The night passed without incident. The next morning, the two got up early.
After a simple wash, and once Zhu Zhuqing had finished getting ready, Yang Yunhai, who was sitting at the edge of the bed, slowly stood up and spoke.
"Zhuqing, could you help me tidy up my hair?"
Hearing this, Zhu Zhuqing looked at him. The hair on the back of Yang Yunhai's head was long and thick, reaching past his waist. His bangs were also quite full, and the side locks hung down to his chest, covering almost all of his ears and neck.
It definitely needed grooming.
And grooming long hair like this would indeed be hard for one person to manage alone.
"Alright." Zhu Zhuqing nodded slightly.
"I'll grab a stool, let's go to the mirror in the washroom," Yang Yunhai said as he walked over to a table by the window and picked up a stool.
Soon, the two were standing in front of the mirror in the washroom. Yang Yunhai sat in front while Zhu Zhuqing stood behind, helping him trim and tidy his hair.
It was only now, looking through the mirror, that Yang Yunhai truly got a good look at his own face.
Upon closer inspection, the structure of his facial features hadn't changed much. His skin had just become fairer and smoother, and the overall lines of his face softer.
"Well, makes sense. It's just a bloodline evolution, not plastic surgery. Since the bone structure didn't change, the appearance wouldn't shift dramatically. Looks like I was just a bit tanned before,my base features weren't bad after all," Yang Yunhai thought to himself.
"So my looks didn't end up resembling Ah Yin too much. If Tang Hao sees me in the future, I won't have to worry much."
As for the hair color, plenty of people in the world have blue hair. He used to have it too, just not as bright and striking.
"That's convenient," he thought silently.
"Still, I need a good explanation, especially for the sudden spike in soul power," he mused, letting his thoughts wander.
About fifteen minutes later, Zhu Zhuqing moved on to trimming his bangs. Because she had changed into a tight-fitting outfit, her curvy figure gently swayed close to Yang Yunhai. The skin of her neck was pale and smooth, casting shadows along elegant curves.
Perhaps because she felt the closeness too, a faint blush appeared on her cheeks, making her even more attractive.
"This is absurd… sinful, sinful…" Yang Yunhai stole a glance and quickly shut his eyes.
Even though Zhu Zhuqing had agreed to go with him to Heaven Dou City, she hadn't actually said she would be his girlfriend or anything.
After all, they hadn't spent that much time together, and didn't know each other deeply,far from being truly familiar.
He understood that completely.
So, as a gentleman, it was only right to show some respect.
"Still, at least I got the spirit crystal, and even managed to split the Shrek Seven Devils,that alone makes this trip worth it," he thought honestly.
On the other hand, seeing Yang Yunhai close his eyes, Zhu Zhuqing relaxed a bit and focused on trimming his hair.
Another fifteen minutes passed before a crisp voice echoed in the washroom. "Alright, take a look and see if it needs any more trimming."
"Okay." Yang Yunhai immediately opened his eyes and looked into the mirror.
Since there weren't any men's hair accessories available, Zhu Zhuqing hadn't done anything too elaborate,just cleaned and trimmed it. His bangs were parted in the middle and hung to the sides of his neck. The rest of his hair flowed down his back, and both ears were exposed. It was simple but neat. Despite the simplicity, his overall aura had changed drastically. Compared to the slightly feminine look before, he now looked much more heroic.
"Looks good. Thanks, Zhuqing," Yang Yunhai said as he stood and turned slightly to examine the result.
As a man who aspired to become a stationary-type spellcaster, long flowing hair and a heroic look clearly matched his style better.
To be able to bind and electrocute enemies from afar while standing still and unleashing power, his long hair fluttering dramatically as enemies struggled to get close,that image was simply too cool.
"No problem," Zhu Zhuqing said with a rare smile and a small nod.
"Let's go. Time to head out. The hotel staff will clean up the hair later," Yang Yunhai added.
"Mm." Zhu Zhuqing nodded, then looked at the bundle in Yang Yunhai's hand and said, "Put the bundle in my soul tool."
"Sure." Yang Yunhai agreed without hesitation. Anything that made things easier,he'd never say no.
Zhu Zhuqing took the bundle and stored it in her soul tool. Then they left the hotel and walked toward the city gate's carriage station.
Before long, the carriage was moving steadily, soon leaving the city and heading straight for Heaven Dou City.
Around noon, the sound of hoofbeats echoed as a young man and woman entered Soto City.
"Xiao Wu, should we find a place to stay first? It's almost lunchtime,let's eat something," Tang San said with a smile.
"That's more like it," Xiao Wu said with a satisfied tilt of her head.
