Heaven Dou City

"What are you thinking about?" Xiao Wu asked. When he didn't say anything for a long time, she waved a hand in front of him.

"Nothing." Nezha pulled himself out of his thoughts. "I just think that Grandmaster is pretty interesting."

"Interesting?" Xiao Wu rolled her eyes. "I think there's something wrong with his head. We're obviously on terrible terms with his disciple, yet he still came over to recommend an academy. What else could that be but crazy?"

"That's why I said we'd think about it." Nezha smiled and took another bite of a wild fruit.

A few days later, early in the morning.

Sunlight had only just filtered through the canopy, and a thin layer of mist still floated over the Lake of Life.

Nezha and Xiao Wu stood by the lake, facing Da Ming and Er Ming.

"You're really leaving?" Er Ming crouched on the ground, his enormous head drooping. His bell-sized eyes were full of reluctance.

"If we don't leave soon, we'll miss the start of the term at Heaven Dou Royal Academy." Xiao Wu felt a little down, though she didn't show it. "We'll come back during the holidays."

Da Ming was silent for a moment before speaking in a low voice. "Be careful in the outside world. Heaven Dou City is nothing like Notting City. There are bound to be Titled Douluo there."

"Don't worry." Nezha nodded. "We know what we're doing."

Er Ming suddenly sprang to his feet and thudded into the woods. Before long, he came running back with a huge handful of wild fruit—red, yellow, green, all sorts of colors—which he promptly stuffed into Xiao Wu's Storage Soul Tool.

"Eat them on the way."

Xiao Wu looked at the colorful heap of fruit, somewhat at a loss. She raised a hand and smacked Er Ming's enormous head as he leaned close.

"Idiot, how could I possibly eat all these?"

Er Ming chuckled foolishly.

Da Ming said nothing more. He simply brushed the tip of his tail lightly against Xiao Wu's shoulder, then nodded to Nezha.

The two turned and followed the path along the lake toward the edge of the forest.

After they had walked a long way, Nezha looked back. Er Ming was still crouching where he'd been, gazing after them. Da Ming was coiled beside him, his tail slapping the surface of the lake again and again.

Xiao Wu didn't look back.

She was afraid that if she did, she wouldn't be able to bring herself to leave.

After they left Star Dou Forest, more and more carriages appeared on the main road.

The two hitched a ride with a merchant caravan heading in the same direction. After several days of jolting along, they arrived in Heaven Dou City.

But Nezha and Xiao Wu didn't head straight to Heaven Dou Royal Academy outside the city. They went into the city first.

The walls of Heaven Dou City rose a hundred meters high, built entirely of the hardest granite. The crenellations were arranged in neat rows, and an arrow tower stood at regular intervals.

Soldiers patrolled and stood guard atop and below the walls, clad in full armor and holding spears. The murderous air emanating from them spoke of their discipline and prowess.

Xiao Wu gazed up at the enormous city gate, its towering outline reflected in her pink eyes.

"So tall," she murmured.

After spending six years in Notting City, Xiao Wu had thought it was already quite large. But compared to Heaven Dou City before her, Notting City was little more than a small town.

"After all, it's the heart of the Heaven Dou Empire." Nezha stood beside her and looked up at the walls too. "Come on, let's go inside and have a look."

They paid the entrance fee and passed through the city gate. The clamor and bustle of everyday life washed over them.

The main street was wide enough for eight carriages to race side by side. Shops lined both sides: restaurants, cloth shops, Soul Tool stores, and apothecaries, each with a signboard bigger and more ornate than the last.

The street teemed with people: peddlers hawking their wares, nobles in fine clothes waving their folding fans, Soul Masters with Soul Tools hanging from their waists, and merchant caravans leading pack beasts.

"Make way, make way! Fresh Soul Beast meat, just arrived!"

"Heaven Dou City's best candied hawthorns! Three Copper Soul Coins a skewer!"

"Hey, young man, come take a look at my Soul Tools! Authentic wares from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect—tenfold compensation if they're fake!"

Xiao Wu's eyes could barely keep up.

One moment she was dashing over to sniff the candied hawthorns at a stall on the left; the next she was darting into a fabric shop on the right to feel the cloth. Everything was new to her.

"Nezha, look at this! This hairpin is so pretty!"

"This one, this one! This pastry looks so strange, and it even has patterns on top!"

"Wow, someone over there is doing acrobatics! They've got Soul Beasts performing too!"

Nezha followed behind her, looking helpless.

This girl had spent tens of thousands of years in Star Dou Forest, so everything she saw outside was like her first time in a city.

Though she'd gone around Notting City plenty of times over the past few years, compared to Heaven Dou City, it wasn't even a fraction as big.

Fortunately, there was still plenty of time. He couldn't be bothered to rush her, so he let Xiao Wu wander to her heart's content.

They strolled along, and at last reached their destination: a bustling restaurant.

The restaurant was three stories tall, with carved beams and painted rafters. Several carriages inlaid with gold and silver were parked outside.

Xiao Wu glanced up at the gilded signboard that read "Drunken Immortal Pavilion," then at the two young attendants standing at the entrance. She muttered under her breath, "That important person sure is rich."

Nezha and Xiao Wu pushed open the door. An attendant hurried over at once. After they gave their names, he bowed and showed them the way. "This way, please. The young master has been waiting for some time."

The attendant led them up to the third floor and stopped in front of a carved wooden door. He knocked twice, pushed it open, then bowed and withdrew.

The private room was spacious, furnished with tasteful elegance.

A round rosewood table stood by the window, with several plates of delicate pastries on it and a pot of tea steaming gently.

A young man in white sat inside, in his twenties, with a gentle and refined air. He held a teacup in his hand and looked over when he heard the door open.

It was none other than Qian Renxue, disguised as a man, or Xue Qinghe, the crown prince of the Heaven Dou Empire.

Nezha recognized him at a glance, but showed not the slightest hint of it. He cupped his hands in greeting. "You must be Young Master Xue. We were delayed on the way. Sorry for the wait."

Xue Qinghe set down his teacup and stepped forward with a smile, returning the salute. "You must be Nezha and Xiao Wu. Truly, young talents. I only arrived a short while ago, so there's no need to be so polite."

The two sat opposite Qian Renxue.

Qian Renxue poured tea for them herself, her movements unhurried and graceful. As she poured, she said, "I heard that two geniuses with Innate Full Soul Power had appeared in Notting City. Now that I've met you, I see the rumors were true."

Nezha lifted his teacup and took a sip, letting a hint of modesty show on his face. "You flatter me, Young Master Xue. We were just lucky."

"Luck is part of one's strength, too."

Qian Renxue smiled faintly and turned her gaze to Xiao Wu. "Miss Xiao Wu, this is Cloud Mist tea newly presented from the south. Try it and see if you like it."

Xiao Wu lifted her teacup and gulped down a big mouthful. She smacked her lips. "It's pretty good, but the cup's too small."

Qian Renxue paused, then burst out laughing. "Miss Xiao Wu, you're certainly a straightforward person."

Nezha rolled his eyes inwardly, but kept a polite smile on his face. "Xiao Wu is very frank. Please don't take it amiss, Young Master Xue."