87: Chapter 87 Heading to the Military Region

This was the result he wanted most.

He never needed to completely strip away his baleful aura or abandon his own path; he only sought this stable balance, allowing himself and his vassal race to break free from the shackles of losing control, so they could use their baleful combat power at will without any future worries.

With his mind made up, all of Lin Ye's scattered soul returned to its vessel, and his soul settled firmly back into his body.

He slowly opened his eyes. His pitch-black gaze was clear and bright, stripped of all post-battle bloodlust and violence, leaving only a calm, relaxed serenity. A hint of lighthearted joy, hard to conceal, quietly escaped from the corners of his mouth.

Below the arena, two beautiful figures were quietly gazing at him.

Bai Ruoxue, dressed in clothes as white as snow, had a cold expression. Her heavy gaze fell upon Lin Ye, carrying the complexity of defeat, recognition of her opponent, and a trace of curiosity regarding his unique path.

Beside her, Xiao Qingwu—who was usually bone-chillingly cold, distant, and aloof, with a face like ten-thousand-year-old unmelting cold jade—also had her eyes locked onto the youth on the stage. Her gaze was calm, revealing little emotion.

After a moment of silence, the usually taciturn Xiao Qingwu was actually the first to speak. Her cold, gentle voice pierced through the ongoing waves of cheering around them, clearly reaching Lin Ye's ears: "Is it resolved?"

Lin Ye nodded slightly and said frankly, "You could say it's temporarily resolved."

Xiao Qingwu heard this and nodded gently. She did not pry any further, returning to her silent and cold demeanor, as if her initiative to speak just now had been nothing more than a casual inquiry.

But the moment she lowered her eyes, Lin Ye's sharp gaze clearly caught a faint, upward curve at the corner of her cold lips.

It was very faint and fleeting, gone in an instant, like tiny ripples stirred by the wind on a lake's surface—easily missed if one wasn't paying close attention.

But Lin Ye saw it crystal clear—Xiao Qingwu, who was always cold, aloof, unapproachable, and crowned by the entire Quanzhou as the Ice Goddess, had smiled.

It was a smile that appeared only after she heard that he had resolved the hidden danger of the baleful aura's backlash.

A storm instantly surged in Lin Ye's heart, his mind racing frantically as he couldn't help but click his tongue inwardly: Holy crap? Why did she smile?

No way, right? Could this icy school beauty actually have feelings for me?

Xiao Qingwu's gorgeous face uncontrollably flashed through his mind—tall and slender, with an ethereal, cold temperament, an excellent figure, and long, slender, straight legs. She was practically flawless, indeed a stunning beauty who would linger in one's mind for a long time.

But the moment the thought arose, Lin Ye immediately shook his head vigorously, rejecting the idea.

Stop overthinking. How could that be possible?

She was a favored daughter of heaven, with top-tier family background, talent, and looks. He was just a poor kid with nothing to rely on. What right did he have to win the heart of such a top-tier prodigy?

I must have seen it wrong. That moment just now wasn't a smile at all, just a trick of the light. I'm just flattering myself.

Lin Ye forcefully suppressed the ridiculous scenarios in his head, gathered his chaotic thoughts, stood up straight again, and steadily met the thousands of gazes focused on him from the crowd.

Soon, the awards ceremony finished, and the competition finally came to a close.

The crowd in the arena slowly dispersed, and admissions representatives from major top-tier prestigious universities and elite federal academies stepped forward one after another to recruit the prodigies, making the venue lively in an instant.

A crowd of mentors and admissions officers swarmed forward, completely surrounding Bai Ruoxue and Xiao Qingwu.

One was an undefeated legend, an SSS-class prodigy possessing a top-tier divine bloodline; the other was the Ice Goddess, whose comprehension of the path of ice was exceptionally thorough, boasting both unmatched beauty and talent. Both were top seeds that the major prestigious schools fought over, and countless generous offers and customized training plans were thrown out one after another, showing absolute sincerity.

On the other hand, Lin Ye, who had taken first place in Quanzhou, was completely ignored the entire time, with no one stepping forward to talk to him.

Everyone knew in their hearts that while Lin Ye's combat power was heaven-defying and his talent was unmatched in all of Quanzhou, his path was far too bizarre and dangerous. Plagued by baleful aura, he could easily lose control and go mad, making him the biggest unstable risk.

