The next morning, at the back hill of Shrek.
The morning mist had yet to clear. Dew clung to the grass, and the air was heavy with the damp scent of earth.
Yi Chen was still sitting in the wicker chair beneath the ancient tree, holding a cup of hot tea. There was no chessboard set before him, and he hadn't turned on the screen projection.
He sat there quietly, as if waiting for someone, or perhaps simply enjoying this rare moment of peace.
Ye Lingling was the first to arrive.
She wasn't wearing her signature white dress today. Instead, she had changed into a plain, practical outfit that was easier to move in. Her silver-white hair was tied in a low ponytail, leaving her neat neckline and ears exposed.
She stopped in front of the ancient tree. Rather than speak right away, she waited quietly for a few breaths before softly calling, "Senior."
Yi Chen glanced up at her. His eyes lingered on her for half a second before he nodded. "How are you adapting to your Martial Soul?"
Ye Lingling lowered her eyes, as if sensing the flow of the unfamiliar power within her. Only after a moment did she answer, "I spent the whole night fusing with it. The Sacred Heart Begonia's essence has stabilized. The new ability, 'Begonia Flower Seed,' can raise the elemental resistance of the target it attaches to by about twenty percent. It doesn't affect the amount of healing, and it doesn't take priority over healing."
She paused, then added, "The curse really has been broken. I wrote home last night and had someone tell my grandmother the news."
Yi Chen didn't respond to that. He simply lifted his teacup for a sip, then casually asked, "Since you came so early today, do you want extra practice, or is there something you want to talk about?"
Ye Lingling was silent for a while before she spoke. "I want to know why you chose me for this exhibition match. Was it because of the rarity of the Nine Heart Begonia, or for some other reason?"
Yi Chen set down his teacup and gazed at the distant ridgeline shrouded in mist. His voice was calm. "Because in the first carousel round, you chose the Commoner trait instead of grabbing a five-cost god."
Ye Lingling blinked in surprise.
"In that carousel, you had the lowest health and the highest priority. The display had Dual God Tang San, Rakshasa God Bibi Dong, and Angel God Qian Renxue. Any five-cost god card would have given your lineup an overwhelming advantage in the midgame."
Yi Chen turned to look at her. "But you chose the Bai Chenxiang egg and a Recurve Bow, and kept building your Commoner comp. At the time, I thought that girl's character was even more remarkable than her skill."
Ye Lingling lowered her lashes and said nothing.
Yi Chen turned away, his tone returning to its usual casualness. "All right, don't overthink it. Go warm up. We'll start today's training once those lazybones show up."
Ye Lingling nodded softly, turned, and went to the edge of the clearing to begin her basic stretches.
Dugu Yan was the second to arrive. She carried two oiled-paper parcels, and the roasted aroma of chestnuts reached them from a distance. She set one parcel on the stone table beside Yi Chen and said, "These are from that old shop by the north gate of Heaven Dou City. I was passing by." Then she squatted beside Ye Lingling and began loosening up her wrists and ankles.
Yi Chen glanced at the parcel of chestnuts but neither thanked her nor refused them.
Ning Rongrong was the third to arrive. She was full of energy, wearing the excited, wired expression of someone who hadn't slept well but was still riding the high. The moment she landed, she launched into an enthusiastic report about her Soul Bone fusion progress. "Master, Master, I've already fused seventy percent of that hundred-thousand-year-old skull bone! My range of spiritual perception has more than doubled. I can even close my eyes and sense that wild rabbit at the foot of the hill gnawing on grass roots!"
Yi Chen didn't open his eyes. He merely replied, "Come brag to me when you can keep track of the economy and health of all seven opponents at once in an eight-player match."
Ning Rongrong giggled without taking offense, then ran off to warm up.
Xiao Wu was the last to arrive. She yawned as she came, her hair a little messy and her scorpion braid drooping to one side. She clearly hadn't slept well either. Still, she seemed in good spirits, with a solid, grounded look in her eyes—the sense of stability that came from having her foundations strengthened after gaining two Soul Power levels.
Once everyone had arrived, Yi Chen set down his teacup and stood.
"Today's training is simple. No eight-player matches, no ranked games. You'll pair up and play doubles." He held up two fingers. "The rules: shared health, separate controls. You can communicate verbally, but you can't control each other's units. The losing team forfeits dinner tonight."
The four women exchanged glances, and the air instantly crackled with fighting spirit.
Ning Rongrong immediately grabbed Xiao Wu by the arm. "Xiao Wu, let's team up!"
Dugu Yan glanced at Ye Lingling. Ye Lingling didn't say anything, but quietly stepped up beside her.
The teams were decided, and doubles mode began.
Yi Chen didn't interfere much during the match. At key moments, he occasionally offered a reminder or two, telling them to pay attention to keeping their economy curve smooth or pointing out which key items to prioritize in the carousel round. Most of the time, he leaned back in his wicker chair and drank tea while watching the live feed of the four boards on the screen. Now and then, the corner of his mouth twitched slightly, though it was hard to tell whether he was pleased or amused.
The pace of doubles was faster than an eight-player match because the two teammates shared a health bar; any loss by either player immediately showed up in their total health. Ning Rongrong and Xiao Wu didn't mesh very well at first. Rongrong preferred steady management, while Xiao Wu liked to take risks and snap up cards. In the second carousel round, they disagreed over whether to grab a four-cost card, and the few seconds they wasted talking caused their shared health to drop.
Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling worked together much more smoothly. Dugu Yan handled frontline power and setting up their control chain, while Ye Lingling took care of healing the backline and managing their economy. Their roles were clear, and they hardly needed to communicate. By midgame, their shared health had at one point pulled nearly thirty points ahead of Rongrong and Xiao Wu's.
But Rongrong and Xiao Wu had one advantage: they knew each other too well. It wasn't tactical coordination so much as a deeper kind of trust—Rongrong knew when Xiao Wu would act impulsively, and Xiao Wu knew when Rongrong would hesitate. After working through the rough patch in the first half, they gradually found their rhythm. Rongrong began handing some of the economic decisions over to Xiao Wu, and Xiao Wu started asking Rongrong's opinion during key rounds.
In the end, during overtime, Rongrong and Xiao Wu turned the match around by a narrow margin with a precise item combination and positioning adjustment.
Dugu Yan stared at her grayed-out board in silence for two seconds, then said, "Again tomorrow."
Ye Lingling said nothing, but quietly saved the match data.
Ning Rongrong and Xiao Wu high-fived, then turned to Yi Chen at the same time, waiting for his feedback.
Yi Chen set down his teacup, stood, and brushed nonexistent dust off his clothes. "Your teamwork has improved since yesterday, but your communication could still be more efficient. The key to doubles isn't fighting your own battles. It's finding a rhythm with your teammate while keeping your own pace."
He paused, then added, "Dinner is still on."
Ning Rongrong and Xiao Wu cheered in unison.
The sun sank in the west, spilling golden light across the clearing on the back hill. The four women packed up their boards and equipment, then headed toward the cafeteria in small groups. Ning Rongrong was still reviewing the key decisions behind their comeback with Xiao Wu, while Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling walked side by side behind them, occasionally exchanging a few quiet words about alternative item combinations.
Yi Chen didn't follow them right away. He stood beneath the ancient tree and watched the four long shadows stretch away along the mountain path, until they rounded a bend and disappeared from view.
He looked away, glanced down at the unopened parcel of roasted chestnuts on the stone table, picked it up, peeled one, and tossed it into his mouth.
The old shop by the north gate of Heaven Dou City really did make good chestnuts.