Chapter 191 The Tension Between Tiandou and Spirit Hall
'Emperor Xue Ye is so stingy, can't he be more generous?'
Ye Chen grumbled to himself, looking at the gold coin card with a face value of ten thousand gold coins in his hand.
Having scooped up a huge sum of several small targets in the preliminary round, Ye Chen naturally didn't care for this mere ten thousand gold coins.
With the awards ceremony concluded, Emperor Xue Ye began to deliver his speech, which could also be seen as a high-end talent recruitment fair.
Emperor Xue Ye gave Ye Chen a meaningful glance, then scanned over the student representatives from the five academies before him, and finally said with a smile, "First, I want to congratulate you.
You have successfully qualified for the advancement stage of this All-Continent Advanced Spirit Master Academy Elite Tournament.
As the supreme ruler of the Heaven Dou Empire, I am proud of you. You are all the future hope of the Empire.
And as the captains and vice-captains of your respective teams, your strength has played the most crucial role in the competition.
Therefore, I have decided to confer upon you ten the title of Viscount, and upon the other participating students from your five academies the title of Baron.
Once you graduate, the doors of the Imperial Royal Family will always be open to you, and your noble titles and fiefdoms will be uniformly distributed after your graduation!"
Listening to Emperor Xue Ye say this, Ye Chen felt a slight blush, feeling a bit embarrassed.
After all, he had only participated in one of the twenty-seven preliminary matches, and Vice-Captain Ning Rongrong was not far behind him in that regard. However, the other four teams had almost always sent out their captains and vice-captains for every match.
"Your Majesty, this might not be appropriate."
Suddenly, Salas interjected from the side.
Emperor Xue Ye gave Salas a faint sidelong glance: "Is there something inappropriate, Your Excellency Bishop Salas?"
"In previous competitions, there has been no precedent for awarding noble titles, and furthermore, aren't the titles given too high?"
Salas's expression was a little unsightly.
In fact, the title of Viscount in the Heaven Dou Empire was not particularly high.
After all, any three-ring Spirit Elder who joined the Heaven Dou Empire's official ranks could attain the title of Baron, and the captains and vice-captains of the five academies all had spirit power levels above forty.
However, what Emperor Xue Ye had promised was a real, influential noble title with a fiefdom, not just an honorary title that only received a salary, so its value was considerably higher.
Moreover, the Viscount title awarded by Emperor Xue Ye did not carry the same binding force as when other Spirit Masters joined the Heaven Dou official ranks, which is why Salas said the reward was too high.
Salas felt that Emperor Xue Ye was disrupting the market.
After all, if Heaven Dou offered a higher price, wouldn't the Spirit Hall also have to offer a matching price to recruit talent in the future? Doing so could easily lead to internal competition, couldn't it?
"Your Excellency Platinum Bishop, the conferment of noble titles is an internal affair of the Empire, unrelated to the Spirit Hall, and also unrelated to this tournament. It is merely a reward I bestow upon these children because I admire them.
Here, I also give you a promise: if any of your teams can win the final competition and claim the championship, the entire team's noble titles will be promoted by another rank, and at the same time, the academy's prefix will be changed to 'Royal,' enjoying financial support from the Empire."
Emperor Xue Ye directly shut Salas up, then looked at Ye Chen and Ning Rongrong.
As the controller of the Heaven Dou Empire, the relationship between Ye Chen and Ning Rongrong naturally could not be hidden from Emperor Xue Ye.
With the example of Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong hiding their spirit power levels, Emperor Xue Ye believed that Ye Chen's strength was definitely not as simple as a level 39 Spirit Elder on the surface; otherwise, Ning Fengzhi would never have agreed to Ye Chen being with his precious daughter.
As the captains and vice-captains of their respective teams, although these young people could be considered worldly, Emperor Xue Ye's barrage of rewards still left them somewhat stunned.
Generally speaking, a Viscount with a fiefdom would at least possess a small city, like Nuoding City.
However, as for Emperor Xue Ye's promise of a championship reward, the people from the four Elemental Academies didn't dare to think too much about it.
Aside from the Spirit Hall Academy and the academies that qualified from the Star Luo region, Shrek Academy alone was enough to make them abandon any thoughts of winning the championship.
Anyone with eyes could see that Shrek Academy's strength far surpassed theirs.
Shenfeng Academy could only win because Shrek's main force didn't participate.
Listening to Emperor Xue Ye's promise, Salas's expression looked very ugly, but he didn't say anything more, though a hint of gloom appeared in his eyes.
