Heaven Dou Imperial Palace Complex, Crown Prince's Eastern Palace.
"Xue Qinghe" dismissed the surrounding maids, entered his room, and spoke in a low voice.
"Elder Snake Lance, Elder Porcupinefish—have you gathered the information I asked for regarding Moon Pavilion? And that medicinal merchant… Dugu Bo didn't notice anything suspicious, did he?"
Snake Lance and Porcupinefish appeared silently, bowing respectfully.
"Young Miss, we've already investigated Moon Pavilion thoroughly. After Yin Zhang and Qiangu Yunying went up to the second floor, Tang Yuehua remained on the first floor, supervising the noble disciples as they continued their music lessons. As for Yin Zhang and Qiangu Yunying, they entered a room with Ning Fengzhi and Gu Rong and stayed inside for an entire afternoon. When the four of them came out, their relationship seemed extremely cordial. Ning Fengzhi even appeared somewhat elated—almost beside himself—but we couldn't determine what exactly happened inside."
Qian Renxue frowned slightly. "Very well. It seems Yin Zhang and Dugu Bo have also returned to Heaven Dou. I'll ask Yin Zhang about it later."
She then asked coldly, "And the medicinal merchant—everything was handled cleanly? No loose ends?"
Porcupinefish stepped forward and bowed.
"Yes, Young Miss. It was handled perfectly. On the surface, those medicinal merchants are merely successful businessmen, but in reality, they are all hidden pawns planted by Spirit Hall in Heaven Dou City. They have no ties to Prince Xue Xing, and on the surface, they have no connection to you either."
"Dugu Bo didn't grow suspicious. He likely just assumed that, as a Titled Douluo, medicinal merchants were naturally eager to curry favor with him."
"However, those merchants reported that nearly all the herbs Dugu Bo is seeking are already extinct. We're not sure what he intends to use them for."
Qian Renxue recalled the time she had brought Yin Zhang, Dai Yuqing, and the captain of the Huang Dou Battle Team to the Heaven Dou Treasury to select treasures.
Thinking about how Yin Zhang had painstakingly tried to memorize the pill formula for the Fire Phoenix Pill just to get a treasure for free, she couldn't help but feel a strange mix of amusement and helplessness. Her heartbeat quickened unconsciously.
She waved her hand, leaned lazily back onto the bed, and stretched.
"Alright, that will be all. You two elders may rest. I'll be requesting leave tomorrow—when the time comes, I'll need the two of you to escort me secretly."
"Yes, Young Miss."
Snake Lance and Porcupinefish responded softly and vanished without a sound.
—
Dugu Bo looked at Yin Zhang, whose aura had changed noticeably, and Qiangu Yunying, whose expression of surprise had yet to fade. After sensing them carefully, he was stunned.
"You two… broke through again?"
Yin Zhang nodded calmly. "It was nothing special. I obtained a giant egg from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School. After eating it, my bloodline improved quite a bit, and my spirit power rose to level forty-six."
Qiangu Yunying wasn't worried about Dugu Bo spreading the news and laughed lightly.
"My spirit power has reached level sixty-eight too, hehe!"
Dugu Bo swallowed and clicked his tongue in amazement.
"You two really know how to shock people."
After collecting himself, he continued, "I came today to tell you that Xin'er has reached level seventy. I need to take him to the Sunset Forest to hunt his spirit ring. Xiao Zhang, didn't you say you wanted to return to the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well? Want to go together?"
Dugu Xin… level seventy?
Yin Zhang was momentarily stunned before reacting.
After receiving several top-grade medicinal herbs from him, Dugu Xin had already been close to breaking through. Reaching level seventy by now was perfectly reasonable.
Between Spirit Emperor and Spirit Saint lay a massive dividing line—the seventh spirit ability possessed by nearly all Spirit Masters: Martial Soul True Body.
Yin Zhang laughed immediately.
"Then congratulations to Little Xin. Brother Bo, when are you planning to take him to hunt the spirit ring? We can go together."
After getting the answer he wanted, Dugu Bo replied without hesitation.
"Tomorrow."
Yin Zhang nodded. "Alright—tomorrow it is."
Dugu Bo nodded as well and turned to leave.
Qiangu Yunying glanced at his retreating figure and asked, "Xiao Zhang, how long do you think we'll stay at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well this time?"
Yin Zhang shook his head.
"I'm not sure either. At least two or three months, probably. The medicinal power of the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and the Infernal Fire Apricot within my body hasn't been fully absorbed yet. How long it takes depends on my strength and the spring water of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well."
"Over the past month or two, I've also been refining their medicinal power while cultivating. Although it's much slower than inside the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, I've still absorbed quite a bit. That's already shortened the time I'll need to stay there."
He then looked at Qiangu Yunying, who seemed lost in thought, and smiled.
"Sister Yunying, how about we go out and have some fun? So many good things happened today—we should celebrate."
Qiangu Yunying came back to her senses and nodded with a smile.
"Okay. I was just thinking… my father and Uncle Tang have been gone for quite some time now. I wonder how they're doing. Judging by the time, they should be returning soon, right? I'm just worried they might run into danger while facing a Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Beast…"
Hearing the worry in her voice, Yin Zhang immediately pulled her into his arms.
"It'll be fine. Uncle Tang's defensive strength is top-tier, and Uncle Qiangu should be a Spirit Douluo by now. With Uncle Tang protecting him, nothing will happen."
"Besides, there are Titled Douluo accompanying them—Spirit Hall has more than one. With two Titled Douluo, there's no way anything goes wrong. They probably just haven't returned yet because they're still on the road."
"Who knows? Maybe they've found some treasure land and are cultivating there."
—
Hurricane Forest, core region.
Deep within the core of Hurricane Forest lay a massive lake, stretching beyond what ordinary vision could encompass.
At the center of the lake stood a small island, upon which a towering ancient tree grew. The tree alone occupied most of the island's surface.
Meanwhile, on Tang Zhen and Qiangu Yuan's side—
With the help of the Hundred Thousand Year transformed spirit beast, the Crimson Flame Roaring Tiger Emperor—Scarlet Tiger—the wounded Chi Yan fled desperately for its life.
After successfully escaping the danger zone, the Crimson Flame Roaring Tiger Emperor endured immense pressure before fleeing at full speed.
Snake Lance had chased after Chi Yan, but after failing to catch up, he returned to Heaven Dou.
Tang Zhen and Qiangu Yuan had originally planned to return directly as well.
What neither of them expected, however, was that beneath that small island… there existed a world of its own.
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