Three Years Passed, and Trouble Came Looking for Him (Two Chapters Combined)

Dong Qianqiu rushed ahead, her deep-blue ponytail swinging wildly behind her. Lan Mengqin followed close behind, the tips of her white hair tracing a smooth arc in the sunlight.

They had waited for Ye Zhiqiu in the training grounds for quite a while, but he had never shown up. Growing anxious, they were about to go looking for him when they heard students outside saying, "Some upperclassmen have cornered Ye Zhiqiu on the road out back."

When Dong Qianqiu heard that, she nearly dropped the cup in her hand.

She might have teased Ye Zhiqiu all the time, but he was also the person she cared about most! Even Nana ranked below him in her heart.

Hearing that three people had surrounded him threw her into a panic.

The two ran all the way over and spotted Ye Zhiqiu from afar, standing alone with his hands in his pockets. His expression told them nothing serious had happened.

Dong Qianqiu stopped sharply in front of him. Before she had even caught her breath, she looked him up and down, making sure even his clothes were undisturbed.

Then her gaze fell on the scattered uniform buttons on the ground. She frowned and asked, "Where are those dumbasses?"

"They ran." Ye Zhiqiu jerked his chin toward where the three had disappeared.

"You fought?"

"I did."

"Are you okay?"

"Do I look like anything happened to me?"

Dong Qianqiu looked him over again. Only after confirming he had not so much as broken the skin did she breathe a sigh of relief, though her expression remained rather grim.

Lan Mengqin stood beside them with her arms folded. She glanced at Ye Zhiqiu, relief also seeping into her voice. "You really can fight. We let you out of our sight for a moment, and someone delivers themselves right to your door for you to practice on."

Ye Zhiqiu smiled. "I couldn't help it. I was walking to the training grounds, minding my own business, when three guys who didn't know how high heaven was or how deep the earth went suddenly jumped out and told me to stay away from you two. I couldn't resist trading a few moves with them, so I ended up a little late."

"Stay away from us?" Dong Qianqiu's voice cooled.

"Yeah. Your admirers, I suppose? They're a bit stupid, admittedly, but it's understandable. You two are the goddesses of ice and snow, after all. Forget the upperclassmen—even among the seniors about to graduate, there must be some who like you."

Dong Qianqiu rolled her eyes at him. "You sound awfully pleased with yourself."

"Of course. My two partners are the goddesses of ice and snow acknowledged by the entire academy. How could I not be pleased?" Ye Zhiqiu replied with a calm smile.

Lan Mengqin huffed. "Come on. Let's talk inside."

The three entered the training grounds and found a spot near a corner to sit down.

Dong Qianqiu unscrewed a bottle of water and handed it to him. Ye Zhiqiu took it and drank a mouthful.

After a brief silence, Dong Qianqiu suddenly asked, "Have you ever thought about how we'll face stronger opponents in the future?"

Ye Zhiqiu and Lan Mengqin both turned to her.

"We're among the strongest here at Heaven Dou Academy, but if we go to Shrek, there'll definitely be plenty of people stronger than us. I've heard Shrek's entrance assessment is incredibly strict, and the competition is fierce."

Lan Mengqin nodded. "Some elders in the Ice Clan have mentioned Shrek too. They said it's the best academy in the entire Federation. Nobody who gets in is ordinary."

Ye Zhiqiu set his water aside. After a moment of silence, he said, "Actually, there's something I've never told you."

Both girls looked at him.

"What is it?" Dong Qianqiu asked.

Ye Zhiqiu stood and walked to the open space in the middle of the training grounds, then turned to face them.

"I've always used Absolute Blade, but did you know? I actually have two martial souls."

At that, even the air fell silent.

Dong Qianqiu's cup froze in her hand. She blinked, seemingly unable to process what he had said. A little dazed, she asked, "...What?"

Ye Zhiqiu said nothing and extended his left hand.

A silver-gray orb of light appeared in his palm, about the size of a fist. Inside it was a rotating miniature galaxy, countless tiny points of light slowly circling an exceedingly small vortex at its center.

Three purple soul rings and one black soul ring rose from beneath his feet at the same time, slowly revolving behind the silver-gray orb.

Dong Qianqiu's eyes went round.

Lan Mengqin froze as well, her gaze fixed on the silver-gray orb. She could feel the air around it warping slightly, as though something were tugging at it invisibly.

And wasn't there something wrong with that soul ring combination? He even had a black Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring.

"This..." Dong Qianqiu rose and walked up to him in a few steps. She stared at the silver-gray orb for several seconds before looking up at Ye Zhiqiu, an indescribable emotion in her voice. "You... have a second martial soul?"

"Yes." Ye Zhiqiu nodded.

"When did you awaken it?"

