Chapter 444: Shall We Practice?_1

"Feeling better now?"

"Mm. I don't blame you anymore." Zi Ji looked at Xu Ran with deep affection, her eyes filled with longing. After the kiss, all the grievances and worries had dissipated, leaving behind only intense happiness and contentment.

To her, just being with Xu Ran was enough, even if it was only to watch him from afar.

"Once my strength truly rises, and I no longer worry about the gods of the Divine Realm, I'll be able to take you to Wander the Ends of the Earth. Wherever you want to go, I'll take you there," Xu Ran teased Zi Ji's cute little nose. It was then he noticed a small, purple beauty mark on her nose, which added a hint of ambitious beauty to Zi Ji.

"Alright, I'll remember that. If you go back on your word, I'll bite you," Zi Ji said, looking down with a fierce and somewhat evil charm in her eyes as she opened her mouth wide like a cherry.

The Hell Demon Dragon King was an extremely ferocious beast; Zi Ji only showed her tender and gentle side when she was around Xu Ran. With her malevolent and ferocious aura released, she indeed seemed quite terrifying.

"You've learned quite a few bad habits instead of the good ones," Xu Ran raised his arm and firmly slapped Zi Ji's full, perky bottom. He didn't understand where Zi Ji and the others had learned all this.

None of them learned anything like cooking, embroidery, music, chess, calligraphy, painting—none at all; but biting, pinching, and kicking, all these they knew very well.

This made him think of Stephen Chow's movie from his previous life, "Flirting Scholar." In the opening scenes, Tang Bohu's numerous wives played mahjong at several tables, using his poetry collection to stabilize a wobbly table, and cut up his paintings to patch the mahjong tiles.

Hiss.

He hoped he wouldn't end up living like that in the future.

"What should I learn?" Zi Ji asked, puzzled, curiously looking at Xu Ran.

"You should learn cooking with Bi Ji. Surely you haven't just been twiddling your thumbs since I've been gone. I definitely don't eat 'dark cuisine,' alright?" Xu Ran said.

"I'm not like Bi Ji. I am the Hell Demon Dragon King, I've never done this," Zi Ji's face flushed with a hint of red. Before meeting Xu Ran, she consumed a soul beast in a single bite. It was only after she met Xu Ran that she realized it didn't look good or elegant, and then she learned to eat like humans, in small bites.

But eating bite by bite was too slow. It could not satisfy the energy demands of her, the Hell Demon Dragon King, so after eating with Xu Ran, she would return to her clan and consume two or three small soul beasts.

Of course, she would never tell Xu Ran this. What if he started thinking of her as a glutton?

"You still have to start learning even if you haven't done it before. You can't possibly marry into our Xu Family and still expect me to wait on you," Xu Ran said with a smile.

"Oh," Zi Ji paused for a moment, then nodded earnestly. The sweetness in her heart surged uncontrollably when she heard Xu Ran mention that he wanted her to marry him.

"By the way, how has Qiu'er been lately? Has her Transformation not finished yet?" Xu Ran wondered. Given the relationship between Wang Qiu'er and him, and both being Auspicious Beasts, she would definitely know that he had come to the Aquipeia Forest.

This girl hadn't rushed out to see him, so she must not have finished Transforming yet.

"Qiu'er is using a Secret Technique to try and Transform into the form of an adult young woman all at once, so it's taking longer," Zi Ji clarified.

"All right. You stay here with Xiangxiang, and take her to the Lake of Life once she wakes up. I'm heading to the Lake of Life now." Xu Ran gave his instructions and turned into a black streak of light heading towards the Lake of Life.

Zi Ji felt helpless. Although she missed Xu Ran deeply, she knew that Xu Ran did not belong to her alone. Given Xu Ran's flirtatious nature, she considered it fortunate enough that he remembered her at all and had not grown tired of her for something new.

...

"Lord Xu Ran."

"Auspicious Beast."

Xu Ran descended upon the Lake of Life where Di Tian, Bear Lord, Red King, Thousand Demon King, and Bi Ji—the ferocious beasts of the Lake of Life—had been waiting for him. They had intended to meet Xu Ran on the outskirts, but considering the relationship between Zi Ji and Xu Ran, and how affectionate their reunion would be, they thought it best to stay and wait for him locally instead of intruding as third wheels.

"No need for formalities," Xu Ran gestured with a wave of his hand, and a gust of wind lifted the five beasts.

Seeing Xu Ran, Di Tian couldn't help but feel a sense of awe. He felt an overwhelming pressure emanating from Xu Ran, a pressure that made him want to kneel and pay his utmost respects.

This feeling was something he had never even experienced around Gu Yuena.

That reminded him of something Gu Yuena had once mentioned—she felt a bloodline presence that was more superior than hers, which made even her feel endlessly oppressed.

And that bloodline presence was very likely radiating from Xu Ran himself.

Although Xu Ran was an Auspicious Beast, he might also have another identity, one even more noble and powerful than an Auspicious Beast!

"I won't be worse than you," Xu Ran said, amused. Di Tian's strength had reached the brink of demi-godly status and was comparable to the Deepsea Devil Whale King. The only difference was that one was the Overlord of the Land and the other, the Overlord of the Seas.

Di Tian had no doubt about Xu Ran's words, but Bear Lord, Red King, Thousand Demon King, and Bi Ji—the other ferocious beasts—were caught with wide eyes. They were not dragon-class soul beasts and could not feel the strong Dragon Qi emanating from Xu Ran; they did not understand the pressure Di Tian felt upon seeing Xu Ran.

All they knew was that Xu Ran was not so strong the last time he had come to the Aquipeia Forest, with only a millennium's worth of "Cultivation Level," but now, Xu Ran was claiming he was not inferior to Di Tian, which left them astounded.

Could it be his human "Cultivation Level"?

But that wasn't right. Even according to human "Cultivation Levels," Xu Ran only possessed the strength of a Soul Emperor, nearing that of a Soul Sage. To think that merely with human Cultivation, he could stand shoulder to shoulder with Di Tian seemed far-fetched.

"Why, don't you believe me?" Xu Ran's mouth curled up into a smile. The first time he had transformed into the Ancestral Dragon form was in front of Liu Erlong. The explosive sense of power and the fulfilling feeling of strength had left him intoxicated. Now that he was in the Aquipeia Forest, he did not have to worry too much about revealing himself when releasing his Soul Beast Form.

"Why don't we spar? All of you together," Xu Ran proposed, looking at the five formidable beasts in front of him. The Red King was a Three-headed Red Demon Hound King. The Thousand Demon King was a Demon Eye Magic Tree King. Bear Lord was the Clan Leader of the Duskgold Dreadclaw Bears. Bi Ji was the Clan Leader of the Emerald Swan. Di Tian was the Golden-eyed Black Dragon King. According to human "Cultivation Levels," the strength of all five was certainly above that of a level 98 Titled Douluo.

"Sure," the ferocious beasts nodded, their fighting spirits ignited, somewhat looking forward to Xu Ran's strength. Since Di Tian took it so seriously, Xu Ran's power must be even more terrifying than they could imagine.

In an instant, the ferocious beasts transformed into their beastly forms, spanning over twenty to thirty meters, and released their formidable ferocious beast auras. As the five great ferocious beasts of the Lake of Life simultaneously released their pressures, many of the powerful soul beasts in the nearby inner area were frightened, shrieking in confusion and panic.