The next day.
Before Mo Li and Liu Erlong left the academy, they made a point of finding Jiang Zhu and handing her the other piece of refined Ten Thousand Year Whale Rubber.
At first, the girl had no idea what was going on when the two of them came to see her together.
But the moment she saw the Whale Rubber in Mo Li's hand, her little face turned deathly pale. She immediately took all the blame upon herself, saying she shouldn't have brought Mo Li to a place like that.
The look on her face, as if she were ready to lay down her life for what was right, left the two of them not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
After Mo Li patiently explained everything, she finally understood the situation, and her little face turned rosy again.
But when she heard about the effects of Ten Thousand Year Whale Rubber, she was startled from head to toe. Her face turned pale again in an instant, and she didn't dare accept it at all.
In the end, only after Mo Li seriously explained it and Liu Erlong nodded to confirm did she nervously begin absorbing the piece of Ten Thousand Year Whale Rubber.
While Jiang Zhu absorbed it, Mo Li and Liu Erlong stood guard around her to prevent any mishaps.
"You're pretty good to Jiang Zhu, aren't you?" Liu Erlong's tone was a little odd.
Mo Li smiled. "Am I not good to Sister Erlong?"
"Quit joking around. And you still haven't finished explaining those two girls from yesterday."
"I forgot to ask last night. You interrupted me." Liu Erlong sounded a little displeased.
"I'll tell you later. Later."
After Jiang Zhu finished absorbing it, Liu Erlong checked her condition. Nothing unexpected had happened, so the two of them finally set off from the academy.
Having Jiang Zhu absorb the Whale Rubber was just one of their tasks. They also had to head to the Sunset Forest today to find a suitable second Soul Ring for Mo Li.
It was much like their first trip to the Sunset Forest.
The two left Heaven Dou City and headed straight for the Sunset Forest. This time, though, they knew exactly what they were looking for, so they didn't linger around the outskirts and went straight into the core area.
Although Liu Erlong couldn't help Mo Li much in other ways, she had been preparing early when it came to choosing a Soul Beast.
Even though Mo Li's limit for absorbing a Soul Ring had increased, there wasn't much difference in the kind of Soul Beast they needed.
Liu Erlong knew Mo Li had his own ideas about this, so on the way, she offered him several options and analyzed the pros and cons of each, leaving him to choose one himself.
After pondering for a long while, Mo Li settled on a promising Soul Beast, the Black Flame Nether Sparrow, as his first choice.
The flames of this Soul Beast carried a unique attribute like nether energy. Before the Nine Nether Sparrow evolved, it would be a good fit.
However, this Soul Beast liked to appear at night, and it was rare. It was hard to say whether any Black Flame Nether Sparrows even lived in the Sunset Forest. And even if there were some, whether their age was suitable was another key question.
If their luck was truly terrible, the two of them would have to head to the much larger Star Dou Great Forest and try their luck there.
So Mo Li had several other options in mind as well.
Liu Erlong led Mo Li through the Sunset Forest, circling around the core area. Along the way, they encountered quite a few Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts.
Although the Sunset Forest wasn't particularly large, it still had plenty of Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts in its core area.
But after Liu Erlong gave them a forceful show of strength, the Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts ultimately fled in disarray.
Liu Erlong didn't choose to wipe them out. Perhaps because Mo Li was with her, she didn't want to show him her bloodthirsty side.
She had been in quite a good mood lately.
After a busy day in the forest, the two finally picked out several spots where Black Flame Nether Sparrows might appear. Since they were active at night, the two had no choice but to keep watch after dark.
The Sunset Forest was full of danger after nightfall, especially in its core area.
As the sky gradually darkened, the two found a suitable spot and started a campfire.
It wasn't very late yet, and the Black Flame Nether Sparrows hadn't come out, so there was nothing else for them to do. They set up camp first.
During that time, a heedless wild boar Soul Beast happened to charge right at them. From the black, steel-needle-like bristles covering its body, it was clear that this Soul Beast had excellent defenses.
Unfortunately for it, that still wasn't enough to measure up to Liu Erlong, a Soul Saint.
And so, it had the good fortune of becoming their dinner.
Liu Erlong handed the roasted meat in her hand to Mo Li.
"Here."
Mo Li took the roasted meat she offered. The thick leg glistened with sizzling fat, filling the air with an enticing aroma.
It was the first time he'd seen Liu Erlong cook. Seeing the hint of expectation in her eyes, Mo Li bit into it as if preparing for the worst.
The rich aroma of meat burst across his taste buds, instantly banishing his doubts.
"Sister Erlong, I had no idea your roast meat was this delicious!"
Mo Li's eyes lit up as he gave Liu Erlong a heartfelt thumbs-up. He wasn't flattering her; it really was that good!
"Is it really that amazing?"
Seeing Mo Li's exaggerated reaction, Liu Erlong couldn't help smiling.
"When I used to travel across the continent, I often had to sleep under the open sky and eat whatever I could find. I picked up this skill back then. It's been a long time since I last did this."
"Looks like my roasting skills aren't bad."
Ever since she had founded Blue Tyrant Academy, this was the first time in all these years Liu Erlong had done something like this.
"Sister Erlong, you shouldn't have opened an academy. You should've opened a barbecue shop. You'd make a fortune!"
"Does eating ever shut your mouth?"
Hearing Mo Li's far-fetched remark, Liu Erlong replied with exasperation.
That night, the two chatted beside the campfire, now and then. Naturally, Liu Erlong asked about Ye Lingling and Dugu Yan, who had been with Mo Li the day before.
Mo Li gave her a brief introduction based on his current relationship with each of them.
He told her about the flaw in Ye Lingling's Martial Soul, as well as some information about Dugu Yan. In particular, he mentioned her grandfather, the Poison Douluo Dugu Bo, whose name alone was enough to make people blanch.
His fight with Dugu Yan had taken place right there on the street. He figured Liu Erlong must have seen it if she'd been nearby, so he didn't go into much detail.
"So if that Dugu Yan comes looking for a spar, you really won't turn her down?"
"That's right," Mo Li said.
"Why would I turn her down? She's a top-notch sparring partner," Mo Li said with a sigh.
"A top-notch sparring partner? She came to spar with you in earnest, and you've been treating her like a training dummy?" Liu Erlong couldn't help laughing.
She had watched Mo Li and Dugu Yan's fight the day before. Naturally, she'd felt proud when she saw Mo Li defeat Dugu Yan cleanly and decisively.
Their Soul Power attributes did counter each other to a degree, but Dugu Yan had been a Soul Ring ahead of him.
And Dugu Yan's physical strength was also far greater than that of an ordinary Soul Master.
But she hadn't even had the chance to put those advantages to use before she was defeated.
"That girl wasn't looking to spar at all. She was clearly unconvinced and wanted to challenge me so she could get her pride back."
Mo Li saw right through her. That girl's competitive streak was stronger than most!