Advancement to Soul Ancestor

A day later, Xuan Xiao successfully absorbed the Soul Ring. A vast surge of energy roared through his body, washing over every meridian like a burst river.

His level had also leapt to forty-three, three levels higher than expected, which left him quite satisfied.

He rose to his feet and stretched his limbs, his body crackling and popping. Feeling the abundant power within him, a smile curled across his lips.

After leaving Snow Empress's Palace, his figure flashed, and he appeared soundlessly on Little White's shoulder like a ghost.

Little White had been staring intently in Snow Empress's direction when he suddenly felt something on his shoulder. His entire body jolted, and he nearly jumped up.

"What's the situation now?"

"Ah!"

"Roar!"

Every Soul Beast present jumped at the sudden sound. Some sprang straight up, some looked around in panic, and some even assumed attacking stances.

None of them had noticed when he had appeared. It was as though he had materialized out of thin air.

After seeing who it was, Ice Empress shot him an annoyed glare.

"Could you stop scaring everyone like that?"

Xuan Xiao shrugged, looking utterly innocent.

"Is there anyone here besides me?"

Ice Empress rolled her eyes. Then her gaze fell upon Xuan Xiao's hair, and she froze.

"Your hair?"

She could hardly be blamed for being surprised. Xuan Xiao's hair had originally been pure white, flowing as freely as the wind.

But now, starting from the tips, half of it had turned black. The black and white intertwined in a strange gradient, giving it a distinctive sort of beauty.

Xuan Xiao reached up and touched his hair, speaking indifferently.

"It's nothing. The Soul Ring's energy was too immense, so I released part of the seal on my Martial Soul. It'll return to normal after a while."

Ice Empress finally relaxed and patted her chest. "That's good."

She did not want to become a widow before things had even begun. That would be far too much of a loss.

Xuan Xiao did not notice her private thoughts. He looked toward the figure in the distant ice field, preparing with all her strength to undergo the tribulation, and asked.

"What's Snow Empress's situation now?"

Ice Empress followed his gaze, her tone carrying a trace of gravity.

"As you can see, Xue'er is doing everything she can to adjust herself to her best condition."

Her voice turned cold, laced with killing intent.

"And thanks to your reminder, bring him up."

At her words, Titan Snow Demon King spread open his massive palm and tossed down a human.

The man struck the ice heavily with a dull thud. He struggled to rise, but he was covered in wounds, clearly having gone through a fierce battle.

Xuan Xiao looked down and saw that the man wore a finely made Soul Engineer uniform. A complex emblem was embroidered over his chest—the mark of the Sun Moon Empire's Illustrious Virtue Hall.

Moreover, judging from the style and craftsmanship of the uniform, only a Level Nine Soul Engineer would qualify to wear it.

"This guy is the rat that sneaked in, right?"

Ice Empress nodded, her voice filled with disdain.

"He was alone. We originally planned to kill him immediately, but the things on him may be useful to you."

Xuan Xiao crouched down and studied the Sun Moon Empire Soul Engineer with interest.

The man raised his head and glared viciously at Xuan Xiao, his voice hoarse.

"Human! You actually colluded with Soul Beasts! You are betraying humanity!"

Xuan Xiao rolled his eyes, sounding impatient.

"Shut up. I can't be bothered to reason with you. You aren't worthy of hearing it."

He stepped forward and swiftly stripped every piece of equipment off the man, storing it all in his storage ring without leaving a single item behind.

Then he grabbed the man by the collar and casually flung him beneath the feet of a Titan Snow Demon as though tossing out trash.

The Titan Snow Demon looked down at the ant-like human by its feet, then raised its enormous foot and stomped down without hesitation.

With a wet crunch, the man did not even have time to scream before he was crushed into a puddle of bloody pulp, a glaring patch of red spreading across the white ice.

Xuan Xiao clapped his hands as though he had done something utterly insignificant, then turned to Ice Empress.

"I'll come back after you've dealt with the Heavenly Tribulation."

The moment he finished speaking, his second Soul Ring flashed. He vanished without a trace, leaving not even an afterimage behind.

Little White blinked his huge eyes and asked blankly, "He just left?"

Ice Empress looked in the direction where Xuan Xiao had vanished, a faint smile curving her lips.

When Xuan Xiao returned to Shrek, a blinding light flashed across his eyes.

Only then did he realize it was already daytime.

The Far North saw no sunlight all year round, and with the tribulation clouds from Snow Empress's Heavenly Tribulation obscuring most of the sky, it was even harder to distinguish day from night.

He had spent an entire day and night in that environment and had nearly forgotten what sunlight looked like.

Xuan Xiao narrowed his eyes to adjust to the light, then leisurely headed toward the classroom.

When he reached the classroom door, he discovered that the person standing at the podium was not Zhou Yi, but a male teacher wearing glasses.

The teacher looked to be in his thirties. Dressed in a neat teacher's uniform and wearing gold-rimmed glasses, he appeared refined and scholarly.

Seeing Xuan Xiao enter, he pushed up his glasses and greeted him with a smile.

"Hello, Xuan Xiao. My name is Wang Yan, and I'm your new homeroom teacher."

Xuan Xiao nodded and replied politely, "Hello, Teacher."

Then he walked straight over to Xiao Xiao and dropped into the seat beside her.

When Xiao Xiao saw him, her eyes lit up. She quickly leaned over, nudged him with her elbow, and asked curiously.

"What were you doing yesterday?"

Xuan Xiao leaned back in his chair, resting both hands behind his head. His tone was as casual as if he were talking about what he had eaten for breakfast.

"I went on a date with my girlfriend and got my fourth Soul Ring while I was at it."

Xiao Xiao froze for a moment, then abruptly shot to her feet, her voice sharp as a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

"What!"

The shriek was especially piercing in the quiet classroom. Every student turned to look at her, their eyes filled with curiosity and confusion.

Wang Yan was also startled. He pushed up his glasses and asked, "Xiao Xiao, what's wrong?"

Only then did Xiao Xiao realize she had lost her composure. Her face instantly reddened, all the way from her cheeks to the tips of her ears.

She hurriedly sat down, pointed at Xuan Xiao, and stammered, "H-He, he, he, he said he got his fourth Soul Ring!"

The entire classroom fell silent the instant those words came out.

All eyes focused on Xuan Xiao. There was shock, envy, jealousy, and utter disbelief.

His fourth Soul Ring?

Wasn't this only the fourth day since school began?

He had been level thirty-nine on the first day of enrollment, and by the fourth day, he was already above level forty?

What kind of cultivation speed was that?

Wang Yan was stunned as well. He pushed up his glasses and looked Xuan Xiao over, his eyes holding scrutiny and curiosity.

"Xuan Xiao, did you really obtain your fourth Soul Ring?"