Immortal Herb as a Betrothal Gift? The Star Luo Emperor's Wild Speculation and Princess Jiujiu's Heart Stirring
The Star Luo Imperial Palace, the Imperial Study.
The fragrance of sandalwood rises gently.
Emperor Xu Jiawei of the Star Luo Empire was sitting behind a large mahogany desk, holding a cinnabar pen in his hand, his brows slightly furrowed as he reviewed a report on the defense of the northern border.
A series of hurried footsteps broke the tranquility of the study.
"Brother Emperor!"
Without Xu Jiujiu waiting for an announcement, he pushed open the heavy, carved wooden door and walked in.
Xu Jiawei looked up, about to scold his sister for her rudeness, but saw Xu Jiujiu slam the door shut behind her.
"What's wrong? Is something urgent?" Xu Jiawei put down the cinnabar brush and picked up the teacup beside him.
He was puzzled. Xu Jiujiu Xu Jiujiu been dignified and composed, and this was the first time he had ever been so flustered.
Xu Jiujiu walked quickly to the desk, placed his hands on the table, leaned forward slightly, and spoke very fast, "Royal brother, I just saw Dai Huabin from the White Tiger Duke Mansion at the auction."
"Oh? Dai Huabin?" Xu Jiawei blew on the floating tea leaves on the surface.
"I heard he's been making quite a splash lately. What, did he go to the auction house to buy Soul Tool?"
"He's here to sell something." Xu Jiujiu stared intently into Xu Jiawei's eyes. "It's Immortal Herb."
"Crack!"
Xu Jiawei dropped the teacup on the table, spilling scalding tea all over the table and dripping it onto his bright yellow robe, but he was completely unaware.
"You... what did you say?" Xu Jiawei suddenly stood up, his voice cracking.
"Immortal Herb? The kind of Immortal Herb that the first generation of the Shrek Seven Devils consumed ten thousand years ago?"
"Right!"
Xu Jiujiu pause, he nodded emphatically and then recounted, word for word, how Dai Huabin had demonstrated the Star Luo Spirit Pearl in the VIP room.
"The Star Luo Spirit Pearl is the most suitable Immortal Herb for the Star Crown Martial Soul." Xu Jiawei paced back and forth in the study, his steps hurried and disordered.
He knew all too well what that meant.
If he or she consumes this Immortal Herb for Jiujiu, the Star Luo Imperial Family's top combat power will experience a leap forward.
Of course, the best choice would be Xu Jiujiu. Xu Jiawei knew that his own potential was limited, while Xu Jiujiu was still young and had greater potential!
"What does he want in exchange?" Xu Jiawei suddenly stopped and turned to look at his sister. "Whatever he wants, as long as it's in the national treasury, or even in my private treasury, give it all to him!"
"He didn't say exactly what he wanted." Xu Jiujiu shook his head. "He only said that I should come back and discuss it with my elder brother. However..."
"But what?"
He took a deep breath, his expression more solemn than ever Xu Jiujiu.
"Brother, he showed me his Martial Soul and Soul Ring. He is twelve years old and his cultivation level is forty-five."
His Martial Soul has mutated, acquiring extreme ice attributes. Furthermore, his fourth Soul Ring is a black, Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring.
The entire Imperial Study fell into a deathly silence.
Xu Jiawei opened his mouth but couldn't make a sound for a long time.
Twelve years old, level forty-five, Ultimate Attribute, fourth ring of ten thousand years.
Each of these words alone would be astonishing enough, but now they are all combined in a twelve-year-old boy.
"He... he also took the Immortal Herb himself?" Xu Jiawei finally found his voice.
"Absolutely. Talent alone couldn't achieve this. Dai Huabin must have consumed the Immortal Herb, and even had some left over, to come to me for a trade."
Xu Jiujiu was very certain.
Xu Jiawei sat back down in his chair and rubbed his temples. The amount of information was overwhelming; he needed time to process it.
The emergence of such a monster in the White Tiger Duke Mansion is both a tremendous boon and a huge hidden danger for the Star Luo Imperial Family.
