Heart-Demon Nemesis

[Dejected forward bend!]

The next morning,

Jiang Ce looked at the two dejected, bent-over figures on the bed, the corners of his mouth curving with satisfaction.

"Lingling, now that we're back home, should we have a little more fun?"

Jiang Ce reached out and gave Ye Yingling's pert bottom a pat.

Ye Yingling's body jolted.

"Looks like you've had your fill..."

Jiang Ce chuckled, and the black Venom surged over his body, splitting into two tentacles that wrapped around the women again.

The Phantom Dragon returned to its place, the latex suits tightened, and healing power flowed through the Symbiotic Link into their bodies, wiping away every trace of the night's fatigue.

A moment later,

the women's breathing steadied again, and the mottled marks on their skin vanished without a trace—

"You're excited, aren't you?"

Liu Erlong straightened up and glared at Jiang Ce.

"You've drawn so much. Doesn't your hand get tired?"

"Aren't you two having fun too? Heh heh heh."

Liu Erlong rolled her eyes.

Ye Yingling buried her face in the pillow, the tips of her ears red enough to drip blood.

They'd tried every sort of thing over the past month, but this was the first time they'd done it in her own home.

The good girl who once wouldn't even hike her skirt above her knees had changed completely.

"You only know how to bully her."

Liu Erlong stretched.

"It's daylight now. Time to get down to business. The things we consigned for auction should be ready by now, right?"

Jiang Ce got out of bed. Black liquid surged from his body and instantly molded itself into a smart black outfit.

"Let's go. We'll head to the auction house first. I'll take Erlong over the wall. Lingling, go out normally. Don't let your parents catch on."

Liu Erlong rolled her eyes.

"So you can be afraid after all?"

She said it, but still followed Jiang Ce out through the window.

Back in her room,

when Mother Ye called Jiang Che to get up for breakfast,

she maintained all the poise a teacher ought to have.

Meanwhile, Liu Erlong, who had gone out at the same time, kept her head lowered, her shoulders trembling as she stifled a laugh.

After they'd eaten the breakfast Mother Ye had prepared,

she took Ye Yingling by the hand before they left and repeatedly told her to listen to her master.

Ye Yingling nodded obediently, her expression so gentle and well-behaved that it was beyond reproach.

Though she was still wearing that tight black latex suit, which outlined her stunning figure in all its glory.

Only after a good while did Mother Ye reluctantly let go.

The three of them left the Ye Clan and headed straight for the Heaven Dou City Auction House.

The Soul Master guards at the entrance recognized Liu Erlong—or, more accurately, they recognized her one-of-a-kind black latex suit.

No one stopped them. They were let right in.

The manager nearly ran out to greet them, a small Storage Soul Tool in his hands. As soon as he saw Liu Erlong, he presented it to her with both hands.

"Miss Liu, all the items you entrusted to us have been auctioned off. The total comes to four million three hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins. Please check the amount."

As he spoke, he took out another Storage Soul Tool.

"These contain three pieces of Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue and thirty pieces of thousand-year Whale Glue. They're a gift from our auction house, just a small token of our appreciation."

Liu Erlong accepted the Storage Soul Tool and probed inside with her soul power. The corners of her mouth lifted slightly.

She glanced at the manager.

"You know how to handle people."

The manager's face crinkled with his smile. His gaze lingered for a moment on Ye Yingling, then shifted to the tall, strikingly handsome man behind Liu Erlong. A knowing look crept into his smile.

Men all knew what Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue was for.

With a beauty like that by his side, it would be perfect for spicing things up.

Everyone had been young once—who could blame him for wanting to have his fun?

Jiang Ce glanced at him.

The manager quickly reined in his smile and put on a serious expression.

"This way, please. The settlement paperwork is ready."

After they'd settled the transaction, Liu Erlong began taking things out of the Storage Soul Tool.

Twenty or thirty Soul Bones were spread across the table, ranging from a hundred years old to several thousand. Their dark soul-power fluctuations blanketed the surface.

Soul Beast materials piled several people high. The horns, scales, claws, and tendons of dragon-type Soul Beasts were all there, as if they'd emptied out a dragon's lair.

Medicinal herbs and ores had been packed into several large sacks, along with dozens of Soul Tools they'd found in Soul Beast caves.

These were, naturally, everything they'd collected during their month or so in the Sunset Forest.

Liu Erlong had even gone out of her way to search the Soul Beasts' lairs—

not every Soul Beast loved collecting shiny things the way dragons did,

but most of them hoarded trophies to some degree.

Every time Liu Erlong raided a lair, she'd kept muttering, "We're rich! We're rich!"

She clapped the mineral dust off her hands.

"Put these up for auction too."

The manager stared at her, dumbfounded.

"T-this much? Are all these Soul Beast materials at least twenty thousand years old?"

"Mm. A few pieces are fifty thousand years old. We killed them recently, so the blood's still fresh."

The manager's hands trembled slightly.

Twenty-thousand-year Soul Beasts were already rare. Fifty-thousand-year ones were even rarer.

And if their blood was still fresh, that meant these weren't picked-over remains. They'd been hunted.

He couldn't help looking at Liu Erlong again, then at the handsome man whose depths were impossible to fathom.

A fifty-thousand-year Soul Beast was equivalent to an Eight-Ring Soul Douluo. What's more, dragon-type Soul Beasts were stronger than others of the same rank. Even another Soul Douluo would struggle against one.

There was no way the two young women, Liu Erlong and Ye Yingling, could have reached that level, no matter how talented they were.

Most likely, the burly man had killed them himself.

He had to be at least an Eight-Ring Soul Douluo.

Even if he hadn't killed them personally, some terrifying power had to stand behind him.

