"Bind Huo Wu!" Su Ling did not hesitate. This did not even require thought.
[Ding... Congratulations, host. Successfully bound goddess Huo Wu.] [Bound goddess: Huo Wu] [Goddess overall rating: 93] [Affection: 60 (quite fond of you)] [Binding effect: The host receives 10% of the bound goddess's daily cultivation gains without reducing her cultivation speed.] [Bound skill: Charm (passive skill; when the bound goddess Huo Wu is within fifty meters of the host, charm increases by 20%)]
What kind of skill was this?
Did I even need more charm?
[Ding... Huo Wu's affection +10. Received Yellow Chest ×5, Purple Chest ×2.] [Ding... Huo Wu's affection reached 70 (likes you a little).]
It was already seventy. Su Ling suddenly opened his eyes and found Huo Wu staring blankly at him, just like a fangirl.
He was about to win Huo Wu over this quickly. Wouldn't Feng Xiaotian cough up blood if he saw this?
"B-Big Brother Su! I..." Huo Wu realized that drool had actually escaped the corner of her mouth.
She immediately turned away and hurriedly wiped it off, her pretty face flushed crimson in the firelight.
She had actually drooled while staring at a man. Was this still her?
Although the man before her really was good-looking and handsome, surely she should not have gone this far?
Huo Wu, what was wrong with you?
Had you never seen a man before?
In truth, she could hardly blame herself. The main reason was that the passive skill, Charm, which she had given Su Ling also worked on her.
As she stared at Su Ling and won herself over,
the additional 20% charm stacked on top made it strange if Huo Wu's affection did not increase.
"Huo Wu, are you all right?" Su Ling asked.
Since her affection had already reached seventy, the level of liking him a little, Su Ling began changing his attitude toward her too.
"I-I'm fine. Big Brother Su, how big is your academy?" Huo Wu was a little embarrassed and hurried to find a topic.
Su Ling said, "Not big. There aren't even ten students, actually."
"What kind of academy is that? Wouldn't you struggle to even scrape together a team for the Advanced Soul Master Tournament?" Huo Wu exclaimed.
Su Ling said, "It's not so bad. There's still over a year, isn't there? Maybe we'll manage to put one together."
Huo Wu looked helpless, wondering what a team cobbled together like that could accomplish.
"Big Brother Su, I already told you during the day. Come to our academy. As long as you join us, you'll be our captain, our leader. We'll all listen to you."
"And we can put together a more complete team, definitely stronger than those few people you've scraped together. You'll certainly go further with our team, and your Soul Power and talent won't go to waste."
Huo Wu looked at Su Ling. In front of him, her usual pride had completely disappeared.
Su Ling said, "Huo Wu, if you were asked to abandon your academy and join a better academy, one with better prospects that could achieve better results in the Advanced Soul Master Tournament, would you be willing?"
"Well... ask me to join another academy?" Huo Wu suddenly did not know what to say.
"Don't impose on others what you wouldn't want for yourself. Huo Wu, you're a clever girl. You understand what I mean, don't you?" Su Ling said, looking at her.
Huo Wu hesitated for quite a while before answering, "Big Brother Su, I understand. I won't pester you to join anymore, but I have one request. Please agree to it."
"Go ahead."
"If your academy fails to put together a team for the Advanced Soul Master Tournament, could you promise to join my team then?" Huo Wu looked at Su Ling hopefully.
Longing! Urgency! Pitiful pleading! Su Ling could see her complicated emotions in her eyes.
"All right. If my academy doesn't put together a team for the Advanced Soul Master Tournament, I'll join yours," Su Ling promised.
That promise amounted to saying nothing. After all, Shrek Academy's participation in the Advanced Soul Master Tournament was practically guaranteed.
Nevertheless, Su Ling's promise made Huo Wu very happy. In her eyes, assembling a full team was not that easy. Wouldn't Su Ling have to come looking for her then?
[Ding... Huo Wu's affection +5. Received Yellow Chest ×4, Black Chest ×1.]
A Black Chest. Another Black Chest had actually appeared.
Su Ling was thrilled!
Huo Wu was so happy that she lunged straight at him and threw her arms around him.
With her affection at seventy-five, the level of liking him a little, she could not help herself.
Zhu Zhuqing's affection was not low either, but her icy temperament made her poor at expressing herself. Huo Wu was different. Once she set her mind on something, she would actively pursue it.
That was also why she had insisted on chasing after Su Ling.
A girl who dared to act and take responsibility!
Being hugged felt wonderful. That pure, youthful fragrance drifted over, refreshing his heart and lifting his spirits.
But after only a brief hug, Huo Wu pulled away.
"Then it's a promise. You can't go back on your word," Huo Wu confirmed again.
Su Ling said, "Mm. Whoever breaks their word is a dog."
Pfft...
Huo Wu laughed, delighted, without noticing in the slightest that she was falling for Su Ling little by little.
"Big Brother Su, in that case, I should head back to the academy. I can't let everyone worry," Huo Wu said.
She acted swiftly and decisively, just as one would expect of Huo Wu.
Su Ling said, "It's already late. Why not rest a little? I'll take you back tomorrow morning."
"Sure!" Huo Wu had intended to refuse, but her mouth seemed beyond her control. She apparently really wanted Su Ling to take her back.
Huo Wu, what was wrong with you?
Could you have fallen for him?
Huo Wu questioned her own heart too. How could she have fallen for someone she had just met in less than a day?
