Chapter 438: Her Heart

The southwest corner of the Astral Sage College.

Amidst a stretch of greenery stand rows of red-brick, pointed-roof pavilions. This area is somewhat unfamiliar to the students of the college, as these pointed-roof pavilions are training spots that only Purple-tier Mentors are qualified to rent, so ordinary students rarely come here.

Led by Mentor Xi Chan, Li Luo and his group arrived at one of the training pavilions without any obstruction.

Pushing open the heavy stone door of the training pavilion, the training ground that came into view was exceptionally spacious. The ground was paved with white crystals, and a faint golden light seemed to flow within them. In the very center, a stone platform about a zhang high stood tall.

The training ground was filled with an incredibly astonishing amount of heaven and earth energy, which surged in like a torrent as the stone door was pushed open.

Mentor Xi Chan and Yu Hongxi are both Marquis-level experts, so this energy felt like a gentle breeze to them, but Li Luo, caught off guard, felt like someone who couldn't hold their liquor falling into a vat of wine; his mind became blurred, and he nearly collapsed, dizzy.

But Mentor Xi Chan seemed to have anticipated this, reaching out in advance to grab his arm.

A warm, cool, and majestic resonance power surged over, waking Li Luo from that groggy state.

"So, so much heaven and earth energy..."

Having regained his senses, Li Luo couldn't help but swallow hard. It was truly worthy of being a training ground exclusive to Marquis-level experts; the heaven and earth energy here was even denser than on the Resonance Tree.

"Is this Dragon Blood Gold Crystal?"

Yu Hongxi walked into the training ground, her slender high heels tapping lightly against the white crystals flowing with golden light on the floor, producing a crisp sound. She chuckled and said, "The Astral Sage College certainly has a deep foundation. This kind of Dragon Blood Gold Crystal is extremely expensive. Training rooms built with this material can not only gather heaven and earth energy, but as the energy passes through, it also becomes imbued with a trace of the charm of dragon blood. Even if a Marquis-level expert absorbs and refines it, it will provide a boost to their own resonance power."

Mentor Xi Chan smiled and said, "President Yu is being modest. In the entire Great Xia, if one were to compare financial resources, who could compete with the Gold Dragon Bank?"

"The Gold Dragon Bank is full of the stench of copper; the Astral Sage College would never stoop to such things," Yu Hongxi said.

"If President Yu doesn't like this smell, I wouldn't mind lending the Luolan Mansion's treasury to you," Li Luo said, rolling his eyes.

Yu Hongxi curled her red lips and said, "How much could that little place of yours in Luolan Mansion hold?"

Li Luo instantly felt like he had been dealt a critical hit. President Yu, your words are too insulting! Is having money so great?! Do you think money can buy happiness?!

Thinking of this, Li Luo suddenly sighed with melancholy. If he had enough money, wouldn't his Water-Light Resonance already be at the eighth grade by now? His Wood-Earth Resonance might even be at the seventh grade. Looking at it this way, money really can bring a lot of happiness.

Unfortunately, this isn't my money.

While Li Luo wore a bitter expression, Yu Hongxi turned her head and said to Cao Sheng, who was standing outside the main gate, "Mentor Cao Sheng, I'll have to trouble you to stand guard tonight."

Mentor Cao Sheng hurriedly waved his hand and smiled, "Don't worry, President Yu. I won't let anyone come to cause trouble. However, the college is extremely safe, so there shouldn't be any issues."

"It's always good to be prepared."

Yu Hongxi nodded slightly, then turned her gaze to Li Luo: "If there are no other questions, let's begin immediately."

Her style of doing things was as crisp and decisive as ever.

Li Luo was naturally happy to do so and nodded in agreement.

Mentor Xi Chan waved her cloud-like sleeves, and the heavy stone door slowly closed with a low, rumbling sound.

Watching the closed door, Mentor Cao Sheng sat down on a stone pier to the side. He rubbed his rugged face and revealed a smile. It had been many years since he had spoken to Yu Hongxi this closely. In fact, he understood that it wasn't that Yu Hongxi was avoiding him, but that he himself didn't dare to appear before her.

When it came to matters of the heart, he was indeed a coward.

Back then, he didn't even have the courage to confess his feelings to Yu Hongxi, because he knew that what would follow would inevitably be Yu Hongxi's rejection, as Yu Hongxi had clearly told him that she loved Li Taixuan.

After that, he left the Gold Dragon Bank and entered the Astral Sage College. Although they were still within the scope of Great Xia City, he never went to look for Yu Hongxi again. And Yu Hongxi, being such a proud person, likely felt extreme disdain for his behavior, so she had almost never had any contact with him since.

