Departure for Shrek Academy!

Half an hour later...

The four sat around a rekindled campfire, the atmosphere between them much more familiar.

Bei Bei watched Ye Tianming. The longer he looked, the more extraordinary the boy seemed.

Eleven or twelve years old, with one yellow and two purple Soul Rings—a level 36 Soul Elder. There might not be a second person like him in the entire Star Luo Empire.

After a moment's thought, Bei Bei spoke seriously.

"Brother Tianming, to be honest, Teacher Xiaoya and I belong to the Tang Sect."

Ye Tianming's heart stirred, though he betrayed nothing on his face.

Of course he knew of the Tang Sect. It was renowned throughout the world for its Hidden Weapons and poison arts, and in the original story, Tang San, the God King, had founded it with his own hands.

"Exactly!"

Tang Ya immediately took over, her eyes shining as she looked at Ye Tianming and Dai Yutong.

"Brother Tianming, it would be such a waste for someone with your abilities to stay here. Why not join the Tang Sect?"

"With your talent, plus the Tang Sect's Mysterious Heaven Skill and Hidden Weapon techniques, you'd be even stronger than you are now!"

"And little sister Yutong, a Spiritual Martial Soul is one in ten thousand. What the Tang Sect needs most is geniuses like you two!"

The more Tang Ya spoke, the more excited she became, as if she could already see the Tang Sect shining in glory once more.

Beside her, Bei Bei nodded and spoke slowly.

"The Tang Sect has declined somewhat in recent years, but its foundations remain. If you're willing to join, the sect will certainly devote itself to training you."

Ye Tianming listened to the end, then stood and brushed the dust from his hem.

"I appreciate the offer."

He reached out, took Dai Yutong's small hand, and continued.

"But Yutong and I don't intend to join any sect."

Dai Yutong let him hold her hand without asking a single question.

From the moment she met Brother Tianming, she had known that his decisions were never wrong.

Tang Ya had been about to speak again, full of enthusiasm, but his answer left her frozen.

"Huh? Wh... why?"

Ye Tianming merely smiled, though his reply was crisp and decisive.

"There's no particular reason. We have our own path to walk."

"But..."

Tang Ya opened her mouth to persuade him further, but Bei Bei reached out and stopped her.

Bei Bei studied Ye Tianming's eyes for a moment, then smiled.

"All right. Everyone has their own ambitions. But if you change your minds, you can find us at Shrek Academy anytime. Teacher Xiaoya and I are both students there."

Dai Yutong blinked her wide, innocent eyes and asked,

"Shrek Academy?"

At that, Tang Ya perked right back up.

"That's right! The number one academy on the continent."

"You two are so talented that it'd be a shame not to go to Shrek. Make sure you come find us when you get there!"

Then Tang Ya added,

"Once you're at Shrek, I'll treat you to a meal. As much as you can eat!"

Ye Tianming nodded. Something amusing seemed to occur to him, and the corners of his mouth lifted.

"All right, then... see you at Shrek."

With that, he took Dai Yutong's hand and headed toward the edge of the forest.

After they had walked a dozen or so meters, Dai Yutong looked back. Tang Ya was still standing there waving, so she could not help waving back.

"Brother Tianming, Sister Tang Ya and the others are really nice."

"Mm, they are."

"Then... why aren't we joining the Tang Sect?"

Ye Tianming rubbed her head before answering.

"The Tang Sect's waters are too deep. It isn't right for us."

"Besides, I'll lay the path for you. No matter how good someone else's sect is, it isn't the road we need to take."

Dai Yutong nodded, half understanding. Then she lifted her face and asked earnestly,

"Where are we going next?"

Ye Tianming looked toward the fading light in the distance. His voice was calm but certain.

"Shrek Academy."

"The number one academy on the continent—and the place where our journey will truly begin."

After leaving the Star Dou Great Forest, the two traveled with the personal guards toward Star Luo City.

Three days later, the gates of the White Tiger Duke's Mansion came into view.

"Brother Tianming, we're back!"

Dai Yutong spotted someone standing outside Cloud Creek Garden from far away and broke into a run.

"Mother!"

Huo Yun'er had been waiting at the door. She caught her daughter in her arms and looked her over several times. Only when she saw no injuries did the weight lift from her heart.

"Look how thin you've gotten. Did you eat properly on the road? Did you run into any danger?"

"No, no! Brother Tianming was amazing. He even helped an older sister hunt a really, really big snake!"

Dai Yutong gestured as she spoke, her face alight with excitement.

Listening, Huo Yun'er felt a lingering fright and shot Ye Tianming a reproachful look.

Ye Tianming just smiled and rubbed his nose.

"Don't worry, Auntie. I know my limits."

Huo Yun'er sighed.

"You..."

"Come inside first. The food's just been cooked. It's still hot."

That night, after taking Dai Yutong back to Cloud Creek Garden, Ye Tianming did not return to his room. Instead, he went straight to the study.

Dai Hao was reading a military report. Hearing a knock, he said without looking up,

"Come in."

Ye Tianming entered the study and bowed.

"Father."

Dai Hao set down the report and looked him over.

"You're back. How did things go with the Soul Ring?"

"Yutong has her Soul Ring. It came from a hundred-year-old Spiritual Soul Beast and suits her Spirit Eyes perfectly."

