Xue Beng

"Not at all, I happen to like this kind of straightforward temperament."

Qian Renxue waved her hand and refilled their tea.

Xiao Wu sat to the side, looking from Nezha to Xue Qinghe, feeling puzzled.

How were the tones of these two people identical? Both were so flowery and pretentious; it was exhausting just to listen to.

Back in Notting City, she and Nezha had always spoken directly; there had never been such polite formalities.

The three of them chatted a bit more about what they had seen on the road and asked a few questions about cultivation.

It was all superficial pleasantries, which Nezha parried one by one, leaving no openings.

After chatting for a while, Xue Qinghe set down his teacup. "Are you two heading straight to the Heaven Dou Royal Academy today, or would you like to stroll around the city first?"

Xiao Wu's eyes lit up, and she answered before Nezha could. "Stroll around the city first!"

She hadn't even finished half of the street she was walking on earlier.

Xue Qinghe smiled, took a key from his sleeve, placed it on the table, and gave them an address. "This is a private residence of mine in the city. It usually sits empty. If you two don't mind, you can stay there for the time being."

Nezha did not decline and took the key. "Many thanks, Young Master Xue."

Once they were out of the restaurant, Xiao Wu let out a long sigh of relief.

"What's wrong?" Nezha glanced at her.

"The way that person talks is so flowery, it's really hard to get used to." Xiao Wu rubbed her face. "I felt too embarrassed to even interrupt when you were talking to him."

Nezha laughed out loud.

The two continued walking along the main street. Xiao Wu hadn't had her fill of exploring, and now that her energy had returned, she looked left and right, occasionally dragging Nezha into a shop.

Just as they were browsing, a commotion suddenly erupted ahead.

Several young men in luxurious clothing were walking arrogantly down the center of the street. The leader, who looked to be about seventeen or eighteen, wore a brocade robe and a high-quality jade pendant at his waist. His gait was exactly like a peacock fanning its tail.

Pedestrians scattered, none daring to block his path.

Behind him followed several young men dressed just as flashily, and behind them were two burly men who looked like guards, wearing Soul Tools at their waists, their auras restrained yet sharp.

The youth in the brocade robe was scanning the street vendors with boredom when his gaze suddenly locked.

He saw Xiao Wu.

A pink dress, hair like a waterfall, and skin so fair it was almost translucent in the sunlight.

Although she was still young, one could already see the stunning beauty she would become.

The youth's eyes lit up instantly, as if he had discovered a rare treasure.

He walked over, waving a folding fan, and blocked Xiao Wu's path. With a snap, he closed the fan and flirtatiously reached toward Xiao Wu's chin.

"What a beautiful little girl. Isn't it boring to shop alone? Why not come to that restaurant over there and sit with me?"

Nezha: ...

Xiao Wu tilted her head to avoid his fan, her brow furrowing. "Who are you?"

"Me?" The youth unfurled his fan and fanned himself triumphantly. "You don't even recognize me?"

A lackey behind him immediately stepped forward, pointing at the youth with an arrogant air. "This is His Highness, the Fourth Prince! Why haven't you bowed yet?"

Nezha understood.

Xue Beng. The Fourth Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire, and the only surviving younger brother of Xue Qinghe.

On the surface, he was a playboy who spent his days running amok in Heaven Dou City with a gang of lackeys, frequently bullying others.

In reality, this was all just a mask he wore to protect himself. He had long ago seen through the terror hidden beneath the gentle facade of his Crown Prince brother, and to survive, he had no choice but to act like an unlearned wastrel.

Nezha's gaze fell on that smug face.

In the original story, this Fourth Prince was a typical clown early on, though he was redeemed later.

He just hadn't expected to run into him the moment they arrived in Heaven Dou City.

Xue Beng waved his fan, his eyes glued to Xiao Wu, refusing to look away. "Little girl, come with me. If you follow me, I guarantee you'll have the best of everything. It's much better than wandering around this street aimlessly."

As he spoke, he reached out, aiming directly for Xiao Wu's wrist.

Xiao Wu watched the hand reach toward her, expressionless.

Nezha was all too familiar with that look. Whenever Xiao Wu was impatient and wanted to hit someone, she wore that exact expression.

Crack.

The sound of a bone dislocating was crisp and clean.

Xue Beng's wrist was gripped by Xiao Wu's single hand and twisted into an angle no normal person could ever achieve.

His face shifted from triumph to shock, from shock to agony, and finally settled into a blood-curdling scream.

"Ah—!"

Xiao Wu let go and immediately followed up with a kick to his stomach.

Xue Beng flew backward, crashing into a roadside fruit stall, sending apples and pears rolling everywhere.

His brocade robe was stained with fruit juice and mud, and his meticulously maintained folding fan had flown off to some unknown corner.

"You—you have some nerve!"

Xue Beng struggled to crawl up from the pile of fruit, his face turning pale and then red. "Do you have any idea who I am?"

"I don't care who you are!" Xiao Wu put her hands on her hips and lifted her chin. "Mess with your Big Sister Xiao Wu, and you'll get a beating regardless!"

Xue Beng was trembling with rage and roared at the two guards behind him, "What are you standing there for! Get them!"

The two guards exchanged a glance and simultaneously released their martial souls. Four soul rings rose from beneath their feet—two yellow and two purple—marking them as Soul Ancestors.

Though the Fourth Prince was a wastrel, his guards were no slouches.

But in Nezha's eyes, a Soul Ancestor was no different from a wastrel.

However, he wasn't prepared to use his full strength.

They had only just left Qian Renxue's restaurant when they ran into Xue Beng; who could say if this coincidence was real or staged?

If this was a setup by Qian Renxue to test them, exposing their true strength would only cause trouble.

Nezha exchanged a look with Xiao Wu, and years of tacit understanding allowed Xiao Wu to instantly grasp his meaning.

Both of them released their martial souls simultaneously.

One yellow and two purple soul rings rose from beneath their feet, rotating slowly in the sunlight.

The crowd of onlookers erupted in gasps.

"Three rings? They're only three-ringed at such a young age?"

"And that second soul ring is purple? A thousand-year soul ring?"

"Whose children are these? They must be out for training from some major sect."

The two Soul Ancestor guards were also stunned.

They had assumed these two teenagers were dressed plainly and would be easy to handle, never expecting to run into two iron plates.

At twelve or thirteen years old, they were three-ringed Soul Elders with an unheard-of thousand-year second ring. This configuration was top-tier even in all of Heaven Dou City; they were clearly disciples of a major power.

But they had already charged out. The arrow was on the string; they couldn't pull back.

Damn it, why are people from major powers dressed so plainly, pretending to be commoners!

The two exchanged a look, their hearts filled with bitterness. If they struck too hard, they feared retaliation; if they struck too lightly, they feared failing their mission and being punished by the Fourth Prince. They could only fight with their hands tied.

Nezha and Xiao Wu, however, had no intention of holding back.