"Yu Jie, you were a bit harsh, weren't you? That girl had only just broken through to Soul Ancestor."
Zhang Lexuan frowned, seeming displeased with what You Jie had just done.
It wasn't because there was anything wrong with her thinking. It was because Nan Qiūqiū's scream had been a little too loud.
Besides, although the Rouge Dragon Martial Soul was quite powerful thanks to its unique annihilation trait, it didn't provide its Soul Master with much of a boost to physical strength.
Since You Jie's Scrap Iron Fist had mostly been used against tough, brawny people like Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi, Zhang Lexuan was afraid he might accidentally leave someone else seriously injured.
"Don't worry, Sister Lexuan. I didn't put in any extra force, and I didn't even use my second Soul Skill.
"She screamed loudly, but the worst she suffered was a few scrapes and bruises."
You Jie naturally knew something about the Rouge Dragon Martial Soul's traits, but all those flashy abilities were still useless against the Scrap Iron Fist.
So this time, You Jie hadn't used his second Soul Skill to imprint another Scrap Iron Fist and increase his damage. Only dark duelists too low-class to fight in the open would beat an innocent person half to death during a friendly spar.
Sure enough, although Nan Qiūqiū had screamed particularly loudly, once Yu Tianlong helped her up, Nan Shuishui and Zhang Lexuan confirmed that she had only suffered a few scrapes and bruises.
That only made everyone else even more curious about You Jie.
The elders weren't curious enough to ignore Mu En, an old senior, and question You Jie directly. But Yu Tianlong had no such qualms. He excitedly slapped You Jie on the shoulder and asked outright:
"Hey, You Jie, what exactly is your Martial Soul? How can you use simple addition to strengthen your summons? And can it summon a Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon?"
"First, just call me by my name. Don't call me You Jie-boy.
"Second, it's not simple arithmetic like three plus two equals five. It's a special method called Synchronization, and it can only be performed when certain conditions are met.
"Third, I can't summon a Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon for now, since Pegasus hasn't printed one. But if it's a dragon, I can Synchronize it."
Faced with Yu Tianlong's obviously fervent expression, You Jie looked a little flustered. But he knew Yu Tianlong meant no harm, so he corrected him.
The nickname "You Jie-boy" always made You Jie feel as if they weren't talking about him, but some streamer whose computer-selling business had triggered a chain collapse.
"Then summon one and show us! This is Dragon City!"
Nan Qiūqiū's sudden interjection left You Jie confused. What did those two things have to do with each other?
Besides, the lowest-ranked dragon he planned to Synchronize was the Crimson Ascending Dragon. Summoning it would make quite a commotion. The Scrap Iron Fist had caused a fair bit of noise, too, but that could be explained away with knowledge of its reasonable limits. At least the Split Warrior looked pretty human.
But summoning the Crimson Ascending Dragon in Dragon City, with so many people around, would be a bad idea.
In a sense, it would only make trouble for the Heavenly Dragon Gate.
Before You Jie could speak, though, Nan Shuishui scolded Nan Qiūqiū first:
"Qiūqiū, don't make a scene!"
She didn't explain why, but a mother's authority was enough to make Nan Qiūqiū settle down again.
Only then did You Jie get a chance to speak:
"It's not that I can't summon dragons. It's just that they're all extremely powerful, and summoning them would make quite a commotion.
"Dragon City is crowded, and there are all sorts of people around. If I summoned one here, I might cause trouble for both your Heavenly Dragon Gate and Earth Dragon Gate.
"But if we get the chance in the future, I'll make sure you get a good look."
Only then did Nan Qiūqiū realize her mistake. She quickly apologized to You Jie and Yu Tianlong.
Business at the Earth Dragon Gate had improved a lot lately, but its members had also become much busier. And since they had to help the Heavenly Dragon Gate maintain order in the city, more of them had been getting injured.
That left Nan Qiūqiū with mixed feelings about the rumor that had spread from the Far North.
If her momentary impulse caused trouble for both the Heavenly Dragon Gate and the Earth Dragon Gate, she'd become the very person she hated most.
Meanwhile, after hearing Mu En reveal the "truth" behind the rumor about the Far North, Yu Luoguan, the sect master of the Heavenly Dragon Gate, Supreme Elder Yu Yuanqing, and Nan Shuishui, the sect master of the Earth Dragon Gate, all breathed a sigh of relief.
A secret realm that only Limit Douluos with Extreme Ice attributes might be able to enter wasn't something they could afford to reach for.
Now they could stay in Dragon City and quietly make their fortunes without worrying that someone else might get there first and seize the benefits.
Of course, they wouldn't spread this information. For one thing, it could affect their business. For another, it might invite all kinds of needless gossip, such as:
"The Heavenly Dragon Gate and Earth Dragon Gate made up lies so they could hog the benefits of the Far North. They deserve to die."
Meanwhile, in a snow cave somewhere in the Far North, hidden so completely that no Soul Beast could find it, Huo Yuhao was enduring the painful fusion of Ice Empress's power.
He still cried out in agony, but inside the snow cave Ice Empress had painstakingly dug, his voice could barely escape. The surrounding snow gradually swallowed it whole.
Although he didn't have the secret technique and Soul Bone from the original story to help him, Ice Empress was in poor condition. When she fused with Huo Yuhao, she was less violent than she otherwise would have been, so his suffering wasn't much worse.
Besides, whenever the pain threatened to shatter his mind, he thought not only of his mother's last words, but also of all the little things he had experienced over the past year, ever since entering the Star Dou Great Forest.
"Big Brother You Jie, Vice Dean Qian...
"For the kindness you've shown me, I have to keep going!"
As that thought crossed his mind, Huo Yuhao's inner strength erupted, transforming into an indescribable force that rapidly repaired his Sea of Consciousness.
That left Sky Dream Ice Silkworm and Ice Empress stunned.
They could understand his determination to avenge his mother, but they couldn't yet understand how the help those two humans had given Huo Yuhao could unleash such powerful strength of will.
"But that kid called You Jie really is strange. He can even summon terrifying dragons that scared Di Tian away...
"Looks like we'll have to make sure Yu Hao clings tightly to You Jie's coattails."
"What? A human who can summon dragons? Tian Meng, are you joking?"
Before you continue