Douluo Continent: The Real World

Liu Erlong didn't care much about the ninth soul ring. Currently, her soul power was improving very slowly, and acquiring a soul ring seemed even further away. Moreover, she had read several of Yu Tianyan's plans, and in one of them, her ninth soul ring was a 100,000-year-old one!

She said, "I'll be satisfied if you can practice seriously."

Yu Tianyan smiled slightly and said nothing more.

The two of them ate breakfast quietly, enjoying the warmth of the moment. After breakfast, since Yu Tianyan had told her she didn't need to practice so hard anymore, Liu Erlong started to ease up.

Practicing felt like pure torture for her.

Without the Heart Fire, cultivation progressed too slowly, and the quality of soul power was far from perfect. With the Heart Fire, she couldn't push past 30%. Every time she exceeded that limit, she was consumed by overwhelming desire. Yu Tianyan helped her control it once a week, but that was already his limit since he also needed to focus on his own training. When left alone, Liu Erlong often exceeded the limit, leading to various embarrassing situations. She even suspected Yu Tianyan had witnessed some of these moments, though she never asked.

Yu Tianyan's words the previous day had been like music to her ears. She didn't need to push herself so hard in cultivation anymore. She could improve as much as possible and compensate for the rest with spirit bones. Those words touched her deeply.

Now, Liu Erlong felt spoiled by her younger brother's care. The once indomitable Liu Erlong was finally yielding to reality. Sitting on a bench in the yard, she took out a violin she hadn't touched in three years and began to play softly while humming. Cultivation could wait; she would get to it when she had time.

Yu Tianyan, on the other hand, was taking his practice seriously. He sat on his bed, meditating.

A year of enduring the passive effects of the Heart Fire had greatly enhanced his mental strength.

A year of physical training and rigorous exercises had improved his physical prowess.

Even though he had absorbed a thousand-year soul ring, his body still felt like an enormous, empty vessel, requiring a significant amount of soul power to fill it.

As the energy of heaven and earth entered his body, his meridians and organs seemed to rejoice, finally being replenished. The Heart Fire continuously purified every bit of soul power absorbed.

The Lightning Wings on his back were also slowly tempered by the Heart Fire.

The Fallen Heart Flame—a fire born from the heart—tempered his bones and refined his soul. However, it was an evil flame that awakened people's deepest desires. Even Yu Tianyan, whose martial soul was the Fallen Heart Flame, could not withstand the full brunt of its power. At just nine years old, his body wasn't equipped to resist such a force.

Lanba Academy was situated in the heart of a forest. Besides essential teaching facilities, it had simulated training environments for various attributes. The remaining area was all forest. Liu Erlong had once proudly claimed it was the largest natural flora in all of Tiandou City.

Yu Tianyan and Liu Erlong lived near the forest. Ideally, he should have been training in a simulated thunder attribute environment, but Lanba Academy lacked such a facility. Thus, the forest became his best option.

In just an hour of focused absorption and purification, Yu Tianyan's soul power broke through to level 22.

The soul power from his Millennium Soul Ring was split between his Thunder and Fire Wings. At first, it had only brought him to slightly above level 21. A few rounds of intense fighting had helped his body adjust, making the breakthrough to level 22 feel natural.

Yet, he didn't stop there and continued meditating.

Meanwhile, outside the house, Liu Erlong put down her violin, frowning. She hadn't played it for three years, and now it sounded terrible. Unwilling to endure the bad notes any longer, she walked into the house and found Yu Tianyan meditating with his eyes closed.

The next day, Tai Long finally recovered and resumed his studies. He noticed that Jing Ling, Huang Yuan, and Jiang Zhu were absent. Confused, he touched his head but dismissed the thought.

However, the following day, Tai Long still couldn't find the three anywhere in the academy. Growing concerned, he asked one of the teachers about their whereabouts.

The teacher replied, "I don't know."

This answer only deepened Tai Long's confusion. He couldn't imagine why his friends would abandon him. In terms of talent, he considered himself the best among the four. There was no reason for him not to be a focus of the academy's training.

Still, he refrained from asking Yinshu, who was now the chief academic director. Yinshu was second only to the dean in power and was incredibly busy with academy affairs.

Three months later, Tai Long stood in the academy's fighting arena, punching his opponent to the ground. Yet his heart remained uneasy.

For three whole months, he hadn't seen Jing Ling, Huang Yuan, or Jiang Zhu. The director of the news department had once offered a vague explanation, claiming he hadn't seen the trio in all that time and didn't know their exact situation.

Too afraid to bother Liu Erlong, Tai Long channeled his frustration into the fighting arena.

"As expected of Tai Long, his strength rivals even the veteran students," remarked one of the spectators, drawing nods of agreement from the crowd.

Just then, Tai Long's wandering gaze landed on a familiar figure. His heart surged with excitement.

"Huang Yuan!"

Huang Yuan, who had just finished three months of intense practice, was on his way home to visit his parents. Unlike Jiang Zhu, who lived in Tiandou City, or Jing Ling, who was an orphan, Huang Yuan's family resided in a village outside the city. To avoid disrupting his training, he only visited home once every few months.

Huang Yuan felt awkward. He had only been passing by and hadn't expected to be noticed. Still, he adjusted his expression quickly.

"Hey, Tai Long! Long time no see."

Overwhelmed with excitement, Tai Long practically shouted, "Huang Yuan! Where have you all been? I haven't seen you for ages! Where are Jing Ling and Jiang Zhu?"

Huang Yuan's smile wavered slightly. He could see how much Tai Long valued their friendship, but he couldn't let sentimentality cloud his judgment.

"For a better future," Huang Yuan thought to himself. He, Jing Ling, and Jiang Zhu had made their choice.

"We've been training," Huang Yuan said at last.

Tai Long frowned. "Training? For three months straight? I was starting to think something happened to you all!"

Huang Yuan hesitated, then forced a professional, helpless smile.

"Well… after you were injured by Yu Tianyan, Jing Ling and I also challenged him."

Tai Long's eyes widened. "Wait, you two fought him together? Did you lose?"

Huang Yuan shrugged and said bitterly, "Completely. Two against one, and we still lost."

Tai Long inhaled sharply. He knew how strong Jing Ling and Huang Yuan were. Together, they could defeat him easily. Yet, even the two of them couldn't match Yu Tianyan.

"That kid… is terrifying," Tai Long muttered.

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(End of Chapter)