"Looks like Xiao Xue is about to become invincible."
Venti chewed on a piece of fruit, a playful smile curling across his face.
That was fine.
It would save him from having to keep an eye on Spirit Hall, worrying that the silly girl might get bullied.
Just then, a faint sigh sounded beside him.
"Teacher..."
Shui Yue'er's voice was full of resentment.
Venti turned his head. The several female disciples beside him were looking at him with exceedingly complicated expressions.
Shui Bing'er bit her red lip, her usually cool eyes now filled with envy.
Even Bai Chenxiang, who was always shy, gazed up at Qian Renxue's name on the Sky Curtain, her little hands twisting the hem of her clothes.
"What is it?"
Venti feigned ignorance and took another bite of his apple.
Shui Yue'er strode over, puffing up with anger. Today she wore a short sky-blue skirt, and her long, fair legs swayed in the sunlight, dazzling the eye.
She was so close that Venti could even catch the faint, sweet fragrance about her.
"Teacher, you're playing favorites!"
"That Qian Renxue has such an amazing token of love. What about us?"
"I want a treasure like that, too—the kind that lets you borrow divine power!"
As she spoke, Shui Yue'er even made a point of straightening up, as if to show that she was no worse than the young mistress of Spirit Hall.
It had to be said: after being baptized by their Visions, these girls had become all the more alluring, both in bearing and figure.
Their legs, each with its own distinctive beauty—some plump, some slender—were especially easy on the eyes.
Venti's gaze swept over them, and his spirits lifted.
This was the life.
"What's the rush?"
"You'll have bread, and you'll have milk."
"If you behave well, maybe I'll give you something even better someday."
Venti reached out and lightly flicked Shui Yue'er's smooth forehead.
"Ow!"
Shui Yue'er covered her forehead, but she wasn't angry at all. Instead, the affectionate gesture made her blush, and most of the resentment in her eyes vanished at once.
The atmosphere around them turned suddenly intimate and dreamy.
Just then, an untimely chuckle broke in.
"Hehe..."
Feng Xiaotian stood to one side, awkwardly scratching the back of his head.
He felt like he was putting out too much light, bright enough to sting the eyes.
But he didn't dare leave, so he could only force himself to add a few words.
"Um... Teacher."
"Actually, I think it's great that she got the Gnosis!"
"Look, your... ahem, Miss Qian Renxue already has an Angel Martial Soul, and she's beautiful. She's a perfect match for you, Wind God!"
"What do you call that?"
"That's a talented man and a beautiful woman, a match made in heaven!"
As he spoke, Feng Xiaotian cautiously watched his junior sisters' expressions. Only after seeing that they didn't look ready to kill him did he breathe a sigh of relief.
Venti glanced at him and chided with a laugh:
"You sure do talk a lot."
"Go wash me a few more apples."
Feng Xiaotian felt as if he'd been granted a reprieve. He hurriedly answered and darted away.
While Venti and the others were exchanging playful banter in Godwind City, the scene on the Sky Curtain shifted once more.
The Golden Ranking trembled. The Anemo energy did not disperse with the end of the Gnosis reveal; instead, it surged more fiercely than ever.
Then, accompanied by a majestic chant, a line of even more dazzling characters slowly appeared.
[Third on the Rare Treasure Ranking: Skyward Harp!]
The scene pulled back abruptly.
High above the clouds floated an exquisitely crafted lyre... no, on closer inspection, it looked more like a longbow.
It was fashioned entirely from an unknown Azure Sky Wood. The bow's body resembled the spread wings of an angel, and every string rippled with pure Anemo energy.
It hung silently at the top of the sky, surrounded by notes that danced in plain sight.
Though it was clearly a weapon, it gave the illusion that one was listening to all things grow, carried on the song of a wandering bard.
[Holder: Wind God Venti]
That name again!
Everyone on the continent had gone numb by now.
First a Vision, then a Gnosis, and now the Skyward Harp.
Just who was this Wind God Venti? Why were all the good things in his hands?
The Sky Curtain immediately followed with an introduction.
[Skyward Harp]
[Description: A bow-lute symbolizing the high song of the Wind Dragon. It was once forged by the Wind God to commemorate the dragon who fought at his side. Its music can calm storms, and its bowstring can pierce the firmament.]
[Innate Ability: Poetry of Echoing Heavens.]
[Effect: Every attack made by the holder deals additional Anemo critical damage and has a very high chance of triggering area-of-effect Wind Blades. These ignore terrain and evasion.]
Before anyone could recover from its gorgeous appearance and formidable attributes, the Sky Curtain was already rushing to announce its reward.
Perhaps because the bow itself was the Wind God's weapon, the reward this time was remarkably simple and direct.
[As this item was born alongside the Wind God, it ranks third on the Rare Treasure Ranking!]
[A reward is hereby granted!]
[Reward: Skyward Harp's quality is elevated!]
[Upgrade direction: Ascension to a Supreme Divine Artifact!]
[Ascension Effect One: All existing enhancement effects are doubled!]
[Ascension Effect Two: Granted trait—Absolute Penetration!]
[Absolute Penetration: Arrows fired from this bow possess the highest priority under the laws of the world. They can ignore and suppress all defensive Divine Artifacts, divine skills, and shields! Before a Supreme Divine Artifact, all defenses are mere illusions!]
As soon as those lines appeared, the entire Douluo Continent fell into a deathly silence.
Then came a deafening uproar.
A Supreme Divine Artifact?
What did that even mean?
To the vast majority of Soul Masters—even Titled Douluo—Divine Artifacts were already things of legend.
The Asura Demon Sword in Tang San's hands was a Super Divine Artifact.
Could this Supreme Divine Artifact be a whole tier above even that?
And what about "Absolute Penetration"?
It could suppress all defensive Divine Artifacts?
Didn't that mean that, if the Wind God wished it, no one could hope to survive before him?
Deep in the Star Dou Forest, at the Life Lake in the Core Circle.
The usually placid lake surged into towering waves as an aura suddenly erupted.
A beautiful silver-haired figure stood beside the lake, her pale purple eyes revealing an exceptionally intense shock—a rare sight.
It was the Silver Dragon King, Gu Yuena.
"Supreme Divine Artifact..."
Gu Yuena's voice trembled as she stared at the longbow on the Sky Curtain, its aura radiating a terrifying pressure.
As the former other half of the Dragon God of the Divine Realm, her knowledge far surpassed that of humans.
"My lord, what is this Supreme Divine Artifact?"
Beast God Di Tian, who had taken human form beside her, was also full of uncertainty.
He could sense the threat emanating from that bow. It was so great that even the dragon blood in his veins trembled.
"Legend says that such divine treasures could only be born at the beginning of the universe, or in certain supreme planes that surpass the dimensions of the Divine Realm."