Master of Nine Stars

A pitch-black, cold winter’s night.

No stars, no moon; only frost and snow.

The clatter of hooves cracked through the Snow Forest as three tall horses galloped at top speed, their six deep-sea blue gazes scanning the terrain ahead.

In such extremely harsh weather, a normal person would find it difficult to get their bearings.

But Xia Fangran had taught at Songjiang Soul Martial University for twenty years, constantly traveling between the Wall and the university. His Lifebound Soul Beast, the Snow Night Shock, had truly reached the point where the old horse knew the way. It could probably complete the journey with its eyes closed.

Rong Taotao covered his mouth and nose, doing his best to circulate the Frost Snow Attribute Soul Power throughout his body to shield himself from the wind and snow, all while diligently absorbing Soul Power and cultivating his Soul Technique.

Ever since leaving Songjiang Soul Martial University, Rong Taotao had been exceptionally vigilant. After all, a little over a month ago, Snow Realm Soul Beasts had launched a massive invasion of northern Huaxia. What if a terrifying Soul Beast was hiding under a snowdrift somewhere?

"Oh, right, Coach Xia! My Heart of the Snow Realm has already reached two stars. Besides Luminous Lantern Paper Cage and Jade Dragon Gift, are there two more Snow Realm Soul Skills I can learn?" Rong Taotao suddenly shouted, his muffled voice seeping through his fingers.

Xia Fangran, who was leading the way, turned his head to look back.

In the pitch-black night, the eyes of the Snow Night Shock beneath Rong Taotao emanated a faint glow. With the light shining in his face, it was difficult for Xia Fangran to get a clear look at Rong Taotao.

Xia Fangran asked, "Have you already mastered Jade Dragon Gift?"

Rong Taotao immediately nodded. "Yes, I can create my own frost and snow now."

"Good. A two-star Soul Technique allows you to learn four Soul Skills. Aside from Jade Dragon Gift, which is a bit difficult, the others are all very easy to learn." With that, Xia Fangran turned his head forward again and said, "Ask Gao Lingwei."

Rong Taotao: ???

’I should ask Gao Lingwei? Then what’s the point of having you around?’

’Good grief. During class, even though you’re a master who dabbles in metaphysics, you’d at least teach a line or two. And now? You won’t even teach at all?’

Gao Lingwei, however, was happy to help Rong Taotao. She guided the Snow Night Shock she was riding to a spot half a meter from his side and said, "Learn Soul Skill: Frost Breath first. The remaining one, Ice Path, requires you to have your feet on the ground to practice."

"Mm-hm," Rong Taotao said, glancing at Gao Lingwei with a bit of embarrassment. After all, he’d sought her out to be his teammate and girlfriend, not his teacher.

Unfortunately, it was too dark for Rong Taotao to clearly see her captivating profile. In the dimness, however, he could just make out her swaying ponytail and the long hair ribbon dancing in the wind.

Gao Lingwei didn’t mind. Ever since leaving Songjiang Soul Martial University, she had been silently absorbing Soul Power. And next to Rong Taotao, she could physically feel just how fast her absorption rate had become!

Truly... Taotao-Nourishing!

Gao Lingwei felt incredibly comfortable from being nourished, so teaching Rong Taotao a Soul Skill or two was nothing at all.

Gao Lingwei covered her mouth and nose with one hand, a sentence drifting out from between her fingers. "It’s similar to how you cast the Jade Dragon Gift Soul Skill. The first core, the Pleiades acupoint, provides the Frost Snow Attribute Soul Power and sends it to your throat.

"The second core, at your Dantian, provides Frost Snow Attribute Soul Power. Bypass the Soul Power route from the Pleiades acupoint, merge the two streams of Soul Power at your throat, refine out the frost and snow, and then just breathe it out."

Rong Taotao was a little dumbfounded. He asked, "They merge inside my body? Won’t my throat get frostbite?"

Gao Lingwei: "Just protect it with a bit of Soul Power. It’s fine. Your entire body is filled with Frost Snow Attribute Soul Power. Have you gotten frostbite?"

"Uh, no, I haven’t," Rong Taotao said, seeming to understand. He nodded to himself.

