A Day Out with Na'er, Gu Yue's Jealousy

Shrek Academy's morning classes were nearing their end. Warm sunlight filtered through the window frames of the working students' classroom, falling across open Soul Master theory textbooks and softening the densely packed words. Tang Wulin was bent over calculations for the energy formula behind soul skill fusion, his pen scratching softly across the paper. A faint blue glow from Blue Silver Grass flickered around his fingertips—an unconscious ripple of soul power that escaped whenever he cultivated.

With a soft creak, the classroom door was gently pushed open, breaking the room's silence.

Every student's gaze turned toward the doorway at once, followed by a wave of hushed exclamations. A young girl stood there in a silver-white inner courtyard uniform, a strand of silver hair playfully hanging beside her cheek and gleaming softly beneath the sunlight. Her skin was fair as snow, her brows graceful as distant mountains, but most striking of all were her clear amethyst eyes. They swept across everyone in the classroom with eager delight before finally settling on the corner seat by the window.

"It's the Dragon Spear Goddess!" a student gasped in a low voice, full of awe and curiosity. "Why would she come to a working students' classroom?"

"I heard she's the Sea God Pavilion Master's personal disciple! Her martial soul is the Silver Dragon Spear, and she's insanely strong!"

Amid the whispers, Na'er stepped lightly into the room. The faint Dragon Might surrounding her instantly silenced the commotion, yet her bright smile made it feel entirely unoppressive. She walked straight toward Tang Wulin's seat, the hem of her silver-white skirt swaying gently with every step, like a silver butterfly about to take flight.

Tang Wulin had already put down his pen. He looked up at her, warmth rising in his eyes. "Na'er, why are you here?"

"Big brother," Na'er said as she stopped before his desk. Bending forward with both hands behind her back, she looked at him with sparkling blue eyes, her voice as crisp as wind chimes. "Morning classes are over. I came to take you out to play."

Her voice was not loud, yet every person in the classroom heard it clearly. Everyone looked stunned—no one had expected the aloof Dragon Spear Goddess to call a working student "big brother" in such an intimate tone, much less come personally to invite him out.

Tang Wulin smiled helplessly and closed his textbook. "But I need to prepare for my forging class this afternoon. I have to go to the Blacksmiths Association and get familiar with the new furnace."

"Oh, forging isn't more important than having fun!" Na'er puffed out her cheeks slightly, looking adorably spoiled—a complete contrast to the heroic air she carried in the sparring arena. "I found a wonderful place in the bamboo grove on the western shore of Sea God Lake. There are so many pretty wildflowers, and little soul beasts that glow. It's really fun!"

As she spoke, she reached out a slender finger and lightly tugged at Tang Wulin's sleeve. There was a trace of dependence in her voice that was difficult to notice. "Big brother, come with me. We'll only play for one hour, so it won't delay your preparations. Back in Noding City, didn't you always take me to play on the hills outside the city?"

At the mention of their days in Noding City, warmth filled Tang Wulin's heart. Back then, he had taken Na'er chasing butterflies and picking wild fruit, sunlight falling over them as they shared carefree happiness. Now that they had reunited, she was still the little sister who clung to him and acted cute, only she had shed her former timidity and become livelier and brighter.

Seeing the expectant light in Na'er's eyes, he could not bear to refuse her in the end. He nodded. "All right. We'll go for one hour."

"Great!" Na'er immediately beamed, as if her purple eyes were filled with starlight. She released his sleeve, then grabbed his wrist instead, her touch gentle but eager enough to brook no refusal. "Let's go! If we're late, the sun will be too strong!"

Na'er pulled Tang Wulin to his feet. He casually grabbed the coat draped over the back of his chair, smiled helplessly at his dumbfounded classmates, and was dragged out of the classroom by her.

The moment their figures disappeared through the door, the classroom erupted.

"Oh my god! The Dragon Spear Goddess is actually that close to Tang Wulin!"

"What exactly is their relationship? She even called him big brother!"

"Tang Wulin is incredible! Not only did he win the sparring match against the second-years, he even knows such an amazing senior..."

