The Continent's Nursery
In life, we inevitably encounter some ups and downs.
However, some people, once bitten by a snake, become afraid of ropes for ten years and dare not move forward.
Some people have strong willpower. Even if they fall into the same ditch many times, even if the ditch is muddy and slippery, they will still grit their teeth and get up again, going against the current in the mud, not caring about being dragged through the mud and water!
Ling Yi is such a person, with a stubborn temper. Whether in his past life or this life, even if he falls to the ground and bears pressure that ordinary people cannot bear, he will fight back with all his might, even if he can only achieve a little bit of victory.
Effort doesn't guarantee success, but as long as you work hard, you'll eventually reap some rewards.
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Ling Yi's success often stems from these seemingly insignificant small gains, which eventually accumulate into a torrent that overflows like a flood.
Yi Ziyun said, "Warfare is governed by the vital energy of the kidneys. A single surge is the initial attack, a second weakens it, and a third exhausts it. When the enemy is exhausted and we are at our peak, we can defeat them. Even a great enemy lies in ambush, and seeing them weeping and collapsing, we pursue them..."
Day after day, how many tomorrows there are!
Time quickly came to January 1st, 2624 of the Douluo Calendar. This day was also the start of the annual auction in Lingyun City.
As dawn broke, the city, which should have been quiet, was already bustling with activity, as Soul Master from all over the country flocked to this city, which was currently ranked third in the Douluo Continent.
Gently freeing himself from the white jade seals, Ling Yi washed up briefly and came to the cliff edge facing the city below, looking down at the masses of people below.
With his enhanced vision and hearing, Ling Yi clearly see every face and hear everyone's whispers.
"Boss, this ' Lingyun City ' is so bustling! If we could rob it, we'd be rich!" A muscular man with dark skin looked at the bustling commercial street in front of him, somewhat dazzled, and said in a low voice, but he couldn't hide the excitement in his tone.
The moment the words left his mouth, the purple-haired middle-aged man, Zi Yaoshi, immediately looked around to make sure no one had heard him. He then glared fiercely at the burly man and, using his Soul Power to transmit his voice, scolded, "This isn't the sea, you idiot! If you're itching for a fight, I'll tear off a couple of bones and make soup for you!"
"Don't fucking try to die here!"
By now, the news that Lingyun City has two Titled Douluo has spread throughout the entire Douluo Continent. Even pirates who spend most of their lives at sea and rarely go ashore have heard of it.
If this were at sea, it wouldn't be a problem. Even if it were Titled Douluo, ' Sea Viper ' Zi Yaoshi wouldn't be afraid of the opponent. No matter how strong a land-based Soul Master is, there are limitations when facing the ocean environment.
At worst, he can just plunge into the depths of the ocean. Even if it's that Super Douluo with the title "Seven Kill," can he chase him all the way to the bottom of the sea?
But now, whether they are on land or in the Lingyun City headquarters, they don't even need the two Titled Douluo to make a move. That "Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor" Dugu Bo can make them suffer!
The burly man, who also understood this, immediately turned pale, looked around nervously, and then cautiously apologized to Zi Yaoshi in a low voice. "Boss, I was wrong."
After all, he was a trusted confidant who had followed him for many years. Zi Yaoshi simply glared at the other party again and did not pursue the matter any further on the street.
Beside the Zi Yaoshi girl, who looked to be about thirteen or fourteen years old, a girl with short purple hair didn't seem to care about the interaction between the two. Instead, she looked around with her crystal-like eyes, her gaze filled with intense curiosity.
Having traveled from "Vast Sea City" to the present, she had seen many land cities with her father, but none of them were as prosperous, clean, and vibrant as this one.
"Zhenzhu, let's go. Let's go to the hotel reserved for us on the invitation first. When the auction starts later, Dad will take you to see it and broaden your horizons."
I've heard this is the largest auction in the history of the Douluo Continent, and many legendary treasures will be on display.
As Zi Yaoshi spoke, he gently stroked his daughter's soft, short purple hair with his large, kind hand.
Zi Zhenzhu nuzzled her head against Zi Yaoshi's palm, a bright smile spreading across her delicate face, "Okay—!"
"The brochure from the Green Wood Merchant Association says there are Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone at this auction. Is that true?" Li Yusong asked Lu Qibin beside him, holding a book in his hands.
