In Ruzhili, everyone should have been busy preparing breakfast. Biluo had already neatly arranged the Four Rivers, and now sat on her cloak holding the Demon Core, continuing her meditation.

Qian Jin glanced at the Demon Core, momentarily stunned. He secretly wondered why Huang Quan hadn't used this core last night. Was it because she had broken the record for the youngest Great Magus in the Zhence Dynasty? Had she already condensed her mental power into magical power? Or was it because she refused to touch the Demon Core that belonged to her sister, Biluo? Did she prefer to condense her own mental power into magical power rather than take something belonging to her sister?

Shuilian Ying'er remained outside the cave, gripping a thick wooden staff, practicing the basic drills that warriors performed daily—swinging it through the air—occasionally following up with a warrior’s charge strike.

Qian Jin looked at the spear-like Dou Bing in his hand, stepped out of the cave, and asked, "Do you know how to use a spear?" Shuilian Ying'er stopped her chopping, wiped a bead of sweat from her brow, and nodded: "A little."

Qian Jin wasn't surprised. Any warrior who had entered the Warrior Academy would have studied various weapons like blades, spears, swords, and bows due to the standard curriculum.

The goal of the primary Warrior Academy was not to cultivate individual warriors invincible on the battlefield. It was more about laying a solid foundation for the warriors, allowing them to discover which weapons suited them best, along with a wealth of battlefield knowledge.

Some warriors might have poor individual combat strength but show early talent in tactics. They could still be admitted to advanced Warrior Academies, with the brightest future lying in joining the military's operations staff.

Shuilian Ying'er took the heavy spear, and her shoulders immediately dipped slightly. A flicker of surprise crossed her bright eyes; the weight of this large spear was far heavier than she had imagined.

Qian Jin also froze, a self-mocking smile touching his lips. This spear felt like nothing in his hands, but he had forgotten that while this female warrior also used a two-handed greatsword, it was significantly lighter than a high-density Dou Bing.

"Continue what you were doing. I have business elsewhere." Qian Jin hefted the Zhanmadao and walked toward the direction of the Blazing Flame Lake.

"Wait a moment." Shuilian Ying'er looked at Qian Jin with concern: "Is the place you're going dangerous?"

Qian Jin subconsciously shook his head. As long as he wasn't going back into the mountains to fight the Moon Demon Flower Spiders in a life-or-death duel, it should be relatively safe, shouldn't it?

A spark of joy lit up Shuilian Ying'er’s beautiful eyes. She gripped the spear tightly with both hands and asked softly, "Can the two of us go with you?"

More tension accumulated in Shuilian Ying'er’s gaze. Having lived in this Four Seasons Valley for over a month, confined to this small area, the desire to look around this dangerous valley had inevitably surfaced. However, acting alone was something she lacked the courage for.

"You two?" Qian Jin's eyes drifted toward the cave entrance: "Does Biluo also want to go see?"

Shuilian Ying'er quickly nodded repeatedly. The three-headed magical beast resting on the thick snow above the cave since Qian Jin left exerted immense pressure. Even if they didn't jump down, just seeing them patrol overhead made her constantly worried.

Qian Jin pondered. Master and Master’s wife hadn't explicitly forbidden him from bringing others, so they probably wouldn't object to meeting people.

"Fine."

Shuilian Ying'er let out a rare, brief cry of excitement, then darted into the cave to bring Biluo out.

Qian Jin picked up a few stones from the ground, holding them in one hand while carrying the Zhanmadao in the other, walking ahead of the small three-person team. He was ready to use his rudimentary archery skills if any danger arose, hoping they might prove useful.

The Blazing Flame Lake was perpetually shrouded in a dense white mist, so thick that visibility was barely five paces. The two girls, seeing the great lake for the first time, displayed expressions mixing astonishment and delight.

Although Qian Jin could use the stove in the cave to heat water for bathing most of the time he wasn't around, it couldn't compare to the comfort of bathing in this lake, which looked like a hot spring.

Watching the two girls’ happy expressions, Qian Jin couldn't bear to shatter their fantasy. He said, "The water in this lake... if you drop an egg into it and take it out later, you’ll find it’s already boiled."

The girls' cheers vanished instantly. They exchanged disbelieving glances. Shuilian Ying'er bravely dipped her hand cautiously into the lake. The scalding water immediately sent a jolt up her arm to her brain.

"Ah!" Shuilian Ying'er shrieked, quickly pulling her hand out of the water, blowing repeatedly on her reddened fingers with her sensuous lips.

Qian Jin drew a fist-sized circle on a large stone with his Zhanmadao, backing away while observing Shuilian Ying'er’s expression, shaking his head and sighing repeatedly: "Seeing her reaction like this, I’m truly starting to admire myself. I boil in there every day and don't even get fully cooked."

Stepping back a hundred paces, Qian Jin pulled out the Divine Archery manual from his embrace and began to read. It seemed he had arrived a bit early today; he might as well practice his archery while waiting for his Master to appear.

There were plenty of small stones along the lakeshore, so Qian Jin lacked nothing for practicing his archery. The stones shot through the air in a perfectly straight line, striking the center of the circle he had drawn on the large rock with accuracy. The hard stones shattered upon impact, breaking into fragments that scattered everywhere.

