Tulip of Romance, Gu Rong's Martial Soul Evolves

Ning Rongrong shook her head, burying her face in Ning Fengzhi's chest. She tilted her head slightly to glance at Han Yu.

Their eyes met.

Startled, Ning Rongrong abruptly looked away.

The sorrow that had just begun to subside surged once more. She pouted and lowered her head, her beautiful eyes brimming with grievance.

Chen Xin sighed and shook his head, his gaze flickering between the two.

Han Yu and Rongrong had grown up together under his watchful eye. Han Yu's talent and temperament were top-tier, so how could he be unaware of Rongrong's feelings? Yet, in his view, they were still too young to even understand what "liking" someone meant.

He hadn't expected Rongrong to have already lost her heart, even insisting on picking that King of Flowers which symbolized true love, only to have her state of mind destabilized by distracting thoughts. If it came to it, he, as her teacher, would make the call and set their marriage in advance to prevent Rongrong from letting her imagination run wild.

"Your Excellency Sword Douluo, what is going on with this Young Sect Master?" Dugu Bo asked respectfully, bowing before raising his eyebrows at Han Yu and lowering his voice.

"It is as you think," Chen Xin nodded.

Dugu Bo narrowed his eyes, glancing at Dugu Yan, who was still unconscious nearby, and felt a strange sensation.

This brat he disliked seemed to have immense talent, enough to make the Sect Master's daughter fall for him. Judging by the situation, even Sword Douluo approved of this. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was nothing if not discerning; any soul master they brought in as a son-in-law was invariably a gifted individual with a clean background—a highly sought-after prize.

Han Yu offered a wry smile when he saw his gaze being avoided.

His talent was too overwhelming, which had caused Ning Rongrong, a second-tier genius, to feel inferior and doubt her own potential.

Seeing Ning Rongrong acting like a little kitten, he felt a pang of heartache.

Han Yu carefully dug up the Tulip of Romance immortal herb and walked over to Ning Rongrong, handing it to her. "Rongrong, consume this immortal herb. Your talent will surely improve."

"The immortal herb won't run away. Just try again once you've recovered. If you can't do it once, try ten times; if not ten, then a hundred. You will eventually succeed in picking it."

The first part was true; as long as Ning Rongrong consumed it, her martial soul would evolve, her cultivation talent would rise, and the defects of her martial soul would be corrected, turning her into the most promising support-type genius soul master.

Ning Rongrong looked back, dazed, and gazed up at those eyes that were both gentle and confident. She couldn't help but reach out to take it, clutching the Tulip of Romance to her chest, her eyes filled with anticipation.

Han Yu smiled and nodded, saying, "Do not swallow this herb whole. Gently inhale the essence from the flower stamen, slowly drawing it into your body, then use your soul power to circulate the medicinal properties through your limbs and bones."

Ning Rongrong stood up, her gaze resolute. She grabbed the stamen with her small hand, tilted her head back to consume it, and sat down cross-legged.

"Han Yu, you two..." Ning Fengzhi's eyes shifted as he spoke softly.

"Sect Master, please rest assured. I have been without parents since I was young; Rongrong is like a younger sister to me. I will definitely protect her well." Han Yu bowed, his expression earnest and his tone solemn.

"Uh... good... good." Ning Fengzhi appeared somewhat awkward, rubbing his thumb against his palm.

He had intended to take charge and ask Han Yu about his feelings for Rongrong, but he had been blocked immediately. He saw the ambition in Han Yu's heart—a singular focus on becoming stronger, with little interest in the affairs of romance.

Rather than forcing them together, it would be better to wait until they were older and let their feelings develop further before making arrangements.

Time flowed by, and before they knew it, the night had deepened.

Just as Han Yu and the others were chatting around the fire, a violent fluctuation of soul power suddenly erupted in the distance.

A dark golden light flashed over Gu Rong's body, and he threw his head back and laughed.

"Haha! As expected of an immortal herb, it actually evolved my martial soul!"

With a wave of his hand, a large amount of black filth shed from his body, which he casually tossed into a black hole.

Having been stuck at level ninety-five for years, he had finally broken through the bottleneck and reached level ninety-six in one go.

Normally, once one entered the ranks of Super Douluo at level ninety-five, the difficulty of advancing each level increased geometrically. Without insights gained from life-and-death battles or heaven-defying comprehension, one might never break through the bottleneck in their entire life.

However, Gu Rong had been baptized by the Earth Dragon Golden Melon; not only did his soul power break through, but his martial soul had also evolved into the Dark Gold Bone Dragon.

The phantom of his original dull-white bone dragon martial soul behind him had turned into a dark golden hue. The ridges of its spine were now shimmering golden lines, scales had grown on its body, and the pale ghost fire in its eyes now held a hint of vitality.

"Old Antique, you are definitely no match for me now," Gu Rong said, his lips curling high as he crossed his arms, his tone extremely arrogant.

Chen Xin smiled faintly, curiously observing the changes in Gu Rong.

He noticed that beyond the increase in soul power, his old friend now possessed an inexplicably powerful sense of pressure, and his soul power seemed endless, as if it were being constantly replenished from somewhere.

In that case, he did have the confidence to challenge him, but for experts of their level, a one-level gap was like a chasm that could not be crossed simply by relying on external forces.

"Congratulations, Teacher," Han Yu said, stepping forward to offer his respects.

Gu Rong was full of joy. "This is all thanks to you. If you hadn't acted, these immortal herbs would have been destroyed by the shockwaves of the battle long ago."

He paused slightly, glanced at Chen Xin, and continued, "Someone even thought Han Yu was doing the wrong thing. Sigh, no good deed goes unpunished."

Chen Xin, being called out, didn't get angry. He smiled and patted Han Yu's head. "Han Yu, Teacher apologizes to you. You did very well this time."

Just the fact that these immortal herbs had allowed Gu Rong to improve so significantly made whatever Han Yu had done trivial. Though he disdained underhanded tactics, if the gains were immense and no innocent lives were wantonly taken, he would have done the same as Han Yu.

"Teacher, you are too kind," Han Yu said with a shake of his head and a smile.

Ning Fengzhi's eyes revealed a deep longing as he asked slowly, "Uncle Bone, has your martial soul really evolved?"

His heart hammered in his chest, making it difficult to control his emotions. His body trembled involuntarily, and two lines of clear tears rolled down his cheeks. After a brief moment of daze, he turned away to wipe them off.

If Uncle Bone's martial soul could evolve, couldn't Rongrong's evolve as well? Would that curse-like shackle finally disappear?

This thought magnified in Ning Fengzhi's mind. He placed all his hope on Ning Rongrong, who was currently absorbing the immortal herb, praying for the result he had imagined.

"Rest assured, if an old man like me can have this opportunity, Rongrong will definitely be no worse off," Gu Rong said, patting Ning Fengzhi on the shoulder to comfort him.

Han Yu nodded in agreement.

"No worse off" was an understatement.

That was the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. According to the characteristic of this martial soul—which increased the effect of soul skills by ten percent every ten levels—a Title Douluo could directly amplify strength by ninety percent. It was an all-encompassing, nearly twofold increase in combat power—how monstrous was that?

Coupled with the Seven-Fold Mind technique, the ability to amplify an entire team single-handedly made her the true core of any group.