Douluo Continent: My name is Lu Mingfei, and my martial soul is Lu Mingze.

Seeing Lu Mingfei suddenly fall silent, Zhang Lexuan assumed he was thinking about the Soul Hunting event, so she said gently, "Don't worry, the Soul Hunting team this time consists entirely of inner court students. Everyone will look out for each other, so there won't be any problems. Besides, Elder Xuan is also secretly following along. If any danger arises, he will step in."

Lu Mingfei snapped out of his daze and nodded.

"Senior sister, how many spirit rings have you acquired?"

"We might reach the ninth ring soon," Zhang Lexuan said.

Lu Mingfei gasped.

"Terrifying indeed."

Looking at Zhang Lexuan's gentle and beautiful face, Lu Mingfei was filled with emotion.

They're both geniuses from the inner court, so why is there such a big difference between them?

That's the true mark of a master.

Instead of being like a certain red-haired woman.

Lu Mingfei mentally gave Zhang Lexuan a thumbs up, and then chatted with her for almost half an hour, from the matter of hunting souls to the matter of cultivation, and from the matter of cultivation to the gossip of the inner courtyard, until Zhang Lexuan couldn't hold on any longer and laughed as she pushed him out of the cultivation room.

"Alright, alright, go back and pack your things. We have to leave early tomorrow morning."

"Okay, senior sister, see you tomorrow!"

Lu Mingfei walked back in a very good mood, humming a little tune all the way.

The next morning, Lu Mingfei arrived at the college gate on time.

The sun had just peeked over the horizon, its golden light bathing the gates of Shrek Academy and making the school emblem on the lintel shine brightly.

A large number of people had already gathered at the main gate; they were all inner court students participating in the collective soul hunt.

There were about twenty people, both men and women, chatting in twos and threes. They all looked quite young, but the soul power emanating from each of them was not weak.

Lu Mingfei glanced around and didn't see Zhang Lexuan, but he did see two familiar faces.

One was Yao Haoxuan, a senior student in the inner academy. He was tall and strong, with thick eyebrows and big eyes, and he gave people a sense of security. He and Lu Mingfei met during a previous training session, and the two hit it off immediately and got along very well.

The other one is Xixi, a girl with short hair, big eyes, and two dimples when she smiles.

"Hey, Lu Mingfei!" Yao Haoxuan waved his thick arm at him when he saw him.

"You're here too?"

Lu Mingfei walked over and patted him on the shoulder.

"Brother Yao, it's been a long time."

"It's been a long time, hasn't it? I heard you got into a fight recently, taking on five Soul Kings all by yourself?" Yao Haoxuan looked him up and down.

"It's not as exaggerated as you say," Lu Mingfei waved his hand.

"He fought alongside Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong, and he almost got beaten to death."

"That's pretty impressive too." Yao Haoxuan patted him hard on the shoulder.

"You're already this strong at level 30, imagine how powerful you'll be when you reach level 50 or 60!"

Lu Mingfei's shoulder swayed as he was slapped, and he thought to himself that this guy had a really strong grip.

Xixi came over from the side, tilted her head and looked at Lu Mingfei with a mischievous smile in her eyes.

"Lu Mingfei, I heard you're now Sister Tao's personal 'fire-cooling agent'?"

Lu Mingfei's face immediately darkened.

"Who told you that?"

"It's all over the inner courtyard." Xixi laughed even harder.

"They say Sister Xiaotao comes to see you every few days, picks you up, and leaves. Everyone's guessing there's something going on between you two—"

"No! Absolutely not!" Lu Mingfei interrupted her decisively.

"I was helping her suppress her internal heat; it was legitimate treatment! Serious treatment!"

"oh--"

Xixi drawled out the last syllable and nodded meaningfully, "Seriously."

Yao Haoxuan was trying to suppress his laughter, his shoulders shaking slightly.

Lu Mingfei realized he hadn't checked the Chinese calendar before going out today.

Fortunately, Zhang Lexuan appeared just in time.

She walked out of the academy gate, dressed in a white, fitted outfit with a light blue belt around her waist. Her long hair was tied up with a hairpin, revealing her slender, fair neck.

The morning light shone on her, giving her a soft golden glow.

She smiled and waved to everyone.

"Is everyone here?"