Meanwhile, the subjects of everyone's discussion were walking side by side along Shrek Academy's stone paths. Sunlight filtered through the ancient trees lining both sides of the road, casting dappled shadows across the ground and stretching their silhouettes long behind them.

"Big brother, did you know?" Na'er skipped along like a happy little bird. "When I went to the bamboo grove yesterday, I saw a completely snow-white little squirrel! Its tail was huge, and when it ran, it looked like a snowball. It was so cute! I wanted to catch it and show it to you, but it ran too fast. I couldn't catch up at all."

She chattered about everything she had discovered, her blue eyes shining with curiosity and love for the world. She did not look like a Soul Emperor-level powerhouse at all. Instead, she seemed like an ordinary young girl immersed in simple joys. This was Na'er's truest self—stripped of the fate of being the Silver Dragon King's incarnation and the halo of a powerhouse, she was only a little girl longing for family and clinging to warmth.

Tang Wulin listened quietly, a gentle smile remaining on his lips as he occasionally nodded in response. He could feel Na'er's dependence on him, and he cherished this bond they had regained. Having lived another life, he understood even more deeply how precious it was. He only wanted her to retain this pure happiness forever, untouched by fate.

"Oh, right, big brother." Na'er suddenly stopped and turned to him, seriousness in her purple eyes. "When we get to the bamboo grove, shall I teach you a spear technique? Not a soul skill of the Silver Dragon Spear. It's a basic spear technique I developed myself, and it could help with your use of soul power too."

Tang Wulin's heart stirred, and he smiled. "Sure, but don't complain if I learn too slowly."

"I never would!" Na'er shook her head, took his hand again, and continued onward. "Big brother is so amazing. You'll definitely learn it right away."

Beside the forest path on the western shore of Sea God Lake, Gu Yue stood quietly beneath the dense shade of a camphor tree. Her black hair cascaded down her back like a waterfall, making her delicate features appear even colder and more beautiful. She had come to the woods to cultivate Elemental Control, but she had not expected that the moment she rounded the bend, she would see two figures in the distance.

Tang Wulin was being led by the wrist by Na'er as they walked side by side. Black hair and silver hair reflected each other beneath the dappled sunlight. Na'er was standing on tiptoe and chattering away, her silver-white skirt fluttering with every bounce like a carefree silver butterfly. Tang Wulin, meanwhile, wore a smile as he looked gently at her, occasionally nodding in reply. That indulgence and affection pierced Gu Yue's heart like countless fine needles.

"Big brother, look at those flowers!" Na'er suddenly stopped and pointed at a cluster of purple hyacinths by the roadside, her blue eyes gleaming brightly. Tang Wulin followed her finger, then bent down to pick one. He carefully brushed the dew from its petals and placed it in her hand. Na'er happily accepted it, tucked it into her hair, and turned toward Tang Wulin with curved eyes. "Does it look nice?"

"It does," Tang Wulin replied gently, obvious amusement in his voice.

The sight made Gu Yue unconsciously clench her hand. The elemental power gathered at her fingertips rippled quietly, and the surrounding air seemed to grow several degrees colder. Fine frost formed across the grass beneath her feet in an instant—an unconscious reaction from her ice element whenever her emotions slipped out of control.

She understood all too well how much that smile meant. During their days at Eastsea Academy, Tang Wulin had smiled at her that way too. When she was exhausted from cultivation, he would hand her warm water. When she struggled with soul skills, he would patiently explain them to her. But ever since Na'er had appeared, that gentleness that had seemed to belong to Gu Yue alone had been divided in half. This girl who called herself his "little sister" possessed Dragon Might from the same origin as hers, as well as something Gu Yue did not have—childhood years spent with Tang Wulin. That bond made her feel inexplicably uneasy.

Gu Yue's lips pressed into a hard, cold line, while complex emotions churned in her eyes. There was concern for Tang Wulin, jealousy over their intimacy, and a trace of panic she refused even to admit to herself. She knew that her feelings for Tang Wulin had long surpassed those of comrades. That intense possessiveness was both an innate obsession born from the Silver Dragon King's bloodline and the sincerity hidden beneath her aloof exterior. If it had been anyone else, she would have stepped forward without hesitation and used elemental power to separate them. Yet when it came to Na'er, she hesitated.

