Grandpa, I Made the First Move!

After Xue Qinghe finished speaking, his gaze fell upon the people from Spirit Hall.

He smiled and nodded.

Was he weighing Spirit Hall's strength?

Was he seeing just how formidable the troops Bibi Dong had brought were?

The elderly man on the far right stepped forward, his voice aged yet deep and powerful.

"I am Dugu Bo. By order of Prince Xue Xing, I have come to serve as a special guest for this exchange match.

I hope everyone will follow the rules. Otherwise..."

His gaze fiercely swept over Spirit Hall, lingering especially on Lin Yichen.

Lin Yichen knew full well that Dugu Bo held a deep grudge against Spirit Hall, so he paid particular attention to this.

However, Prince Xue Xing and the Crown Prince were bitter rivals, both vying for the throne.

It seemed that the imperial family was also keeping one another in check, sending Dugu Bo to restrain the Crown Prince.

Lin Yichen nodded slightly.

He had a fairly good impression of the old monster. As long as he gave him the code for exchanging immortal herbs, he was guaranteed to gain the great opportunity of the Mandarin Duck Hotpot.

Moreover, Dugu Bo cared deeply for his granddaughter, Dugu Yan.

When he looked at Dugu Yan, his eyes instantly softened.

Meng Shenji stepped forward and clapped his hands.

"That will be all for today. Please proceed to the Heaven Dou Great Spirit Arena at the same time tomorrow morning.

If any academies wish to spar with one another today, our Royal Academy training grounds will be open at all times. Take care, everyone!"

The crowd dispersed in a rush, and Xie Yue and the others left as well.

Before leaving, Xie Yue patted Lin Yichen on the shoulder. "Elder Chrysanthemum and Elder Ghost cannot show themselves right now. Poison Douluo has a grudge against them.

Showing up now would affect the match, so they've gone into Heaven Dou City to find an inn for the time being."

Oh~

Lin Yichen revealed a lewd grin. Were those two hiding in an inn and secretly fooling around...

After all, aside from blood relations, a martial soul fusion skill required people with a "close" relationship to perform it!

But while Lin Yichen's mind was still filled with that pile of dirty thoughts, Dugu Yan quietly walked over.

Seeing her best friend being so proactive, Ye Lingling smiled as well, then turned and followed the team away.

"Hehe, Yan Yan finally made the first move. This is going to be fun!

But that handsome guy at the milk tea shop this afternoon... sob... when will I ever see him again..."

Only Yu Tianheng remained, his face dark.

"Captain, are you all right?"

"Get lost!"

A Thunderclap Dragon Claw struck Oslo in the face...

As Dugu Bo was about to leave, he noticed that his granddaughter was actually walking in the opposite direction from her team, and suspicion rose in his heart.

So he stayed behind to take a look.

"Strange. Why isn't Yan Yan returning with the team? What is she going over to that Spirit Hall captain for?"

Dugu Yan walked within three steps of Lin Yichen, clasping her hands behind her back as her fingers curled together.

"You're here?"

Her voice was sweet, carrying a trace of coquettishness.

"Long time no see."

Lin Yichen spoke with the corner of his mouth tilted upward. He knew this girl had fallen for him too.

He would never be able to repay all the romantic debts he owed in this lifetime.

Then again, if he could not repay them, he simply would not.

You only lived once. Being happy was what mattered most.

He stepped forward, moving closer to Dugu Yan.

Dugu Yan's breathing visibly caught.

Yet she did not retreat. Instead, she lifted her chin, pretending she was not nervous.

Lin Yichen could feel her trying hard to maintain her proactive stance, but the slight tremble of her eyelashes betrayed her.

"Y-you... why are you standing so close?"

Lin Yichen stopped, leaving half a step of distance between them. Looking at her, his tone softened.

"For Miss Dugu to come see me, what an honor."

This was a public place. Naturally, he could not release that damned seductive aura and make Dugu Yan lose herself in a haze.

