Fellin appeared in the training grounds with an ice-cold expression. He wasn’t smiling as usual.

"Who... are you?"

Immediately after seeing Seraph, he frowned. He has never seen anyone like this in the inner court of the Soul Peak. Else, where did this Peak Advanced Stage cultivator come from.

Seraph’s smile widened.

"Oh me? I’m just a random nobody from the Soul Peak."

Fellin’s pupils shrank. ’Soul Peak?!’

No wonder the white-haired boy’s aura felt strange. He was one of those lofty bastards from the Soul Peak. He even dared to bully Sera and Dera.

Fellin’s expression turned even colder as he stared at Seraph.

"Um..."

Seeing that her joke was being taken seriously, Dera tried to speak up but Fellin cut her off.

"Don’t worry. I’ll handle this."

Perhaps he thought she was being wary of the boy’s identity as a Soul Peak disciple. However, Fellin didn’t care. As long as he didn’t cripple him, then there would be no consequences.

Turning back to Seraph, he took out his fan and enlarged it. The blade snapped open with a metallic ring.

"Do you mind exchanging pointers with me too?"

He said politely, but his expression carried no hint of politeness.

Seraph smiled and nodded.

"Sure. I’m glad to help."

Although he knew that the other party was misunderstanding him, he didn’t care. He could already tell from the look in Ariana’s eyes that she wanted him to win, even though she felt reluctant about letting them spar.

"Good."

The instant he spoke, Fellin vanished from sight. The next moment, he reappeared beside Seraph, his large, bladed fan slashing at Seraph’s head.

The white-haired boy smiled and shifted his spear slightly, letting it deflect the attack.

Despite being thrown off balance, Fellin was unfazed. Before he even stabilized, he muttered.

"Ice Cage."

Thick pillers of ice rose around Seraph, then enclosed him within them, temporarily reducing his range of movements.

Temporarily.

"Seraphim Spear: First Form—Cyclone."

The ice prison was torn apart in a few seconds, shards of ice scattering on the stage.

Although stunned, Fellin didn’t pause. He closed the fan, making it look like a sword as he pointed it at Seraph.

His attack was once again deflected by the spear, but this left Seraph wide open.

Fellin closed the distance, then stabbed at him with an almost transparent icicle.

Seraph’s eyes crinkled in amusement.

"Wind blades."

Before the icicle reached him, two wind blades were created beneath his feet, becoming thrusters that helped him glide away gracefully.

Fellin stumbled when his opponent moved away, rendering his attack useless.

"Haa..."

He exhaled, his gaze turning colder. The fan in his hands snapped open again, and he threw it straight at Seraph.

The large weapon curved through the air like a homing missile, and appeared right before Seraph.

Clang!

It was blocked, though the force behind it pushed Seraph back by a few steps.

He grinned faintly, pushing aside the weapon as it returned to its owner.

Fellin wasted no time and immediately shot out several icicles almost twice the number that Sera had made.

Seraph responded with the same move as he previously did. A flame arrow and a wind tornado were joined to form a fire tornado.

The tornado swallowed up most of the icicles, but ended up being suppressed by the chilling coldness of the icicles.

Seeing more icicles shooting at him, Seraph’s smile dimmed faintly.

He swung his spear quickly, destroying the remaining icicles before they reached him.

"You’re strong, I admit. But!" Fellin said, raising his fan defiantly. "You’re making a mistake underestimating us."

Seraph’s eyes glinted in amusement.

"Alright. I won’t underestimate you."

His eyes turned cold, and he attacked.

Numerous wind blades were created, shooting straight at the long-haired boy with deadly precision.

Fellin immediately made several ice shields to block the blades, but was surprised to see the shields being sliced without much effort.

’This... aren’t we both at the Peak Advanced Stage?’

He couldn’t understand how his opponent’s elemental skills seemed to be superior to his own.

He immediately waved his fan, clashing with the wind blades that reached him and breaking them apart.

Immediately after, he dashed at Seraph, ice spreading on the stage as he sped up to the white-haired boy.

Wary of the chilling ice, Seraph stood afloat with two wind blades, skillfully maneuvering the stage as Fellin chased him relentlessly.