"It was there on the day of my awakening, together with Absolute Blade."

Dong Qianqiu fell silent.

She stared at Ye Zhiqiu for a full three or four seconds, then took a deep breath, struggling to digest the news.

"You hid this from me for two years? Two years! We've known each other for two years! You've been hiding a second martial soul all this time? Whenever you fight, you only use a blade and never this?" Her eyes even reddened a little. How could this bastard be so awful?!

"Well... I was afraid you'd stand even less of a chance against me if you knew," Ye Zhiqiu said guiltily.

Dong Qianqiu's anger flared. "I already can't beat you! What does that have to do with hiding it from me?"

Lan Mengqin came over too and stood beside Dong Qianqiu. She watched the silver-gray orb still slowly spinning in Ye Zhiqiu's palm, an indescribable complexity in her ice-blue eyes.

She had not known Ye Zhiqiu as long as Dong Qianqiu had, but it had still been more than a year. She knew he was strong—so strong that she sometimes thought she and Dong Qianqiu might not beat him even together. But she had never imagined he was hiding another martial soul. After a stunned moment, she said, "You really keep your cards buried deep."

Dong Qianqiu glared at him. "So now that you've told us, are you planning to use both martial souls when you fight?"

"That's an option." Ye Zhiqiu smiled and continued, "But mostly, I thought that since we know each other so well, keeping it from you any longer wouldn't be right."

The corner of Dong Qianqiu's mouth twitched. She swallowed whatever she had wanted to say and finally just turned her face away. "You... forget it. Hide whatever you want."

But she could not resist turning to glance at the silver-gray orb again. It hovered quietly above Ye Zhiqiu's palm, the miniature galaxy inside still slowly revolving, carrying an indescribable sense of pressure.

"What's this martial soul... called?" Lan Mengqin asked.

"Gravity," Ye Zhiqiu said.

"And its abilities?"

"It controls universal gravitation. Put simply, I can manipulate gravity, increasing or decreasing it, and even warp space. I can only do some of that right now, but I should be able to do more in the future."

Lan Mengqin opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but ultimately replied in exasperation, "That's just absurd."

Dong Qianqiu looked at him, then at the silver-gray orb. Only after a long moment did she speak. "Then... should we give it a try and see what you can do at full strength?"

Ye Zhiqiu paused, not expecting Dong Qianqiu to propose a fight herself.

Lan Mengqin did not object. She really did want to see how powerful Ye Zhiqiu's second martial soul could be. This was a trump card he had deliberately hidden for over four years.

"All right. Since you both say so, let's try it." Ye Zhiqiu withdrew Absolute Blade, leaving only the silver-gray orb in his left hand.

The three moved to the center of the training grounds. Dong Qianqiu and Lan Mengqin stood opposite him, roughly ten meters away, and exchanged a glance.

"Just so we're clear, no crying when you lose," Ye Zhiqiu said.

"We'll see who cries first." Dong Qianqiu huffed.

An Ice Spear condensed in her hand, while Lan Mengqin summoned her Jade Phoenix Zither. Its ice-blue body hovered before her, its strings trembling slightly with a faint hum.

Then Dong Qianqiu moved.

One yellow and two purple soul rings lit up simultaneously. Wreathed in cold light, her Ice Spear thrust straight at him, considerably faster than usual.

At the same time, Lan Mengqin's Jade Phoenix Zither rang out. A sound wave spread from its strings, becoming a curved blade in midair that swept toward Ye Zhiqiu from the side.

Ye Zhiqiu stood where he was and extended his left hand.

The silver-gray orb brightened slightly, and his first soul ring flashed together with a yellow light.

Absolute Gravity!

Dong Qianqiu's body suddenly sank in midair, as though someone had pressed down on her from above. Her speed instantly dropped by more than half a beat, and her spear tip dipped several inches, brushing past Ye Zhiqiu's waist.

The sonic blade flying in from the side was also diverted by an invisible force. It traced an arc through the air, swept behind Ye Zhiqiu, and struck the wall in a burst.

After landing, Dong Qianqiu stumbled half a step forward, immediately steadied herself, and looked up at Ye Zhiqiu in surprise. "Just now, you..."

"I increased the gravity around you." Ye Zhiqiu smiled and continued, "To about three times normal. You'll be fine once you get used to it."

Dong Qianqiu gritted her teeth, adjusted her balance, and charged again.

Lan Mengqin also changed the angle of her sound waves. This time, instead of launching a broad attack, she condensed the sound wave into a thin line and shot it straight at Ye Zhiqiu's feet.

Ye Zhiqiu stepped back and swung his right hand. Absolute Blade appeared, and he slashed into the thin sonic line, cutting it in two.

