So Tang Liu Was Deceived

That twenty-four-hour period of weakness, during which he would be unable to fight, was no joke.

Tang Liu had only been able to regain consciousness earlier because of the Jade Spirit Fox's treatment.

Yet even the treatment of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast had only given him a few minutes of clarity.

A period of weakness that completely deprived him of combat ability naturally meant a coma as deathlike as one could get.

If Tang Hao had not still been able to feel Tang Liu's heartbeat and breathing, he would have thought Tang Liu had truly left him.

After recalling the Clear Sky Hammer, Tang Hao carried Tang Liu to his bedroom and settled him in. Then he came back out, grabbed the Jade Spirit Fox by the scruff of its neck, and dragged it into his own room. He used Soul Power to form a barrier that blocked the unconscious Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast aura it was giving off, then sat in the living room with his eyes closed, quietly waiting for Tang Liu to wake up.

Seriously, this brat really knew how to make trouble for himself. Who knew what kind of mess he would cause after leaving his side?

He had even caught a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast. A level ninety-nine Peerless Douluo could not be far off, right?

Seriously... he never let anyone rest easy!

Maybe it would be better to keep him by his side and watch over him properly...

At that moment, Tang Hao felt utterly exhausted.

If Tang Liu were even half as worry-free as Tang San, he would burn incense in gratitude!

But...

A Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.

Tang Hao could not help curling his lips into a smile.

This brat's luck was indeed excellent. It would just depend on whether he could seize this opportunity.

Twenty-four hours later, Tang Liu woke from his period of weakness.

Though the weak period had passed, not a trace of Soul Power had recovered within his body.

So he lay in bed and began meditating to restore his Soul Power.

After being compressed twice, his Soul Power had become much more durable, but its recovery speed had correspondingly slowed.

Tang Liu had yet to find a solution. Still, he guessed that if he wanted to speed up the recovery of his twice-compressed Soul Power, he would probably need to condense a Soul Core first.

Another full day and night passed before Tang Liu finally restored his Soul Power completely.

It was just noon outside.

After stretching, Tang Liu sat up in bed and immediately asked the system, "Didn't you say that Jade Spirit Fox was ten thousand years old? How did it become a hundred-thousand-year one?"

He had remembered this all along, waiting for the system to give him an explanation.

"The system never stated that the Jade Spirit Fox was ten thousand years old. I merely selected the Jade Spirit Fox required by the host at the host's request," the system replied.

Tang Liu froze, then remembered that he really had asked it that way!

Immediately, he became somewhat embarrassed and annoyed. "I don't care. You're a system. How could you possibly not know that the Jade Spirit Fox I needed was at the ten-thousand-year level?"

"According to the system's calculations, the Ring Borrowing method the host wished to use could not meet the requirements with a ten-thousand-year Soul Beast. Only a hundred-thousand-year one could qualify," the system said.

"Then why didn't you tell me beforehand? And how did you know that there would be a hundred-thousand-year one in that Jade Spirit Fox pack? What if there hadn't been one? What if I caught a ten-thousand-year one and it failed in the end? Though now that I think about it, calling my idea 'Ring Borrowing' is pretty fitting," Tang Liu said.

"From beginning to end, the system had been guiding the host to search for a hundred-thousand-year Jade Spirit Fox. The pack in the Mixed Zone just happened to have one at the hundred-thousand-year level. If not for the existence of this hundred-thousand-year Jade Spirit Fox, the system would have directly guided the host into the Core Zone," the system said.

Tang Liu: "...You just wanted me to go die."

"The Ring Borrowing method was chosen by the host himself, and the host also accepted the system's suggestion. The system was merely carrying out its duty. Furthermore, the host possesses the Hao-Lan Teleport skill. The probability of death does not exceed 1%."

Tang Liu: "..."

After a long while, he sighed inwardly and said, "Fine. I'll let you off this time. If something like this happens again, you have to explain it clearly to me first."

"Understood." The system's reply was devoid of emotion.

Ignoring the system, Tang Liu quickly ran out of his room and saw Tang Hao in the living room.

"Dad, where's that hundred-thousand-year Jade Spirit Fox I caught?" Tang Liu asked excitedly.

Honestly, once his brain accepted the fact that he had "caught a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast," Tang Liu immediately felt as though he was awesome beyond belief.

See that? A Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast. I caught it!

Tang Hao was sitting in a chair with his eyes closed, resting. When he heard Tang Liu's voice, he opened his eyes and gave him a calm glance before saying, "Have you recovered?"

"Yeah, I'm back in peak condition." Tang Liu nodded. "Where's that Jade Spirit Fox? Hurry up and release it. I need to borrow a Soul Ring from it."

In contrast to Tang Liu's excitement, Tang Hao was utterly calm. "I released it back into the Star Dou Great Forest."

Tang Liu: "???"

After a moment, Tang Liu's voice cracked as he cried out in utter anguish, "You released it?! How can you be so wasteful? You just let a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast go?!"

Tang Hao nodded calmly. "Even if I had not let it go, could you absorb its Soul Ring with your current cultivation? That was a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring. Get ready. I'll take you to the Star Dou Great Forest again and find you a ten-thousand-year Jade Spirit Fox."

"Who said I wanted to kill it and absorb its Soul Ring? Didn't you hear me say 'Ring Borrowing'? No, I'm going to Teleport it back. I can't give up such a great opportunity, even if it means entering another weak period!" Tang Liu declared with a determined expression. Then he released his Haolan Spell Martial Soul, and his second Soul Ring lit up.

The next moment, the Jade Spirit Fox appeared before Tang Liu, while only a tiny sliver of Soul Power was consumed from within his body.

Now that Tang Liu was already a Soul Ancestor, Hao-Lan Teleport only consumed the equivalent of one level of Innate Realm Soul Power for teleportations within one hundred meters.

Tang Liu looked at the Jade Spirit Fox, which was still unconscious: "..."

Then he slowly turned his gaze toward Tang Hao, his eyes filled with grief. "You lied to me."

Tang Hao: "..."

The way Tang Hao looked at Tang Liu became strange.

This brat had never told him that his teleportation skill could even teleport other people to his side!

"Tell me why you lied to me! Otherwise, when Mom comes back, I'll make her make you kneel on a washboard!" Tang Liu threatened.

Tang Hao: "..."

Tang Hao coughed. "What did you mean by 'Ring Borrowing' just now?"

"Don't change the subject. Tell me, why did you lie to me?"

"Do you mean you can obtain a Soul Ring without hunting a Soul Beast?"

"None of your business. Why did you lie to me?"

"What are you planning to do?"

"Why did you lie to me?"

"What is the principle behind it?"

"Why did you lie to me?"

"..."