Without another moment's hesitation, he pulled a black card edged in gold from his robes and presented it with both hands.

"Miss Liu, this is the highest-tier Black Gold Card our auction house offers. With it, you'll receive the lowest fees and priority consignment privileges at all our branches. The three of you are our most honored clients. Rest assured, we'll auction these items as quickly as possible."

Liu Erlong accepted the Black Gold Card and nodded with satisfaction.

The three of them turned and left the auction house. The manager walked them all the way to the entrance before stopping.

He watched the three figures disappear around the corner and remained silent for a moment before muttering,

"This investment was worth it."

He'd seen all kinds of people. He knew how to read them.

That handsome man had said only one thing from start to finish, and he'd barely spared the pile of Soul Bones a glance—

as if they weren't worth mentioning.

That wasn't an act. He truly didn't care.

There weren't many people in all of Heaven Dou City with that kind of confidence.

Anyway, he'd made the right call by treating them well.

It could only pay off.

The three of them left the auction house and crossed the main street toward the Mercenary Guild.

Ye Yingling counted on her fingers as she said that four million was enough to buy a house, eat at Zuixian Restaurant every day, and even hire a female Soul Master to massage her legs.

Liu Erlong immediately corrected her, saying money should be spent where it mattered: stock up on pills and crafting materials, then save the rest.

Ye Yingling muttered that her senior sister had clearly said in the Sunset Forest that they'd eat at every barbecue restaurant in Heaven Dou City.

Jiang Ce listened to the two women bicker, the corners of his mouth just beginning to lift, when his steps suddenly stopped.

A young woman stood at the street corner ahead,

but people on the Douluo Continent matured early, and she already had a strikingly beautiful face, with picturesque features and a refined air.

Her long hair fell to her waist. Her figure was slender, yet somehow full in all the right places.

She was speaking quietly with a middle-aged man who looked like a steward, her voice gentle, every syllable carrying an elegance that seemed to come naturally.

Tang Yuehua.

Jiang Ce recognized her—

a direct descendant of the Clear Sky Sect, the younger sister of Tang Xiao and Tang Hao, the possessor of the Innate Domain Noble Ring, and the future founder of Moonlight Pavilion.

At this point, Moonlight Pavilion had yet to be formally established. She was running around, searching for resources and connections.

Her Martial Soul had undergone a malignant mutation into a Noble Ring. She'd been born with ninth-level soul power, but couldn't cultivate.

In the Clear Sky Sect, where strength ruled above all, that was practically a sin.

If she hadn't had the Clear Sky Sect behind her, Moonlight Pavilion would never have gotten off the ground, and Tang Yuehua would have been devoured long ago.

"What is it?"

Liu Erlong followed his gaze.

"Nothing. I've just spotted someone interesting."

Ye Yingling curiously leaned forward to take a look.

The young woman in the blue dress had just finished speaking with the steward. She gave him a gentle, perfectly composed bow.

After the steward left, she didn't immediately go. Instead, she remained where she was, a helplessness in her eyes that she tried desperately to hide, but couldn't—

the helplessness of wanting to do something, only to find herself unable to take a single step because she lacked the strength.

Ye Yingling recognized that look.

A little over a month ago, she'd stood like that outside the Mercenary Guild, treated as a pretty ornament, dismissed as someone who could do nothing but heal.

She tugged at Jiang Ce's sleeve and lowered her voice.

"Teacher, is she... like I used to be?"

Jiang Ce didn't answer. He quickly ran through the possibilities in his mind—

the Noble Ring could calm the mind, purify the spirit, suppress negative emotions, and dispel heart demons.

In a fantasy world, they were bound to run into illusions and things that could manipulate the mind. This skill would be quite useful.

She had a lot of potential!

"Looks like you've found yourself a new mount."

Liu Erlong folded her arms and shot him a glance.

Tang Yuehua seemed to sense their gaze and turned around. Her deep blue eyes met his.

Jiang Ce gave her a slight nod.

Tang Yuehua clearly hadn't expected this strikingly handsome, imposing man to greet her first.

Her gaze swiftly passed over the two women beside him, both wearing tight black latex suits and sporting incredible figures, and a faint blush rose to her face.

She pressed her lips together, then returned his greeting with a slight nod.

Neither servile nor overbearing, just right.

That was very Yuehua.

Jiang Ce found himself looking forward to seeing Tang Yuehua with a broken expression.

That would be quite interesting.

Jiang Ce withdrew his gaze and continued toward the Mercenary Guild.

Liu Erlong and Ye Yingling followed on either side of him.

"Who was that woman?"

Liu Erlong asked only after they'd walked a few steps.

"A direct descendant of the Clear Sky Sect. Tang Yuehua. Her Martial Soul underwent a malignant mutation. She's stuck at ninth-level soul power for life, with an Innate Domain she can't cultivate. She used to be in the same situation as Lingling."

Ye Yingling said softly,

"Then she's pretty pitiful too."

"She isn't pitiful. She's about to meet a good teacher."

"Her Martial Soul talent is excellent. She'll make the best warrior."

Jiang Ce smiled.

"What teacher? Teacher Phantom Dragon? You're thinking about your Anti-Magic Ninja plan again!"

Liu Erlong rolled her eyes,

"Come on. Let's register a mercenary group for fun. We can go find her later and bring her along."

The three of them gradually disappeared into the distance, but Tang Yuehua remained where she was for a while.

She watched the tall figure vanish into the crowd, her brows drawing together slightly.

The two women in tight black latex suits beside him radiated an indescribable pressure.

She instinctively felt they weren't ordinary people.

She put the unease out of her mind and turned to walk in the other direction.

There was still a mountain of work waiting for her as she prepared Moonlight Pavilion, but those deep eyes wouldn't leave her thoughts.