So Warm

Not bad, not bad.

Lin Yichen nodded in satisfaction.

This gave him a few more skills.

He could fill in the gaps slowly later.

With that thought, Lin Yichen put away his flute and glanced at Hu Liena on the bed.

It was already broad daylight outside. He had spent over an hour practicing a soul skill.

Lin Yichen smiled self-deprecatingly and walked out of the room.

The moment he stepped outside, he saw Xie Yue leaning against the wall beside the doorframe, arms crossed. He had clearly been waiting for a while.

"Where's my sister?"

He turned and glanced at Lin Yichen. There was none of the respect one would show a captain in his tone.

Only the scrutiny of an older brother-in-law inspecting his sister's husband.

"She's in the room."

Lin Yichen stepped aside and tilted his head toward the door behind him. "She's still sleeping."

Xie Yue glanced in that direction but said nothing. His gaze returned to Lin Yichen's face, and he fell silent for two seconds.

Lin Yichen swallowed nervously. He didn't see the water stains, did he...

After all, he had covered them up pretty thoroughly.

"Today is Heavenly Water Academy's match. Are you going to watch?"

"Yes. I have a friend there."

At last, a smile appeared on Xie Yue's usually expressionless face.

"I can't even be bothered exposing you.

If she's unhappy, comfort her yourself. I'm not obligated to do it for you."

Watching Xie Yue's back disappear around the end of the corridor, Lin Yichen suddenly felt that Xie Yue was easier to get along with than he had imagined.

He was cold on the outside but warm on the inside, too.

Lin Yichen stood there, rubbed his nose, and chuckled foolishly twice before heading toward the arena.

The Great Spirit Arena was even livelier today than it had been yesterday.

Heavenly Water Academy's team stood ready for battle.

Shui Bing'er stood at the very front, her light-blue team uniform gleaming in the morning sunlight.

Her hair was tied into a high ponytail, revealing a slender stretch of fair neck.

She was speaking with her teammates. Her voice was soft, but her tone was steady.

"Like Heaven Dou Academy, Heavenly Water Academy isn't suited for a direct assault against Thunderclap Academy.

So in the one-on-ones, they'll probably send their captain out immediately, then forfeit after winning three matches."

Ghost Douluo had appeared beside Lin Yichen at some point and spoke in a hoarse voice.

Lin Yichen nodded slightly, agreeing with Ghost Douluo's assessment.

"But if Shui Bing'er's Ice Phoenix has ultimate ice, it should be able to freeze the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon's lightning, right?"

Ghost Douluo looked somewhat stunned. Lin Yichen had mentioned something he had never heard of.

"What is ultimate ice?"

Lin Yichen jolted. He had forgotten that this era had no concept of ultimate attributes.

"An ultimate element is when a specific element reaches a high enough level of cultivation and density to suppress non-ultimate forms of that same element.

And it holds an absolute advantage over the non-ultimate forms of other attributes as well."

After hearing Lin Yichen's explanation, Ghost Douluo became slightly interested.

"So you came up with this yourself? Then in your opinion, who here has an ultimate attribute?"

"Only Shui Bing'er. Even the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon doesn't count as ultimate lightning."

Ghost Douluo was puzzled.

"Even the number one beast martial soul in the world doesn't qualify as ultimate in your eyes?"

Lin Yichen did not answer. He had already reached a rough conclusion in his heart.

The undisputed ultimate lightning was Star Dou's king of plant-type soul beasts—the Thunderous Hellvine.

However, that thing was extremely difficult to cultivate, and its age limit would not be very high either.

The whistle signaling the start of the match sounded.

Just as Ghost Douluo had expected, Heavenly Water Academy sent out their captain, Shui Bing'er.

Their opponent, meanwhile, sent out an ordinary team member.

Both contestants released their martial souls.

That contestant's martial soul was a thunder spear. He was obviously cannon fodder sent up to test the waters.

Against Shui Bing'er... he could only be said to be courting death.

Sure enough, Shui Bing'er ended the battle in less than three minutes.

Then she pointed at the opposing team's resting area and shouted,

"Next!"

Lin Yichen could not help laughing, and the people from Spirit Hall also let out a round of soft chuckles.

"Captain, she's copying you."

