Want It? Catch Up to Me First!

"Ten thousand gold soul coins for a single talisman? You really are rolling in money, Miss Ning."

Lin Xuan slowed his pace, turning his head to look at Ning Rongrong, who was running backward.

Ning Rongrong lifted her chin and patted the Storage Soul Tool at her waist.

"Of course! This miss has plenty of things, but most of all, money! As long as your talismans are really as useful as you say, name your own price!"

Lin Xuan smiled and directly refused.

"Not for sale."

"Eh? Why not? You won't even make money when it's right in front of you?"

Ning Rongrong widened her eyes, her footsteps nearly losing their rhythm.

"Making these things consumes a massive amount of soul power and spirit. I barely have enough for my own use, let alone any extra to trade for money."

Lin Xuan casually fabricated an excuse to brush her off.

As for the real reason, it was naturally because if he directly traded away finished Talismans, others would sooner or later discover the secret that talisman paper could be stored long-term.

Being able to carry a large quantity of talismans on his person was his greatest trump card at the moment.

Before he possessed absolute self-preservation capabilities, this secret must never be leaked even a fraction.

Reluctant to give up, Ning Rongrong chased after him and continued to persuade him.

"Then how about you spare me just one a day? I won't give it to others; I'll only use it when I'm meditating!"

"Catch up to me after running twenty laps first."

Leaving behind this sentence, Lin Xuan picked up his pace a fraction.

Stirred into a competitive spirit, Ning Rongrong stamped her foot.

"Run it is! Don't you go underestimating people. I'll definitely finish the whole course today!"

Zhu Zhuqing silently followed behind the group, keeping her breathing rhythm extremely steady.

Looking at Lin Xuan's back, she was also repeatedly weighing her options in her heart.

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect possessed vast wealth and resources, allowing Ning Rongrong to casually throw out a high price of ten thousand gold soul coins.

Yet she had fled the Star Luo Empire all alone, and other than the travel expenses to sustain her daily living, she simply could not pull out any expensive bargaining chips.

If she also wanted to borrow a Clear Mind Talisman to boost her meditation efficiency, what should she use to trade with Lin Xuan?

Zhu Zhuqing did not rashly open her mouth to ask; she merely pressed her lips tight and followed closely behind the procession without missing a single step.

Before long, on the dirt path surrounding the village, five figures completed their final sprint of a lap.

Plop.

Having just crossed the village boundary marker, Ning Rongrong collapsed directly onto the grass.

She breathed in heavy gasps, sweat running down her cheeks from her forehead, and her two hands continuously pounded her aching thighs.

"Twenty laps... A full twenty laps! This miss actually finished running them!"

"There's nothing all that hard about this either!"

Xiao Wu stopped in her tracks, raising a hand to wipe the sweat beads from the tip of her nose while her aura remained completely steady.

"Rongrong, your physical endurance still needs work. If Lin Xuan's Gale Talisman hadn't been propping you up, you would've collapsed long ago."

"Well, I still finished running!"

Ning Rongrong lay flat on her back on the grass, unconcernedly spreading her limbs and making whimpering sounds.

Zhu Zhuqing stood supporting herself against a nearby wooden picket fence, her complexion somewhat pale and her forehead covered in sweat.

Though her physical exertion was immense, she did not collapse directly to the ground like Ning Rongrong, remaining upright to adjust her breathing.

Tang San walked to Lin Xuan's side, circulating his Mysterious Heaven Skill to calm the surging blood flow within his body.

"Lin Xuan, releasing so many talismans earlier—could your soul power consumption handle it?"

"It's fine. The consumption was much smaller than anticipated."

Lin Xuan retrieved three flasks of spring water from his Storage Ring, handing one each to Tang San and Xiao Wu before tilting his head back to take a few gulps.

The soul power consumed by the Clear Mind Talisman and Gale Talisman was merely a drop in the ocean compared to his total pool of level-thirty-five soul power.

After resting for the time it took to burn an incense stick, Ning Rongrong finally caught her breath and wobbled to her feet, supporting herself by her knees.

