"How long are you two going to hide there and watch?"
After Jiang Ce finished absorbing the soul ring, he immediately switched on vibration mode.
Just then, two startled cries rang out from the dense forest not far away.
Two figures fell straight out of the thick canopy.
They were none other than Ye Yingling and Tang Yuehua.
They had sensed it when Liu Erlong unleashed her aura.
They were both Venom Symbiotes and had been in contact with each other for a long time.
When their eldest senior sister fought here, they could sense that Dragon King's might shooting into the sky from more than ten miles away.
So the two of them had quickly made their way near the battlefield and hidden in a tree, watching from beginning to end.
Liu Erlong's power kept increasing, and her aura surged.
Then it surged again, and she caught the Dark Gold Terrorclaw with her bare hands.
She drove the blade-like claws backward, sending the giant bear flying, then slammed it down nine times in a row, leaving bear-shaped craters all over the place. Her Death Roll tore off both its arms.
Finally, she followed a Rising Dragon Fist with a hammer blow from the air, then stomped its skull to pieces.
The whole fight had flowed seamlessly, leaving the two of them too stunned to breathe.
A Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast that could easily fight a ninety-thousand-year Soul Beast, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear was like a rag doll in their eldest senior sister's hands, tossed about and pounded at will.
Even its Dark Gold Terrorclaw couldn't break through her defenses.
For a moment, they were completely transfixed.
By the time Jiang Ce finished absorbing the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, they still hadn't come to their senses.
Then Jiang Ce's vibration mode jolted them awake.
The Stun Grenades went off at the same time, and both women shuddered, tumbling out of the tree.
The two of them lay on the ground, their legs trembling so badly they couldn't get up for a while.
"Teacher, teacher... Stop, please, stop."
Ye Yingling's voice was weak.
Even Tang Yuehua's elegant voice had gone shrill. She was no longer composed as she usually was; she sounded like a cat in heat.
"You'd already made it over here, so why didn't you come out? Why hide there and peek?"
Liu Erlong folded her arms across her chest, making her ample bosom stand out even more. She eyed the two women trembling in the distance with a strange expression.
"Don't tell me you got put through the wringer again just by watching from the sidelines."
"Tsk, you poor things."
"This Anti-Magic Ninja thing he mentioned really is torturous."
Right then, a whip cracked against her backside.
"I was just telling the truth. Why'd you whip me again?"
Liu Erlong rolled her eyes.
"When Heaven is about to place a great responsibility on someone, it first makes their heart suffer and their muscles and bones toil."
"So your training still has a long way to go."
Jiang Ce's voice drifted over. Liu Erlong pursed her lips.
He was the one who'd gotten carried away and enjoyed himself. What was with that high-minded excuse?
Meanwhile, Jiang Ce had turned off vibration mode.
The two women finally managed to stand, their faces red enough to fry an egg, then hurried over to Liu Erlong.
Tang Yuehua straightened her disheveled appearance and struggled to keep an elegant smile on her face.
"It's just that eldest senior sister was so formidable. We admired her so much that we lost ourselves for a moment."
Ye Yingling nodded repeatedly beside her, showing her complete agreement.
No wonder the teacher had called that a high-EQ way of putting it.
"All right, we've made a huge haul this time. Let's head back first."
"You've been fighting for ages, so you should get some proper rest. Work and rest in moderation, after all."
When Jiang Ce said they should balance work and rest, the three women looked at one another's Black Latex Suits.
Was this really work and rest in moderation? Or had they just been fighting nonstop?
During the day, they fought Soul Beasts; at night, they fought Jiang Ce.
During the day, they were full of fighting spirit, striding forward with their heads held high.
But as soon as night came, they were beaten until they cried for their mothers.
"What? You still want me to teach you a lesson?"
"No, no!"
"I'm taking a rest."
"Teacher, I want to rest too."
The three women hurriedly answered.
Then they followed the path they'd taken in, heading toward the forest's outskirts with light steps.
Behind them, a huge crater, bear-shaped imprints scattered everywhere, and the remains of towering ancient trees lay strewn across the ground.
They bore faithful witness to every detail of the terrifying battle that had just taken place.
After a long while, a figure with dragon wings, purple hair, and a purple martial outfit slowly descended from the sky.
She landed at the edge of the crater Liu Erlong had smashed into the earth.
She looked down at the bloodstains and fur left behind after the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear had been devoured.
"Dragon aura."
"That trace of a newborn Dragon King's bloodline I sensed last time."
A thoughtful glint crossed her purple-gold dragon eyes.
"How interesting. A human, yet with the bloodline of a newborn Dragon King."
She possessed a terrifying secret technique that could greatly increase her strength.
She strolled a few steps in the direction Liu Erlong had gone, then looked over the surrounding, shocking destruction.
A mighty physique, incredible combat power.
"I should tell Di Tian when I get back."
A new Dragon King bloodline had appeared here. This was no small matter.
She spread her dragon wings and rose into the sky, flying toward the Core Area of the Star Dou Great Forest.