Dai Hao commands a large army, and now his eldest son is showing signs of becoming a god.
"That's not right."
Xu Jiawei suddenly stopped what he was doing, looked up at Xu Jiujiu,
"Since he has such a divine item, why doesn't he trade it directly at the Shrek Academy? The treasures in Shrek's Sea God Pavilion are far more numerous than those in our Star Luo Empire Kingdom's treasury."
He just had to deliver this perfect Immortal Herb, so perfectly suited to the Star Crown Martial Soul, right to your doorstep...
Xu Jiujiu pause, Xu Jiawei followed his train of thought and realized that something was amiss.
"Brother, I think... his actions might stem from his strong sense of belonging to our royal family, or rather, to the Star Luo Empire," Xu Jiujiu analyzed. "He's extending goodwill to us."
Xu Jiawei didn't reply immediately, but instead looked his younger sister up and down.
Xu Jiujiu was wearing a fitted white dress with gold patterns today, which perfectly accentuated her curvaceous figure.
Her long, radiant golden hair was tied up high, revealing her long, slender, snow-white neck.
On that stunning face, her azure eyes were clear and deep, and her skin was as delicate as the finest mutton fat jade.
Noble, aloof, and beyond compare.
Xu Jiawei suddenly laughed, a laugh tinged with a hint of mockery.
"Jiujiu."
Xu Jiawei tapped his fingers on the table, making a rhythmic tapping sound.
"Do you think Dai Huabin might... have taken a liking to you?"
"Ah?"
She stood frozen in place for Xu Jiujiu, then her originally fair cheeks instantly flushed red, and even her ears burned.
"Brother! What nonsense are you talking about! He's only twelve years old!"
"So what if she's twelve? There are plenty of girls in the Douluo Continent who get engaged at eleven or twelve."
Xu Jiawei spoke with righteous indignation.
"Think about it, Shrek Academy has such a profound foundation, yet he didn't go to exchange it. Instead, he took this 'Star Luo Spirit Pearl,' which is most compatible with your Star Crown Martial Soul, and came to the Starlight Auction House to find you. Isn't this a disguised 'dowry'?"
"Who would use Immortal Herb as a betrothal gift!" Xu Jiujiu hurriedly retorted, but her voice grew softer and softer.
The image of Dai Huabin in the VIP room involuntarily flashed into her mind.
His tall, upright figure, strong and handsome features, and the calm demeanor that showed he had everything under control.
He didn't seem like a twelve-year-old boy at all; in fact, he was more charming than many adult nobles.
Even more damning was the sentence he uttered when he pushed the Star Luo Spirit Pearl in front of him:
"If a Star Crown Soul Master were to consume this Star Luo Spirit Pearl..."
Was Dai Huabin hinting at something to me?
For Xu Jiujiu, I could only feel my heart pounding.
What woman wouldn't be tempted by a man who can casually offer Immortal Herb as gifts and possesses unparalleled talent?
The most crucial point is that, for Xu Jiujiu, he still couldn't understand why, if it were for the sake of treasures, Shrek's millennia-long heritage truly surpassed that of the Star Luo Imperial Family.
Why didn't Dai Huabin make a trade at the Shrek Academy?
Does he really like me?
(One of the three great illusions of humankind!)
"Alright, stop being shy."
Seeing his younger sister's rare display of girlishness, Xu Jiawei was in a great mood.
"Regardless of whether he is interested in you or not, we must acquire this Star Luo Spirit Pearl."
Go and check what's in the national treasury that's worthy of the Immortal Herb.
Also, has the little girl next to him been investigated?
"Not yet, he said it's his friend, named Bing'er." Xu Jiujiu, she came back to her senses and suppressed the pounding in her heart.
"Send people to keep an eye on them, but don't get too close. Since Dai Huabin is so friendly to our royal family, we should try to win him over!"
Do you understand? For Jiujiu.
Xu Jiawei spoke up.
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
He replied Xu Jiujiu, but his mood was not so relaxed.
A question arose in her mind again:
Could it be that he really likes me?