The next day, students packed the training grounds of Heaven Dou Royal Academy.
Ning Chuan had intended to go alone, but Sword Douluo and the others worried that the academy's younger students were still immature and might mock him, so they had him bring Xiao Yun along.
After acquiring two Soul Rings in succession, Xiao Yun's Soul Power Level had reached twenty-two.
However, her understanding of Soul Masters was still shallow, so Bone Douluo also wanted to use this opportunity to let her see how Soul Masters fought.
When Ning Chuan and Xiao Yun arrived at the gates of Heaven Dou Royal Academy, Qian Renxue happened to arrive as well. Seeing that Ning Chuan had brought someone, she asked curiously, "Who is this young girl?"
"A disciple the sect recently took in!" Ning Chuan answered truthfully.
Qian Renxue nodded and briefly looked Xiao Yun over before asking curiously, "How old is she? Judging by her Soul Power aura, she seems to be above level twenty already!"
It was perfectly normal for Qian Renxue to sense Xiao Yun's Soul Power aura. After all, Xiao Yun had only just become a Soul Master and did not yet know how to conceal it. She was currently about the size of a ten-year-old child, which was why Qian Renxue was curious.
"Your Highness, Xiao Yun is fourteen this year, and her Soul Power Level is twenty-two!" Ning Chuan answered honestly. Only in private would he address her as "Brother Qinghe." In public, he naturally had to address her respectfully as His Highness the Crown Prince.
He did not conceal Xiao Yun's circumstances, because Ning Fengzhi, Sword Douluo, and Bone Douluo had already agreed to announce publicly in a few days that Xiao Yun was Bone Douluo's personal disciple.
Pushing Xiao Yun into the public eye would also provide cover for Ning Chuan.
With Xiao Yun accompanying him, Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo would have ample reason to appear at Ning Chuan's side at any time.
Fourteen years old and level twenty-two-she certainly qualified as exceptionally talented.
Still, there was a gap between her and the very finest geniuses.
Thus, Qian Renxue did not pay her much more attention. She called to Ning Chuan, and the three entered the academy together.
By the time they reached the academy's training grounds, the battle had already begun.
The combatants were Yu Tianheng, captain of Heaven Dou Royal Academy's team, and Shui Bing'er, captain of Skywater Academy's team.
Under Qian Renxue's guidance, the three went straight to the central section of the stands, where an area had been left empty. Heaven Dou Royal Academy had clearly reserved it for her.
When they arrived, Dugu Yan and Skywater Academy's vice-captain, Xue Wu, both greeted Qian Renxue.
Xue Wu did not know Ning Chuan, but Dugu Yan did.
Ning Chuan and Dugu Yan were about the same age. He had met her back when he attended Heaven Dou Royal Academy.
Although Ning Chuan rarely appeared in public these days, the Merchant Guild was based in Heaven Dou City, so he naturally ran into old classmates occasionally. Besides Dugu Yan, Yu Tianheng knew him as well.
Why is he here? Dugu Yan wondered. She was not surprised to see Ning Chuan accompanying the crown prince. After all, the crown prince was Ning Fengzhi's disciple.
But Ning Chuan had rarely appeared in public over the years, much less somewhere like the academy.
Though puzzled, Dugu Yan did not dwell on it. After all, whatever Ning Chuan wanted to do had little to do with her.
By now, the battle in the arena had reached a fever pitch.
Yu Tianheng and Shui Bing'er were both level thirty-nine.
The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon faced the Ice Phoenix.
One was a Power Attack System Battle Soul Elder, the other a control-type Battle Soul Elder. Until they fought to the end, it was impossible to tell who would win.
Both repeatedly unleashed their first and second Soul Skills, yet neither could gain the upper hand.
Relatively speaking, however, Shui Bing'er was somewhat lacking in offensive options.
Although her first Soul Skill, Ice Seal, could restrict Yu Tianheng's speed, his first two Soul Skills could both attack at medium to long range. His second Soul Skill, Thunderous Might, was even an area-of-effect skill.
