"So, I want you to come with me."
"Me?"
"A treasure trove like the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well might already be occupied by a powerful expert. Going alone might not be safe."
"Your portal can take us away at any time, and your strength would give me a tremendous amount of protection."
Tribbie tilted her head.
"Dean, can't you beat a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast?"
A flicker of fear passed through Ye Qiong's eyes.
"My body isn't immune to poison."
"If the other person is a poison expert, I might collapse before I even get to see what the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well looks like."
"That would be embarrassing."
Tribbie couldn't help letting out a laugh.
She hadn't expected the dean, despite being so powerful, to be so excessively cautious.
So she nodded and said with a smile,
"Sure, I'll go with you. Shall we leave now?"
"Right now."
At that, Tribbie raised her right hand. The next moment, a Golden Triangular Gate slowly opened in the middle of the office.
Seeing it, Ye Qiong strode through without hesitation.
Sunset Forest.
All was quiet around them, save for the faint sounds of birds and beasts.
But just then, a golden rift suddenly opened in the air, startling the nearby wildlife.
The rift vanished in a flash. The next moment,
two figures appeared in the forest.
They were Ye Qiong and Tribbie.
Ye Qiong looked around and, after confirming they were in the right place, breathed a sigh of relief.
"We're here. This should be Sunset Forest."
Tribbie stood beside him.
"Dean, where exactly is the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well?"
Ye Qiong shook his head and took a map from inside his coat.
"I only know we're somewhere in Sunset Forest. I don't know the exact location."
"But I have a clue. We just need to find a mountain that's half covered in snow and ice and half wreathed in flames."
Tribbie touched her chin with a finger, looking thoughtful.
"A mountain that's half ice and half fire. It shouldn't be too hard to recognize."
"Exactly. That's a pretty distinctive feature, and it's a mountain, too. If we search carefully, we should find it soon. Let's go."
With that, Ye Qiong put away the map and set off ahead.
Tribbie followed him.
A clearing somewhere on the outskirts of Sunset Forest.
A thousand-year Soul Beast lay in a pool of blood, transforming into a purple Soul Ring.
A young woman sat down beside the corpse, closed her eyes, and circulated her Soul Power to draw in the Soul Ring.
A little farther away, a middle-aged woman stood with her arms crossed, watching the young woman.
"This Soul Ring is seventeen hundred years old. Will Yue'er really be all right absorbing it?"
The speaker was another young woman who looked just like the girl.
She was the girl's older sister, Shui Bing'er, and the middle-aged woman was the dean of Skywater Academy.
At that moment, she was watching her younger sister, Shui Yue'er, her face filled with worry.
The dean shook her head.
"Bing'er, Yue'er's physique is different from an ordinary Soul Master's. She's been training in extremely cold conditions since she was little, so her meridians are much tougher than those of others her age. It's only a seventeen-hundred-year Soul Beast. She can handle it."
Shui Bing'er was about to say something else when a young woman with jade-green hair came over.
"Shui Bing'er, don't worry. My grandpa praised Shui Yue'er's constitution, too. She'll be fine."
Shui Bing'er glanced at her and managed a faint smile.
"Thank you, Dugu Yan."
The girl called Dugu Yan waved a hand, then turned her gaze back to Shui Yue'er, her thoughts drifting far away.
Why hasn't Grandpa come back yet?
He'd promised to bring her to Sunset Forest to find a place where she could suppress her poison.
But when they reached the wooden cabin on the outskirts, he told her to wait while he went into the depths of the forest to scout ahead by himself.
She'd been waiting for two whole days.
She'd been bored out of her mind.
Luckily, some people from Skywater Academy had passed by, and she'd joined them.
The dean of Skywater Academy was bringing Shui Yue'er to hunt for a Soul Ring.
Since Dugu Yan knew the people from Skywater Academy fairly well, she'd come along with them.
"Wait. Could something have happened to Grandpa?"
But she quickly dismissed the thought.
How could that be?
Her grandpa was a Titled Douluo. There were only a handful of people across Douluo Continent who could pose a threat to him.
She was just scaring herself.
Inside the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well.
A figure slammed heavily into the ground, coughing up a thread of blood.
It was an old man.
He struggled to get back up, but the pain in his chest was so sharp he couldn't even straighten his back.
All he could do was glare furiously at a gray-haired man standing in front of him.
The gray-haired man rested a baseball bat on his shoulder with one hand, his posture casual and unrestrained.
It was Ye Qiong.
"Poison Douluo? You're not much to look at."
Ye Qiong lightly tapped his shoulder with the bat, looking down at the old man with a hint of disdain.
Dugu Bo clenched his teeth and struggled to prop himself halfway up.
"Who... are you?"
Ye Qiong smiled, lightly patting the baseball bat with his left hand.
"Me? Just a passing Trailblazer."
Dugu Bo's pupils shrank. He'd never heard the word "Trailblazer" before.
But he had no time to dwell on it. The broken ribs in his chest made even breathing difficult.
Ye Qiong glanced around, then looked back at Dugu Bo.
"You may have discovered this place first, but natural treasures have always belonged to the strong. And you've already lost."
Dugu Bo laughed in rage.
"You ignorant brat! The height of arrogance!"
"You're only a Soul Saint. You must have used some secret technique to defeat me. In terms of true strength, you're not fit to hold a candle to me."
Ye Qiong shrugged and waved a hand dismissively.
"Just tell me whether you lost or not. If you're unhappy about it, you're welcome to challenge me anytime at Amphoreus Academy in Suotuo City."
Dugu Bo narrowed his eyes, about to say something else, when the corner of his eye caught sight of the valley entrance.
A woman was walking toward them, her steps unhurried and composed.
Yet the aura she radiated made Dugu Bo feel as if he were looking upon an ancient goddess!
Dugu Bo weighed his options for a moment,
then swallowed the threat that had nearly left his lips.
As long as the green hills remained, there'd be no shortage of firewood!
One word: run!
He struggled to his feet and stared at Ye Qiong.
"Young man, give me your name."
Ye Qiong smiled, making no effort to hide it.
"I answer to the same name I was born with. Ye Qiong."
Dugu Bo glared at Ye Qiong through gritted teeth, as if trying to burn his appearance into his memory.
"Ye Qiong... is it? Good. I'll remember today's humiliation."
He said no more. Dragging his injured body, he turned and walked toward the valley entrance without looking back.
Watching him disappear through the entrance, Ye Qiong finally put away his baseball bat and looked at Tribbie.
"That nuisance is finally gone. I didn't expect him to be so easy to beat. That was a bit underwhelming."
Tribbie gave Ye Qiong a helpless smile.
Who was the one who'd grabbed her before they came and said he was scared?
Just then, Ye Qiong took a booklet from inside his coat.
"Here, this handbook's for you."
Tribbie took the booklet and glanced at it, startled.
"This is..."