Commission Complete

Because they had to accommodate Qiluo's pace, it was already the following evening by the time they returned to Crimson Leap City.

Fortunately, they still arrived before the agreed time.

When the two entered the alley, three figures who had been waiting for a long time stood outside Odd Jobs House.

They were Ning Yunye and the other two.

In order to see the Silky Tulip sooner, the three had been waiting here since noon.

They just hadn't expected that wait to last several hours.

By nightfall, just as Ning Yunye was wondering whether something had gone wrong, he saw the familiar yet unfamiliar white mech approaching with a purple-haired man.

Yu Wuyi could tell from Ning Tian's bored expression that they had been waiting for quite a while.

Without wasting words, he directly opened the door to Odd Jobs House.

Only after returning to Odd Jobs House could he drop the act during a commission.

When discussing business, he still needed to use his own appearance. Sam's appearance was better suited for fighting.

"Sorry to have kept Sect Master Ning waiting. Please, everyone, come in."

Sam turned into flames and vanished, while Yu Wuyi inside casually walked behind the counter.

Ning Yunye could not help clicking his tongue in amazement at the sight. How had the other party developed such a powerful and convenient soul tool?

"Yunye, that fellow brought by Shopkeeper Yu carries the aura of a soul beast. He may be a hundred-thousand-year soul beast that has taken human form."

Yang Zhenwei whispered into Ning Yunye's ear.

?

A hundred-thousand-year soul beast in human form? Could he be the guardian beast of the Silky Tulip?

That made sense. It was only reasonable for such an immortal herb to be protected by a hundred-thousand-year soul beast.

Only Qiluo stood awkwardly to one side, unfamiliar with both the people and the place and unsure of what to do.

Yu Wuyi noticed his discomfort as well. He gestured toward the chairs before them and said politely, "Please, have a seat. Let me introduce everyone from the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect."

"This is Qiluo, a hundred-thousand-year soul beast—and also the Silky Tulip you have been seeking."

The three from the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect simultaneously looked toward the purple-haired man seated beside them, as though loading icons had appeared above their heads at the same time.

They were having trouble processing the situation.

So, this purple-haired man before them, a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, was the Silky Tulip?

But the Silky Tulip was an immortal herb!

According to the records of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, the Silky Tulip's true form was a pale yellow tulip whose fragrance could alter a person's aura.

It was not as though an immortal herb could not cultivate into a hundred-thousand-year soul beast.

But the issue was that the Silky Tulip had last appeared ten thousand years ago, during the era of the first generation of Shrek Academy's Seven Monsters.

That was barely ten thousand years ago. Could it be that this Silky Tulip had existed even earlier than ten thousand years ago?

Or perhaps...

Ning Yunye thought of another possibility: the place where this Silky Tulip lived was highly unusual.

It might be able to greatly accelerate its growth.

Then there was the terrifying poisonous mist that had blocked their way earlier.

Combined with the basic rule that the Great Ferocious Land must contain great treasure, this possibility was likely correct.

"So... I'm supposed to eat him?!"

Ning Tian stared in disbelief.

She had never expected that she would have to eat a soul beast!

Even if it was a plant-type soul beast, it was still a living being. She was supposed to eat it alive.

She did not think she could do that.

Yu Wuyi was amused by her reaction.

It seemed Ning Yunye had not told her the method yet.

"Who said you had to eat him?"

"If that were really the case, would he have followed me here so calmly?"

Only then did Ning Tian let out a sigh of relief.

Eating raw vegetables was one thing, but this was truly beyond her!

Yu Wuyi helplessly shook his head and turned to Qiluo:

"Her martial soul is the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. You should understand why I called you here now, right?"

Silky Tulip nodded. Although the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda was the continent's greatest support-type martial soul, it seemed to possess an innate flaw. Though immensely powerful, soul masters with this martial soul would remain stuck at Rank 79 for their entire lives, unable to advance even a fraction further.

Only by absorbing the pistil essence of a Silky Tulip and evolving into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda could this limitation be broken.

Thus, strictly speaking, the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda was the complete martial soul. It was merely that the conditions for its evolution were far too demanding.

He extended his right hand. A gentle radiance emanated from his body, eventually gathering in his palm to form a faintly glowing orb of light.

Once he had finished, Silky Tulip's face suddenly turned extraordinarily pale, as though he had abruptly fallen gravely ill.

Somewhat weakly, he said, "This is two-thirds of all my pistil essence. It should be more than enough to evolve a Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda."

With a thought, he sent the orb floating slowly toward the three of them, where it finally landed in Ning Tian's hands.

Ning Tian looked at the pistil essence in her hands, then at Silky Tulip's pale face.

She felt somewhat uneasy.

Silky Tulip took in the entire scene. He waved a hand and said, "Quickly absorb it into your body. The outer protective layer I set will release a suitable amount of pistil essence for you to cultivate with gradually, so you won't suffer any side effects."

"I can no longer take it back into my body. Even if you don't absorb the pistil essence, it will continue to dissipate."

Having said all there was to say, Silky Tulip fell silent.

Since he had put it that way, Ning Tian was not one to be coy.

She cupped the orb in both hands and absorbed it into herself.

Very quickly, Ning Tian could clearly sense the joyful emotions emanating from her martial soul.

It greedily absorbed the essence leaking from the orb.

With every fraction it absorbed, her martial soul grew stronger by a fraction.

"So incredible... it's really becoming stronger..."

She had never experienced such a feeling before. The improvement of her martial soul filled her entire being with an inexplicable sense of joy.

Yu Wuyi looked at Ning Yunye with satisfaction.

"With that, the commission has officially been completed. What does Sect Master Ning think?"

Ning Yunye looked at his daughter, then at the pale-faced Silky Tulip.

Clearly, the other party no longer had enough pistil essence to evolve a second Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda.

At first, he had thought Silky Tulip was merely an immortal herb that would be handed over to them directly.

But he had not expected it to have already cultivated to the hundred-thousand-year level, possessing intelligence no different from that of a human.

Although Ning Yunye did not know what method Yu Wuyi had used to make Silky Tulip willingly hand over his pistil essence, now that he possessed sentience, he naturally could not be treated like an object as before, to be given away at a word.

The purpose of the commission had already been achieved. Before long, Ning Tian's martial soul would evolve.

There was clearly no need to be greedy and leave a bad impression.

Thus, he nodded and said with a smile, "Of course. Shopkeeper Yu's ability to keep his word truly earns Yunye's deepest admiration."

Yu Wuyi replied courteously as well, "Sect Master Ning flatters me. Since the commission has been completed, please do not forget the price your sect must pay."

"Otherwise, Yu may have to pay your sect a personal visit as a guest."

Without question, the second sentence was an open threat.

Naturally, Ning Yunye understood it as well, but he had never intended to go back on his word.

So there was no need to worry about what came after.

He had also personally seen the sun that had risen in the east a day earlier.

And that happened to be in the direction of Sunset Forest.

By his estimation, it was most likely connected to Yu Wuyi.

After all, the timing was far too coincidental.