Reuniting with Ye Lingling

Heaven Dou City.

This was the capital of the Heaven Dou Empire, one of the largest and most prosperous cities on Douluo Continent.

Heaven Dou City's walls stood a hundred meters tall, all built from the hardest granite. Its main gate was ten meters high and ten meters wide, enough for six riders to pass abreast. Two smaller side gates stood beside it, each five meters high and wide.

Soldiers patrolling and standing guard atop and below the walls were clad head to toe in armor and carried long spears. The killing aura they exuded made their elite nature clear.

Inside the city, crowds surged through the streets and alleys, and the place bustled with life.

A graceful young girl stood at the street corner, gazing into the distance as though waiting for someone.

She wore a pale white dress, her figure slender and delicate. Waterfall-like blue hair spilled down her back, while her bright, lively eyes shimmered like flower buds about to bloom. She carried a hint of innocence amid her shyness, and her entire body exuded a fresh, ethereal aura.

Her exceptional looks and temperament drew countless sidelong glances, with admiring gazes landing on her from time to time.

However, two burly guards stood behind the girl, their fierce expressions scanning the surroundings.

Beneath the imperial city, most people knew better. This girl was clearly either wealthy or noble, and no one wanted to invite trouble for themselves.

"Isn't this Ling Ling?"

At that moment, a somewhat flippant voice rang out.

Upon hearing it, Ye Lingling's pretty face visibly tightened. She turned and saw a slightly plump man approaching with a lewd grin. The two Ye Family guards beside her had intended to step forward and stop him, but the man had brought several guards of his own, who rushed forward and shoved the two Ye Family guards aside.

"Liu Lang, what are you doing?"

Ye Lingling's already furrowed brows drew together tightly as she spoke to him in displeasure.

This man was Liu Lang, also a student at Heaven Dou Royal Academy and two years her senior. Ever since she had enrolled, he had relentlessly pursued her. Although Ye Lingling had clearly rejected him, he still clung to her stubbornly. The students of Heaven Dou Royal Academy were all either rich or noble, and Liu Lang had royal connections behind him. Ye Lingling could not make things too difficult for him, so she could only do her best to avoid him.

"Ling Ling, meeting is fate."

The smile on Liu Lang's face grew broader as he stepped forward and tried to grab Ye Lingling's hand. "Though we attend the same academy, we haven't seen each other in more than ten days. It's rare that we've met today, so let me show you around Heaven Dou City!"

When Ye Lingling saw that Liu Lang actually intended to touch her, she hurriedly retreated several steps in fright. "Senior Liu, please conduct yourself with dignity!"

"Ling Ling, why must you be like this?"

The smile remained on Liu Lang's face, but it now carried a trace of malice. "Ling Ling, you're a smart girl too. Why did your grandfather arrange for you to attend a Junior Spirit Master Academy in the remote Silvia Kingdom, only to call you back to Heaven Dou Academy in the end? Do you really not understand?"

Ye Lingling's expression immediately turned unnatural. She had always been exceptionally intelligent. When she was six, she had not understood why her family had sent her somewhere so remote, but after returning and learning of her family's situation in Heaven Dou City, she understood everything.

The Nine Hearted Begonia was a miracle in the Spirit Master world. How could the Tian Dou Royal Family not covet such a martial spirit? In the past, the family had been protected by a Soul Douluo-level elder, so the Tian Dou Royal Family had been somewhat wary. But that elder had passed away when she was three. Although her grandfather also possessed Soul Douluo-level cultivation, like her, his martial spirit was the Nine Hearted Begonia and had no offensive power whatsoever.

However, because of her grandfather's martial spirit's powerful healing abilities, quite a few experts across the continent had received his aid. The Tian Dou Royal Family therefore did not dare go too far.

But those experts could not keep watch over the place at all times. On the surface, the Tian Dou Royal Family had always appeared to value the Nine Hearted Begonia Family, yet behind the scenes, they constantly made small moves, using every means possible to force her grandfather to bow his head. All of this reached its peak when she awakened her martial spirit at the age of six.

The Nine Hearted Begonia was passed down through a single lineage, and only two could exist in the world at any given time. If she, the inheritor of the Nine Hearted Begonia, could marry someone from the royal family, then any Spirit Masters who awakened the Nine Hearted Begonia in the future would carry the bloodline of the Tian Dou Royal Family. Wouldn't that effectively mean the Nine Hearted Begonia had joined the Tian Dou Royal Family?

Her grandfather and father did not want her to become entangled in the royal family's internal affairs, so not long after she awakened her martial spirit, they used their connections to send her to the Silvia Kingdom, far from Heaven Dou. Yet in the end, they still could not withstand the royal family's constant pressure and compromised, agreeing that she would return to Heaven Dou City to attend Heaven Dou Royal Academy after graduating from Junior Spirit Master Academy.

Seeing Ye Lingling remain silent, Liu Lang grew even more smug. He took another two steps forward, intending to take her hand again. "Ling Ling, believe me. I'll definitely treat you well. My mother is a royal Princess. As long as you're willing to marry me, the royal family will surely devote its resources to supporting your family in the future."

"What toad crawled out here thinking it could eat swan meat?"

At that moment, a voice Ye Lingling knew all too well sounded beside her ear. A hand clasped her small one and gently pulled her behind him, while a familiar figure stepped in front of her.

"Brother Xiao Yu!"

At last, she saw the person she had been waiting for. The gloom that had weighed on Ye Lingling's heart vanished at once, and even her voice carried a hint of delight.

"Little girl, you've been waiting a long time, haven't you?"

Xiao Yu smiled faintly. "It's my fault for arriving so late and letting some annoying flies bother you."

"Who are you calling that?"

Hearing Xiao Yu's mockery, Liu Lang flew into a rage. More importantly, he could see the undisguised affection in Ye Lingling's eyes. Furious, he immediately rushed forward and threw a punch.

Smack!

Xiao Yu casually caught Liu Lang's fist, then backhanded him across his fat face. The tremendous force sent him spinning where he stood.

Liu Lang spun three times before finally staggering to a stop. Just as he was about to fall to the ground, his guards quickly caught and supported him.

"You! All of you, get him! Beat this reckless bastard to death!"

Liu Lang barely steadied himself before pointing at Xiao Yu and roaring at his guards.

The guards immediately prepared to step forward. Xiao Yu sneered disdainfully. They were merely a few Soul Elders and Soul Grand Masters; there was no need for Aiolia and Milo, who had been secretly following him, to intervene. He could handle them himself.

Boom!

The fluctuations of forty-level Soul Power erupted outward, and a powerful aura instantly froze those guards in place. As for Liu Lang, he was an idle wastrel who had never studied properly. Though he possessed the cultivation of a Soul Grandmaster, he spent his days loafing about and had never known the meaning of diligent training or laying a solid foundation. His Soul Power was as insubstantial as a castle in the air, and Xiao Yu's Soul Pressure forced him directly to his knees.