Chapter 424: So anxious to die

Ye Lingling did not respond, but turned around and looked back at the lake.

The sun gradually set in the west, and the night began to spread across the sky. The wind by the lake blew her skirt, making her look as if she was about to be blown away by the wind.

Lu Yu was silent for a while, and felt that if he continued to ask, it might cause dissatisfaction on the other party, so he changed the subject: "Actually, did you watch the game this afternoon? I mean..."

"I've seen it." Ye Lingling suddenly interrupted him.

Lu Yu was stunned for a moment, then a trace of joy flashed in his eyes: "So what do you think? My performance is okay?"

Ye Lingling was silent for a moment, then said softly: "Your soul skills are very strong, and you are very flexible in combat, but you are too eager to show off, and you have many flaws."

Lu Yu was stunned. He originally thought that Ye Lingling would just say a few perfunctory words, but he didn't expect her to comment so seriously and to the point. He smiled bitterly: "Really? It seems that you see it more clearly than I do. But I am eager to show this... Maybe it's because the opponent is too strong, and I want to attract more attention."

Ye Lingling looked back at him with a deep gaze: "A truly strong person doesn't need to show off. Don't you even understand this?"

Lu Yu was speechless by her words, but he felt that what she said made sense. He smiled awkwardly: "Hearing you say that, I feel that I am indeed a little impetuous. But...how do you know all this? Judging from your appearance, you should rarely participate in battles, right?"

Ye Lingling did not answer, but just looked at him quietly, and a hint of complex emotions seemed to flash in her lavender eyes.

"You want to know too much." She finally left only this sentence and turned to leave.

Lu Yu quickly chased after her and couldn't help but call her: "Wait a minute!"

Ye Lingling stopped but did not look back.

"Actually, I have no ill intentions," Lu Yu's tone became serious, "I just think you are different from others. Your strength, your martial spirit... and you as a person, all make me want to know more. Maybe we can be friends?"

Ye Lingling slowly turned around, her eyes cold and distant: "Friend?"

Lu Yu nodded and smiled sincerely: "Yes, my friend. I think you are very capable and I want to communicate with you more. Although I may not be as good as you, maybe we can learn from each other."

Ye Lingling was silent for a moment, but finally just shook her head gently: "No. I don't need friends."

As soon as she finished speaking, she walked away, leaving behind only a cold back.

Lu Yu stood there, watching her figure getting farther and farther away, but he did not feel lost in his heart. Instead, he became more certain of one thing.

"Ye Lingling is a very special person, and her strength is definitely not as simple as the rumors say."

The wind from the lake blew gently, taking away the last glimmer of sunset glow. Lu Yu clenched his fists, and a firm look flashed in his eyes.

"One day, I will know everything about you."

Deep in the Xingdou Great Forest, ancient trees towered into the sky, and the sun shone through the gaps between the branches and leaves, casting mottled shadows. The air was filled with the fragrance of moist grass and trees, but the silence around them revealed a strange sense of tension.

Lu Yu stood in front of a low bush, frowning slightly. He slowly scanned the surroundings, his eyes sharp as a knife, as if he was looking for something. However, no matter how he expanded his mental power, he could not feel anything unusual. As a soul master who was good at mental detection, he had always been confident in his ability, but now, he felt a little frustrated.

"Strange, there are clearly people nearby." Lu Yu muttered to himself, looking at his companions behind him.

"Lu Yu, are you sure?" Standing behind him was a girl in a long green dress. She had smooth black hair and a hint of doubt between her brows. When she spoke, her tone was gentle but a little puzzled.

"It's absolutely true," Lu Yu nodded, his tone firm, "I clearly sensed a trace of soul power fluctuation before, but now it seems to have disappeared out of thin air. With the strength of my mental power, it is impossible for me to perceive it wrongly."

Another tall young man strode over, patted Lu Yu on the shoulder, and said with a smile: "Don't be too nervous, maybe it's just a soul beast passing by. After all, this is the Star Dou Great Forest, and it's normal for the aura of soul beasts to change unpredictably."

Lu Yu shook his head, his tone was a bit solemn: "No, this feeling is very special, completely different from the fluctuations of ordinary soul beasts. It's like... there is an invisible barrier blocking my mental detection."