Gao Lingwei: "When you’re first learning, don’t be too hasty. Don’t aim to create a large amount of frost and snow. Go slower, take it step by step..."

Gao Lingwei’s voice trailed off mid-sentence, because... Rong Taotao had just spat a faceful of snow all over himself!

’He did it?’

’He did it just like that?’

Gao Lingwei placed a hand on her horse’s neck and patted it gently. The Snow Night Shock beneath her immediately turned its head, its two huge, deep-sea blue eyes looking at Rong Taotao and illuminating the view for her.

Then, Gao Lingwei blinked, her face a mask of disbelief!

’He really did it!?’

’I haven’t even finished my sentence, and you...’

Gao Lingwei had traveled far and wide, what kind of genius hadn’t she seen? But she had truly never seen anyone like Rong Taotao!

’Did this kid learn it long ago and is just pretending to be a newbie with me?’

Gao Lingwei would never have imagined that the very same question she was asking herself at this moment was one that Xia Fangran had also asked himself before...

Yes, Rong Taotao had succeeded. Not only had he succeeded, but on his very first time using "Frost Breath," he’d spat it all over his own face.

Well... that was awkward.

Because Rong Taotao was riding forward, when he subconsciously opened his mouth to breathe out, the mouthful of frost and snow he exhaled was plastered right back onto his face...

"Practiced Snow Realm Soul Skill: Frost Breath!

Frost Breath: Drive two or more streams of Frost Snow Attribute Soul Power to the throat. Using a method of layering and repeated infusion, exhale a cloud of frost and snow to freeze all things. (Excellent Level, Potential Value: 4 Stars)."

Rong Taotao was secretly delighted as he wiped the frost and snow from his face.

’This must be what they mean by "once you’ve grasped one thing, everything else falls into place."’

’He had indeed gotten a bit stuck while learning Jade Dragon Gift. But for "Frost Breath," which used an almost identical method to create frost and snow, how could a Rong Taotao who had already figured out Jade Dragon Gift possibly get stuck again?’

’Frost Breath, Potential Value: 4 Stars?’

’Tsk tsk, that Potential Value isn’t low at all. At Complete Form, Frost Breath is a Master-level skill. One puff of that Immortal Aura, and you could probably freeze a person solid, right?’

Up ahead, Xia Fangran turned his head back again. Using the light from the eyes of Gao Lingwei’s Snow Night Shock, Xia Fangran saw Rong Taotao wiping his face and couldn’t help but laugh out loud. "Haha, you learned it? You really are a little genius~"

Xia Fangran could easily imagine the expression on Gao Lingwei’s face right now.

"Ah, ptooey, ptooey!" Rong Taotao replied, spitting snow off to the side.

Xia Fangran: "By the way, did you report your record for the fastest time learning the Snow Burst Soul Skill to the university?"

Rong Taotao: "Ah, I’d forgotten all about it until you mentioned it. I reported it a long time ago. They’re just waiting for you, the witness, to confirm it before they enter it into my student file.

"My record for the fastest time learning Snow Soul has already been filed. Si Huan Nian was the witness for that one."

Xia Fangran: "Oho? A record for Snow Soul? As expected of you~"

Rong Taotao: "..."

Xia Fangran: "Since you have the Snow Soul record, there’s no need to report the one for Snow Burst.

"Compared to a skill like Snow Soul, which tests one’s temperament and Soldier’s Soul, Snow Burst is hardly worth mentioning. Having one or two records is enough to demonstrate your learning ability. There’s no point in having too many."

Rong Taotao pouted. ’It’s true, they’re not much use.’

’If these records could increase his Potential Value, wouldn’t Rong Taotao go absolutely crazy trying to get them?’

Xia Fangran: "After we get back in three months, I’ll be your witness and report this Frost Breath, which can only be used with a second-tier Soul Technique.

"Keep working hard in the future. It would be best to set a new speed record for a corresponding Soul Skill at every stage of your Soul Technique. That way, you can show that your growth path hasn’t deviated and that you’ve been consistently diligent and maintained your form."

With that, Xia Fangran looked at Gao Lingwei and asked, "How long did it take him to learn Frost Breath?"

Gao Lingwei replied quietly, "The time it took to say a few sentences. I didn’t count."