The three traded another dozen or so rounds. Ye Zhiqiu never moved far from his original position. With Absolute Gravity in his left hand working alongside Absolute Blade in his right, he suppressed them on almost every front.

Dong Qianqiu endured three rounds of gravitational suppression, each heavier than the last. By the end, even raising her spear had become a struggle.

Lan Mengqin also had a sound wave severed once and found her sonic blades suddenly changing course in midair, curving around to strike the wall.

The three fought on the training grounds for a full quarter of an hour.

Finally, Dong Qianqiu withdrew her Ice Spear, stepped back twice, and leaned against the wall, panting.

"You..." She looked at Ye Zhiqiu between breaths. "Back when you only used Absolute Blade, we could at least trade blows with you. Now that you're using two martial souls, we can't even touch your clothes."

Lan Mengqin withdrew her zither too, her chest rising and falling slightly. She took a deep breath and looked at Ye Zhiqiu. "Were you holding back all along when you fought us before?"

"Not exactly holding back..." Ye Zhiqiu rubbed his nose guiltily and continued, "I just wasn't using my full strength."

In truth, he wasn't just letting a little water through—he was letting through an entire ocean. Ahem.

"Isn't that exactly what holding back means?" Lan Mengqin said irritably.

Dong Qianqiu fell silent for a moment, then suddenly laughed. "That works too. When we go out to fight from now on, you'll be the shield, and I'll deal the damage."

"Me, the shield? Won't you spare a little concern for me?" Ye Zhiqiu asked, looking innocent.

"You can fight three people alone. What do you need our concern for?" Dong Qianqiu replied with complete conviction.

Lan Mengqin nodded beside her in agreement.

Ye Zhiqiu looked at the two of them and shook his head helplessly. These two girls were getting more and more in sync.

After that day, Ye Zhiqiu began occasionally using Absolute Gravity during their training sessions.

Dong Qianqiu and Lan Mengqin gradually adapted to the gravity that alternated between heavy and light when they fought him. They still could not beat him, but at least they were no longer so overwhelmed that they could not even raise a spear, as they had been the first time.

Ye Zhiqiu's gravity also steadily improved their ability to withstand pressure, to the point that they were much faster than before whenever he was not using it.

Of course, this level of gravity was still Ye Zhiqiu letting through an entire ocean. Otherwise, he could produce a hundred times normal gravity!

As for those three upperclassmen, the Academic Affairs Office summoned them for a talk that very evening.

Apparently, someone passing by had witnessed the incident and reported it to the teacher on duty.

The next day, a disciplinary notice appeared on the school bulletin board. It plainly stated that the three upperclassmen had received a public reprimand, lost conduct points, and each been given a major demerit.

Ye Zhiqiu glanced at it as he passed, but did not linger. He turned and left.

He believed that after this incident, no other blind fool would come looking for trouble with him.

That day, it was time once again for their weekly simulation pod assessment.

The trio teamed up and entered the Douluo World again, with Ye Zhiqiu leading, Dong Qianqiu behind him on the left, and Lan Mengqin behind him on the right.

A low beastly roar sounded nearby.

"Here it comes," Ye Zhiqiu said.

Dong Qianqiu already held her Ice Spear, and Lan Mengqin's Heavenly Snow Woman hovered behind her.

The three exchanged glances, then charged forward together.

Wind swept past their ears. Ice-blue frostlight intertwined with silver-white blade light, tracing three smooth arcs across the virtual wilderness.

This battle flowed more smoothly than any of their previous ones.

Because their strength was growing with each passing day as well.

The days went by, and Ye Zhiqiu's soul power reached rank forty-five—rank forty-five when he had only just turned eleven!

Lan Mengqin reached rank forty-six, giving her the highest soul power on the team.

Dong Qianqiu's soul power was slightly lower, but she had also reached rank thirty-nine. Her next step was breaking through to Soul Ancestor!

Their teamwork kept improving, and they accumulated more and more Douluo Coins. Ye Zhiqiu's forging rank had also advanced to rank four, and he had nearly completed the theoretical coursework for the double armor style.

That afternoon, Nana's communicator chimed. She glanced at it, then closed her book and rose to head outside.

Ye Zhiqiu and Dong Qianqiu were sparring in the nearby training grounds, their Ice Spear and white blade exchanging blows in a lively clash.

Lan Mengqin sat at the edge of the grounds, tuning her zither strings. Her playing sounded absolutely terrible, though Ye Zhiqiu and Dong Qianqiu had grown used to it.

Everyone else truly could not reconcile such dreadful zither playing with the "Snow Goddess."

"Zhiqiu, Qianqiu, stop for a moment," Nana said.

They both stopped, their Ice Spear and white blade dissipating, and turned to look at Nana together.

"Xuan Yu is coming over. He's already at the airport. Come pick him up with me."