She rubbed her belly, her pretty face scrunching up into a ball.

"I'm starving. That stuff we had for breakfast—I never want to see it a second time in my life."

Nodding in deep agreement, Xiao Wu said,

"That Shrek cafeteria really is too lousy; you can't even find a fresh carrot."

Ning Rongrong grabbed Xiao Wu's arm and made a suggestion.

"Dean Flender only said the daytime is for adjustment and that evening is when we have actual combat classes. It's still plenty early before dark—how about we go into Suotuo City and eat a big feast?"

Xiao Wu's eyes lit up, and she immediately turned to look at Lin Xuan.

"Lin Xuan, are we going? There's definitely good roasted meat in Suotuo City!"

Lin Xuan put away his water container and glanced at the sky.

"Let's go. We can buy some everyday necessities along the way."

Zhu Zhuqing had originally intended to return to the dormitory to meditate, but her stomach also gave a timely, faint cry of protest.

Ning Rongrong walked straight over and linked arms with Zhu Zhuqing.

"Zhuqing, come with us. This miss is treating today, so order whatever you want!"

Hesitating for a moment, Zhu Zhuqing did not refuse and nodded in agreement.

The five of them brushed the dust from their clothes, left the village, and headed along the main road toward Suotuo City.

Entering the south gate of Suotuo City, Ning Rongrong expertly picked a lavishly decorated restaurant.

Inside the private dining room, a waiter served a full table of steaming hot dishes.

Xiao Wu stood on no ceremony whatsoever, picking up a piece of braised beef and stuffing it into her mouth so her cheeks puffed out.

Ning Rongrong bit down on a pair of silver chopsticks, curiously sizing up the three people opposite her.

"Xiao Wu, did the three of you cultivate like this every day back at Notting Academy?"

Swallowing the meat in her mouth, Xiao Wu waved a hand.

"How could we run like that every day? Notting Academy had much stricter rules than this. But Lin Xuan and Tang San really are crazy."

Zhu Zhuqing also stopped using her chopsticks, raising her head to listen intently.

Ning Rongrong hurriedly pressed for details.

"How crazy? Tell me about it!"

Putting down her chopsticks, Xiao Wu began to tick things off.

"In that open space at the back hill of Notting Academy, Lin Xuan occupied the whole thing completely for six years. Every morning before dawn he'd get up to draw talismans, and in the afternoon he'd spar with me on combat and kicking techniques."

"Tang San is even more outrageous. Every single day he'd go to the Blacksmith Shop to hammer iron, and during classes in the day he'd still be pondering over those iron gadgets of his."

Tang San picked up a piece of leafy green and explained with helpless resignation.

"Blacksmithing not only earns living expenses, but it also trains arm strength and force-control techniques. That's very important."

Ning Rongrong widened her eyes, looking at Lin Xuan, who was leisurely sipping his soup.

"Lin Xuan, you also started out as a Work-Study Student?"

"Right, Little San and I both came out of Holy Soul Village."

Lin Xuan set down his soup spoon, his tone very calm.

Ning Rongrong bit her lower lip, feeling somewhat stirred inside.

Back at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, her elders and fellow disciples all praised her as a once-in-a-generation genius, doting on her and letting her have her way.

She had originally thought that reaching level twenty-six at age twelve already made her the cream of the crop among her peers.

Yet seeing level-thirty-five Lin Xuan, level-thirty-three Xiao Wu, and even Tang San—whose Martial Soul was Blue Silver Grass—already reaching level thirty-one today,

and hearing about the hard work behind the scenes, Ning Rongrong finally discovered how slack her usual cultivation had been.

Zhu Zhuqing silently picked up her water cup and took a sip.

The strength and methods Lin Xuan displayed were entirely built upon years and years of unremitting toil.

Without a prominent background, and with a Martial Soul considered mere waste paper in the eyes of ordinary people, he could still climb to such heights.

Zhu Zhuqing gripped her water cup tightly. The disillusionment she had felt due to Dai Mubai's self-abandonment dissipated by more than half at this moment.

Because the method to grow stronger was right in front of her!