"One immortal herb for you, one for me."
"You get one, I get one."
Ever since Dugu Bo left, Xiao Lin had gotten a little manic from seeing the ground full of immortal herbs. Even Tang San was a bit at a loss.
"Brother Lin, there are so many immortal herbs. How should we divide them?"
Tang San knew these herbs were packed with tremendous energy. Normally, a person could only absorb one in a short period of time. Even after raising five or six levels, there would still be energy left over.
"I don't know much about immortal herbs, but a few days ago, I made a deal with Sect Master Ning of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan."
Xiao Lin then explained the details of the deal to Tang San and handed him a black card worth ten million gold soul coins.
"Little San, use this money to buy soul tool ores and materials."
"Although ten million may not seem much compared to something as invaluable as Martial Soul evolution, it'll last a long time. In the future, you can sell your hidden weapons to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan. Ning Rongrong will also be our classmate—her support abilities can't be underestimated."
"So if possible, it'd be best to find her an immortal herb that helps evolve her Martial Soul."
Tang San had no objections. There were so many herbs here; there was enough to go around.
"Alright, then give her this Delicate Fragrance Immortal Tulip."
Tang San didn't have a strong concept of money, but even he was stunned by ten million gold soul coins and agreed immediately.
Of course, the biggest reason was that there were just too many herbs. Even if he included his recently met sworn sister Tang Ni and Dugu Yan, he felt there was still plenty to share.
"Brother Lin, for you, there's this Strange Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum. It's a neutral high-grade herb. Eating it will enhance your limbs, open your meridians, and help you cultivate an indestructible body—perfect for you."
"And those Fiery Apricot Delicate Fragrance and Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass near the Ice-Fire Yin-Yang Well—I've thought it through. You should be the one to absorb them. Your new dantian can handle multiple attributes without harming your body. Maybe you can form a mini Ice-Fire Yin-Yang Well within you, without compromising strength."
"That's the immunity to Ultimate Ice and Ultimate Fire you talked about."
Tang San's eyes sparkled as he continued with his own choices.
"As for me, I'll work harder—absorb the Autumn Dew of Sight to enhance my Purple Demon Eye, and use the Water Immortal Jade Muscle Bone to nourish my meridians and bones, opening up my eight extraordinary meridians."
"For Xiao Wu, she'll get the Yearning Heartbroken Red, the king of flowers. Tang Ni will have the Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid."
"And Dugu Yan, she'll get the Nine-Grade Purple Ganoderma to stabilize her foundation and make up for her Martial Soul's flaws."
After distributing most of the herbs, Tang San nodded in satisfaction.
It was a pity he didn't have a soul tool capable of storing living things, or he would have taken everything and just left the seeds.
Xiao Lin didn't mind the distribution. Tang San gave him three herbs, and Tang San himself was only absorbing one to enhance his eyes.
What else could Xiao Lin say?
But knowing the special properties of Yearning Heartbroken Red, Xiao Lin saw through Tang San's little scheme.
Well, well, Tang San was secretly in love with Xiao Wu and wanted to test her with the Yearning Heartbroken Red?
Maybe not test her per se—Tang San definitely only had eyes for Xiao Wu. But still, compared to Xiao Wu's purity, Tang San had a more complicated heart.
"I don't really have a problem, but we've only divided these herbs among six people. What about the rest of the Emperor Battle Team?"
Xiao Lin wasn't extremely generous, but this kind of distribution couldn't be hidden. And if they were going to join the Advanced Spirit Master Academy Tournament, they'd need seven members. They couldn't afford to create resentment—at least not from the seventh member.
"Also, I'd like to keep one herb—not necessarily an immortal herb—just something to improve Grandpa Jack's constitution, to help him enjoy his old age."
Though Xiao Lin phrased it casually, he was raised by Grandpa Jack. He definitely planned to bring Grandpa Jack to the God Realm eventually. But just in case anything went wrong, he couldn't risk losing him before becoming a god.
"Mm, mm. I thought about that too. Aside from the immortal herbs, there are many top-quality spiritual herbs here—perfect for our classmates."
Hearing this, Tang San nodded seriously.
"This Snow Silkworm, a top-tier version of Cordyceps, is great for healing injuries and boosting cultivation. It's extremely nourishing—it could be sold... no, gifted to Ye Lingling. These two Cinnabar Lotuses are highly cold in nature. They counteract fire toxins and heat—perfect for the Shi brothers."
"Oslo and Yufeng can have this Polygonatum, which boosts stamina and cultivation. Yu Tianheng could take the Dragon Blood Herb, which enhances the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul and boosts his cultivation too."
"As for Grandpa Jack, he can have this Vermilion Fruit. It enhances vitality and is very gentle."
Hearing that Tang San had picked the Vermilion Fruit—a treasure Xiao Lin had only ever read about in xianxia novels—for Grandpa Jack, Xiao Lin was quite satisfied.
Even if its effects weren't as strong as the immortal herbs in Douluo Dalu, a fruit with a name like that wouldn't be weak.
As for Tang San giving rare herbs to classmates, Xiao Lin could only think: "You don't know how expensive it is to run a household until you have to pay the bills."
These classmates hadn't earned Xiao Lin's trust yet—unlike in the original timeline, where the Shrek Seven Devils had forged bonds over a year.
Plus, most of the students at Heaven Dou Imperial Academy were nobles. The issue was just the size of their family's influence.
Even if someone really couldn't afford it, they could just... borrow.
"Lend with interest, collect ten back for every nine lent. Bind those who can't afford the herbs to Tang San's future Tang Sect."
The more they owe, the stronger the ties. Who knows, maybe the Tang Sect would end up like the four great clans of the Clear Sky School.
Xiao Lin soon explained the pros and cons to Tang San, who agreed.
Tang San's admiration for Xiao Lin grew again. Using brains for loans and even talking about installment payments—Tang San was thoroughly impressed.
"Oh right, Little San, this Dragon Blood Herb—doesn't it sound better than the Nine-Grade Purple Ganoderma? Wouldn't it be better suited for Dugu Yan?"
It wasn't that Xiao Lin didn't trust Tang San—he just knew the Ice-Fire Yin-Yang Well was formed above the corpses of the Ice-Fire Dragon Kings. That made the Dragon Blood Herb sound extra special.
Tang San paused, then nodded instinctively. "That's true. I originally thought with your recommended spirit ring, Dugu Yan's Martial Soul evolution would be enough. Plus, I didn't think about selling to Yu Tianheng…"
"But now that you mention it, this Ice-Fire Yin-Yang Well is really strange. Even though these are immortal herbs, none of them gained spiritual intelligence or became soul beasts. And there are too many herbs like the Dragon Blood Herb here—each one is plump and massive."
Unlike the original timeline, Tang San had Xiao Lin now. In conversation, he noticed some inconsistencies.
"Take this Dragon Blood Herb for example. Its bright red leaves are lined with golden veins. It looks like it's been bathed in real dragon blood, as if actual dragon blood flows through it."
"Could it be that deep underground, there really are two ten-thousand-year-old Ice-Fire Dragon King soul beasts buried?"
Tang San pointed at a half-meter-tall Dragon Blood Herb, his face full of disbelief and curiosity.
"Mhm, it's possible. But for now, let's just focus on absorbing the herbs."
Xiao Lin nodded vaguely, not expecting Tang San to guess so close to the truth.
"Alright, Brother Lin, I'll get the Fiery Apricot Delicate Fragrance and Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass for you first."
Tang San agreed, and in the next second, he activated Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, running to the edge of the Ice-Fire Yin-Yang Well and pulling out a dagger forged from pure iron.
(End of Chapter)