Liu Erlong took the two pieces of Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue out of her Storage Soul Tool and set them on the table.
Ye Yingling curiously leaned closer and stared at the two head-sized lumps of dark-golden, gelatinous stuff for a long while.
She had seen this stuff mentioned in the Ye Clan's pharmacopeia
—Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue, an aphrodisiac nobles used for that sort of thing.
She blinked and looked up at Liu Erlong.
"Senior Sister, what are you doing with that?"
Liu Erlong didn't answer. A wisp of dark-golden flame rose in her palm, enveloping the Whale Rubber as she slowly heated it.
The Whale Rubber sizzled in the flames, tiny bubbles forming across its surface as a strange medicinal fragrance filled the air.
The smell only made Ye Yingling more curious.
Liu Erlong handed her one of the prepared pieces of Whale Rubber.
"Senior Sister, what's this for?" Ye Yingling took the still-warm lump of gelatinous stuff, her face full of confusion.
The corner of Liu Erlong's mouth lifted slightly. She looked Ye Yingling up and down, her gaze carrying a hint of undisguised ill intent.
Ye Yingling shuddered under her stare.
Before she could react, the Black Latex Suit she wore suddenly tightened.
She let out a muffled groan and instinctively clutched her chest, her face turning scarlet in an instant.
"T-teacher... loosen it a little. Let me breathe—"
The suit clung tightly to her body, wrapping her up from head to toe until her mind began to swim.
"This is for you to eat, of course," Liu Erlong said slowly.
"For m-me to eat?" Ye Yingling's eyes widened.
This was an aphrodisiac—the sort of thing noblemen used to torment women in bed.
She looked at the piece of Whale Rubber still radiating warmth in her hand, then at the Black Latex Suit that showed off every curve of her body. An extremely ominous premonition surfaced in her mind.
"Heh heh. That's exactly what you think," Jiang Ce's voice sounded in her ear, brimming with undisguised amusement.
Ye Yingling shuddered violently.
"But its real effect is to strengthen the body and increase the age of the Soul Rings you can absorb. Only those idiots use it purely as an aphrodisiac."
Hearing this, Ye Yingling lowered her head to look at the Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue in her hand. Her eyes gradually lit up.
Strengthening her body and increasing the age of the Soul Rings she could absorb—this was a treasure!
The next moment, she suddenly cried out in alarm.
The chest of her Black Latex Suit tightened several notches, like the arms of a Michelin tire mascot.
"T-teacher—what are you doing?" Ye Yingling's voice trembled.
"Not bad. Very nice." Jiang Ce admired his handiwork, clicking his tongue with satisfaction.
Just then, the Black Latex Suit covering Liu Erlong completely receded.
Ye Yingling instinctively looked up. Her mouth fell open into a perfect circle, wide enough to fit an egg.
"Senior Sister, you—"
"What are you making such a fuss about?" Liu Erlong crossed her arms over her chest and rolled her eyes, gritting her teeth as she fought down the discomfort from Phantom Dragon Impact. "The moment that bastard parasitized you, you became his."
Ye Yingling instinctively tried to step back, but the Black Latex Suit tightened even more, squeezing the breath out of her.
"Little Lingling."
"You don't want to spend your whole life as a weak, helpless healing Soul Master who can only hide behind other people, do you?"
Ye Yingling pressed her lips together and fell silent for a moment.
Then she slowly nodded.
"Good. Eat the Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue first," Liu Erlong urged.
Ye Yingling took a deep breath and gulped down the prepared Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue.
The Whale Rubber melted as soon as it entered her throat. A searing stream of heat traveled from her throat straight down to her dantian.
Before long, a vivid peach-red flush spread across her skin, and her body began to tremble uncontrollably.
Unrestrained moans slipped through her red lips.
"Little Lingling, your body's pretty hot. Tsk, tsk, at this temperature, going in would be like stepping into a hot sauna." Jiang Ce's voice brimmed with undisguised satisfaction.
Hearing him, Liu Erlong rolled her eyes hard.
That bastard had coaxed her into eating Whale Rubber the same way. Then he'd tormented her until she could barely walk.
The Black Latex Suit on Liu Erlong suddenly roiled. A moment later, it peeled away from her back and gathered into the towering shape of a two-meter-tall, burly figure.
Bronze-colored skin, taut, well-defined muscles—he radiated virility from head to toe.
Venom had always been able to disguise himself, perfectly imitating other people and even blending flawlessly into his surroundings.
