The person before them was none other than Snow Avalanche, the current Crown Prince of the , and beside him stood a girl who looked about eleven or twelve, dressed in a luxurious white gown, delicate as a porcelain doll.
At that moment, her large eyes were wide open, curiously observing the crowd below.
"It's Princess Xueke… I didn't expect her to be here too," Feng Xiaotian said, swirling his wine glass, a hint of surprise in his voice.
Xueke?
Looking up at the intricately carved, delicate girl on the platform, Shui Wuhen understood. No wonder she was by Snow Avalanche's side—she was the youngest princess of the , Princess Xueke.
"For this ball, I've invited quite a few guests, including some of the young talents participating in the tournament. I hope everyone has an enjoyable time," Snow Avalanche said with a smile, clapping his hands. Immediately, elegant music began to play throughout the hall.
Once the music started, some of the guests seemed to spring to life as if pressing a switch, pairing up and beginning to dance.
Shui Wuhen, however, did not join—not only because he had no one to dance with, but also because he didn't know how to dance.
Shui Bing'er understood a little, though not much; after all, cultivation already consumed most of her time, leaving little room to study such things.
Shui Wuhen turned to Feng Xiaotian and asked, "Aren't you going?"
"Why would I go?" Feng Xiaotian took a sip of wine and said slowly, "I've been to plenty of these balls before. In fact, I've spent so much time at them that my cultivation was delayed. But after fighting you, I realized these things are all empty; only strength is eternal."
He glanced at Shui Wuhen and lightly chuckled. "You don't seem like the type to attend a ball anyway. So why are you here?"
"I came because you came," Shui Wuhen said calmly.
At that moment, a clear, bright voice rang out:
"Brother Wuhen, why not join in the fun with everyone? Have I been remiss in my hospitality?"
Shui Wuhen looked in the direction of the voice, seeing Snow Avalanche had, without him noticing, descended from above, walking slowly toward them with Xueke by his side.
"Your Highness!"
Seeing Snow Avalanche approach, Shui Wuhen and the others bowed slightly.
Snow Avalanche quickly returned the gesture and introduced his sister: "This is my little sister Xueke. She's very interested in soul masters, and when she heard you would be attending the ball, she insisted on coming along."
"Hello, Brother Wuhen, Brother Feng Xiaotian, Sister Bing'er," Xueke said, lifting her skirt slightly and bowing.
Shui Wuhen, Shui Bing'er, and Feng Xiaotian all returned the gesture.
Shui Wuhen then spoke to Snow Avalanche: "I appreciate Your Highness' kindness, but I don't know how to dance, so I won't embarrass myself up there."
"I understand," Snow Avalanche nodded thoughtfully. "After all, Brother Wuhen, at such a young age, already possesses such strength. You must have put in extraordinary effort, so naturally, you haven't had time to learn such things."
Just then, someone called him, and Snow Avalanche said apologetically, "Pardon me, I need to attend to something. My sister will take over entertaining you."
With that, Snow Avalanche turned toward the center of the ballroom, leaving Xueke staring wide-eyed at Shui Wuhen and the others.
Seeing Xueke before her, Shui Bing'er knelt slightly and smiled: "Princess Xueke, you're so beautiful."
"Sister Bing'er, you're the beautiful one," Xueke replied.
The two girls then moved aside and began chatting.
After a while, Xueke suddenly asked, "Sister Bing'er, do you know what Brother Wuhen likes?"
Hearing this, Shui Bing'er was slightly stunned and immediately alert. Could this little girl be interested in her brother?
"Well… actually, I'm not very sure. Brother rarely shows his preferences," Shui Bing'er replied, a little embarrassed.
Naturally, their conversation did not escape the ears of Shui Wuhen and Feng Xiaotian. Feng Xiaotian laughed and said, "It seems this little princess has taken a liking to you… or perhaps it's a scheme by the Heaven Dou royal family to win you over?"
"I haven't thought about that," Shui Wuhen replied without changing expression.
For Shui Wuhen, cultivation and increasing his strength were the most important things. Only by becoming stronger could he control his own fate and protect his sister, Shui Bing'er.
Although his combined strength with his Frozen Bird made him top-tier across the entire Douluo Continent, he still felt it was far from enough. Perhaps only once he became a would he begin considering romance.
Several hours later, the ball finally ended. Shui Wuhen and Shui Bing'er returned to their residence at Tian Shui Academy by carriage.
Behind the castle, Snow Avalanche looked at his sister and asked, "Ke'er, how did you find this Shui Wuhen?"
"He's quite good—gifted and strong," Xueke thought for a moment before replying.
Snow Avalanche smiled slightly. "That's good. Actually, Father intends to have you married to him. Bringing you here today was Father's idea as well."
"Really?" Xueke's eyes lit up, but then she hesitated. "But it seems Shui Wuhen doesn't have any special feelings toward me."
"Feelings can be nurtured."
Snow Avalanche waved his hand and continued, "Father and I will create more opportunities for you to interact with him. With your intelligence, I'm confident you can capture Shui Wuhen's interest."
"Then I'll leave it to you, Brother," Xueke said with a playful smile.
From her perspective, as long as Shui Wuhen lived, he would almost certainly become a in the future. Being only four years older than her, he was the ideal candidate for her prince consort.
Time flew by, and a month later, the qualifying tournament began.
The venue was the Royal Hunting Grounds, located a hundred miles southwest of Tian Dou City. This was also where the royal family's strongest force, the Royal Knight Corps, was stationed.
Shui Wuhen observed the Royal Knight Corps training and charging on their Heaven Soul Horses and nodded slightly.
The corps was not only well-equipped but highly disciplined. In ancient times, such a force would have been considered divine-level.
However, in a world of soul masters and soul beasts, although the Royal Knight Corps included some soul masters, their numbers were too few. They could handle lower-ranked soul masters but would struggle against higher-ranked ones.
Due to limitations in spirit power, even a Soul Saint or Spirit Douluo could potentially be exhausted if trapped in endless battle formations.
But if a Soul Saint or Spirit Douluo tried to leave without an opponent of equal rank blocking them, the Royal Knight Corps could not stop them.
At the level of a Spirit Douluo, the corps would be nothing more than a joke.