"Your sister? Lin Shuo, you have a sister?" Wang Dong'er keenly caught the keyword, her eyes widening.
Lin Shuo finished the last bite of grilled fish and said calmly, "I do. My sister found me and raised me."
The air beside the campfire fell silent for a moment. Wang Dong'er's hand froze in midair, the bamboo skewer holding her grilled fish suspended. She had known Lin Shuo for over a year, and this was the first time he had brought up his background of his own accord. But she would rather he hadn't.
Wang Dong'er's expression stiffened for an instant. The excitement and curiosity in her eyes quickly faded, replaced by a trace of panic and regret she couldn't hide. She lowered her head instinctively and gripped the bamboo skewer tightly, her knuckles turning faintly white.
"...I'm sorry," she said, her voice much lower than usual, her guilt impossible to conceal. "I didn't mean to ask."
She raised her eyes and glanced at Lin Shuo cautiously. For once, a hint of unease crossed the usually brash, proud girl's face. She was afraid her thoughtless question had struck a place Lin Shuo didn't want anyone to touch.
"It's fine." Lin Shuo's voice remained calm, without the slightest hint of offense. "I never met them, and I never cared about it." He had long suspected the truth about his own origins. Perhaps he really had fallen from the sky.
He said it with complete ease. He truly didn't care; it wasn't some magnanimity he was forcing himself to display.
Wang Dong'er watched him for two seconds, and only when she was sure he wasn't brushing her off did her tense shoulders slowly relax. Still, she cursed herself in her heart. Why don't you ever think before you speak?
Huo Yu'er watched quietly from the side, her deep blue eyes full of sympathy for Lin Shuo. She wanted to say something to comfort him, but wasn't sure whether she should simply change the subject.
Though Duke White Tiger didn't even know he had a daughter, Huo Yu'er's mother had loved her dearly since she was little. But Lin Shuo hadn't even met his parents.
Lin Shuo poked at the firewood a few times, then looked up and noticed the girls' expressions. He immediately understood. Setting down the branch, he chuckled softly. "You two don't need to act like that. Sister Nana has always treated me well. Besides, my family is powerful. I was raised as the heir from the time I was little."
Huo Yu'er thought of the silver-haired, violet-eyed woman. Someone as peerless and elegant as her surely didn't come from an ordinary family.
When Lin Shuo saw that Wang Dong'er had finished her last piece of grilled fish, he handed her a tissue. "You little glutton, wipe your mouth."
Wang Dong'er's face turned bright red. She wanted to say something but couldn't get the words out, and hurriedly took the tissue, wiping her mouth in a fluster. When she was done, she crumpled the tissue into a ball and clenched it in her hand. The flush hadn't quite faded from her cheeks when she stole a glance at Lin Shuo and saw him watching her with an amused smile. She quickly turned her head away.
"I'm not a little glutton."
Lin Shuo didn't respond. Instead, he took a Soul Bone out of his Storage Soul Tool. A pale golden glow flowed over its surface, and even in the firelight, the fine, threadlike patterns of light could be seen slowly moving within it.
"This is a fifty-thousand-year-old Heavenly Dragon Horse Right Leg Bone. Heavenly Dragon Horses carry the bloodline of the Bright Sacred Dragon, so it suits your Light Goddess Butterfly perfectly. I picked it out for you from my family. When we get back, have Yu'er guard you while you absorb it."
Wang Dong'er stared blankly at the Soul Bone, her mouth hanging open. She could clearly feel her Light Goddess Butterfly Martial Soul resonating powerfully within her. This Soul Bone really was a perfect fit for her.
"A fifty-thousand-year-old... Heavenly Dragon Horse Right Leg Bone?" Her voice was a little hoarse. The golden Soul Bone reflected in her powder-blue eyes, but she didn't reach out to take it. She looked up at Lin Shuo and, unusually, spoke softly rather than in her usual tone. "Ten Thousand Year Soul Bones are precious to every faction. And Heavenly Dragon Horses are top-tier light-attribute Soul Beasts. Are you sure it's all right to give it to me?"
Wang Dong'er looked up at Lin Shuo, her voice unusually serious.
Lin Shuo tossed the Soul Bone into her arms. Wang Dong'er caught it in a panic. "If I tell you to absorb it, then absorb it. No one in my family can use this Soul Bone. If I don't give it to you, it'll just gather dust in the storehouse."
"Besides, I gave Yu'er that Ice Dragon Soul Bone. Everyone gets a share."
Wang Dong'er gave Lin Shuo a long look, complicated emotions swirling in her powder-blue eyes. Then she carefully put the Soul Bone into her Storage Soul Tool.
"Fine." She didn't refuse again. "I'll absorb it as soon as we get back."
The three of them packed up and prepared to return to the dormitory. Wang Dong'er had gone a few steps when she suddenly turned around and called to Lin Shuo, who was walking behind them. "Lin Shuo! Thank you!"
Without waiting for his reply, she tugged Huo Yu'er along and ran toward the dormitory. Her powder-blue ponytail swung back and forth in the moonlight, like a cat fleeing in a panic but still refusing to admit defeat.
Lin Shuo watched the two girls' figures gradually disappear into the depths of the moonlit night, a faint smile curving his lips.
The next day, the three of them went to the classroom.
Wang Yan announced the upgrade assessment requirements.
Each student had to choose a hundred-to-thousand-year Soul Beast from the Beast Fighting Arena and challenge it. A score of sixty was a pass, and the judges would grade them based on their overall performance.
The three of them passed the assessment with ease. Wang Dong'er used her newly acquired Soul Bone Skill to defeat her opponent effortlessly, while Lin Shuo and Huo Yu'er only had to release their Martial Souls to scare their Soul Beasts away.
Huo Yu'er's display of her Second Martial Soul during the assessment naturally drew Wang Yan and Du Weilun's attention. As soon as she stepped down, they suspended the assessment and eagerly questioned her.
After asking about the general circumstances, Du Weilun hurried off to Yan Shaozhe's office.
"She awakened a Second Martial Soul? And it's a True Dragon with an Ultimate Attribute?" Yan Shaozhe stood up from his seat in surprise when he heard Du Weilun's report.
Lin Shuo alone had already caused a stir throughout Shrek Academy. Now there was Huo Yu'er as well. Could Shrek Academy reach new heights again under his watch as its dean? After all, even the Martial Soul of Mu En, the current Sea God Pavilion Master and Yan Shaozhe's teacher, the Bright Sacred Dragon, didn't have an Ultimate Attribute. Could Huo Yu'er's Martial Soul be even stronger than the Bright Sacred Dragon?
When had True Dragon Martial Souls become so common?
"Yes, Dean. The teachers and students present at the assessment saw Huo Yu'er scare off that thousand-year-old Flame Demon Lion just by releasing her Martial Soul. After the assessment, Wang Yan and I personally asked her about her Martial Soul. She said it was called the Water Dragon King. Wang Yan and I both judged it to be an Ultimate Martial Soul."
Du Weilun answered respectfully.
"Water Dragon King... Seven-Colored Dragon King..." Yan Shaozhe mused.
As far as he knew, neither of those Martial Souls had ever appeared in Shrek Academy's records. With names so similar, could they really have no connection at all?