Zhu Zhuqing's Attentiveness, Gu Qing's Hands-On Guidance in Absorbing the Medicine!

Zhu Zhuqing closed her training manual and placed it beside her pillow, her tone as cool as ever:

"I was still awake when you went out in the middle of the night. Before leaving, you stood in front of the mirror for quite a while and even changed clothes. You don't seem like the type to get up in the middle of the night for a walk.

"And when you came back, your steps were much lighter than before. There was still a trace of Soul Power fluctuation lingering around you, your eyes were sparkling, and you seemed to be in quite a good mood!"

"Putting it all together, you definitely went to see Headmaster Gu, and something happened that stirred your emotions quite a bit."

Ning Rongrong froze in place, her eyes wide. After a long moment, she finally squeezed out, "Zhuqing, it'd be a waste if you didn't become a detective."

"So, after being gone so long, what exactly did you gain?"

Ning Rongrong sat down on the edge of the bed, took off her shoes, and tucked her feet beneath the covers. "Nothing much, really. I just asked about the training plan."

Zhu Zhuqing said nothing. She merely looked quietly at Ning Rongrong, her deep violet eyes especially profound beneath the dim light, as though they could see through everything.

Feeling guilty under that gaze, Ning Rongrong was about to turn over and lie down to avoid her eyes when Zhu Zhuqing suddenly spoke.

"Your Soul Power has risen considerably. You were level twenty-six during the day, but now you're level twenty-seven. You spent some time in Headmaster Gu's room and came back with a whole level of Soul Power."

"When you said 'nothing much,' you meant you broke through a level?"

Ning Rongrong awkwardly met Zhu Zhuqing's eyes for two seconds before finally conceding defeat. She rolled over and sat up, then lowered her voice and briefly explained the Martial Soul Resonance.

From the disturbance in the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda, to the halo formed by the resonance of their Soul Powers when their palms met, to the burst of force that sent papers flying as the halo expanded, she only spoke about the Martial Soul Fusion Skill. She did not mention Xiao Wu and Tang San knocking on the door one after another.

After listening, Zhu Zhuqing fell silent for a while, then said something that nearly made Ning Rongrong fall off the bed. "Next time you go, bring me with you. I want to see it too."

Ning Rongrong stared blankly for a long while, then could not help laughing. Turning onto her side, she looked at Zhu Zhuqing's profile illuminated by candlelight and suddenly felt that this icy girl was actually quite adorable.

"Fine, I'll definitely bring you next time." Ning Rongrong curled up beneath the covers and closed her eyes, the scene from earlier uncontrollably surfacing in her mind.

Gu Qing's palm had covered the back of her hand, their Soul Powers circulating and merging within their bodies. When that halo burst open, purple-gold and glazed light had illuminated the entire room.

That light had been too brilliant, too beautiful!

On the training grounds, morning light had just crested the treetops behind the mountain, while the dew on the ground had yet to dry.

More than half a month had passed since Ning Rongrong returned from Gu Qing's room, and Self Academy's training intensity had risen another level during that time.

Gu Qing stood in the middle of the training grounds, holding an injector made from Ten-Year Solitary Bamboo. Before him sat a rack lined with freshly prepared Whale Dragon body-tempering medicine.

This batch of medicine was darker than before, changing from light blue to deep blue. Its increased concentration made the effects fiercer, as well as the burning sensation during injection.

Xiao Wu stood among the group, looking at the row of porcelain bottles. Her face had already gone several shades paler.

"There are only three days left in the body-tempering phase. Today's injection is the final dose of body-tempering medicine from our trip to Sunset Forest."

Gu Qing shook the injector in his hand. "The concentration is fifty percent higher than the previous batch. After injection, the medicine will seep directly into your bone marrow. Same rules as always: start physical training immediately after the injection. Whoever finishes first rests first."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Zhuqing was the first to step forward. She removed her wrist guards and rolled up her sleeve.

Tiny needle marks from the previous injection still remained on her arm. Her muscle lines looked especially taut and smooth beneath the morning light. When the needle pierced her skin, her brow did not move in the slightest; only her cat tail swayed gently behind her.

Ning Rongrong was second in line. Looking at the needle, she swallowed, but still held her arm straight out. She closed her eyes and turned her head away. The instant the needle went in, she sucked in a sharp breath, then secretly opened one eye to peek. Only after confirming that the needle had been withdrawn did she sigh in relief.