"It shouldn't be fake." Lu Qibin glanced at the contents of the booklet, stroked his goatee, and said calmly, "The reputation of the Green Wood Merchant Association is well-known, and they wouldn't lie about this. Besides, with the strength of the two titled nobles, Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone shouldn't be something that's hard to reach."
The two traveled together across the Douluo Continent, and saw shops belonging to the [Green Wood Merchant Association] in many cities and towns. Whether it was the evaluations of others or their own personal experiences, they had an excellent impression of the [Green Wood Merchant Association].
"Haote kid, does this ' Lingyun City ' really have the best wine in the world?"
Tall and imposing, but with a skeletal face and sunken eyes, Gu Rong, with his arms crossed, walked side by side with Haote, who was muscular but appeared smaller in comparison, down the street. His eyes were fixed on everything around him with interest as he casually asked a question.
Haote held a promotional brochure identical to the one Li Yusong was holding. He flipped to one page and unfolded it for Gu Rong, saying, "Senior Gu, look, this ' Mystic Ice Jade Fire Wine ' has been rated as Grade A, First Class. The ' Five Treasure Nectar Wine ' that we pooled our money to buy in ' Skywater City ' was only Grade B, Second Class, yet its effects are so powerful, and it's so delicious..."
"Jian Shan, how reliable is the information recorded in that ancient book you mentioned?"
On the sixth floor of the most luxurious restaurant in Lingyun City, Ning Fengzhi leaned against the window, looking at the bustling crowd below, and asked the young man beside him.
Upon hearing this, Jian Shan shook his head and said, "Sect Master, I am not aware of this. That ancient book was incomplete, and I only happened to have a chance to look at it. It was only by chance that I was able to remember some of the contents."
"Never mind~" Ning Fengzhi didn't care that Jian Shan's answer was full of uncertainty. He just turned his head to look at the tall building not far away, Lingyun Megastore.
Jian Shan, 29 years old, with the Martial Soul "Sword Leaf Bamboo", is a level 48 Battle Soul Ancestor of the Power Attack System. He has been a member of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect for nearly 20 years and can be said to have been cultivated by the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. He is a trustworthy member of the sect's direct lineage.
Is it the celestial and rare flower, the "Beautiful Silk Tulip"?
Ning Fengzhi recalled the promotional brochure of the Green Wood Merchant Association, which featured an auction item rated as Grade A, called "Beautiful Silk Tulip Pollen," which could help Soul Master absorb ten times more external energy, and even the radiance of the Sun Moon, for a period of time to aid their cultivation!
As for Jian Shan, several years ago, when he was exploring an ancient ruin with other members of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, he had looked through a severely damaged ancient book in the ruin. It recorded that there was a rare and precious flower in the world called "Beautiful Silk Tulip", which could Martial Soul Evolution a Soul Master whose Martial Soul had a defect, so that the defect would no longer exist.
The name of that Martial Soul Evolution is "Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda"!
Could there be any connection between the "Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda" and the "Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda"?
Based on this conjecture, Jian Shan reported the news to Sect Master Ning Mofan as soon as he returned to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect after leaving the ancient ruins.
Although Ning Mofan didn't know if the news was true or not, he preferred to treat it as true rather than miss any opportunity!
Over the years, Ning Mofan and his son Ning Fengzhi, the two sect leaders, and all the Ning clan members of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, have never given up searching for the "Beautiful Silk Tulip," which they had only heard of at first but never seen.
Unfortunately, day after day, year after year, apart from confirming in the records of the [Breaking Clan] that such a rare and precious medicine did indeed exist in the world, and providing a general description of its appearance, they gained nothing else.
Just as Ning Fengzhi was preparing to make the search for the "Beautiful Silk Tulip" a mission passed down through generations of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, news reached the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect that the first annual auction in Lingyun City was about to be held.
Along with it, there were also more than a dozen promotional brochures donated by the Green Wood Merchant Association, which depicted some of the auction items that would appear at the auction.
"If there's Beautiful Silk Tulip Pollen,' then there must be clues about the ' Beautiful Silk Tulip,' and even..." Ning Fengzhi whispered in a voice only he could hear, "Ling Yi of ' Lingyun City ' possesses a ' Beautiful Silk Tulip '!!"
As soon as he spoke, an astonishingly intense light appeared in Ning Fengzhi's eyes—the light of longing.
He has been trapped at level 79 for several years, and his father Ning Mofan and grandfather Ning Caicheng have been trapped for decades!
Now that such an opportunity has presented itself, neither he nor the entire [Seven Treasures Ning Family] wants to give it up!
