The sunlight, breaking through the emerald leaves of ancient trees, gently slid over the tiled roofs of Shrek Academy, warming them with its morning heat. After the turbulent events in the Star Dou Forest, which left an indelible mark on the memory of every student, life at the academy slowly, like exhaling a sigh of relief, returned to its usual routine. But for Fu Huan and little Yue, this quiet period marked not a calming moment, but the beginning of a new, unexplored chapter. Several long weeks had passed since shy Yue, holding the academy token tightly in her small hand, became a full-fledged student of Shrek and an inseparable shadow of Fu Huan. Their days were woven from diligent training under the wise guidance of the elder sister, quiet conversations filled with growing trust, and that unsaid mutual understanding that blossomed between them, like a fragile snowdrop through the frozen earth—two moons, now reflecting in the waters of a shared academic pond.
One evening, when the crimson sun was slowly sinking below the horizon, painting the clouds in shades of scarlet and gold, Fu Huan, sitting on the cool windowsill of Yue's room, broke the silence with a quiet question: "Do you often think about the Wei clan, Yue?"
The little girl flinched, as if from a sudden touch. Her gaze, which had been dreamily fixed on the distance where the last hues of sunset blended, dropped to her hands folded in her lap, betraying her inner fragility. "Sometimes..." she whispered, her voice trembling with barely restrained pain. "Especially at night. The dreams... they come as different, terrifying shadows of the past." She lifted her large ruby eyes to Fu Huan, a resolute, though timid, flame flickering deep within. "I... I really want to understand one day... to come to terms with what they did."
Fu Huan smiled softly, and her hand's touch on Yue's small palm was full of tenderness and promise. "And we will, Yue. Together. You are not alone in this nightmare."
Days flowed lazily, merging into weeks, leaving barely noticeable changes in the established routine of the academy. But in the quiet world of the alchemical laboratory, Fu Huan's relentless activity never ceased. With the arrival of Yue, like a catalyst, the already swift current of research accelerated. The little student lacked the sharp analytical insight that Fu Huan possessed, but her young mind greedily absorbed knowledge, like parched earth soaking up much-needed rain. She memorized the subtleties of preparing infusions, discerned the faintest scents of herbs, grasped the complex network of spiritual fields, and even occasionally asked unexpectedly deep questions, making the senior students pause and think.
Yue, like a tiny, hardworking bee, tried to please her mentor in every way. Her frequent desire to help Fu Huan in the laboratory, her focused participation in experiments as a careful assistant, and sometimes even as the very object of research, became an inseparable part of their shared life. Yue's trust in Fu Huan grew day by day, nurtured not only by the subtle bond whose nature they had yet to fully understand but also by the boundless gratitude and attachment with which the child accepted her savior and mentor. In Yue's eyes, Fu Huan was not just an older sister or teacher—she was the beacon in the stormy sea of her memories, the only support in her fragile new world.
A month later:
The spacious training grounds of the academy, usually filled with the noise of training and the ringing laughter of students, stood silent, as if awaiting an important event. On the trampled earth, under the vast blue sky, stood two figures facing each other: Fu Huan, radiating calm confidence, and little Yue, whose ruby eyes burned with focused determination, despite the slight trembling in her slender fingers. A light breeze played with her dark hair, but she did not look away from her elder sister.
It was Yue who broke the silence first, activating her barely formed spirit rings. Two dim amber halos slowly circled her fragile body, emitting a faint but tangible aura of time, like delicate threads weaving the present with the future.
In response, Fu Huan calmly summoned her own, much more formidable rings. Two bright, rich yellow ones, one deep, shimmering with purple light, and one—black, as though absorbing all surrounding light, pulsating with a barely perceptible yet commanding spatial energy.
A flicker of amazement flashed in Yue's eyes, a mixture of childlike awe and almost reverent trepidation. She had seen Fu Huan's strength in battle against those terrifying Soul Kings, but witnessing these rings, especially the bottomless black one, spoke of a power that her young mind could barely comprehend. Ten thousand years... absorbed... by her? How could such a thing be possible?
But the determination, already an inseparable part of her small character, quickly overcame the brief moment of weakness. She was not about to back down. With a collected shout, full of youthful zest, she surged forward, her small but fast legs carrying her quickly toward the motionless figure of Fu Huan. When the distance between them shrank to five meters, Yue exhaled and poured all her will into her first strike: "First soul skill, Time Control!"
Fu Huan, whose eyes were carefully watching every movement of her sister, felt the slightest change in the density of the air around her. The world seemed to momentarily become slightly thicker, and Yue's movements took on a barely noticeable blur. But her own perception of time was hardly affected. Interesting, her time control is already manifesting, but its power is still too weak to significantly slow someone of my level. Nevertheless, she remained standing, wanting to fully assess Yue's potential.
