Time flew by in the blink of an eye.
Across the boundless, snow-covered wasteland, bone-piercing frost howled past.
In a white world stretching as far as the eye could see, a black figure trudged slowly through the wind and snow.
Ten months. A full ten months.
Tuoba Xuan had spent a full 300 days tempering himself in Dragon Valley.
At a glance, Tuoba Xuan looked no different than when he had arrived, but inwardly, he had undergone a world-shaking transformation.
Tuoba Xuan's body now seemed like a steel furnace, with a heart of steel beating steadily within him!
A layer of faint, earthen-yellow markings clung to Tuoba Xuan's heart.
It was the Mountain Dragon King's gift: the Heart of the Mountain Dragon.
On top of that, Tuoba Xuan's Soul Power had reached level 30.
However, that was only because Tuoba Xuan currently had just two Soul Rings.
Once he absorbed a third Soul Ring, his Soul Power would surely surge again.
His first two Soul Rings had been formed from the essence of the dragon souls, making them extremely special.
They could grow stronger along with Tuoba Xuan, and he didn't even need to light them up when releasing them.
As it happened, Tuoba Xuan hadn't forgotten about the letter inviting him to compete.
Skywater City was far livelier than when he had first arrived.
Red ribbons hung all over the walls, cold as ice crystals.
A wide red carpet stretched straight from the city gates to the entrance of the City Lord's Mansion.
Yet behind this grand occasion, Tuoba Xuan sensed a trace of sadness.
"What a bizarre setup."
Muttering to himself, Tuoba Xuan passed the inspection and entered the city.
He walked down Skywater City's central avenue, curiously taking in the sights around him.
A great many vendors called out to passersby, while the fragrant aroma of soup drifted over from time to time.
Tuoba Xuan hadn't felt this kind of warm, everyday bustle in a full ten months.
"Boss, a bowl of wontons."
Tuoba Xuan found an empty stall and sat down, taking in the lively city.
"Coming right up, sir!"
A steaming bowl of wontons was set before him. Tuoba Xuan first sipped the hot broth, driving the chill from his body.
He had just picked up a wonton when a few snippets of gossip reached him from behind.
"Hey, have you heard? Tian Bingyun from the Tian Clan of Tianbing City is competing in the Shui Clan's tournament this time."
"Tian Bingyun..."
Tuoba Xuan repeated the name to himself.
"Hmm... never heard of him..."
"Actually, the Shui Clan was forced into this. I hear Tian Bingyun wanted to take Shui Bing'er as his wife by force, so the Shui Clan had no choice but to hold a tournament. The champion will become the future son-in-law of the Shui Clan."
"Pfft!" Tuoba Xuan nearly spat out the wonton he'd just put in his mouth. "The generous reward Shui Bing'er mentioned was herself?"
Tuoba Xuan's unusual reaction went unnoticed by the others.
"Really? He must be here for Miss Shui Bing'er. They say even Spirit Hall will send people to watch."
"Of course. But it sounds like the outcome's already decided. I hear that Tian Bingyun is a Soul Ancestor despite being so young..."
Tuoba Xuan polished off his bowl in no time, quickly slapped a Silver Soul Coin onto the bottom, and quietly left.
He had heard every word of their conversation.
The name Tian Bingyun hadn't appeared in the original story, so he was probably just some passerby.
But the fact that the tournament was being held to find a son-in-law had caught Tuoba Xuan off guard.
"Damn, women really do have complicated minds. No wonder she insisted that I compete."
Tuoba Xuan returned to the hotel he'd visited when he first arrived. A young woman was manning the front desk instead of Shui Bing'er.
"One single room!"
"Certainly!"
Once inside, Tuoba Xuan wearily collapsed onto the bed.
To be honest, the future was still somewhat hazy to Tuoba Xuan.
As far as he knew, this era had four divine inheritances.
First was the Angel God of Spirit Hall.
Then the Sea God of Sea God Island.
