The moment she heard the completion condition would be changed to Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts, Dugu Yan's little head started shaking like a rattle drum.
Even her own grandfather wouldn't be enough to fill the gaps between a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast's teeth.
By comparison, it was better to go after her classmates' pets.
And so, over the next few days, Dugu Yan turned into a cuddly-pet reaper.
The pets her classmates raised—dogs, cats, hamsters, and the like—were all doomed, one after another becoming targets for Dugu Yan.
Fortunately, Dugu Yan was pretty clever about it. Twenty pets vanished in a row, and none of their owners discovered who was responsible.
They could only grieve in private over the loss of their beloved pets.
Feeling guilty, Dugu Yan hadn't visited the pet market for several days. Ye Lingling, who was occasionally dragged along for a stroll, found this very strange.
But she was quite happy to keep a little farther away from those venomous snakes.
She was just a little worried about her good friend.
After all, a few days ago, the other girl had done something comparable to taking a dump in the middle of the street.
"Yanzi, what's been going on with you lately?"
"You haven't even been asking me to go shopping!"
Dugu Yan was like a mute eating coptis root—she had bitterness she couldn't voice. She couldn't exactly tell everyone she'd earned the favor of a god and had to complete trials, could she?
Even setting aside whether anyone would believe her, what if she attracted people who coveted what she had?
"It's... it's nothing. I just haven't been feeling well lately."
Ye Lingling thought about the way she'd acted in class and immediately understood.
"Why don't you get a boyfriend, Yanzi? Then you won't feel so restless all over!"
Dugu Yan's pretty face darkened at once when she realized what her good friend was thinking.
"Shoo, shoo. If you've got nothing better to do, go find yourself a boyfriend. You're a little support-type Soul Master, so you need a Battle Soul Master boyfriend even more than I do."
"I'll be fine in a few days!"
"Bang!"
Ye Lingling stared blankly at the tightly shut door, then scratched her head in confusion.
Wasn't she only trying to be nice?
"Forget it. I'm not dealing with that brat."
"Yanzi, remember to keep an eye on your snakes. Someone's been stealing pets lately!"
"Got it!"
Back in her room, Dugu Yan sighed. It had only taken two trials for people to start noticing her. What was she supposed to do from here on out?
Fortunately, she only had two more pets to go before reaching the target of twenty for this trial. All she could do was hope the Snake God wouldn't issue another trial this shameless.
Dugu Bo, who had been secretly watching his granddaughter, had naturally seen everything she was doing.
He'd already thought his granddaughter had been acting strangely lately, and now he was even more puzzled.
At the same time, he resolved to find out what had caused this change in her.
At night, Dugu Yan covered her face and slipped out again under the cover of darkness.
Her target was the two Seven-Colored Birds raised by the Academic Affairs Committee member, Bai Baoshan.
These birds were beyond the category of ordinary pets; they were Ten-Year Soul Beasts.
Bai Baoshan, who loved raising birds, treasured them like precious jewels.
She had already wreaked havoc on nearly all the pets kept at the academy, so Dugu Yan could only set her sights on those two Seven-Colored Birds.
She crept quietly to the villa district, climbed over the wall, and entered Bai Baoshan's residence.
The two Seven-Colored Birds, who liked to chirp "chee-chee" all day, were now resting with their eyes closed.
Fortunately, they were kept in a cage. Otherwise, stealing these highly alert Soul Beasts would have taken considerable effort.
Without even getting into anything else, waking Bai Baoshan would have been hard to explain.
Dugu Yan quietly took the birdcage and hurried back to her dormitory.
The two Seven-Colored Birds immediately became food for her snakes and insects.
"Whew, turns out not just anyone can be a thief."
She wiped the sweat of nervousness from her brow, her face full of relief.
In a hotel room outside the academy, Lu Xian, already fast asleep, was suddenly jolted awake by the system's notification.
[Wish Level F. Executor Dugu Yan: 100% completion.] [Reward: 50 days of cultivation, Soul Ring age increased by 25 years.]
"She sure is diligent, finishing the task in the middle of the night!"
Lu Xian hadn't realized in the slightest how shameless the trial he'd given her was. He only sighed to himself.
After docking most of the reward as usual and paying out Dugu Yan's share, Lu Xian rolled over and went back to sleep.
Meanwhile, Dugu Yan also heard the notification that her trial was complete.
"Snake God's Second Trial: Hunting, complete."
"Reward: 15 days of cultivation, Soul Ring age increased by 4 years."
The pure Soul Power that surged into her body again instantly lifted Dugu Yan's foul mood.
Nothing excited a wage slave more than payday.
"Looks like the rewards go up with each trial. How generous will they be after the fortieth or fiftieth?"
Even though she still had no way to deal with the poison in her body, Dugu Yan's heart burned with excitement.
She could almost see a road to the pinnacle of the Soul Master world lying right before her.
As for the poison, she wasn't worried in the slightest.
Surely the Snake God wouldn't just watch the trial-taker she had chosen get poisoned to death?
"Bring on those trials!"
The next day, Dugu Yan swept away the gloom of the past few days and returned to class, radiant once more.
With her pretty face and a Titled Douluo in her family, Dugu Yan had never lacked suitors at the academy—even though she liked playing with snakes.
Yu Tianheng, grandson of Yu Yuanzhen of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Sect, was one of them.
His grandfather had certainly instructed him to get close to Dugu Yan, with the aim of winning her over and thereby drawing Dugu Bo into an alliance.
But it was hard to say whether Yu Tianheng's own lecherous intentions didn't play a part.
Seeing Dugu Yan return to class after several days away, Yu Tianheng went up to greet her with great consideration.
"Yanyan, Lingling said you haven't been feeling well these past few days?"
"Would you like me to find a healing Soul Master to take a look at you?"
At the way he addressed her, Dugu Yan instinctively furrowed her brows.
Usually, only her grandfather called her that.
Yu Tianheng's feelings were written all over his face. Dugu Yan couldn't possibly fail to notice.
She didn't dislike him, but with her mind full of trials, she had no energy to spare for romance.
"Thanks, I'm fine now. There's no need for a healing Soul Master."
"Really? Then, Yanyan, how about we have lunch together? I booked a restaurant."
Just as Dugu Yan was about to turn down Yu Tianheng's invitation, a notification about the God Trial sounded in her mind again.
"Snake God's Third Trial: Keep No Company with Loaches."
"As the Snake God's inheritor, how could you associate with muddy loaches?"
"Challenge this clueless toad directly, then defeat him in full view of everyone."
"Time limit: three days."
Dugu Yan's eyes lit up. She hadn't expected a trial to be triggered at any moment based on the circumstances.
This trial wasn't easy either, but it was still much better than taking a dump in the street or sneaking around like a thief.
Dugu Yan, in high spirits, raised her eyebrows at Yu Tianheng.
"Are you trying to pursue me?"
"Uh..."
Yu Tianheng's old face flushed red for once. It seemed he hadn't expected Dugu Yan to be so direct.
After a moment's hesitation, he gritted his teeth and nodded.
"That's right, Yanyan. I like you, so I was hoping you would—"
"Hey, hey, wait... wait."
"I didn't bring it up so you could confess to me. What I mean is, I, Dugu Yan, won't accept a partner weaker than me."
"If you want me to accept your advances, that's not impossible. Defeat me first."
Before you continue