They shot icicles and wind blades at each other, transforming the terrain of the stage into something else entirely. The once smooth stage was now covered in ice and had several deep cuts on it, looking like a place ravaged by a snowstorm.

’Damnit! I can’t reach him!’

Furious, Fellin complained as he watched Seraph fly about in the air. He could also fly in the air, but that would require using his weapon and spiritual energy to stay afloat.

Also, he would need great concentration to focus on flying and maneuvering.

Yet, Seraph was doing all this while fighting him. And he was doing this with nothing but a pair of wind blades.

Fellin began to wonder what type of monsters the Soul Peak always bred. Little did he know that Seraph hadn’t even gained much from Soul Peak.

When he did, then Fellin would have to find a better term for him.

Seraph paused midair, tilting his head with a faint smile.

"Do you still want to drag this on? Or should I end it now?"

Fellin also paused, looking at the young boy with a dark expression. The sheer confidence with which Seraph spoke showed that he really believed he could end the duel anytime he wanted.

Feeling challenged, Fellin nodded. "I’d like to see you try."

He raised his fan, then leaped straight at the hovering Seraph.

The white-haired boy didn’t dodge. Instead, he watched him approach with a smile.

Then, Fellin’s eyes widened. Time seemed to slow down and he could see the things he hadn’t noticed before.

Surrounding him midair were over a hundred wind blades. If he continued like this, then he would surely suffer a grievous injury.

’I see.’

Smiling bitterly, he placed the fan before his head and torso to protect himself.

Unexpectedly, the shredding impact and pain he expected didn’t come. Instead, he fell to the ground, rolling on the iced floor.

"Huh...?"

He immediately stood up, then looked up to see Seraph looking at him with a benevolent smile.

"Since you already accepted your loss, there’s no reason to injure you, no?"

Chuckling, he returned to the ground and approached Ariana who was looking at him with starry eyes.

"What do you think?"

"Wahh! Big Brother is so strong!!!"

She grabbed his hands and squealed excitedly, her voice loud in the silent training grounds.

After the great spar between Seraph and Fellin, many other disciples had stopped sparring and watched their spar with rapt attention.

Only after Ariana spoke did they snap back to reality and got a clue about the boy’s identity.

"Your big brother?"

Fellin blinked in surprise, alternating his gaze between Seraph and Ariana.

His eyes gleamed and a smile appeared on his face. "So you’re the Seraph she always talks about. My bad."

Sera immediately spoke up. "It was Dera who lied to you. He wasn’t bullying us. We were just sparring."

"W-what! How could you...!" Dera stammered, enraged and embarrassed.

Fellin gave her a helpless smile, then apologized to Seraph.

"It’s alright. We merely sparred, after all."

He wasn’t offended by Fellin’s previous actions at all.

Fellin paused. "About that... I have to admit, you’re really strong."

Ariana’s eyes lit up. "Hehehehe. Didn’t I tell you? Big Brother is really strong. His skills are completely unmatched!"

Seraph rolled his eyes and pulled her ear slightly.

"You brat. Stop hyping unnecessarily."

He turned to Dera and Sera. "I heard from her that you all went on a mission together. Thanks for taking care of this little runt."

He ruffled Ariana’s hair with a smile as he spoke.

"Actually, I should be thanking her. She saved my life after all."

Dera said solemnly, remembering their escape from the bandits base.

"Me too." Sera added, a softer expression on her face.

’Oh?’

Seraph was surprised, but then he felt a hint of pride. His student was really doing well. It seemed he hadn’t trained her for nothing.

Suddenly remembering something, he gave the girl a long look.

Ariana tensed, glancing at him sneakily.

A smile appeared on Seraph’s face as he asked.

"Have you perfected the sword techniques I taught you?"

Ariana’s expression crumbled.

"Uh... Big Brother, I really tried to perfect it. B-but I couldn’t get the last one. It’s really..."

Seraph nodded with a smile. "I understand. Don’t worry, we’ll have two hours to train before I leave today."

Watching as her blue eyes widened in horror, he changed the topic.

"Before that, why don’t I treat everyone to a meal?"

Fellin and the twins glanced at each other, then shrugged. There was no problem with that.

"Alright, Ariana. Lead the way to your restaurant."

The girl nodded excitedly, then pulled his hands, taking them away from the training grounds.