"Bro, do me a favor!"
It was Mu Chen's first day training in the Heaven Tier, and he had already caused a bit of a stir at the training grounds.
Su Qing had just finished his morning training and was about to leave when he saw Mu Chen running over, calling out to him.
Incidentally, Su Qing no longer trained alongside the other Heaven Tier students.
He now made use of the waterfall behind the mountain, letting the force of the water press down on his spiritual energy to temper his foundation.
"What favor?"
"I've got my eye on a spiritual art, but I don't have the clearance."
"Got it. Let's go."
"Heh heh, you get me."
The Northern Spiritual Academy's Spiritual Arts Hall was likewise divided into two floors, corresponding to the Heaven Tier and Earth Tier students.
Inside, it bustled with students browsing the arts.
Their arrival immediately drew plenty of attention. Both Su Qing and Mu Chen were prominent figures at the Northern Spiritual Academy.
The two smiled at the people looking their way as a greeting, then climbed the stairs to the second floor.
In the corner of a stone cabinet on the western side of the second floor, Mu Chen fished a dark red jade slip out from among the mortal-grade spiritual arts.
Upper mortal grade, Senluo Death Seal.
In the Spiritual Arts Hall, arts of this color had a special designation: hazardous spiritual arts.
Practicing these arts carried considerable risks and could even injure the practitioner.
"Are you confident you can handle it?"
Su Qing asked.
"Don't worry."
Mu Chen raised his eyebrows.
"You're sure?"
"I'm sure."
"All right." Su Qing reached out and took the jade slip, and the two went to the entrance of the Spiritual Arts Hall to register it.
The old man managing the hall glanced at Su Qing and approved it. After all, quiet and mild-mannered as this boy looked, he had borrowed arts far more dangerous than this one.
Uncle Qin reminded Su Qing to be careful while cultivating lest his old injuries flare up, then waved to indicate that they could leave.
"Thanks, bro." Mu Chen took the jade slip with a grin.
"Same warning as before: be careful. I'm your example of an overturned cart ahead."
"Don't worry." Mu Chen raised his eyebrows confidently. "I'll head back first, then."
Mu Chen was already feeling impatient to begin. After exchanging a high five with Su Qing, he turned and left.
Watching Mu Chen's retreating back, Su Qing shook his head, then smiled.
Although the trials of the Spirit Road had made Mu Chen much more mature than his peers, he was still a boy.
Then Su Qing gave another self-deprecating chuckle.
Why am I acting like such an old fogey? Even when I died in my previous life, I was only in my early twenties.
The stars and moon shone brightly, and the luminous river of the Milky Way hung overhead. Half a month had passed in a blink, and tomorrow was the day of their trip to the Northern Spirit Plains.
Bored that evening, Su Qing sat on the roof watching the moon, a dish of fennel-flavored beans beside him.
A dark figure scrambled up along the wall. It was Mu Chen.
Mu Chen climbed onto the roof, ran over to Su Qing, scooped up a handful of beans, and sat down. Stuffing beans into his mouth, he said, "Bro, let me show you something good."
As he spoke, he opened his other hand, revealing a black seal emerging from his palm.
"You mastered it?" Su Qing glanced over.
"Of course. Pretty impressive, huh?" Mu Chen grinned as he ate the beans.
Su Qing opened his right hand, and three black seals appeared in succession.
"You're amazing, bro!" Mu Chen cried in astonishment.
The Senluo Death Seal placed extremely stringent demands on one's spiritual energy.
A few days earlier, when Mu Chen had clashed with Luo Tong of the Western Academy, he had defeated him with a single Senluo Death Seal.
Afterward, Master Mo had called him aside and given him a thorough scolding. Once he was done, Master Mo had also taught him how to advance the Senluo Death Seal further.
Yet Master Mo, who had already reached the Divine Soul Realm, had only condensed two Senluo Death Seals, while Su Qing had condensed three.
This left Mu Chen utterly astonished.
