Hearing the childlike voice, Ning Yurong instinctively froze. Then, a helpless look appeared on her exquisite, breathtakingly beautiful face, which radiated nobility.
She turned her head toward the direction the voice had come from.
"Grandpa Guang, you're being naughty again, aren't you..."
"Father told you not to eavesdrop on my conversations with other people..."
As her words fell, in the place Ning Yurong was watching, within the artificial green forest outside Nine Treasures City—
A white-haired little boy, covered head to toe in leaves and trying to hide himself among the greenery, emerged from the forest. He was even slightly shorter than Ning Yurong.
And he was Guang Yan, one of the two guardian Douluo of the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect—a level-94 control-type Titled Douluo.
Raising his brows, Guang Yan stepped out of the bushes, planted his hands on his hips, and lifted his head. With an amused smile at the corners of his lips, he argued shamelessly.
"Hey! What do you mean, eavesdropping? I was openly lying in the grass listening. And call me big brother—I'm not old at all, okay!"
Looking at Guang Yan, who resembled an old mischievous child in both personality and appearance,
Ning Yurong had nothing to say. She could only sigh helplessly.
"Grandpa Guang, why are you here?"
At that, the playful frivolity on Guang Yan's face receded considerably, and he grew serious.
"Your father sensed that the Soul Emperor protecting you had run into trouble. He was already planning to send me out to look for you, but who would've thought I'd run into you at the city gate?"
"Come on, come back with me. You can explain everything to your father yourself."
Ning Yurong nodded and said nothing more. She let Guang Yan approach and take hold of her wrist.
The next moment, a flash of golden light flickered at the spot, and Ning Yurong and Guang Yan vanished from the city gate...
The Nine Treasures Glazed Sect was located within Nine Treasures City. Nine Treasures City was divided into inner and outer cities, with ordinary people living in the outer city.
Only soul masters lived in the inner city, which was also where the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect truly resided.
At that moment, within the majestic architectural complex of the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect, a golden streak of light was flashing rapidly.
It was Guang Yan, returning with Ning Yurong. However, Guang Yan did not take her toward the sect's main hall.
Instead, he carried her straight toward one of the two green peaks behind the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect.
This was a place the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect had built for its guardian Douluo to cultivate in seclusion.
Aside from the guardian Douluo themselves, almost no one usually set foot here. Even the sect master of the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect needed permission to enter.
As for other unrelated people, they would not even have the chance to approach Douluo Peak.
Yet now, Guang Yan deliberately brought Ning Yurong straight to the summit of this green peak without deviating in the slightest.
A plain, humble little courtyard stood there. Apart from the lack of farmland, it looked utterly indistinguishable from an ordinary farmstead.
After landing, Guang Yan gazed at the farmyard before him, flicked a golden streak in his bangs aside, and tucked it back into his pale hair.
On his childish face, no different from that of an eight- or nine-year-old, an amused smile appeared once more.
He patted Ning Yurong on the shoulder. "Go on. Your father's waiting for you. I have something to do, so I'll be going."
With that, Guang Yan did not linger. Before Ning Yurong could react, he transformed once more into a streak of golden light shooting into the sky and disappeared into the horizon.
Seeing this, Ning Yurong merely rubbed her forehead helplessly. Guang Yan had always been like this.
Rubbing his brow, Ning Yurong put Guang Yan out of his mind and headed toward the modest courtyard.
As she entered the courtyard, a fresh and elegant fragrance of tea wafted toward her.
Following the scent, she looked over—
A middle-aged man in blue robes with ink-black hair sat before a stone table, calmly brewing tea. His figure was as upright as a sword, his brows sharp and his eyes bright, yet the aura around him was gentle and refined.
Seeming to notice Ning Yurong's gaze, the middle-aged man smiled faintly. He poured a cup of tea, placed it in the empty spot on the stone table, and said, "Come, Yurong. Tell your father what happened to you."
His voice was like the first breeze of spring—gentle and delicate, yet soothing to the heart, without the slightest trace of airs.