He had also devoured plenty of Soul Beasts in the Sunset Forest—creatures with abilities such as disguise, concealment, and shapeshifting. His own disguise ability had improved once more.
Even a Super Douluo couldn't detect his true form.
He scooped Liu Erlong up and pulled her into his arms.
"Let's have a good time tonight."
Then,
things grew even more intense.
The next morning.
Ye Yingling finally managed to catch her breath.
"Teacher... I can't take any more."
At that moment, Ye Yingling looked like a two-tailed catgirl. Two tails swayed behind her, and her waist twisted with each swing.
"So you still need to train more." Jiang Ce casually picked up Liu Erlong, who was slumped beside them in a defeated bow. "Your Senior Sister went through proper training. She still hasn't turned into a human punching bag."
It took Liu Erlong a while to come back to herself. Hearing him describe her that way, she opened her mouth and bit down hard on his face.
"You bastard! And you have the nerve to say that! You nearly worked me to death."
"Just finish it already. I-I want to have a proper meal. This—"
"Heh heh. Then let's keep going."
But Jiang Ce was a man of perseverance!
The sun was already high in the sky,
and Liu Erlong and Ye Yingling had finally gotten dressed. They were still wearing matching black, skin-tight Black Latex Suits.
Ye Yingling clearly hadn't gotten used to it yet. She walked stiffly, her steps crooked, and her brow furrowed with every stride.
Liu Erlong slowed down and led her along at an easy pace. The two of them went downstairs one after the other.
The maid at the hotel front desk glanced back and forth between them several times.
Last night's battle must have been fierce.
That regular customer really was an expert at mining.
The young woman behind her had clearly been drained of every last bit of energy. Even her bearing was completely different from when she'd walked in the day before.
She seemed much more mature now.
The maid clicked her tongue in amazement, her smile taking on a knowing hint.
Ye Yingling felt the residual heat of the medicine inside her slowly transforming into tangible strength.
Jiang Ce hadn't lied to her—her body really had grown stronger.
In her Symbiote state, that strength was amplified further.
Both her muscles' explosive power and the circulation of her soul power had clearly reached a new level.
Although... although she had also lost the bewildered, innocent purity of a young girl.
Still, if she followed her teacher, perhaps an even brighter future awaited her.
Afterward, they found a restaurant in Heaven Dou City, ordered a table piled high with meat and vegetables, and ate their fill.
Liu Erlong polished off ten plates of roast meat and two bowls of thick soup by herself, even wiping the sauce from the bottom of the plates with bread.
Last night, that bastard had made her ride him standing up. It had been exhausting.
"Now that you've eaten your fill," Jiang Ce's voice sounded in both their minds, "we're heading to the next destination."
Liu Erlong and Ye Yingling looked at each other and nodded.
They both knew where Jiang Ce meant—
the hidden treasure deep in the Sunset Forest, tucked away in a valley: the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Ye Yingling was especially excited.
Though she was already an all-around powerhouse in her Symbiote state, true liberation would mean resolving the curse on the Ye Clan's Martial Soul at its root.
Only one person of each generation could inherit the Nine-Heart Begonia. The Ye Clan had been forced to survive forever with that single lifeline.
If the curse were lifted, her daughter, her granddaughter, and all the Ye Clan's descendants would never again have to be shackled by it.
At the thought, her hands began to tremble.
After leaving the restaurant, Liu Erlong took Ye Yingling to the mercenary guild, as usual.
She stood in front of the notice board for a while, then accepted several Soul Elder-level missions in one go. They all concerned the Sunset Forest:
Hunt designated Soul Beasts, gather rare medicinal herbs, and explore unmarked areas.
The rewards for the missions added up to well over two hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins.
Ye Yingling watched her Senior Sister tear the wanted notices down one by one and tuck them into her arms. She couldn't help asking softly, "Senior Sister, aren't we already rich?"
The proceeds from auctioning those dozen or so Soul Bones would've been more than enough for them to buy a house in Heaven Dou City.
Without looking back, Liu Erlong kept scanning the new missions on the board and replied, "We still have to take them."
People who'd once been poor stayed that way at heart. Even with a seven-figure Gold Soul Coin balance sitting in their account, they wouldn't leave a single bit of free wool unplucked.
Jiang Ce chuckled softly in her mind.
"How come I never realized you were such a miser?"
Without changing her expression, Liu Erlong stuffed the last wanted notice into her Storage Soul Tool.
"Cut the nonsense. Let's go."
Before you continue