"What, you've reached level 20? Going to catch your second soul beast?"
"Then I'm coming too!"
Ma Xiaotao latched onto Su Wen's neck like an octopus, refusing to let go.
Su Wen felt suffocated (literally).
"You're only level 44, and the Extreme North is full of ice beasts. What's a fire phoenix doing there?" Su Wen pried her hands off, exasperated.
"Extreme North?" Ma Xiaotao was stunned, her beautiful eyes unfocused, recalling her teacher's words from a year ago.
He had really guessed right…
"Hmm~"
Seeing Ma Xiaotao sitting dazed, Su Wen grinned, pinching her cheek. "Just wait. When I get stronger, I'll protect you in the inner court."
With that, he waved his hand, called Gale, and ran out.
Moments later—
A pillow flew out.
…
At the top of Sea God Pavilion.
Mu En sat in a wheelchair, kindly looking at Su Wen. "So, you've decided—your second soul beast will be ice-type?"
"Yes, Elder Mu." Su Wen nodded, not wasting words.
Everyone knew why.
"Good, since you've decided, I won't say more. But one thing: who do you want to accompany you to the Extreme North? That place is as dangerous as the Star Dou Forest. If you encounter any of the three kings of the Extreme North, even an ordinary Titled Douluo can't escape unscathed. Only a Super Douluo or above…" Mu En said softly.
Super Douluo personally escorting a level-20 soul master for a soul ring—only Shrek would be so extravagant. Even so, people still fought for the chance…
Su Wen glanced at Yan Shaozhe, who kept winking.
"If Dean Yan is available."
"Very well, Shaozhe," Mu En said lightly.
"Teacher, I'm here." Yan Shaozhe tried to hide his excitement.
"You'll accompany Xiao Wen to the Extreme North. Remember, whatever happens, life comes first."
"Yes…"
Leaving Sea God Pavilion.
Su Wen felt the rising mist from the lake. It was near dusk, and the sun reflected off the rippling water—a beautiful scene.
As for not choosing Xuan Zi, Su Wen really didn't want to risk being betrayed again.
Would Xuan Zi change?
No way!
If he would, the Ming Dou Mountain incident in the original never would have happened.
Honestly, if he were Mu En and hadn't read the original, he'd suspect he had a traitor at home…
Su Wen's attitude toward Xuan Zi was: Just be a mascot. Step up and show off when needed, that's enough.
Xian Lin'er and Qian Duoduo were good, but as soul tool experts, Su Wen didn't want to owe them favors if he wasn't joining their department. Cai Mei'er was a little too weak. All things considered, Yan Shaozhe was the best fit.
He could be petty about soul tools, but as a comrade, Yan Shaozhe was reliable.
Even if he was only level 95 now…
Yan Shaozhe, while silent, was ecstatic inside.
He'd bet right. This kid really had character—willing to make his second soul beast ice-type for Xiaotao's sake. Not bad.
The more he looked at Su Wen, the more he felt like a future father-in-law admiring a son-in-law.
They said their goodbyes and agreed to set out at dawn.
…
In the hut.
Gale was excited, unable to keep still—probably eager for a companion. The environment here was good, but lonely.
Su Wen glanced at the bouncing Gale, not stopping him.
In the year, Gale had grown from one meter to 1.7 meters, looking much more imposing. He once looked like a pet, but now finally had a bit of the wild soul beast in him.
His fangs and claws were sharper, and his Wind Blade skill was getting smoother.
By Su Wen's estimate—
Though Gale was only level 20, he could easily beat other Wind Baboons of the same level, even two at a time.
"Tsk… still feels like something's missing," Su Wen muttered.
Gale's strength came from eating soul beast meat to boost stats, but his bloodline and skills hadn't changed.
"Does he need to evolve to the next stage to awaken new skills or strengthen his wind attribute?" Su Wen mused. That seemed to be the case.
Weak early on, but strong later. Once he reached level 30, everything would improve.
Night passed.
…
The next morning.
Sea God Island was shrouded in mist.
After meeting Yan Shaozhe, Su Wen set out for the Extreme North without delay.
Yan Shaozhe pulled out a flying soul tool, looking around stealthily before taking Su Wen north at high speed, making Su Wen cringe.
"If you use soul tools, why oppose the soul tool department?" Su Wen asked quietly.
"They're competing with us for funding! The academy's resources are limited. If they get more, we get less," Yan Shaozhe smiled. "Besides, using soul tools doesn't mean I support them. My Level 8 flying soul tool is from the Sun-Moon Empire, not made by our soul tool department. Those rookies dream of competing with Sun-Moon? They've had thousands of years of technological accumulation, and we just have Qian Duoduo, an eighth-level soul engineer. How can we catch up?"
"It's a fantasy," Yan Shaozhe scoffed.
Su Wen was silent.
From the martial soul department's perspective, it was true.
But this dean was short-sighted—after the Ming Dou Mountain incident, Mu En pushed for everyone to have soul shields and flying tools, but Yan still opposed it, telling Mu En to "think it over."
So, no matter how reasonable he sounded, Su Wen remained skeptical.
Shrek Academy was surrounded by the Star Dou Forest. To reach the Extreme North, you could go north or south. The south route required crossing the Sun-Moon Empire—too risky. So they went north.
Within half a day, snow appeared in their view.
A city came into sight.
"Anyang City, the northernmost medium-sized city in the Dou Ling Empire. It's the border between human and Extreme North territories. Go further north, and you're truly in the Extreme North." Yan Shaozhe explained.