What she failed to notice was a drop of black liquid clinging to the sole of her shoe, on the piece of broken stone where she'd just stopped.
The drop of liquid stirred faintly, and within its gleam, Jiang Ce's face could just barely be made out.
"Heh heh..."
"Bad guy, do you think she'll really fall for it?" Liu Erlong suddenly asked on the way back.
Ye Yingling and Tang Yuehua both looked curiously at the Black Latex Suit covering her.
They both knew that before leaving the battlefield,
some of the Venom on Tang Yuehua had silently split in two and seeped into the ground.
"Of course. The Hell Demon Dragon King couldn't possibly ignore the bloodline of a newborn Dragon King. She'll definitely come and investigate." Jiang Ce's voice rang out in the minds of all three women.
The corner of Liu Erlong's mouth twitched upward. "Then the Venom you left there can stick to her while she's not paying attention. From now on, you'll have Zi Ji's every move under your watch."
"Not just that. By the time she finds out, the Venom will have seeped into her dragon scales."
"Typical Tentacle Monster tactics. Exactly the same as when you parasitized me."
"But you're doing fine now, aren't you?"
"Fine my ass. You're always roughing me up." Before she could finish speaking, the Black Latex Suit tightened sharply, making Liu Erlong stumble.
Ye Yingling and Tang Yuehua lowered their heads to stifle their laughter, their shoulders shaking.
"How long are you going to follow that little one?" Jiang Ce suddenly asked.
All three women stopped at the same time.
The bushes behind them fell quiet for a moment. Then a small beast with pale golden fur poked its head out from between the branches.
Its three eyes stared straight at them, and the vertical eye between its brows shimmered with a faint light of destiny.
"What little—"
Before Liu Erlong could finish speaking, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion had already hopped out boldly.
It shook the leaves from its tail, raised its head, and spoke in a voice as clear as a little girl's:
"Hey, you people are so strange. What was that Dragon Might just now? And were you talking about Zi Ji?"
Liu Erlong exchanged a glance with Ye Yingling and Tang Yuehua.
The Imperial Auspicious Beast, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion—
Jiang Ce had told them about the Ferocious Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest.
Of course they knew who this little beast was: the lifeblood of the entire Star Dou Great Forest.
The Black Latex Suit on Liu Erlong began to ripple.
A pitch-black tentacle extended from her shoulder and hung in front of the Three-Eyed Golden Lion.
"Want to know?" Jiang Ce's voice came from the tentacle.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion jumped back half a step, startled by the tentacle, but soon edged closer again, tilting its head to stare at it as the vertical eye between its brows trembled slightly.
"That's it! I sensed it when you were fighting just now. The Power of Destiny tells me there are lots of strange things inside your black clothes."
And the Power of Destiny told her that touching this Black Slime would be good for her.
It seemed a tragedy that would happen in the future might not come to pass.
She took a step forward, curiosity impossible to hide in her three eyes. "Let me touch it, and I'll tell you where Zi Ji flew off to."
"Sure. But after you touch it, you might not be able to sleep."
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion flicked its tail disdainfully. "The Imperial Auspicious Beast isn't afraid of losing sleep."
It cautiously stretched out one paw and touched the tentacle.
All three of its eyes widened at once.
Countless never-before-seen images poured into its consciousness like a flood.
It saw Nine Dragons Pulling the Coffin crossing the universe, the Supreme Beings slumbering in forbidden zones of life, a Green Lotus crushing the ages, and Ye Fan's Heavenly Emperor Fist suppressing the cosmos.
It saw the boy from Stone Village leave the Great Wilderness, Huang Heavenly Emperor stand alone and sever the ages, and the vastness of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.
It saw the Infinity Gauntlet and the Snap that destroyed the Marvel Universe, the Royal Knights and data storms of the Digital World, and the dark city of the Anti-Magic Ninja.
Every world had its own laws and supreme beings. Compared to such mighty powers, Douluo Continent was as small as a speck of dust.
At last, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion tore itself free of those images, all three eyes fixed on the tentacle.
"What places are these? Why is every one of them countless times bigger than the Star Dou Great Forest?"
Before she could get an answer, her tone had already shifted from haughty to pleading. She raised her head to look at Liu Erlong, her three eyes sparkling.
"Um... could I touch it one more time? There were so many things in those images that I'd never seen before. They were much more interesting than the Star Dou Great Forest! Let me look again, just once!"
Liu Erlong looked down at the Imperial Auspicious Beast crouching on the ground and bargaining, the corner of her mouth twitching.
This was the lifeblood of the Star Dou Great Forest.
"Want to see more?" Jiang Ce's voice came from the Black Latex Suit. "We're heading back to Heaven Dou City. The city's a lot more fun than the forest."
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion hesitated for about two seconds, flicked its tail, then hopped onto Liu Erlong's shoulder and sprawled there as if it belonged.
"I'm coming with you, but I want to touch that Black Slime from time to time and see things from other worlds."
Before you continue