Once all four had been injected, Gu Qing had them sit cross-legged in the center of the training grounds.

The deep-blue medicine spread through their meridians like molten metal slowly flowing through their limbs and bones. Wherever it passed, their bones gave off fine cracking sounds.

Gu Qing walked behind Zhu Zhuqing and placed his right hand on the Dazhui acupoint at the back of her neck. Her neck was slender and her skin slightly cool. He could feel the fine hairs beneath her neck rise faintly at the touch of his palm.

A gentle stream of Mystic Jade Soul Power passed from his palm into her meridians. Zhu Zhuqing's body trembled slightly, the movement so small that it seemed she was desperately suppressing something.

"The explosive core of the Hell Spirit Cat lies in the waist, abdomen, and hind legs. The medicinal power needs to be concentrated in those areas."

Gu Qing's voice remained steady as his fingers pressed down along the meridians on either side of Zhu Zhuqing's spine. With every press, a stream of Soul Power pushed the medicine deeper inside.

When he reached either side of her waist hollow, Zhu Zhuqing's abdominal muscles unconsciously tightened. The thin layer of muscle beneath her clothes twitched faintly under his fingertips.

"This area is a little tight. The force point for Hell Stab starts here. Blocked meridians will affect your turning speed."

Gu Qing's palm covered Zhu Zhuqing's waist, its warmth seeping through the fabric into her skin.

Zhu Zhuqing's breathing noticeably hitched. Her cat tail silently curled over, its tip lightly resting on Gu Qing's wrist. It did not exert any force, merely rested there. Only after a moment did it loosen, the tip drawing a tiny arc through the air, as if saying, "That's enough."

Ning Rongrong had been sitting beside them with her eyes closed for a long time. All she could hear was Gu Qing's low voice, the faint rustle of fingers pressing against cloth, and Zhu Zhuqing's occasional restrained breaths.

Unable to resist, she opened her eyes a sliver and secretly peeked over, only to meet Gu Qing's gaze as he turned around. She hurriedly shut her eyes again, pretending she had been seriously refining the medicine all along.

When Gu Qing walked behind Ning Rongrong, her eyes were still tightly shut, though her eyelids kept trembling faintly. The instant Gu Qing's palm touched the back of her neck, her entire body visibly stiffened. Her shoulders drew upward before she forced herself to relax.

"Your Sea of Qi Vortex has stabilized at fifty percent interception. This time, the medicinal power needs to focus on the meridian nodes in your upper body."

Gu Qing's fingers traveled down along either side of Ning Rongrong's cervical spine, lightly pressing a node near her shoulder blade. Ning Rongrong gave a muffled groan as a warm current of Soul Power swept the medicine into that node.

"It's sore..." Ning Rongrong's voice was soft and weak, sounding both coquettish and pleading.

"Endure it. This node is the key transfer point for the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda's Reverse Amplification. It has to be cleared."

Gu Qing's fingers lingered on that node for several more breaths, the warmth of his palm seeping through her thin clothes into her skin.

Ning Rongrong bit her lower lip, her hands clenched on her knees as she leaned slightly forward, letting his palm fit more closely against her back.

Her skin had grown faintly hot under the medicine's effects, warm and smooth as jade to the touch. That warmth traveled from his palm into Gu Qing's own meridians.

When he reached her shoulder, Ning Rongrong's collar slipped slightly aside, revealing a section of fair collarbone. The skin beneath it was tinged with a faint pink from the medicine's effects.

Gu Qing's gaze paused on that patch of pink for a moment before he gently pulled her collar back into place and continued to the next acupoint.

At the edge of the field, three laborers were pushing a cart of gravel past the training grounds.

Dai Mubai pushed the cart handles, his footsteps unconsciously slowing. Ma Hongjun followed behind him, stretching his neck to peer into the training grounds as well.

Oscar walked at the back with an iron shovel over his shoulder. Seeing Gu Qing guiding the medicinal power through the four girls on the training grounds, he unconsciously stopped.

"What are you staring at?" Dai Mubai withdrew his gaze and lifted the cart handles slightly, his voice hoarse. "The gravel needs to be laid in the Back Mountain Training Area. We still have three carts left to haul."

Ma Hongjun and Oscar came back to their senses at the same time and silently followed behind him. The three figures disappeared at the far end of the field, while the sound of cart wheels and clattering gravel gradually faded away.