Ye Chen was all too aware of the tension between the Spirit Hall and the Heaven Dou Empire; a confrontation was bound to happen sooner or later.
It's just that Emperor Xue Ye still didn't know that his son, Xue Qinghe, had long been replaced by someone from the Spirit Hall; otherwise, he would definitely kill Salas, the Platinum Bishop of the Heaven Dou Spirit Hall, as a sacrifice to rally the anti-Spirit Hall alliance across the continent.
Ning Fengzhi, on the other hand, just stood to the side, smiling silently, as if none of this concerned him.
Emperor Xue Ye ignored Salas's disgusted expression and continued, "The upcoming advancement rounds will still be held in the Empire.
However, the location will change from the Tiandou Great Spirit Arena to the Royal Hunting Grounds.
At that time, the ten qualifying teams from the four kingdoms and one duchy under the Empire will come to compete with you in the advancement rounds.
I hope that your five academies can all rank among the top in the advancement rounds, so you can gain an advantage when participating in the finals."
"The advancement rounds are the best stage to demonstrate your individual strength.
At that time, for the top three students who achieve the most victories in the advancement rounds, the Empire will provide you with the Spirit Beast needed for your next major rank advancement.
You can choose the type of Spirit Beast yourselves; the Empire can guarantee all Spirit Beasts with cultivation under thirty thousand years."
Ye Chen pouted; he wouldn't even want a Spirit Beast under thirty thousand years.
"The advancement rounds will be held a month from now. I hope you can make further breakthroughs within this month.
Alright, I won't say much else. You children are all very clever, and I believe you will make clever choices."
After saying this, Emperor Xue Ye glanced at Salas, then greeted Ning Fengzhi, and turned to leave, accompanied by various imperial officials.
Salas's eyes flickered, but his expression had completely calmed down, making it difficult to discern anything from his face.
Just as Emperor Xue Ye had said, although he didn't explicitly state it, the captains and vice-captains of the various academy teams all understood his meaning: choose one between the Heaven Dou Empire and the Spirit Hall.
Of course, you could also choose neither; in Emperor Xue Ye's view, as long as you didn't join the Spirit Hall, it was fine.
The preliminary rounds had ended, and there was still a month until the advancement rounds, so everyone could temporarily go home and find their mothers.
However, Ye Chen didn't go home. Right after the competition ended, there was an awards ceremony, and he hadn't even gone to collect his money yet!
Chapter 192 Future Planning
At the betting counter, Ye Chen felt very pleased looking at Shenfeng Academy's odds of 1 to 1.7.
When he placed his bet in the morning, Shenfeng Academy's odds were originally very high, but after Ye Chen invested two small targets, they immediately dropped to 1 to 1.6. However, it was still early then, and many people hadn't placed their bets yet. By the time the betting closed, the odds had risen by 0.1.
Betting two hundred million gold coins at odds of 1 to 1.7 meant three hundred and forty million. Even after deducting the Great Spirit Arena's five percent commission, Ye Chen still earned one hundred and twenty-three million gold coin, so his efforts were not in vain.
At the beginning of the preliminary competition, Ye Chen only had a few million gold coin in his pocket. Now, in less than a month, the total balance in his gold coin cards and the System Shop reached seven small targets. How delightful!
'Hmm, it doesn't seem like much?'
After counting, Ye Chen realized that compared to the hard work of earning money, it was more practical to rely on his cheat-like'son' to win by lying down.
Now that his spirit power level was that of a Spirit Emperor (6 Rings), his cheat-like'son' could provide him with over six small targets annually. His own busy efforts for a month or so were only comparable to lying still for over a year? Not to mention his spirit power level would continue to increase in the future.
Moreover, the most important thing was that there wouldn't be such good opportunities to make money in the future.
...
After the preliminary competition ended, Ye Chen was busy for most of the day, finally converting all the gold coin cards he had into gold coin and depositing them into the System Shop.
Although several hundred million gold coin cards were indeed a lot, the Great Spirit Arena itself stored a large amount of gold coin. In addition, Ye Chen later went to the Seven Treasure Chamber of Commerce in the city to cash out several hundred million gold coin cards, which was not difficult.
Returning to Shrek Academy and entering his room, Ye Chen nodded in satisfaction as he looked at the balance of over seven small targets in the System Shop.
Immediately, Ye Chen purchased eighteen black ten-thousand-year Spirit Bone year-boosting cards, plus one Immortal Herb: Qiluo Tulip, spending a total of two hundred and eighty million, leaving him with four hundred and twenty million gold coin.
The eighteen black ten-thousand-year Spirit Bone year-boosting cards were bought for Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong.
