As time passed, the mist lingering in the air gradually dispersed, leaving behind a rich fragrance of plants that refreshed the body.
During his conversation with Beibei and Tang Ya, Xu Zihuang intentionally revealed bits of information about his background.
"I didn't expect you to be from Dragon City in the northern border of the Heavenly Soul Empire. I remember that place is close to the Extreme North, covered in snow and ice year-round. No wonder your skin is so good." Tang Ya looked at Xu Zihuang's face with some envy.
When Beibei heard the words "Dragon City," his brows rose slightly, his face thoughtful.
His ancestral line descended from the Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang, who had lived ten thousand years ago, and in fact they were descendants of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. As a child, Beibei had once heard his great-grandfather mention that in Dragon City, there was a sect called the Heavenly Dragon Gate, where a pure bloodline of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon had been preserved.
Combined with the familiar aura he had faintly sensed from Xu Zihuang earlier, the thought now clicked in his mind.
"Brother Yu, I've heard of Dragon City. I remember there being a strong sect there called the Heavenly Dragon Gate?"
Xu Zihuang met Beibei's gaze directly, his deep purple eyes showing a mix of resentment and pain.
"Sorry, Brother Bei. I'd rather not speak of that sect."
Of course, this was an act. With the control he had over his emotions thanks to his spiritual-attribute martial soul, the Golden Eyes, his expression had been just right—perfectly convincing.
The identity he intended to fake was that of the Heavenly Dragon Gate master's eldest son, in truth his uncle's illegitimate child.
A prodigy, but with a mutated martial soul, destined never to inherit the sect leader's position. Bearing resentment toward his so-called "father," he had come alone to study at Shrek Academy.
This was the backstory he had decided on with Wang Xiao and Yao Yang.
Beibei patted Xu Zihuang's shoulder apologetically.
"Sorry, I spoke out of turn."
All his wariness toward Xu Zihuang vanished, replaced with closeness. It was hard to imagine such complex emotions could be faked.
Even if Xu Zihuang wasn't from the Heavenly Dragon Gate, he clearly had some strong connection to it.
Besides, there was no need to lie. Any student entering Shrek Academy came with a letter of recommendation from the lord of their city of origin, which also listed their background.
These things couldn't be forged. Once admitted, Shrek would send people to verify, ensuring the Sun Moon Empire couldn't sneak in spies. If discrepancies were found, the recommending city lord would permanently lose the right to recommend.
By contrast, people like Huo Yuhao—who entered Shrek through Tang Sect's special quota—were the real "connections."
That route required no cultivation level and allowed background to be falsified. In the original story, Yuhao concealed his origins as the White Tiger Duke's son.
Meanwhile, seeing Xu Zihuang's sorrowful expression, Tang Ya's innate motherly instincts flared. Her heart ached with empathy.
Her parents had perished obtaining soul rings, and the Tang Sect's foundation was stolen by outsiders. She too had been helpless, coming alone to Shrek.
If not for Xu Zihuang's height, almost equal to Beibei's, making it hard to believe he was only eleven, she might have hugged him in comfort.
"Everything will be fine. Later, we'll personally take you to Shrek. From now on, Senior Sister will look after you." Tang Ya raised her pink fist playfully at him.
Xu Zihuang forced a smile.
"Then thank you, Senior Sister."
Though he felt nothing inside, on the surface he looked moved, though faintly lacking in spirit.
After this little episode, Beibei and Tang Ya tactfully stopped troubling him, simply guarding Huo Yuhao against beast attacks.
At that moment, Yuhao, in the midst of fusing his ring, trembled violently. Blood poured from his mouth and nose.
With only innate rank 1 soul power, his body's talent was poor. His meridians were narrow, thin in places, and even tangled where multiple channels met.
This caused his meridians to rupture under the impact of the soul ring's energy.
Sensing this, Tianmeng Iceworm stirred awake in Xu Zihuang's sea of spirit.
"Huh, this human also has a spiritual martial soul.
"But his talent is far too poor. Heh, good thing I met Zihuang instead. If I'd attached to this kid, I'd already be dead." With that smug thought, it went back to sleep.
Beibei and Tang Ya looked on with concern. They knew absorbing a ring depended solely on one's willpower to endure the impact.
Beibei, steady by nature, had already discovered Yuhao's poor physique yesterday when detoxifying him—worse even than a person born without soul power. Yet he hadn't given up on him.
Precisely because Yuhao had cultivated to this level despite his flaws, Beibei admired his perseverance. Even with poor talent, such resilience could lead to success.
Xu Zihuang also studied Yuhao silently. Truth be told, without Tianmeng, Yuhao could never threaten him, even if he reached Titled Douluo.
But Yuhao's hatred toward the White Tiger Duke… that could be useful.
The Duke was one of the greatest obstacles in Xu Zihuang's path to seizing the throne and unifying the continent.
Usually, for a rank 10 soul master, absorbing a first hundred-year ring took less than an hour. Yet Yuhao had already struggled for two hours without finishing. Still, at least his condition had stabilized.
With his expression "returned to normal," Xu Zihuang feigned curiosity and asked Tang Ya softly: "Senior Sister Tang, is he also a Shrek student? His cultivation doesn't seem to meet the requirements."
"You mean Yuhao? His name is Huo Yuhao. Our Tang Sect gets one guaranteed place each year. This year, he received it." Tang Ya smiled as she moved a little closer to Xu Zihuang, her fragrance lingering.
"So, what do you think? Any interest in joining Tang Sect? As someone from the Heavenly Soul Empire, you must know our long history."
"Sorry, Senior Sister Tang, I haven't thought about joining any sect." Xu Zihuang shook his head calmly, his deep purple eyes clear.
Watching, Beibei nodded in approval.
"This Brother Yu truly has good character. Xiao Ya, since he said so, let's drop it."
"I wasn't expecting much anyway. Tang Sect has already declined this far." Tang Ya stuck out her tongue, her beautiful eyes dimming with sadness.
They could never have known Xu Zihuang's deep disdain for Tang Sect.
Sir, the era has changed!