One Year Later

Unlike her usual flamboyant and lively self, Xu Tianzhen was dressed today in a formal princess gown that draped all the way to her ankles, her hair neatly tied back.

Clearly, she had been specially groomed by servants before coming.

Yet, even so, the spark in her eyes could not be hidden.

Xu Guoren looked at her and deliberately put on a stern face.

"Do you know why I summoned you here?"

"I do."

Xu Tianzhen kept her head lowered, her voice sounding uncharacteristically obedient.

"It is because of the matter regarding Xiao Hongchen."

"Then tell me yourself, was what you did appropriate?"

Xu Tianzhen remained silent for two seconds before speaking honestly:

"It was not very appropriate."

"In what way was it inappropriate?"

"Publicly declaring my love..."

She whispered:

"It lacked the decorum of the imperial family."

Xu Guoren stared at her, his tone deepening:

"A dignified princess of the empire, confessing to a young man in front of thousands of people, and making it known to everyone in Ming Capital—where do you expect the imperial family to save face?"

Xu Tianzhen pursed her lips.

"Father is right to reprimand me; your daughter knows she was wrong."

She kept her head bowed, her attitude uncharacteristically submissive.

But Xu Guoren knew his daughter too well.

Sure enough.

After only a few seconds of silence, Xu Tianzhen could not help but sneak a glance upward, cautiously peeking at her father.

Discovering that although Xu Guoren looked serious, he was not truly angry, her courage grew a little.

"But Father..."

She took a small step forward.

"Your daughter truly likes him."

Xu Guoren did not speak.

Xu Tianzhen bit her lip and added in a low voice:

"It is not just a passing fancy."

In her mind, the scene from that day involuntarily resurfaced.

That liquid metal arm, carrying a scorching temperature.

The strange sensation that traveled through her body when she was restrained.

And those intense, heterochromatic eyes when Xiao Hongchen pulled her close.

Thinking of this, she felt her whole body heat up.

"He is different from others, and your daughter... simply likes him."

"Father loves your daughter the most, so please, just say yes..."

Watching her, Xu Guoren was already struggling to keep a straight face.

He naturally knew that Xu Tianzhen was sincere.

He knew even better that once this girl set her mind on something, not even ten soul beasts could pull her back.

Moreover.

After Kong Deming's evaluation, he had already completely changed his stance.

But such a matter could not be decided by him, the Emperor, too readily.

Otherwise, this little girl's tail would likely wag all the way to the sky.

Thus, he deliberately cleared his throat and resumed his stern expression.

"Liking someone is one thing, but rules are another; the two must not be confused."

Xu Tianzhen immediately stood at attention:

"Your daughter understands."

"As long as you understand."

Xu Guoren slowly picked up his teacup, his tone finally softening a little.

"I am not an unreasonable person."

Xu Tianzhen's ears perked up instantly.

"One year from now, the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Duel Tournament."

Xu Guoren said indifferently:

"If the Sun Moon Team can win the championship, I shall grant this request."

Xu Tianzhen's eyes lit up in a flash.

Xu Guoren raised his hand, suppressing her excitement once more.

"However, for this year, you are to restrain yourself. You must not act as recklessly as you have before."

"Royal decorum must not be lost. Do you understand?"

"Understood!"

Xu Tianzhen answered swiftly.

The sight of her joy, which she could barely contain, gave Xu Guoren a headache.

He shook his head helplessly and reached out to tap her on the forehead.

"You're so happy, aren't you afraid of others laughing at you?"

Xu Tianzhen immediately grinned and leaned in, gently hugging her father's arm.

"What is there to pretend in front of Father? Father is the best."

"Stop the flattery."

Though Xu Guoren's words were dismissive, he couldn't help but let a hint of a smile appear in his eyes.

Yet, he knew deep down that this condition was no different from simply agreeing.

For if Xiao Hongchen were truly as formidable as Kong Deming claimed, then the championship a year from now would likely belong to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy by right.

A year passed in the blink of an eye, and the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Duel Tournament was only a week away.

Nothing particularly noteworthy had occurred during this period, save for one thing worth mentioning: Mingde Hall had sent men to scour the outer regions of the Star Dou Great Forest for thousand-year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears. Upon slaying the third one, they finally obtained a Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear right palm bone—a joyous and congratulatory event.

As for the soul rings, they were naturally not wasted. In his spare time from researching Humanoid Soul Tools, Xuan Ziwen had actually managed to invent a Soul Ring Storage Device. He was truly a monster.

Over this year, Xiao Hongchen's Soul Power had increased by five levels, reaching level fifty-nine.

While that wasn't a massive leap, it was understandable considering he had poured his primary energy into the development of Humanoid Soul Tools.

The results in Humanoid Soul Tools were quite impressive. Recently, he had completed a Humanoid Soul Tool crafted entirely from metals of Thousand Refinement grade two or higher.

As a high-level Soul King, once he donned it, his strength became equivalent to a Soul Saint without a Martial Soul Avatar.

He had originally intended to customize a set of Humanoid Soul Tools for Meng Hongchen and Ye Guyi as well, but they declined once they realized how much refining Thousand Refinement metals drained his energy.

"It is enough for us to watch Brother wreak havoc at the Soul Master Tournament alone; we can talk about our share later," Meng Hongchen had said at the time.

Sigh, they were quite sensible when it mattered.

Over a month ago, Meng Hongchen and Ye Guyi had both broken through to level fifty, and Jing Hongchen had taken them to hunt for their soul rings.

Meng Hongchen absorbed the ice-and-fire dual-attribute soul beast she had been eyeing, gaining the soul skill "Ice Fire Poison Dragon Drill," which served as a decent frontal offensive method to round out her kit.

Ye Guyi, meanwhile, slew a Radiant Unicorn with over fifteen thousand years of cultivation, obtaining her fifth soul skill—Holy Sword.

Upon activating the skill, she would condense a massive golden holy sword using sacred Soul Power, significantly boosting her own attack power and the intensity of her holy attributes. Every swing of the blade carried sharp, purifying sword light.

More importantly, the Holy Sword could perfectly stack with her second soul skill, Holy Spirit Slash. When Holy Spirit Slash was unleashed in the Holy Sword state, the range, attack power, and holy force of the strike would multiply. If amplified by her Radiant Holy Body, the power of this move would reach the level of a Soul Emperor.

Come to think of it, today was the day the Sun Moon Academy's main team and reserve team were to meet and interact.

The Trial Grounds.

In the center of the field, the crowd was divided into two groups, left and right.

On the left were the six members of the reserve team, and on the right were the seven members of the main team.

"Xiao, you are too late."

Jing Hongchen stood in the middle, frowning.

"Apologies, it took some time to help an old lady cross the street."

Xiao Hongchen stepped quickly into the middle of the left team, standing beside Meng Hongchen and Ye Guyi.

This side consisted of the reserve team members, generally all under fifteen years of age.

"I wouldn't believe you helped someone cross the street even if you killed me."

Meng Hongchen poked him in the waist.

"Don't say that. When you become an old lady, I will certainly help you."

"Although you may have known each other for a long time, you should still introduce yourselves formally."

Jing Hongchen clapped his hands to interrupt their hushed conversation.