Yue did not hold back, putting all her resolve into the swift charge. This was not merely a test of strength but a desperate attempt to earn her elder sister's respect and recognition, to prove that she was not just a burden.
But the effect on Fu Huan was barely perceptible. The power that could bind the movements of an ordinary Spirit Master, forcing them to struggle in slow motion, like wading through thick syrup, was, for Fu Huan, whose spiritual power had reached the level of the Soul Sect and effortlessly suppressed even Soul Kings, merely a gentle breeze that could not disturb her.
"2.2%," Fu Huan calmly spoke, her voice even and serene as Yue's little fist stopped just a centimeter from her thigh. Her slender finger quickly touched Yue's hand, not causing pain but directing a countercurrent, a barely perceptible yet commanding flow of spatial energy. Yue's attack did not reach its target, and the little girl, like a toy, was sent flying more than ten meters backward, helplessly tumbling across the trampled earth, until she finally came to a stop, her face reflecting a mix of surprise and disappointment.
"Yue, use your mind," Fu Huan said softly, her gaze full of understanding. "Simply applying skills against me will not work. Think about how you can use them unconventionally, combine them, find weak points."
"I understand, sister," Yue replied, getting back on her feet, her little face scrunching in a concentrated grimace.
"Second soul skill, Temporal Delay!"
A visible distortion zone began to form around Fu Huan and Yue. The air trembled, like a scorching mirage above the desert, and the world beyond seemed to blur, like a reflection in a warped mirror. The movement of the blades of grass on the ground slowed to barely noticeable sluggishness, as if filmed in slow motion. Yue frantically considered tactics, her young mind working at its limit, trying to find a gap in Fu Huan's impenetrable defense, using the distorted flow of time as an ally.
However, Fu Huan herself showed no visible effect. She calmly surveyed the distorted space around her, her gaze sharp and unaffected, as if she were observing an interesting but harmless natural phenomenon. Her spatial perception was so developed that it seemed to compensate for the minor temporal distortion. She felt even the smallest fluctuations in time as sharply as changes in space, and her mind instantly adapted to these subtle anomalies.
"Yue, if this is all you're capable of, perhaps we should intensify our training," Fu Huan said, her voice flat and without a hint of mockery, as though she were simply stating an obvious fact.
Two dull yellow rings on Yue's body suddenly flared with bright light, like miniature suns, and began to spin rapidly, merging into a single, pulsating halo of concentrated temporal energy enveloping her small body. In Fu Huan's eyes, a genuine interest flickered – she had never seen such a fusion of skills from such a young spirit master.
"Skill Fusion, Concentrated Time!" Yue cried out, and the world around Fu Huan seemed to freeze, losing all its usual vibrancy, sinking into a monochromatic palette of grey shades. In Yue's eyes, everything turned black and white, and her perception of time accelerated many times over, allowing her to move at incredible speed in a seemingly still world, like a swift shadow in a frozen landscape.
Under the influence of this enhanced ability, Fu Huan merely flicked her finger. But even this barely noticeable movement caused a sharp crack in the spatial-temporal structure created by Yue. It was as if the very fabric of space had intruded into the frozen time, causing a local instability, like fine glass cracking.
Yue, her face covered in tiny beads of sweat, froze, watching the still figure of Fu Huan. Her eyes reflected deep confusion and the beginnings of disappointment. It seemed to her that Fu Huan had done nothing, had not activated any defensive skills, but her most powerful attack had seemed to crumble to dust with just her presence.
"Well done, Yue," Fu Huan said softly, her voice returning Yue to the normal flow of time, and the colors of the world sparkled once more. "Your skill is very interesting; escaping such a time anomaly without taking damage would be incredibly difficult for most. But as your elder sister... I can feel the slightest fluctuations in spatial energy. Your concentrated time created a local distortion in reality itself, but my own heightened spatial perception allowed me to intuitively find and disrupt its key support point, even without actively using a spatial skill. Remember, Yue, space and time are inextricably linked. A strong distortion in one inevitably affects the other."
Yue had no choice but to lower her head in acknowledgment of her elder sister's explanation.
Days passed, another week flew by, colored by quiet training and thoughtful glances from Fu Huan.
Gradually, Fu Huan began to feel that the once-comforting walls of Shrek Academy, which had seemed like a safe haven, were turning into a golden cage, constraining her insatiable thirst for knowledge and experiments. The limited supply of herbs and minerals, the complete absence of rare ores needed for her ambitious alchemical projects, and the daring ideas she was nurturing in her mind regarding a self-compressing ring, were all noticeably slowing her progress, like chains on the feet of a traveler.
