Xiao Xiao's little face flushed. Standing by the bed, she twisted the hem of her shirt between her fingers and hesitated for a moment before bending down to take off her small cloth shoes.
Xiao Xiao's feet were tiny, the tops of them fair and tender, glimmering faintly in the sunlight filtering through the curtains. Her toes were round and cute, and looked even fairer against the dark bedsheets.
She climbed onto the bed carefully and knelt across from Tang An, unsure what to do with her hands and feet.
Tang An looked away, took a booklet from his robes, and handed it to her with a grin.
"Don't be nervous. I'm not going to eat you. You have Twin Martial Souls: the Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldron and the Nine-Phoenix Flute. They're both top-tier tool Martial Souls. This is an improved version of the Tang Sect's Mysterious Heaven Skill, adjusted to suit your Martial Souls. Read through it first, and ask me if anything's unclear."
Xiao Xiao took the booklet, her fingers trembling slightly.
Twin Martial Souls were her biggest secret. Apart from the teacher who had tested her when her Martial Souls awakened, almost no one knew.
Yet this boy had said it as casually as if it were common knowledge—and even knew the exact names of both her Martial Souls.
Xiao Xiao suppressed her shock and opened the booklet, reading carefully. When she came across something she didn't understand, she asked him about it in a quiet voice.
Tang An explained each point, getting straight to the heart of the matter. From time to time, he used his finger to trace a couple of lines in the booklet.
"Reading it isn't enough." Tang An closed the booklet and leaned back against the headboard. "Try circulating the first layer. I'll watch and correct you if anything goes wrong."
Xiao Xiao nodded, closed her eyes, and circulated her Soul Power along the routes laid out in the skill.
The first few cycles felt a little awkward, and Tang An occasionally offered a word of guidance. "Slow down. Guide the energy through the Governing Vessel. Don't rush the breakthrough."
But as she grew more adept at the skill, warm Soul Power flowed through her meridians, and a faint green glow appeared around Xiao Xiao.
In Tang An's Sea of Consciousness, the Immortal Scythe and the Crimson Annihilation Hammer trembled softly at the same time.
A strange resonance spread along with the Soul Power. Behind Xiao Xiao, the phantom of the Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldron appeared without warning, its body trembling with a faint hum.
Tang An raised an eyebrow. Another resonance from a Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
Just like what had happened with Tang Ya's Dark Blue Silver Grass, his Martial Soul Origin was resonating with Xiao Xiao's Twin Martial Souls.
Tang An tentatively sent his Soul Power into Xiao Xiao. The energy instinctively entwined itself with her Soul Power, and the surrounding energy of heaven and earth surged toward them as if drawn by a whirlpool.
Xiao Xiao shivered all over. She felt as though she were soaking in a hot spring, so comfortable that she nearly let out a moan. In a daze, she leaned backward, and Tang An caught her in one arm.
"Don't get distracted. You're breaking through." Tang An's voice sounded beside her ear, so close that it made her ears burn.
Xiao Xiao bit her lower lip and sat upright again. Her fair little legs tensed unconsciously, her glistening toes curling slightly and wrinkling the bedsheet beneath them.
As the fused Soul Power circulated faster and faster through her body, Xiao Xiao could feel her Soul Power rising at a visible rate, without the slightest obstruction.
Tang An gauged his own cultivation speed. It had hardly changed; the small boost was better than nothing.
Tang An couldn't help wondering: What was this? His Soul Power could resonate with Tang Ya's Dark Blue Silver Grass, and now it could resonate with Xiao Xiao's Twin Martial Souls too. Could his Immortal Scythe and Crimson Annihilation Hammer be all-purpose tools that could fuse with anyone's Martial Soul?
After who knew how long, the Soul Power in Xiao Xiao's body suddenly jolted, and the bottleneck at level twenty-two gave way.
An unprecedented wave of relief washed over her. Xiao Xiao couldn't hold back any longer and let out a soft "Mm."
The sound was sweet and soft, especially clear in the quiet dormitory.
Xiao Xiao's eyes flew open, and she quickly covered her mouth. Her whole face was red enough to bleed. She peeked at Tang An and saw him looking at her with a half-smile.
"I... I leveled up!" Xiao Xiao blurted out, trying to cover up that embarrassing little moan with the news.
Tang An chuckled, withdrew his Soul Power, and looked her over. The skill had left the girl drenched in a thin sheen of sweat. Her bangs clung damply to her forehead, and a small patch on the back of her uniform had darkened with sweat.
Under Tang An's gaze, Xiao Xiao felt terribly self-conscious. She tugged at the clothes sticking to her and lowered her head, embarrassed.
"The bathroom's over there," Tang An said, nodding toward it. "You can take a bath here, if you don't mind."
Xiao Xiao's face turned bright red. But she really did feel sticky and uncomfortable, so after hesitating, she nodded and hurried into the bathroom.
The water ran for a long time before stopping. Then the bathroom fell quiet for a while—an oddly long while.
Tang An leaned against the headboard, flipping through the booklet, when he heard the bathroom door open a tiny crack.
"Um... Tang An..." Xiao Xiao peered out through the gap, just half her head showing. Her wet hair clung to her cheeks, and her face was bright red. Her voice was as faint as a mosquito's. "I... I forgot to bring clothes."
Tang An glanced at the uniform draped over the chair. It was already soaked through.
He got up, took a clean dress from the wardrobe—one of Huo Yutong's spare outfits—and walked to the bathroom door, passing it through the gap.
Xiao Xiao took the clothes, and the door shut in a flash.
A moment later, the door opened.
Xiao Xiao came out of the bathroom wearing Huo Yutong's dress. It was a little small on her; the hem fell just below her knees, though the waist fit snugly, outlining her slender figure.
Her skin, freshly washed in hot water, was rosy against its fair complexion, as if the steam had warmed it through. She seemed softer than usual, in a way that was hard to describe.
Xiao Xiao padded across the floor barefoot, a few drops of water still sparkling on the tops of her feet beneath the light.
As she dried her hair with a towel, Xiao Xiao looked down at the dress with puzzlement and couldn't help asking, "Tang An, why do you have girls' clothes in the boys' dormitory?"
Before she could finish, someone suddenly pushed open the dormitory door.
Huo Yutong stepped inside, looking tired from an afternoon of training in the Soul Guidance Department. Her gray-blue short hair was a little tousled.
Huo Yutong had been about to call, "Brother Tang An, I'm back," when her gaze landed on the girl standing in the middle of the room.
Xiao Xiao was wearing her dress, her long hair hanging damply around her shoulders. She looked soft and sweet, clearly fresh from a bath.
Huo Yutong froze in place. Her lips moved, and her eyes grew slightly red.
Looking at the expression on Huo Yutong's face, Tang An couldn't help laughing. "Yutong, explain to her why there are girls' clothes in the boys' dormitory."
Huo Yutong froze for a moment. Then she forced the redness from her eyes, took a deep breath, and looked at Tang An's calm expression, then at Xiao Xiao's curious gaze. Suddenly, the grievance she'd felt a moment ago seemed to have come from nowhere.
She turned and shut the door. After taking a deep breath, she walked to the middle of the room and untied the band holding her hair. Her gray-blue short hair fell loose. Then she took off her outer garment, revealing the underlayer beneath and the unmistakable contours of a girl's figure.
"Xiao Xiao," Huo Yutong said, her voice gentler than usual.
"The truth is, I'm a girl. My name is Huo Yutong. I dressed as a boy for convenience, and after entering the academy, I never got around to changing back. I didn't mean to deceive you."
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