A Stroll by the East Gate, Senior Nannan!

Yun Yi lowered his eyes, his gaze falling on Wang Dong's hand gripping his sleeve tightly.

With a flick of his wrist, he deftly slipped free of her hold and casually brushed the wrinkles from his clothes.

"Save it." Yun Yi's lips curled into his signature carefree smirk, his tone full of mockery.

"So what if you risked your life to break through to Soul Elder? You're still just a little shrimp who can't stir up any waves."

Wang Dong's eyes widened, her lips parting as she instinctively prepared to retort.

But the words reached her mouth and lodged in her throat.

Level forty-eight.

That number was an immovable mountain, pressing heavily atop her head.

No matter how she argued, before absolute suppression by rank, any words would seem pale and powerless.

Her shoulders slumped in defeat, and the fighting spirit in her pink-blue eyes immediately dimmed.

"Fine, your rank is higher, so you're right." Wang Dong gritted her teeth and conceded. Spreading her hands, she forcefully suppressed her frustration. "I'll listen to you, then. Where are we going now?"

Yun Yi turned around and looked at Xiao Xiao, who was still slowly packing up her books.

The little girl had actually been listening in with her ears perked the whole time. She had deliberately moved slowly, only too embarrassed to interrupt on her own.

"Xiao Xiao." Yun Yi called her name with a gentle smile. "Want to come outside and have a look around with us?"

At the invitation, Xiao Xiao's hands froze.

She abruptly looked up, her eyes sparkling as she nodded vigorously, as though afraid Yun Yi would change his mind if she answered too late.

"Sure! I've just finished packing." Xiao Xiao swiftly stuffed her textbooks into her storage Soul Tool and hurried over to Yun Yi, excitement flushing her cheeks.

After being cooped up in the classroom all morning, being able to go with Yun Yi was simply a dream come true for a little girl new to the place.

The three walked out of the teaching building side by side and headed toward Shrek Academy's east gate beneath the midday sun.

Shrek City had originally been a vast city built around the academy, and the area outside the east gate was an especially prosperous commercial district.

Stores stood in rows here, while streams of people flowed through the streets.

Aside from shops providing high-level resources specifically for soul masters, countless small vendors catered to the student population.

The moment they passed through the towering city gate, the rich bustle of everyday life washed over them.

Stalls of every kind lined both sides of the street, and the cries of hawkers rose and fell, mingling together.

The fragrances of all kinds of food blended in the air, drilling straight into their noses and whetting their appetites.

The moment they entered the crowd, Xiao Xiao's attention was caught by a stall selling exquisite hair accessories.

The stall was filled with hairpins decorated with feathers from various low-level soul beasts and beautiful crystals, glittering brilliantly in the sunlight.

Yun Yi stopped, casually picked up a hairpin set with a pale green crystal, and handed it to Xiao Xiao.

"It'll suit your hair perfectly."

Xiao Xiao accepted the hairpin with both hands, her cheeks turning even redder.

Lowering her head, she thanked him repeatedly before quickly pinning it in her hair.

The pale green crystal complemented her dark green short hair beautifully, making the little girl look even more delicate and charming.

Wang Dong watched from the side with hidden envy. Since she was dressed as a boy, she could hardly browse girls' accessories in the street, so she could only shift her attention to the food nearby and try to use it to fill the gap in her heart.

"Boss, three skewers of grilled meat! Extra spicy!"

Wang Dong squeezed up to a smoke-filled barbecue stall and waved grandly.

A moment later, she held grilled meat skewers in her left hand and a steaming bowl of special sweet drink in her right. Her mouth was stuffed full, her cheeks puffed out like a squirrel hoarding food.

The chili powder made her suck in cold air, yet she still could not bear to stop chewing.

The desperate attitude she had displayed in the classroom earlier, insisting that she had to go back and cultivate without wasting even a second, had long since been thrown to the clouds.

Before delicious food, the young mistress of the Clear Sky Sect had completely exposed her true nature as a glutton.

Yun Yi walked alongside the two of them, serving as a ruthless payment machine.

Seeing Wang Dong's mouth dripping with oil as she ate without the slightest regard for her image, he could not help teasing her.

"Slow down. No one's going to steal it from you. Weren't you shouting earlier that you didn't want to waste even a second?"

Wang Dong struggled to swallow the food in her mouth, then carelessly wiped the oil from the corner of her lips with the back of her hand and retorted righteously.

"You need to eat your fill to have the strength to cultivate! That's called balancing work and rest! Besides, Shrek City has so many snacks. Not trying every one of them would be a terrible waste!"

Yun Yi shook his head helplessly and let her be.

Xiao Xiao held a cup of chilled sour plum juice, taking small sips as her gaze occasionally drifted toward Yun Yi. Her eyes were full of a young girl's innocent delight.