A response rang out from the crowd, roughly indicating that everyone had arrived.

Zhang Lexuan nodded, her gaze sweeping across the crowd before finally settling on Lu Mingfei, and she smiled at him.

Lu Mingfei subconsciously returned a smile.

Then he felt several pairs of eyes on him at the same time.

Among those gazes were those of curiosity, those of amusement, and a few of less friendly ones.

Lu Mingfei's heart skipped a beat. He thought to himself, "Senior Sister, could you please stop smiling at me in front of so many people? Your smile makes me a target."

But he didn't dare utter a single punctuation mark, and could only obediently walk into the line.

Zhang Lexuan briefly explained a few precautions, such as following instructions and not acting on one's own, and warning others in case of danger, before waving her hand dismissively.

"Set off."

The group left Shrek Academy in a grand procession and headed towards the Star Dou Great Forest.

The journey from the academy to the Star Dou Great Forest was quite long. The group traveled at a slow pace, stopping frequently, and finally stopped to rest in a small town in the evening.

Lu Mingfei stayed close to Zhang Lexuan the whole way, chatting with her casually.

Zhang Lexuan patiently explained to him various knowledge about soul hunting, how to determine the age of a soul beast, how to judge the attributes of a soul beast based on soul power fluctuations, how to maintain a safe distance in a group of soul beasts, and how to deliver a fatal blow at the most opportune moment.

Lu Mingfei listened attentively, occasionally interjecting with a few nonsensical remarks.

"Senior sister, do you think soul beasts might also have aesthetic sense? For example, if a thousand-year-old soul beast sees a ten-thousand-year-old soul beast, would it find the latter particularly handsome?"

Zhang Lexuan paused for a moment, then thought about it very seriously.

"Well... it's hard to say. The way soul beasts communicate is quite different from us humans. They rely more on aura and soul power fluctuations to judge each other. Appearance may not be the most important factor."

"Does that mean that in the eyes of spirit beasts, we humans all look pretty much the same?"

"I guess so."

"Then wouldn't someone like me who's good-looking be at a disadvantage?"

Zhang Lexuan was amused by him and reached out to tap him on the head.

Stop being so cheeky.

Yao Haoxuan and Xixi, who were following behind the two, exchanged a glance when they saw this scene. They both understood from each other's eyes that "there's something going on between these two."

Other trainees were also whispering among themselves.

"See? Senior Sister seems to treat that Lu Mingfei a little differently."

"Nonsense, he's practically Elder Song's personal disciple, isn't it normal for Senior Sister to take care of him?"

"You call that taking care of him? Senior Sister talked to him the whole way and even tapped him on the head. When have you ever seen Senior Sister tap another boy on the head?"

"That's true..."

"That's not true. I've seen Senior Sister pinch someone's head before."

"And have you noticed that Senior Sister always smiles when she talks to him?"

"My senior sister usually smiles a lot."

"It's different. The usual smile is polite, but the smile I gave that kid was—"

"What is it?"

"Never mind, it's different anyway."

Lu Mingfei was naturally unaware of the whispers behind him, and even if he had, he wouldn't have cared.

His attention is now entirely focused on Zhang Lexuan.

It wasn't that he had any improper thoughts about Zhang Lexuan, but rather that he found Zhang Lexuan's cultivation experience and combat skills to be truly impressive. There were many things that Elder Song hadn't had time to teach him, but Zhang Lexuan could explain them to him in just a few words.

Just listening to her explanations was enough to make the trip worthwhile.

Of course, Zhang Lexuan's good looks are also an important reason.

Who wouldn't enjoy studying while admiring a beautiful senior female student?

The next morning, the group continued their journey and arrived at the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest around noon.

Starry Sky Forest.

The name contains the word "forest," but you'll only realize how much the name underestimates it when you actually stand in front of it.

Looking out from the surrounding high ground, all you can see is a dense canopy of trees stretching from your feet all the way to the horizon. The dark green canopy is piled up in layers, like some kind of silent and gigantic living thing.

Zhang Lexuan stood at the front of the line and glanced back at everyone.

"From now on, everyone stay close to the group and do not stray from it. Do not attack any spirit beasts without authorization, and follow orders."

"Understood," everyone replied in unison.

Zhang Lexuan nodded and took the lead in stepping into the edge of the forest.