Several days passed. Wu Jian spent almost every waking moment with Hou Jingshu. The two of them had become so inseparable that rumors had begun to spread amongst the crew about how he was her new secret lover. He thought the rumors were stupid. If he was a secret lover, no one would have known about him.

Of course, they did sorta get the lover part right, though they hadn’t had sex since the night he revealed himself to her.

“Haaaaaaaaah!”

“Raaaaaaaaaaah!”

Wu Jian wasn’t thinking about rumors at the moment, and instead was focused solely on the woman in front of him. Hou Jingshu was launching a series of claw-raking attacks. She swung her arms so fast and with such power that any normal cultivator at their level would have been blown away.

Control my strength carefully. Don’t try to exceed her strength. Match it.

Launching his own attacks to counter her blows, Wu Jian struck each claw attack with a punch. The loud sound of shockwaves being released echoed out every time they met each other’s attacks. Neither side gained any ground, but nor were they pushed back. It seemed as though they were completely evenly matched.

Just as it looked like they were getting into a rhythm, Wu Jian tried to sweep Hou Jingshu’s legs out from underneath her, but she hopped over the attack and came down with a heel stomp as though to crush his ankle. He retracted his leg. Moving into a handstand, he mule kicked the young woman, who crossed her arms to defend.

Hou Jingshu was blown backward. She skidded across the sparring mat for several chih, then bent her legs to build up momentum in her calves. Her toes dug into the mat before she pushed off, flying into a sprint so fast that he worried she would crash into him.

That wasn’t what happened.

Hou Jingshu spun around with an acrobatic grace and came down with a powerful heel kick. He blocked it. Arms crossed over his head, teeth gritted, Wu Jian struggled to stop her powerful kick. His knees buckled, his arms bent, but he threw her off.

“Haaaah… haaah… haaaaah…”

They had been fighting for several hours now, but while Wu Jian felt winded, Hou Jingshu looked right as rain. She was grinning fiercely--the same grin she wore every time they sparred. She seemed to really enjoy their matches.

“What the heck…? Aren’t you tired?” asked Wu Jian as he sat back on his haunches.

Hou Jingshu shook her head as she relaxed. “No. I told you, thanks to my cultivation method, I don’t get tired when I spar with you.”

“You’ve never displayed this kind of stamina before though…”

Wu Jian had been with her since the White Tiger Sect Ruins, and she had not displayed this kind of insane stamina. What was different now?

Hou Jingshu’s smile was self-deprecating as she sat down beside him, placed her hands behind her back, and looked at the ceiling.

“That’s because… I dislike violence,” she confessed. He tilted his head, but she didn’t seem to see it, eyes glazed over as though looking at something distant. “The Nine Heavenly Dragons Embodiment is a cultivation method that’s said to embody the strength and pride of a dragon. To master it, I need to enjoy the thrill of battle. I need to love showing off my power and stomping down on my opponents. The more I enjoy the fight, the stronger I become and the faster my cultivation rises… but I just can’t do that. I don’t have the mindset required to display that kind of arrogance, and I don’t like killing unless I have to.”

“But it’s different with me?” asked Wu Jian.

“I think so.” Hou Jingshu curled her knees into her chest and rested her cheek against them as she smiled in his direction. “While I don’t want to hurt you, I really want to show off how strong I’ve become, and I want to constantly test myself against you. I think that’s why I have been so much stronger, and why I don’t run out of stamina as easily.”

It sounded like she was ill-suited to her cultivation method, which made him wonder why she had chosen it.

“What about you? You seem to have gotten much stronger now,” said Hou Jingshu.

“Yeah…” Wu Jian raised a hand and clenched his fingers together. “Byakko’s blood has been fully integrated into me, granting me increased physical abilities, but that doesn’t mean I’ve mastered it. I’ve learned that if I don’t control my strength, I’ll lose stamina faster.”

