Chapter 165: Seeking Help

[T/N: So we caught up to the OG chinese Novel. I will post chapters later if the Author releases it]

"Hey, why is there a crowd here?" An Wen sneakily appeared out of nowhere and patted Ning Tian on the shoulder.

"Making illumination soul tools," Ning Tian replied with a faint tone of despair, feeling like she had already been choked by excessive displays of affection for quite some time. "What did those two even do this summer? They seem even clingier than last semester."

She simply felt like an unnecessary third wheel—especially unnecessary. If only Wu Feng had also finished her exam and come out.

An Wen was momentarily stunned. "We didn't do much, really. We just went on a normal training trip, and my brother wasn't even with us during the break."

She was highly dissatisfied that Wang Rui hadn't suffered underground with them.

"Then it's just 'absence makes the heart grow fonder'…" Ning Tian muttered with little concern for her image.

"Hey, you two, stop blocking the way." But a cat never thinks it's unnecessary. An Wen squeezed herself between Wang Rui and Huo Yuqing, elbowing Huo Yuqing's shoulder before pulling out a stack of envelopes from her pocket. "We don't have class this afternoon. Let's go to Shrek City! I need to eat something good—we've been eating mushrooms for a month, we need some meat!"

Huo Yuqing hesitated for a moment before accepting the envelope from An Wen's hand.

Although only a week had passed on the surface, the underground ant nest had a time-space formation. In her perception, she had been fighting dark-element creatures for well over three weeks.

She had been thrown into the underground by Wen Qiang as soon as she woke up, with no provisions on hand. The supplies provided by the ant soul beasts consisted of various fungi and moss-based instant foods, occasionally mixed with suspiciously glowing fruits or strangely colored jerky. Eating them once or twice was fine as a novelty, but for long-term consumption…

In short, Huo Yuqing now deeply craved the crispy, slightly fishy skin of grilled fish and its tender white flesh.

She had originally planned to train with Wang Rui, but going out for an afternoon didn't sound bad either… Could this be considered a date? The two of them could secretly lag behind the group.

"Treasure Appreciation Fair… What's this?" she asked as she opened the envelope.

"It's an event hosted by Shrek City's merchants, where some cultivation resources are sold at a discount. Apparently, core disciples can even take one item on credit. Teacher Mu asked me to distribute these to the second-year Shrek core disciples. Tsk, such low-grade resources, and they still need credit? How stingy." An Wen stuffed Wu Feng's share into Ning Tian's hands as well.

"Aimed at outer-court core disciples… That means there probably won't be anything too valuable," Ning Tian glanced at it, uninterested.

Although the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was far less prominent than it had been ten thousand years ago, its martial soul's ability to appraise treasures made it extremely adept at business. As the sect's heir, Ning Tian had seen plenty of high-end resources, so the resources Shrek Academy provided for outer-court core disciples hardly impressed her.

"But because of this event, we don't have class this afternoon, so we can go straight to Shrek City," An Wen said. "How about stopping by Moonshadow Commerce? I'll treat you all to something delicious."

At that moment, Wang Dong also finished his exam. After hearing the context, he slapped his thigh. "We can just check out the Treasure Appreciation Fair first. Even if there's nothing great, it'd be stupid not to take advantage of a good deal! Even if we don't want to owe those merchants any favors, they're the ones offering discounts. If we find something useful, we can just buy it with the discount. At our level, we don't really need super rare resources anyway."

For some reason, Wang Dong had a strong intuition that something good for him would appear at the fair. However, after everything he had experienced, he had grown wary of sudden thoughts like this—so he was even more determined to investigate the fair.

The group quickly decided to visit the fair first, then head to Moonshadow Commerce.

Wang Rui, however, noticed Wang Dong's slight hesitation.

Likewise, Electrolux, who knew Wang Dong's situation, let out a heavy snort. "So, this is what your world calls divine inspiration."

The old necromancer's attitude was amusing—back in his original world, ascending to godhood meant losing one's self-awareness, merging with nature, and becoming a grander consciousness. Electrolux had firmly resisted stepping into godhood because of that. But after arriving in this world and seeing that gods could still actively meddle in their believers' minds… he found himself preferring the gods of his old world.

After all, he himself had been a child of light—a divine chosen of the Goddess of Light. How wonderful that she had no self-awareness.

Just as Wang Rui was about to say something, an urgent knocking sound echoed in his spiritual sea.

"Lord Di Feng, Jing Hongchen wishes to see you." A fragmented voice, like a bad radio signal, called out.

Wang Rui immediately understood—something had happened on his secondary body's side, requiring emergency contact.

If he were still in his true Emperor Auspice Beast form, he could easily handle both situations at once. But in his human form, even though his mental strength was sufficient to control his puppet body while remaining active, the physical limitations of a human made it unfeasible.

He could tell that Huo Yuqing was looking forward to the outing, so he felt guilty as he whispered, "I won't be able to go later. You have fun with them."

