"This little thing is quite interesting."
Lu Cheng held Wu Feng's head with one hand and the roasted meat with the other, taking a leisurely bite. The latter was baring fangs and brandishing claws; despite being a majestic fire dragon, she looked like a little puppy right now, her eyes practically spitting fire as she stared fixedly at Lu Cheng.
Beside the camp, many attendants were collecting the corpses of their companions and the dead Earth-drilling armored insect. The meat of the latter could nourish spiritual Qi, increase soul power, and also nurture the physical body, so it naturally could not be wasted.
As for the Earth Drilling Armored Insect King, it had fled for its life with the few remaining members of its kind.
However, it also left behind a severed tail and a blinded eye.
"Thank you for your assistance, young friend..." Elder Ling stood to the side, his gaze quite sincere.
"Nine Treasure Glazed Tile School?" Lu Cheng asked with interest.
"Indeed!" Elder Ling smiled.
"Then it seems I didn't help the wrong people." Lu Cheng smiled.
He had already captured his fifth soul ring, which was an eighty-thousand-year-old peak Nether King Snake. It also possessed the characteristic of Nether Fire, and his soul skill, 'Nether Arrow,' carried this Nether Fire. Once burned, it would touch the soul, scorching the soul, making the injury extremely difficult to heal.
His innate essence, Sun Fire, was already the ancestor of all fires, a top-tier flame in the truest sense. This was his trump card and a symbol of his strength, but having a few auxiliary flames was not bad either, such as the light fire attached to the golden earth dragon king spirit bone or the nether fire attached to this soul ring.
These flames would not interfere with the Essence Sun Fire, nor would they fuse with the latter. After all, if they were truly fused, they would only be swallowed in one gulp by the latter.
As for why he didn't absorb a hundred-thousand-year spirit ring, it was because although his fourth soul ring was a hundred thousand years old, that was because Xiao Huo had automatically sacrificed herself and compressed the vast majority of her cultivation. Even then, he had walked through the gates of hell. If he were to absorb a hunted spirit beast, the soul shock would not be pleasant; the soul shock of a hundred-thousand-year spirit beast could shatter his current small frame.
Beside the campfire.
After a night of rushing and finally reaching a safe area, the entire team rested temporarily, with some people keeping watch and others resting, taking turns in shifts.
Wu Feng rested her chin on her hand, looking unhappy on the side.
And Elder Ling smiled while examining Lu Cheng.
He looked only fourteen or fifteen years old yet possessed such formidable strength; he was simply a super potential stock. However, recalling the information sent back from Shrek Academy in young miss Ning Cong's reply, this person... Was likely Lu Cheng.
Fire attribute, martial soul bow, appearance handsome to the point of insanity (the exact words in Ning Cong's letter)—everything matched up...
The other party had even specifically come to save them.
Tsk tsk tsk.
But at this moment, his young miss was blushing, her delicate white ears turning bright red, shrinking like an ostrich's. He could not help but speak up.
"May I ask for this young friend's surname?"
"No need for formal titles; my surname is Lu, given name Cheng." Lu Cheng smiled.
There was nothing to hide.
When school started, everything would match up.
Ning Tian's body stiffened, her earlobes turning red unconsciously. The one who saved her... was that guy she thought of day and night but had never seen the true face of.
At this moment, all her longing for her beloved was mapped directly onto Lu Cheng.
"Sigh, Young Miss, why is your face red?" Wu Feng asked foolishly.
Ning Tian: (⸝⸝0⸝⸝0⸝⸝)
...
Duke's Mansion.
At dusk, the setting sun cast its lingering glow over the magnificent tiles of the mansion. At a secluded side gate, a thin boy with a backpack stepped out. He let out a long sigh of relief; it seemed that stepping out of this gate meant the beginning of his new life.
The boy turned back and looked at the mansion once more.
He knelt down and kowtowed three times heavily.
His eyes were full of determination.
"Mother, from now on, I will change my surname to Huo: Huo Yuhao. Rest assured, I will definitely avenge this hatred!"
He cast a lingering glance at the mansion, then resolutely headed toward the Star Dou Great Forest ahead.
...
Star Dou Great Forest, outskirts.
Three figures moved beneath the lush ancient trees.
It was currently the height of summer, and the weather was sweltering. Since they were in a great forest, after a while, Ning Tian was drenched in sweat, her little face flushed. Stepping in her delicate leather shoes, her socks inside were a bit damp, making a pattering sound, which was quite uncomfortable.
She wiped the sweat from her forehead and followed in Lu Cheng's footsteps.
Wu Feng, as an attack system soul master, naturally had much better physical fitness. She repeatedly tried to support Ning Tian but was refused each time. She naturally knew it was because of the guy in front who was devastatingly handsome, but she was suppressed and had no temper, so she could only huff and puff on the side.
They had originally planned to go directly to Shrek Academy for freshman registration.
But Ning Tian waved her hand, signaling the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile School to return first, while she would accompany Senior Lu Cheng back to the academy. Elder Ling naturally agreed with a smile; what a great time to cultivate feelings.
"Tired?" Lu Cheng stopped and glanced at Ning Tian with a smile.
She didn't have the spoiled nature of a young miss.
"Not tired," Ning Tian said softly.
"Where are you taking us? This isn't the direction to Shrek Academy, right?" Wu Feng grumbled.
"Follow obediently. If you don't listen, I'll feed you to a spirit beast." Lu Cheng glanced at her indifferently.
The latter immediately shrank her neck and hid behind Ning Tian.
She also took the opportunity to rub her butt, which was still aching faintly.
Although she often complained, if the other party was serious, Wu Feng didn't dare to act up; she knew how to read the room.
"Come up, I'll carry you." Lu Cheng pondered for a moment and beckoned to Ning Tian.
"Huh? Um..." Ning Tian bit her red lip lightly, wrapping her arms around Lu Cheng's neck. Feeling the thick masculine scent beneath her, her memory drifted back to the scene where she was saved by Lu Cheng...
Safe and reliable.
Meanwhile, Lu Cheng activated his Blood Pupils.
He searched the vicinity for the figures of Tang Ya and Bei Bei. In the original work, they were the first to encounter Huo Yuhao, which, for him, was no less than the function of a "treasure-hunting mouse."
"Eh..."
Just as Lu Cheng was searching, his eyes suddenly froze for a moment.
He had found the treasure-hunting mouse, but why was there only one? He looked with some astonishment at the perception; Tang Ya was all alone, and his eyes flickered.
"Where is Bei Bei? Where did Bei Bei go?"
This was for capturing Tang Ya's third soul ring. With Tang Ya's amateur skills, encountering a five-hundred-year-old Datura Snake would be a life-or-death situation. In the original work, it was thanks to Bei Bei's Spirit Elder strength that they were able to hunt a thousand-year-old Datura Snake, but now...
Lu Cheng shook his head.
Forget it. He didn't care whether Bei Bei was there or not. Perhaps his existence had caused the butterfly effect, but a single treasure-hunting mouse should still be able to find him.
As long as he followed, that was fine.
Notes:
ദ്ദി(˵ •̀ ᴗ - ˵ ) ✧
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