Shui Bing'er's Stirring Heart

After Liu Erlong acknowledged Yi Yun as "Brother Yun," the whole atmosphere at Heaven Dou Royal Academy went completely off course. The students used to fear Liu Erlong most; now they feared her smile most-because whenever she smiled, it meant someone was about to suffer. And that unfortunate someone was usually Tang San.

"Little Tang, come here!" Standing at the edge of the training grounds, Liu Erlong beckoned to Tang San, who was watering the vegetable patch.

Tang San set down his watering can and walked over. "Teacher Liu, what is it?"

"I hear you're pretty good at pole vaulting. Show me a jump."

Expressionless, Tang San picked up his pole, took a running start, planted it, vaulted, spun two and a half times in midair, and landed steadily. After watching him, Liu Erlong nodded. "Not bad. Better than I expected. But you could take off a little earlier, and your explosive power could be stronger. Come on, I'll teach you."

Liu Erlong began coaching Tang San in pole vaulting. She had the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul, and explosive power was her forte. Under her guidance, Tang San's pole vaulting improved by leaps and bounds. What Tang San did not know, however, was the real reason Liu Erlong was coaching him-not because he jumped well, but because he was Yi Yun's little brother. Teaching the little brother well would please the big brother. Liu Erlong might have had a fiery temper, but she was no fool.

While Tang San practiced pole vaulting, guests arrived at Heaven Dou Royal Academy. An aqua-blue carriage stopped at the academy gates, bearing the emblem of an ice flower-the crest of Skywater Academy. Skywater Academy was the continent's only advanced soul master academy that admitted girls exclusively. Six girls stepped out of the carriage in matching ice-blue uniforms, their long hair flowing, their faces lovely. Leading them was a silver-haired girl whose hair flowed over her shoulders like moonlight. Her features were as exquisite as a painting, her skin as fair as snow. She wore an ice-blue dress with a silver belt at her waist, and her whole bearing radiated cool elegance. Her name was Shui Bing'er, Skywater Academy's prodigy, a level forty-five Soul Ancestor with the Ice Phoenix Martial Soul, hailed as "the finest student since Skywater Academy's founding."

They had come to Heaven Dou Royal Academy for an exchange between the two academies. But Shui Bing'er's mind was not on the exchange. Something had been bothering her lately-her family's pressure to marry. Skywater Academy was full of girls, so she had no contact with boys her age; the ones she did encounter were either wastrel scions or bookworms. Not one caught her eye.

"Bing'er, I heard someone really powerful has come to Heaven Dou Royal Academy," a younger schoolmate beside her leaned over and whispered.

"Who?"

"I don't know. All I know is that he's a young man in white. Very young, very strong."

Shui Bing'er paid it no mind. How strong could a student at Heaven Dou Royal Academy possibly be?

Heaven Dou Royal Academy prepared a welcoming ceremony for Skywater Academy's visit. It was held in the academy's main auditorium, with an address from the dean, a speech from a student representative, and then a talent showcase by Skywater Academy's students. Shui Bing'er did not participate in the showcase. She sat in the audience, bored out of her mind as she listened to the dean's lengthy address, her eyelids growing heavier and heavier.

Just as she was about to fall asleep, a voice jolted her awake.

"Next, please welcome our honorary student, Mr. Yi Yun, to the stage for a few words!"

Enthusiastic applause rose from the audience. Shui Bing'er looked up and saw a young man in white walk onto the stage. His steps were slow, yet every one was unhurried and composed. His hair was secured behind his head with a white jade hairpin, a few loose strands hanging over his forehead and swaying gently with his steps. His features were as exquisite as a painting, and he wore a lazy, confident smile. His whole bearing seemed out of place in this world.

Shui Bing'er's drowsiness vanished at once. Her heart suddenly beat a little faster. She had seen plenty of handsome men, but none had ever made her heart race. This man had done it with just the few steps he took onto the stage.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Yi Yun." His voice was neither loud nor soft, yet it carried clearly throughout the auditorium. "I wasn't planning to come today, but the dean said I'd be denying him face if I didn't. I gave the dean face, so here I am. Do you know what I care about most?"

