Chapter 23: Xiao Wu's Happiness
"Alright, let's get started. Please unleash your martial spirits and release your soul rings," Master Matthew said with a cheerful demeanor.
As soon as he finished speaking, Xiao Wu directly unleashed her martial spirit.
**Soft Bone Rabbit!**
A wave of pink gentle light filled the air as Xiao Wu slowly activated her martial spirit.
Her hundred-year yellow soul ring glimmered, radiating the unmistakable aura of a level twelve soul master.
"A hundred-year soul ring? You actually have a hundred-year soul ring?" Master Matthew exclaimed, looking at Xiao Wu's martial spirit with astonishment. "You truly are a genius."
Just yesterday, he had encountered another young soul master. Although that child had decent talent, they possessed the Blue Silver Grass, which was considered a mediocre martial spirit. But the girl in front of him was no ordinary talent; she was a true genius.
Innate full soul power and a solid martial spirit. Such talent must be recruited into our Spirit Hall!
Master Matthew took a deep breath to calm his excitement.
"Please inject your soul power into this," he instructed, taking a yellow crystal ball from the side and walking up to Xiao Wu.
Xiao Wu held the crystal ball in her hand, and a layer of yellowish light began to shine. The glow wasn't particularly strong but was remarkably clear.
"Is this level twelve soul power?" Master Matthew exclaimed in shock, staring at the light emanating from the crystal ball. "It seems your first soul ring is quite impressive. It must have provided you with this significant boost. By the way, I still don't know your name."
"My name is Xiao Wu."
"Xiao Wu, I have to ask you something. Would you be willing to join our Spirit Hall?" Master Matthew's expression turned serious as he spoke.
"I don't want to!" Before Master Matthew could finish, Xiao Wu firmly refused, her voice resolute.
"Why?" Master Matthew was taken aback. The Spirit Hall was a colossal entity across the continent, a place everyone dreamed of joining. He couldn't understand why Xiao Wu would turn him down.
Realizing she had overreacted, Xiao Wu quickly explained, "I'm currently studying at Nuoding Academy. I probably can't join the Spirit Hall."
"I see." Master Matthew nodded, understanding her meaning. "While it's not our style to poach from the academy, for a talent like you, we could discuss it with Nuoding Academy."
"Please, no," Xiao Wu insisted.
"We're still young, and it's better to study at Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy for a few more years. We can talk about it when we're older," Zhao Ming interjected, coming to Xiao Wu's aid. He knew about Xiao Wu's past with the Spirit Hall; she would never join them, at least not now.
Xiao Wu felt warmth in her heart as she met Zhao Ming's smile. She felt as if her heart was melting. The Spirit Hall was the most powerful organization in this world.
He didn't question me about why I wouldn't go there, nor did he ask when I obtained my soul ring; he simply chose to believe in and support me.
Is this what love is?
Is this the feeling of being in love?
It was at this moment that Master Matthew noticed the boy who had come with Xiao Wu. He had been so captivated by Xiao Wu's talent that he had momentarily forgotten about him.
"You're right. Once you finish your studies at Nuoding Junior Academy, I'll invite you to join the Spirit Hall," Master Matthew said with a smile. He believed that Xiao Wu was still young and might not comprehend the Spirit Hall's greatness. After a few years at the academy, she might even come seeking to join them.
Having come to this conclusion, Master Matthew didn't say much more and motioned for Zhao Ming to release his martial spirit.
When Zhao Ming activated his martial spirit, Master Matthew was once again taken aback.
He could still attribute Xiao Wu's talent to her being a genius, but this boy…
What on earth does that orange soul ring mean? There's no such category for soul rings!
Could it be that I'm seeing things? Master Matthew rubbed his eyes repeatedly, confirming that he wasn't mistaken.
But what about his martial spirit? Where is it?
Zhao Ming's puppet, when he wasn't using soul skills to summon it, felt like a puff of air—completely intangible.
"Ahem, um, what is your martial spirit?" Master Matthew asked hesitantly.
"My martial spirit is a puppet, which allows me to summon puppets to fight," Zhao Ming admitted.
