The Star Emperor Hotel had always been used by the Star Luo royal family to entertain foreign guests.
Even across the entire Douluo Continent, the Star Emperor Hotel ranked among the very finest.
The rooms assigned to Xu Zihuang and the other students from Shrek Academy were each nearly a hundred square meters in size, complete with bedroom, living room, and bathing area.
The doors, tables, and even some of the carvings were made from precious woods such as thousand-year golden nanmu and thousand-year purple sandalwood. The room's décor was extremely luxurious. Even the sofa on which Xu Zihuang sat was stitched from the fur of a thousand-year Ice Bear, filled with the down of a thousand-year flying soul beast—Blue Sky Swan.
Beyond that, there was a balcony with an exceptionally broad view. Standing there, one could overlook everything happening within Star Luo Square.
The carved wooden door, adorned with intricate floral patterns, was gently pushed open. Ning Tian stepped inside, softly closing the door behind her before taking a seat on the sofa across from Xu Zihuang.
Though the room contained only the two of them, her posture remained impeccably proper—a habit instilled in her since childhood within a great noble family.
As she gazed at Xu Zihuang's face, Ning Tian found herself momentarily lost in thought. Her eyes followed the refined lines of his features, tracing up to the strand of purple hair that draped across his high, straight nose bridge.
She didn't know why, but though Xu Zihuang's appearance hadn't changed in the slightest, she still felt that something about him was different.
It seemed to be his aura.
There was now a unique kind of charm emanating from him—
Confidence, pride, and an aloofness as if looking down from above the world.
She couldn't quite describe it, but that was the feeling she got.
In truth, what Ning Tian was seeing now was Xu Zihuang's truest self.
When a soul master entered deep meditation, their consciousness would instinctively sink into cultivation. At such times, they were completely unguarded—stripped of all pretense and restraint.
But because his mind was fully immersed in cultivation, even that truest nature wasn't fully revealed outwardly.
The benefits of entering deep meditation were unquestionable. If one could achieve such a state just before breaking through a bottleneck, there was an eighty-percent chance of success.
However, because deep meditation involved profound spiritual focus, it was particularly dangerous to be interrupted. A sudden disturbance might not cause possession deviation (qi deviation), but some damage to the body or meridians would be unavoidable.
As someone born into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, one of the continent's top soul master clans, Ning Tian naturally understood this well.
Before entering Xu Zihuang's room, she had already instructed the attendants assigned to Shrek Academy's team to seal off this entire corridor. No one other than Shrek Academy members was permitted entry.
The top floor of the Star Emperor Hotel was reserved solely for the representative teams of Shrek Academy and the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, so Ning Tian's main concern was the latter.
Xu Zihuang had remained in his room cultivating for five consecutive days, and today, he hadn't appeared with the Shrek team at the tournament venue. Such an absence would inevitably draw the attention of keen-eyed individuals from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy.
A cautious heart was essential—especially since relations between the two academies were far from friendly.
As Ning Tian quietly studied Xu Zihuang, his deep meditation was nearing its end.
With each steady breath, his abundant blood energy surged through his body, fusing perfectly with his soul power. It was as if his strength was rising with every passing moment.
Then, the dazzling golden soul power circulating through his meridians suddenly paused—only for a warm, soothing sensation to flood through his body in the next instant.
His soul power resumed its flow, now noticeably denser and more refined than before.
At that moment, Xu Zihuang's soul power officially broke through to level forty-three.
For an ordinary soul master around the fortieth rank, a single day of deep meditation might be enough to break through a bottleneck.
But Xu Zihuang was different. As a wielder of an Ultimate Attribute Martial Soul, the quality of his soul power far surpassed that of his peers.
The amount of energy required for each breakthrough was immense. It had taken five full days of deep meditation for him to accumulate enough power to advance.
Slowly, Xu Zihuang opened his eyes. A flash of purple-golden light flickered within them. When his gaze met Ning Tian's across the sofa, the chill and indifference in his eyes vanished in an instant, replaced by calm warmth.
The amethyst floor-to-ceiling curtains beside the balcony had been specially crafted to allow only one-way visibility—they permitted viewing outward but not inward, while also filtering the sunlight.
As a result, the lighting in the room remained dim. Combined with the enclosed space, the atmosphere immediately took on a subtle sense of intimacy.
Staring into Ning Tian's clear, watery blue eyes, Xu Zihuang outwardly remained composed, but inwardly he was analyzing.
Only now did he realize that he had entered deep meditation—and what troubled him most was that, upon awakening, he had unconsciously revealed his true self for a brief moment.
He wasn't sure if Ning Tian had noticed. Thinking it over, he decided the best course of action was to leave her with another, stronger impression—one that would make her overlook what she might have sensed before.
Yet, that concern soon faded. From Ning Tian's gaze, he saw no suspicion—only a hint of shyness.
With his Golden Eyes martial soul, his powers of observation were unparalleled. Combined with his past experiences, he could not be mistaken.
"How long was I cultivating?" Xu Zihuang stood up, smiling gently at her.
Though she felt a faint blush rising within her, Ning Tian did not avert her gaze. A soft smile curved her lips.
"You've been in deep meditation for five days. Judging by your aura, it seems your cultivation has improved again, hasn't it?"
Xu Zihuang nodded with a smile.
"Mm. My soul power has just broken through to level forty-three."
Ning Tian rose gracefully to her feet, her water-blue eyes shimmering with light.
Twelve years old. A Soul Ancestor at level forty-three.
What astonishing talent.
Yet to her, such a result from Yu Tianhuang felt completely natural.
"Oh right, today's match is the fourth round of the group stage. Teacher Wang said that if you finished your deep meditation, you should head straight to Star Luo Square. Our opponent this time is quite strong—three Soul Kings on their team. With you there, our chances will be much higher. The match probably hasn't started yet, so we still have time."
"Then let's go now," Xu Zihuang replied with a nod, stretching his body slightly.
By the time the two descended from the Star Emperor Hotel, Star Luo Square was already packed with people.
Both wore Shrek Academy's traditional dark-green uniforms, and the guards stationed at the entrance recognized them immediately, allowing them through without question.
Their late arrival instantly drew the attention of the entire audience.
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