"Damn, there really was a crooked merchant who mixed Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Rubber into a shipment of Thousand-Year Whale Rubber and sold it!"
Clutching the incredibly old material tightly to his chest, Lin Yue's face was filled with excitement!
"What else was this if not cheating people out of their money and lives? I could be considered to be upholding justice here, helping countless Whale Rubber consumers remove this deadly hidden danger! Saving some poor person's happiness in the second half of their life!"
A full thirty-thousand-year-old piece of Whale Rubber had been hidden among Thousand-Year Whale Rubber. This time, he had truly struck it rich!
Amid his wild joy, Lin Yue moved his thoughts—
[Ding, would you like to use an Emerald +9 Enhancement Ticket on Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Rubber (+2)? Upon success, the item will be upgraded to Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Rubber (+9). Upon failure, its original enhancement level will remain unchanged.]
Oh, enhancement +9 meant raising the age of a ten-thousand-year item to the limit of ninety thousand years? Then there was no need to consider it for now...
If he was going to use it, he should find a one-thousand-year piece instead, so it would not be wasted...
The excited little boy hugged the Whale Rubber in his arms as though it were an invaluable treasure, then rushed back to the academy with an exhilarated expression.
Watching his impatient appearance, Tang Hao, hidden in a corner, clenched his fists. His eyes had turned bloodshot, and he panted like a bull.
That damned brat, it was only a piece of Whale Rubber. What was he so excited about?!
Could it be that he really dared to make a move on Xiao San?!!
He had better be planning to use that Whale Rubber to make medicine. If he dared use it for anything strange...
Tang Hao's face twisted as his hands gripped the wine jars tightly, as if he were clutching that little bastard's head. With a surge of Soul Power, the two wine jars instantly shattered into pieces!
But after giving it some thought, his expression gained a trace of relief.
No, no, it was fine. Xiao San had been reading in the library lately and understood some pharmacology. She should know what Whale Rubber was used for.
Even if that little bastard really did something dangerous, Xiao San would never be so easily deceived by him. Yes, that had to be it.
That irresponsible father was the only one clutching his chest in agony at this moment.
But when he thought of Xiao San's dependence and trust in that guy, if the brat really became bold enough to stuff the Whale Rubber directly into Xiao San's mouth, then would Xiao San...
For no reason, a scene surfaced in Tang Hao's mind.
Xiao San, her face flushed red, willingly ate the Whale Rubber. Her face, so much like Ah Yin's, wore an ambiguous expression as she wrapped her arms around that little bastard's body... and then...
No, no, that would never happen.
Curled up in the corner, Tang Hao hugged a wine jar and gulped down mouthful after mouthful, tears and snot streaming from his eyes.
If it truly came to that, then even if it exposed his identity, he would definitely stop that bastard!
"Xiao San, get ready. We can go hunt Soul Beasts soon."
Rushing into the dormitory, Lin Yue quickly took out his luggage and began preparing.
"Really, Brother Lin?"
Xiao San, who had just finished cleaning the area assigned to her on campus, brightened and looked at Lin Yue expectantly.
"Hmph, how long has it been already? Why are you two still not ready?"
Xiao Wu, who had long since condensed her Spirit Ring, held her head high. She could not understand why these two geniuses, both with Innate Full Soul Power, had kept putting off condensing their Spirit Rings.
"Didn't you say strength would decide who was the boss? It's been half a month already. Why haven't you fought yet?"
Hmph, once I get my Spirit Ring, there'll be tears for you, little rabbit.
Taking out his luggage and stuffing the Whale Rubber inside, Lin Yue curled his lips and decided to let this rabbit off for now. He turned to Xiao San and said:
"Let's speak to the headmaster first. Have him arrange for a teacher to help us obtain our First Spirit Rings and apply for a Soul Hunting Forest permit."
"Mm, all right."
Although she said that, Tang San's eyes could not help drifting toward the item Lin Yue had placed in his luggage.
"What is that? It smells fishy." Pinching her nose and fanning the air, Xiao Wu furrowed her brows. Even the carrot in her mouth suddenly did not taste as good.
