Call Me Lady Paimon Like a Good Girl, and I'll Share Half with You!
Ning Rongrong's pretty face flushed bright red as she stared at Chu Yuan. "Y-your Martial Soul... what exactly is it? Why did my Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda manifest two more illusory floors on its own in the presence of your Martial Soul?"
Chu Yuan gently curled his five fingers, dispelling the Crown of Heavenly Principles in his right hand and leaving only the Glaze Lily blooming quietly in his left palm.
Without the light of the Crown of Heavenly Principles shining on it, the two illusory floors of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda vanished instantly, and it fell back into Ning Rongrong's palm.
Chu Yuan looked at the lost and dazed Ning Rongrong. "How could a frog at the bottom of a well know how vast the Heavenly Dao is? The Martial Soul your Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect takes such pride in is incomplete at its very source. Only the divine essence of Heavenly Principles under my command and this immortal treasure from Teyvat can make up for your Martial Soul's innate deficiency. Now, do you still think those worthless stones in your hand can compare with my possessions?"
Ning Rongrong bit her lip and glanced down at the Scarlet Yang Jade and the luminous pearl that had rolled onto the carpet.
Having witnessed a divine essence capable of evolving the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, she looked at the treasures she had brought out from her sect's collection and found them as laughable as mud and rubble by the roadside.
All her pride and defiance were shattered by the shock of something that touched upon her family's ultimate dream.
She snapped her head up and fixed her burning gaze on the Glaze Lily in Chu Yuan's left palm. "I... I admit I lost just now! Your treasures are ten thousand times more precious than mine! Young master, please tell me how I can truly turn my Martial Soul into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda! As long as you're willing to help me, I can even ask my father to give you half the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's entire fortune in exchange!"
Chu Yuan chuckled and casually put the Glaze Lily into his storage space. "The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's fortune? I already told you, I don't care for worldly gold, silver, and treasures. Besides, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's direct disciples are utterly incapable of protecting themselves. Even if you had the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, without a powerhouse to protect you, you'd be nothing but a fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered."
At the mention of her sect's pride, Ning Rongrong instinctively puffed out her chest and protested, "Who says we're waiting to be slaughtered? Our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect has two Titled Douluo, Grandpa Sword and Grandpa Bone, holding down the fort! My Grandpa Sword Chen Xin's Seven Kill Sword Martial Soul is the number one tool Martial Soul under heaven, and its attack power is unmatched in the world! As long as Grandpa Sword is around, no one can bully us!"
Keqing, who had been standing quietly beside Chu Yuan, heard this. Her amethyst eyes flickered, and she slowly stepped forward.
She glanced at the proud-faced Ning Rongrong, her cool voice ringing out calmly. "Swordsmanship unmatched in the world? Little girl, I don't yet know how strong this Sword Douluo you speak of is, but when it comes to the intricacies of swordsmanship, the crude methods on this continent that rely on Soul Ring skills cannot bear the words 'unmatched in the world.'"
The person Ning Rongrong admired most was Sword Douluo Chen Xin, and Keqing's words immediately upset her. "Nonsense! My Grandpa Sword is a rank ninety-six Titled Douluo! You haven't even shown a Soul Ring, so what gives you the right to disparage his swordsmanship?"
Keqing did not get angry. She turned and glanced at Chu Yuan as if asking for permission, and when she saw him nod slightly, she flipped her slender hand.
With a clang, a one-handed sword appeared out of thin air in her fair hand. It was the Lion's Roar, its long, slender blade beautiful, its entire length flowing with a dark gold and crimson sheen.
An open floor-to-ceiling viewing window stood on one side of the corridor. Outside were several century-old ironwood trees planted in the auction house's rear courtyard, and a withered yellow ironwood leaf was drifting into the corridor on the wind.
Keqing said three words. "Watch closely."
Before the words had faded, she gave her wrist a slight flick. Her reforged Electro Vision flashed purple at her waist, and she shouted, "My sword shines as I do, cutting through all that is worthless!"
In an instant, violet lightning surged before Ning Rongrong's eyes. Keqing's figure left an afterimage where she stood, and in less than half a breath, her sword slashed out dozens of violet-gold sword nets too fast for the naked eye to discern.
There was no sign of a Soul Ring lighting up, nor the slightest trace of excess power leaking out. The path of every strike was exquisite to the extreme, imbued with pure lightning sword intent.
In the next moment, Keqing sheathed her sword and stood quietly beside Chu Yuan once more, her purple twin tails swaying gently behind her as though she had done nothing at all.
The palm-sized ironwood leaf hung motionless in midair for an instant, then rustled apart.
In that half a breath, sword Qi had sliced it with precision into exactly one hundred and eight neat fragments, each the size of a grain of rice. Not one fragment's edge bore the slightest scorch mark; each was as smooth as a mirror.
Outside the window, more than ten zhang away, the top of a bluestone rockery three people tall slid silently off. Wisps of violet lightning still flickered along the cut, yet to dissipate.
Ning Rongrong's little mouth hung slightly open. She stared blankly at the one hundred and eight leaf fragments on the carpet, then looked at the bluestone rockery outside the window, its top sliced flat. Her head buzzed.
She had grown up at Sword Douluo Chen Xin's side. Though her own strength was not high, her discernment when it came to sword intent was exceptional.
The purple-haired young lady before her had not used a single Soul Ring or Soul Skill in the sword technique she had just displayed. She had relied entirely on her own thoroughly honed swordsmanship and a kind of lightning-attribute power Ning Rongrong had never seen before.
She had never heard of swordsmanship so exquisite, with the sword following the heart and delivering a hundred slashes in an instant.
Ning Rongrong swallowed and murmured, "She can unleash such terrifying sword Qi without using a Soul Ring... Wh-what kind of sword technique is that?"
When she looked at Chu Yuan and his companions again, the last trace of contempt in her eyes vanished completely.
The young man could casually produce a divine object and an immortal flower that could trigger the evolution into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. The purple-haired girl beside him possessed peerless swordsmanship that transcended the Soul Master system, and even the black-clad female guard behind him, who was Ning Rongrong's own age, was strong enough to frighten her into immobility.
Compared with this group of mysterious figures, Shrek Academy, the school built in a run-down village where she had originally planned to enroll, looked like a ramshackle troupe playing games in the countryside.
Chu Yuan paid no further attention to Ning Rongrong, who stood there in a daze. He led Keqing, Mona, and Zhu Zhuqing down the stairs, leaving her with only a few words. "Let's go. Back to the hotel."
Seeing that Chu Yuan really was leaving, Ning Rongrong abruptly came to her senses.
The sight of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda manifesting nine illusory floors flashed through her mind, and she immediately made up her mind. Shrek Academy? She wasn't going.
If she missed her chance with this mysterious young master, she might never again encounter an opportunity to evolve her Martial Soul into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda in her lifetime.
Ning Rongrong didn't bother picking up the luminous pearl from the floor. Gathering up the hem of her long white dress, she hurried after them on her little legs, calling as she ran, "Wait! Don't leave me behind!"
She hurried around to Chu Yuan's side, all her earlier arrogance and willfulness gone. In their place was a sweet, well-behaved smile. She tilted her face up and pleaded softly.
"Young master, Rongrong was blind and offended you and these older sisters just now. Can't I apologize and make amends? I originally sneaked away from home to train at Shrek Academy, but I've changed my mind! Young master, do you need someone to serve you tea and water? I'm a direct-line genius of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and my support abilities are the best under heaven. Please, let me follow you!"