Seeing this, Ning Yurong's eyes reddened slightly. In front of outsiders, she always maintained an aloof, otherworldly, and composed demeanor.
But now, facing this middle-aged man—her father, Ye Pi'an, a level-98 Super Douluo—she could no longer keep pretending.
Her eyes rimmed crimson, Ning Yurong walked up to Ye Pi'an. She did not burst into tears or put on a dramatic display.
She grabbed Ye Pi'an's blue robe and gently buried her little face against his chest. Her delicate body trembled uncontrollably.
Seeing Ning Yurong like this, Ye Pi'an's gaze darkened. He said nothing, merely stroking her silver-gray hair and silently comforting her.
This child had always been mature beyond her years. Even in front of him, she rarely lost control.
But now...
Feeling the warmth of tears soaking his clothes, Ye Pi'an closed his eyes. He said nothing, waiting for Ning Yurong to speak on her own.
After a while, having vented her emotions, Ning Yurong rubbed her face against Ye Pi'an's chest and said hoarsely,
"Father, it happened like this..."
Ning Yurong recounted everything that had happened on the journey, from beginning to end.
It turned out that she had initially only accompanied the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect's merchant caravan to Blizzard City to conduct business and gain experience.
But who could have expected that they would encounter a Four-Eyed Demon Fox halfway there, before even reaching the gates of Blizzard City, and be completely wiped out?
If not for the Soul Tool Ye Pi'an had given her protecting her, she would have already become a dead soul in the belly of that Four-Eyed Demon Fox. How could she still be standing here?
After hearing Ning Yurong describe everything—from being ambushed and rescued, to being ambushed again, and finally returning safely—
Ye Pi'an's emotions had gone through a roller coaster from beginning to end.
If he had not seen Ning Yurong standing safely before him, he might have felt compelled to wipe out the entire Four-Eyed Demon Fox race.
This was his youngest and most cherished daughter. If something had truly happened to her, he would not even have known how to face his deceased wife after he died.
Rubbing his brow, Ye Pi'an looked at Ning Yurong standing safely before him and tugged at the corner of his mouth, revealing a faint smile.
"It seems our Yurong was able to return thanks to that young man named Xue Mingqing."
"But... could such an exceptional young hero truly exist in this world...?"
Ye Pi'an narrowed his eyes and looked at Ning Yurong before him, wanting to know whether what she had said was true.
After hearing Ning Yurong describe the entire course of events, the young Xue Mingqing naturally entered Ye Pi'an's field of vision.
And his talent was exposed as well.
His first spirit ring had been a thousand-year ring, and at the age of six, he had killed a ten-thousand-year soul beast alone.
Either feat alone would have been enough to shock the world.
With both achievements combined, it was impossible for Xue Mingqing not to attract Ye Pi'an's attention.
With such heaven-defying talent, even Ye Pi'an was momentarily uncertain whether Ning Yurong's account was true.
Meeting the faintly suspicious look from her father, Ning Yurong cast her beautiful eyes aside.
Her tone held a hint of displeasure.
"If you don't believe Yurong, Father, you can go see for yourself..."
Seeing Ning Yurong make such a displeased little expression, Ye Pi'an smiled helplessly.
He relented. "All right. In a couple of days, after preparing enough gifts, I'll take you to Shrek Academy to look for him. How does that sound?"
At that, Ning Yurong nodded, and a fleeting, barely perceptible glint of cunning flashed through her eyes...
She had exposed Xue Mingqing's talent precisely to make Ye Pi'an curious, so that he would take her to find him.
As for whether doing so would bring disaster upon Xue Mingqing, based on Ning Yurong's understanding of her father,
he would never do something like suppressing a genius. The most likely possibility was that he would try to win Xue Mingqing over and show him goodwill.
At that moment, Xue Mingqing had no idea that right after he left, Ning Yurong had exposed his talent.
However, even if he knew now, he would not have thought much of it.
That was because—
After leaving Nine Treasures City and continuing toward Shrek Academy, he ran into trouble again!
Before you continue