No matter the cost!
At almost the same time, in different locations in Lingyun City, people were discussing the annual auction that was about to take place today, as well as the various rare items that would be auctioned.
Thanks to the promotional brochures distributed in advance by the Green Wood Merchant Association, which featured some very tempting auction items, many people were determined to acquire certain of them.
For example, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, the White Armored Earth Dragon Sect, and some Soul Master whose Martial Soul possess dragon bloodlines are all focusing their attention on an auction item called "Dragon Transformation Liquid." According to the promotional brochure, "Dragon Transformation Liquid" carries wondrous ice and fire power, as well as extremely pure high-level dragon aura. Whether one possesses Soul Master's bloodline or Soul Beast's bloodline, whether it's manifest or latent, as long as they have dragon blood, they can activate their dragon bloodline under the baptism of the ice and fire power within the "Dragon Transformation Liquid"!
Latent traits become explicit, and explicit traits are refined—all of these can enhance the user's qualifications!
Of course, the effectiveness varies from person to person, but it is definitely effective!
With his eyes reflecting the myriad faces of people in the entire ' Lingyun City ', and his ears carefully discerning the words spoken by each person, Ling Yi's feet were surrounded by swaying ' Blue Silver Grass ' in the wind.
Not only in the "Superego State," but also within a kilometer radius of the summit of Green Cloud Mountain, thousands of "Blue Silver Grass" transformed into neurons, working with Ling Yi to form a rudimentary version of a biological supercomputer.
Collect, summarize, organize, subdivide, analyze, combine...
Although it's somewhat of a stretch, this basic version is based on the fact that the consumption and recovery of one's own brain cells, mental strength, and spiritual power are in a balanced state, and it's sufficient for current use.
The young version of Zi Zhenzhu makes her debut, along with her father, "Sea Viper" Zi Yaoshi, the captain of a pirate crew. If managed well, "Lingyun City" can further explore the treasures in the sea.
Li Yusong and Lu Qibin, the two teachers of the Shrek Academy in the original timeline, were only average in terms of teaching ability and combat power in the Douluo Continent. They were not low, but they were not top-notch either. They could only be considered as a talent pool.
Haote was able to bring the Gu Rong to Lingyun City, which shows both his luck and ability. As one of the "Three Bears" in the Martial Training Bureau, he is also the most low-key one at present. I wonder what kind of sparks he will create with Zhao Wuji, who is also a character from the original story?
On the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect side, Jian Shan, who had been lying low for nearly twenty years, used the "Beautiful Silk Tulip" as bait to entice the Ning Family. With his superior intelligence and perseverance, he was arguably the most outstanding among the many spies planted in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. It was necessary to increase the stakes and help the Ning family improve their strength so that they could enter the upper echelons of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and the White Armored Earth Dragon Sect can be classified into one category, and the free Soul Master with dragon bloodline martial Martial Soul can be classified into another category. It just so happens that Dugu Bo's "Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor" is also one of the dragon species, so we can start to make some arrangements.
"The current Douluo Continent is still too weak!"
Ling Yi sensed that almost all the foreign Soul Master below had stiff and mixed auras, and a little dissatisfaction arose in his heart.
"They have absolutely no idea what innovation is; they only know how to bury themselves in meditation, increase their Soul Power, hunt Soul Beast, absorb Soul Ring, and rely on Soul Ring Soul Skill..."
More than twenty years have passed since Ling Yi decided to use Douluo Continent as a nursery to sow the seeds of knowledge and reap various flowers of wisdom. However, due to the influence of the general environment, it is still in the nascent stage.
Previously, due to his own lack of strength, Ling Yi did not act rashly, whether it was in the auction house or in promoting basic education. Instead, he focused on influencing those around him in a subtle and gradual way.
Now that its foundation is solid, it's almost time to water and fertilize to accelerate the growth of the seedlings.
People often fall into this paradox: the smarter a person is, the more they know, but the more they also don't know.
If a fool doesn't even know what one plus one equals, then he's not even qualified to see what two plus two equals.
Conversely, the smarter a person is, the more aware they are of their own ignorance.
Ling Yi, who could routinely use the rudimentary version of the biological supercomputer, considered himself to be at the top of the Douluo Continent in terms of intelligence at this stage. However, the more he saw, the more scenery he discovered beyond his field of vision.
He desperately needs more "brains" to help him think and unleash flashes of inspiration.