A fierce battle with Ye Xinglan, gaining followers

The next month was almost the most enjoyable stretch of Tang Wulin's life.

In just one month, Tang Wulin's Soul Power rose from rank sixteen to rank eighteen.

That speed would have shocked anyone on the Douluo Continent, but Tang Wulin took it as a matter of course.

The Golden Dragon King Bloodline had an outrageously powerful mechanism: it could convert vitality into faster cultivation. In other words, as long as he had enough resources, his cultivation speed could become downright absurd.

He knew about those supreme geniuses in the original story: Yun Ming, master of the Sea God Pavilion, had become a Titled Douluo at twenty-three and a Limit Douluo at thirty-one.

Ha Luosa, the Nether King and the plane's chosen son, had entered the realm of Limit Douluo before turning thirty. And what about him?

With the Golden Dragon King Bloodline and the soft-boned enchanting rabbit martial soul, he would only be faster than them, provided he had all the resources he needed.

Of course, the key was having enough resources.

Tang Wulin looked at the empty plates piled into a small mountain in front of him and sighed.

Over the past month, he had practically eaten his way through the entire cafeteria at the Spirit Pagoda Headquarters. All sorts of rare spiritual ingredients had poured into his stomach like running water, and his Soul Power had indeed shot upward. But even those foods grew tiresome after a while.

He also already knew the requirements for breaking the second seal: a thousand-year dragon scale fruit, a thousand-year blue-veined vine, a thousand-year earth dragon tendon, and thousand-year sea dragon marrow.

He would have to collect them gradually.

Having grown tired of the Spirit Pagoda's food, he decided to eat out.

The Spirit Pagoda Headquarters was in Shrek City, whose prosperity ranked among the greatest on the entire Douluo Continent. People streamed along streets lined with shops, while the aromas of all kinds of delicacies filled the air, making the greedy little worms in Tang Wulin's belly cry out.

Gu Yue followed beside him, walking quietly with her hands behind her back. She did not particularly enjoy eating, but she liked watching Tang Wulin eat.

Every time she saw Tang Wulin wolfing down his food, an inexplicable sense of satisfaction welled up inside her.

Eat. Eat a little more.

An almost imperceptible smile curled the corners of Gu Yue's lips. Once he had fully nurtured the Golden Dragon King Bloodline to maturity, it would be time for her harvest.

Then I'll swallow him in one bite. That tremendous energy will give my strength a huge boost. I really am a genius.

Naturally, Tang Wulin had no idea what Gu Yue was scheming—or rather, he did not care at all.

All he knew was that the restaurant before him had "Overlord Pork Knuckle Rice" written in bold lettering on its sign. A long queue stretched outside its entrance, and the aroma wafting out made his mouth water.

"This is the place." Tang Wulin pulled Gu Yue into the restaurant.

The restaurant buzzed with voices, and business was booming. Tang Wulin found a seat by the window and, with a grand wave of his hand, ordered every one of the most expensive dishes on the menu.

The server looked at his tiny frame, then at the long list of dishes. After hesitating over whether to say something, the server ultimately placed the order in silence.

Gu Yue sat across from him, her chin resting in her hands. She watched as one empty dish after another was cleared away and replaced with fresh food. His mouth was like a bottomless pit that could never be filled.

Not far away, at another table, a round little chubby boy was stuffing himself.

The boy looked like a steamed bun, with fair, soft skin, a round face, and cheeks puffed up like two balloons.

The empty plates piled in front of him outnumbered even Tang Wulin's. His eating style was exceptionally bold: he held a pork knuckle in each hand and attacked from both sides, gnawing away until grease covered his mouth.

Beside the chubby boy sat a girl with a sword on her back. Her expression was cool and her bearing sharp, her eyes like unsheathed blades with their edges fully exposed.

She did not eat, merely sitting there quietly and occasionally glancing at the boy with a flicker of helplessness in her eyes.

The diners around them stared, dumbfounded. What sort of day was this? Two bottomless stomachs had shown up at once?

Tang Wulin noticed them too. He glanced at the chubby boy, then at the sword-carrying girl, and something stirred in his mind. Why do those two look a little familiar?

Still, he did not dwell on it and went back to eating.

As the minutes ticked by, the restaurant's stock of ingredients began to run dangerously low.

When the last dish was brought to Tang Wulin's table, the server said apologetically, "Sir, we've run out of ingredients. This is our last serving of Overlord Pork Knuckle Rice."

Before Tang Wulin could pick up his chopsticks, a round figure rushed over and planted a hand on the plate.

"This pork knuckle rice is mine!" The chubby boy panted, his eyes fixed on the gleaming, oily pork knuckle rice, drool almost spilling from his mouth.

Tang Wulin looked up at the boy before him and raised an eyebrow. "I ordered it first."

"I don't care!" The boy pulled the plate toward his chest. "I'm not full yet!"

Just as Tang Wulin was about to speak, the sword-carrying girl came over as well and stood beside the boy. She regarded Tang Wulin with a cool gaze. "We're taking this pork knuckle rice. Order something else."

Tang Wulin laughed. "Something else? Didn't you hear the server? They've run out of ingredients. This is the last serving."

The sword-carrying girl frowned slightly, her tone carrying an unquestionable firmness. "Then let us have it. Lizhi isn't full yet."

Tang Wulin looked at the two of them and found the whole thing rather amusing.

Of course he had recognized them. The chubby boy was Xu Lizhi, and the sword-carrying girl was Ye Xinglan. Both had already been selected as future students of Shrek Academy, destined to become heaven's favored talents.

But right now, they were all children. Who was afraid of whom?

"Why should I?" Tang Wulin leaned back in his chair and spoke leisurely. "Ever heard of first come, first served?"

A sharp glint flashed through Ye Xinglan's eyes. The Stargod Sword behind her trembled slightly, giving off a fierce aura.

Although she was young, she had already awakened her stargod sword martial soul and was displaying its full brilliance. Her family had always called her the hope of their revival.

What was more, Shrek Academy's senior staff had taken an interest in her as soon as she awakened her martial soul. Once she grew up, she was guaranteed a place in the Inner Court.

Naturally, being challenged like this by a little brat who looked even younger than she was irritated her.

"Do you know who we are?" Ye Xinglan said coldly. "We've already been selected as future students of Shrek Academy. If you know what's good for you, give us this pork knuckle rice. From now on, we'll have your back in Shrek City."

Xu Lizhi nodded in agreement beside her. "Right, right! Be our underling, and we'll share any tasty food we find with you!"

Tang Wulin laughed, thoroughly amused. He stood up, clapped his hands, and swept his gaze over Ye Xinglan and Xu Lizhi. "If we can't talk it out, let's fight."

Ye Xinglan froze for a moment. "What?"

"I said, let's have a fight." Tang Wulin grinned, revealing two little canine teeth. "Whoever wins gets this pork knuckle rice. The loser has to call the winner boss and become their underling from then on."

Everyone immediately found this interesting. Neither of these two youngsters looked ordinary.

A flicker of fighting spirit crossed Ye Xinglan's eyes. The Stargod Sword behind her rang out clearly, its blade flashing with light. "Fine. I'll fight you."