be used often."
That should be low-key enough, right?
A ten-percent boost sounds decent, but at critical moments, it can actually be decisive.
And charging goes without saying. I'm basically a walking power bank.
But I can't say any of that.
Shui Bing'er nodded thoughtfully and looked at Xiao Wu. "Xiao Wu, you said earlier that Lin Yi helped you break through. You meant..."
Xiao Wu nodded, a hint of pride in her voice. "That's right. After he charged me up, my level twenty-nine bottleneck loosened, and I broke through not long afterward."
Since everyone could hear Lin Yi's Heart Voice anyway, it was no longer much of a secret. There was no harm in saying it.
Most importantly, if she did not put it that way, Lin Yi might refuse to go to Skywater Academy.
Before you continue