Su Yu, Little Luo

"Miss, there are demonic beasts ahead."

Elder Ye halted the carriage and reported the situation—three wind wolves were closing in.

"They're here, they're here!"

Upon hearing this, Huang Nuanyan immediately rushed out of the carriage.

She rarely encountered demonic beasts, so during this trip, she had asked Elder Ye to leave a few for her to deal with personally.

"Let me show you my strength."

Huang Nuanyan declared this to the wind wolves, but it was also meant for Su Luo and Little Yu to hear.

At her age, she still craved recognition from her peers.

After a brief chant, her spell was ready.

"Water Thread!"

A thin jet of water shot out, splashing onto one of the wind wolves' heads. However, its power was too weak to pierce through—it only forced the beast to lower its head.

The other two wolves lunged forward.

Huang Nuanyan redirected the water thread to block their advance.

But with only one water thread, she couldn't hold them all back. Gradually, the three wolves closed in.

She began to panic, frantically shifting the water thread to spray whichever wolf stepped forward.

Her focus darted between the three beasts, making her movements seem chaotic.

Yet, for some reason, Su Luo was reminded of a certain infamous figure.

"Are you done talking? Time for me to start spinning.jpg"

Of course, Huang Nuanyan’s water thread was far from comparable.

"Water Barrier!"

Huang Nuanyan had no choice but to switch to defense. The three wolves crashed into the watery wall, slowly sinking into it.

They struggled wildly, but she reinforced the spell, preventing their escape.

Eventually, the wolves drowned.

Wiping her sweat, Huang Nuanyan asked, "So, how was that?"

Su Luo gave a thumbs-up. "Absolutely masterful."

Little Yu clapped. "Truly spectacular."

"You're exaggerating." Still, she clearly enjoyed the praise. "With me around, you don’t need to worry about the Spirit Combat Tournament."

"So reliable."

Huang Nuanyan continued, "What about you two? Care to show off a little?"

Su Luo waved his hand. "No need. My pride’s too strong—I can’t afford to embarrass myself."

Little Yu naturally followed suit. "I’m too weak to demonstrate anything worthwhile."

"Really? You both sound so carefree about it. Doesn’t seem convincing."

"Ah, we lack resources. We’re just too poor."

"Mm-hmm." Little Yu nodded in agreement.

During the conversation, Su Luo and Little Yu found Huang Nuanyan quite likable and didn’t want to discourage her.

And Huang Nuanyan was genuinely kind—she didn’t look down on them for their lack of strength. She even considered offering them some spirit stones.

"No need. Just letting us ride with you is already more than enough."

"Really? Well, don’t regret it later." Huang Nuanyan pretended to withdraw the spirit stones, hoping they’d change their minds.

Su Luo: "We appreciate the thought."

Little Yu: "You’re really too kind."

But they truly didn’t want them.

"I finally decide to be generous, and you two just… Ugh, never mind."

Little Yu added, "Honestly, I think you should be a bit more cautious around us."

Huang Nuanyan just laughed. "I do think so too, but it’s fine. I’m starting to trust you more. Feels like my judgment’s pretty good."

Outside, Elder Ye shook his head. How could anyone truly know another person in such a short time?

......

After two days of travel, they arrived at Water City.

The city earned its name from its proximity to the sea and the network of rivers crisscrossing its streets, where small boats were a common sight.

It was a place full of character.

Standing at the city gates, Huang Nuanyan exclaimed, "Seeing it for myself is even better than I imagined!"

Little Yu agreed. "Same here."

Su Luo, however, was unfazed.

As they entered the city, chatter filled the air.

"Have you heard? Lin Xuan has arrived!"

"Really? That’s amazing! I’ve always wanted to meet him but never got the chance."

"I’ll give my all in the Spirit Combat Tournament. If I could become Lin Xuan’s disciple, that’d be a dream come true."

The city buzzed with preparations for the tournament, along with endless discussions about Lin Xuan.

Thanks to the event, the streets were packed and lively.

Su Luo and Little Yu, however, had little interest in Lin Xuan. Instead, they browsed nearby shops for local specialties.

Eventually, they stumbled upon a bounty board filled with posters of notorious demonic cultivators.

"Thinking of earning some spirit stones this way?" Huang Nuanyan joined them, noting that some weaker targets might be manageable for the resource-starved.

Su Luo shook his head. "No, just looking. But these guys all look ruthless—seems tough."

Huang Nuanyan nodded. "True. I tried once. Humans are way trickier than beasts. Last time I fought a demonic cultivator, I almost died. I’ll stick to hunting beasts."

Little Yu pointed out, "There are quite a few from the Heavenly Demon Sect here."

"Right? Even though the sect’s declined, it’s not completely wiped out. But the worst of them all has to be this Su Luo."

Su Luo nearly choked on his own name. "Yeah, Su Luo sounds terrifying."

"Exactly! Rumor says he single-handedly ravaged dozens of sects and walked away unscathed. Truly horrifying. But mark my words—such evil will meet its end."

"Hahaha, you’re probably right."

After a quick glance at the bounties, they moved on.

When Huang Nuanyan wasn’t looking, Little Yu whispered to Su Luo,

"Su Luo, she said you’ll get your just deserts."

"Did she? Well, I think I’ve lived pretty well so far. Besides, I’ve got you with me. Can’t say I’m suffering."

"True." Little Yu had meant to console him, but it seemed unnecessary.

In the past, she would’ve vehemently defended Su Luo against such words.

She even once left a message for him in the Pure Martial Tower of the Seven Stars Sword Sect: "Su Luo is the strongest."

She wondered if it was still there.

It was.

Despite Su Luo’s growing infamy, when visitors to the Seven Stars Sword Sect saw the message, they protested—some even demanded its removal.

But no one listened.

As the uproar grew, the sect leader finally appeared.

"Come back when you’ve reached the hundredth floor. Then we’ll talk."

The message stayed. No changes. No removal. It left everyone baffled.

The group continued exploring the city.

Suddenly, Huang Nuanyan gasped. "Oh no! We need to hurry—we still have to register!"

The Spirit Combat Tournament required sign-ups, and the matches began the next day.

They rushed to the registration site.

Fortunately, the crowd had thinned. A few days earlier, the line would’ve been endless.

After filling out a simple form, they were done. The tournament was more for fun than strict competition.

But as they turned to leave, someone picked up their forms and read aloud.

"Su Yu… Little Luo?" Li Siyi smirked, eyeing the two.

"Yeah. Is there a problem?"