Three days later.
A luxurious caravan rolled slowly along the official road leading to Skywater City.
The leading carriage bore the crest of the Heaven Dou Imperial Family.
Inside the carriage.
A young man dressed in fine clothes sat upright. His face was handsome as jade, his bearing gentle and refined, and his deep eyes calm and serene. He was none other than Xue Qinghe, Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire.
Across from him sat a tall young man with an arrogant expression.
"Your Highness,"
the young man began, his tone tinged with disdain.
"I think this friendly match is completely unnecessary."
"Among the Five Elements Academy, the Skywater Team has always been mediocre. We've faced them so many times, and when haven't we won with ease?"
"I really don't see what there is to compete over."
This was Yu Tianheng, captain of the Heaven Dou Royal Team and a heaven-blessed prodigy of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
At his words, Xue Qinghe only smiled faintly and said nothing.
Beside Yu Tianheng sat a graceful young woman with striking features.
She was the team's vice-captain, Dugu Yan, whose Martial Soul was the Jade Phosphorous Serpent.
Dugu Yan ignored Yu Tianheng and turned her gaze toward a quiet girl sitting in the corner of the carriage.
"Lingling, what do you think?"
The girl he called Lingling had been resting with her eyes closed. Only after hearing Dugu Yan's question did she slowly open them.
She was exceptionally beautiful, but had a cool, distant air that kept people at arm's length. She was none other than Ye Lingling, the team's only support-type Soul Master.
As a core member of the team and Dugu Yan's close friend, Ye Lingling's words carried considerable weight.
"If the Skywater Team were as it usually is, we should be able to defeat them easily."
Ye Lingling's voice was as cool and clear as her manner.
"But don't underestimate their new captain."
"Lan."
"If he weren't strong enough, Skywater Academy wouldn't have made an exception to recruit a male student, much less appointed him captain right away."
She paused, her gaze flicking almost imperceptibly toward Xue Qinghe across from them.
"His Highness agreed to this friendly match for a reason. I imagine that reason is this Lan."
After hearing Ye Lingling's words, Yu Tianheng scoffed.
"He's just some kid who popped up out of nowhere."
He clenched his fist, his knuckles cracking as purple arcs of electricity danced across his fingertips.
"I don't care if his name is Lan or Raging Waves!"
"If he dares stand in front of me, he'll be groveling at the feet of my Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon!"
As a direct descendant of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, one of the Upper Three Sects, Yu Tianheng had every reason to be proud.
After speaking, his arrogant expression changed in an instant. He turned to Dugu Yan and put on a fawning smile.
"Yan Yan, just you wait."
"Watch how I deal with those girls."
Dugu Yan rolled her eyes at him without a word, then turned to look out the window.
The carriage fell silent again.
Xue Qinghe lifted his teacup and took a light sip, gazing through the window at the city standing amid its lakes and mountains in the distance.
His eyes were utterly calm, without a ripple.
But no one knew what lay beneath his gentle, jade-like exterior.
Skywater Academy, lakeside.
The morning mist had yet to fully lift, draping this shimmering expanse of water in a thin veil.
Lan stood at the front of the group with his hands behind his back. Shui Bing'er, Shui Yue'er, and the other members of the Skywater Team stood behind him.
The girls' lively chatter rose behind him, only to be shut out by the aura around him that kept others at a distance.
His gaze rested calmly on the academy gates in the distance.
Before long, a luxurious caravan appeared at the end of the official road and rolled slowly toward them.
The caravan came to a halt in front of the academy.
A servant respectfully opened the carriage door.
A foot emerged first: a finely crafted white boot, embroidered with intricate patterns in gold thread.
Then a figure stepped out of the carriage.
The newcomer wore a luxurious moon-white robe. He was tall and straight, handsome as jade, with a gentle and refined bearing, like a fine piece of warm jade.
He simply stood there, yet an unmistakable air of nobility radiated from him.
He was none other than Xue Qinghe, Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire.
Yu Tianheng, Dugu Yan, and the others followed him out of the carriage, casting challenging looks at the Skywater Team.
Xue Qinghe's gaze passed over everyone and settled directly on the young man at the front of the group.
He walked over with an amiable smile.
"You must be Lan, the new captain of the Skywater Team, right?"
Xue Qinghe's voice was as warm and pleasant as his manner, like a spring breeze.
Lan raised his eyes.
Their gazes met.
So this is... my older sister, Qian Renxue?
A voice stirred softly in Lan's heart.
It was their first time meeting, and the other person was dressed as a man, yet the stirring deep in his blood could not lie.
It was an indescribable sense of closeness, as if he had slept for eighteen years beneath the snows of the Far North, only to be awakened at last in this moment.
At the same time,
a storm surged through Xue Qinghe's heart as well.
The instant he saw Lan, a strange familiarity coursed through his limbs like an electric current.
Why?
I've never met this person before.
So why is my blood stirring?
Who... is he?
Xue Qinghe's thoughts churned, but his face still wore that flawless, gentle smile.
He walked up to Lan and casually reached out to pat him on the shoulder.
"Lan, I'm a few years older than you. If you don't mind, you can call me Brother Xue from now on."
Lan's gaze flickered as he looked at the extraordinarily handsome face before him. His throat bobbed.
"Sure, Brother... Xue."
He reached out and took Xue Qinghe's hand, which was still extended between them.
The moment their hands touched, Lan's nostrils twitched slightly.
His sense of smell, rivaling that of a deep-sea shark, picked up a faint but unmistakable fragrance.
"Brother Xue,"
Lan said in a flat voice that gave nothing away.
"Why do you have a natural body fragrance?"
The moment he said it, the surroundings fell silent.
Shui Bing'er, Shui Yue'er, and the others looked at Lan strangely.
Yu Tianheng nearly burst out laughing.
Xue Qinghe's heart gave a sudden jolt.
A hint of panic flashed deep in his eyes, almost impossible to detect, but he quickly concealed it perfectly.
He withdrew his hand calmly and smiled as if nothing were amiss.
"Brother Lan, you're joking."
"I'm a grown man. How could I have a natural body fragrance?"
"It must be the floral perfume I put on before I left. It's made using a secret method from over a thousand flowers and herbs that are a thousand years old, so the scent is a little unusual."
Lan looked at him without a word. His deep eyes seemed capable of seeing through everything.
Perfume?
Lan understood.
The perfume's scent only lingered on the surface. Beneath it was, unmistakably, the delicate, clean fragrance natural to a woman.
A very good disguise.
The disguise was so convincing that even a Titled Douluo might not notice it at close range.
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