Bulbasaur, I Think I'm Being Kept

"Go to Heaven Dou Royal Academy?"

Dugu Yan's words caught Qing Mu off guard. He had never considered going to Heaven Dou Royal Academy.

Given his current situation, Plant Academy and Exotic Beast Academy undoubtedly had more experience. Did Heaven Dou Royal Academy even have any reference materials he could use?

"Of course!"

Dugu Yan said rather proudly, "Lingling and I are both students at Heaven Dou Royal Academy. Wouldn't it be perfect if you came with me? As for enrollment, don't worry about it. Sister Yan Yan will take care of it for you."

"Uh... but I heard that Heaven Dou Royal Academy has a poor academic atmosphere, and its students rank near the bottom among Advanced Soul Master Academies."

Since Qing Mu was deep in thought, he refuted her without thinking.

Yet that casual remark left Dugu Yan somewhat embarrassed. It really was a flaw of Heaven Dou Royal Academy. Despite enjoying some of the best conditions among Advanced Soul Master Academies, the overall caliber of its students was even worse than that of many ordinary Advanced Soul Master Academies.

The root cause was the sheer number of spoiled young heirs at the academy. Their talents were not bad, but they simply refused to cultivate diligently.

Cultivation ultimately depended on people. If people did not want to cultivate, then no matter how good Heaven Dou Royal Academy's facilities were, it was all pointless.

"Ahem~ That's only an exception. The elite students of Heaven Dou Royal Academy are actually quite capable."

Perhaps to recover the face she had just lost, Dugu Yan's eyes shifted slightly as she said to Qing Mu, "How about this, Qing Mu? Have a spirit duel with me. I'll show you the strength of an outstanding Heaven Dou Royal Academy student. Of course, don't worry. I'll suppress my Soul Power to your level."

Fight me, and suppress her Soul Power to my level?

Qing Mu found that hard to hold back laughter at, but he still pretended to hesitate. "This... maybe we should forget it."

To be honest, if Dugu Yan fought Qing Mu now, she did not have even the slightest chance of winning.

Dugu Yan's primary method of attack was Jade Scale Snake Poison, but poison was useless against Qing Mu and Bulbasaur!

"Bulba, bulba~"

Even Bulbasaur nodded. Although Dugu Yan had not made a move, Bulbasaur's instincts told him that she posed no threat to him whatsoever.

"No! Today, I have to show you the strength of Heaven Dou Royal Academy's genius students!"

Seeing that even Bulbasaur looked down on her, Dugu Yan became somewhat embarrassed and angry. She flatly rejected Qing Mu's suggestion, then turned to Ye Lingling and asked, "Lingling, do you have a place for spirit duels here?"

"I do, but Yanyan, take it easy."

Ye Lingling was worried that Dugu Yan would hurt Qing Mu. In her eyes, Qing Mu was merely a Soul Grandmaster just above level twenty, while Dugu Yan was a level thirty-eight Control System Soul Elder. Even if Dugu Yan suppressed her Soul Power Level, her rich combat experience was not something Qing Mu could match.

"Don't worry, don't worry!"

Dugu Yan waved her hand, leaned close to Ye Lingling's ear, and whispered so softly that only the two of them could hear, "I won't hurt your little sweetheart. Besides, with you, the inheritor of Nine Heart Begonia, here, what's there to fear about getting hurt?"

Whoosh—

The moment those words left her mouth, Ye Lingling's face turned red all the way to her ears, wisps of white steam rising from her head.

Then, seemingly flustered and angered, Ye Lingling said, "If you say that again, don't expect me to support you in battle ever again!"

"Haha, she's embarrassed, she's embarrassed!"

As she spoke, Dugu Yan quickly ran out of the room.

Only after a while did Ye Lingling regain her composure. She said to Qing Mu, "Sorry, that's just how Yanyan is. I'll tell her to be careful later."

The faint blush still lingering at the tips of Ye Lingling's ears proved that her heart was nowhere near as calm as she appeared.

Because of the special mechanism of a Martial Soul Fusion Skill, both parties needed to be completely honest with each other and allow their souls to merge. As a result, once it succeeded, the two would gradually form an extremely intimate relationship.

If both parties were of the same gender, they would become close friends. If they were of different genders, then aside from special cases like siblings, they would most likely become husband and wife.

After all, only a married couple would be suited to staying together at all times, making it convenient to use their Martial Soul Fusion Skill whenever necessary.

Thus, when Ye Lingling proposed a Martial Soul Fusion Skill, she had already mentally prepared herself to some extent for what might happen in the future. The reason she had not made it clear was simply because Qing Mu looked too young.

She was nearly twenty now, while Qing Mu looked only twelve. Although children on the Douluo Continent generally matured early, the gap was still too great.

"It's fine. I don't mind."

Qing Mu shook his head and replied.

Seeing how sensible Qing Mu was, Ye Lingling could not help feeling a little heartache. "Don't worry. My Martial Soul is Nine Heart Begonia, the continent's number one healing support Martial Soul. If anything goes wrong, I'll support you."

Then Ye Lingling walked up to Qing Mu, took out a Yellow Crystal Card from her Storage Soul Tool, and stuffed it into his hand.

"There are thirty thousand Gold Soul Coins in this card. Take it and spend it for now. If it isn't enough, ask me for more. Our Ye Family may not be one of the most prominent families, but we can still afford this much."

After saying that, Ye Lingling did not wait for Qing Mu to refuse. She fled the room as though escaping.

Inside the room, Qing Mu looked at the Yellow Crystal Card in his hand, his expression turning strange.

He turned to Bulbasaur on the floor and said with a helpless laugh, "Bulbasaur, do you think I'm being kept?"

"Bulba~"

Bulbasaur rolled his eyes at Qing Mu speechlessly. Wasn't it obvious?

After a while, Qing Mu finally accepted the fact that he was being kept. He left the room and, led by a servant outside, arrived at a Spirit Duel Arena.

Dugu Yan had already been waiting on the Soul Fighting Arena for quite some time. When she saw Qing Mu arrive, she called out, "If I win, you'll come to Heaven Dou Royal Academy with me. How about it?"

"Sure, if you can beat me."

Qing Mu nodded and agreed to Dugu Yan's request.

Seeing Qing Mu agree, Dugu Yan immediately smiled. "Hehe, then watch closely—the strength of an elite Heaven Dou Royal Academy student!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Dugu Yan activated Martial Soul Possession. Parts of her skin transformed into snake scales, and many serpentine traits appeared on her body.

The instant Dugu Yan completed Martial Soul Possession, she kicked off with both feet and charged rapidly toward Qing Mu.

Faced with Dugu Yan's sudden close-range attack, the battle-hardened Qing Mu remained calm. He merely gave Bulbasaur a casual command:

"Bulbasaur, use Vine Whip!"