As expected, Huo Yuqing's eyes immediately dimmed, like a puppy with drooping ears.

"Uh… Next week, we'll go out on our own." Wang Rui couldn't stand it, so he hurriedly promised, "Just the two of us."

"Deal!" The girl's expression changed in an instant, and she beamed at him.

Moonshadow Commerce, Mingdu Branch

In the most luxuriously decorated reception room on the top floor sat one of the most influential figures in the Sun-Moon Empire—one of Moonshadow Commerce's biggest clients.

It was none other than Mingde Hall's master, Jing Hongchen.

Although Moonshadow Commerce usually took a high-handed approach with its customers—acting as if they didn't care about business and that customers could take it or leave it—someone of this caliber still warranted special treatment.

This was evident from the tray placed beside Jing Hongchen.

Tea made from the leaves of a ten-thousand-year-old plant-type soul beast, rich in energy, was brewed into a fragrant infusion in a fine white jade teapot. A plate of crystal-clear spiritual fruits, overflowing with energy, was placed casually before him—extravagant as if they were mere grapes set out for common guests.

That said, Moonshadow Commerce didn't go overboard in pampering its guests. The room, despite its opulence, had no attendants, and Jing Hongchen's teacup remained empty—he had to serve himself.

Not that he was in the mood for tea.

The usually shrewd old fox appeared genuinely anxious, absentmindedly stroking his neatly trimmed beard—his stout figure making him resemble a sea lion standing on its hind flippers.

Suddenly, a brilliant light flickered, and a golden peacock, as tall as a person, materialized before him.

"Well?" Jing Hongchen shot up from his seat. "Will Dragon Emperor Douluo meet with me?"

The golden peacock ignored him, leisurely grooming its feathers. Its iridescent tail, adorned with eerie purple eyespots, shifted unnaturally, each eye seeming to stare directly at Jing Hongchen.

Even as a Titled Douluo, he shuddered under their sinister gaze.

Then, the peacock spoke in a shrill, infant-like voice. "Lord Di Feng will arrive shortly."

It was a hundred-thousand-year-old peacock soul beast.

Yet despite its valuable soul ring and soul bones, Jing Hongchen dared not entertain any thoughts of taking them.

After all, the last time he had seen this golden peacock, it had been perched on the shoulder of the notorious "Mad Phoenix" Ming Huang Douluo at the Sun-Moon Emperor's birthday banquet!

Who among the high-ranking officials of the Sun-Moon Empire didn't know of the infamous "Mad Phoenix" and her erratic, unpredictable temper?

And now, this Evil-Eyed Golden Peacock had actually appeared as the spokesperson to meet him at the Mingdu branch of Moonshadow Commerce…

One had to understand that this particular Moonshadow Commerce branch in Mingdu was permanently guarded by multiple Titled Douluo and even an Evil-Eyed Tyrant.

In this world, there were three publicly recognized Limit Douluo, and two of them had deep ties to the same sect… If one thought about it carefully, this was truly terrifying.

However, Jing Hongchen was far too overwhelmed at the moment to dwell on international power struggles.

"When will Dragon Emperor Douluo arrive?" he couldn't help but ask again.

The Golden Peacock ignored him, continuing to groom its feathers. The vile purple eyes on its tail feathers spun in different directions, inducing nausea while exuding an uncanny, almost hypnotic allure that made it difficult to look away.

Suddenly, the sound of flowing water echoed in Jing Hongchen's ears.

"What a waste of fine tea," a woman's voice said.

Jing Hongchen snapped his head around.

A tall woman had appeared in the chair across from him at some point, casually pouring herself tea.

Her features possessed a striking balance of sharpness and regal beauty. Between her brows, three tiny golden scales the size of rice grains shimmered. Her pure golden curls cascaded over her shoulders, and she wore a black cheongsam embroidered with golden dragon scales. The slit of the dress wasn't very high, causing the black silk to stretch taut over her thighs with her movements, the dark fabric gleaming with a subtle sheen.

Her long lashes were lowered as she focused on the floating tea leaves in her cup, concealing the murderous aura in her crimson eyes.

Because if she were to lift her gaze, no one would be able to focus on her stunning face anymore.

If one were to truly lock eyes with her, the only thought that might come to mind would be: "A true calamity has descended upon the mortal world."

Jing Hongchen, however, was staring at her fixedly, his expression twisted in disbelief.

"You… You're Dragon Emperor Douluo?"

"What, are you Dragon Emperor Douluo?" Di Feng—who was, in reality, Wang Rui in disguise—replied lazily.

It had been a while since he last checked in on the Sun-Moon Empire. This puppet body had been left idle for so long that he could feel an annoying stiffness settling in his bones.

"N-No, of course not," Jing Hongchen stammered.

Di Feng's origins were a complete mystery, and she had always conducted herself with extreme discretion.

