Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Bone

Chen Zhou appeared very polite, but the more polite he acted, the more it highlighted Qiangu Zhangting looking like a madman.

Watching the gazes of several people land on Chen Zhou, Qiangu Zhangting felt as if his teeth were about to shatter.

It was the first time he had loathed someone this much, and even the first time he had wanted to strip a person's skin raw and tear away their flesh and blood with his own hands.

"Very well, sit down. Your performance this time was excellent, and you are the first-place winner of this competition."

Qiangu Dongfeng's voice was calm, though as he spoke, the smile on his face was difficult to conceal.

This time, not only had Qiangu Zhangting failed to secure second place, he had been pushed all the way down to third.

This was because the disciple of Zhang Geyang—the boy Chen Zhou had not eliminated—had also achieved a higher score than Qiangu Zhangting.

Furthermore, it was exactly 10 points higher, no more, no less.

The humiliation was almost maxed out; even Zhang Geyang himself had not expected this to backfire and result in such an awkward blunder.

However, Qiangu Dongfeng's tolerance for Zhang Geyang was clearly much higher.

After all, Zhang Geyang's father's generation, and indeed the generations of elders before him, were all high-ranking members of the Qiangu Clan.

His family was also considered a major faction within the Spirit Pagoda, which was why Qiangu Dongfeng had sent Zhang Geyang to the Star Luo Empire.

Because his existence, and indeed the existence of the Zhang family, also threatened the rule of the Spirit Pagoda.

"Since you are in first place, you may go to the treasury in a while to select a 100,000-year spirit bone as your reward."

Meeting Leng Yaozhu's gaze, Qiangu Dongfeng spoke with equal calmness.

He was not a man who couldn't afford to lose, especially since Chen Zhou also possessed the bloodline of the Qiangu Clan.

If Zhang Geyang's disciple had won, he certainly would have refused to acknowledge it and might even have tried to obstruct the outcome in secret.

But with the opponent also being from a collateral branch of the Qiangu Clan, and with neither side having completely burned their bridges, Qiangu Dongfeng found it difficult to act too ruthlessly.

One must understand that, as the saying goes, those who are barefoot are not afraid of those wearing shoes; Leng Yaozhu's investment in Chen Zhou was merely exploratory.

Although she would fully support and even protect Chen Zhou, to her, this was just a test, or perhaps an experiment.

Whether the experiment succeeded or not had no substantial impact on her.

As for Chen Zhou, he was even more indifferent; he appeared obedient on the surface, but his purpose in coming here was simply for the 100,000-year spirit bone.

Beyond that, he did not care about factional infighting.

His ultimate goal was also the Qiangu Clan, or rather, the position of the Spirit Pagoda Master.

With nothing to lose, Chen Zhou did not fear Qiangu Dongfeng or Qiangu Zhangting at all; if they wanted revenge, let them try.

His parents had died long ago, and none of his relatives had ever treated him like family; those so-called uncles and elders could die for all he cared—it had nothing to do with him.

Setting aside the fact that his relationship with these relatives was already distant, even if it hadn't been, as a transmigrator, he wouldn't have developed much affection for them during these few years of interaction.

Therefore, he was the most indifferent of them all.

In this situation, no matter how they tried to scheme, the only ones who would end up embarrassed were Qiangu Dongfeng and Qiangu Zhangting.

Qiangu Dongfeng could see this clearly as well.

Thus, he very rationally stopped Qiangu Zhangting, preventing his own grandson from continuing to act like a madman.

Following Qiangu Dongfeng's promise, Chen Zhou and Leng Yaozhu couldn't be bothered to stay any longer.

Watching the two of them stand up and walk away without a second thought, Qiangu Dongfeng remained sitting there calmly, sipping his tea.

Not until the doors closed did Qiangu Zhangting ask his grandfather in a hoarse voice:

"Grandfather, why didn't you just kill him? That collateral-branch mongrel actually dared to humiliate me like this."

"What right does he have? He's just trash with an impure bloodline. If it weren't for the Evil-Breaking Dragon affecting my cultivation speed, I should have reached the fourth ring by now and obtained greater power. How could I have possibly lost to him?"

Qiangu Zhangting gritted his teeth tightly. Aside from the Evil-Breaking Dragon inheritance, the foundation of the Qiangu Clan was the Coiling Dragon Staff Technique.

Both were top-tier assets.

Once Qiangu Zhangting mastered the Coiling Dragon Staff Technique, he didn't believe he would be inferior to Chen Zhou.

However, looking at his own grandson, a trace of disappointment appeared on Qiangu Dongfeng's face:

"Believe me, if that boy had failed this time, he would have remained completely silent, and might even have come before you and me to act obediently, then showered you with extravagant praise."

Qiangu Dongfeng looked at his grandson; his voice was calm, but it was indeed the truth.

If Chen Zhou had truly failed, he wouldn't have cared about face; he would have absolutely come over to earnestly praise Qiangu Zhangting, hoping to secure greater benefits.

However, winning was naturally the best outcome, as the 100,000-year spirit bone was the greatest reward.

But hearing Qiangu Dongfeng's words, Qiangu Zhangting curled his lip in disdain:

"I am not like that collateral-branch trash, devoid of self-respect and dignity."

"After being defeated, instead of thinking about revenge, should I be thinking about such useless things?"

Qiangu Zhangting's tone was filled with anger, but Qiangu Dongfeng merely glanced at him calmly, stood up slowly, and turned to walk out as well.

His grandson's mind had been completely blinded by hatred; because of a single failure, he had begun to act without regard for the consequences.

Failure was not terrifying; there is always someone better, and there is always a heaven beyond our heaven. Being defeated was nothing to be afraid of.

The Coiling Dragon Staff of the Qiangu Clan grows stronger the further one progresses, especially when paired with the Coiling Dragon Staff Technique.

Once the Coiling Dragon Staff Technique is mastered and combined with the inherited Evil-Breaking Dragon martial soul, one becomes a top-tier Limit Douluo upon reaching that realm.

Yet, at this moment, his own grandson—whom he had held in such high regard—had allowed a single setback to completely trap him in his own mind.

This was something Qiangu Dongfeng had not anticipated.

Or perhaps, even as a Limit Douluo himself, he had failed to realize that a life of constant, smooth sailing does absolutely nothing to cultivate a person's character.

On the other side, with Qiangu Dongfeng's permission, Chen Zhou did not hesitate for a moment.

He did not go to find Leng Yaozhu; instead, he trotted off to the treasury all by himself.

Although Leng Yaozhu was powerful, she was simply incomparable to Neuvillette.

The matter of selecting a spirit bone could be left entirely to Neuvillette, who would certainly be able to pick out the right one.

It must be known that the spirit bone Chen Zhou wanted was not one suited for himself, but one that could be modified by Neuvillette.

While a hundred-thousand-year spirit bone was already top-tier, if it could withstand Neuvillette's modifications, its strength would only continue to grow, perhaps even to an absurd degree.

And that was exactly what Chen Zhou needed.

A simple hundred-thousand-year spirit bone, even with two spirit skills, could only be so strong.

But with Neuvillette there, even if one of the abilities were to be altered, the two resulting powers would far exceed the skills granted by a standard hundred-thousand-year spirit bone.

This was what Chen Zhou required, and it was the most compatible path for his Primordial Dragon martial soul.