The next morning, the night pearls in the Sea God Hall had yet to go out, and their gentle glow still enveloped the spacious hall.
Li Qing opened his eyes on the soft bed covered in a deep-sea velvet blanket. The exhaustion of a hangover had long since vanished, and, nourished by the Mysterious Origin Water-Controlling Flag and Sea God Divine Power, the Soul Power in his body was even more consolidated than the day before.
He got up, washed, and changed into clean clothes. When he opened the door, the sea breeze carried in a salty, damp scent. The faint light of dawn streamed through the carved window lattice, casting mottled shadows across the floor.
Without the slightest hesitation, Li Qing headed straight for the center of the hall.
Bo Saixi had told him yesterday that she would take him to obtain a Soul Ring today. But before that, he needed to buy something.
He stood quietly in the hall, his gaze fixed on the heavy doors as he waited patiently.
Before long, the doors creaked open, and a beautiful silhouette appeared against the light.
Bo Saixi had changed into a pale blue dress that day. Silver waves were embroidered along its hem, swaying gently with her steps like rolling, turquoise surf.
Gone was the imposing air of yesterday's red robes. Now she seemed all the more gentle. Her sea-blue hair was loosely pinned up, with a few stray strands falling beside her cheeks, making her breathtakingly beautiful features seem even more refined and otherworldly. She carried a hint of approachable warmth amid her holiness.
"Have you been waiting long?" Bo Saixi walked up to Li Qing, a faint smile on her lips. Her voice was as warm and gentle as the morning sea breeze.
Li Qing hurried forward a step. "I just got here."
Bo Saixi looked him up and down, a teasing glint in her eyes. "Looks like you were pretty excited last night. You've even got a little darkness under your eyes."
Li Qing gave an awkward laugh and rubbed his eyes. "Not at all. I slept really well yesterday. It might just be the lighting."
Bo Saixi raised an eyebrow but didn't press him. Turning around, she said, "Since you're ready, let's go. I'll show you the Sacred Pillar Platform first so you can get familiar with the place."
Just as she turned, Li Qing suddenly mustered his courage and gently caught her by the wrist.
Bo Saixi's skin was smooth and cool, like fine warm jade. She stiffened slightly at his touch, then turned to look at him, a trace of confusion in her eyes. "What is it?"
Looking into her deep, ocean-like eyes, Li Qing felt his cheeks grow warm. He scratched his head, a little embarrassed. "Um... Big Sister High Priestess, could you give me some gold coins before we set off? I want to buy something at one of the shops on the island."
"Buy something?"
Bo Saixi looked even more puzzled. "What do you want to buy? Sea God Island has all kinds of resources. If you need something for your cultivation, just tell me. Why go buy it yourself?"
Li Qing was at a loss for words.
He couldn't exactly say he wanted to buy Whale Rubber to temper his physique, could he? If he did, Bo Saixi would probably ask questions, and explaining it would be even more troublesome.
He grumbled to himself, Why ask so many questions? Just give me some money. Now I don't even know how to answer.
Bo Saixi caught his muttering, and a sly smile flickered in her eyes. Deliberately drawing out her words, she said, "Oh? Is it a secret you can't tell me?"
"No, no!"
Li Qing hurriedly waved his hands. "It's just some... ordinary little things. Nothing useful for cultivation. I didn't want to trouble you, High Priestess."
The main thing was that Whale Rubber was currently used on Douluo Continent as an aphrodisiac, so the people who usually bought it were those who couldn't perform in bed.
Seeing how awkward he looked, Bo Saixi found it rather amusing.
The boy was usually so thoughtful, acting like a little grown-up. She hadn't expected him to be so bashful, too.
Her eyes turned, and she casually took a dark-gold card from her waist and held it out to him. "Since you don't want to tell me, I won't ask. This is Sea God Island's universal currency card. There's enough money on it to buy anything you want."
A Sea God Trident was engraved on the card, and tiny sapphires were set into its edges. It was clearly worth a fortune.
Li Qing's eyes lit up. He hurriedly took the card and clutched it in his hand, his face breaking into a bright smile. "Thank you, Big Sister High Priestess! I'll be back soon!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he turned and dashed out of the hall, as if afraid Bo Saixi might change her mind. His steps were light, and he soon disappeared at the end of the corridor.
Watching his excited retreating figure, Bo Saixi's smile deepened. She murmured softly, "You won't tell me? If you won't, can't I just follow you and see for myself? Little guy, I'd like to see what you're planning to buy."
Before her words had even faded, her figure vanished from where she stood, like a drop of ink dissolving into water, leaving behind only the faint scent of seawater.
Li Qing jogged all the way to the market on Sea God Island.
Though it couldn't compare to the bustling cities on the mainland, it was still lively.
Stalls lined both sides of the street. Fishermen sold freshly caught seafood, while Soul Masters traded materials from all kinds of sea-dwelling Soul Beasts. From hard conch shells to pearls gleaming with a faint light, the stalls were filled with a dazzling array of goods, all distinctly marine in character.
Li Qing threaded through the crowd, scanning the stalls until his gaze settled on one selling dried goods.
The vendor was a dark-skinned old man. His stall was piled with all kinds of dried fish and shellfish, but the most eye-catching items were several fist-sized, dark-yellow gelatinous lumps that gave off a strong fishy smell.
Li Qing scanned the dried goods, then fixed his gaze on the dark-yellow lumps of gelatin.
He took a deep breath, trying to make his expression look natural, and pointed to the largest piece. "Gramps, how many years old is the highest-quality Whale Rubber you have?"
The dark-skinned old man had been sorting dried kelp with his head down. At the sound of Li Qing's voice, he looked up. Seeing that he was just a boy, he froze for a moment, then smiled kindly, though with a hint of confusion. "Child, what do you want Whale Rubber for? It's not something a little kid should be messing with."
Hidden nearby, Bo Saixi concealed her presence with her formidable cultivation. When she realized that Li Qing's target was Whale Rubber, a look of astonishment crossed her exquisite face.
She had imagined all kinds of possibilities. Perhaps he wanted rare materials from a Sea Soul Beast, or a treasure that could help with cultivation. Maybe he was just acting his age and wanted some novel toy...
But she had never imagined that the Whale Rubber Li Qing was so intent on buying was the kind of thing usually considered... an aphrodisiac.
It was completely beyond her expectations.
Li Qing immediately put on an utterly well-behaved smile and answered smoothly, "Gramps, an elder in my family needs it. I'm just running an errand for them."
His eyes were clear and his tone natural, making him look every bit the sensible child doing a favor for his family.
But his real thoughts poured unabashedly into Bo Saixi's mind: What else would I use it for? Of course it's to temper my physique and toughen my bones! Who'd want to buy something this fishy otherwise? If I weren't trying to improve my physical strength as quickly as possible so I could absorb a Soul Ring above my limit, I wouldn't touch this stuff!
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