Admiring the strong is human nature; in the Speed Clan, who crave what they lack most, that reverence is etched into their bones.
"Clan Chief, is he really not even eight this year?"
An old man, hair and beard snow-white, stood on the wall. Coming back to his senses from the two spirit rings circling Yu Yan, he stared at Bai He in shock, needing to confirm what he'd just learned.
"Do you think I'd lie about something like that?"
Bai He swept a calm glance over the clansman on the wall, answering the question with one of his own.
The pride engraved in their bones can be a virtue; because of it they scorn many base actions.
Having received their answer from the Clan Chief's retort, every member of the Speed Clan looked at Yu Yan as though he were a monster.
An eight-year-old two-ring Spirit Master… Bai Yu, standing opposite Yu Yan, regarded him with wary eyes.
I probably can't win this fight, he thought.
The instant that conclusion formed, Bai Yu unleashed both of his Spirit Abilities.
Losing was one thing; daring to fight was another.
From those two abilities, Yu Yan deduced that Bai Yu's first skills must be Phantom and Flight.
Phantom split Bai Yu into five images; Flight let him dart through the air, slipping past the Profound Ice Chains.
Always before the cage of chains could close, Bai Yu used Flight's agility to flit free.
Watching from the side, the other clansmen exhaled in relief when the two stalemated.
Their pride had already been battered by Yu Yan's talent; if they kept losing duels, they'd have no face left.
Pure speed-type Spirit Masters might not win against equals, but neither could equals beat them.
'A pure speed Spirit Master—troublesome,' Yu Yan mused.
With that thought, his first Ice Fish Skill, Frost Scale Armor, sheathed his body while six Profound Ice Chains formed a giant cage around the Training Ground, trapping him and Bai Yu inside.
Hovering mid-air, Bai Yu flapped his great white wings, keeping his distance as he tried to guess Yu Yan's next move.
While he wondered, biting cold pulsed from the Frost Scale Armor, white frost flooding the arena.
The moment the chill touched him, Bai Yu knew Yu Yan's aim: the cold was sapping his proud speed, ice crystals already studding his feathers.
"I hoped for a draw—looks impossible now."
With that mutter, Bai Yu shot forward at top speed for one last rush.
Closing in, he gathered spirit power into his leg and delivered a flying kick straight at Yu Yan.
Bai Yu's foot struck the Frost Scale Armor—yet the attacker was the one who felt pain.
So hard, he thought, flapping backward to open distance.
Yu Yan reached to grab him, but seeing Bai Yu pull away, released an even fiercer wave of cold.
For five minutes they traded blows, until wings laden with ice and slowed to a crawl, Bai Yu was finally bound by the Profound Ice Chains.
"Fight over—Yu Yan wins," Bai He announced. "Any other challengers?"
In the next hour Yu Yan defeated five young geniuses of the Speed Clan, pausing once to recover when his spirit power ran low.
The result: five victories in five bouts.
Using only Ice Fish Skills, Yu Yan felt his control over the Profound Ice Chains sharpen markedly.
The Speed Clan made excellent sparring partners.
He was already plotting to rope them in once they joined Exotic Beast Academy; they were just too useful.
"Now, no objections, right?"
Bai He, more pleased by the minute, strode to the center and addressed the clan.
The Elders, humbled by the string of defeats, no longer dared refuse; they accepted the chief's plan.
"Good—my granddaughter Bai Chenxiang will enter Exotic Beast Academy; the rest may choose freely."
In the lull that followed, Bai He proclaimed his decision; he could decide for his granddaughter, not for others' children.
Yu Yan, beside Jiang Jing, saw her mouth crook so high even the legendary Crooked-Mouth Dragon King couldn't out-smirk her.
As the academy's representative, she stepped forward to describe Exotic Beast Academy's Mimicry Training Ground and the benefits awaiting Speed Clan youths.
Yu Yan loathed this part—leaders and their speeches.
Twenty minutes later Jiang Jing finally finished, exchanged a few words with Bai He, and led Yu Yan away.
The clan still had much to settle; their presence would only hinder.
Once he sensed the pair had left the clan grounds, Bai He called several core Elders and outstanding youths to stay for a private meeting.
"I traded our clan treasure, the crystal dragon blood ginseng, with Yu Yan."
In the council hall, from his seat of honor, Bai He dropped that bombshell.
Before the Elders could protest, he explained how whale-tallow strengthened the Physical Body, raising the limit of spirit rings one could absorb, then revealed Yu Yan's hidden thousand-year second spirit ring and the self-created technique that concealed its color.
So shocking was the news that only after ten minutes did those present fully grasp what their chief was saying.
Once they understood, not one Elder reproached Bai He.
In his place, they would have made the same trade.
Only a fool would refuse.