A Rich Lady Has Sent You a Sponsorship Request. Accept?

There was still one month of preparation time before the academy's Quarterly Assessment.

Ning Wuque did not act like a loner. The day after emerging from deep meditation, he reported to the academy. After answering roll call, he headed alone to the training ground to work out.

After his previous communication with his martial soul, Ning Wuque could now initially reach an understanding with it during Martial Soul Possession and enter a state of Deep Possession.

In other words, he could use his human body to carry the beast soul, gaining the physical enhancements of Martial Soul Possession and some of the martial soul's own abilities without changing his appearance at all.

However, because their compatibility had not yet improved, Ning Wuque's tests showed that Deep Possession currently provided only around sixty percent of the boost of normal possession.

But!

This boost would only gradually rise in the future. As the connection between Ning Wuque and his martial soul grew closer, it would become increasingly perfect, perhaps even surpassing its original limits and reaching over one hundred and twenty percent possession enhancement!

It could be considered a nerfed version of a Martial Soul Fusion Skill. The higher the compatibility, the more badass it became.

Just as Ning Wuque, who had vanished for over a month, reappeared at his familiar spawn point within the academy—

Not far away, Ning Tian appeared at the observation point where she had spawned punctually every day since two weeks after Ning Wuque's disappearance. Naturally, Wu Feng was at Ning Tian's side as well.

"Big Sis Tian, that guy actually came back? I thought he'd already given up."

With her arms folded over her chest, nine-year-old Wu Feng was already beginning to show the temperament of an older beauty. At one meter sixty tall, she held her nose so high in the air that her face practically had I'm the best in the world written across it.

Ning Tian beside her was far less imposing. At one meter fifty, she was a full head shorter than Wu Feng. Her delicate face showed both surprise and relief at seeing Ning Wuque again.

"Feng Mei, he won't give up. Besides, didn't I ask around? Wuque has already obtained his First Soul Ring and even entered deep meditation. Maybe this Quarterly Assessment will bring him a very promising future."

"So what? First place will definitely belong to you and me, Big Sis Tian! I'm the strongest in the entire grade. With your amplification, I'll take them down one claw at a time!"

As she spoke, Wu Feng could not help humming smugly at the thought of displaying her heroic bearing before Ning Tian. When the time came, Big Sis Tian would definitely praise her properly.

And maybe she could teach Ning Wuque, who had always been a little "ungrateful," a good lesson too!

Hehe~ So happy~

"Honestly... sigh, let's go see him. It's been a long time. I wonder how much he's gained."

Shaking her head helplessly, Ning Tian called Wu Feng over and headed toward Ning Wuque.

The two soon arrived beside him. At that moment, he was doing one-handed push-ups.

He had sensed them when they came within roughly ten meters of him. Once he heard two different sets of footsteps, he relaxed and continued training on his own.

At this hour, while everyone else was still in class, there was no other pair who would come looking for him besides those two.

"Wuque, you're back?"

"Yeah."

"Hey, Big Sis Tian is greeting you. Why aren't you even standing up to reply? That's so rude!"

Seeing Ning Wuque continue exercising while giving such a perfunctory response, Wu Feng immediately got angry.

Fortunately, Ning Tian stopped her in time. She patted Wu Feng's shoulder, signaling her to be quiet, before asking Wuque, "Wuque, how is your preparation for this Quarterly Assessment? Do you need any help from me?"

"Hm?"

Ning Wuque paused, then slowly stood up and looked at Ning Tian with a puzzled expression.

What's gotten into her?

He was not surprised that Ning Tian and Wu Feng had come to find him. Ever since the day they had formally met, Ning Tian would often bring Wu Feng over during classes they did not need to attend.

Either they would sit near him and read advanced books, or Ning Tian would practice the Distraction Control Method while Wu Feng cultivated her Soul Power.

At first, Ning Wuque could not understand why they did this, until Ning Tian took the initiative to explain.

"Because I never feel motivated when cultivating at home. But whenever I see how diligently you work, I can't help wanting to work even harder. So, in order to work hard, I have no choice but to follow you and work hard too."

That was probably the effect of competitive pressure. When you were the only one working hard, you could not keep at it without tremendous willpower. But when you saw someone else working hard, you only wanted to join them.

The prerequisite was having a reason to strive. As the current Young Clan Head, Ning Tian did not lack reasons to work hard. What she lacked was drive and motivation.

By chance, Ning Wuque's daily routine became the plum that quenched her thirst from afar, and Ning Tian treated him as a "Mimicry environment" to aid her cultivation.

Although this relationship had elevated Ning Wuque and Ning Tian's relationship to that of friends, it... was not close enough for Ning Tian to proactively offer him help, was it?

"There's nothing to prepare. You see my strength all the time. No matter what, I won't be that bad. Forget the help."

Ning Wuque shook his head and rejected Ning Tian's bond request.

Just think of that fellow surnamed Ao from ten thousand years ago, then think of Douluo Continent's other name. Ning Wuque did not want to be shot seven times in the back and ruled a suicide.

Under normal circumstances, Ning Tian could not possibly fall for him.

But this was Douluo Continent! Ning Wuque could not guarantee that dangerous one-in-a-million possibility would not fall on his head.

Being kept by a rich lady was certainly nice, but only if her family did not care much about her future and her happiness mattered most.

Clearly, Ning Tian was not that kind of rich lady.

Nor was Ning Wuque worth making an exception for. His martial soul, Innate Soul Power, and future path were all far too unstable.

"Hey, what do you mean by that? Are you looking down on Big Sis Tian? Other people would rack their brains—"

"Enough, Feng Mei! Sorry, Wuque. I've always wanted Feng Mei to be more polite, but..."

"It's fine. We've known each other for two years. I don't mind."

Why would an adult get angry with a child? At worst, he could punch her awake during the Quarterly Assessment!

Yet the more indifferent Ning Wuque acted, the more embarrassed Ning Tian became. Her upbringing was simply too good, giving her an especially gentle personality. On top of that, she was an emotional girl.

In Ning Tian's heart, the guilt she had long felt toward Ning Wuque because of Wu Feng grew deeper and deeper.

Feng Mei and Wuque were both her good friends. They should have brought double the happiness.

So why had things turned out like this?

"Um, if you don't need help, Wuque... can I invest in you? This is... this is my first investment. I learned it from Father. It's just... just..."

As Ning Tian spoke, her guilt toward Ning Wuque made her stammer and hesitate. The backup plan she had prepared beforehand came out haltingly.

As a good friend—at least in her eyes—and a Mimicry environment for cultivation, Ning Tian really wanted to help Ning Wuque fulfill his wish.

She was still only a child. No matter how important her status was, it could not change the fact that she possessed innocent and sincere selfish desires.