Long Live Aunt Zhao

"An Lan! An Lan! An Lan!"

The crisp, clear call echoed through the Intermediate Spirit Ascension Platform. The young girl hopped and skipped as she waved at him, her silvery hair fluttering with her movements.

An Lan gazed at the lively figure, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth before he even realized it.

He glanced sideways at the dying Blood Dragon nearby and couldn't help but remark, "You certainly know how to pick your opponents."

Na'er giggled, sticking out her little tongue with a playful expression.

Having spent four years together, everyone around them assumed that the Silver Dragon Spear in her hand contained the bloodline of a high-level dragon, granting her a natural bloodline suppression over all soul beasts, especially those of the dragon kin.

Since everyone believed this, she had no reason to hide her own bloodline.

In her daily life within the Spirit Ascension Platform, her favorite pastime was to wantonly release her dragon might to intimidate and drive away various soul beasts.

At this moment, the soul beast that had been heavily wounded and sent flying by An Lan was struggling to crawl up from the ground; it was a Diamond Mammoth with five thousand years of cultivation.

Its thick, dark-gold fur was already soaked through with blood. One of its fearsome tusks had been snapped off at the root, leaving a horrific bloody hole in its face, while the other was broken halfway—it looked utterly miserable and had completely lost the ability to fight.

Before the Diamond Mammoth could even steady itself, a three-meter-long black tiger suddenly flew backward out of the dense forest on the other side, tracing a pathetic arc through the air before crashing right onto its back.

Already severely wounded, the Diamond Mammoth could no longer hold on. It let out a pained roar, collapsed heavily to the ground, and could not rise again.

With this, the Dragon, Tiger, and Elephant trio were gathered, and the Lan-Na-Hui Trio had eliminated three more pests from the Intermediate Spirit Ascension Platform!

A moment later, Yuanen Yehui, her red hair flying, emerged from the forest in the direction from which the Dark Demon Evil Tiger had been sent flying.

She was panting slightly, her face smeared with a bit of dust and tiger blood. Though she looked somewhat disheveled, her eyes were exceptionally bright and filled with soaring battle intent.

Seeing An Lan, her cold, stern brows softened instantly. She raised a hand and called out, "An Lan! Na'er!"

Before the words had even faded, she tapped her toes and leaped lightly to their side.

"Haha, Redhead, you look so pathetic!" Seeing Yuanen Yehui's state, Na'er mocked her without mercy.

Yuanen Yehui swept a faint glance at her, deliberately puffed out her chest, and curled her lips into a look of disdain.

Na'er, you loser!

Having spent four years together, she knew exactly how to break this glutton's defenses in one hit.

What's the point of being able to eat so much if you don't grow where it counts?

The smile on Na'er's face collapsed instantly. She glared at her with eyes full of jealousy, inwardly going crazy: Damn it! She had already changed her diet eight times this year, so how was she still losing to this red-haired gorilla!

Seeing this, Yuanen Yehui felt even more refreshed; the smile wouldn't disappear, it would only transfer from Na'er's face to hers.

She pointed at the Dragon, Tiger, and Elephant trio lying on the ground and looked at An Lan with a smile. "They only have one breath left. Finish them off."

A ten-thousand-year spirit soul could provide a soul master with four black soul rings. Aside from testing their own strength, another purpose for entering the Intermediate Spirit Ascension Platform this time was to help the cultivation of An Lan's Phantom Sea Spirit Kun reach ten thousand years, allowing An Lan to successfully advance to a level 40 Soul Ancestor.

"Alright."

An Lan nodded slightly, raised his hand to gather his power, and a massive spear of soul power condensed above the three beasts. It shimmered with cold light before plunging down with the force of ten thousand jun.

"BOOM--!!"

A deafening explosion erupted. The five-thousand-year Diamond Mammoth, the four-thousand-two-hundred-year Thorn Dragon, and the four-thousand-year Dark Demon Evil Tiger—these three ferocious soul beasts died on the spot, ending their sinful lives once and for all.

