Ning Fengzhi!

"Bought more?"

Oscar frowned: "Why does he buy so many? He can't even finish them."

"It's not for eating, it's for research." Fu Wen took a sip of soup: "He wants to figure out how the Flying Sausage is made."

Oscar's expression changed: "Then... did he figure it out?"

"No." Fu Wen set down his bowl: "The core of the Flying Sausage isn't the recipe, it's your Martial Soul and Spirit Ring. Even if he broke the sausage down into molecules, he couldn't replicate it."

Oscar breathed a sigh of relief, but quickly grew tense again.

"Then will he come looking for us?"

"And what if he does?"

Fu Wen glanced at him: "This is Suotuo City, and both Dad and Teacher Zhao are seven-ringed Soul Saint. Who would dare make a move here?"

Oscar thought about it, felt it made sense, and picked up his chopsticks to continue eating.

But Fu Wen knew things weren't that simple.

The man in black hadn't come just once. Since the first time, he would buy a few sausages and leave, never communicating with anyone or asking for more information.

A person like this was either a scout for some faction or a lone alchemist.

No matter which one it was, they couldn't afford to let their guard down.

But it was too early to think about that now.

When soldiers come, block them; when water comes, earth covers it.

If it really reached that point, it wasn't as if there were no solutions.

After finishing the meal, Oscar went to the auction house to make sausages.

Ma Hongjun returned to the dormitory to rest.

Fu Wen sat alone in the courtyard, looking up at the sky.

The sunlight was pleasant, and white clouds drifted leisurely by.

Yet his mind was occupied with his next plan.

He had already broken through to the eighteenth level.

Next was the nineteenth level, the twentieth level, and then the second Spirit Ring.

What kind of spirit beast should he choose for the second Spirit Ring? What age? What spirit skill?

These were all questions.

The Innate Divine Crocodile Art told him that the choice of the second Spirit Ring was crucial.

The first ring was the foundation, and the second ring was the framework. If the foundation was solid and the framework was set correctly, the path ahead would be easier to walk.

"What are you thinking about?"

Li Yusong's voice came from behind him.

Fu Wen turned his head and saw Li Yusong walking over slowly, holding a cup of tea.

"Teacher Li, I'm thinking about my second Spirit Ring."

"The second ring is still a long way off, no need to rush."

Li Yusong sat down beside him and took a sip of tea: "The most important thing for you now is to walk the path from level eighteen to level twenty steadily. As for the Spirit Ring, there will naturally be a way when the time comes."

"Teacher Li, what did you choose for your second Spirit Ring back then?"

"For my Dragon Pattern Staff, I chose a century-old Iron Bone Python for my second ring. The spirit skill was 'Iron Bone', which could enhance defense."

Li Yusong said: "I didn't have many thoughts back then; I just felt that defense was important, so I chose it. Looking back now, the choice wasn't great, but it wasn't bad either."

"If you could choose again?"

Li Yusong thought for a moment: "I would choose a spirit skill with control capabilities. The Dragon Pattern Staff itself doesn't lack attack power, but it lacks control. If I could have a binding-type spirit skill, my combat power would increase by at least thirty percent."

Fu Wen nodded thoughtfully.

"You are different."

Li Yusong looked at him: "Your Martial Soul is a Mutated Sea Crocodile, which already possesses powerful attack and defense. What you lack isn't control, but burst damage. A burst that decides the outcome in one move."

"Burst damage?"

"Correct." Li Yusong nodded: "Your first spirit skill, Primordial Bite, is already very strong, but it's a close-quarters skill. What if your opponent doesn't let you get close? What if your opponent kites you from a distance? What will you do then?"

Fu Wen fell silent.

He truly hadn't considered this problem.

"For your second ring, supplement it with a mid-range burst skill."

Li Yusong said: "It doesn't have to be able to kill the opponent instantly, but at least it should make the opponent afraid to easily widen the distance."

Fu Wen stood up and bowed to Li Yusong.

"Thank you, Teacher Li."

"What are you thanking me for?" Li Yusong waved his hand. "I am your teacher; these are things I should be teaching you anyway."

Fu Wen looked up, gazing into the distance with a resolute expression.

He had already found his direction for the path of the second ring.

In the afternoon, at the backstage of the auction house.

Oscar was making Flying Sausage. Once he finished five, he arranged them neatly on a tray.

