Immortals Gathered Like Hemp

"The first auction item is an Ice Sky Snow Lotus from the Extreme North. It is said that this Ice Sky Snow Lotus blooms only once every hundred years and must be picked from mountaintops amid freezing winds and snow. Moreover, it can only be harvested within one hour, or it will wither."

"The starting price is thirty thousand Gold Soul Coins. Each bid increase must be no less than three thousand Gold Soul Coins."

"What a grand gesture." Jiang Mian leaned back and clicked his tongue in amazement. "An ordinary soul master probably couldn't save up this many Gold Soul Coins in an entire lifetime."

"A place like this was never somewhere ordinary soul masters could enter." Qian Renxue said blandly, "This Ice Sky Snow Lotus can help soul masters increase their Soul Power, so naturally it is a highly sought-after rarity."

"Got it. I'll get some for you later." Jiang Mian looked at Hu Liena and Zhu Zhuqing with a smile. "You can eat them as snacks."

Qian Renxue glanced sideways. She knew a little about Jiang Mian's background, but wasn't he being far too boastful? Eating Ice Sky Snow Lotuses as snacks?

Zhu Zhuqing and Hu Liena believed him completely, especially Zhu Zhuqing. She knew Jiang Mian's strength better than anyone.

The wealthy bidders below kept raising their offers, and the Ice Sky Snow Lotus was ultimately sold for thirty-nine thousand Gold Soul Coins.

"Xue Qinghe said the auction would be lively. What exactly is going on?" Jiang Mian looked at Qian Renxue and asked, "Miss Xue Er must know, I suppose."

"Yes." Qian Renxue nodded. "I heard that the grand finale of this auction is a Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone."

"A Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone?" Jiang Mian asked in surprise. "Why auction it off instead of using it themselves?"

"The owner of this Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone just died." Qian Renxue spoke casually, and Jiang Mian immediately understood. A common man was innocent, but possessing a treasure invited disaster.

After several more unremarkable items were auctioned off, the host below abruptly changed his tone. His gaze darted about as he said mysteriously, "The next auction item is something that can only be encountered by chance. I imagine many of our friends came tonight for it as well. The ultimate treasure you have all been waiting for... a Ten Thousand Year head soul bone!"

A wave of wild cheers erupted from the crowd below. The uninformed wealthy merchants looked at one another, while the old foxes in the VIP rooms remained still. They did not know each other's identities either, but a Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone was simply too precious. No one wanted to let it go easily, so they were all probing one another.

Jiang Mian was dismissive of it. A mere Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone was nothing more than something he picked up to play with in the Star Dou Great Forest. Di Tian had even offered him an entire set back then, but Jiang Mian had refused because he did not think much of it.

Jiang Mian glanced at Qian Renxue and found that her attitude toward the soul bone was much the same as his. After all, her Angel Martial Soul had its own inherited full set of soul bones. She had no need to acquire any extra ones herself.

Besides, who knew how many people in the auction house had their eyes on that soul bone today? Jiang Mian had no intention of being the first to stick his neck out. There were no powerful experts around him to protect him. If Bear Lord or Scarlet King had been here, Jiang Mian would not have needed to spend a single coin on that soul bone. He could have simply taken it by force!

"Zhuqing, Sister Nana, this is getting boring. Let's go." Jiang Mian stood up. "Miss Xue Er, let's go get your soul ring now."

"Now?" Qian Renxue hesitated slightly, but quickly agreed. "Fine. We'll leave now."

Jiang Mian nodded and led the three women out of the auction house as though no one else existed.

"Uncle Sword, look! That person who just passed by seemed to be Jiang Mian!" Inside an auction house private room, Ning Fengzhi rubbed his eyes and said regretfully, "The news we spread was all suppressed by Spirit Hall. In that case, he must have already sided with Spirit Hall."

"That's right." Chen Xin smiled bitterly. "We were the ones at fault from the beginning. One wrong step led to another. Jiang Mian's future is limitless. If he wishes to vent his anger on the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect someday, I am willing to bear his wrath."

"No, Uncle Sword." Ning Fengzhi said angrily, "Uncle Bone has already fallen to level eighty. If anything happens to you too, what will become of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?"

"Only heaven knows." Sword Douluo gave Ning Fengzhi a deep look. "Rongrong's state of mind has shattered. Whether she can even reach level seventy is uncertain. Fengzhi, for the future of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, necessary sacrifices can be made."

"There must be a better way." Ning Fengzhi's hands trembled. It was as if Jiang Mian had already become his nightmare, impossible to shake off and impossible to kill.

Chen Xin patted Ning Fengzhi's shoulder. "Live well in the present. Don't worry about things that have not happened."

Outside the auction house, Jiang Mian drove a carriage, taking the three beauties on a dusty journey toward the Star Dou Great Forest.

No one knew when Di Tian's revival of the Silver Dragon King would be complete, and Jiang Mian did not want to bring Qian Renxue into the core region to disturb them right now.

