As his finger came down, the light screen flashed with a dazzling radiance.
The contents appeared right after...
[Zhu Zhuqing Exclusive Reward Pack opened. The following items were obtained:] [1 · Zhu Zhuqing Exclusive Talisman: Tiger Talisman.] [2 · God-Given Soul Ring (System Version) ×1.] [3 · Storage Soul Tool Ring (Infinite Space Version) ×1.] [4 · Mysterious Heaven Infinite Skill (Dual Cultivation Version).]
Each reward was clearly displayed before him. After Lin Yan read through them, he immediately sucked in a sharp breath.
"Whoa~"
"Are the rewards really this generous?"
Although he couldn't use the Twelve Talismans the system had given him, every other reward was top-tier.
A Soul Ring, a Storage Ring, and a cultivation technique... It was a dual cultivation technique, sure, but it already sounded more powerful than Tang San's Mysterious Heaven Skill.
Lowering his gaze, Lin Yan spotted another line of small text beneath the reward list.
[Tiger Talisman: Passive · The noble White Tiger balances yin and yang; Active · Splits the user into two people, one good and one evil.]
"Too bad she's already gone."
"Otherwise, I could've enjoyed twice the fun."
The Tiger Talisman's abilities were more or less what he'd expected. Even in the Douluo World, it didn't have much offensive power, so it couldn't be considered a significant boost for Zhu Zhuqing.
But as for balancing yin and yang... Lin Yan wasn't sure what to make of that.
Could it balance the Soul Power and various attributes in her body? Or speed up her Soul Power cultivation?
He couldn't use the talisman's abilities himself, so he had no way of knowing. He'd have to wait until he saw Zhu Zhuqing again.
Lin Yan stopped dwelling on it and turned his attention to the other rewards.
There was no need to say much about the God-Given Soul Ring. It was one of the best things around. Too bad he'd only received one this time. It would be nice if the next reward gave him a few more.
Next was the Storage Soul Tool Ring.
Lin Yan lightly touched the screen, and a pitch-black ring suddenly appeared in his palm.
The ring had no other color at all, and he couldn't sense anything unusual from it. It looked plain and unadorned.
"I don't even have a Storage Soul Tool for carrying things yet."
Putting the ring on, Lin Yan smiled faintly.
"As for this cultivation technique..."
"Mubai, I'm being forced into this too. But for the sake of the system's rewards, I'll have to put you through a little suffering."
Meanwhile.
After Lin Yan's treatment, Zhu Zhuqing's body had returned to its original peak condition. Her gait was a little strange, but at least there was nothing obviously wrong.
Under the night sky, she gently pushed open the door to the girls' dormitory.
"Zhuqing? You're finally back!"
She had barely stepped into the room when Ning Rongrong's voice came from her bed.
Then the girl's tone turned a little reproachful.
"If you hadn't come back soon, Xiao Wu and I were going to look for you at Lin Yan's."
"What took you so long?"
Zhu Zhuqing clenched her palm and gave the excuse she'd rehearsed countless times in her mind.
"Oh... When I went this morning, Lin Yan was cultivating, so I went to have a look around Suotuo City."
"I only just got back to the academy..."
Ning Rongrong frowned slightly at that, but didn't ask any more. Instead, she showed concern about something else.
"What about the leaves? Did you get them?"
"If you didn't, I can go."
"I got them."
Zhu Zhuqing hurriedly took out a handful of Blue Silver Grass leaves infused with life-attribute Soul Power. The moment Ning Rongrong saw them, she jumped out of bed and ran over to Zhu Zhuqing.
Zhu Zhuqing handed them over, keeping only two for herself.
Ning Rongrong beamed.
"Good thing you got them. Hehe."
She held the leaves like they were her favorite toys, her delight plain on her face.
Zhu Zhuqing breathed a sigh of relief and turned to head back to her bed.
But then Ning Rongrong seemed to notice something was off and suddenly let out a curious little sound.
"Huh? Why do you seem a little different from when you left the dorm this morning?"
Zhu Zhuqing tensed and turned her head away.
"N-Nowhere~"
"No!"
"Zhuqing, something's off with you."
Ning Rongrong took a few steps closer, leaning in toward Zhu Zhuqing. Her little nose twitched as she sniffed at her over and over.
She felt like there was a scent on Zhu Zhuqing that didn't belong to her—a scent that was both intimate and intoxicating. She'd never smelled it before, but instinctively wanted to figure out what it was.
Afraid Ning Rongrong would find out, Zhu Zhuqing squirmed and pushed her away.
Ning Rongrong then turned to look at Xiao Wu.
"Xiao Wu, don't you think Zhuqing seems a little different from when she left this morning?"
Hearing that, Xiao Wu poked her head out from her bed and began looking Zhu Zhuqing up and down.
The two of them examined her without the slightest restraint. Zhu Zhuqing's little face had already turned bright red.
"Where are your stockings?"
Xiao Wu's blunt question hit the mark at once.
Zhu Zhuqing usually wore stockings every day. She said they reduced air resistance when she ran, letting her reach the greatest possible speed.
But now...
The two girls looked at Zhu Zhuqing's shapely, rounded legs. Zhu Zhuqing quietly clenched the corner of the blanket beside her.
"I... snagged them on a branch along the way, so I threw them out."
"Huh? You threw them out on the way?"
Ning Rongrong was shocked. Didn't she wear those under her pants? How could she just take them off and throw them away while she was out?
Realizing something was wrong, Zhu Zhuqing immediately burrowed under the covers, turning her back to the two girls.
"No, I just..."
"Anyway, I threw them away."
"I'm tired. I'm going to sleep. You two can talk."
With that, she pulled the covers over herself, clearly using the gesture to refuse any more questions from them.
Ning Rongrong suspiciously walked over to Xiao Wu's bed.
"Zhuqing's acting so strange today~"
As she spoke, she split the leaves in her hand into two portions and gave one to Xiao Wu.
"Xiao Wu, what if Lin Yan finds out we're using his leaves for this..."
"Don't say that. How could we let him find out?" Xiao Wu hurriedly hid the leaves beneath her pillow and went on explaining, "How are they his leaves? It's the life-attribute Soul Power inside them that's doing the work."
Ning Rongrong giggled when she heard that, deciding Xiao Wu made a lot of sense.
"You really know a lot."
Then Ning Rongrong trotted back to her bed and climbed under the covers.
It was already evening. For people who didn't stay up late, it was about time to go to sleep. Ning Rongrong was just about to absorb the energy in the leaves when she seemed to think of something.
Then she looked toward Zhu Zhuqing's bed.
"Zhuqing, aren't you going to try them?"
"You'll sleep better after you've tried it once."
Zhu Zhuqing said nothing and didn't move. Ning Rongrong and Xiao Wu exchanged glances, then tentatively called out to her twice more.
"Zhuqing?"
She still didn't respond. Instead, a faint snore came from beneath the covers.
"Did she fall asleep?"
Ning Rongrong looked puzzled, and Xiao Wu explained,
"Maybe she's tired from walking around town."
Ning Rongrong pouted, sounding a little unhappy.
"Honestly, she went shopping without asking us. I wanted to buy some new clothes too."
"Next time I'll make Lin Yan go with me. Hmph~"
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