Premium Ten-Thousand-Year "Braised"... Whale Glue!

After walking for a while, the three of them finally arrived at Illustrious Virtue Hall.

When they pushed open the door to Jing Hongchen's office, they were surprised to find that besides Jing Hongchen, there was also an elderly man standing inside. He wore a spotless white chef's uniform and had a stern expression.

The moment he saw Ye Chenxing enter, Jing Hongchen's plump face broke into an exceptionally radiant smile. Even the fat on his face trembled with delight. "Chengxing, you're here!"

"Grandpa!" Meng Hongchen pouted in dissatisfaction. "You only ever see Chenxing. Have you forgotten your precious granddaughter?"

Jing Hongchen laughed helplessly and reached out to ruffle Meng Hongchen's hair. "You silly girl, how could Grandpa forget you and Xiao?"

Ye Chenxing watched this scene with a smile before naturally shifting his gaze to the white-clad elder. "Hall Master, this is?"

"Perfect timing." Jing Hongchen waved with a cheerful smile. "This is my personal chef, Old Mushroom. All the food delivered to your villa these past few days was his work. There aren't many people lucky enough to eat dishes he's made."

Ye Chenxing understood. The meals specially delivered over the past few days had not only tasted excellent, but also left his soul power flowing smoothly afterward. So they had come from this man.

Looking at it this way, he had found the reason why Jing Hongchen and Lin Jiayi had failed at managing their figures.

(Jing Hongchen: You simply don't understand weight loss.)

Although he was thinking something disrespectful about the Hall Master, he did not neglect proper etiquette and cupped his hands.

"Thank you, Senior. Your cooking is truly superb."

Old Mushroom kept a straight face and looked extremely serious as he gave only a brief reply. "Your Highness is too kind."

Yet his mustache, which unconsciously curled upward, betrayed his current delight.

"Alright, I called you here today because I have something good for you."

Jing Hongchen walked over to the table and took out three portions of a gelatinous substance that glimmered with dark golden light. "This is specially refined Premium Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue. School starts soon, so absorb this now and thoroughly temper your bodies."

Ye Chenxing carefully examined this heavenly treasure, which had only begun to be used during the Peerless Era.

Unlike the piece of Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue Huo Yuhao had picked up cheaply in Shrek City in the original work, which had looked black and unremarkable, this piece was entirely different in quality. It was a translucent golden yellow, and under sunlight, he could even see the fine patterns within it.

Old Mushroom's skill truly lived up to its reputation. Even a piece of Whale Glue meant for cultivation had been made appealing in color, aroma, and appearance.

It just looked somewhat like... braised jelly...

The three thanked him in unison. After each swallowed their Whale Glue, they sat cross-legged on the spot, closed their eyes, and began cultivating to absorb its medicinal power.

Seeing the three enter their meditative states, Jing Hongchen waved a hand and left the office with Old Mushroom.

In the corridor, Lin Jiayi approached from the opposite direction and could not help asking, "Hall Master, is this arrangement really appropriate?"

Jing Hongchen glared at him. "Elder Kong is the pillar holding up our Sun Moon Empire and still has to research the most cutting-edge technology. Even if Chenxing is the Empire's future hope, we can't have Elder Kong teaching him full-time forever."

"That is why this old man decided to open a small class and select truly outstanding students. Once school begins, every Rank Nine Soul Engineer in Illustrious Virtue Hall will take turns teaching that class. Heh heh, the first-years this year are in for a treat."

Jing Hongchen did not have enough influence to ask Soul Engineers of his own rank to impart everything they knew for Ye Chenxing's sake. In the Empire, only Elder Kong possessed that kind of influence.

Listening from the side, Lin Jiayi silently grumbled, What do you mean, the first-years are in for a treat? Hall Master, you're clearly this happy because Young Master Xiao and Miss Meng will get to benefit too and enjoy this top-tier treatment, aren't you?

Naturally, Lin Jiayi only dared complain inwardly. Out loud, he repeatedly agreed.

A brief silence fell over the office, leaving only the steady breathing of the three.

