"Perfect!"
Dugu Yan naturally took her arm and led her to Jiang Zhen and the others, warmly introducing them: " Jiang Zhen, Lan Xi , and two older sisters, let me introduce you. This is my best friend, Ye Lingling!"
"Lingling, these are my grandfather's distinguished guests: Brother Jiang Zhen, Sister Lan Xi , this is Bing Di , and this is Lan Fuzi."
Ye Lingling was clearly a little shy, especially when facing Jiang Zhen, whose aura was unfathomable, and Bing Di , whose face was cold and imposing. She subconsciously shrank behind Dugu Yan, and her cheeks under the black veil seemed to be slightly red.
Her fingers tightened slightly as she held the book, but she still mustered her courage and bowed slightly to Jiang Zhen and the others, her voice still very soft: "Hello... I am Ye Lingling..."
Her gaze lingered a little longer on the gentle, smiling Lan Xi and the curiously observing Lan Fuzi, as if these two made her feel less pressured.
Seeing this, Dugu Yan smiled and patted the back of her hand, explaining to Jiang Zhen and the others, "Lingling is a bit introverted and doesn't talk much, but she's incredibly kind! She's the most powerful healing-type Soul Master in our academy... no, in the entire world!"
Her tone was full of protectiveness and pride towards her best friend.
Jiang Zhen naturally knew who this person was: the current successor of the Nine Heart Begonia Martial Soul, a top-tier healing-type Soul Master who was almost destined to be alone.
He smiled and nodded, his tone gentle: "Miss Ye, it's a pleasure to meet you."
Bing Di merely glanced at her and nodded slightly, as if to say hello.
Lan Xi and Lan Fuzi returned a warm smile.
Dugu Yan's eyes lit up, and she invited, "Lingling, we're about to go for a walk, do you want to come along? Anyway, you'll be reading alone when you get back."
Ye Lingling glanced at Jiang Zhen and the others, then at Dugu Yan, who was clinging tightly to her. After hesitating for a moment, she finally nodded gently and said softly, "...Okay."
So she quietly followed Dugu Yan's side, almost never leaving her side, as if she could only find a sense of security by the side of this outspoken and fiery best friend.
The group of one person became six.
I wandered around for a while longer and visited a few places.
Dugu Yan glanced at the sky and suggested, "I know a really good private restaurant outside the academy, the food is absolutely amazing!"
"Let's not wait for my grandpa; he and those old men from the Education Commission are going to chat for ages. My treat, how about we go try it?"
This suggestion was approved by the foodies.
So, the group left the academy and, led by Dugu Yan, arrived at a restaurant with elegant decor and a quiet environment.
Dugu Yan was clearly a regular here, as she skillfully ordered a table full of signature dishes.
The atmosphere inside the private room was quite harmonious.
Dugu Yan, with her cheerful personality, kept finding topics to liven up the atmosphere. Lan Fuzi was full of curiosity and admiration for each dish.
Lan Xi would occasionally whisper a few words to Ye Lingling, and her gentle demeanor eased Ye Lingling's tension considerably.
Bing Di unusually did not comment on the quality of the dishes.
Jiang Zhen, on the other hand, was leisurely enjoying this rare moment of leisure and delicious food.
By the time we finished eating, the sun was already setting in the west.
Dugu Yan first accompanied Jiang Zhen and the others to escort Ye Lingling back to the Ye residence, which was not far from the Dugu residence. After watching the aloof young girl lower her head, say goodbye softly, and quickly walk into the residence, the group turned around and returned to the Dugu residence to rest.
...
I spent two relaxing and enjoyable days in Heaven Dou City, and that leisurely and carefree feeling was more than enough.
The next morning, Jiang Zhen woke up as the first rays of dawn streamed into the room through the window.
A short rest is for better progress, and now it's time to continue the practice.
After getting up and washing up, they came to the front hall. Lan Fuzi was full of energy and looking forward to the day's activities. Lan Xi also woke up soon and obediently followed Jiang Zhen.