She had never smelled such a strange fishy scent before.
"Hehe, good stuff!"
Grinning, Lin Yue gripped the luggage tightly, completely sealing away the faint trace of scent that had escaped.
This was a supreme treasure that could completely transform both him and Xiao San...
However, Xiao San knew what that scent meant. Her face flushed red as she vaguely guessed at Lin Yue's "purpose."
Whale Rubber—she had read about it in the library, and its effects were... were...
What did Brother Lin want to do?
Could it be that Brother Lin had truly opened his heart completely to her and wanted to...
The little girl's face turned crimson. In an instant, she was at a complete loss, her heart thrown into turmoil.
But was it not too early for that?
But if it was Brother Lin, and this was such a rare chance to be completely together with Brother Lin...
The conflicted girl wrung her hands together and bit her red lips. Her eyes seemed to mist over, while even her cheeks began to burn.
"Come on. What is Xiao San thinking about? Today, we'll book a room outside Soul Hunting Forest and get some rest. Tomorrow, we'll head into the forest with the teachers."
They were entering Soul Hunting Forest tomorrow. They could not possibly still squeeze under one blanket with the Rogue Rabbit tonight, could they? Hunting Soul Beasts was no joke. A poor night's rest could affect the course of tomorrow's battle.
"I... mm, all right..."
Her face as red as blood, Tang San ultimately said nothing. While packing her luggage, however, after pondering for a long time, she placed inside a set of her favorite light-blue dress clothes, then grabbed a piece of snow-white cloth and stuffed it in as well.
"Let's go, Brother Lin..."
With her head lowered, Xiao San's voice was soft and weak to the extreme, barely louder than a mosquito's hum.
"All right, then everyone, see you in three days."
Waving to everyone in the room, Lin Yue excitedly walked out the door.
With this piece of Whale Rubber, breaking through six hundred years for his First Spirit Ring—or even seven hundred years—was already inevitable!
Watching the two leave the dormitory, Xiao Wu's eyes flickered, and an indescribable melancholy and reluctance flashed across her face...
After submitting his Soul Beast hunting application to the dean of students, Lin Yue led Xiao San to an inn on the northern side of Nuoding City.
Soul Hunting Forest was located northeast of Nuoding City, a sealed-off area spanning roughly several hundred square kilometers.
About the size of a medium-sized town, it was jointly managed by the Heaven Dou Empire and Spirit Hall. Entering or leaving to hunt Soul Beasts required a Soul Hunting permit. The Soul Beasts inside were mostly ten-year and hundred-year varieties, while Millennium Soul Beasts were extremely rare.
"All right, I've already booked a carriage. Let's get a room and rest properly now. We'll enter the forest tomorrow, and Director Su Yan will come help us then."
Dean of Students Su Yan had long wanted to help the two of them hunt for Spirit Rings. As a level-thirty-seven Battle Soul Elder, as long as they did not run into anything exceptionally troublesome, he would be more than enough to lead the two of them through Soul Hunting Forest without fear.
After using the five Gold Soul Coins he carried to prepare dried food, drinking water, and other supplies needed for tomorrow's hunt, Lin Yue took Xiao San's hand and was about to head upstairs to the double room he had booked when he noticed that her palm was unusually hot.
"Huh? Xiao San, are you feeling unwell? Did you catch a chill last night while fighting Xiao Wu for the blanket?"
"N-No, it's nothing..." With her head lowered, the little girl avoided eye contact.
Before Lin Yue could say anything else, the moment they entered their room, the little girl quickly dropped her luggage, rummaged out a set of clothes, and fled into the bathroom like a startled rabbit—
"Brother Lin, wait a moment. I'll take a bath first and change into another set of clothes!"
"Huh?"
Lin Yue looked baffled, unable to understand what this little girl was up to.
But outside the inn, hidden in the darkness, a pair of crimson eyes stared fixedly at every movement inside the room!
"Damn it, damn it! That brat actually dared to stay in the same room as Xiao San!!!"
If that little bastard dared make even the slightest suspicious move, today he would surely meet his end beneath the Clear Sky Hammer!