"Barrier?" The girl in the green dress was slightly stunned and couldn't help asking, "Is it some kind of special soul skill?"

"It's unlikely," Lu Yu shook his head. "My mental strength is strong enough to crush any soul master of the same level. If someone can completely block my detection, they must be at least a soul saint or above. But the aura here is not strong, it can even be said to be very weak, but it is extremely secretive."

Everyone looked at each other, and just when the atmosphere became tense, a slight sound of footsteps was heard from not far away.

"Who!" Lu Yu's expression changed, and he raised his hand instantly. A faint mental wave spread out like a tide, accurately locking onto the source of the sound.

The bushes swayed slightly, and a few leaves fell. A girl in white slowly walked out. She looked no more than seventeen or eighteen years old, with a delicate and gentle face and a hint of tranquility between her eyebrows. In her hand was a gorgeous flower, which was the extremely rare Nine-Hearted Begonia.

"Don't be nervous, I mean no harm." The girl's voice was gentle, like a spring breeze that made people relax unconsciously.

However, Lu Yu's eyes became more serious. He stared at the other person and said in a low voice: "Who are you? Why can't my mental power detect your existence?"

The girl in white raised her head, met Lu Yu's gaze, and said calmly: "My name is Ye Lingling, perhaps it's because of my martial spirit."

"Nine-hearted Begonia?" Lu Yu's eyes fell on the flower in her hand and his brows frowned slightly.

"That's right." Ye Lingling nodded gently, without any emotion in her voice, "Nine-Hearted Begonia, an auxiliary martial soul, has only one soul skill, healing."

Hearing this, Lu Yu's companions immediately relaxed their vigilance. A young man smiled and said, "I thought it was a powerful opponent, but it turned out to be a support-type soul master. You must have used some special soul skills to hide your aura just now, right?"

Ye Lingling shook her head, her expression still calm: "No. I didn't take the initiative to hide my aura. To be precise, this may be a side effect of my martial spirit."

"Side effects?" Lu Yu frowned slightly, obviously not quite believing it. "How could an auxiliary martial spirit have the ability to evade detection? This doesn't make sense."

"I don't know why this happened," Ye Lingling said with a hint of helplessness, "Since I awakened my martial soul, my presence has been very low. Even when standing in a crowd, few people would notice me at the first sight. Moreover, my soul power fluctuations seem to be weakened by the martial soul itself, just like you were unable to detect my presence just now."

Lu Yu pondered for a moment, and looked at Ye Lingling again. His mental power was still spreading, but he found that he could not accurately lock onto her soul power fluctuations no matter what. It was as if there was a natural barrier around her, isolating all detections.

"What a strange martial spirit," Lu Yu murmured.

"Lu Yu, don't be so nervous," the girl in the green dress standing nearby stepped forward and said with a smile, "They said they had no ill intentions. Besides, what kind of threat can an auxiliary spirit master pose to us?"

"Having said that, we must not take any abnormalities lightly in the Star Dou Great Forest." Lu Yu's tone remained serious, and his eyes never left Ye Lingling.

"You don't have to be so alert," Ye Lingling sighed, "I'm just passing by here, looking for some herbs, and I don't mean to disturb you. If you think my presence will affect you, I can leave."

"Wait!" Lu Yu suddenly spoke, blocking Ye Lingling's way.

"What's wrong?" Ye Lingling stopped and looked at him in confusion.

"I have a question for you," Lu Yu's eyes were filled with inquiry, "Does your martial soul really only have one soul skill? Is it healing?"

Ye Lingling nodded and replied calmly: "Yes, this is the characteristic of the Nine-Hearted Begonia's martial soul. No matter how many soul rings it obtains, it can only provide soul skills that enhance the healing effect. It does not have any offensive or defensive capabilities."

"Then why are you here?" Lu Yu stared at her sharply. "With your ability, going into the depths of the Xingdou Great Forest alone, isn't this courting death?"

Ye Lingling smiled slightly, with a bit of confidence in her eyes: "Although I don't have the ability to attack, I am very familiar with the Star Dou Great Forest. Many soul beasts here are not a threat to me, or rather, they don't like to attack me."

When Lu Yu heard this, his expression became more complicated. He was silent for a moment, and suddenly asked, "What is your soul power level?"