Back when Jing Hongchen was younger, it was an era dominated by the legendary figures of that generation—the Black Holy Dragon, the White Holy Dragon, and the Golden—

Di Feng was particularly skilled in soul tools and wielded an extraordinarily powerful bloodline-linked soul tool. Rumors suggested that she was originally from the Sun-Moon Empire, but she had spent her early years traveling across the three Douluo continents, only returning to Sun-Moon territory occasionally. Even now, no one within the Sun-Moon Empire knew which city or family she hailed from.

Her falling-out with Mu En had happened decades ago. After that, she became the Sun-Moon Empire's head representative for Moonshadow Commerce and had since remained in seclusion near the Evil Demon Forest. This was Jing Hongchen's first time meeting her in person.

What shocked him the most, however, was how young she looked…

She was supposed to be over two hundred years old—a contemporary of Ye Xishui, Mu En, and Long Xiaoyao, the three legendary Limit Douluo!

Yet, looking at her now, anyone would believe she was only in her thirties… and her cultivation was merely at Rank 92 or 93.

Jing Hongchen couldn't help but recall a certain rumor.

It was said that the Golden Dragon Spear, the bloodline soul tool in Di Feng's possession, could absorb the flesh and vitality of living beings to nourish its wielder, allowing them to remain eternally youthful.

And the alleged conflict between her and Mu En? Supposedly, the Pavilion Master of the Sea God's Pavilion had urged his old friend not to pursue the path of an evil soul master, condemning her for taking lives with her soul tool.

But Shrek's claims were always questionable. If a soul tool truly existed that could absorb life force and transfer it to its user, who wouldn't want to claim it for themselves? Mu En was most likely after the Golden Dragon Spear for his own use.

Did Jing Hongchen want the spear for himself? Of course, he did.

But the fact remained—Di Feng had escaped from Mu En's grasp unscathed. Not only did she possess a top-tier martial soul, but she was also a master of soul tool combat…

It was simply wishful thinking on his part.

Besides, Jing Hongchen had come today to request a favor.

"What exactly do you want? Speak plainly," Wang Rui said impatiently. He hadn't skipped out on accompanying Huo Yuqing for this—watching an old sea lion sit there, lost in thought.

Jing Hongchen quickly spoke up. "My youngest daughter lost an arm during a soul beast hunt. I have sought out every renowned doctor in the Sun-Moon Empire, but none can help her. I was hoping you could introduce me to one of your sect's doctors in Jade City…"

"You wish to regrow a severed limb?" Wang Rui said flatly. "The Jade City Sect does indeed aid the people, but there are countless individuals suffering from incurable diseases. Losing an arm is hardly a fatal condition."

"Of course, I understand that," Jing Hongchen said, his voice pained. "But my daughter specializes in theoretical soul tool design. Her talent in crafting soul tools is on par with mine. Without her arm, how can she continue her work?"

"You're a Rank 9 Soul Engineer—why not replace it with a soul tool prosthetic?" Wang Rui countered, easily seeing through the fact that Jing Hongchen wasn't telling him the full truth.

"This…" Jing Hongchen hesitated.

He hadn't even considered that option. But now that Di Feng had brought it up so casually… Did the Beast Sect truly already have the technology to replace limbs with soul tools?

…No, that couldn't be possible.

After a brief silence, he forced a bitter smile. "Senior, a human hand is incredibly delicate. Given the current level of soul tool technology, how could a prosthetic match the precision of an organic limb?"

The world was filled with healing-type soul masters. As long as a body remained intact, even if someone was on the verge of death, they could still be saved. But if a limb was missing?

To this day, Jing Hongchen had never heard of a single person capable of regenerating a lost limb.

Yet, when he saw that Di Feng was simply watching the tea leaves swirl in her cup, not outright rejecting him, he knew there was still a chance.

"I understand that regrowing a limb is an act against the heavens," he said. "But if the Beast Sect is willing to help, Mingde Hall will offer a grand reward in return."

He took out a pendant-shaped storage soul tool, embedded with a large, radiant pentagonal sapphire.

Wang Rui opened it—and his eyes flashed at the sight inside.

A small mountain of rare metals was stored within…

But more importantly, two thin contract scrolls were tucked away inside.

They were ten-year mining rights for two medium-sized mineral veins controlled by the Hongchen Family.

"That's quite a generous offer," Wang Rui remarked, raising an eyebrow.

"In a few days, the Sun-Moon Empire's Royal Soul Engineering Academy team will be heading to the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament in Star Luo City," Jing Hongchen said in a low voice. "I cannot help but worry for them… I was hoping Senior could escort my daughter and the team to Star Luo City as a safeguard."

He paused before adding, "I have also prepared another gift for you."

Wang Rui instantly understood.

Jing Hongchen wanted him to help secure his daughter's treatment and act as a bodyguard for his two grandchildren during the tournament.

But was he really willing to pay this much?

Clearly, there was a lot more he wasn't saying.

Wang Rui didn't immediately agree or refuse.

He simply placed the sapphire storage soul tool onto the table and asked,

"Did you bring your daughter?"