Xu Jiujiu

At night, Xuan Xiao and Zhu Lu arrived at a small forest ten li outside Star Luo City.

Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, casting mottled shadows across the ground. The air was filled with the scent of earth and vegetation, and the occasional chirp of insects made the surroundings seem especially tranquil.

It had naturally been Xuan Xiao's idea to stop here.

He needed a quiet place to carefully consider his next plan.

If he wanted to earn a large amount of deviation points, then things that should not have appeared in this era needed to emerge ahead of time.

Soul Spirits, battle armor, and mecha were undoubtedly the best choices. If these three things could become widespread across Douluo Continent ahead of schedule, the deviation points they generated would be astronomical.

But promoting these things was absolutely not something he could accomplish alone.

He needed his own faction, enough manpower, and enough resources for large-scale research, development, and production.

He was not worried about manpower. At worst, he could just use puppets for everything.

The system shop had puppets of every model imaginable. As long as he had money, he could get as many as he wanted.

The reason he had stopped here was to think carefully about where to establish his headquarters.

The Star Luo Empire? The Sun Moon Empire? Or the Far North?

After giving it some thought, he ultimately felt that the Star Luo Empire was the better choice.

It was not merely because he was familiar with the Star Luo Empire, but because it was comparatively safer.

The Far North was a barren wasteland of ice and snow. Who would want to live there? It would be hard enough just finding workers.

Evil Soul Masters ran rampant in the Sun Moon Empire, and lunatics were everywhere. If he built a base there, some Evil Soul Master might destroy it one day.

As for whether the Star Luo Empire would approve a land grant for him?

What a joke. If Xu Jiawei refused, he would simply buy a piece of Gold of Life and poach Wang Xian'er.

If the continent's number one healing-type Super Douluo was poached, it would be like cutting flesh from the Star Luo Empire. By then, Xu Jiawei would not even have time to cry.

"It smells so good."

Suddenly, a voice drifted over, carrying curiosity and admiration.

Xuan Xiao turned his head and saw a girl of sixteen or seventeen walking over from a small path nearby.

She had long golden hair that glimmered faintly beneath the moonlight. Her features were exquisite, her bearing noble, and she wore a long white dress. She looked like a princess who had stepped out of a fairy tale.

Beside her stood an elderly woman in red. The old woman was hunched and wrinkled, but her eyes were bright and sharp. A faint fluctuation of Soul Power emanated from her body, making it clear that she was a formidable expert.

When Zhu Lu, who was grilling shrimp, saw the newcomers, the skewer in her hand clattered to the ground, and her entire body stiffened.

She wanted nothing more than to find a crack in the ground and crawl into it. How could she run into someone she knew here?

This was far too much of a coincidence!

The newcomers noticed her, and their footsteps paused slightly as surprise appeared on their faces.

"Zhu Lu? Why are you here? Shouldn't you be at Shrek Academy right now?"

That was right. The two of them were none other than the Star Luo Empire's princess, Xu Jiujiu, and her protector, the Starlight Douluo Manyi.

Although Nether Duke's Estate had fallen on hard times, it was still a ducal estate. As the legitimate daughter of Nether Duke's Estate, Zhu Lu naturally knew members of the imperial family.

Zhu Lu stood up and gave a somewhat awkward bow. "Your Highness, I..."

She opened her mouth, but had no idea how to explain herself.

Was she supposed to say that Dai Huabin had shoved her to the ground, and then Xuan Xiao had whisked her away?

That would be far too embarrassing.

Sitting beside the fire, Xuan Xiao did not even raise his head as he said, "Don't just stand there. Those prawns are about to burn. One of them could buy your life!"

Zhu Lu came back to her senses and realized that the shrimp in her hand really was a little charred. She hurriedly turned it over, clumsily trying to salvage it.

Xu Jiujiu's attention was drawn to the large shrimp roasting over the fire.

The shrimp were scarlet all over and crystal-clear. As they roasted in the Lie Yans, they gave off a rich aroma so tempting that she could not help swallowing.

She walked over to the fire and asked curiously, "Hello, may I ask what kind of shrimp these are? I've never smelled shrimp this fragrant before."

Xuan Xiao answered casually, "Red Jade Shrimp. They're also called Blood Shrimp."

Manyi frowned. Having lived for so many years, she could be considered well-informed, yet she had never heard of this type of shrimp. "Why has this old woman never heard of them?"

Xuan Xiao turned the shrimp over the fire and explained in an even tone.

"They are a strange lifeform that lives in the Blood Sea Trench, more than three thousand meters below the surface. The essence of blood and vitality within them is very similar to that of humans, making them an excellent tonic for Soul Masters."

He pointed at Zhu Lu and continued, "Given her condition, she would need more than a year to completely digest even one. Otherwise, her blood vessels would burst from the excess."

Xu Jiujiu's eyes lit up. She looked at the Red Jade Shrimp with great interest.

Then her gaze fell on Xuan Xiao and Zhu Lu. Seeing their intimate posture, she roughly guessed what was going on and asked, "You and her...?"

Xuan Xiao had no intention of hiding it. House Xu and House Dai had never gotten along well in the first place. The enemy of his enemy was his friend—he understood that much.

He said directly, "She's my newly acquired maid. I'm taking her to White Tiger Duke's Estate to break off her engagement."

Xu Jiujiu raised an eyebrow and looked Xuan Xiao up and down, her eyes carrying scrutiny and curiosity.

"Judging from your uniform, you should also be a Shrek student. Given the relationship between White Tiger Duke's Estate and Shrek, they let you leave? Dai Huabin isn't exactly known for his good temper. He was willing to let her go?"

Xuan Xiao smiled, a hint of amusement in his expression. "I fought my way out."

Hearing this, Manyi could not help sneering, her tone full of disbelief.

"Little one, boasting is not a good habit."

"This old woman knows exactly what kind of place Shrek Academy is. It is full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers, with experts everywhere. Is it really a place where a brat like you can run wild?"

Xuan Xiao did not argue. He merely snapped his fingers.

The sound was crisp and clear, exceptionally piercing in the quiet forest.

Then, with a thunderous roar, four enormous creatures over a hundred meters long flew up from beneath the cliff. Their massive wings whipped up fierce winds, sending the surrounding trees swaying wildly.

The four Light Bone Dragons circled above the forest. Their stark white skeletons gleamed with cold light beneath the moon, while sacred Lie Yans burned in their golden eye sockets as they looked down upon the four people below.

Though they did not release any pressure, the invisible oppression still instantly drained the color from Xu Jiujiu's and Manyi's faces, making it difficult for them to breathe.

Manyi's pupils abruptly contracted. Her mouth fell open, and she could not close it for a long while. Her entire body froze in place as though she had been struck by a paralysis spell.

Despite living for so many years, this was the first time she had seen such a thing.

Light Bone Dragons?

What the hell kind of species were these?

She felt as though her worldview had suffered an unprecedented impact.

Xu Jiujiu also stared wide-eyed at the four colossal creatures in the sky. Her heart pounded wildly, and sweat seeped from her palms.

She finally understood why Xuan Xiao dared to say that he had fought his way out.

With four monsters like these beside him, let alone fighting his way out, she felt that even tearing Shrek Academy apart might be possible.