Zhou Ming teased.

"What a shame. We don't have the captain's luck with women~"

Lin Yichen sighed helplessly.

"What a shame. You don't have my iron kidneys."

Everyone: "..."

Hu Liena hummed beneath the blankets and turned over.

While everyone was joking around, Shui Bing'er finished her three matches.

Three wins.

Over at Thunderclap Academy, Yu Tianxin was furious.

What kind of person sent out their captain right from the start?

And because of his battle-crazed nature, he possessed an innate thirst for combat.

With such a powerful opponent before him, how could he not be tempted?

"I'll take this one!"

But just as Yu Tianxin stepped onto the stage in eager anticipation...

"Referee, Heavenly Water Academy forfeits the 1v1 match."

The entire venue erupted in uproar.

After winning three utterly one-sided matches, Shui Bing'er had displayed such overwhelming strength.

And then she forfeited?

"Refund my damn money!"

As Shui Bing'er stepped off the stage, she tossed a flirtatious glance toward Lin Yichen in the resting area.

In the following two-two-three battles, Shui Bing'er only participated in the three-on-three match.

They won that one without suspense as well.

Both sides had accumulated four points.

Only the final team battle remained.

At some point, Xiao Rou brought over several cups of milk tea again, and everyone sampled them.

Lin Yichen leaned back in his chair. The cup in his hand had been specially prepared by Xiao Rou, with an extra layer of milk foam compared to the others.

The team battle had already begun.

Shui Bing'er weaved through the field like a swimming dragon, repeatedly using her freezing skill to control the opponents.

Yu Tianxin was a battle maniac after all, and he was naturally not so easy to defeat.

In his hands, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon's berserk nature was brought into full play.

He was even more formidable than Yu Tianheng.

He forcibly tore open a gap in the frozen water and launched a wild assault on Heavenly Water Academy's other team members.

Shui Bing'er's expression changed drastically at the sight.

The number one beast martial soul in the world truly lived up to its reputation.

Shui Bing'er muttered self-mockingly in her heart.

Is the Ice Phoenix still inferior after all?

Then her gaze drifted toward Lin Yichen, filled with panic and uncertainty.

Lin Yichen nodded at her and silently mouthed,

"You're stronger than him. Keep going. Don't be afraid."

Shui Bing'er immediately nodded, looked toward Xue Wu, and gritted her teeth.

If Shui Bing'er and Xue Wu used their martial soul fusion skill in this exchange tournament,

then aside from Lin Yichen's absurd soul power suppression skill, it would be the strongest soul skill.

Ice Snowfall!

A blizzard swept across the entire arena. Yu Tianxin, who had been advancing with unstoppable momentum only moments ago, was instantly dumbfounded.

How the hell am I supposed to deal with this?

However...

They had only recently begun attempting this martial soul fusion skill, so they still could not wield it proficiently.

"No... I can't control it much longer!"

Shui Bing'er kept her voice low enough that only Xue Wu beside her could hear.

Shui Bing'er calculated the situation in her mind.

The opponent's berserk attribute, combined with Thunderclap Academy's naturally aggressive fighting style, happened to counter their large-scale destructive soul skill.

If they could not completely suppress Yu Tianxin and allowed him to rise again within the blizzard, then Heavenly Water Academy would be the ones eliminated instead.

She gritted her teeth.

"Hold on... ten more breaths..."

Finally, after ten breaths, the blizzard shattered without warning.

Xue Wu and Shui Bing'er collapsed weakly to the ground, their faces pale.

Only Shui Bing'er, Xue Wu, and Yu Tianxin remained standing on the arena.

"It's not... over yet..." Yu Tianxin's voice was low. Blood stained the corner of his mouth, but his excitement was even more apparent.

He tried to stand, only to discover that he had lost all feeling in his knees.

"Do you think... my ice... is really that weak?"

He opened his mouth as though he wanted to say something, but no words came out. He slowly fell to his knees.

The referee stepped onto the platform, confirmed their conditions, and announced Heavenly Water Academy's victory.

The entire venue fell silent for an instant before erupting into thunderous cheers.

Shui Bing'er also let out a faint sigh of relief, but she could no longer hold on and finally fainted.

Then she felt herself fall into an embrace.

So warm...