Jiang Zhen took out a card with a dark gold luster and intricate patterns from his storage soul tool and handed it to Lan Xi .
"Xi'er, Lan Fuzi," Jiang Zhen said with a gentle smile, "I won't accompany you out to play today. You two go with Miss Dugu and let her show you around. Buy whatever you want, eat whatever you want."
Knowing that Lan Xi was gentle and not likely to make requests, he specifically instructed the lively Lan Fuzi, "Fuzi, keep an eye on Lan Xi and don't let her just play by herself."
Lan Fuzi took the card, her eyes crinkling into crescent moons with laughter, and patted her chest, promising, "Don't worry! I'll definitely take Lan Xi to eat all the best food in Heaven Dou City!"
Although Lan Xi was a little reluctant to part with Jiang Zhen, she still nodded obediently: "Brother, don't worry, we will take good care of ourselves."
Jiang Zhen turned to Dugu Yan and said, "Miss Dugu, I'll leave these two to you for now. I will definitely repay you handsomely afterward!"
Dugu Yan smiled and said, "No problem, I'm on vacation anyway, so I'll show them around first!"
However, when Jiang Zhen turned his gaze to Bing Di , who was leaning against a pillar with her arms crossed, he saw her emerald green eyes sweep over him indifferently, her tone cold and unquestionable: "You may go. I will stay here."
Her reason was simple, and she didn't even bother to make up an excuse. If she didn't go to Jiang Zhen, then the hustle and bustle of this human city would lose most of its appeal to her.
Rather than looking at those boring people and buildings, it's better to stay in the relatively quiet Dugu Mansion.
Jiang Zhen was slightly taken aback, then understood.
Knowing Bing Di 's temperament, he didn't insist and nodded, saying, "Alright."
Bing Di gave a soft "hmm" through his nose in response, but his gaze had already turned to a flower in the courtyard covered with morning frost, as if that was more interesting than the arrangements to come.
Having arranged everything, Jiang Zhen didn't linger and headed straight for the cultivation chamber inside the Dugu Mansion.
The heavy stone door slowly closed, isolating it from all outside sounds.
Jiang Zhen sat cross-legged on the central futon, holding his breath and concentrating his mind, quickly entering a state of cultivation where he forgot himself and the world around him.
With a thought, a piece of ten-thousand-year-old Mysterious Ice Marrow, radiating extreme cold and icy blue light, flew out of his storage ring and hovered in his palm.
The sheer chill emanating from it caused the temperature inside the sealed room to plummet, and countless tiny ice crystals condensed in the air, slowly drifting down like stardust.
"Let's begin."
Jiang Zhen silently recited the mantra, and fully activated the cultivation technique "Mysterious Water Enlightenment Technique".
At the lower dantian, the azure water-attribute soul core lit up first, rotating steadily and emitting a vast and gentle soul power that flowed throughout the body, protecting the meridians and internal organs.
At the middle dantian, the newly condensed ultimate ice soul core, with its double helix structure of ice blue and azure, trembled slightly, emitting waves of longing and resonance.
He guided his soul power, carefully enveloping the ten-thousand-year-old Mysterious Ice Marrow.
Like the finest carving knife, it peels away and extracts bit by bit the ultimate ice-attribute energy that has been refined over thousands of years and is now extremely pure.
Inside the sealed room, energy fluctuations rose and fell like tides.
Jiang Zhen's body seemed to transform into a massive energy vortex, frantically devouring the power of the Ten Thousand Year Profound Ice Marrow. His aura accumulated and settled in silence, slowly and steadily advancing towards a higher level.
Outside the secret room, in the courtyard.
Bing Di had somehow ended up sitting on a stone bench, propping her chin up with one hand and gently swinging her legs. Her emerald eyes would occasionally glance seemingly unintentionally at the tightly closed stone door of the secret chamber.
The mansion was quiet, with only the faint sound of Lan Fuzi's silvery laughter and Dugu Yan's introductions coming from afar, indicating that they were preparing to leave.
The morning at the Dugu residence passed slowly amidst the tranquility and anticipation both inside and out…