The last rays of the setting sun spilled across the land like molten gold, draping Shrek Academy in a gauzy veil.
In the distance, several figures streaked across the sky, drawing closer until they finally landed steadily in the plaza before Sea God Pavilion.
They were Wang Dong and her two companions, returning from their Soul Hunting expedition under Xuan Zi's personal escort.
For Xiao Xiao, this trip to Star Dou Forest had been nothing short of a complete transformation.
Thanks to Xuan Zi's precise judgment and thunderous action, a rare Soul Beast sleeping deep in a swamp—
the five-thousand-year Ancient Cauldron Beast—had become Xiao Xiao's target.
In the end, Xuan Zi himself had struck, settling the matter with a single blow.
This Soul Ring also allowed Xiao Xiao to successfully complete the Second Trial of the Eight Trials of Goodness.
As a reward, the age of her fourth Soul Ring had increased by three thousand years, and she had obtained a clue to a Soul Beast suitable for her fifth Soul Ring.
Afterward, she had received the contents of the Third Trial:
To forge her own First-Word Battle Armor at the Soul King level.
After briefly saying goodbye to her companions, Wang Dong hurried toward Ji Jing's private residence on Sea God Island, her heart full of longing.
During their days apart, her yearning had grown wildly in her heart like creeping vines.
Especially in the lulls between battles during the Soul Hunting expedition, his image would keep appearing in her mind, no matter how hard she tried to stop it.
She gently pushed open the ajar door and immediately spotted the figure she had been dreaming of.
Ji Jing sat quietly on the sofa in the living room, seemingly resting with his eyes closed. The setting sun