Zhu Zhuqing possessed a ten-thousand-year Netherworld Swift Cat Left Leg Bone, and Ning Rongrong possessed a ten-thousand-year Illusion Wisdom Skull. These eighteen black ten-thousand-year Spirit Bone year-boosting cards were enough to elevate these two Spirit Bone to one hundred thousand years.
However, at this moment, the two of them, along with Xiao Wu and Jiang Zhu, had gone shopping, ostensibly to relax, so he would have to wait until they returned.
As for the remaining Qiluo Tulip, Ye Chen intended to give it to Ning Fengzhi.
Without Ning Yu and the others, Ye Chen would absolutely not have had the chance to earn so much at the Great Spirit Arena. Now that he was rich, giving a good gift was not a big deal; after all, he was his future father-in-law.
Additionally, for the upcoming Soul Master Competition finals in Spirit City and his subsequent seventh spirit ring, Ye Chen would need to rely heavily on his father-in-law.
Putting Ye Chen himself aside, just Xiao Wu alone—although only a small part of her talent and strength had been revealed, it was enough to attract suppression from Spirit Hall, and there was a high probability of foul play. Before he and the others could grow, all of this would require the protection of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School.
For his subsequent seventh spirit ring, Ye Chen had set his sights on a one-hundred-thousand-year plant-type Spirit Beast.
Even if he found a one-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Beast, he certainly couldn't defeat it with his own strength alone. This would require the reliance of Chen Xin and Gu Rong, these two great masters.
Although Ye Chen could purchase a Level 9 fixed-load spirit tool from the System Shop, which could unleash the power of an ordinary Level 9 Titled Douluo, how could an ordinary Level 9 Titled Douluo be a match for a one-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Beast?
Moreover, while his attack power could rival an ordinary Titled Douluo, in other aspects, Ye Chen was still quite lacking. To be safe, when attaching his seventh spirit ring, he absolutely needed a master to lead the team.
As for whether he could find a one-hundred-thousand-year plant-type Spirit Beast? Ye Chen wasn't too worried.
One-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Beasts are rare, and Ye Chen specifically required a one-hundred-thousand-year plant-type Spirit Beast. However, there were quite a few high-year plant-type Spirit Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest that were stuck at a bottleneck, just one step away from one hundred thousand years of cultivation.
Spirit Beasts, like human Spirit Master, also have cultivation bottlenecks. Moreover, compared to human Spirit Master, the one-hundred-thousand-year mark is even more difficult than a human Spirit Master breaking through from Level 89 to Level 90.
In the System Shop, Ye Chen discovered a celestial-grade medicinal herb called Immortal Spirit Grass, which could significantly boost the talent and cultivation of plant-type Spirit Beasts.
He remembered that the Demon Eye Magic Tree, King of Ten Thousand Beasts, one of the Ten Great Ferocious Beasts of Douluo in later generations, had luckily consumed an Immortal Spirit Grass, which allowed it to grow into a super ferocious beast.
Otherwise, given the Demon Eye Magic Tree's racial talent and potential, it would have been fortunate for the King of Ten Thousand Beasts to become a one-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Beast.
He believed that if a plant-type Spirit Beast stuck at the one-hundred-thousand-year bottleneck consumed one, it should be able to advance to a one-hundred-thousand-year plant-type Spirit Beast.
Although an Immortal Spirit Grass cost one small target of gold coin, compared to a one-hundred-thousand-year spirit ring and a one-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Bone, this price was still very worthwhile.
A spirit ring was fine; even an original one-hundred-thousand-year seventh spirit ring could only produce one Spirit Ability—Martial Soul True Body.
For Ye Chen, the difference between a ninety-thousand-year seventh spirit ring and a one-hundred-thousand-year seventh spirit ring was merely ten million gold coin.
But a Spirit Bone was different. Every normal one-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Bone would come with two one-hundred-thousand-year Soul Bone Skill. This was one more Soul Bone Skill than the one-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Bone that Ye Chen obtained by using Spirit Bone year-boosting cards.
Moreover, if a Spirit Beast's age was less than one hundred thousand years, the probability of it dropping a Spirit Bone was still very low. Even if Ye Chen used a luck card, he wasn't confident he could get a Spirit Bone.
One one-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Bone would pay for itself, and it would also come with a one-hundred-thousand-year spirit ring. Ye Chen naturally understood the profitability of this deal.
"Once I advance to Soul Sage (7 Rings), I will make rapid progress!"
In fact, by consuming a large amount of gold coin to significantly increase the year of his spirit rings, Ye Chen could quickly break through to Level 70, a quasi-Spirit Saint.