"Puppet? What kind of martial spirit is that? I've never heard of it," Master Matthew inquired, perplexed.
"Our family has always lived in seclusion, so our martial spirit is naturally not known to outsiders," Zhao Ming explained, trying to put an end to any further questioning.
"A secluded family?" Master Matthew was taken aback. From Zhao Ming's words, he inferred that Zhao Ming might belong to one of those legendary powerful families.
"Yes," Zhao Ming replied nonchalantly.
"Wow." Master Matthew let out a deep breath. It made sense now why so many geniuses had suddenly emerged from their small Nuoding City—Zhao Ming was from a prominent family.
Understanding Zhao Ming's identity, Master Matthew quickly tested his soul power.
Before leaving, Zhao Ming reminded him not to reveal his identity, including to the Spirit Hall. Master Matthew promptly agreed. He did not dare offend someone from a powerful family, especially someone like Zhao Ming, who had great potential.
"You really are from a prominent family? You don't seem like it," Xiao Wu teased as they exited the Spirit Hall, clutching her stomach in laughter.
"I was just bluffing Master Matthew. Otherwise, with two innate full soul power users and my unique soul ring, he would definitely report it. We'd be exposed under the Spirit Hall's scrutiny," Zhao Ming said with a chuckle.
Hearing Zhao Ming's words, Xiao Wu felt a jolt of realization. She hadn't considered the implications. If someone from the Spirit Hall learned about her, it could indeed lead to exposure.
Fortunately, Zhao Ming had managed to deceive him.
"Zhao Ming, why don't you join the Spirit Hall? They're so powerful," Xiao Wu said, looking down at her feet as they walked.
"Because you're not going," Zhao Ming replied with a gentle smile, affectionately ruffling Xiao Wu's hair.
In truth, it was also because of Hu Liena; if she found out he joined the Spirit Hall, she would try to find a way to eliminate him. But he wouldn't say that to Xiao Wu.
"Huh?" Xiao Wu was taken aback. She hadn't expected Zhao Ming's reason to be so simple. Her heart swelled with emotion. He was willing to give up the admiration of so many soul masters for her sake?
"Don't you want to ask why I don't want to join the Spirit Hall?" Xiao Wu asked playfully.
"Silly, why ask that? You must have your reasons. I'll just quietly support you from behind," Zhao Ming replied. "Because loving someone means believing in them unconditionally."
Trust? Xiao Wu was momentarily stunned.
She looked at Zhao Ming's face, illuminated by the sunlight, his smile radiating warmth, filling her with a sense of happiness.
"Zhao Ming, why are you so good to me? In my life, only my mother has treated me this well," Xiao Wu said, her eyes glistening with tears.
"Why? Because you're my little treasure," Zhao Ming said softly, wiping the tears from her eyes.
"As long as you don't abandon me, I won't leave you. In the future, wherever you go, I'll accompany you," Xiao Wu said as she nestled against Zhao Ming, filled with happiness.
However, this blissful atmosphere was soon shattered.
"In public, how can you be so close!" an angry voice came from behind Zhao Ming.
---
𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙢𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙢𝙮 𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙩𝙪𝙙𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩 𝙢𝙚 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙟𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙮. 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙗𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡 𝙙𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚!
𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸𝘀 𝘁𝗼:
• 𝘽𝙤𝙜𝙙𝙖𝙣 𝙋𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨𝙘𝙪
• 𝙅𝙘𝟭𝟮𝟬𝟮
• 𝘼𝙝𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙟𝙖𝙝
𝗔𝘀 𝗮 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘂𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸:
• 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀: 𝙂𝙚𝙩 𝟯𝟱+ 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙖𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙚𝙡𝙨𝙚.
• 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁-𝗢𝘂𝘁: 𝙍𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙖 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩!
𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗳𝘂𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗺𝘆 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽𝘀 𝗺𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆. 𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻 𝘆𝗲𝘁, 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝘀!
👉 𝙅𝙤𝙞𝙣 𝙣𝙤𝙬: 𝙋𝙖𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙤𝙣.𝙘𝙤𝙢/𝙂𝙤𝙙𝙊𝙛𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