Douluo: Starting with an Engagement to Zhu Zhuqing

Chapter 22: Xingluo Royal Academy

In the moonlight, two small figures gradually drew closer together.

Zhu Zhuqing's head softly rested on Dai Yao's shoulder. The moonlight was beautiful, and the breeze gentle. Feeling her near, catching the faint fragrance of her hair, Dai Yao was flooded with a serene calm, wishing this moment could last forever.

Time slipped by quickly, and the night grew deep.

The two climbed down from the roof and returned inside. Dai Yao turned to Zhu Zhuqing, saying, "The fight for the throne is bloody, and failure has only one fate—death."

"We're still young, and our soul power is far below that of Dai Yaming and Dai Weisi, but I believe that as long as we work tirelessly, we still have a chance."

Hearing this, Zhu Zhuqing's once-anxious expression shifted to one of determination, and she replied softly, "Yes."

With that, they sat cross-legged and entered a meditative state.

Not long into her meditation, Zhu Zhuqing opened her eyes, a look of surprise breaking her normally icy demeanor. "Why… why is my cultivation speed suddenly faster?"

"When I practiced at home, this didn't happen… could it be because of Dai Yao?" She glanced at him, a hint of curiosity in her eyes.

Suppressing her suspicions, Zhu Zhuqing resumed her training.

Several days passed, with Dai Yao and Zhu Zhuqing treating every moment like gold. Aside from meals and sleep, they trained without pause. Of course, they slept separately.

Both of their soul power levels steadily grew. Zhu Zhuqing's power was nearing the tenth rank, and before long, she would be ready to acquire her first soul ring.

Training beside Dai Yao had accelerated her cultivation significantly, cutting what should have taken a month down to mere days. After each session, Zhu Zhuqing couldn't help but glance at Dai Yao with amazement, wondering how he could enhance her cultivation speed. Naturally, she kept this secret to herself.

As for Dai Yao, his situation was more complicated. The soul power in his dantian was condensed into liquid form by the Green Lotus, meaning he required far more soul power than others to reach the same level. Luckily, the Green Lotus's ability to speed up cultivation kept him from being too frustrated.

He, too, was approaching the threshold of the twelfth level.

At last, someone knocked at the Cold Palace's door.

A palace maid presented them each with a silk-letter scroll.

Unfolding the scrolls, they found official invitations to the Xingluo Royal Academy.

On the invitation was a drawing of towering mountains, with a majestic castle perched halfway up one of the slopes. Its weathered walls exuded an aura of age and history.

After sending the maid away, Dai Yao woke Zhu Zhuqing from her meditation, handing her the invitation. "Get ready. We leave for the Xingluo Royal Academy!"

Zhu Zhuqing nodded with a small smile.

The next evening…

Neigh!

The carriage came to a stop, and the guard turned back to inform those inside, "Your Highness, we've arrived at the academy."

The curtain lifted, and out stepped the small figure of Dai Yao.

The Xingluo Royal Academy was about a hundred kilometers from the palace. An academy's strength depended not only on its teachers but also on its mimicry environments.

Mimicry environments are carefully designed to simulate the most suitable habitats for various martial souls. For example, the best environment for a Phoenix-type martial soul would be a volcano, while fish-based martial souls thrive around rivers, lakes, or seas.

The need for diverse environments meant that a large area was required, so the academy was built a considerable distance from the capital.

"So beautiful…" Zhu Zhuqing murmured, peering out from the carriage.

It was dusk, and the sun's final rays cast an orange-gold glow over the mountains. A serene lake mirrored the sky, with mountains rising beyond it, and nestled on a distant hillside, the castle stood like a haven untouched by time.

Thinking of the days of study ahead, Dai Yao felt a stirring excitement.

Following a servant's lead, the two walked through a cluster of buildings.

"This is the area where soul masters study," the servant explained. "It's divided into lecture halls and dormitories. Most people train in the nearby mountains or by the lake."

Dai Yao was lost in anticipation for the future when a cold voice sounded ahead of him. "So, you're the Fourth Prince?"

The speaker had a long face with large eyes and a thin mouth, resembling a rat.

Dai Yao stayed calm, asking, "And you are?"

The stranger sneered before letting out a low grunt, his soul power radiating out as he entered a martial soul transformation. He now looked even more like a giant rat, two yellow soul rings circling around him.

"A two-ring Soul Master…" Dai Yao noted, feeling the weight of the stranger's power.

The man's intense soul pressure bore down on him, hindering the flow of his soul power.

"The strength… is this what it means to be a Grand Soul Master?" Dai Yao thought, heart pounding. The pressure alone from this opponent was more than he could handle.

With a strange screech, the man's first soul ring lit up, and he vanished into the ground, tunneling towards Dai Yao from below.

Dai Yao could feel an eerie chill beneath him, moving closer. A wave of killing intent drifted up from the earth, sending shivers down his spine.

"What do I do?" he wondered, at a loss for solutions.

Looking back, he saw Zhu Zhuqing staring at him with worry.

With a deep breath, Dai Yao's fear was washed away. Even if it was a hopeless fight, he'd face this Grand Soul Master head-on. Placing Zhu Zhuqing behind him, he summoned the soul power within his dantian, preparing to engage his martial soul, when a hand abruptly stopped him.

"I'll take it from here." A strong voice called out.

Dai Yao turned to see a portly man with a wide, fan-shaped face.

The man strode forward, his voice dripping with bravado. "You filthy rat, why don't I give you a real fight?"

His body swelled, his nose extending as he transformed into something resembling a mammoth, also bearing two yellow soul rings.

"Second Soul Skill, War Stomp!" The man stomped a single foot down, sending a wave of dust and energy outward in a grayish-brown ring.

The ground caved in where the rat-man hid, forcing him to the surface, coughing up blood. His face twisted in rage as he glared at the large man defending Dai Yao.

"Well, you damned fatty, so you dare interfere with the Crown Prince's business? You aren't afraid of bringing trouble down on yourself?"

The large man chuckled. "If the Crown Prince himself were here, I'd step aside. Heck, I'd even help him kick this kid around."

His smile faded, eyes hardening. "But since the Crown Prince isn't here, what's one rat like you going to do? If you don't want a beating, get lost!"

The rat-faced man trembled with fury, glaring at the large man as if committing him to memory.

Finally, he turned to Dai Yao and sneered, "Fine, kid. I'll let this go for now. The Crown Prince told me to give you a message: Enjoy your time here at the academy while it lasts…"

(End of Chapter)

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