She recognized Na'er's aura—it belonged to the secondary personality that had split away from her, bearing the human warmth Gu Yue longed for but dared not touch. Na'er's purity and dependence were like a mirror, reflecting Gu Yue's heart, bound by duty. She hated this division, yet she could not bring herself to harm this "other self." More importantly, Tang Wulin looked at Na'er with the protectiveness of an older brother toward his younger sister. That pure feeling made Gu Yue unwilling to ruin it.

"Big brother, hurry up! If we're late, we won't get to see that little white squirrel!" Na'er took Tang Wulin's hand again and urged him onward. Their figures gradually faded into the distance, their laughter carried by the wind and falling especially clearly into Gu Yue's ears.

Gu Yue remained where she was, watching their retreating backs. The ice element gathered at her fingertips slowly dispersed, but deep crescent-shaped marks remained in her palm. Her expression was still cold, yet a nearly imperceptible trace of loss and bitterness flashed through her purple eyes. She could display forceful hostility toward any girl who approached Tang Wulin, but when it came to Na'er, she simply could not bring herself to stop her.

It was not merely because of the bloodline bond they shared. It was also because Gu Yue had seen the long-lost ease on Tang Wulin's face. Ever since entering Shrek, he had carried too many expectations—cultivation, forging, competitions. He had never had a moment of leisure. Yet beside Na'er, he smiled so carefree, like a real teenager rather than the Golden Dragon King's inheritor being driven forward by fate.

"Tang Wulin..." she murmured his name, so softly that the wind nearly scattered it, her voice carrying a grievance she herself had not noticed. "Where exactly do you place me in your heart?"

The wind passed through the woods, rustling the leaves as though answering her question, or perhaps soothing her emotions. Gu Yue took a deep breath, suppressing the jealousy and unwillingness surging within her, then turned and walked in the opposite direction. She had not stopped them, not because she had yielded, but because she chose to hide these feelings in her heart. She believed Tang Wulin would eventually understand her feelings, and that the bond between them would never lose to a childhood connection.

Yet the lingering chill in her eyes and the icy cold still remaining at her fingertips exposed the unrest in her heart. This silent jealousy involved no argument and no confrontation, yet it left a deep mark in Gu Yue's heart and planted an inevitable seed for the emotional entanglement between the three of them.

At Shrek Academy's cultivation grounds that evening, elemental power flowed silently through the air. Tang Wulin had just finished his forging practice, sweat still covering him when he saw Gu Yue standing alone at the edge of the training grounds. With her fingertips, she controlled strands of water element, weaving delicate ripples through the air.

He walked over and picked up a towel lying nearby to wipe his face. "Gu Yue, are you cultivating too?"

At his words, Gu Yue withdrew the water element and turned toward him. Her gaze swept past his sweat-dampened hair before settling on his wrist—where a faint silver dragon aura still lingered from when Na'er had held his hand during the day. Jealousy flashed through her eyes, but she deliberately raised her chin and spoke with casual indifference. "Unlike certain people, I don't have that much spare time to spend every day touring mountains and rivers with my 'little sister.'"

She put particular emphasis on the words "little sister," carrying an almost imperceptible hint of mockery.

Tang Wulin froze for a moment, then understood that she was referring to his visit to the bamboo grove with Na'er. He smiled helplessly. "Na'er came all this way to ask me, and she'd only been at Shrek for a short time. As her big brother, it was only right for me to help her get familiar with the place."

"Big brother?" Gu Yue raised a brow, a cold glint flashing through her dark eyes. "Tang Wulin, have you forgotten that she's the Sea God Pavilion Master's personal disciple? A Soul Emperor-level powerhouse? Does she need a newly enrolled working student like you to 'take care' of her?"

Her words were thorny, yet they did not truly wound him. They only precisely exposed the flaw in his explanation. "Besides," she continued, lightly running a finger across the railing around the training grounds and leaving a faint streak of frost behind, "your childhood in Noding City certainly gave you quite a deep bond. I'm curious—between that 'little sister' of yours and comrades like us, who have fought through life and death at your side, who matters more in your heart?"

