Chapter 156: Return to Sunset Forest

He felt that his passive skill, "Lady Killer Lv.1," was really quite a troublesome one.

It had actually turned him into a chick magnet. Honestly, he didn't want to be that popular with women.

To be precise, he didn't want unattractive women to like him. As for the pretty ones—well, they were more than welcome to.

But clearly, the heavens are fair—this passive skill didn't work exactly how he wanted it to.

After walking out of the shop, Zhao Ling began zoning out, bored out of his mind.

Right now, what he really wanted was a smartphone from Blue Star—so he could play games and watch videos to kill time.

Inside the store, Sister Xuan, who had been forcefully awakened by Zhao Ling's spiritual energy, was so embarrassed she felt like curling her toes in shame.

She'd actually stared, unblinking, at the friend Er Long brought with her—right in front of Er Long.

If Er Long got upset, there was a real chance she'd get beaten up.

With a sheepish smile, Sister Xuan turned to Liu Erlong and asked in a tentative tone:

"Er Long, who was that guy just now? You two seem awfully close."

Liu Erlong smiled sweetly, replying without hesitation, "He's my partner. Handsome, isn't he?"

"What? Your partner? But you're only—" Sister Xuan looked surprised for a moment, but quickly regained her composure.

After all, on this Douluo Continent, it wasn't unusual for girls to get married at fourteen or fifteen. Some even younger. So, it didn't shock her that much.

With her expression settling, Sister Xuan asked Liu Erlong:

"Er Long, you came to my shop today to buy... lingerie, right? Come on, let me take your measurements."

…

About half an hour later, Liu Erlong walked out of the store, head high and chest out, and softly called to Zhao Ling.

"Hubby, I've got everything. Should we get a carriage and head straight to Sunset Forest?"

Zhao Ling looked back at Liu Erlong. Seeing her confidence restored made her seem even more attractive. He walked over, intending to help carry her bags.

Unexpectedly, Liu Erlong quickly stuffed all the bags into her storage soul tool.

Zhao Ling froze. Did she really trust him that little? Was that necessary?

It seemed like Liu Erlong didn't just lack the trust between husband and wife—there wasn't even the trust between normal people.

Feeling a bit sulky, Zhao Ling pursed his lips and walked ahead in a huff.

Liu Erlong noticed something was off, hurried to catch up, and tiptoed to plant a kiss on his cheek, gently comforting him.

"I'm sorry, hubby. It's just that back at the academy, I saw some male students stealing girls' clothes to satisfy... strange fetishes. I just don't want you to pick up those kinds of habits."

Strange fetishes? Zhao Ling was full of question marks. What kind of fetish was she talking about?

He pondered it for a while, then suddenly understood. In alarm, he asked:

"Er Long, you didn't have your clothes stolen by any perv who did... weird things with them, right?"

Liu Erlong clenched her fist and smiled confidently.

"Hubby, do you think those guys would dare? Not to brag, but one time, a girl in my class had her laundry stolen by an upperclassman who did God-knows-what with it.

When I found out, I hunted him down and beat him so badly his parents wouldn't have recognized him. After that, every guy at school stayed far away from me. Pretty badass, huh?"

"Uh…" Zhao Ling's mouth twitched. He had no reason to doubt her story.

Knowing her explosive temper, he figured there was a 99% chance she really did beat the crap out of that guy over something like that.

Even if the upperclassman had been a bit stronger than her, unless he was more than 10 or 20 levels ahead, Liu Erlong—with her dragon-type spirit—had a huge advantage over most students.

"So... did that unlucky senior graduate? Or is he still stuck in school?" Zhao Ling asked, curious.

Liu Erlong's phoenix eyes glinted mischievously.

"After doing something that disgusting? You think he could graduate normally? Of course not. After the beating, the academy expelled him.

I heard his parents took him to Tianshui City—seems they're planning to get him into an advanced soul master academy there."

"Tianshui City?" Zhao Ling raised a brow, face full of disbelief.

"Isn't Tianshui Academy the most famous one there? But I thought that school only accepts girls? They wouldn't take in a guy—especially a pervy one like him, would they?"

Liu Erlong gave him a sideways glance and poked his forehead with a delicate finger.

"You said it yourself—Tianshui Academy is the most famous, but that doesn't mean it's the only one in Tianshui City.

If that were the case, wouldn't every low-ranked male soul master nearby have to travel a thousand miles just to find another academy? Think before you speak, dummy."

Hmm... That actually made sense. Zhao Ling nodded, realizing he'd been overthinking.

While chatting, the two reached a breakfast stall, sat down, and ordered some buns, fried dough sticks, and soy milk for a quick meal.

After breakfast, they went to the station, rented a carriage, and headed out of the city toward Sunset Forest.

After a two-hour journey, the carriage finally reached the forest's edge. Zhao Ling told the driver to wait, then wrapped an arm around Liu Erlong and led her into the depths of Sunset Forest.

Maybe because Zhao Ling had slaughtered so many low-level soul beasts the last time he was here, this time around, the moment he entered, the low-level beasts caught his scent and fled deeper into the forest in terror.

No matter where Zhao Ling went, within a five- to six-hundred-meter radius, not a single soul beast could be found.

It wasn't until they reached the inner region—home to ten-thousand-year soul beasts—that the situation began to improve.

Zhao Ling guessed that Liu Erlong was here to hunt her fourth spirit ring. According to the original story, Yu Xiaogang said the maximum safe age for a fourth ring was 5,000 years.

But now that Liu Erlong had taken the Phoenix Crown Chrysanthemum and her spirit had evolved from Fire Dragon to Immortal Dragon Phoenix, her tolerance had likely surpassed that limit.

Still, he wasn't sure exactly how much she could handle. He intended to help her get a ten-thousand-year spirit ring and see if she could absorb it.

He figured it wouldn't be too difficult. After all, he was right beside her—if she had trouble absorbing it, he'd step in to help.

With his assistance, absorbing a ten-thousand-year spirit ring shouldn't be a problem at all.