Xia Fangran grinned. "Let’s just call it 20 seconds, then."

But Rong Taotao didn’t respond at all. He had just heard something incredible!

Rong Taotao quickly asked, "Coach Xia? Did you just say we’re going back to the university in three months?"

Xia Fangran: "That’s right. We have to wait until we return to report it, don’t we? You want me to go back right now and report it for you?"

Rong Taotao: "Three months!?"

Xia Fangran: "Yup! What did you think was in that packed mountaineering bag? It’s all Sugar!"

’Holy crap... I’m speechless!’

Xia Fangran chuckled slyly. "You should be glad the Lunar New Year is early this year. It’s at the beginning of February on the solar calendar."

Rong Taotao turned to Gao Lingwei and said, "Da Wei, make a note. When we get to Hundred Corps Pass tonight, we need to ask for a few extra tubes of toothpaste."

’I came into this damn Snowfield with a mouth full of pearly whites. If I leave in three months with all my teeth rotted out, that’ll be a real show...’

"Heh heh. Being with you, kid, every day is something new," Xia Fangran couldn’t help but laugh. "I’ve been leading students in this Snowfield for 20 years. I’ve had some who wanted to bring lighters, some who wanted canned soup, but you’re the first to ask for toothpaste."

’Isn’t that obvious? On a normal trip to the Snowfield, I’d just rinse my mouth with a few handfuls of snow every morning and night. But who can handle a whole damn backpack full of Sugar?’ 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

’I’m not like a single teacher like you. I have kissing to do in my future...’

Rong Taotao complained silently in his heart but didn’t dare say it out loud.

Gao Lingwei suddenly spoke up. "Given your level of understanding of Snow Realm Soul Skills, you probably don’t need to have your feet on the ground to learn Soul Skill: Ice Path."

"Oh? Quick, quick, tell me how to cast it." Rong Taotao snapped back to reality and hurriedly looked at his future kissing target.

Gao Lingwei’s interest was piqued as well. It seemed she really wanted to know just where the limits of Rong Taotao’s Talent lay.

She began, "Ice Path lets you leave behind blossoms of ice on the path you walk.

"At its highest level, Ice Path can even let you stomp out an ice blossom in mid-air, allowing you to briefly pause in the air and giving you a chance to push off a second time and move again."

Rong Taotao was overjoyed. ’This is great stuff!’

Although you couldn’t truly stand on thin air, this "mid-air second jump" was enough to elevate the technique to the level of a "Divine Skill"!

You had to understand, the one thing Rong Taotao was most wary of in any battle was jumping. The reason was that you couldn’t move in mid-air, leaving you as a sitting duck.

With this Soul Skill, when Rong Taotao fought people in the future, he’d probably be hopping all over the place to mess with them!

Under the "headlights" of the deep-sea blue eyes, Gao Lingwei saw Rong Taotao’s ecstatic expression and was reminded of her own state of mind when she first learned this Soul Skill.

Gao Lingwei poured cold water on his excitement, saying with some resignation, "I said, that’s the highest level of Ice Path. It’s very difficult for anyone to train it to that degree.

"I’ve fought you twice. Have you ever seen me use a second push in mid-air?"

Hearing this, Rong Taotao’s face fell. "Uh... then what’s this Soul Skill good for? Making pretty ice blossoms to look at?"

Gao Lingwei: "Here in the Snow Realm, outdoors, it’s indeed not very useful."

Rong Taotao’s mind raced. ’According to her, Ice Path is useful indoors, or in places outside the Snow Realm?’

’That’s right. The surfaces of indoor buildings and areas outside the Snow Realm aren’t covered in frost and snow, which severely limits a Snow Realm Soul Martial Artist’s fighting style.’

’Take wall-running, for example. A Snow Realm Soul Martial Artist would first need to use Jade Dragon Gift to create frost and snow, or spit out Frost Breath to coat the wall, before they could step on it to expand their range of movement.’

’Since the purpose of Ice Path is to stomp out ice blossoms...’

"SNAP~" Rong Taotao snapped his fingers. "I get it. What I’m stomping out isn’t just an ice blossom, it’s a foothold."

"Correct." Gao Lingwei nodded.

’Nice!’

’He really gets it with just a little hint, huh?’