The White Tiger's blood and vitality surged back along the Spores, but Ji Yuan did not meet it head-on.
He split the outer layer of the Sub-spore and deliberately let the White Tiger Origin crush a small section of empty husk. The true root filaments sank into the shadows of Dai Mubai's meridians.
Dai Mubai felt a brief tightness in his chest, then everything returned to normal.
He rubbed his brow and cursed. "What the hell?"
The girl beside him asked softly, "Young Master Dai, should we find a healing Soul Master?"
Dai Mubai shot her a glance. "I'm a little tired. Why would I need a healing Soul Master?"
He refused to admit that Tang San had gotten the better of him, much less that something was wrong with his body.
That arrogance was exactly what Ji Yuan wanted.
The prouder Dai Mubai was, the less likely he was to suspect another mouth had appeared inside him.
Inside the Rose Hotel, Tang San sat by the window. The wound on his shoulder had already been treated.
Xiao Wu lay sprawled on the bed, swinging her feet. "That Dai Mubai said he'd see us at Shrek Academy. Are we really going tomorrow?"
Tang San took out Yu Xiaogang's letter of introduction, then put it away again. "Teacher told us to go. He must have his reasons."
Xiao Wu rolled over. "Nothing your teacher arranges is ever easy."
Tang San smiled. "At least this time it isn't drinking medicine."
Xiao Wu sat up at once. "You dare bring up medicine? You never look much better after taking it."
Tang San's movements slowed.
She was right.
Whenever those medicines meant to replenish his blood and vitality entered his body, it always felt as though something consumed them first, leaving only a little warmth.
He had once explained it away as rejection caused by his Twin Martial Souls.
But when he faced Dai Mubai today, that hollow feeling had returned.
Tang San looked down at his palm. Blue Silver Grass slipped between his fingers. Its leaves were tougher than before, but their edges bore a darkness ordinary Blue Silver Grass did not have.
Xiao Wu noticed, and her voice softened. "Are you feeling unwell again?"
Tang San withdrew his Martial Soul. "I'm fine."
Clinging to his meridians, Ji Yuan released a little soothing wood-attribute Soul Power.
Tang San's tense body relaxed.
That small return was enough to keep him quiet, but nowhere near enough to restore him.
The real prize lay elsewhere.
Inside Dai Mubai, once the White Tiger's blood and vitality subsided, the Spores' root filaments reached out again.
This time, Ji Yuan left the core meridians alone and drew from the lingering overflow after the blood and vitality had circulated.
The first thing Ji Yuan felt when the White Tiger Origin entered the Demon Vine was heat.
Not the heat of flame, but the heat of flesh and blood so vigorous it could split his roots open.
Ji Yuan immediately drew over the Mysterious Heaven Skill Inner Force Tang San had just circulated and wrapped the blood and vitality in layer after layer.
Tang San had barely closed his eyes to cultivate when his face turned pale.
Xiao Wu had been straightening the bedding. Seeing sweat bead on his forehead, she came over and nudged his shoe with her foot. "Tang San, stop cultivating."
Tang San opened his eyes, his breathing uneven. "I'm just regulating my breathing."
"Regulating your breathing until you look like that?"
Xiao Wu pressed his hand down. "Go to sleep."
Tang San wanted to say more, but Ji Yuan deliberately intensified the hollowness in his chest. He could only nod. "All right."
Xiao Wu watched until he lay down, then returned to the other bed, muttering, "With Grandmaster away, you're even more of a worry."
Ji Yuan paid no attention.
He was digesting the White Tiger's blood and vitality.
The Demon Vine's surface began to harden. Beneath its formerly supple skin, dense, fine keratinous patterns formed.
The patterns could resist tearing and make it harder for Soul Power to shatter his roots when they burrowed into flesh.
Dai Mubai, his blood bag, was worth more than expected.
Elsewhere, Dai Mubai lay in bed but could not sleep.
The weakness inside him grew more pronounced. His waist and abdomen ached, and his limbs felt heavy.
He sat up with a grim expression, picked up a glass of water, and gulped some down.
The girl sat up, a robe draped over her shoulders. "Young Master Dai, you really don't look well."
Her words stung, and Dai Mubai's tone hardened. "Shut up and go to sleep."
The girl did not dare ask again.
Dai Mubai rubbed his temples. The more he thought about it, the more humiliating it felt.
He had clearly held the upper hand against Tang San during the day, yet after using White Tiger Vajra Transformation, his body had betrayed him with a sudden spell of weakness.
Had he really overindulged these past two days?
His face darkened further the more he thought about it. At last, he set the glass down on the table and muttered, "I need to take it easy tomorrow."
Hearing that, Ji Yuan curled the tip of his vine in delight.
Dai Mubai had found his own excuse.
That saved Ji Yuan trouble.
Early the next morning, the noise downstairs woke Xiao Wu.
She sat up groggily and saw Tang San already packing. She frowned. "Why are you up so early again?"
Tang San looked back. "Habit."
Xiao Wu studied his face. "You're still pale."
Tang San touched his cheek. "Maybe yesterday took a lot out of me."