The question came out of nowhere, yet it struck directly at the heart of the matter. Tang Wulin had not expected Gu Yue to ask something like that, and for a moment, he did not know how to answer. Looking at her cold profile, he could sense the displeasure in her tone, but he did not understand where it came from. To him, Na'er was a little sister he needed to protect, while Gu Yue was a companion who fought beside him. The two could not be compared at all.

"Gu Yue, why would you ask that?" He frowned. "Na'er isn't the same as you all. She..."

"Isn't the same?" Gu Yue interrupted him, turning to stare straight into his eyes. Complex emotions churned in the depths of her dark pupils. "Is it because she knew you before we did? Or because she can cling to you without restraint, while we can only watch you indulge her in every possible way?"

Her voice was not loud, but it carried intense emotion, making Tang Wulin unconsciously take half a step back. He had never seen Gu Yue express her dissatisfaction so directly. In the past, she had always been aloof and restrained. Even when upset, she would only vent silently through elemental power. She had never been like this, every word carrying probing questions and accusations.

"I didn't..." Tang Wulin wanted to explain, but he did not know where to begin. He truly did indulge Na'er more than others, but that was because of guilt and his responsibility to protect her. Yet in Gu Yue's eyes, that indulgence seemed to have become something else.

Seeing him at a loss for words, Gu Yue's jealousy eased slightly, though her face remained expressionless. She turned away from him and looked toward the distant Sea God Lake, her voice growing colder. "Tang Wulin, you'd better think things through. Shrek isn't Noding City. Everyone here has their own mission and path. You are the Golden Dragon King's inheritor, carrying countless secrets. You should not let yourself be hindered by sentimental attachments—not even 'sibling affection.'"

She deliberately stressed the words "sibling affection," as though reminding him, or perhaps trying to convince herself. She knew she should not interfere with his relationships, but the possessiveness hidden in her heart made her unable to resist testing him, wanting to confirm her place in his heart.

Tang Wulin fell silent. Gu Yue's words struck like an alarm bell, waking him from the joy of their reunion. He had indeed overlooked the fact that Na'er was no longer the little girl who needed his protection, and that he was no longer that innocent boy either. Both of them carried the weight of fate. Perhaps this "sibling affection" had never been destined to be simple.

"I understand," he said softly, a trace of gravity in his tone. "Thank you for reminding me, Gu Yue."

Gu Yue did not turn around. Only the water element at her fingertips rippled lightly, as though responding to him. She knew her indirect probing had not earned the answer she wanted, but she did not dare ask further. She feared hearing an answer that would disappoint her even more, and she feared breaking the fragile balance between herself and Tang Wulin.

Night gradually deepened, and the lights of the training grounds came on, stretching their shadows long across the ground. Tang Wulin stood where he was, watching Gu Yue's cold and lonely back. For the first time, doubts arose in his heart about this "sibling affection." Meanwhile, where no one could see, Gu Yue let out a soft sigh. The coldness in her eyes faded, leaving behind only an indescribable bitterness.

This silent test had no winner, but it made the emotional entanglement between them even more complicated. Gu Yue knew that as long as Na'er remained, an invisible barrier would always stand between herself and Tang Wulin. All she could do was hide her feelings in her heart and use indirect questions to slowly confirm his true feelings.

As the night grew deeper, the lights of the training grounds outlined two silent figures. Tang Wulin looked at Gu Yue's still-cold back, guilt surging through him like a tide. Having lived another life, the person he least wanted to fail again was the girl before him, who hid her sincerity beneath an icy shell.

Scenes from his previous life flooded uncontrollably into his mind. In the final battle, carrying the Silver Dragon King's mission and her deep love for him, she had frozen with him inside the iceberg in his embrace. Only at the very end had he understood that all her probing beneath that cold exterior, all the thorns in her words, had been feelings she could not hide. He had always believed she was strong enough to need no protection. He had always been busy chasing strength and shouldering responsibility, never understanding the loss in her eyes or responding to her subtle affection. He had even allowed misunderstandings to create a rift between them when she needed his trust the most.

