Hao Xuan was less than 30 meters away from the shore when it happened. This time there wasn't an explosion, nor any large shockwaves.

Instead, a small blue colored shockwave created from the energy of the blue light expanded outwards in every single direction. It went through Hao Xuan, doing internal damage and completely shutting down the nanomachines within his bloodstream, along with most of his own nervous system.

All of his senses were messed up and he didn't even know he was. Vision, hearing, and the sense of smell were the most heavily affected as they kept shutting down over and over again.

With nothing but pure willpower, Hao Xuan continued to push himself upward and outward until he felt the solid ground under his feet.

He keeled over, throwing up multiple mouthfuls of blood. Most of his body was covered in second-degree burns that were being healed fast enough to be seen with the naked eye.

The entire world was spinning around him. He tried standing up but fell down hard.

With nothing else to do, Hao Xuan laid down wherever he was, facing the starry sky.

For some reason, Xu Qing's voice rang into his ears at this moment. He could even smell the scent of her hair which reminded him of autumn.

He could vaguely see her silhouette standing above him. He couldn't make out what she was saying but the concerned tone of her voice did not escape him.

Hao Xuan reached out with his hand and managed to actually grab ahold of her hand, causing him to smile.

He tried to speak up but only more blood came out as soon as he opened his mouth. She quickly placed her hand under Hao Xuan's head, lifting it higher.

That was the last thing he remembered before losing consciousness.

***

A few minutes earlier.

A couple of minutes after Hao Xuan descended into the lake, a figure walked out of the forest behind him.

It was small, less than a meter in length. It was walking on two feet but didn't look human.

As it got closer to the shore and out in the open, the starlight illuminated his visage which was similar to that of a bearded Maltese dog. Its body was covered in black clothes, exposing only its head.

There was even a small sheathed sword on its back.

It bent down and sniffed, walking directly up to Hao Xuan's clothes.

"Haha, found it! My lady! Come come, it is here!" it shouted, jumping up and down merrily.

A rustling sound came from the forest and a few seconds later another figure walked out. This one belonged to a human female.

She wore a light armor that looked like it was made from some kind of stretchable leather type material. It was so tight that if someone didn't know any better they would think she was sealed inside it rather than wearing it normally.

Yet it did not cover her completely. The top only came down to her chest with nothing but a single strap on the back, leaving even the arms completely bare.

The bottom covered everything but taught enough to leave very little to the imagination, as if glued to her body.

Anyone belonging to the Academy would instantly recognize her as Princess Ceni.

She walked out of the foliage and straight up to the dog. Giving his head a light pat, she bent down and took a whiff of the clothes herself, nodding.

"Yeah, it's him," she mumbled weakly.

"Did I do good, my lady?!" the dog wagged its tail, jumping up and down a few more times.

Ceni smiled and rubbed its head, "Yes Haeti, you did very good!"

Haeti pranced around in circles in merriment.

"Hahaha! Yes! My lady said I did good! Do you see this, bastards!" he shouted in a random direction, making Ceni laugh.

She sat down beside Hao Xuan's clothes and looked towards the water with a receding smile, her head resting on her arms.

Meanwhile, Haeti was running around on all fours, announcing every little thing he found while talking to himself.

"Oh what a nice branch! I shall add you to my collection, rejoice!"

"OHH! Another one! The heavens are indeed favoring me today! I shall keep one for myself and give the other to my lady to cheer her up! She seems to be in low spirits recently..."

It was like he was incapable of keeping his thoughts to himself and HAD to say it out loud.

Time went by rather quickly for Haeti as he kept himself busy with one thing or another. Ceni on the other hand silently sat beside Hao Xuan's clothes.

She was using his shirt as a pillow, absentmindedly playing with buttons on the cuff while her mind wandered towards made-up scenarios.

The gold bracelet on her left hand had changed shapes. Before it looked more like a bangle but now it looked a lot more stylish and seamlessly melded with her persona.

But its function had not changed. It was a communication device before, as it was even now.

On a planet far far away, fields of different types of flowers surrounded a massive tower.

At first glance, this tower only had ten levels or so. But the longer one looked at it, the taller it would seem.

On the very last level of the tower, however high it was, sat a beautiful young lady beside a pool of water. There were plants and flowers all around it which made it look very natural. They were giving off thick spiritual energy, albeit in very small amounts.

The surface of the pond clearly reflected everything that was happening around Ceni.

Sound of footsteps came from behind her and another girl walked up the steps.

"Master, Sister Cao has successfully broken through. She will be visiting soon.. Should we prepare a feast?" she asked with a cheeky smile, running up to the first lady.

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