Ji Yuan had just drawn away twenty percent of his Inner Force. Now he returned a little wood-attribute vitality.
Tang San felt somewhat refreshed, which only strengthened his belief that the fight had drained him.
When the two went downstairs to check out, the receptionist looked at them differently.
"Did you sleep well last night?"
Xiao Wu slapped the key onto the counter. "The bed was nice. Too many people fight over rooms here, though."
The receptionist gave an awkward, placating smile and said nothing.
Tang San asked, "How do we get to Shrek Academy?"
The receptionist blinked. "Are you two going to apply?"
Tang San nodded.
The receptionist pointed the way. "Go through the south gate and head toward the village. It's not especially close, but plenty of people should be going today."
At the mention of a village, Xiao Wu's face fell. "The academy is in a village?"
Tang San was surprised too.
Yu Xiaogang had only said Shrek Academy was unusual, not that it was unusual enough to sit outside the city.
As they left the hotel, Ji Yuan planted a faint trace of his perception in a seam of the carpet.
If Dai Mubai came back, he would sense him immediately.
But just as they reached the street corner, Dai Mubai emerged from an alley on the other side.
He had changed clothes and still wore that haughty look, but he could not hide the dark shadows under his eyes.
Xiao Wu spotted him at once and snorted. "Oh, look. The room thief."
Dai Mubai stopped.
When he saw Tang San, a flicker of discomfort crossed his face, but he quickly recovered. "Heading to Shrek Academy?"
Tang San nodded. "You too?"
Dai Mubai looked at him, his tone more restrained than the night before. "I'll be waiting for you there."
Xiao Wu folded her arms. "Who asked you to wait?"
Dai Mubai did not argue with her. Instead, he turned to Tang San. "You didn't use your full strength yesterday."
Tang San met his gaze. "Neither did you."
Dai Mubai gave a short laugh. "See you at the entrance exam. I hope you don't disappoint me."
With that, he turned and walked away.
But after only a few steps, his footing visibly faltered. He steadied himself at once, but Ji Yuan sensed it.
The White Tiger Spores inside him took another sip.
This one went deeper.
With his back to Tang San, Dai Mubai's face turned ugly and grim.
Xiao Wu lowered her voice. "Are his legs giving out?"
Tang San coughed lightly. "Don't say that."
Xiao Wu huffed. "He was so arrogant yesterday. Today he can barely walk straight."
Tang San was puzzled too.
With Dai Mubai's physique, he should not have grown so weak overnight.
But Tang San could think of no reason, so he put the question aside.
Deep within Tang San's shoe sole, Ji Yuan refined that second draught of White Tiger Origin.
The Demon Vine's hardened layer continued to spread, and the bases of its barbs grew thicker and tougher.
He could even sense that after a few more draughts, his vines could withstand the bites of an ordinary Beast Martial Soul head-on.
Tang San and Xiao Wu left Suotuo City and followed the path beyond the south gate.
There were gradually fewer travelers on the road, but more richly dressed boys and girls.
Looking at the crowd lined up ahead, Xiao Wu finally blurted out, "Is that really an academy at the entrance to this lousy village?"
Tang San took out the letter of introduction and checked the sign.
A wooden sign hung crookedly, bearing the words Shrek Academy.
The parents waiting at the entrance wore unhappy expressions.
Some were arguing, some were demanding refunds, and an old man sat behind a table, too lazy even to look up.
Ji Yuan spread his perception from Tang San's shoe sole.
Beneath the shabby village entrance, the presences of many young Soul Masters mingled.
Two stood out most.
One was noble and clear, carrying the feel of an enhancement governed by rules.
The other carried the aroma of food. Its Soul Power was soft and yielding, yet it teemed with life.
Ji Yuan's roots, fresh from digesting the White Tiger's blood and vitality, stirred with excitement again.
Shrek Academy had not disappointed him.
The White Tiger blood bag was only an appetizer.
There was more here.
At the front of the line, the old man handling registration suddenly raised his hand. A Dragon-Pattern Staff dropped into his palm, and the pressure of Soul Power at the Soul Emperor level spread outward. Every arguing parent fell silent.
Tang San's expression turned grave.
Xiao Wu stopped joking too.
Ji Yuan immediately drew his main body into the shape of a withered thorn, burying every dark-red pattern in its deepest layers.
A powerhouse.
I can't be careless.
Just then, Dai Mubai emerged from the academy and stood beside the registration desk.
His gaze swept past Tang San, still carrying the fighting spirit left over from last night.
But at that same moment, the White Tiger Spores inside Dai Mubai sent a pulse back to Ji Yuan.
Dai Mubai's blood and vitality had begun to recover again.
Ji Yuan coldly spread his roots.
The faster he recovers, the better he is for a long harvest.
A noble girl ahead of Tang San in the line suddenly turned. Her gaze passed over Tang San and Xiao Wu before settling beside Tang San's foot, and her brows drew together slightly.
When Ji Yuan's perception touched the crystalline aura around her, a Sub-spore had already formed at the tip of his vine.
But in the next instant, the girl raised a hand to her chest and murmured, "Strange. It felt like something was watching me just now..."
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