"Uh—"
After seeing her clearly, a flicker of surprise passed through Lin Yan's eyes, and his footsteps even came to an unconscious halt.
She was a very delicate-looking girl. Though her brows and little face were still full of youthful immaturity, it did nothing to diminish the refinement of her features. Her medium-length golden hair was tied into two lively, adorable ponytails, and the freshman uniform she wore revealed her identity.
At that moment, her eyes and brows also held surprise and shock. Her bright, beautiful eyes, like golden crystal, stared unblinkingly at Lin Yan.
"It's you!"
The two spoke in unison, as though by perfect understanding.
That was right. She was the golden-haired beauty Lin Yan had encountered in the Star Dou Great Forest not long ago, when she had been accompanying her teacher to obtain her second Spirit Ring.
At the time, they had been locked in a difficult battle with a Demon Fox Soul Beast.
Lin Yan had suddenly appeared and helped them out of their predicament.
Lin Yan had not expected to meet her again so soon, here at Shrek Academy.
"I didn't expect we'd meet again. Do you still remember me?"
Lin Yan raised an arm and casually wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand, smiling as he spoke.
"Mm."
The golden-haired girl nodded lightly and said in a crisp voice, "I remember you. You were the big brother holding a Spiked Club in the Star Dou Great Forest."
Hearing how she addressed him, Lin Yan could not help but smile. "My name is Lin Yan. What about you?"
The golden-haired girl hesitated for a moment before timidly saying, "My name is Jiang Nannan."
"Jiang Nannan?"
Lin Yan looked at the golden-haired, twin-ponytailed girl before him in surprise and blurted out, "You're Jiang Nannan?"
Lin Yan was truly surprised.
He had never imagined that the girl he had happened to run into would be Shrek Academy's famed commoner campus belle in the future.
On further thought, though, it did not seem strange.
Jiang Nannan was about the same age as Tang Ya and Bei Bei. The three of them were freshmen who had entered Shrek Academy in the same year. That matched the freshman uniform she was currently wearing perfectly.
"Yes, I'm Jiang Nannan. Do you know another Jiang Nannan?"
Jiang Nannan blinked, somewhat puzzled by Lin Yan's strange reaction.
"No."
Lin Yan came back to his senses and shook his head with a smile.
"You're a strange person. But I still have to thank you. Thank you for stepping in and helping my teacher and me out that day in the Star Dou Great Forest." Jiang Nannan spoke with a grateful expression.
"It was nothing, just a small effort." Lin Yan spoke as though it were nothing.
Back then, he had heard the commotion and originally intended to take a look, just to watch the excitement. Who knew that the white fox's attack would happen to blast directly toward him?
Having just acquired the third Soul Skill of the Reflective Hammer, he had been eager to test it out, so he tried the Soul Skill's power.
The result did not disappoint him. The white fox was struck by its own reflected attack and lost half its life on the spot.
Jiang Nannan blinked as she looked at Lin Yan, who was drenched in sweat, his clothes soaked through. Curious, she asked, "Were you running?"
"Mm."
"Big brother, you're a Soul Elder, right? How could you sweat so much just from running?"
"Is there something wrong with your body?"
"I heard only people with weak constitutions are like this..."
Watching Jiang Nannan blink her big eyes as she curiously examined him, Lin Yan's mouth twitched. He hurriedly explained, "That's not sweat. It's water from Sea God Lake."
"I was running around Sea God Lake just now, but I accidentally slipped and fell into the lake, so I got soaked all over."
"Oh, I see!"
After hearing his explanation, realization appeared on Jiang Nannan's pretty, youthful face.
"All right, I need to continue running."
Lin Yan was about to resume his morning training.
"Wait." Jiang Nannan stopped him.
"Do you need something?" Lin Yan looked at Jiang Nannan.
Jiang Nannan suggested, "I haven't thanked you properly yet. It's still early, and you probably haven't eaten breakfast. Let me treat you to breakfast as repayment, okay?"
Lin Yan thought about it, then nodded. "All right."
Lin Yan paused his morning run and followed Jiang Nannan toward the Outer Court cafeteria.
"Do you know where the cafeteria is? I don't."
As they walked, Lin Yan casually found a topic to discuss.
"Of course I do. But you're the one exercising in the academy so early in the morning. You must have passed registration yesterday, right? After entering the academy, didn't you take a look around and familiarize yourself with the place?" Jiang Nannan asked curiously.
"No." Lin Yan shook his head. "I was busy cultivating!"
"No wonder you've already reached the Soul Elder realm at such a young age. So you usually cultivate this diligently. Big brother, can I ask how old you are?"
"Ten."
"Then we're the same age."
Jiang Nannan looked at Lin Yan with admiration, though there was a trace of dejection in her voice. "Even though I work very hard, I only have twenty-third-level Soul Power right now."
"Twenty-third level?"
A strange look appeared in Lin Yan's eyes.
Jiang Nannan had only obtained her second Spirit Ring a little over ten days ago. Normally, after a Soul Grandmaster gained a second Spirit Ring that was seven or eight hundred years old, the energy of the Spirit Ring should have raised their Soul Power to level twenty-one.
How had Jiang Nannan reached level twenty-three?
After asking, Lin Yan finally learned that Jiang Nannan had actually reached level twenty Soul Power more than half a year ago.
However, as a commoner-born Soul Master with no background, she could not obtain a Spirit Ring whenever she wished like Lin Yan could. She had waited for over half a year before finally getting an opportunity to obtain one.
Yet she had not slackened in her cultivation during those months.
Thus, her Soul Power Level had continued accumulating in secret, only revealing itself all at once after she obtained her second Spirit Ring. That was how she had reached level twenty-three Soul Power.
The two chatted as they walked and soon arrived at Shrek Academy's cafeteria.
Compared to the identical dormitory conditions, the cafeteria was completely different.
Here, if you had no money, you could only eat steamed buns and rice porridge. If you had money, delicacies from land and sea were available as well.
Having just finished exercising, Lin Yan's stomach was feeling rather empty. He did not stand on ceremony, scanning the menu hanging on the wall before ordering wildly, directly choosing twelve expensive top-tier dishes.
Beside him, Jiang Nannan looked as though she wanted to say something but stopped herself.
Only after Lin Yan found a seat did he notice the oddity in Jiang Nannan's expression. "Jiang Nannan, what's wrong?"
Jiang Nannan's little face flushed slightly. Her small hands twisted together nervously as she said in embarrassment, "You ordered so much. I don't have that much money on me."
"Uh—"
Lin Yan came to his senses.
Only then did he remember that Jiang Nannan had intended to treat him to a meal. The hunger in his stomach had made him forget that after seeing all the food.
"It's fine. Come sit down. I'll treat this time, and you can treat next time!"
Lin Yan said with a smile.
Lin Yuhuan had given him one million Gold Soul Coins before he left. He truly was not short on such a small amount of money!
"That doesn't seem right. I said I would treat you."
Jiang Nannan's little face reddened, and she spoke somewhat sheepishly.
"It's fine. Sit when I tell you to sit."
Lin Yan stood up, guided her to the table, and pressed a hand on her shoulder to seat her.
Before long, one fragrant, delicious dish after another was served before them.
"Eat!"
After saying that to Jiang Nannan, Lin Yan, whose appetite had fully awakened, took the lead and began eating.
Before you continue