The audience fell silent. Shui Bing'er involuntarily held her breath.

"What I care about most is being happy," Yi Yun said. "We cultivate to be happy, grow stronger to be happy, and live to be happy. If something makes you unhappy, don't do it. If someone makes you unhappy, ignore them. Life is bitter and short; seize your pleasures while you can."

Applause rose from the audience. Shui Bing'er did not clap. She simply watched the young man in white on the stage, watched him speak, watched him smile, watched the light in his eyes. Her heart beat faster and faster, and her face grew redder and redder.

Shui Bing'er lowered her head and covered her face. She did not know what was wrong with her-she was Skywater Academy's prodigy, the bearer of the Ice Phoenix Martial Soul, someone countless people looked up to. Yet now she was like a sheltered little girl, blushing and heart pounding over a few words from a man. I'm done for. Completely done for.

After the welcoming ceremony, Shui Bing'er did not join her schoolmates on the academy tour. Instead, she went to the training grounds. She wanted to see just how strong this man named Yi Yun was, and whether he truly was as unfathomable as the rumors claimed.

On the training grounds, Yi Yun lay on the grass, basking in the sun. Xiao Wu lay on her stomach beside him, gnawing on a carrot. Zhu Zhuqing sat at his side, cultivating with her eyes closed. Ning Rongrong was practicing Standing Stake, and Tang San was watering the vegetable patch. However one looked at it, this scene did not resemble the daily life of a powerful expert.

Shui Bing'er stood at the edge of the training grounds, hesitated for a long time, and finally walked over.

"Hello, are you Mr. Yi Yun?"

Yi Yun opened his eyes and saw a silver-haired girl standing before him. She wore an ice-blue dress, her skin as fair as snow, her bearing cool and elegant. He recognized her-Shui Bing'er, Skywater Academy's prodigy, whose Martial Soul was the Ice Phoenix, a supporting character in the original story. But now she had sought him out herself.

"I am. Who are you?"

"Shui Bing'er, a student at Skywater Academy."

"What do you need?"

"I want to challenge you."

Yi Yun sat up on the grass and looked Shui Bing'er over. "What level are you?"

"Forty-five."

"Are you sure you want to challenge me?"

"Yes."

Yi Yun smiled. He stood and brushed the grass off his clothes. "All right, come on. You attack first."

Shui Bing'er took a deep breath and released her Martial Soul. An ice-blue phoenix appeared behind her, spreading its wings as freezing air spilled in every direction. The surrounding temperature abruptly dropped more than ten degrees, and a layer of white frost formed on the grass. This was her strongest form-Ice Phoenix Possession.

"Watch out!" Shui Bing'er thrust both hands forward, and an ice-blue beam shot from her palms straight at Yi Yun.

Yi Yun did not dodge, block, or even move. The ice-blue beam stopped three feet from him, as though it had struck an invisible wall, then dissipated without so much as stirring the hem of his clothes.

Shui Bing'er's pupils sharply contracted. "You..."

"Keep going," Yi Yun said.

Shui Bing'er gritted her teeth and unleashed stronger attacks. Ice Storm, Ice Tornado, Ice Seal Thousand Miles-one after another, all her strongest Soul Skills. Every one dissipated three feet from Yi Yun. Not one touched the hem of his clothes.

Shui Bing'er panted heavily, more than half her Soul Power spent, but Yi Yun had not even raised a hand.

"Finished?" Yi Yun asked.

Shui Bing'er nodded. She no longer had the strength to speak.

"Then it's my turn." Yi Yun raised his right hand and lightly pointed his index finger toward Shui Bing'er.

A golden light shot from his fingertip. It was not fast, yet it carried a pressure that made it impossible to evade. The light stopped before Shui Bing'er without striking her, simply hovering in front of her like a golden star.

Shui Bing'er stared at that golden star, trembling all over. Not from fear, but from shock. She sensed the power contained within that star-a power that could destroy heaven and earth, and he had used only one ten-thousandth of his strength. If he wished, that single finger could reduce her to drifting ash.

"You lost." Yi Yun withdrew his hand, and the golden star dissipated.