When Shui Bing'er could not evade it, she could only rely on her second Soul Skill, Ice Ring Armor, to defend herself, naturally leaving her more on the back foot.
Seizing his chance, Yu Tianheng activated his third Soul Skill, Dragon's Wrath, and charged. He knew very well that to defeat Shui Bing'er, he had to get close.
Shui Bing'er did not panic at all when she saw Yu Tianheng charging toward her. This was the opportunity she had been waiting for.
The instant Yu Tianheng closed in, Shui Bing'er unleashed her third Soul Skill, Repelling Light, instantly pushing him away and inflicting a freezing effect as well.
Before Yu Tianheng could break free, she immediately followed up with her first Soul Skill, Ice Seal, freezing him on the spot.
However, with Dragon's Wrath active, Yu Tianheng was not so easily restrained.
Lightning continually surged from his body, and before long, he broke out of the ice.
Shui Bing'er was startled. Yu Tianheng was the first person to break free after being completely frozen by her.
By now, both had expended considerable Soul Power. The moment Yu Tianheng broke free, he charged again.
Forcing his way out had cost him dearly, but his Dragon's Wrath would remain active a little longer. He was certain Shui Bing'er could not unleash her third Soul Skill twice in rapid succession.
However, he had only made it halfway when Qin Ming stopped him.
"Tian Heng, if that had been a team battle, being restrained would have meant you had already lost!" Qin Ming said.
"Teacher Qin, you can't put it that way. Clearly, Bing'er was the one who lost this fight!" Skywater Academy's supervising teacher also entered the arena and spoke with a smile.
The two exchanged a few polite compliments in the arena before arranging for the other team members to spar.
The two academies held three matches in total, ending with exactly one draw, one win, and one loss.
Neither side wanted to reveal too much, since both would be participating in the next Soul Master Tournament, so they concluded the exchange with a draw.
The Skywater Academy group would not be leaving Heaven Dou City that day, so Qian Renxue immediately invited them to a small gathering in her capacity as crown prince.
Naturally, Shui Bing'er and the others did not refuse. That afternoon, the young people gathered at one of the crown prince's private residences in Heaven Dou City.
Ning Chuan found that quite a few people had come. Besides the team members from the two academies, there were also some slightly younger boys and girls.
Clearly, anyone invited by Qian Renxue came from a distinguished family.
After taking her seat, Shui Bing'er looked curiously at Ning Chuan and asked, "Who might this young master be?"
"Ning Chuan of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect!" Ning Chuan replied calmly. The moment he finished speaking, the surroundings fell silent.
After several seconds of silence, a girl of seventeen or eighteen at the neighboring table spoke with a hint of surprise. "You're that useless- from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?"
"Yu Yao!" Before the girl could finish, Yu Tianheng sharply cut her off. Clearly, she belonged to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
"Yao'er speaks her mind too readily. Please don't take offense, Young Master Ning. Let this cup serve as my apology on my younger cousin's behalf!" Yu Tianheng stood and raised his cup, his manner sincere.
"It's fine!" Ning Chuan said with a faint smile, unoffended.
He had no fondness for the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, but he respected Yu Tianheng's character and naturally would not make him lose face.
Seeing this, Dugu Yan immediately changed the subject. Pointing to Xiao Yun, who stood a short distance behind Ning Chuan, she asked, "Young Master Ning, is this your younger sister? Why isn't she sitting down?"
Ning Chuan felt helpless. As soon as they arrived, he had told Xiao Yun to sit wherever she liked.
But Xiao Yun always kept a firm sense of her place. She believed she must not overstep in Ning Chuan's presence, so she had remained standing quietly behind him.
"Xiao Yun, I order you to sit down immediately!" Ning Chuan said, putting on a stern expression.
Only then did Xiao Yun go over and sit in an empty seat at the table beside Ning Chuan's.
Once Xiao Yun sat down, Ning Chuan turned to Dugu Yan and the others and explained, "I brought Xiao Yun back while trading away from home, so you could say I did her a kindness. This girl comes from a difficult background, so she's always treated herself as a servant. In fact, she's already a full-fledged disciple of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect!"
Before you continue