"Can I see the ancient scroll Dugu Bo gave you?"
After figuring everything out, Yu Yan proposed looking at the ancient scroll; he was curious which god Dugu Bo had found to swear to.
Swearing to a god was no trivial matter. Yu Yan remembered that in the Douluo Continent, swearing to a god wasn't just talk; a Divine Oath would involve the laws of heaven and earth, and violating it would lead to severe punishment.
"Here it is."
Ye Lingling took out a simple, ancient scroll from the sachet-type storage soul tool at her waist and handed it to Yu Yan.
Taking the scroll and opening it, Yu Yan saw its contents. The scroll didn't point to any specific deity but used a special spirit power execution method to invite 'Him' as a witness, making a promise to the laws of heaven and earth through one's Spirit.
Dugu Bo had never seen a god and didn't know what a so-called god actually was, so he likely treated 'Him'—the special title in the scroll—as a god.
Yu Yan, who knew the general situation of the God Realm, naturally knew that the gods there had corresponding divine offices and relatively clear names, such as the Sea God, Asura God, Rakshasa God, Angel God, Fire God, and so on.
He wondered if this god, who didn't even have a name, was actually reliable.
After reading the contents of the ancient scroll, Yu Yan casually placed it into the golden scepter. After a brief moment of contemplation, he told Ye Lingling his thoughts.
"I agree. However, I can't be one hundred percent sure right now that the Immortal Herbs I have can help your Spirit evolve. Hmm... let's set a three-year period. If we can't find the perfect solution in three years, we'll use the current method that has a high probability of success. What do you think?"
"If, by then, we can only solve the Spirit curse but cannot make the Spirit evolve, can you accept that?"
Yu Yan wasn't some heartless exploiter. Since the other party showed full sincerity, he naturally had to reciprocate with similar sincerity.
Ye Lingling's request was that she hoped her Spirit could evolve like Dugu Yan's to solve her Spirit curse. A single Immortal Herb, the void clarity jade core, couldn't achieve this; it needed to be taken with the moon cleansing lotus, an Immortal Herb whose medicinal properties complemented it. Only then could such a result be achieved.
The so-called Three-Year Agreement was the time Yu Yan set for himself to try and find the Immortal Herb, the moon cleansing lotus.
The healing ability of the unevolved Nine Heart Begonia was already so formidable; if it evolved, the healing ability it could provide would definitely be even more terrifying, offering him even greater assistance.
Therefore, his words were both for Ye Lingling's sake and his own.
"No problem, I can accept that."
Actually, Ye Lingling didn't particularly care whether her Spirit evolved or not, but since Yu Yan had said it, she had no reason to object.
"Before your Spirit problem is solved, we can be friends first. After it's resolved, you can swear using the method in the scroll."
Hearing Ye Lingling's agreement, Yu Yan raised a more practical matter.
"No problem."
With such generous conditions, Ye Lingling had no reason to refuse.
After settling these matters, both Yu Yan and Ye Lingling fell into silence. Yu Yan didn't know what to say because they weren't close, while Ye Lingling was simply like that by nature.
As the atmosphere grew quiet, Xiao Wu stepped forward to chat with Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling about gossip and interesting stories in the Spirit Master's world, talking about anything and everything under the sun.
What about Yu Yan?
At this stage, Yu Yan, whose mind was entirely focused on solving the problem of compressing spirit power, had no intention of building a relationship with Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling... "What?"
"You're asking for leave again?"
Jiang Jing looked at Yu Yan and Xiao Wu, who were asking for leave again, with a strange expression. This boy Yu Yan had only been back at the Exotic Beast Academy for a little over a month and was already asking for leave to go out again. She didn't know what he was thinking.
"We're not going far this time, and it won't take long. We just want to go to Häagen-Dazs City to take a look."
"Right, right, right, we're just going to Häagen-Dazs City to look around. We haven't been there yet, so we're just going to play for a while."
Yu Yan and Xiao Wu spoke one after another, explaining their next plans to Jiang Jing.
Firstly, Jiang Jing was the vice dean of the Exotic Beast Academy, and it was only reasonable for them to ask for leave as students.
Secondly, Jiang Jing treated them very well. If they left without saying anything, it would be quite heartless.
"I see. That's not impossible."
Hearing that Yu Yan and Xiao Wu just wanted to go to Häagen-Dazs City for fun, Jiang Jing felt that it wasn't something she couldn't agree to.
"Thank you, Dean Jiang Jing."
"Thank you, Dean Jiang Jing."
Without waiting for Jiang Jing to continue, Yu Yan and Xiao Wu thanked her one after another and quickly ran out of her office, disappearing from her sight.
Watching the two leave, Jiang Jing continued to process her share of the archives. Part of the reason she didn't stop them was their reason for wanting to go play, and another reason was that the regular teaching content of the Exotic Beast Academy really couldn't provide them with any help. Since they were very diligent and hardworking every day, it was fine to let them go out and play.
At the Exotic Beast Academy, Yu Yan found Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling and explained his next arrangements to them.
Dugu Bo had entrusted him with taking care of Dugu Yan, and he had just agreed last night to help Ye Lingling solve her Spirit problem. Leaving today without saying goodbye would feel strange, which was why he came to bid farewell.
"Going to Häagen-Dazs City? That's perfect, we'll go together! I haven't been there to play yet."
Hearing that Yu Yan and Xiao Wu were going out to play, Dugu Yan immediately proposed going along. She and Lingling had indeed never been there and were curious about it.
Not expecting this answer, as Yu Yan thought about what reason to use to decline them, Xiao Wu took the initiative to explain in a low voice:
"Actually, we're not going for fun. Yu Yan has some bold hypotheses and needs to conduct experiments on Spirit Masters who do bad things. This time we're going to the mountain range south of Häagen-Dazs City to catch some evil Spirit Masters. It might be dangerous."
Yu Yan and Xiao Wu were both Level 44 Spirit Ancestors, while Dugu Yan was currently Level 27 and Ye Lingling was only Level 17. Taking them to the mountains that bordered the Star Dou Great Forest would indeed be a bit risky.
"So that's how it is. In that case, we won't go."
Knowing exactly what level Yu Yan was, Dugu Yan no longer insisted on following once she heard they were going on serious business.
"Safe travels."
Ye Lingling, who had been standing quietly beside Dugu Yan, spoke up to bid farewell to Yu Yan and Xiao Wu as they were finishing their conversation.
After waving goodbye to them, Yu Yan and Xiao Wu galloped their horses toward Häagen-Dazs City.