Yet, the shadows of the past, like the tenacious roots of an ancient tree, had deeply infiltrated her consciousness, preventing her from easily making the decision to leave. The image of the Title Douluo in tattered clothes, whose wisdom and support she owed so much, the faces of the haughty Elder Soul Emperors, whose desire to subjugate her had almost cost her her life just over two years ago... these memories served as a constant reminder of the fragility of the world beyond the academy walls and the need for the protection it offered. And taking Yue, this fragile thread connecting her to humanity, into the unknown and dangerous journey seemed like an unacceptable luxury. After long, painful reflection, Fu Huan made the difficult decision: to leave alone, leaving a short but honest note for Yue and the others. Gathering her countless alchemical tools and few personal belongings, determined to continue her research and grow in strength, she silently left her room, stepping through the halls of the academy like a shadow.
But what happened next was something her rational mind could not have foreseen. Yue, with her surprisingly sensitive sleep, like a little guard animal, awoke from the slightest creak of the floorboards beneath Fu Huan's feet. Just as her elder sister was about to disappear into the pre-dawn mist, the small figure rushed into the hallway, her face distorted with silent sobs, her breath ragged from running and overwhelming despair.
"I knew it!" Yue whispered through her sobs, her little fists clenching the hem of her nightgown, as if trying to hold onto the slipping reality. "Lately, you've been... different. Your gaze wandered, you thought more often, the volume of your notes in the laboratory decreased... and you spent so much time with the teachers and students of Shrek, like you were saying goodbye to each of them... This is so unlike you!" The girl's voice trembled with hurt, fear, and the unspoken feeling of abandonment that gnawed at her small heart.
Fu Huan froze in the doorway, her hand, holding the edge of her travel cloak, falling limply. She sighed, sharply feeling the sting of guilt and unexpected tenderness towards the little girl who had become such an important part of her life in such a short time. "Yue..." she said softly, her usually cold voice softening. "I... I don't know how to say goodbye, Yue. For me, it's always easier to leave, leaving a formal explanation on paper."
"Take me with you!" Yue pleaded, rushing toward her and grabbing the edge of her cloak with her small, desperate hands. Her ruby eyes, usually so bright, were now clouded with tears, begging for understanding and compassion. "I... I'm weak, but you said, between us... there's a bond. How can we develop it if we're apart? And you... you're my elder sister, Fu Huan. You can't... you shouldn't leave me alone!" More tears poured from her eyes, leaving wet tracks on her pale cheeks.
Fu Huan frowned, her gaze, usually sharp and detached, softening as it reflected her inner struggle. "Yue... understand, it would be much safer for you to stay here, under the protection of Shrek. There is no shortage of powerful mentors here, whose abilities surpass mine. Even the humblest teacher, having reached the level of Soul Saint, could easily protect you from the dangers I face..." Her voice was unusually gentle, with a note of concern Yue had never heard before.
"No!" Yue responded firmly, her small chin lifting stubbornly, and in her ruby eyes flared an unshakable flame. She clung to the edge of Fu Huan's cloak, as if afraid she would disappear. "For me, you're the only true teacher, Fu Huan! No one else can feel the subtle nuances of my temporal techniques, understand their potential the way you do. And your incredible spatial abilities... we're like two inseparable parts of one whole, two sides of the same coin. Together... together we can reach heights that we could never dream of alone!" Her voice carried not just childlike affection but a deep, almost instinctive faith in their shared destiny.
Fu Huan still hesitated, her mind, accustomed to logic and calculation, battling with the unexpectedly strong sense of responsibility and the budding attachment to this little girl who had so suddenly entered her orderly world. The determination in Yue's eyes, her unwavering belief in their strange symbiosis, disarmed her, like a fragile flower breaking through armor.
"Do you really want this, Yue?" Fu Huan asked quietly, her gaze moving over the little girl's face, and deep in her eyes flickered sincere concern for her safety. "The path with me will be harsh, full of unexpected dangers and enemies. This is your last chance to stay here, in relative safety, under the protection of the mighty academy."
"Yes," Yue nodded firmly, her face, once twisted with tears, suddenly brightened, as though a beam of hope had fallen on it. She gripped Fu Huan's cloak tighter. "I've made up my mind, Fu Huan. I'll go with you, wherever you go. And even if that path leads to death itself... I won't regret my decision for a second." In her small heart, there lived a loyalty that could rival the strength of the most powerful spirit.
Fu Huan sighed, finally accepting her decision. A semblance of tenderness appeared in her usually cold eyes. "Alright, Yue. Then let's go, but be as quiet as a mouse. Don't wake anyone."
Carefully stepping, like creeping shadows, they headed toward the