Seeing the results, Biluo, after a moment of hesitation, cautiously pulled out the Demon Core hidden in her magic robe. With focused intent, she re-entered her meditation.

Shuilian Ying'er, past her initial curiosity, also began wielding her great spear, resuming her warrior drills.

Occasionally, the sound of a fish leaping out of the water and splashing back down broke the silence, leaving only the sharp sound of colliding stones.

When nearly all the stones within Qian Jin's vicinity had been used up practicing his archery, the Old Man appeared by the lake as usual.

"Eh? Two little girls too?" The Old Man stroked his white beard, his eyes filled with a strange knowing look. He winked mischievously at Qian Jin and laughed, "Kid, no wonder you choose to go back and stay there every day. If I had two like them waiting for me, I'd stay too."

Qian Jin pretended to ignore the Old Man's peculiar gaze, putting away the Divine Archery manual and saying, "Today, are we bathing?" "Which one is the older one? Which is the younger? Which do you prefer? Be careful now, there's no one here in the Four Seasons Valley responsible for delivering babies."

Qian Jin realized for the first time that his Master, usually rambling nonsensically, could be quite gossipy.

"Master, I'm not even eighteen yet,"

"So what if you're not eighteen?" The Old Man draped an arm over Qian Jin’s shoulder: "Back in my day, when I was eighteen, I already had kids running around everywhere..."

"Oh? Is that so?" Qian Jin quickly steered the conversation elsewhere: "Then what about your children? What are they doing now?"

The enthusiasm in the Old Man's eyes seemed to be extinguished by a splash of cold water. His bright eyes dimmed, and his voice carried an inexpressible sense of loss as he said, "Dead. They didn't die on the Human-Demon battlefield, but they died because of..." He trailed off. "Never mind! Let's play somewhere else today."

The Old Man turned and waved his hand, his expression instantly aging significantly. A slight moisture shimmered in his dull eyes, and his finger subtly touched the corner of his eye.

Qian Jin clearly saw the instant his Master's little finger brushed his tear duct as he turned, drawing away a single, crystalline bead of moisture.

Out of the thick white mist, a stout Unicorn dragging a wooden cart barreled forward, the wooden wheels clattering loudly against the stones by the lake shore.

Seeing the Unicorn, both girls instinctively jumped back half a step, warily observing the stout magical beast with its pair of bright blue eyes.

Qian Jin was already used to his Master’s eccentricities. He beckoned the two girls over and stepped onto the cart first: "A magical beast pulling a cart—even the royalty of the Zhence Dynasty would call this extravagant."

The Unicorn pulled the wooden cart, circling the edge of the Blazing Flame Lake. Its massive, powerful body did not impede its speed. After about two hours of pulling the cart, they had moved beyond the misty lake shore, and not a trace of steam rose from the clear blue water ahead.

Sunlight shone on the azure lake surface. A breeze caused slight ripples, stirring up fish-scale-like glimmers. Surrounding the lake shore was the white snow characteristic of winter in the Four Seasons Valley, crunching under the wheels.

The Old Man remained seated on the wooden cart, showing no sign of getting off. He pointed toward the shimmering blue water and said, "Kid, take your bath here today."

Qian Jin also stayed on the cart, his mouth twitching a few times: "Say, Master. This water looks rather cold. I can feel the chill rising from the lake water on my skin even sitting in this cart. Isn't this the Blazing Flame Lake?"

"It is," the Old Man leaned back against the Unicorn's elastic hindquarters, adopting a tone of absolute certainty. "The full name of this lake is the Extreme Ice and Blazing Flame Dual-Body Lake. I only told you half of it before."

"Is that so?" Qian Jin stood up, stretching his muscles, and stripped off his shirt, revealing his toned physique. "Then, as a compassionate Master, shouldn't you also remind your disciple that this lake water is freezing cold?"

"Oh? Is that so?" The Old Man nodded repeatedly with an expression of perfect agreement, his face showing no sign of embarrassment or breathlessness. "You are absolutely right. Didn't I just tell you? Ah, getting old, one is bound to be a little careless."

Qian Jin carefully put away Divine Archery and fully activated the Dou Qi in his one hundred and eight Dou Acupoints. He first dipped his toe into the water at the lake's edge to test the temperature.

Cold! Extremely cold! Qian Jin quickly pulled back the tip of his toe that had touched the water. The temperature of the water surface was far lower than the ice and snow on the shore, yet it showed no sign of freezing, much like the half that was the Blazing Flame Lake—its temperature was higher than boiling water, yet it showed no sign of simmering.

Cold and heat are diametrically opposed temperatures. Having adapted to the extremely hot water of the Blazing Flame Lake long ago, Qian Jin found that his body gained little advantage against the Extreme Ice Lake.

A bit depressed... Woke up to see the monthly tickets aren't great... Send more monthly tickets! Come on, monthly tickets! Chizha Fengyun is about to hit its first climax, let me get fired up! Send those monthly tickets! Yesterday I wrote twelve thousand characters, but only got an acknowledgment for a fraction of it. I'm very depressed. F

Strong Ya Ren Ba! Vote monthly tickets today! Now, send some monthly tickets, let's push it to the peak, let me update two more chapters! Yesterday I wrote twelve thousand characters, but only got an acknowledgment for a fraction of it. I'm very depressed. F