Three days later, at the outer edge of the Star Dou Great Forest, the carriage slowly came to a stop. The group climbed down and freely breathed in the fresh air of the great forest.

Zhu Zhuqing and Jiang Mian exchanged a glance. Hu Liena and Qian Renxue had never stayed in the Star Dou Great Forest, so they naturally could not sense anything unusual. But Jiang Mian and Zhu Zhuqing were too familiar with it. The density of Soul Power in the Star Dou Great Forest was now more than twice what it had been before.

What exactly had Di Tian done? Could that single drop of Divine Blood really have such a huge effect?

In the core region of the Star Dou Great Forest, several fierce beasts opened their eyes at once. At this moment, immortals gathered like hemp!

Among the Ten Great Fierce Beasts, Zi JI, Bear Lord, Scarlet King, Ice Empress, King of Ten Thousand Demons, Bi Ji, Snow Empress, and Di Tian had all arrived. Only the most mysterious Yaoling among the Ten Great Fierce Beasts, along with Evil Emperor of the Evil Eye Forest on the Sun Moon Continent, were absent.

There were also auspicious beasts and many other soul beasts with cultivation levels of no less than one hundred thousand years.

They sat in meditation here, quietly standing guard. Di Tian had already arranged everything. All that remained was for the Silver Dragon King, Gu Yuena, to finish absorbing the Divine Blood, recover from her injuries, and awaken.

"Jiang Mian has arrived," Snow Empress said softly.

"I sensed him too." Bear Lord nodded in agreement.

"There are also three women with Jiang Mian."

King of Ten Thousand Demons spoke with his eyes closed. He commanded all plant-type soul beasts in the world, and within the Star Dou Great Forest, no one possessed more well-informed intelligence than he did, because every plant was his eye.

"One of them is that young girl who cultivated here with Jiang Mian years ago," King of Ten Thousand Demons continued. "I do not recognize the other two."

"Jiang Mian really has good luck with women." Scarlet King could not help teasing, "As expected, handsome men are all fickle."

"Watch how you speak." Bear Lord smacked Scarlet King irritably. Scarlet King realized that he had misspoken and quickly covered his mouth, not daring to say another word.

"Our lord's revival is largely thanks to Jiang Mian. He has always been an honored guest of us soul beasts." Di Tian said, "Scarlet King, Bear Lord, go over there."

"Scarlet King, watch over those young ladies. Bear Lord, bring Jiang Mian here alone." Di Tian explained, "Once our lord successfully awakens, I want to introduce Jiang Mian to her."

"Perhaps only Jiang Mian can bring back our once-greatest master, the Dragon God!"

"Yes." Bear Lord and Scarlet King accepted their orders and departed. Di Tian looked toward Snow Empress and said calmly, "Although Jiang Mian can improve soul beast attributes, the higher their cultivation, the greater the improvement he receives. To help him reach that level as quickly as possible, I intend to use certain methods."

"I just remembered something." Snow Empress's eyelashes trembled slightly, and snowflakes seemed to drift around both her and Ice Empress. "Weren't you absorbing the energy of that million-year soul beast back then?"

"Heavenly Dream Ice Silkworm?" Ice Empress said, "That's right. Though Heavenly Dream Ice Silkworm was not much of a fighter, his cultivation was undeniably a million years. He was one of a kind among us soul beasts."

"He escaped." Di Tian shook his head. "When we saw that Jiang Mian could rapidly improve the strength of soul beasts, we relaxed our guard over him. We never expected him to slip away while we were not paying attention."

"So the method you mentioned is Evil Emperor?" Ice Empress glanced sideways. She had not expected Di Tian to set his sights on Evil Emperor.

Evil Emperor's strength was second only to Di Tian's, and the entire Evil Eye Forest was his territory. In a one-on-one fight, even Snow Empress had no confidence that she could defeat Evil Emperor.

"He is a very suitable choice." Di Tian said indifferently, "When Jiang Mian went to the Extreme North to find you, I took Zi JI and King of Ten Thousand Demons to visit him."

"Were you thinking of beating him into submission, then forcibly dragging him here to become Jiang Mian's sixth soul beast?" Snow Empress chuckled. "That does sound like something you would do."

"He refused to listen to reason." Di Tian said, "Jiang Mian once told me that he would lead soul beasts to ascend to heaven. In other words, regardless of whether they were soul beasts he had subdued, as long as they were strong enough, he would help them ascend and become gods. This is a path worthy of my full support."

"Interesting." Snow Empress smiled. "Jiang Mian is a child with many ideas."

The earth veins of the Star Dou Great Forest suddenly trembled, as though the Silver Dragon King had heard Di Tian and Snow Empress's conversation and was responding to Jiang Mian's aspirations.

"Every time I come back to the Star Dou Great Forest, it feels so familiar." Jiang Mian spread his arms and laughed heartily.