Dugu Bo was watching from the side.

Besides, Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo were not here. He could be killed at any moment.

But Dugu Yan's body had already begun trembling slightly. She was so nervous that she could not say a single word.

The proactive lines, domineering-sister lines, and contrast lines her best friend had taught her last night had all failed.

After hesitating for a long while, she finally forced out one sentence...

"Why didn't you stay with me a little longer that day?"

Not only was Lin Yichen stunned, even Dugu Bo froze.

"Stay with my granddaughter? What did this brat do to my granddaughter?"

He had already begun secretly gathering power behind them, preparing to strike.

However, Lin Yichen did not notice. He was only focused on Dugu Yan's shocking statement.

"Your mission was complete, and it was time for me to leave. Wasn't it only natural for us to part ways?"

Dugu Yan stared at him blankly, perhaps unable to understand why he would say that.

"I wanted to see more of you..."

Lin Yichen spread his hands helplessly.

"I was afraid you'd come to your senses afterward and beat me to death."

What the hell did coming to her senses afterward mean?

Dugu Bo was completely dumbfounded. What exactly had he done to his granddaughter?!

No wonder she had been so absentminded these past two days!

Spirit Hall was courting death!

At that thought, he no longer hesitated. Soul power gathered around his right hand as he struck at Lin Yichen.

The soul power of a Titled Douluo was incomparably abundant. The two standing there immediately felt a wave of soul power rushing toward them.

Dugu Yan was naturally familiar with that aura, and her face instantly turned pale with fright.

She quickly ran over and spread her arms before Lin Yichen.

"Grandpa! He didn't do anything to me. I made the first move myself."

Dugu Bo, who had been prepared to kill with a single blow, immediately stopped when he saw his granddaughter like this and looked at her.

Then his vicious gaze fixed on Lin Yichen again. He merely snorted before turning away.

He took several steps, then stopped, his voice cold.

"Brat, come see me after the competition ends."

With that, he left without looking back.

Lin Yichen let out a long breath. Even if Dugu Bo had not used his full strength just now, if he had taken a Titled Douluo's palm strike head-on, he would have died on the spot.

Cold sweat had already formed on Dugu Yan's forehead. She knew that if her grandfather wanted to test Lin Yichen, he would not show mercy.

Especially since he was from Spirit Hall.

Suddenly thinking of something, Dugu Yan's face reddened again, and her voice dropped considerably.

"Then can you... not make me stand in front of you next time... You protect me. You stand in front of me."

After saying that, she lowered her head again in embarrassment.

Did that count as a confession?

Lin Yichen only knew that this exchange match of his probably would not be peaceful. He turned to glance inside his dormitory.

Hu Liena was still sleeping soundly.

"Oh, right. Tomorrow's match... if you face our Heaven Dou Royal Academy team, don't go easy on us because of me."

Lin Yichen nodded slightly in agreement, but he had already decided that the remaining Spirit Hall members would be more than enough to deal with them.

He could drink a couple cups of milk tea and watch first.

Dugu Yan was preparing to leave. She still had to explain things to her grandfather when she returned.

Then she suddenly caught sight of the ring on Lin Yichen's left hand...

Her heart chilled slightly, but she still forced out a smile.

"Your ring is quite pretty."

She turned around, but after taking only two steps, she looked back and added,

"I'll give you one next time too."

Then she covered her face and hurried away.

Lin Yichen lowered his head to look at the storage ring on his left hand, the one he had obtained from Shui Bing'er, and rubbed his nose.

She was quite observant.

But she said she would give him one next time...

Lin Yichen was certain now. This was a confession.

What he did not know was that Shui Bing'er had been hiding behind a tree all along without saying a word. Only her tightly pressed lips revealed her tension at this moment.

Shui Bing'er lightly clenched her fists, determination shining in her eyes once more. Then she turned and left, no longer looking at him.