Surprisingly, Dugu Yan's room was very messy, completely lacking the kind of feeling one might associate with a girl. Although there weren't clothes scattered in various corners, the bedding on her bed was piled up in disarray, and the dressing table was cluttered with various cosmetics, randomly pushed aside to make room for a plate full of pastries.
On the nearby bookshelf, books were stacked horizontally into several uneven piles. On her desk were high-quality brushes, ink, and expensive drawing paper.
At first glance, it seemed somewhat elegant, but the sandalwood desk and the drawing paper were both stained with numerous ink splotches, indicating that the user didn't know how to handle these things properly.
Logically speaking, given Dugu Yan's status, her room should have had dedicated servants to clean it. Could it be that Dugu Yan made a mess of everything shortly after the servants finished tidying up each day?
From the surface, there was no way to tell.
Dugu Yan herself didn't seem to think there was anything wrong with the state of her room. Seeing the bewildered look in Chen Ming's eyes, she casually explained:
"I don't like outsiders coming into my room. Even the family servants aren't allowed in here. So, not long after I awakened my martial soul, I started tidying up my room myself."
After saying this, Dugu Yan suddenly froze, realizing her words might carry some unintended meaning.
"What I mean is… you're not an outsider… no, that's not what I meant… anyway…"
Dugu Yan stammered, trying to explain herself, but after stumbling over her words for a while, she gave up and lowered her head like an ostrich burying itself in the sand.
"Just sit here for a bit. I'll tidy up."
Dugu Yan pushed Chen Ming into a chair nearby, then grabbed a metal basin from a corner and hurried out of the room, leaving Chen Ming, a male guest, alone in her private space.
To be honest, this was the first time in both of Chen Ming's lives that he had experienced something like this. While he couldn't help but marvel at how different Dugu Yan's behavior was compared to her demeanor at the academy, his body instinctively tensed up.
In his previous life, for various reasons, he had never been in a relationship and, after starting work, gave up on marriage due to financial constraints.
In this life, after being reincarnated, he had spent nearly every day cultivating since the age of six. His occasional leisure activities consisted of teasing scorpions in their dens or soloing captured soul beasts.
Although he now had the means and ability to indulge in a life of luxury, Chen Ming had never pursued such things.
In fact, due to years of focused cultivation and a diet of whale glue, he was probably less experienced in this area than in his past life, where he had at least been exposed to countless romantic dramas.
Sitting in Dugu Yan's room, Chen Ming felt an inexplicable sense of awkwardness. Strangely, while Dugu Yan had been present, he had been bold enough to scrutinize her room. Now that she was gone, he found himself hesitant to look around freely.
After some thought, he grabbed a familiar soul beast encyclopedia from the bookshelf and sat down to carefully peruse it, as if it were his first time reading it.
Not long after, the door to the room opened, and Dugu Yan returned with the basin, her face freshly washed.
When she saw Chen Ming engrossed in the encyclopedia as if he were completely absorbed, Dugu Yan couldn't help feeling both amused and exasperated.
After casually tossing the basin into a corner, Dugu Yan sat down in front of Chen Ming and patted him on the shoulder.
"We've come this far, yet I still don't know much about your story. Now that we're alone, why don't you tell me about it?"
"There's nothing much to hide. It's not like it's some deep secret. Honestly, I'm more surprised that you don't already know…"
Chen Ming set the encyclopedia aside, glanced at Dugu Yan, and calmly began recounting his story.
A simple childhood, losing his parents at the age of two, and spending most of his time on the training grounds ever since. After awakening his martial soul at the age of six, he learned of his family's curse and devoted himself entirely to cultivation, aiming to solve the problem that had plagued his family for centuries.
He mentioned the mysterious sacrifice that granted him the Jade Phosphor Seven-Flower soul ring, surpassing the limit of a first soul ring, the thousand-year Emerald Scorpion soul ring he absorbed a few months ago, and the external soul bone he gained after absorbing the ring.
Apart from vaguely glossing over the special ability he possessed, Chen Ming shared almost everything with Dugu Yan.
After finishing his story, Chen Ming felt a sense of pride.
Although he didn't deny the role his special ability had played, he believed that his efforts had been crucial in achieving what he had.
Whether it was cultivating his soul power, honing his body, or developing his special ability, it all required immense effort and dedication.
However, after hearing his story, Dugu Yan's eyes turned red, and she suddenly hugged him, her voice choked with emotion.
"You carried such a heavy burden and worked so hard to overcome it. You're truly amazing."
Dugu Yan's words were heartfelt.
She couldn't help but feel that she was far inferior to Chen Ming.
She, too, had lost her parents at a young age. She, too, had a grandfather who cared for her. She, too, faced a significant flaw in her martial soul.
But unlike Chen Ming, who took on the burden of his martial soul's flaw and devoted himself entirely to solving it, Dugu Yan had chosen to avoid the problem. After the first painful experience caused by the poisons in her body, she placed all her hopes on her grandfather, Dugu Bo.
At this moment, in Dugu Yan's eyes, Chen Ming was like a better version of herself.
Previously, she hadn't fully understood why Chen Ming was confident in solving the issues with his martial soul, but after hearing his story, she realized it made perfect sense.
"Have you ever thought about what you would do if the problem wasn't solved after absorbing the two soul rings? Wouldn't you feel despair?"
"If it isn't solved?" Chen Ming replied without hesitation, "If it isn't solved, it just means the method was wrong. I'd simply look for another way."
"If absorbing soul rings doesn't fix the fundamental flaw, then I'll just become a Titled Douluo."