An Lan quickly channeled the three clusters of soul power, letting them slowly merge into his soul ring.

The addition of one thousand three hundred and twenty years of cultivation completely filled the gap in the Phantom Sea Spirit Kun's cultivation.

A ten-thousand-year soul ring, complete!

With three ink-black soul rings circling his body, An Lan's aura surged violently.

"Let's head out!"

Having achieved their goal, the three nodded to each other, then triggered their signaling devices to voluntarily exit the Intermediate Spirit Ascension Platform.

Waking up from the metal cabinet, a pair of golden eyes as bright as the morning sun came into view. An Lan's eyes instantly filled with pleasant surprise: "Teacher, you've finished your seclusion!"

The person who had arrived was An Lan's second master, Le Lingzhao, who had been in seclusion for half a year.

Le Lingzhao looked at her precious disciple whom she hadn't seen in half a year, raised a hand to ruffle his hair, and said with a gentle smile, "Not bad. Half a year later, and you've grown quite a bit taller."

Bearing a ten-thousand-year spirit soul required spiritual power at the Spirit Sea Realm, which meant at least five hundred points of spiritual power.

An Lan's spiritual power had long since met the standard, and his physique was more than sufficient, so Le Lingzhao didn't focus on his ten-thousand-year soul ring, but rather on his physical growth.

Na'er immediately crowded over, grinning, "Aunt Zhao, you've been in seclusion for so long, you must have broken through to become a Limit Douluo, right?"

"I have." Le Lingzhao nodded with a light laugh and reached out to stroke her hair. "Our Na'er is also getting prettier and prettier."

Four years had passed, and Na'er's address for her and Leng Qingning had quietly changed from "Sister" to "Aunt" at some point.

She naturally understood the little girl's intentions, and since her and Leng Qingning's identities were not suitable for public display, she was happy to let it be.

Le Lingzhao's gaze shifted to the other young girl who was staring at her "cabbage," and she beckoned, "Huihui, come here too."

Yuanen Yehui stepped forward as instructed and said softly, "Congratulations, Aunt Zhao."

Le Lingzhao ruffled her little head as well. "Half a year later, and you've grown taller too. Not bad. It just so happens that I've just finished my seclusion; tomorrow, I'll take you all out for a good time to relax."

The expected cheers did not ring out. Looking at the three little ones who were exchanging glances, Le Lingzhao frowned slightly. "What? You've practiced diligently for four years—aren't you happy that I'm taking you out to clear your minds?"

The sound of high heels clicking against the floor reached their ears clearly. Leng Yaozhu walked over slowly, smiling brightly. "You really chose the wrong time to finish your seclusion. These three little ones have been pestering me for a while now, saying they want to go out and train on their own for a few days."

"So that's how it is."

Le Lingzhao understood in an instant; they felt constrained having their elders tagging along.

She looked at An Lan. The boy had already grown to the height of her chest, and that was only because she was wearing high heels.

Logically, it was time to let go and allow them to go out and gain some experience, but the three of them were only ten years old after all, and deep down, she still couldn't set her heart at ease.

After a moment of contemplation, she spoke up: "I can refrain from following, but Dabai and Xiaobai must accompany you."

"Fine, I suppose," An Lan replied with a reluctant air.

"Auntie Zhao, you're the best!" Na'er and Yuanen Yehui cheered.

Seeing this, Le Lingzhao feigned annoyance and tugged at An Lan's cheek: "You heartless brat, you don't want your teacher anymore at only ten years old?"

"Since when?" An Lan rubbed his pinched cheek, quickly flashing a flattering smile.

"Alright, I won't disturb you youngsters and your fun." Le Lingzhao ruffled his hair one last time, then turned and pulled Leng Qingning toward the exit. "Come on, come on. Now that we're the same rank, let's go outside and have a spar first."