Shui Bing'er stood rooted to the spot, her chest heaving. Her eyes remained fixed on Yi Yun, filled with shock, unwillingness to accept defeat, and something she could not put into words.

"Who exactly are you?" Shui Bing'er's voice was slightly hoarse.

"Yi Yun. An ordinary person."

"An ordinary person could be this strong?"

"Yes. A fairly formidable ordinary person."

Shui Bing'er drew a deep breath and slowly let it out. She remained silent for about ten seconds, then did something no one had expected-she walked up to Yi Yun and looked at him, her face as red as a ripe apple.

"Can I stay by your side?"

Everyone fell silent. Xiao Wu's carrot dropped to the ground, Zhu Zhuqing opened her eyes, Ning Rongrong forgot she was practicing Standing Stake, and Tang San once again forgot to shut off his watering can.

Yi Yun looked at Shui Bing'er's scarlet ears and trembling eyelashes, then smiled. "Didn't you come for an exchange?"

"The exchange can be postponed."

"You're a student at Skywater Academy. Aren't you going back to class?"

"I can take leave."

"Won't your parents worry?"

"I can write to them."

Yi Yun discovered that this seemingly cool, elegant girl was even more stubborn than Xiao Wu when she dug her heels in. "Do you know what staying by my side means?"

"I do."

"It means you'll have to call me Brother Yun."

"Brother Yun."

"It means you'll have to get along with Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and the others."

"I will."

"It means my enemies might hunt you down."

"I'm not afraid."

Yi Yun looked at Shui Bing'er. Those ice-blue eyes were filled with resolve. He sighed. "All right, then. Stay."

Shui Bing'er's eyes instantly lit up, shining like two stars. "Thank you, Brother Yun!"

Xiao Wu crouched down, picked up her carrot, brushed off the dirt, and took a bite. Another one, and this one's even more direct than Liu Erlong-at least Liu Erlong hesitated a little. Shui Bing'er went straight to a confession after the fight. No, this isn't a confession. She's throwing herself into his arms. What's even more infuriating is that Yi Yun agreed.

Zhu Zhuqing closed her eyes, but she was not cultivating. She was wondering what she should do as more and more women gathered around Yi Yun. Compete for his favor? I don't know how. Be jealous? I don't want to. Leave? I can't bear to.

Ning Rongrong held up her sign, her mouth forming an O. She looked at Shui Bing'er, then at Yi Yun, secretly thinking that this silver-haired older girl was even better at flirting than she was.

Tang San crouched in the vegetable patch and silently shut off his watering can. He looked at Shui Bing'er, then at Yi Yun, then at Shui Bing'er again, then at Yi Yun again. He said nothing, merely pulling out the newly sprouted radish seedlings in silence. One, two, three. He was already used to getting used to things-used to more and more people in this courtyard, used to more and more women around Yi Yun, used to his own presence growing fainter and fainter. It's fine. Really, it's fine.

That evening, Shui Bing'er sat in the courtyard, hugging her knees and watching the stars overhead. A great deal had happened that day-she had challenged a Titled Douluo and suffered a crushing defeat; she had stayed beside a man she had only just met and called him Brother Yun; from this moment onward, the course of her life had veered off track.

But she did not regret it. Because that person was Yi Yun-he was strong, but he did not bully the weak; he was formidable, but he did not put on airs; he was handsome, but he did not think himself handsome. Most importantly, there was light in his eyes when he looked at her, not the light of a man looking at a woman, but of one person looking at another. He treated her as an equal, not an ornamental vase.

"Sister Bing'er." Ning Rongrong came over and crouched beside her. "What are you thinking about?"

"Brother Yun."

"You like Brother Yun?"

Shui Bing'er did not deny it. "I do."

"Then do you know lots of people like Brother Yun?"

"I know."

"Aren't you afraid of competition?"

"No."

"Why?"

Shui Bing'er raised her head and looked at the stars overhead, the corners of her lips lifting slightly. "Because I'm pure as ice and flawless as jade, and born beautiful."

Ning Rongrong froze for a moment, then laughed. She discovered that this silver-haired older girl was far more interesting than she had imagined.