Soon, they arrived at Rose Hotel and, as expected, encountered Dai Mubai. Tang San fought and won.
After successfully checking in, Xiao Wu couldn't sit still and strongly insisted that Tang San take her shopping in Soto City. Tang San reluctantly agreed.
While they were walking, "Hey, San, look over there," Xiao Wu called out excitedly.
"That shop looks like it has something to do with soul masters."
"Let's check it out." Tang San glanced at the store and decided to go in.
They browsed for a while but didn't find anything they needed, and left.
The next day, around noon, at Shrek Academy:
Hiding in the shadows, Flender watched as Tang San exploded with strength, passing Zhao Wuji's test at the cost of serious injury. Dai Mubai carried him to the dorms, while Flender, suppressing his excitement at having recruited a few more genius soul masters this year, turned and quickly headed to the school gate.
Scanning around with a slight frown, he murmured to himself.
"Those two kids haven't shown up?"
"Could it be they found out who I am,and that I'm the owner of that shop,and got upset about being overcharged, so they decided not to come?" At that thought, Flender's face showed regret, and he swore.
"Damn it, what a huge loss!"
Time passed quickly. A few days later, outside Heaven Dou City, the carriage rolled to a stop.
"Dear guests, we've arrived at Heaven Dou City," the driver called out.
"Finally here," Yang Yunhai sighed inwardly and responded politely, "Thanks for your hard work, sir."
He then called out to Zhu Zhuqing, and they stepped off the carriage together.
Seeing the time was still morning, Yang Yunhai turned to Zhu Zhuqing and said, "Let's find a hotel first. After lunch, I'll head to the Spirit Hall. Since my soul power has increased, I haven't re-certified for the soul master subsidy yet."
"Okay." Zhu Zhuqing nodded slightly and followed him into the city.
As the capital of the empire, Heaven Dou City certainly didn't lack hotels. After buying some paper and pens along the way, the two soon found a hotel.
"Zhuqing, should we get another double room? The prices here in Heaven Dou City are pretty high," Yang Yunhai asked at the door.
At his words, Zhu Zhuqing's fair face quickly flushed slightly red, but she still nodded. "Mm."
Yang Yunhai strode to the front desk and booked a double room.
Since the bundle was in Zhu Zhuqing's soul tool, she paid for the room this time.
"Awesome!" With the receptionist casting a slightly admiring glance, Yang Yunhai took the key and led Zhu Zhuqing upstairs.
They found their room, unlocked the door, and went in.
As expected of a hotel in the capital, the room was exceptionally luxurious,more spacious than the last place, with a larger bed and high-quality bedding.
"Impressive. Heaven Dou City really is expensive," Yang Yunhai couldn't help but exclaim.
Coming from a noble family and used to better accommodations, Zhu Zhuqing didn't comment, only nodding slightly.
"After that long carriage ride, let's take a bath and change clothes," Yang Yunhai suggested.
So, Zhu Zhuqing went into the bathroom first. After she came out, Yang Yunhai went in. Then the two went downstairs and ordered a few small dishes to eat. After the days of rough travel, they hadn't had a decent meal, and it was time to indulge.
Soon, after finishing lunch, they returned to their room.
"Zhuqing, you take a rest. I'm going to write a few things, then head to the Spirit Hall on my own," Yang Yunhai said while walking to the writing desk by the window.
Zhu Zhuqing didn't object. She went to the bed, lay down on her side with her back to him, and closed her eyes to rest.
Just then, Yang Yunhai began writing,carefully crafting his backstory with slightly clumsy but sincere words.
"I, Yang Yunhai, was born in a small unknown village outside Nuoding City in the Fasno Province. Abandoned by my parents, I was left under a poplar tree outside the city. Fortunately, I was taken in by Spirit Hall's steward, Elder Gong Tai, and raised in an orphanage in Grassy Village."
"As I grew up, I was once struck by lightning during a thunderstorm. Ever since, whenever I go out in rainy weather, lightning seems to strike me. Because of this, Elder Tai forbade me from going outside on cloudy days."
"Despite his efforts, I was still struck dozens of times before the age of six."
"When I turned six, Elder Tai took me to awaken my martial spirit. Maybe due to the lightning, I awakened a variant of Blue Silver Grass with slight lightning attributes and 0.5 innate soul power."
"Recalling how lightning seemed to change my body, I wondered if my soul power came from being struck by lightning. So I dared to try cultivating by absorbing lightning in the rain."
"It worked. Although the pain was unbearable, I survived. After several days of unconsciousness, I discovered my soul power had grown slightly, and my body was stronger."
"There were side effects, though,my body and martial spirit became stiff."
He skipped over the part about being able to harden his spirit and continued the story...
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