A large bird flew overhead, and a pile of bird droppings fell with perfect accuracy right into Jiang Mian's embrace.

Qian Renxue frowned, somewhat of a clean freak. Zhu Zhuqing fought to suppress her laughter, while Hu Liena laughed at Jiang Mian without restraint. "Xiao Mian really is home. There are even special gift packages waiting for him."

"What are you laughing at?" Jiang Mian curled his lip. He took off his shirt, revealing pale yet well-built muscles. Hu Liena's smile abruptly froze, replaced by a gaze full of longing and shy embarrassment.

Qian Renxue was not that superficial, but she still could not help taking a few extra looks. It really was pleasing to the eye, like a work of art.

"Jiang Mian, why are you running around naked the moment you come back?" Bear Lord's voice sounded at the most inappropriate time. A streak of golden light and a streak of red light landed before Jiang Mian at the same time. Bear Lord casually patted Jiang Mian's shoulder and laughed. "Not bad. Your muscles have grown again. Don't turn out like King of Ten Thousand Demons, all skinny like a little lady."

"Bear Lord, Scarlet King." Jiang Mian's eyes lit up as he said in surprise, "Why are you two here?"

"We sensed your aura." Scarlet King rubbed Jiang Mian's head and smiled. "Why didn't you come see us when you came home?"

"I was afraid of delaying Di Tian's business." Jiang Mian scratched his head, looking somewhat apologetic.

Qian Renxue was already stunned beside them. She felt that the auras emitted by these two experts were no weaker than her grandfather, Qian Daoliu.

Such powerful soul beasts truly obeyed Jiang Mian's every word. A genius like him had to be recruited!

"Zhuqing and Nana came back too." Scarlet King smiled. "Has that brat Yan been slacking off?"

"Not really. My brother and Yan have both been working very hard. They miss you two seniors as well." Hu Liena replied with her hands behind her back.

"It would be enough if they did not curse us." Bear Lord patted Scarlet King's chest and laughed. "With our training intensity, those two little brats, Xie Yue and Yan, curse us in secret every day."

"I heard them." Scarlet King clenched his fist, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly. "That is why their training gets tougher every day."

Qian Renxue was greatly shocked. Spirit Hall's Golden Generation was actually trained under the supervision of these two experts? Then becoming Titled Douluo in the future was practically guaranteed for them!

"All right, enough nonsense." Bear Lord looked around before turning to the three beauties. "You three little ones will follow Scarlet King. Jiang Mian has something to do, so he will not be accompanying you."

"Bear Lord, what is going on?" Jiang Mian asked in surprise.

"You're back, and Di Tian wants to see you too." Bear Lord appeared carefree, but he was actually meticulous. He did not reveal a single thing about the Silver Dragon King, even though he was familiar with everyone before him. That was true shrewdness.

"Scarlet King, Zhuqing and this young lady have both reached their bottlenecks and need soul rings." Jiang Mian pointed at Zhu Zhuqing and Qian Renxue. "Find suitable ones for them."

"Leave it to me." Scarlet King asked, "Nana has not reached her bottleneck yet? That is a little slow."

"I have disappointed you, Senior." Hu Liena seemed at a loss as she lowered her voice. "I will work harder."

"Later, have Jiang Mian find you an Immortal Herb to eat. I guarantee your Soul Power will shoot right up." Scarlet King patted Hu Liena's shoulder comfortingly. "All right, come with me. Bear Lord, hurry up and take Jiang Mian over. Don't keep Di Tian and the others waiting."

"You need to teach me?" Bear Lord had never yielded verbally to Scarlet King. He lifted Jiang Mian onto his back and transformed into a streak of light as he sped away.

"Such strength." An intense longing burst from Qian Renxue's eyes. She had to reach that level. She absolutely had to reach that level!

"Everyone, I'm here." Jiang Mian and Bear Lord landed before the fierce beasts. Jiang Mian greeted them one by one with a smile. "Long time no see. Did you miss me?"

"Miss you?" King of Ten Thousand Demons chuckled. "The moment you come back, everyone loses their peace and quiet."

"Can't you say something nice?" Jiang Mian looked at King of Ten Thousand Demons contemptuously. He sat down nearby and asked, "Di Tian, how is the Silver Dragon King's situation?"

"She is about to awaken, but the exact time remains unclear." Di Tian answered truthfully. "Our lord's injuries were simply too severe. This one drop of Divine Blood can have a great effect, but it is still somewhat insufficient."

"As long as it works, that's enough." Jiang Mian had long been impatient to see the Silver Dragon King's appearance. After all, Gu Yuena, the Silver Dragon King, had always been his eternal goddess ever since he began following the original story. Now that the goddess who had once seemed unattainably distant was about to be within reach, anyone would be excited!

Rumble!

The ground suddenly shook. The water level of the Lake of Life rose, as though something was about to emerge.

"Is the Silver Dragon King coming?"