Byakko’s blood granted him an incredible boost to all his physical abilities, but it wasn’t as though he couldn’t use those benefits perfectly. He ran out of stamina faster the more strength he used. His mind grew exhausted the more he relied on his enhanced senses. Too much information coming in too fast could cause his brain to overload.

He figured there were two reasons for this. The first reason was because he wasn’t controlling his abilities; he was just letting them run rampant. Of course, he would grow exhausted if he didn’t manage his abilities properly. The second reason was because of his cultivation. He simply lacked the cultivation level for Byakko’s blood to truly benefit him. As he increased his cultivation, the blood within his body should substantially increase his abilities.

“By the way, congratulations on breaking through to the seventh subrealm,” he said after a moment.

“Hmmm?” Hou Jingshu didn’t get it at first, but then her eyes widened. “Oh! I did have a breakthrough! When did that happen?!”

“Just now. I suspect it’s because we’ve been sparring every day. If what you said is true, and your cultivation increases when you actually enjoy the fight, then it sounds like I’m the perfect sparring partner for you,” Wu Jian said with a chuckle.

Hou Jingshu beamed. “It certainly seems that way. I’ve never increased my cultivation using this method before now.”

“Glad I could be of assistance.”

“Hey…”

“What is it?”

“Do you mind if I spar with you when you’re going all out?” Wu Jian tilted his head at Hou Jingshu’s question. She gestured toward the sparring mat. “We’ve only been using martial arts during our spars, but I know your greatest weapon is the Dao of Space. I was hoping to spar with you while you were using that.”

Wu Jian seriously considered it for a moment, but then shook his head. “Not right now. I’m sure this airship is sturdy, but I feel like if I truly went all out, I would damage it. But I’ll spar with you once we’re on land. How does that sound?”

Hou Jingshu nodded. “That sounds good to me. You’re right. I don’t think this airship could withstand you using all of your powers.”

Someone chose that moment to enter the training hall. It was Wu Yong. He looked around for a moment, spotted them, and made a beeline in their direction.

“There you two are. You should both get ready to disembark. We’re coming up in Shang Imperial City,” he told them.

“Thank you for notifying us,” Hou Jingshu said as Wu Jian stood up and offered her a hand. She accepted it and smiled at him. “I should find Zheng Yawen and prepare myself. I’ll have to meet with Father once I land.”

“Then I suppose I’ll find an inn…” Wu Jian began, but Hou Jingshu cut him off.

“Nonsense. You’ll stay in the palace as a guest--at least, until I can get your enrollment to the Shang Kingdom Imperial Academy processed.”

“All right. I suppose I’ll get ready too then,” Wu Jian said.

“Good. See you in a bit.”

“Yeah. See you.”

Hou Jingshu parted ways with Wu Jian, who journeyed with Wu Yong to their shared bedroom.

There weren’t that many rooms in this airship for guests since most of the rooms were taken up by the crew, so Wu Jian and Wu Yong had to share a room. Fortunately, they weren’t sharing it with anyone else.

Their room was large enough to fit two people comfortably. A pair of beds sat on opposite sides of the room, there was a dresser, a table, and a place where they could wash off. Wu Jian stripped off his clothes and sat down on the stool, though he left his facemask on since Wu Yong was present.

“Hey… um…”

“What’s up?”

Wu Jian grabbed the rag, dipped it in some water, and began wiping himself down. He could feel Wu Yong behind him.

“You and Her Highness have been spending a lot of time together. Are you two… uh… together now?”

“What would you do if I said we were?”

Wu Yong was silent for a moment. Wu Jian ran the cloth over his arms, removing the accumulation of sweat.

“Nothing… I guess…”

“Are you upset that she’s found someone?”

“N-no… I want her to be happy. I guess it’s just… you know how she was originally my brother’s fiancé, right? I suppose, even though I want her to be happy, I also feel bad for my brother, you know? The girl he loved is now with someone else… I’m just not sure how to feel about that.”