With a one-hundred-thousand-year external Spirit Bone: Creation Green Lotus, a one-hundred-thousand-year Thorn Iron Tree Left Arm Bone, a one-hundred-thousand-year bloodthirsty demon vine right arm bone, plus the Creation Body Tempering Art, Ye Chen's physical constitution was very strong, allowing him to withstand spirit rings far exceeding the optimal spirit ring year configuration.
However, Ye Chen dared not continue to increase the year of his spirit rings.
For his upcoming seventh spirit ring, Ye Chen's target was a one-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Beast. If he continued to increase the year of his existing six spirit rings, then by the time he reached Level 70, he would not be able to withstand the pressure brought by a one-hundred-thousand-year spirit ring.
twin spirits Spirit Master exploding and dying was due to being unable to withstand the pressure from spirit rings. Although Ye Chen's number of spirit rings was not large, their quality was extremely high.
Four ten-thousand-year spirit rings, one twenty-thousand-year spirit ring, and one fifty-thousand-year spirit ring—it was only because Ye Chen had three one-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Bone and the Creation Body Tempering Art that he could endure. Otherwise, an ordinary person would have long since been unable to bear it.
Chapter 193 Ning Rongrong's Little Game
In the evening, after playing with Xiao Wu's long white silk legs as usual, Ye Chen slipped out of his small villa.
The moon was beautiful tonight; the bright moonlight illuminated the dark earth, perfect for Ye Chen to do mischievous things.
"Hmm, not bad, not bad, the window isn't closed!"
Looking at the unclosed window of Ning Rongrong's room on the second floor of the neighboring villa, Ye Chen nodded in satisfaction.
He nimbly climbed to the second floor, and with a flip, Ye Chen slipped into Ning Rongrong's room.
"Brother Chen, you're here!"
Hearing the movement, Ning Rongrong poked her head out of the quilt and said with a surprised look.
"Mm-hmm."
"Brother Chen, you haven't teased me for many days, come on~!"
Ning Rongrong, with a flushed face, waved at Ye Chen.
She seemed a bit impatient? He always felt something was off.
'Could it be that Rongrong has unique hobbies?'
Ye Chen thought to himself.
"Cough cough, Rongrong, stop thinking about all sorts of messy things all day long, there's still serious business to attend to!"
He, Xiao Chen, climbed into Ning Rongrong's room tonight not to do mischievous things, but to upgrade her Spirit Bone's age.
"Serious business? At night, isn't this the serious business? Hmph hmph~, Little Chenzi, hurry up and serve Queen Rongrong!"
Throwing off the quilt, Ning Rongrong, dressed in an exceptionally 'ragged' outfit, put her left hand on her hip and beckoned to Ye Chen with her right index finger.
This sexy outfit was something Ning Rongrong had specially bought when they went shopping during the day.
How could he tolerate this? This little girl needed discipline! Immediately, Ye Chen pounced on her and spanked Ning Rongrong.
Of course, she was still a bit young, so Ye Chen ultimately held back.
After teasing Ning Rongrong thoroughly, Ye Chen brought up the serious matter.
"Rongrong, take these treasures that increase Spirit Bone age and use them."
Saying that, Ye Chen handed nine black Ten Thousand Year Spirit Bone Age Enhancement Cards to Ning Rongrong.
"Black ones, nine cards? Could my Illusion Wisdom Skull be able to transform into a Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Bone?"
Ning Rongrong said with a surprised look.
She had used cards that could increase spirit ring age before, knowing that yellow ones could increase age by a hundred years, purple ones by a thousand years, and so on. These black cards used to increase Spirit Bone age should each increase it by ten thousand years.
"Yes, you'll soon have a Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Bone, but this kind of acquired Spirit Bone is a bit different from a normal Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Bone; the Soul Bone Skill will still only be the original one."
"One Soul Bone Skill? That's fine, anyway, a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone Skill will definitely be much stronger than a Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone Skill!"
Ning Rongrong didn't mind this flaw. Although there was one less Soul Bone Skill, it was still a Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Bone, wasn't it?
A Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Bone was a supreme treasure in the Spirit Master's world, extremely rare. Although Ning Rongrong was the eldest young lady of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School, she had never truly hoped to possess a Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Bone before.
"Alright, use them quickly. I believe your spirit power level should be able to advance to level 50."
Ning Rongrong was currently a level 46 Spirit Ancestor. If she refined a Hundred Thousand Year Head Spirit Bone, it wouldn't be difficult to increase her spirit power by four levels.