The three continued down the street and, before they knew it, arrived at the most crowded stretch.

A rich, enticing scent of grilled fish drifted over on the wind.

Yun Yi was very familiar with that smell. It was Huo Yuhao's special handiwork.

Following the aroma, he saw that a simple grill at a nearby street corner was surrounded by people, with a long line stretching out before it.

Huo Yuhao, dressed in a faded gray cloth outfit, was skillfully turning the herring on the grill, fine beads of sweat covering his forehead.

Tang Ya stood beside him, acting as the proprietress taking payment and maintaining order, busier than ever.

The two worked seamlessly together, and the small stall's business was thriving.

Just as Yun Yi was about to go over and say hello, and perhaps sample the kid's cooking again, an unusual stir suddenly arose from the front of the crowd.

The students crowded together in line seemed to be parted by some invisible force, voluntarily retreating to either side and leaving a broad path down the middle.

Then, gasps and subdued exclamations began rising one after another through the crowd.

"Look! It's Senior Jiang Nannan, the number one beauty of the outer court!" someone exclaimed in a hushed voice, their tone full of disbelief.

"It really is! Other than classes and missions, she rarely comes to browse the commercial streets by the east gate. We're seriously lucky today!"

"She's so beautiful! I heard Senior Xu Sanshi, one of the outer court's Twin Stars, has pursued her for ages, but she rejected him without mercy every time."

Amid the crowd's whispers, a young woman slowly walked through the cleared passage.

Her appearance instantly reduced the colorful stalls and noisy crowd around her to mere background.

A cascade of dazzling golden hair draped over her shoulders, each strand shining brilliantly beneath the sun.

Her skin was fairer than snow, faintly flushed with a healthy pink.

Her features were exquisitely refined. Unlike Wang Dong's stunning beauty with its hint of heroic spirit, her beauty was pure, gentle, and soft, making it impossible for anyone to entertain disrespectful thoughts.

What drew the eye most was her nearly perfect figure.

Though she wore only a simple pale yellow cloth dress without any elaborate accessories, her slender waist, long straight legs, and graceful curves gave the cheap garment the texture of a custom-made formal gown.

The outer court's number one beauty, Jiang Nannan.

Her gaze was calm, and her bearing carried a cool, distant aloofness that seemed to keep strangers away.

Ignoring the infatuated, vacant stares of the boys around her, she walked lightly toward the grilled fish stall.

The crowd automatically parted to make way for her.

Those boys who normally fancied themselves charming and dashing all unconsciously reined in their frivolity before Jiang Nannan, only daring to admire her from afar.

Wang Dong froze with the meat skewer still in her hand as she watched Jiang Nannan approach.

For the first time, her absolute confidence in her own appearance wavered slightly.

This golden-haired senior before her was a rare beauty unlike any Wang Dong had ever seen, whether in temperament or figure.

While Wang Dong was lost in thought, Yun Yi suddenly changed course from the grilled fish stall and walked straight toward the golden-haired beauty.

Wang Dong stared at Yun Yi's back, full of confusion.

From what she had learned about Yun Yi over the past two days, this fellow was arrogant to the bone.

He had shown even this young master no courtesy in the dormitory, and he was even more merciless when he fought. He was definitely not some frivolous man who would be overcome by lust and run over to flirt with a girl in the street.

Could he know this famous outer court senior?

Ignoring Wang Dong's suspicions, Yun Yi led the two of them to a stop several steps away from Jiang Nannan.

Sensing someone blocking her way, Jiang Nannan instinctively stopped, her cool eyes taking on their usual vigilance.

Every day, she had to deal with countless boring boys trying to strike up conversations with her. She had long grown tired of this routine.

However, when her gaze focused on Yun Yi's handsome face, her entire body instantly froze.

Her beautiful eyes widened abruptly. The cool distance in them melted away in an instant like ice and snow beneath the blazing sun, replaced by undisguised shock and delight.

"Long time no see." Yun Yi spoke first, a gentle smile on his lips. His familiar tone confirmed Wang Dong's guess.

At the sound of that familiar voice, a smile more brilliant and breathtaking than sunlight blossomed across Jiang Nannan's face.

It was sincere and radiant, filled with heartfelt joy and dependence. In an instant, it completely swept away her original cool demeanor, leaving behind a beauty dazzling enough to make people lose themselves.

"Yi! It really is you!"

Jiang Nannan's voice carried obvious excitement, and her originally distant manner had completely fallen away.

The boys around them, who had been secretly watching her, were collectively stunned by that miraculous smile.

Some were so shocked that their mouths fell open, not even noticing when the grilled skewers in their hands dropped to the ground.

The iceberg in their hearts had actually revealed such enchanting charm before a boy.