The Asura God of the Capital of Slaughter.
And finally, the most deeply concealed one: the Rakshasa God.
Tuoba Xuan's Martial Soul was the Mountain Dragon King.
It was a true dragon-type Martial Soul, with the dual attributes of ultimate earth and the laws of the earth.
That ruled out the Sea God, naturally.
Tuoba Xuan didn't know how Tang San, with a mere grass Martial Soul, had inherited the Sea God's legacy.
But he was certain he couldn't inherit the Sea God's legacy himself.
Only a Soul Master with an Angel Martial Soul could inherit the Angel God's legacy.
As for the Asura God, if he didn't cleave Tuoba Xuan in half with a single strike upon seeing his Mountain Dragon King Martial Soul, that would count as mercy.
The Rakshasa God wasn't even under consideration.
If he wanted to become a god...
Tuoba Xuan would have to find another god's inheritance or—create a divine seat!
But there was another problem. He had already made a promise to his clan.
Although his talent had recovered, he was still young. It wasn't time to return to the clan yet.
So he needed somewhere to settle.
Being with Shui Bing'er was a decent option.
Besides that,
there were places like Spirit Hall, Heaven Dou Royal Academy, and Shrek he could go to.
At this point in time, the real story hadn't begun yet.
Tuoba Xuan was confident.
No matter which faction he joined, he could change the future of the continent.
In the end, Tuoba Xuan made up his mind.
He would enter the Shui Clan's tournament first and see how things went.
Then he would go eat the mandarin duck hot pot. Either way, those things had to be kept in his own hands.
The timing of Tuoba Xuan's return from seclusion really was a coincidence.
The Shui Clan's tournament would begin tomorrow. He only needed to wait one night.
The next day
Tuoba Xuan took his invitation to compete and headed for the City Lord's Mansion in Skywater City.
Clearly, the Shui Clan was the true power behind Skywater City.
The central avenue bustled with people coming and going.
Quite a few young men were heading in the same direction as Tuoba Xuan.
They were all here for Shui Bing'er, it seemed.
Tuoba Xuan hadn't walked for long before he arrived in front of the City Lord's Mansion.
The mansion was even livelier than the city gates.
A sea of people surged about, and several squads of soldiers were keeping order.
"Pretty impressive!"
Tuoba Xuan tossed out the remark and headed for the registration desk.
"Name?"
"Tuoba... Uh... Long Xuan..."
"What was that?"
"Long Xuan!"
"Age?"
"Twelve."
"Go on in. Give your contestant's token to the people inside."
"Oh!"
Tuoba Xuan took the cool, brown wooden token and walked farther in.
To conceal his identity, Tuoba Xuan had decided to use an alias after all.
After all, as the protagonist, it was important to have a few aliases.
Tuoba Xuan entered the inner grounds of the City Lord's Mansion.
Seeing Tuoba Xuan's handsome features and the token in his hand, a pretty young woman immediately came over to greet him.
"Hello, are you here to compete?"
The young woman's features bore some resemblance to Shui Bing'er's.
"Yes." Tuoba Xuan handed her the token.
The young woman checked Tuoba Xuan's identity.
"Mm, the token checks out. My name's Shui Yue'er. It's nice to meet you. For now, could you please wait in the side hall? The competition will start soon."
Shui Yue'er? Shui Bing'er's younger sister?
Tuoba Xuan narrowed his eyes and walked into the side hall.
Quite a few talented young men had already gathered there.
Sure enough, they were all here for Shui Bing'er.
Actually, Shui Yue'er had been sent by Shui Bing'er to wait for Tuoba Xuan.
But Tuoba Xuan hadn't told Shui Bing'er his name at the time.
So Shui Yue'er hadn't recognized him.
After all, Tuoba Xuan was simply too young.
Shui Yue'er was Shui Bing'er's younger sister, but she was a full five years older than Tuoba Xuan.
And Shui Bing'er was a year older than Shui Yue'er. She had just come of age that year!