However, this Illusion Wisdom Skull was being enhanced to a Hundred Thousand Year age on the basis of its existing Ten Thousand Year age, so it might not necessarily increase her spirit power by four levels. But even if it didn't, it would be close.
Coincidentally, Ning Rongrong's spirit ring configuration was still purple, purple, purple, black. Upgrading the first three spirit rings to black Ten Thousand Year ones wouldn't affect her absorption of the fifth spirit ring.
As the black Ten Thousand Year Spirit Bone Age Enhancement Cards were used, the age of the Illusion Wisdom Skull was transforming towards a Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Bone, and Ning Rongrong's spirit power level also began to surge.
After the last Spirit Bone Age Enhancement Card was used, the Illusion Wisdom Skull transformed into a Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Bone. However, it was a bit regrettable that the spirit power gained from the Spirit Bone age enhancement lacked some staying power.
Ultimately, Ning Rongrong's level was stuck at level 49 Spirit Ancestor, still half a step away from a level 50 quasi-Spirit King.
"Oh, what a pity~, I couldn't truly break through~"
After sensing it for a while and realizing she hadn't broken through to level 50, Ning Rongrong felt a bit regretful.
"We'll talk about that later. Has the Soul Bone Skill: Illusion Space changed at all?"
With the age of the Illusion Wisdom Spirit Bone increased, not only did Ning Rongrong's physical fitness and mental force become stronger, but the effect of the Soul Bone Skill naturally also transformed to be more powerful.
Moreover, a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone Skill was on the same level as a Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Ability, which meant that Ning Rongrong, who currently had less than five spirit rings, already possessed a Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Ability.
"There's a change, but the general effect of Illusion Space remains the same. It still establishes a mental network, confuses opponents, and weakens enemies' mental force; it's just more effective.
Additionally, the original Illusion Space could only boost teammates' mental force by 20%, but now the boost ratio has reached 50%."
"Boosting mental force by half? Not bad!"
With the Soul Bone Skill: Illusion Space, Ning Rongrong was heading further and further down the path of a super support.
Subsequently, Ye Chen didn't waste any more words and directly spent nearly twenty-five million gold coins in the System Shop to buy various spirit ring age enhancement cards, upgrading Ning Rongrong's spirit ring configuration to four all-black rings.
The enhancement of her spirit rings, coupled with another increase in spirit power level, meant that Ning Rongrong, who was originally just a step away from a level 50 quasi-Spirit King, crossed the threshold and advanced to level 50 when her first spirit ring's age transformed.
Due to the lack of a fifth spirit ring, Ye Chen couldn't determine Ning Rongrong's current level with all-black spirit rings.
However, it was likely around level 52, as one black Ten Thousand Year spirit ring was enough to raise a level 50 quasi-Spirit King's spirit power by one level.
Although Ning Rongrong's first, second, and third spirit rings were originally purple Thousand Year spirit rings, the spirit power increase after upgrading them to Ten Thousand Year age could not be equated to attaching three Ten Thousand Year spirit rings, but it could be compared to two.
Given Ning Rongrong's physical fitness and mental force strength, she could withstand a fifth spirit ring of around twenty thousand years.
Ye Chen estimated that after attaching her fifth spirit ring in a few days, Ning Rongrong's spirit power level should be able to reach level 54 Spirit King.
However, Ning Rongrong's Spirit Ability was somewhat special. Although the age of her spirit rings increased, the boosting effect remained unchanged from before; it was merely that the spirit power consumption when using her Spirit Ability decreased significantly with the increase in spirit ring age.
After upgrading Ning Rongrong's Spirit Bone and spirit rings, Ye Chen planned to go to Zhu Zhuqing's room next door, intending to make three stops in one night and spend the night with Da Mao Mi.
However, he couldn't resist Ning Rongrong's persistent coaxing. The two played the 'Queen and Her Servant' game until the early hours of the morning, when the satisfied queen finally let go of her poor servant.
Chapter 194: To be on the safe side when you're out, let's stay together at night!
Seeing that it was already this late, Da Mao Mi must have fallen asleep, so Ye Chen gave up the idea of doing three rounds in one night and decided to wait until tomorrow morning.
Early the next morning, as dawn broke, Ye Chen sneaked into Da Mao Mi's room next door and played a wake-up game with her.
Originally, Zhu Zhuqing's spirit power level was Spirit Ancestor (48 RIngs), two levels higher than Ning Rongrong. After Ye Chen upgraded her Netherworld Swift Cat Left Leg Bone to a 100,000-year Spirit Bone, her spirit power reached above level 50.
