Deep within the Soul Hunting Forest, ancient trees towered into the sky.
Yue Shen furrowed her brows slightly. She curled and flicked the fingers of her right hand, and a halo of dark blue Soul Power rippled outward from her like water. Wherever it passed, the unpleasant stench seemed to be driven away by an invisible force.
Zhao Linchuan released his hand from his nose and mouth, took a deep breath of the now-fresh air, and muttered under his breath:
"Tsk, that Grandmaster... He really lives up to his title. Even his farts are louder and travel farther than anyone else's. We're this far away, and the smell still reached us."
He looked toward the nearby clearing, where several Nether Wolf corpses lay sprawled on the ground, their blood not yet fully congealed.
Floating above the corpses were several exceedingly faint white rings, so pale they seemed ready to vanish at any moment. Their light was so dim that they were almost impossible to make out in the shadowy forest.
"See those, Yue Shen?" Zhao Linchuan gestured toward them. "Those white rings are the 'Soul Rings' of this world. White means they're less than a hundred years old. They're the lowest grade, and the weakest in energy."
"Still, they're the main kind of Soul Ring that the vast majority of low-level Soul Masters on this continent will ever encounter and absorb in their entire lives."
Yue Shen nodded in silence. Her cool gaze lingered on the few white Soul Rings, then returned to Zhao Linchuan. Her bearing grew even more respectful, though a barely perceptible urgency crept into her voice.
"Young Master, the internal energy in my body has been completely converted into Soul Power. It flows without hindrance."
"I wonder... when may I begin acquiring a Soul Ring?"
The completed conversion of her power had only sharpened her thirst for greater strength.
"There's no rush." Zhao Linchuan's tone turned more serious. "Absorbing a Soul Ring isn't simply a matter of pouring energy into yourself."
"The maximum age of a Soul Ring you can absorb is closely tied to your physical constitution, the resilience of your meridians, and the strength of your spiritual power. Of those, physical constitution is the foundation of all foundations."
His gaze passed over Yue Shen's slender yet somewhat frail figure.
"Your Yin-Yang School's inheritance emphasizes spiritual cultivation and the strange ways of spells, while neglecting the tempering of the body itself."
"The body is like a vessel, and Soul Power and Soul Ring energy are like water."
"If the vessel itself isn't sturdy enough, or its capacity is too limited, forcing in too much 'water'—or water that's too turbulent—will only break the vessel and undo all your efforts. It may even damage your foundation."
"More importantly," Zhao Linchuan said with added emphasis, "every time you absorb a Soul Ring—especially when you absorb a high-quality one beyond your limit—it will comprehensively and profoundly temper and elevate your body!"
"That improvement is permanent, and directly determines the ceiling of your future growth."
"Imagine that your First Soul Ring is ten thousand years old, or even..."
He paused, leaving the rest unsaid, but the meaning was clear. "Then just how much would your 'vessel' be expanded and strengthened right from the start?"
"Your potential to absorb older Soul Rings later, the total amount and quality of your Soul Power, even your cultivation speed—all of it would far surpass those who started with ten- or hundred-year Soul Rings."
"One step ahead, and you're ahead at every step; one step stronger, and you're stronger at every step."
"How high you start often determines how far you can go."
A thoughtful glimmer appeared in Yue Shen's eyes.
His words were simple yet profound, and they echoed the theories she had read last night. They gave her a more fundamental understanding of the Soul Master cultivation system.
But deep down, her longing for greater power still made her tentatively ask:
"Young Master, then... if I could obtain a hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring as my First Soul Ring... wouldn't that mean...?"
She left the rest unsaid, but the fervor in her eyes said it all.
At her words, Zhao Linchuan suddenly turned and looked up at her head-on.
Because of the difference in their heights, he had to tilt his face up.
His expression was blank as he calmly uttered two words. "Bend down."
Yue Shen froze, unsure why, but she didn't refuse. She bent her knees and crouched until her eyes were level with Zhao Linchuan's.
In her cool, deep-pool eyes, she saw Zhao Linchuan's face draw near.
Then something happened that emptied her mind in an instant, as if her blood had nearly run backward!
Zhao Linchuan reached out and gently tilted her smooth chin up with his slightly immature fingers. Then, as Yue Shen's eyes widened in shock, he leaned in and kissed her!
The moment their lips touched, a strange sensation—soft and cool—passed between them.
"Mm! Y-Young Master! What... what are you doing?!" Yue Shen's mind erupted into chaos. Her cheeks turned an astonishing red before her eyes, the flush spreading all the way to her ears and neck.
Her heart pounded wildly against her chest like a runaway war drum, as if it might break free and leap out.
Her whole body stiffened. Her hands hovered helplessly in the air. She couldn't push him away, but she couldn't return the kiss either. All she could do was passively endure his sudden, brazen advance.
The kiss wasn't deep or rough; it was even gentle. Yet it shook Yue Shen to her very core.
At last, their lips parted.
Zhao Linchuan stepped back and tilted his head slightly, the tip of his tongue lightly tracing his lower lip as if savoring the taste.
Yue Shen, meanwhile, felt as if every ounce of strength had been drained from her. Her legs gave way beneath her, and she fell backward onto the ground.
She barely managed to brace herself with one hand. The other pressed unconsciously against her wildly pounding chest as she gasped for breath, trying to calm the embarrassment and turmoil threatening to burst out of her.
Her eyes, usually so cool and composed, now shimmered with tears. Their corners were red, her expression full of panic and disbelief.
It took a long while for Yue Shen's breathing to settle, though the flush on her face had yet to fade.
She didn't dare look at Zhao Linchuan again. With her head lowered, she nervously tugged at the hem of her skirt.
Zhao Linchuan broke the silence with a casual remark. "It's nothing. I just wanted to taste your lip gloss."
Yue Shen's body trembled again. She took a deep breath, forced down the tumult in her heart, and tried to make her voice sound calm and deferential.
"Y-Young Master, this subordinate... isn't wearing any lip gloss. If you'd like to try it, this subordinate... can put some on for you next time."
Even she found the words utterly absurd as soon as she'd spoken them. Her cheeks burned even hotter.
But Zhao Linchuan suddenly stepped closer again. He reached out and gently lifted her lowered chin with his fingertip, making her meet his eyes.
He looked deep into her eyes, where she tried to appear composed but couldn't hide her agitation, and asked softly, "Yue Shen, is it tiring... living like this?"
Yue Shen's pupils shrank. She quickly turned her head away, avoiding his gaze as if it could see straight into her heart. She pressed her lips together, unwilling—and unsure how—to answer.
Was it tiring?
The days spent treading carefully and making every move count within the Yin-Yang School.
Coming to this unfamiliar world, yearning for power and calculating every step with caution... How could it not be tiring?
But she had long since grown used to burying all her emotions deep inside.
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