Dai Hao nodded, then paused.

"I heard... you encountered people from the Tang Sect in the forest?"

Ye Tianming was startled, then understood. The personal guards accompanying them had not been sitting around doing nothing. He had told them to wait outside, but... forget it. He answered,

"Yes. There was an older brother named Bei Bei and a young woman named Tang Ya. I helped them hunt a thousand-year-old Mandala Snake, so we parted on good terms."

"Then they invited Yutong and me to join the Tang Sect."

"Did you agree?"

Ye Tianming shook his head.

"No. Neither Yutong nor I intend to join this so-called Tang Sect."

Dai Hao regarded him with a hint of approval in his eyes.

"The Tang Sect's foundations run deep, but in recent years it has grown so quiet it's almost vanished. Its waters run deep, too."

"You were right not to join."

Ye Tianming did not respond. Instead, he looked up and spoke earnestly.

"Father, I want to go to Shrek Academy."

The study fell silent. Dai Hao set down the military report, leaned back in his chair, and said nothing for a long while.

"You've made up your mind?"

"I have."

"Why Shrek?"

Ye Tianming weighed his words before answering.

"Star Luo City is a fine place, but in the end, it's only one city in the Star Luo Empire. Shrek Academy brings together the finest teachers on the continent, along with its most outstanding geniuses."

"If Yutong and I want to go far, that's where we need to be. Her Martial Soul might also find a path better suited to her there."

Dai Hao listened without a word for a long time.

At last, he laughed. Rising, he took two things from a hidden compartment in the bookshelf and placed them on the desk.

One was a letter sealed with wax.

The other was a palm-sized Command Token.

"Shrek Academy accepts only geniuses. You certainly qualify, but Yutong's talent..."

"This recommendation letter came from an old classmate of mine who owed me a favor."

"With it and this Command Token, you can both go straight to enrollment registration."

Ye Tianming stared at the two objects on the desk, momentarily stunned.

Dai Hao looked at him, his tone gentler than usual.

"I prepared them for you long ago. You belong to the White Tiger Duke's Mansion. When you're out in the world, I can't have people looking down on you."

Ye Tianming drew a deep breath and accepted the letter and Command Token with both hands.

"Thank you, Father."

Dai Hao fell silent. His gaze drifted toward Cloud Creek Garden beyond the window, and only after a long while did he speak again.

"There's one more thing. Once Dai Yutong walks out of the White Tiger Duke's Mansion, she can no longer be called Dai Yutong."

Ye Tianming froze.

"Father, you mean...?"

"She is the third young lady of the White Tiger Duke's Mansion. Outside these walls, that identity is a pair of eyes inviting calamity."

"The Dai name will draw attention wherever she goes. The Huo name came from her mother. It is clean, with no ties to hold her back."

"And besides, this is something I owe that mother and daughter..."

"That's enough. From now on, her name is Huo Yutong."

Dai Hao glanced at Ye Tianming and added,

"Go tell Yun'er and Yutong. If her mother has no objections, it's settled..."

That night, in Cloud Creek Garden.

As Huo Yun'er listened to Ye Tianming relay Dai Hao's words, her eyes immediately reddened.

In the past, she had never imagined that one day her daughter could walk out into the world with her head held high.

Huo Yun'er kept repeating the name Huo Yutong. At last, tears spilled down her cheeks.

"All right. We'll do as your father says!"

"Mother, don't cry!" Dai Yutong hurriedly wiped her mother's tears, then turned to Ye Tianming.

"Brother Tianming, am I really going to be called Huo Yutong from now on?"

"Mm."

Ye Tianming crouched and looked earnestly at Dai Yutong—no, she was Huo Yutong now.

"Yutong, the Dai name belongs to this mansion. The name Huo Yutong belongs to you. From now on, you'll carry your mother's surname and walk a path of your own."

Dai Yutong blinked at him, then suddenly smiled and nodded hard.

"Okay!"

"Then I'm Huo Yutong from now on! Brother Tianming, when do we leave for Shrek?"

"In three days."

On the day they set out, dawn had not yet broken.

Huo Yun'er had spent the night packing soy-braised beef and Osmanthus Cake. She also pressed a bulging purse into Ye Tianming's hand.

"Don't be afraid to spend money on the road. Both of you make sure you eat your fill!"

"All right. I know."

Then Ye Tianming took Huo Yutong's hand, and they set out for Shrek.

Huo Yun'er stood at the mansion gate, watching their figures gradually vanish at the end of the road.

Shrek Academy, the number one academy on the continent.

Perhaps that was where her daughter, and the person her daughter had chosen, would truly begin their journey.

(P.S. This chapter is a big one at 3,000 Chinese characters. Splitting it into two chapters just didn't feel right. As for changing Dai Yutong's name to Huo Yutong, it might be a little forced, but calling her Dai Yutong every time felt strange to me, so I decided to change it back.)

(As for the update schedule, my editor told me that posting more might hurt the book and advised me to stick to two chapters a day. I still chose three, though. I'll do my best to keep this book going while giving you all a little more to read.)

(Finally, if I've written anything that doesn't work, dear readers, please tell me directly. I'll drop to my knees at lightning speed and fix it!)