Two Years Later, Level Twenty

In the days that followed, life returned to that monotonous, day-after-day cycle.

Endurance, strength, sparring, meditation—every day was an endless repetition.

The more Zhang Fei trained, the more he felt that "996" was truly a "blessing" for his current self.

Although Xue Qinghe usually pampered him greatly, her attitude toward cultivation was astonishingly firm.

Whenever he could no longer hold on and went to find her, she would only let him rest briefly before sending him back to continue taking beatings.

Over time, Zhang Fei resigned himself to his fate.

Nor did Zhang Fei really go running to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect at every opportunity. He only occasionally accompanied Xue Qinghe on visits, and even those were few and far between.

And ever since he had been tricked last time, he had maintained a clear-headed attitude of respectful distance toward Ning Rongrong.

That little girl was full of schemes to the bone. She looked delicate and adorable, innocent and harmless, but no one knew what rotten idea she might come up with next to set him up.

A little devil like that was not someone he could afford to provoke. Truly not.

The more Zhang Fei thought about it, the more he felt that his own little angel was better. A little loli could never compare to a mature beauty.

Two years were neither particularly long nor particularly short, yet they quietly slipped away amid the unwavering daily training.

That night, the moon hung high in the sky.

Zhang Fei sat cross-legged on his bed, his hands resting on his knees and his eyes slightly closed. His breathing was long and even.

Soul power circulated endlessly through the meridians within his body. With every cycle, it grew slightly faster than before, and the soul power condensed a little further.

He had maintained this state for a full two hours. A fine sheen of sweat covered his forehead, and his brow was tightly furrowed. Clearly, he was at an extremely critical juncture.

The soul power in his meridians had filled to a certain threshold and was spinning faster and faster.

Finally, at a certain instant, the invisible shackle within him exploded with a boom.

Zhang Fei's entire body jolted, and a wave of air spread outward from him.

He slowly opened his eyes and let out a long breath of stale air.

Zhang Fei clenched his fist, the corners of his lips unconsciously lifting as he muttered softly.

"Level twenty... I finally broke through."

It had been nearly two and a half years since his martial soul awakening, and he was now eight and a half years old.

Over the past two years, perhaps due to the nourishing effects of Ice-Fire Body Tempering and medicinal baths, he had shot up like bamboo after a spring rain.

Now, when Zhang Fei stood up, he was already a full 1.7 meters tall. Most ordinary eight- or nine-year-old children were still around 1.45 meters.

Standing there, he looked every bit like a young man.

As his height increased, his physique underwent earth-shaking changes as well.

Years of hellish training had stripped away the porcelain-white softness of his skin, replacing it with a wheat-colored complexion tempered by sunlight and sweat, glowing with health and masculine charm.

His shoulders were a full size broader than they had been two years ago. The muscles in his arms, waist, and abdomen were smooth and solid—not exaggerated chunks like blocks of iron, but the lean, compact strength of a trained body.

His facial features had also matured further over the past two years. His brow bones were high, his nose straight, and his jawline sharp and defined. His features were rugged without losing their refinement, carrying both resoluteness and the clear elegance of youth.

Most striking of all were his eyes. His pupils were pitch-black, sharp yet clear, and whenever he looked at someone, there was an edge to his gaze that made others unwilling to underestimate him.

The formerly handsome youth had been thoroughly tempered over two years into a face that radiated heroic spirit.

No matter where he went, people could not help but look at him twice.

Even the maids of the Crown Prince's Residence, who were accustomed to seeing powerful nobles and dignitaries, would unconsciously lower their eyes whenever they encountered Zhang Fei in the corridors, faint blushes quietly rising on their cheeks.

Zhang Fei rose from the bed and casually adjusted his collar.

He pushed open the door and headed toward the Crown Prince's study.

It was already late at night.

Zhang Fei arrived outside the study.

He raised his hand and knocked twice. After hearing a gentle "Come in" from within, he pushed open the door and entered.

The study was brightly lit. Xue Qinghe was lowering her head as she reviewed the documents before her.

When she heard the door open and looked up, her hand paused involuntarily as her gaze fell upon Zhang Fei's face.

Zhang Fei stood in the doorway, the lamplight enveloping him in a faint golden glow.

The increasingly heroic contours of his face were clearly outlined by the light. His brow bones cast a shallow shadow, making his eyes appear especially bright.

He stood there tall and straight, his shoulders and back relaxed. He was like a treasured sword freshly drawn from its sheath—young, sharp, and dazzlingly brilliant, impossible to look away from.

Xue Qinghe's gaze lingered on his face for a moment, and the fingers holding her brush tightened slightly.

She felt her heartbeat skip faster than usual, light shifting in her eyes.

"It's so late. What is it?" she asked, her voice exceptionally gentle, completely unlike the tone a man of her current disguise should have had.

Zhang Fei grinned and strode inside, his movements natural. "Your Highness, I've reached level twenty. I can go obtain my second soul ring."

As he spoke, his dark eyes sparkled as he looked at Xue Qinghe. The corners of his mouth were raised, and his entire being was brimming with energy.

Xue Qinghe raised her head and looked at him once more, then quickly shifted her gaze away and lowered her eyes to the official documents before her.

Yet all of her attention had already been occupied by the figure of that young man.

Xue Qinghe steadied her breathing, making her tone as calm and composed as possible. "Mm. Tomorrow, I'll have Uncle She take you to Sunset Forest to choose a suitable soul beast. Go back and rest first."

Zhang Fei took two steps forward and glanced at the thick stack of documents in front of her, still far from finished. He sighed inwardly.

Ah, how much cultivation had she delayed just to deal with all this government business?

In the original story, Qian Renxue's talent had been so high, yet because she had been trapped in this whirlpool of political intrigue for so long, she had wasted so much of her youth.

He walked over, picked up the teapot from the table, poured Xue Qinghe a cup of hot tea, and gently placed it beside her hand.

"Alright. Then Your Highness should rest early too. Don't stay up late."

There was an unusual intimacy in his tone. Then he turned and walked out of the study, closing the door behind him.

The moment the door shut, Xue Qinghe finally set down the brush in her hand.

She leaned back in her chair, raised a hand to rub her brow, and let out a long breath. She muttered softly, "That brat has become... far too eye-catching. What's wrong with me? I don't even dare look at him a few more times."

Xue Qinghe straightened up again, drank the hot tea Zhang Fei had poured, then picked up the documents and continued reading. Yet she found herself staring at the same line for quite some time without knowing what she had read.

In the end, she simply put the documents down, rose to her feet, and headed toward her bedroom.

Meanwhile, Zhang Fei, having returned to his own room, tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

His mind was filled with thoughts about his second soul ring.

For his second soul skill, Zhang Fei still planned to choose the augmentation type.

But the problem was, what soul beast should he choose? And what age should the soul ring be?

My Golden Python has already evolved into a Golden Dragon. The trace amount of dragon aura in a draconic soul ring is probably little better than nothing to me now.

Then do I still need to insist on those exceptionally rare draconic soul rings?

A string of questions twisted into a tangled mess in Zhang Fei's mind. He thought for a long time but failed to come up with any answers.

"Forget it. I'll ask Grandpa tomorrow first."

Zhang Fei buried his face in his pillow, and only fell into a deep sleep after a long while.