Taking Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue, Heading to the Far North

"So hot..."

"So uncomfortable..."

Shui Bing'er's face was flushed, her eyes hazy as she exhaled softly.

An alluring peach-pink hue spread across her cool, pale skin. A few loose strands of aqua-blue hair, soaked with sweat, clung tightly to her cheeks. Unconsciously, she bit a strand of aqua-blue hair between her lips, giving her an indescribably seductive charm—pure yet tantalizing.

Fine, glistening beads of sweat slid down her cheeks to her delicate collarbones, then wound along their raised contours before finally disappearing into the depths of her collar. Her porcelain-white skin, dampened by sweat, gleamed with a delicate sheen of moisture, making her especially enticing.

Jiang Lan's breathing immediately grew heavier as he looked at Shui Bing'er, who was pressed tightly against him.

Fortunately, he still retained a sliver of reason. He forcibly pushed the clinging Shui Bing'er away, then looked up at Shui Qinghan, who was watching the show, and said in a slightly hoarse voice:

"Teacher, stop watching. I can barely hold on."

"Alright~" Shui Qinghan looked regretful. She lightly raised her slender hand, and a wave of bone-chilling cold air immediately swept toward Jiang Lan and Shui Bing'er.

As the bone-chilling cold air blew over them, a layer of frost formed on Jiang Lan and Shui Bing'er's brows and hair.

"Hiss~" Jiang Lan shuddered violently and let out a comfortable sigh.

The icy chill directly suppressed the heat in his body, allowing Jiang Lan to focus on refining the medicinal effects of the Whale Glue.

The continuous gusts of cold air also restored Shui Bing'er's consciousness, which had been muddled by the fires of desire.

As her memories gradually returned, Shui Bing'er's already rosy face instantly turned crimson as blood. She did not dare raise her head to look at Jiang Lan.

Recalling how she had acted just now, Shui Bing'er wished she could find a hole to crawl into.

Wuwu~ This is so embarrassing.

How was she supposed to face Junior Brother?

"Bing'er, stop overthinking it. Hurry and refine the medicinal effects of the Whale Glue," Shui Qinghan urged.

"Mm~" Shui Bing'er nodded, no longer thinking about those embarrassing matters as she began concentrating on refining the medicinal effects of the Whale Glue.

Half an hour later, the two had refined the medicinal effects of the Whale Glue.

When she opened her eyes, Shui Bing'er's gaze toward Jiang Lan was somewhat evasive. She turned her head slightly, unsure how to face him.

She did indeed have considerable affection for Jiang Lan, but now that the thin veil between them had suddenly been pierced, she did not know how she should interact with him.

Senior sister and junior brother?

Or lovers?

Jiang Lan did not think too much about it. He merely carefully sensed the changes in his body.

The medicinal effects of this piece of Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue had increased his endurance limit by at least a thousand years.

By that calculation, his second soul ring could absorb a soul ring that was nearly five thousand years old.

"Come here, both of you. I'll test your bodies' endurance," Shui Qinghan said.

Soul power pressure was the simplest and most accurate method of testing a body's endurance.

Shui Qinghan directly brought level-twenty soul power crashing down upon them. Jiang Lan remained completely calm, as though what pressed upon him was not soul power, but a gentle breeze brushing his face.

Shui Bing'er, however, let out a muffled groan and staggered back a step, nearly falling to the ground.

Jiang Lan hurriedly raised a hand to support Shui Bing'er's back. After helping her regain her footing, he said:

"Senior Sister Bing'er, be careful."

"Mm~" Shui Bing'er's little face reddened slightly as she gently nodded.

With a knowing smile on her face, Shui Qinghan began increasing the pressure on the two of them level by level.

Very soon, the soul power pressure Shui Qinghan released rose from level twenty to level thirty, forcing Shui Bing'er to summon her martial soul.

By the time the soul power pressure Shui Qinghan released reached level thirty-five, Shui Bing'er was beginning to struggle under it.

Shui Qinghan promptly stopped, withdrawing the soul power pressing down on Shui Bing'er and focusing on increasing the soul power weighing upon Jiang Lan.

Shui Bing'er's entire body suddenly felt light, and she immediately collapsed onto the ground. Her breathing was somewhat heavy, and sweat had soaked through her dress.

She raised her head to look at Jiang Lan, who had not even fused with his martial soul, and a faint sense of amazement rose within her.

The gap between her and Junior Brother seemed to be growing wider and wider.

Very soon, the soul power pressure Shui Qinghan released reached level forty.

Jiang Lan was finally forced to summon his martial soul.

Seeing this, Shui Qinghan increased her soul power output once more, raising the soul power pressure all the way to level forty-four.

The level-forty-four soul power pressure made Jiang Lan's face flush red, even forcing his straight back to bend.

Seeing that Jiang Lan had reached his limit, Shui Qinghan hurriedly withdrew the soul power she had released.

Jiang Lan immediately felt his body lighten, and he promptly dropped onto the ground, his forehead covered in sweat.

"Level forty-four!" Shui Qinghan exclaimed in amazement, saying excitedly, "Lan'er, your second ring can at least absorb a soul ring over four thousand years old, nearly five thousand years old."

"Five thousand years?!" Shui Bing'er's face was filled with astonishment.

Five thousand years was already the maximum age limit for the fourth ring of a four-ring Soul Ancestor.

"Bing'er, your second ring should be able to absorb a three-thousand-year soul ring," Shui Qinghan said, looking at Shui Bing'er again.

"Three thousand years! That's wonderful!" Shui Bing'er's eyes lit up, brimming with joy.

"Alright, both of you go take a bath and change into clean clothes. Then we'll set out to hunt soul beasts," Shui Qinghan said.

"Yes~"

Shui Bing'er's dress had long since been soaked through with sweat, clinging tightly and stickily to her body, which felt very uncomfortable.

The two hurried back to their rooms, grabbed clean changes of clothes, and ran into the bathroom to bathe.

After they finished bathing, Shui Qinghan grabbed one in each hand and flew directly out of Tianshui Academy with them. They then took a carriage toward the Far North.

The Far North was a forbidden zone for humans. Not only was it uninhabited, but it also possessed a bitter cold that ordinary people could not withstand. It was a paradise for ice-attributed soul beasts.

Likewise, the soul beasts capable of surviving in the Far North far surpassed those of the Frozen Forest in both bloodline and strength.

Although the Far North was dangerous, as long as they did not venture into the core region and only operated around its outskirts, their safety could still be assured.

Furthermore, Jiang Lan's innate domain could ward off the bitter cold and even render him immune to elemental attacks. He was practically the nemesis of ice-attributed soul beasts.

Their journey to the Far North would be far safer than imagined.

Not to mention that Dragon City lay at the border between the northern frontier of the Heaven Dou Empire and the Far North. They could also collect the Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Marrow along the way.

Over these eight months, Shui Qinghan had visited Dragon City several times to secretly explore the cold spring in the Far North Mountains.

The farther down the cold spring one went, the lower the temperature became.

In particular, the cold current gushing from the spring was so frigid that even she found it somewhat difficult to endure.

Although her Water-Congealing Flying Luan martial soul was not a true Ice Phoenix, it was still considered a top-tier ice-attributed martial soul.

Yet even so, she still could not withstand the cold current gushing from the spring.

After several probes, Shui Qinghan had already confirmed that the Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Marrow Cave Jiang Lan spoke of was located beneath the cold spring. All that remained was for them to excavate it.