"Get some rest. You were injured earlier today. Recover a little. I'll keep watch over you," Su Ling said.
With that thought, Su Ling took a tent out of his Space Soul Tool.
"I've used this before. I hope you don't mind."
"Thank you!" Huo Wu did not refuse. Once Su Ling had set up the tent, she went inside.
[Ding... Huo Wu's affection +1. Received Purple Chest ×1.]
Great, her affection had increased again!
Su Ling looked at the system panel, his gaze settling on the chests.
Remaining unopened chests: white ×70, yellow ×45, purple ×7, black ×1.
"System, exchange thirty Yellow Chests for three Purple Chests, then exchange the Purple Chests for a Black Chest."
[Ding... Congratulations, host. Received Black Chest ×1 through exchange.]
With that, he now had two Black Chests.
Su Ling continued, "Open both Black Chests."
[Ding... Opened Black Chest ×2. Congratulations, host. Received ten-thousand-year-old rare medicinal herb, Huo Yun Mushroom ×1, and Eight Desolations Fist (can be directly implanted at major mastery).]
Seriously? I could learn it directly?
Su Ling had to learn both Carefree Journey and the Concentration Art himself. He had reached the introductory level in the Concentration Art, while his Carefree Journey movement technique had reached minor mastery after all these days.
Excellent. System, directly implant Eight Desolations Fist at major mastery!
With a thought from Su Ling, a new set of memories seemed to appear in his mind: memories of learning Eight Desolations Fist, as though he had practiced it for decades since childhood.
Not only that, his body changed as well.
An instant felt like decades. Su Ling immediately rose, went a short distance away, and began performing the fist technique.
Eight Desolations Fist: one punch, one higher heaven. There were eight punches in total, each increasing punching power by 30%, with the eighth reaching 3.5 times his own punching power.
Each punch was different, and there was no need to build them up gradually.
Most importantly, Eight Desolations Fist also had an ultimate move. By comprehending Eight Desolations Unity, he could unleash a ninth punch, erupting with more than five times his own punching power.
More than five times his punching power might not seem like much of an increase.
But this was the Douluo Continent. Unleashing more than five times his strength was already extremely powerful.
After all, even the Martial Soul Avatars of some powerful Soul Masters only provided an increase of around 300%.
However, the major mastery of Eight Desolations Fist implanted by the system did not include Eight Desolations Unity.
That was a slight regret, but it still greatly increased Su Ling's combat strength.
There was also a drawback to this fist technique: it could not be used for long periods, and excessive use would damage his body.
Su Ling's practice caused quite a commotion and drew the attention of Huo Wu, who was resting inside the tent.
"D-Did he go easy on me in our earlier fight to spare my pride? I probably couldn't withstand two punches from him," Huo Wu exclaimed. The more she watched Su Ling, the more terrifying he seemed.
[Ding... Huo Wu's affection +1. Received Purple Chest ×1.]
Hearing the system's voice, Su Ling stopped.
"Huo Wu, we met for the first time today, and I suppose fate brought us together. Let me give you a fortuitous opportunity, then." Su Ling took the ten-thousand-year-old rare medicinal herb, the Huo Yun Mushroom, straight out of the system.
The system's explanation stated that ordinary fire-attribute Soul Masters could consume a ten-thousand-year-old Huo Yun Mushroom. It could increase Soul Power, strengthen the power of fire-attribute Soul Power, and had some effect in fortifying one's foundation and nourishing one's vitality.
Although this ten-thousand-year-old Huo Yun Mushroom was inferior to an Immortal Herb and could not greatly increase one's potential, it was not far behind.
Huo Wu's injuries were not serious. This medicinal herb could also help her recover, so they would not interfere with her taking it now.
"Is that... a ten-thousand-year-old Huo Yun Mushroom?"
Unexpectedly, Huo Wu recognized the medicinal herb in Su Ling's hand at a glance.
"You actually know about Huo Yun Mushrooms?" Su Ling asked.
Huo Wu nodded and said, "Our Blazing Fire Academy has records of Huo Yun Mushrooms."
"Didn't I tell you earlier that our academy has the best fire-attribute cultivation grounds? Beneath our academy is a special Earthcore Flame Vein. There's a Huo Yun Mushroom inside, but it's only a hundred years old."
"A ten-thousand-year-old Huo Yun Mushroom was harvested at our academy a hundred years ago and consumed by a rank forty-one Soul Ancestor. After taking it, they rose straight to the peak of rank forty-three. Not only that, the power of their fire attribute increased by more than 50%."
"Big Brother Su, a-are you sure you want to give this to me?" As Huo Wu spoke, her heart raced and her body trembled slightly.
She wanted higher Soul Power too. She wanted to become stronger, and the ten-thousand-year-old Huo Yun Mushroom was her opportunity.
"This thing is no use to me anymore. You can have it," Su Ling said.
As the saying went, you could not catch a wolf without risking your child.
This time, he would experiment and see how much affection the Huo Yun Mushroom could earn him from Huo Wu.
After all, the Black Chest that produced the Huo Yun Mushroom had been earned from her in the first place.
Increased affection would drop more chests. It was a virtuous cycle.
[Ding... Huo Wu's affection +4. Yellow Chest ×2, Purple Chest ×2.] [Ding... Huo Wu's affection reached 80 (has fallen in love with you).]
See? Hadn't more benefits just arrived?
Making Huo Wu fall in love with him in a single day-winning her over was that simple.
Before you continue