"Soul King, level fifty-three." Ye Lingling answered truthfully.

"Soul King?" A look of surprise appeared on Lu Yu's face. "No wonder. Although your soul power fluctuation is very weak, your strength has reached the level of Soul King."

"I think I should go now." Ye Lingling glanced at him and said calmly, "You guys continue."

However, just as she turned around and prepared to leave, a deafening roar suddenly came from afar. The ground trembled slightly, and a strong pressure came over her.

"Oh no, it's a thousand-year soul beast!" Lu Yu's face changed drastically, and he quickly summoned his martial soul. At the same time, he looked at Ye Lingling, "Come behind us quickly, it's not safe here!"

Ye Lingling shook her head, her face still as calm as water. She whispered, "Don't worry, it won't attack me."

"Are you crazy?" Lu Yu's voice was filled with anxiety. "That's a thousand-year-old soul beast! No matter what, it won't be merciful to a support-type soul master like you!"

However, the next moment, a scene that shocked everyone happened. The huge thousand-year-old soul beast suddenly rushed out of the jungle, but stopped the moment it saw Ye Lingling. It growled, but did not continue to approach. Instead, it hesitated for a moment and turned away.

This scene left Lu Yu and his companions stunned.

"How is this possible?" Lu Yu stood there in a daze, unable to speak for a long time.

Ye Lingling glanced at him and said softly, "I told you, they won't attack me. This may be some effect brought by my martial spirit."

After saying that, she turned and left, her figure quickly disappearing into the depths of the dense forest, leaving Lu Yu and the others standing there in a daze, unable to recover for a long time.

The Tiandou Royal Academy's competition arena was bustling with people, and the audience seats were filled with students and instructors from all over the academy. In the center of the wide arena, a tall, stern-looking young man was standing quietly. His name was Lu Yu, a student who had just transferred to Tiandou Royal Academy.

Across the ring, a student who was also wearing the school uniform sneered at Lu Yu with disdain on his face. He was a senior student of the Four Ring Soul Sect and Tiandou Royal Academy, and he thought he was much stronger than this newcomer who came out of nowhere.

"New guy, are you sure you want to compete with me?" The opponent's tone was full of sarcasm, and he pointed his finger casually at Lu Yu, as if announcing his defeat.

Lu Yu did not respond immediately, but glanced at the other party, his eyes indifferent, without a trace of ripples. He moved his shoulders casually, making a series of joint friction sounds, and then slowly spoke.

"Since the rules allow it, why can't I?" His tone was nonchalant, as if he was discussing the weather, completely ignoring the other party's provocation.

"Haha! How interesting!" The other party sneered, then turned to look at the referee, "Instructor, can this fighting spirit competition still start? I'm afraid if I hurt him, it will be difficult for you to explain!"

The referee frowned, but still waved his hand, signaling the two to get ready. He knew very well that Lu Yu, as a freshman, obviously had no spirit ring fluctuations, let alone powerful spirit skills. With the gap visible to the naked eye, this game was a foregone conclusion.

The discussions in the audience grew louder and louder, and many people were puzzled by Lu Yu's calmness.

"He doesn't even have a spirit ring. Isn't this just asking for death?"

"Maybe he just came to the academy and wanted to be famous, but he chose the wrong opponent."

"Oh, I hope he isn't seriously injured."

The atmosphere in the arena gradually became tense. The opponent looked at Lu Yu standing there motionless and finally lost his patience.

"Since you are so eager to die, I will grant your wish!"

Before he finished speaking, he took a step and turned into a shadow and rushed towards Lu Yu. The martial spirit in his hand appeared, and a long sword flashing with cold light flew out of the air, with the blade pointing directly at Lu Yu's chest.

The audience around the ring held their breath, all eyes focused on Lu Yu. At this moment, Lu Yu finally moved.

He did not release his martial soul, nor did he perform any soul skills. He simply took a step back and slightly tilted his body, barely avoiding the knife light.

"What?" The opponent's face changed. His confident attack was resolved so easily.

Lu Yu said calmly: "You are too slow."

"Damn it!" A trace of anger appeared on the opponent's face. He swung his long sword suddenly and slashed at Lu Yu several times in a row. The sword lights crisscrossed, blocking Lu Yu's retreat.