"Gu Yue," Tang Wulin said, his voice carrying an almost imperceptible hoarseness as it broke the silence. "I'm sorry."

Gu Yue's body stiffened abruptly. The water element at her fingertips instantly became chaotic, and a few droplets fell to the ground, splashing into tiny sprays. She did not turn around. Her voice was still cold, though it trembled faintly. "What are you talking about? I don't need your apology."

"No, you do." Tang Wulin stepped forward, his eyes burning as he stared at her back, his tone incomparably serious. "In my previous life, I owed you far too much."

"My previous life?" Gu Yue finally turned around, confusion and wariness filling her dark eyes. "Tang Wulin, what nonsense are you talking about?" She did not understand why he was suddenly saying such inexplicable things, yet the genuine guilt and pain in his eyes made her heart ache uncontrollably.

Tang Wulin did not explain the secret of his second life. It was a fate he bore alone, and he did not want her to be bound by destiny's shackles again. He only looked into her eyes and slowly spoke the apology he had accumulated over an entire lifetime. "I always thought you were strong and independent, that you didn't need anyone's protection. So I was busy cultivating, busy forging, busy dealing with every challenge, and I ignored your feelings. I thought we were the best of companions, but I never considered that you could be vulnerable too, that you might hope someone would see through the coldness you wore and understand the words you hid in your heart."

His voice was filled with deep self-reproach. "I remember how pale you looked after exhausting your elemental power to help me improve my soul power. I remember how you stepped forward without hesitation to defend me when others doubted me. I remember that every reminder that sounded like mockery was actually meant to keep me from taking unnecessary detours. But what about me? I was always slow to realize it. I even let Na'er's closeness make you uneasy, make you feel as though you were unnecessary."

"Gu Yue," he said, his gaze gentle yet resolute, carrying the regrets of one life and the determination of this one, "I'm sorry for making you wait so long and suffer so many grievances. In my previous life, I failed to respond properly to your feelings and failed to protect you. That will forever be my regret. In this life, I won't repeat those mistakes."

Gu Yue stared blankly at him, complex emotions surging through her dark eyes. Shock, confusion, disbelief, and a trace of flustered bitterness at having her innermost thoughts exposed. She had never expected Tang Wulin to say such things to her. His gaze was too sincere, his guilt and remorse too real to be false. Yet the "previous life" and "regret" he spoke of left her utterly confused.

Her lips moved as though she wanted to say something, but it felt as if her throat had been blocked, and no words came out. Normally so aloof, she was now at a loss. A faint blush unconsciously appeared on her cheeks, completely unlike her usual cold beauty.

Seeing her flustered expression, Tang Wulin's heart softened. He knew she could not understand everything yet, but he would prove his determination through his actions. He said softly, "I know you may think I'm talking nonsense, but please believe me. In this life, I'll protect you properly. I'll keep your feelings in mind, and I won't let you bear everything alone anymore. You aren't unnecessary. In my heart, you are different from Na'er. You are the most important person to me."

The words "most important person" fell like a stone into Gu Yue's heart, spreading ripples across its surface. Her heartbeat abruptly quickened, and the blush on her face deepened. She instinctively avoided his gaze and looked toward the training grounds, her voice barely louder than a mosquito's. "Who... who needs your protection?"

Though she was still stubborn, the coldness had already vanished from her voice, replaced by a faint, almost imperceptible shyness and emotion. The elemental power at her fingertips grew gentle, no longer carrying the sharpness it had before.

Tang Wulin looked at her and finally felt the stone weighing on his heart fall away. He knew Gu Yue had heard his words. In this life, he had finally taken the first step toward making up for his regrets.

The night was gentle, and the lights of the training grounds shone over them, drawing their shadows close together. Gu Yue still did not openly respond to his feelings, but her tense posture and flushed cheeks had already revealed the turmoil in her heart. As for Tang Wulin, looking at the girl he had failed for an entire lifetime, his eyes were filled with cherishing affection and determination.

The regrets of his previous life would finally be made up for in this one. His story with her would continue at Shrek Academy as a brand-new chapter—a chapter without regrets, in which they protected one another.