Similarly, due to the lack of a fifth spirit ring, the excess spirit power did not manifest.
Although Da Mao Mi had reached level 50, Ye Chen still upgraded her spirit ring configuration to four all-black rings.
After all, Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong already had them. To be fair, Da Mao Mi also needed to have them, and Ye Chen was not a biased person.
After the Netherworld Swift Cat Left Leg Bone was upgraded to 100,000 years, the Soul Bone Skill: Netherworld Piercing, which originally increased piercing effect by 30%, became an increase of 50%.
As for the first Spirit Ability, Netherworld Piercing, after evolving into a 10,000-year Spirit Ability, not only did its attack power increase, but its instantaneous speed boost, which was originally 150%, now became a 200% boost.
Although it was only an instantaneous burst of speed, it was enough for Zhu Zhuqing to gain the initiative when using her Spirit Ability.
The second Spirit Ability, Netherworld Claw, and the third Spirit Ability, Nether Slash, after transforming into 10,000-year Spirit Abilities, their spirit power greatly increased, and the attached piercing effect increased from the original 20% to 30%.
Counting the Soul Bone Skill: Netherworld Piercing, when Zhu Zhuqing used her second or third Spirit Ability, it would come with an 80% Spirit Ability piercing effect, which was definitely the nightmare of all defense-type Spirit Masters.
It could be said that in front of Zhu Zhuqing, the defense-type Spirit Master's proud defense was no different from that of an ordinary support system Spirit Master.
"Zhuqing, Rongrong, you are both level 50 now, and there is still nearly a month until the promotion competition. Let's go to Star Dou Great Forest tomorrow."
Ye Chen said to the two of them during breakfast.
Both of them lacked a fifth spirit ring and needed a Spirit Beast of around 20,000 years. Although Sunset Forest was just outside Heaven Dou City, the number of 10,000-year Spirit Beasts in Sunset Forest was far less than in Star Dou Great Forest.
It was not even certain if there were suitable Spirit Beasts for them there! Not to mention encountering and hunting them, so Ye Chen decided to go directly to Star Dou Great Forest.
"Mm-hmm."
Hearing this, both of them nodded.
"Brother~, I want to go too!"
Xiao Wu immediately said. If all three of them went to Star Dou Great Forest, how boring would it be to leave her alone at Shrek Academy?
"Alright then."
After thinking for a moment, Ye Chen agreed.
Although this trip to Star Dou Great Forest, due to the long distance, had an uncertain return date and might miss the promotion competition.
However, the promotion competition was different from the qualifiers. As long as one qualified for the promotion competition, there would be no elimination, only ranking. Even if they were at the bottom, they could still participate in the finals, so it was fine for Xiao Wu to go to Star Dou Great Forest.
...
Early the next morning, Ye Chen, who was not short of money, bought a carriage, and the group of four headed towards Star Dou Great Forest.
This time, Ye Chen did not call Flender, because among the four, Ye Chen and Xiao Wu both had the combat power of a Soul Sage (7 Rings), making it easy to deal with 20,000-year Spirit Beasts.
Even if they encountered a 50,000-year Spirit Beast, Ye Chen and the four of them could retreat safely. As for older ones, as long as they did not enter the core area of Star Dou Great Forest, they would generally not encounter Spirit Beasts of that age.
The 20,000-year Spirit Beasts that Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong needed were abundant in the inner area, so there was no need to enter the core area.
Another reason was that if Flender was present while taking three girls out, it would be a bit of a mood killer.
...
The official road within the Heaven Dou Empire, although not comparable to the concrete asphalt roads of Ye Chen's previous World, was wide and flat, and the carriage traveled at a decent speed.
Ten days later, in the evening, Ye Chen and the four arrived at a Hunting Soul Town on the outskirts of Star Dou Great Forest.
"It's getting late. Let's rest in Hunting Soul Town tonight and depart tomorrow morning!"
After selling the carriage at a stable, Ye Chen said to Xiao Wu and the other two.
"Mm-hmm."
The three of them nodded.
Ye Chen bought the carriage before because he didn't want anyone to disturb their World of four. Now he sold it because after obtaining the spirit rings, they might not pass through this Hunting Soul Town when returning to Heaven Dou City, so he sold it in advance.
Actually, if it weren't for his habit of not wasting, this small amount of money was not even in Ye Chen's eyes. He could earn back the cost of a carriage in the time it took him to take a breath.
Afterward, Ye Chen found a hotel in Hunting Soul Town.