Cao Sheng understood that this was because of his own inferiority complex.

Yu Hongxi was too perfect in his heart; he didn't dare to have the slightest delusion about her.

But the tragedy was that he still developed feelings for her. However, that was normal; after all, Yu Hongxi was so outstanding that any man would like her.

Cao Sheng sighed. He closed his eyes slightly, and the memory images, which had gradually yellowed under the erosion of time, were still clearly branded in the deepest part of his mind.

At that time, he was still a boy. His hometown had suffered a disaster, and he had fled to Great Xia City, with no clothes to cover his body and no food to fill his stomach.

He had collapsed from hunger outside the city, and just when he thought he was going to starve to death like that, a warm steamed bun was thrown at his face. The aroma seemed to stir his soul, making him use his last bit of strength to devour it greedily.

By the time he had licked the life-saving bun clean, he finally had the strength to lift his head and look at the person standing before him.

It was a young girl in red. The girl was very beautiful, and also very proud. She looked down at him from her high position.

"Big dummy, if you want to eat, then work as a laborer for me."

After saying this, she turned and walked away directly, not caring about his answer or reaction.

He stood there in a daze for a few seconds, then finally scrambled to follow her.

Later on, he was able to display his talent, gradually entering the world of cultivation, and eventually becoming a top expert in Great Xia. In fact, everything was brought to him by Yu Hongxi.

Cao Sheng scratched his hair, a smile appearing on his rugged face.

Over these years, he hadn't appeared before Yu Hongxi, actually mostly because he didn't want to disturb her life. But in his heart, his life had long ago been bought by her forever with a single steamed bun.

For so many years, she had never asked him to do anything, as if that kindness, which could make a Marquis-level expert give his life, had already been forgotten by her.

Now, she had finally opened her mouth to let him do something.

Although it was just guarding a door, he felt he should perform well.

Cao Sheng patted his knees. He looked up at the night sky gradually enveloping the college, then turned his gaze to the right and smiled: "I say, Old Jin, give me some face today and don't come here to cause trouble, alright?"

Under Cao Sheng's gaze, energy fluctuations appeared in the night, and a figure slowly walked out from the air.

The moonlight poured down, revealing, unsurprisingly, the face of Shen Jinxiao.

"I didn't expect that the usually wild and unruly Mentor Cao Sheng would actually be willing to guard a door for someone," Shen Jinxiao smiled.

Mentor Cao Sheng sighed: "What's guarding a door? As long as she speaks, I'd be willing to go back to being a laborer."

"What a touching and humble love."

Shen Jinxiao smiled and said, "Mentor Cao Sheng, you are now a Purple-tier Mentor of the Astral Sage College, a Marquis-level expert who counts for something in all of Great Xia. Your status is not much weaker than President Yu's. You are fully qualified to pursue her, rather than being so self-deprecating."

"I don't dare. She is too perfect," Mentor Cao Sheng said with a bitter smile.

"This is your obsession," Shen Jinxiao said.

Mentor Cao Sheng nodded. He looked at Shen Jinxiao and said, "Then your obsession, is it Li Luo? Or perhaps, is it Jiang Qing'e?"

Shen Jinxiao smiled without answering.

"Mentor Shen Jinxiao, I don't want to fight you, so don't make things difficult for me. I can ignore your past conflicts with Li Luo and Xi Chan, but tonight, if you want to cause trouble, then don't blame me for disregarding our past acquaintance." Mentor Cao Sheng's voice became calm. Beneath his messy hair, his eyes gradually became exceptionally cold and overbearing.

Without the targeted "intelligence-lowering" aura of Yu Hongxi, this Mentor Cao Sheng finally revealed the true momentum of a Marquis-level expert.

Shen Jinxiao waved his hand.

"I won't make a move."

"Oh? Then did you run over here to watch me guard the door?" Cao Sheng raised an eyebrow.

Shen Jinxiao smiled. He walked up and sat on the stone steps next to Cao Sheng.

Watching Shen Jinxiao's strange behavior, Cao Sheng frowned slightly, but he had no reason to forcibly drive away Shen Jinxiao, who hadn't done anything. He could only raise some vigilance in his heart, while saying: "Mentor Shen Jinxiao, actually, I have always felt that your targeting of Li Luo seems a bit too groundless."

"So, what exactly do you want?"

Shen Jinxiao still didn't answer. He just looked up at the bright moon in the sky.

In the bright moon, it seemed to reflect the figure of Jiang Qing'e.

But his gaze did not linger on Jiang Qing'e's face; instead, he stared at the location of Jiang Qing'e's heart with a strange look, then licked the corner of his mouth.

I want her heart.