The major prestigious universities appreciated talent, but they were also afraid of him. No one was willing to rashly recruit a genius who could suffer a soul rampage and go completely mad at any moment, planting an endless source of disaster for their school.

Facing this deliberate neglect, Lin Ye's expression remained calm, not caring in the slightest.

He had never cared about others' prejudices and wariness. That others feared his baleful aura and avoided him due to its hidden dangers was inconsequential to him.

Now that the Jinghun Hall had stabilized his soul foundation, there was no longer any fatal crisis of losing control. His future no longer needed to be filtered or validated by others.

Soon, led by official staff of the event, three black Military District vehicles slowly drove into the core area of the arena.

According to the competition rules, the top-tier resource rewards for divine kingdom expansion and law stabilization had to be completed within the Military District's exclusive barrier. Military powerhouses would personally guard them to eliminate any accidental risks and ensure the prodigies' transformation throughout the entire process.

As the top three of this competition, Bai Ruoxue, Xiao Qingwu, and Lin Ye boarded the vehicles together and set off for the Military District!

As for the national competition, there was none; it was considered part of the college entrance examination.

In the spacious back seat, Lin Ye was placed right in the middle, with a top-tier stunning prodigy from Quanzhou sitting on either side of him.

On the left, Xiao Qingwu was dressed in cold, simple clothes, carrying an innate icy divinity. A faint, cold fragrance lingered around her, clean, crisp, and refreshing. On the right, Bai Ruoxue was ethereal in her white dress, surrounded by a holy aura and a natural, sacred, soft light, as a subtle, warm fragrance slowly drifted from her.

With two stunning women whose temperament, looks, and figures were all at the absolute pinnacle flanking him on both sides, Lin Ye was sandwiched in the middle. In the cramped space of the car, two completely different yet equally pleasant fragrances intertwined in delicate threads, lingering around his nose and instantly making the atmosphere exceptionally subtle.

Lin Ye could not help but feel a slight restlessness in his heart.

Having lived two lives across his past and present, he had never been in a relationship, let alone been in such close proximity to such top-tier beauties.

The two women before him possessed looks and figures that crushed all the top celebrities of the entertainment industry in the world. What was even rarer was that both carried the divinity of the Heavenly Dao, giving them an extraordinary, ethereal temperament untainted by the mortal world. Every move they made exuded the exquisite elegance of top-tier prodigies.

On the left was the cold ice mountain, the Ice Goddess with a hidden, gentle smile; on the right was the holy, ethereal, proud yet enduring sacred prodigy.

With breathtaking beauty on both sides, the atmosphere was dialed up to the maximum, leaving Lin Ye, who had never experienced such a romantic and delicate scene, completely stiff and at a loss for what to do.

To steady his mind and avoid losing his composure, Lin Ye could only keep chanting the Heart Cleansing Mantra in his mind, forcefully suppressing the restlessness in his heart as he stared straight ahead, not daring to look around even slightly.

This short car ride of just over an hour might have been a pleasant journey for others, but for Lin Ye, it was a genuine torment.

Fortunately, the ride was smooth without any incidents. An hour later, the vehicle smoothly entered the heart of the Military District, arriving at the exclusive divine kingdom transformation barrier area.

A high-ranking Military District officer, who had been waiting there for some time, personally received the three of them with a solemn and serious expression.

The top-tier scarce resources used to reinforce the divine kingdom, expand its territory, and stabilize its laws were all centrally allocated and distributed by the military. At the same time, military powerhouses would guard them throughout the process to block all external interference, eliminating the risks of divine kingdom collapse or law disorder during the transformation.

After delivering the resources, the officer meticulously explained the order of use, refining techniques, and precautions to the three of them, patiently reminding them of every detail: first stabilize the chaotic laws of the divine kingdom, then expand the territory layer by layer, and finally raise the divine kingdom's load-bearing capacity. They had to proceed step-by-step and must not rush for success; otherwise, it would easily trigger a backlash from the divine kingdom.

Having finished his explanation, the officer withdrew outside the barrier and activated the protective array, quietly waiting for the three to complete their transformation.

Following the officer's instructions, Lin Ye calmed his mind and precisely controlled the massive amount of top-tier resources, pouring them all into his own baleful divine kingdom.