One Ton of Whale Rubber

"Everyone, listen up. Rest well this weekend and gather back here next week. Dismissed!"

Teacher Mu Jin's voice rang clearly in the ears of every student in Class Nine; another week of physical training had finally come to an end.

The "duel" between Lin Feng and Wang Dong originally planned for the weekend had also quietly been canceled—after that one-sided display of martial arts prowess last time, the little girl finally had some self-awareness.

After saying goodbye to Wang Dong, Ning Tian, and Wu Feng, Lin Feng had just walked out of the training ground gate when he spotted Ma Xiaotao waiting not far away.

Her tall, curvaceous figure and fiery red hair were particularly eye-catching amidst the dispersing crowd of freshmen, and a bright, unmistakable smile graced her face.

"Sister Xiaotao!" Lin Feng quickened his pace to meet her.

"Haven't seen you for a week, why does your complexion look a bit weak?" Ma Xiaotao naturally took his hand, her tone filled with concern. "Come on, let's go back and get you properly nourished."

"Keep your voice down..." Lin Feng lowered his voice, caught between laughter and tears. "Can we not talk about a guy being 'weak' out in public?"

"Alright, alright, whatever you say." Ma Xiaotao smiled and leaned in closer, pulling an exquisite gold-stamped invitation from her bosom and waving it in front of him. "No hot springs this week; I'm taking you somewhere good to pick out some suitable supplements."

"The Treasure Appraisal Fair?" Lin Feng read the gold-stamped characters on the invitation.

"That's right, it's an auction held by a famous merchant guild in the city. Shrek City is the commercial hub of this region, and treasures from all sides appear here..."

"But I don't have much money," Lin Feng said, spreading his hands.

"Don't worry," Ma Xiaotao winked, her tone light and tinged with a hint of pride. "We have our teacher to cover us. Besides, your senior sister has saved up quite a bit of dowry; it'll be enough~"

"Your dowry? That doesn't seem right; that's meant for your future..."

"What's mine is yours, is there a problem with that?"

"No problem..."

Ma Xiaotao naturally linked her arm with Lin Feng's and led him toward the outside of the academy.

Two quarters of an hour later, the two arrived at the location of the Treasure Appraisal Fair.

Before them stood a towering, magnificent pavilion with a golden plaque hanging high, inscribed with three shimmering, vibrant characters: "Treasure Gathering Pavilion."

The architecture was grand, with flying eaves and bracket sets that looked resplendent and extraordinarily imposing in the twilight.

The entrance was already bustling with shadows and quite lively.

Just as they reached the main gate, Lin Feng's gaze was involuntarily drawn to the several waitresses greeting guests, but he quickly reined it in.

He didn't want to be caught red-handed by Ma Xiaotao; between Wu Feng and Ning Tian, he had already been through enough trouble for a long time.

After the two presented Yan Shaozhe's warrant, the eyes of the greeting waitresses visibly brightened, their attitude becoming especially respectful as they immediately led them straight to the highest VIP floor of the Treasure Gathering Pavilion.

As the personal disciple of Martial Soul Department Dean Yan Shaozhe, this status naturally allowed them unimpeded access here, and those within the pavilion were well aware of its weight.

The auction proceeded as usual, and half the time had quietly slipped away.

"Distinguished guests, the next item up for auction carries quite a bit of weight."

As the host's voice fell, the velvet cloth on the display stand was slowly unveiled by two waitresses, revealing a large, pitch-black, dark-lustered mass.

"One ton of Thousand-Year Whale Rubber! Starting bid, two hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins." The host's voice was high-pitched. "According to the seller, this item was formed by melting and solidifying dozens of pieces of Thousand-Year Whale Rubber, and the outer layer was..."

"Three hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins!"

Before the host could finish his introduction, Ma Xiaotao had already nodded slightly to the waitress standing beside her.

The waitress understood and immediately raised the paddle to bid, her clear voice instantly drowning out the faint murmurs in the hall.

"Good! Guest number eleven bids three hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins!" The host reacted quickly, immediately taking back the lead. "Are there any other distinguished guests interested in this treasure?"