"Master Mo's already said everything that needs saying. I've got nothing to add. Just be careful."
With that, Su Qing withdrew the black seals, picked up a bean, and tossed it into his mouth.
Chewing, he asked, "Who are you planning to team up with tomorrow in the Northern Spirit Plains?"
"I'm planning to try going solo," Mu Chen said.
Su Qing clapped his hands to brush away the crumbs, reached into his robes, and tossed Mu Chen a bamboo slip. "If you run into danger, snap it. Infusing it with spiritual energy works too."
"No problem."
As Su Qing tossed the last bean into his mouth, the brothers finished their rooftop moon-gazing and jumped down.
"Do your best tomorrow. If you can't even make the top three, I'll look down on you."
"Tch! Who are you underestimating? First place is mine."
Early the next morning, the group assembled and set out for the Northern Spirit Plains. They only reached the camp on its outskirts toward evening.
The Northern Spirit Plains lay in the northwest of the Northern Spiritual Realm. Rich in resources but fraught with danger, it drew people from every walk of life.
Training in the Northern Spirit Plains was a major event for the Northern Spiritual Academy's Heaven Tier. More than half its students participated, using the opportunity to hone their combat skills and seek fortuitous opportunities.
Compared with the motley crowd that frequented this place, the academy's students were lambs sheltered in an ivory tower. Even at the same cultivation level, the difference between them in actual combat was enormous.
That only described most students, however. Su Qing, Mu Chen, Liu Mubai, and others like them were exceptions.
Whether through their families' protection or the Spirit Road, they had been set apart from ordinary students.
Besides, there were "black goats" like Su Qing, who had jumped out of the enclosure of his own accord.
Coming here felt just like coming home.
To protect the students, the Northern Spiritual Academy had also sent Master Mo and Instructor Xi, two Divine Soul Realm experts, to deter any scoundrels.
Beside the campfire, Su Qing was carefully explaining to Tang Qian'er what she needed to watch out for when they entered the Northern Spirit Plains shortly.
"Lastly, if I tell you to run, run. Go find Master Mo. Don't look back. Whatever you do, don't look back or dawdle. If things come to that, the sooner you get back to camp and find Master Mo, the better my situation will be."
"Got it!" Tang Qian'er answered loudly.
Once Su Qing finished, he caught sight of Mu Chen staring blankly at the campfire. He went over and slapped the back of Mu Chen's head. "What are you thinking about? Lovesick?"
While reminiscing about the Spirit Road, Mu Chen had let his bodily instincts take over. He reflexively tried to counterattack, only for Su Qing to press him straight back down.
"Whoa, bro, you scared the hell out of me."
Mu Chen rolled his eyes irritably.
"Tsk, brat. What were you daydreaming about?"
"Nothing. This place just reminded me a little of the Spirit Road."
Mu Chen scratched his head as he spoke, then drifted back into his memories-and the silver-haired girl within them.
"Ah..." Seeing him like this, Su Qing let out a melancholy sigh.
Meeting the right person at the right time: Mu Chen and Luo Li's encounter had been just that simple.
How tragic. My little brother's already in love, and his big brother is still single.
Still, there was nothing he could do. As a lone dog who had been single across two lifetimes, Su Qing had absolutely zero romantic experience.
But he believed that one day, he would meet that person.
He still remembered that line from Dragon Raja: there were twenty thousand people in the world whom you would fall in love with at first sight, yet you might spend your entire life without meeting a single one.
But this time, barring anything unexpected, I should live for a very long time. I ought to have enough time to meet that person.
What? You're asking about Tang Qian'er?
Come on, buddy. There's a reason they say a rabbit doesn't eat the grass beside its own burrow. We're too close. Far too close. Apart from a few perverts, does anyone really fall for their own older sister?
They were so familiar with each other that they no longer even thought about gender. What normal man and woman greeted each other by being obnoxious and trying to gross each other out?
For two people who had stared at each other as children, competing to blow snot bubbles, it really was impossible.