Shui Bing'er

After listening to Ye Feng's explanation, Director Su's expression grew more serious.

"You're saying your flames are too powerful and require a powerful ice-attribute Soul Master to help balance them, otherwise there is a risk of backlash? And you think our academy might have someone like that?"

"Yes."

Ye Feng nodded, his expression sincere. "Although my Martial Soul is powerful, the danger of backlash increases with every level I gain."

"I heard Skywater Academy specializes in ice and water attributes. Perhaps I can find a student with strength close to mine and a powerful ice attribute to ease the Karma Fire within me."

He did not even dare describe it as suppression.

After all, in terms of attribute strength, aside from the Snow Empress and Ice Empress, no one could truly overpower him.

"That is indeed troublesome..."

Director Su pondered for a moment before saying solemnly, "But you really did come to the right place. When it comes to ice-attribute Soul Masters, even Spirit Hall Academy cannot compare to us."

"Seven years old and level twenty-five, along with such a high-quality Martial Soul... making an exception isn't impossible."

Ye Feng's golden eyes lit up slightly. "Director, you agree?"

"Of course."

Director Su nodded, rose to her feet, and gently patted Ye Feng on the shoulder. "No mentor could refuse a genius like you. I am no exception."

"From today onward, you are a member of Skywater Academy."

As she spoke, she took an icy blue token from her robes and handed it to him. "This is the symbol of a core member of Skywater Academy. With this token, you may go anywhere except the girls' dormitories."

Ye Feng accepted the token. It felt smooth and warm in his hand, with a trace of heat lingering on its surface.

"Thank you, Director Su."

"Don't thank me too soon."

Director Su sat back down and lifted her chin toward Ye Feng. "Let me first see how strong your flames really are, and whether they are as absurd as you claimed."

Ye Feng had released his Martial Soul for too short a time earlier, and she had not been able to properly sense it.

Ye Feng did not waste words. He nodded and stepped back two paces.

With a thought, he did not summon Martial Soul Possession and merely held his palm upward.

"Whoosh!"

A cluster of crimson-gold flames ignited out of thin air.

At first, it was only the size of a candle flame, yet its color was as deep as molten gold.

As Ye Feng infused it with Soul Power, the flames silently expanded and stretched, taking the form of a palm-sized fire phoenix that danced upon his hand.

The temperature in the room surged the instant the flame appeared.

Tiny droplets of water condensed on the walls sizzled as they rapidly evaporated into white vapor.

The corners of several documents on the desk visibly curled and yellowed, while a faint scorched smell spread through the air.

"Enough."

Director Su took a deep breath and raised a hand to signal Ye Feng to stop.

Even though she had mentally prepared herself, Ye Feng's terrifying flames still shocked her.

She was a level seventy-six Soul Sage herself, and her Martial Soul was the Ice Demon Fox, which could be considered the nemesis of most fire-attribute soul beasts.

Yet the instant Ye Feng's flames appeared, the Soul Power within her faintly sent her feedback of being suppressed, even seeming to want to retreat.

This was not suppression from Soul Power Level, but a sense of oppression at the level of attributes and origin.

She had only ever felt this sensation from Bing'er.

Director Su removed her glasses, rubbed her brow, then put them back on.

"Your fire... it can no longer be described as merely top-tier. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I would never believe that this was power a level twenty-five Soul Master could control."

"Your flames may already have touched the threshold of the ultimate."

She paused, then fixed Ye Feng with a sharp gaze. "You said you needed an ice-attribute Soul Master to balance and suppress it. Now I believe you. If flames of this level ever went out of control, let alone you, half the academy would probably burn down."

Ye Feng scratched his head. "So, Director... does the academy have anyone who can hold it down?"

Director Su fell silent for a moment, her fingers lightly tapping the tabletop as though rapidly sorting through possibilities in her mind.

After a long while, she slowly spoke a name. "Shui Bing'er."

"She is the most talented student the academy has seen in nearly a century, without question. Nine years old, level twenty-seven control-system Battle Soul Master, Martial Soul: Ice Phoenix."

Director Su's tone carried undisguised praise. "Her ice attribute... has also touched the edge of the ultimate. The purity of her chill and the solidity of her ice are unlike anything I have ever seen. However..."

Her tone shifted. "Perhaps because of her Martial Soul, that girl Bing'er has a cold temperament. Aside from cultivation and reading, she usually does not care to interact with people. Whether you can persuade her to help you will depend on your own abilities."

"Forget it. I'll take you to see her directly."

After thinking it over, Director Su decided it would be best to let the two geniuses meet first.

She immediately stood up, grabbed Ye Feng's small hand without further discussion, and headed out of the office.

The moment the door opened, they saw the two students standing outside.

"Director Su—"

Before the two female students could finish speaking, Director Su silenced them with a sharp glare. They could only stick out their tongues and watch the pair leave.

"The Mimicry Training Ground is ahead, and the Spirit Battle Training Ground is a little to the right. Bing'er should be cultivating at Ice Heart Lake around this time."

As they walked, Director Su introduced the academy's layout to Ye Feng.

Pulled along by her, Ye Feng passed through several teaching buildings, drawing countless curious stares.

"Look, Director Su is holding hands with a red-haired boy!"

"Wow, he's so handsome... Is he a new student?"

"Our academy accepts boys now?!"

Whispers drifted over from all around.

Ye Feng felt his scalp tingle and said quietly, "Director, I can walk by myself..."

"What are you afraid of?"

Director Su glanced sideways at him. "Are you getting shy now?"

Ye Feng: "..."

Ice Heart Lake lay deep within the academy, an artificially excavated ring-shaped body of water.

The lake water was a deep blue, with a thin layer of ice floating across its surface and cold mist curling through the air.

Within a small pavilion at the center of the lake, a blue-haired girl sat cross-legged with her eyes closed.

The girl's features were breathtakingly delicate, and her skin was so fair it was nearly translucent.

Her ice-blue eyes were clear and crystalline, yet devoid of emotion, like two frozen pools.

She was Shui Bing'er.

Director Su stopped at the shore and cleared her throat. "Bing'er, come over for a moment."

Shui Bing'er opened her eyes. Her gaze first fell upon Director Su, then lightly swept over the red-haired boy beside her. Not a ripple stirred in her ice-blue eyes.

She rose to her feet, tapped the thin ice on the lake with the tip of her foot, and drifted gracefully to shore like a snowflake, landing without a sound.

"Director Su."

Shui Bing'er's voice was cold and clear, carrying no more warmth than her gaze.

Director Su was already used to it. She patted Ye Feng on the shoulder. "Bing'er, let me introduce you. This is Ye Feng, a new student at the academy... and currently our only male student."

Only then did Shui Bing'er's gaze formally settle on Ye Feng's face. It lingered for two seconds before she gave a faint nod, treating it as a greeting.

Beside her, Ye Feng was silently studying the girl as well.

As expected of the girl who would later be hailed as Skywater Academy's greatest beauty. Even at such a young age, the signs were already apparent.

Delicate features, a tall figure, blue hair and watery eyes, an icy temperament.

She could not help but make Ye Feng think of the Snow Empress.

Shui Bing'er somehow felt like what the Snow Empress must have looked like as a child.

"Director Su, why were you looking for me?"

Shui Bing'er suddenly spoke, her voice clear.