Although the hotels in Hunting Soul Town were not comparable to the high-end hotels in big cities, their quality was not bad. After all, most of the guests staying in Hunting Soul Town were Spirit Master lords, and none of them were short of money.
"Do you still have rooms?"
As soon as Ye Chen entered the hotel lobby, he saw a waiter behind the counter and immediately stepped forward to ask.
"Yes, welcome to our Rujia Hotel. How many rooms would you like?"
If it were one man and one woman, the waiter wouldn't ask too many questions and would just open one room. But with this one man and three women in front of him, he couldn't figure out their relationship.
"Give me one room, and the bed must be big!"
Without waiting for Xiao Wu and the other two to say anything, Ye Chen waved his hand grandly and said with an air of extravagance.
Hearing Ye Chen's words, how could the waiter not know that these three goddess-like girls were all Ye Chen's women?
Immediately, the waiter looked at Ye Chen with envy and admiration.
"Xiao Wu, Zhuqing, Rongrong, when we're out, anything unexpected can happen. We must be careful, so it's best if we stay in one room tonight."
Ye Chen explained to Xiao Wu and the other two, putting on a facade of caring for them.
"Pfft~"
Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong blushed and said nothing, while Zhu Zhuqing secretly spat, but did not directly object.
Seeing the reactions of his three girls, Ye Chen remained calm on the surface, but secretly rejoiced in his heart. It seemed that tonight might be a night of sleeping together?
Then, after paying for the room, the waiter handed Ye Chen the key to room 001 on the third floor.
'Room 001? Looks like it's a presidential suite?'
Looking at the key in his hand, Ye Chen pondered to himself.
Arriving on the third floor and opening the door, what greeted his eyes was a bedroom measuring over eighty square meters.
The interior of the bedroom was also quite well decorated, but what attracted Ye Chen's attention the most was the large bed in the room, which was three meters long and over five meters wide.
Uh, maybe it was five meters long and three meters wide?
Hmm, that's not important. What's important is that there was only one bed in the room, and it was definitely more than enough for four people to sleep on!
Chapter 195 Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear
"Is there only one bed? I should have brought my Seven-Colored Small Villa."
Ning Rongrong grumbled.
Don't look at her; when she was alone with Ye Chen, she was quite the naughty girl, but when others were present, Ning Rongrong was definitely the most reserved.
"Ahem~, well, when traveling, keep things simple. Let's just make do."
Actually, Ye Chen could have carried his Soul Guidance Small Villa with him, but if he brought the Small Villa, since each Small Villa had more than one room, he wouldn't have the chance to sleep under the same blanket. So, Ye Chen didn't carry it with him and didn't remind Ning Rongrong to bring it.
"Rongrong, weren't you quite playful? Why are you acting so reserved now?"
Watching Ning Rongrong's reserved demeanor, Zhu Zhuqing couldn't help but interject with a complaint.
"No way? Zhuqing, don't talk nonsense~"
Ning Rongrong retorted, her face flushed.
"A few days ago at the academy, I wonder who said she wanted to be a queen? I was so noisy I couldn't sleep."
Zhu Zhuqing said with a smile.
Apparently, the 'Queen and Her Servant' game Ning Rongrong and Ye Chen played that night was overheard by Zhu Zhuqing.
"Damn it, Zhuqing, I'll fight you!"
Immediately, an exasperated Ning Rongrong pounced on Zhu Zhuqing, pushing her onto the bed, and they tumbled into a playful fight.
For a moment, there was a hint of spring scenery, making Ye Chen feel a bit parched.
"Xiao Wu, we've traveled all day, let's go wash up first."
Ye Chen ignored the bickering Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong, and pulled the somewhat bewildered Xiao Wu into the bathroom in the corner of the bedroom.
"Hmph~, just scrub my back, don't tickle me~"
Soon after, Xiao Wu's displeased voice echoed from the bathroom.
"Mhm, I know~"
...
That night, Ye Chen sternly rejected Ning Rongrong's suggestion for him to sleep on the floor, and under his strong insistence, he realized the great dream of'sleeping under the same blanket'.
Of course, it was still a bit short of truly sleeping under the same blanket, as there was no 'accidental discharge'.
Early the next morning, as dawn was just breaking, Ye Chen, sporting dark circles under his eyes, led the three girls out of Hunting Soul Town and headed towards the Star Dou Great Forest.
There was nothing he could do; last night's temptation was too strong, and Ye Chen was too busy playing with legs to get a good rest.
Fortunately, the physical and mental force of Spirit Masters far exceeded that of ordinary people, so occasionally missing sleep was not a problem.
...
Star Dou Great Forest, inner region.
