Back then, after Gangzi had given his little speech about his "life-attribute Soul Ring" theory, he'd even said Jiang Lin was barely qualified to be his registered disciple. It had made Jiang Lin sick to his stomach.
He'd rejected him on the spot, of course.
But Gangzi wasn't the type to give up easily. Otherwise, he wouldn't be Gangzi.
So Jiang Lin chose the simplest method—Soul Fighting.
The result spoke for itself. Jiang Lin hadn't even used his first Soul Skill before he'd given Gangzi a thorough beating and finally shaken him off.
Gangzi had a strong sense of pride, so naturally, he'd never tell anyone about it. That was why Jiang Lin had dared to beat him up.
Otherwise, if he'd written a few letters to that lovesick Bibi Dong, Jiang Lin would probably have had to move somewhere else.
Jiang Lin looked away and strode through the gates of Nuoding Academy.
Seeing Jiang Lin's distinguished appearance, the young gatekeeper naturally didn't dare stop him.
Not long after Jiang Lin went inside, an old man and a boy appeared at the gates.
Old Jack had just arrived with Tang San when the young gatekeeper immediately blocked their way.
"What are you doing here? This place isn't for country folk like you."
The young man looked over their faces and clothes and guessed they were this year's work-study students. After all, self-funded students wouldn't look so shabby.
Old Jack's clothes were considered quite fine back in Holy Soul Village, but in Nuoding City, he looked every bit the country bumpkin.
The young man weighed things up and decided he could push them around, so he stopped them.
"Well, well! It's been years, and you're Boss Xiao now?"
By the playground at Nuoding Academy, Xiao Chenyu had been bragging to his lackeys when he heard the voice. He froze for a moment, then turned and saw a familiar figure.
"Brother Jiang?"
Xiao Chenyu's voice carried surprise and uncertainty.
The man before him looked to be over 1.7 meters tall, with a handsome, dignified face and an air of pressure that he could faintly sense.
Some of Xiao Chenyu's lackeys looked surprised at their boss's reaction, while others were completely bewildered.
Jiang Lin nodded. Although he was two years younger than Xiao Chenyu, he accepted the title of "Brother" quite naturally.
Among Soul Masters, strength came first.
In the original story, Xiao Wu had been able to make people much older than her call her "Sister Xiao Wu" through sheer strength. Jiang Lin could do the same.
But unlike those who'd called Xiao Wu that at her insistence, they called Jiang Lin "Brother" entirely of their own accord.
After all, Jiang Lin had once sent each of them flying with a single slap, relying on nothing but his physical strength and without summoning his Martial Soul.
A halberd counted as a heavy weapon, and it took plenty of strength to wield one. Perfectly reasonable, right?
After chatting with a few familiar faces, Jiang Lin continued wandering around Nuoding Academy.
Everything was proceeding in an orderly fashion.
Tang San had already enrolled. When Tang Hao left Holy Soul Village, Jiang Lin would go claim the Blue Silver Emperor's hundred-thousand-year-old right leg Soul Bone.
After getting the Soul Bone, Jiang Lin planned to head straight to Heaven Dou City and start plotting how to get the Immortal Herbs.
For now, though, he still had to wait—for Tang San to go Soul Hunting, and for Elder Chen to bring Xiao Wu back to him.
As Jiang Lin walked along, he suddenly remembered he hadn't checked the Mall today.
He opened the Mall interface.
The day's four items appeared before him.
Grade 6 Blood Ginseng, price: 3000 points
One bottle of Soul Refining Pills (12 pills), price: 100 points
Lingerie, price: 1 point
7000-year-old Whale Rubber, price: 650 points
Tsk. The useful things were too expensive, and the useless ones weren't needed.
Jiang Lin sighed inwardly. Looking at the Whale Rubber in the System Mall, he suddenly remembered he still had some leftovers in his Storage Soul Tool.
"System, take the rest of my Whale Rubber."
After reaching out to the system in his mind, it didn't take long for its voice to ring out.
"Ding, Host, you have 11 whale-shark blocks remaining: 3 over ten thousand years old, 2 over five thousand years old, and 5 over one thousand years old, worth a total of... 2,700 points."
"Isn't that a little cheap?"
Seeing the price of 2700, a flash of delight crossed Jiang Lin's eyes. But after silently working out the value based on the Whale Rubber prices in the System Mall, he asked, puzzled.
"Ding, that's already very expensive. The system guarantees a fair price."
Jiang Lin: ...
He had reason to suspect the system was pocketing the difference.
Next, the sound of points being credited drew Jiang Lin's attention to the Soul Refining Pills.
Name: Soul Refining Pill
Effect: After taking it, your cultivation speed increases by 200% until the medicinal effects are absorbed.
Note: The higher your cultivation, the faster the medicinal effects are absorbed.
After seeing what it did, Jiang Lin didn't hesitate. He immediately bought five bottles.
"Balance: 2,713 points - 500 points = 2,213 points"
Not long afterward, Jiang Lin left Nuoding Academy and returned to his temporary residence in Nuoding City, a small courtyard.
Neither the courtyard nor the house was very large, but there was more than enough room for two people.
With a Titled Douluo protecting him, Jiang Lin naturally wasn't short of money.
Elder Chen had even paid for the Whale Rubber.
In this era, the true use of Whale Rubber hadn't yet been discovered, so it was still quite cheap.
Jiang Lin no longer needed Whale Rubber, but buying it and selling it to the system was still worthwhile. It gave him another source of points.
Unfortunately, though, the system only accepted Whale Rubber that was at least a thousand years old.
High-year Whale Rubber wasn't something Jiang Lin could just buy whenever he wanted. After all, in this era it was used as an aphrodisiac.
For that purpose, a hundred- or thousand-year-old piece was more than enough. Besides, Whale Rubber wasn't the only aphrodisiac available, so shops generally didn't stock any that was over five thousand years old.
Most of the ten-thousand-year-old Whale Rubber Jiang Lin had eaten earlier had come from coastal cities, where he'd bought it straight from the source. Elder Chen had personally dived into the sea to catch a few pieces as well.
Only after Whale Rubber was no longer useful to Jiang Lin did he absorb his third Soul Ring. Then he returned to the area near Nuoding Academy to check on Tang San.
When he reached the courtyard and closed the gate, Jiang Lin noticed Elder Chen already waiting for him in a reclining chair.
Beside him was an unconscious, adorable little girl.
Her pretty little face was fair and flushed, and she looked as soft and pink as a ripe peach—so tempting that it made you want to take a bite.
Though her clothes were very plain, they looked clean and tidy.
Her long black hair was combed into a scorpion braid, and she wore rabbit-ear ornaments on her head.
Xiao Wu!
Although he'd guessed in advance that nothing would likely go wrong, now that a living Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast was right before him, Jiang Lin couldn't help feeling a rush of excitement.
"This rabbit is back. What do you plan to do with her?"
Elder Chen lounged in his chair, his tone utterly calm.
Jiang Lin, meanwhile, silently asked the system:
"System, will you buy a living Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast?"
"Ding, accepted, but only if she truly belongs to the Host."
"What do you mean?"
"For an intelligent life form, the other party must wholeheartedly believe that everything they have belongs to the Host before the Host can sell them."
At the system's explanation, Jiang Lin's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.
Didn't that mean she had to acknowledge him as her master?
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