The crowd in the hall whispered to one another, but eventually, they all shook their heads; no one followed the bid.

It was quite obvious that this piece of black Whale Rubber was not worth that price.

"Are there any other bids? Going once at three hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins!"

"Going twice at three hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins!"

"Three hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins, three times—sold!"

The wooden gavel fell with a crisp sound.

"Congratulations to guest number eleven for successfully winning this ton of Thousand-Year Whale Rubber!"

"Sister Xiaotao? Is this Whale Rubber really that precious?" Lin Feng turned his head, looking at Ma Xiaotao with slight confusion.

He hadn't even heard the full list of the Whale Rubber's specific effects and couldn't understand why Ma Xiaotao had acted so decisively and lavishly.

"Hehe, what's the rush..." Ma Xiaotao turned her head, a cunning arc curling at the corners of her lips as she lowered her voice. "You'll know when we get back."

Her eyes sparkled, looking just like a kitten that had locked onto a fresh fish, making Lin Feng's heart skip a beat for no reason.

Even the waitress standing to the side seemed to have a slightly more subtle look in her eyes...

"The later items aren't worth watching; let's head back." Ma Xiaotao glanced at the auction catalog provided only for top-tier VIPs.

"So early?"

"When we get back... we still have a lot of 'important business' to attend to." She winked, smiling with deep meaning.

Although Lin Feng didn't ask further, a vague premonition that "something big was going wrong" rose in his heart.

The two soon returned to the dormitory.

Ma Xiaotao did not say a word before retrieving that pitch-black piece of Whale Rubber from her Storage Soul Tool.

Though this Whale Rubber was said to weigh a ton, its density was immense, making it incredibly heavy.

"Xiao Feng, this Whale Rubber is a potent tonic. It strengthens the tendons and bones, improves physical constitution, and makes it easier to absorb Soul Rings of higher age. Since you possess a Body Martial Soul, you are in dire need of such treasures." She brushed her fingertips over the rough surface, her tone carrying a hint of coaxing.

"A potent tonic? This thing is pitch black; can you really eat it? Don't tell me it's gone bad." Lin Feng was somewhat skeptical.

"Rest assured, I've eaten some before, though only small fragments. This thing must be slowly softened with high-tier flames before it can be absorbed," Ma Xiaotao explained.

"High-quality thousand-year Whale Rubber should be amber-gold in color and the size of a fist. This piece is dark and massive, so it was likely tampered with by a crooked merchant... but its advantage lies in its sheer weight and low price; the good parts inside should be plentiful."

Having said that, a raging Phoenix Evil Fire surged from her palm, fiercely scorching the surface of the Whale Rubber.

Soon, that thick, pitch-black outer shell began to peel away layer by layer like mud, revealing a crystalline, lustrous glow from within.

It was not the golden yellow she had expected, nor was it the deep yellow of legend...

Instead, it was a color interwoven with near-translucent black and gold.

"This is..." Ma Xiaotao's breath hitched, a look of incredulous surprise flashing in her eyes. "Ten-thousand-year grade Whale Rubber?!"

No, that wasn't right. This luster, this fragrance...

Ten-thousand-year Whale Rubber should be a rich, deep yellow, and its scent shouldn't be this intense.

As a direct disciple of Yan Shaozhe, she had naturally seen countless treasures, including the incredibly precious ten-thousand-year Whale Rubber.

Yet the piece before her had a luster as deep as an abyss and a texture as refined as crystal, with a vitality seemingly pulsing faintly within the flowing halo...

"It's more than ten thousand years..." Her voice trembled with excitement as her fingertips lightly touched the warm, gelatinous body. "A piece this large, with such pure texture... it is very likely ten-thousand-year grade Whale Rubber. We... we've struck a massive bargain."

One must know that Sea Soul Beasts are overall far more powerful than Land Soul Beasts, and their numbers are more than ten times that of their land-dwelling counterparts.

Whale-type creatures are overlord-level existences in their entirety, the most famous being that million-year Deep Sea Demonic Whale King—an existence that even Di Tian fears.

Therefore, it is extremely difficult for humans to obtain ten-thousand-year Whale Rubber, let alone hundred-thousand-year Whale Rubber...