"It's getting late, let's eat lunch first and rest!"
With the scorching sun high in the sky, Ye Chen said to Xiao Wu and the two others as they walked through the forest.
"Brother Chen, didn't you say that after using that card, Zhuqing and my luck would be very good? How come it's already the second day and we still haven't found a suitable one?"
Ning Rongrong complained to Ye Chen.
The card Ning Rongrong was referring to was naturally the Lucky Card, each priced at one hundred thousand gold coin.
The Star Dou Great Forest was so vast that if they relied solely on luck, who knew when the two of them would encounter a suitable Spirit Beast. So, after entering the inner region of the Star Dou Great Forest, Ye Chen immediately used Lucky Cards for both of them.
However, it was already the second day, and they still hadn't encountered one. Clearly, Ye Chen had already wasted two million gold coin.
Fortunately, Ye Chen had earned quite a lot in the Great Spirit Arena before, so he didn't care much about this small amount of money.
"Don't worry, as long as there are Spirit Beasts you need in the nearby area, we will definitely encounter them."
Ye Chen still had considerable faith in the Lucky Card's effect.
If it weren't for the Lucky Card, Ye Chen felt that with his true luck, he would absolutely not have been able to obtain the external Spirit Bones: Creation Green Lotus and the bloodthirsty demon vine right arm bone. They were definitely worth their value.
"Oh~"
Afterward, the four of them ate the pre-prepared dry rations under a towering tree.
Of course, what they called dry rations were actually various flavored snacks like dried meat.
Although they were in the Star Dou Great Forest, Ye Chen would not shortchange himself.
"Brother Chen, I want ice cream!"
After filling her stomach, Ning Rongrong smacked her lips, thinking about some after-dinner dessert.
"What flavor do you want? There's watermelon, strawberry, milk...."
Ye Chen glanced at the various ice creams sold in the System Shop and asked Ning Rongrong.
Suddenly, Ye Chen's expression changed. His powerful mental force sensed the arrival of an uninvited guest.
"A powerful Spirit Beast is approaching, get ready!"
Instantly, the Pure Nether Bamboo Cane Spirit appeared in Ye Chen's hand, and his six disguised spirit rings—yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black—shone brightly.
The actions of Xiao Wu and the two others were also swift. After Ye Chen's warning, they immediately released their Spirits.
Soon, as the bushes in the distance rustled, a giant bear, over five meters tall, appeared in Ye Chen's line of sight.
The giant bear's eyes seemed devoid of any emotion, filled with indifference and cruelty, and its entire body was covered in dark gold fur.
Its arms were particularly thick, its shoulders broad and strong like city walls, and at the ends of its two thick arms were incomparably sharp Dark Gold Terrorclaws. The claws alone were a meter and a half long, exuding a terrifyingly sharp aura.
"Damn it~, Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear?!!!"
Ye Chen's eyes widened. He never expected to encounter a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, and judging by its age, it had clearly reached over ten thousand years.
Just as there were geniuses and wastes among human Spirit Masters, there were naturally genius Spirit Beasts and waste Spirit Beasts among Spirit Beasts.
If the ordinary Blue Silver Grass belonged to the category of waste Spirit Beasts, then the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear belonged to the truly genius Spirit Beasts.
Its strength was so formidable that it was at the peak of the entire Spirit Beast race. Even a pure-blooded true dragon of the same age might not be able to gain an advantage against them.
A thousand-year-old Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear could rival an ordinary ten-thousand-year-old Spirit Beast in terms of attack power. Once it reached ten thousand years, this creature became an almost abnormal terror. Even an ordinary Titled Douluo would have to avoid the edge of its giant claws.
For example, Qian Renxue's bodyguard, Snake Spear Douluo She Long, would definitely be in grave danger if he stood still and took a claw from a ten-thousand-year-old Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear.
"A ten-thousand-year-old Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, Ge, should we fight it?"
Xiao Wu asked Ye Chen.
"Fight! Ning Rongrong's fifth spirit ring will be this one! Although its age is a bit low, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's attack ability is very strong. After Ning Rongrong absorbs it, it will definitely form an attack attribute amplification Spirit Ability!"
Don't be fooled by the fact that Ning Rongrong's Spirit Abilities, regardless of the quality or age of the spirit ring, have the same percentage attribute increase. To say she doesn't value the quality and age of spirit rings would be a huge mistake.
While high-quality, high-age spirit rings provide the same Spirit Ability effect and do not increase it, the stronger the quality and higher the age of the spirit ring, the less spirit power she consumes when using an amplification Spirit Ability.