About a quarter of an hour later, Meng Hongchen was the first to open her eyes, a satisfied gleam flashing through them. She flexed her slender wrist and felt the warm medicinal power slowly merging into every part of her body. The corners of her lips unconsciously rose.

"As expected of the premium Whale Glue Grandpa had stored away. It works much better than the last piece." She muttered softly before turning to look at her brother beside her.

Xiao Hongchen had also completed his absorption and was about to say something when his gaze suddenly froze on Ye Chenxing across from him.

"He... hasn't finished absorbing it yet?"

Meng Hongchen followed her brother's gaze and was stunned as well.

Ye Chenxing still sat cross-legged with his eyes closed, a faint layer of pale golden light surrounding him. His breathing was long and steady. The medicinal power of the Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue seemed to be drawn by some force within his body, continuously merging into his meridians and bones with astonishing efficiency.

"How is that possible..." Xiao Hongchen muttered, his eyes filled with disbelief. "His physical constitution is clearly stronger than mine. I thought he must have absorbed higher-quality Whale Glue long ago. But judging from this... is this actually his first time?"

Meng Hongchen wore an equally astonished expression. She clearly remembered her grandfather saying that no heavenly treasure could be absorbed without limit. Every use would create drug resistance and greatly reduce its effects.

Ye Chenxing's current condition clearly showed that this was his first time absorbing Whale Glue.

"To achieve this level of physical strength without relying on any external aid... he really is a monster." Xiao Hongchen shook his head with a bitter smile, but his desire to defeat Ye Chenxing only grew stronger.

Nearly half an hour later, the light around Ye Chenxing finally began to recede. He let out a long breath of turbid air and opened his eyes.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." Ye Chenxing rolled his shoulders, feeling the surging warmth flowing through his body, and nodded in satisfaction. "This Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue truly lives up to its reputation. It feels as though every part of my body has been tempered anew."

He clenched his fist and could clearly feel that the strength of his body had risen another level.

Moreover, perhaps Old Mushroom had used some special method while cooking it, but Ye Chenxing did not feel even the slightest trace of the embarrassing side effect Huo Yuhao had experienced while absorbing Whale Glue in the original work.

Though objectively speaking, perhaps the side effect on Ma Xiaotao had been even greater?

Good stuff.

Ye Chenxing praised it inwardly while his mind began racing. Jing Hongchen had specifically chosen this time before school started to give him Whale Glue. He was probably not doing it merely to temper Ye Chenxing's body.

This was a signal that he intended to take him hunting for his second soul ring.

At that thought, Ye Chenxing's gaze sharpened slightly.

The Sun Moon Empire had existed for ten thousand years, and the Imperial House had long established an extremely mature system of research into the Sun Martial Soul. They had detailed records of which soul beast best suited each soul ring, which age range produced the optimal effect, and what soul skills it could provide. Under normal circumstances, following that path step by step would undoubtedly be the safest choice.

But the problem was—

He was not a Sun Martial Soul at all!

His martial soul was the Hall of Heroes. The Ultimate Sun was merely simulated through the soul skill of Qian Renxue's Angel Skull. He could not truly hunt soul rings according to the Sun Moon Imperial House's "Sun Martial Soul-exclusive plan."

Thinking of this, Ye Chenxing could not help sighing inwardly. When summoning heroic spirits, as long as he chose the right catalyst, he could successfully summon them even if the soul rings were incompatible. But if the soul rings themselves could provide relevance, both the summoning compatibility and the heroic spirits' strength would rise to another level.

Just as he was struggling with this, a flash of inspiration suddenly struck his mind.

Wait.

I have a Dual-Ultimate Solar Martial Soul! Ultimate Fire combined with Ultimate Light—this was unprecedented in the Sun Moon Empire's ten-thousand-year history. The experience those predecessors had accumulated through the ages had all been aimed at ordinary Sun Martial Souls. But who had ever seen a Dual-Ultimate Solar Martial Soul?

No one, right?

Since there was no precedent, wouldn't what soul rings I hunted be entirely up to me?