But she’s not though…

“I understand how you feel. I’d probably feel the same way if I saw a woman who was engaged to my relative with another man.”

“Well, I’m glad you understand, I guess. Anyway, please take care of her. Her Highness has a lot of pressure being placed on her.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of her.”

“Thank you.”

Wu Jian finished cleaning off, then got dressed. He wasn’t going to wear his normal training gi.

The first thing he put on were his pants. They were black and somewhat baggy. A pair of black boots went on over it. The boots wrapped around his calves and made the pants seem a little poofy near the bottom. A red shirt with long sleeves and tassels hanging down past his knees went over it, followed by black vambraces with golden scale-like patterns. A black vest with the same scale-like patterns, lined with red and gold, went over the top. The last step was a red sash with a gold front.

Wu Jian stood in front of a mirror and stared at his reflection. He moved his arms and legs, doing some basic stretches. The clothing was heavier than what he was used to, but it was comfortable and easy to move in, though he felt the designs were a little too ostentatious for him. Well, he was going to be living in the palace, so he needed to wear something that made him seem noble and wealthy.

I can’t afford to make Hou Jingshu look bad for choosing to be with me.

“I’m glad to see that outfit fits you,” Wu Yong said. “I was a little worried since I don’t have your physique, but it seems to fit you even better than I thought it would.”

“It’s baggy and easy to move in,” Wu Jian said. “Anyway, let’s go.”

The two of them left the room and made for the deck. A lot of people looked at Wu Jian as he walked by, though whether that was because of his outfit or his mask, or the rumors, he had no idea.

“You know, I doubt Her Highness is ready yet,” Wu Yong said as they made it onto the deck. “Girls take a long time to get ready. I’m sure Zheng Yawen is still in the process of putting on makeup and styling her hair.”

“Probably,” Wu Jian agreed.

He continued conversing with Wu Yong as they stopped near the rails. Wu Jian leaned against them and peered at the city that had just come into view.

“So that’s Shang Imperial City,” he murmured.

“Yeah. This sight never ceases to amaze me,” Wu Yong said.

Wu Jian could see why. Shang Imperial City was massive. Having never been to a capital city before, he didn’t know how it compared to other nation’s capitals, but it was easily the largest city he had seen thus far. He couldn’t even begin to guess how many lî it spread out for. The layout looked similar to a circle, with about thirteen main roads traveling out from what he guessed was the noble district. There were also seven roads traveling radially from the city’s center. The entire city was also surrounded by impressively high walls.

“It’s an impressive sight, isn’t it?” asked a voice to his left.

Wu Jian smiled and turned to face Hou Jingshu. “It is. I’m very impre--oh.”

He was rendered speechless when he saw Hou Jingshu, all dressed up in a pink dress. There were two layers. The under layer was a sleeveless shirt that revealed her shoulders and cleavage. Thrown over it was a dress with straps. It was tied together with a golden sash that had several ribbon-like extensions, which formed flower patterns near her thighs. The sleeves of her under shirt were voluminous, while the dress flared out like a tulip. Predominantly pink, there were golden hexagon symbols with flowers printed inside.

Not only was her outfit magnificent, but her hair had been styled. Two ribbons wrapped around her side bangs like tassels. A bun near the top was held in place with a needle, while her hair going down the center had been braided, ending when a pair of jewels stopped them to create a small fishtail. The rest of her hair was let loose. It flowed down her back like gentle waves.

Her bangs served to highlight her bright blue eyes and soft pink lips. She wasn’t wearing much makeup. He could tell she wore something to make her lips shinier, but that was about it.

“You look amazing,” he said softly as Hou Jingshu walked up to him.

Her cheeks turned red as she smiled at him. “Thank you. So, are you ready to see Shang Imperial City up close?”

“I am.”

He reached out a hand, which she clasped. They turned back toward the view, ignorant of the many eyes on them.