Blue light shimmered across the surface of the sausages, the wing patterns delicate and intricate.

Manager Gu walked in, glanced at the tray, then at Oscar, hesitating as if he had something to say.

"Boss Gu, is something the matter?"

Oscar asked.

Manager Gu hesitated for a moment, then lowered his voice. "Xiao Ao, let me give you the inside scoop. Among the guests today, there is someone with an extraordinary status. He is a noble from Heaven Dou City, surnamed Ning."

"Surnamed Ning?"

Oscar raised an eyebrow. "The Ning from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?"

"Shh!"

Manager Gu made a gesture for silence. "Just know it, don't say it out loud. This Mr. Ning is very interested in the Flying Sausage and came all the way from Heaven Dou City specifically for it today. Keep that in mind when the auction starts later."

Oscar nodded without saying a word.

But his mind was already racing.

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, one of the seven great sects of the continent, led by Sect Master Ning Fengzhi, who possessed the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Martial Soul and was the strongest support-type Spirit Master in the world.

Was someone from the Ning family here to buy the Flying Sausage for personal use, or for research?

Either way, it wasn't a bad thing.

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was wealthy; buying sausages meant they were delivering money.

As for research... Fu Wen had said that the core of the Flying Sausage wasn't the recipe, but his Martial Soul and spirit rings. Others could study it for a hundred years and still wouldn't be able to replicate it.

Thinking of this, Oscar felt at ease.

The auction began.

The first Flying Sausage went up for bid, starting at two Gold Soul Coins, and it soared all the way to sixty, still climbing.

"Sixty-five!"

"Seventy!"

"Seventy-five!"

In the audience, a man in his thirties wearing fine silk raised his paddle.

"One hundred."

The entire room went silent.

One hundred Gold Soul Coins—this was the highest price the Flying Sausage had ever fetched since the auctions began.

No one countered the bid.

The man in fine silk stood up, walked backstage, paid the money, and took the goods.

"You are Oscar?"

The man looked at him, his gaze gentle yet sharp.

"I am."

Oscar nodded.

"I am Ning Fengzhi, Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect."

The man smiled slightly. "Your Flying Sausage is excellent."

Oscar was stunned for a moment.

Ning Fengzhi, the Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, had come in person?

"Sect Master Ning is too kind."

Oscar steadied his mind, remaining neither servile nor overbearing.

Ning Fengzhi nodded, picked up the Flying Sausage to examine it, put it away, and turned to leave.

He didn't ask anything more, didn't say anything else, and just walked away like that.

Oscar stood frozen in place, unable to snap out of it for a long time.

Back at the academy, Oscar recounted everything about Ning Fengzhi's visit.

After hearing it, Flender's expression turned grave.

"Ning Fengzhi coming in person shows that the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect attaches great importance to the Flying Sausage."

Fu Wen said, "But he didn't ask much, nor did he inquire about Xiao Ao's background; he simply bought one and left."

"That makes it even more unsettling."

Flender frowned.

"No."

Fu Wen shook his head. "Quite the opposite. Ning Fengzhi is a smart man; he knows the core of the Flying Sausage is Xiao Ao's martial soul and soul rings, not a recipe. So he didn't need to ask, and asking would have been in vain. He bought one to take back and show the people in his sect."

"Show the people in his sect?"

"Yes." Fu Wen nodded. "To tell them that the Flying Sausage is real and worth paying attention to. But it isn't something shameful that needs to be studied in secret."

Flender thought about it and felt it made sense.

"Then what do we do from here on?"

"Business as usual." Fu Wen said. "Auction as planned, train as scheduled. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is not an enemy, at least not for now."

Flender nodded, saying nothing more.

At night, Fu Wen lay in bed, his mind still occupied by thoughts of Ning Fengzhi.

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had set its sights on the Flying Sausage.

This wasn't a bad thing, but it certainly wasn't a good thing either.

Fortunately, Ning Fengzhi was not from the Martial Soul Hall; at the very least, he wouldn't resort to force.

But Fu Wen knew the road ahead was long.

They were only at the second ring now; as they reached the third, fourth, and fifth rings, the value of the Flying Sausage would only continue to climb.

By then, more and more people would be eyeing Oscar.

They had to prepare in advance.

He turned over and glanced at Oscar, who was already fast asleep.

This guy still had no idea what a massive treasure he held in his hands.

But he would know.

One day.