Ning Rongrong boasted about her Martial Soul Evolution into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda at Shrek for two whole days. On the third day, no one asked about it anymore.
It's not that I don't care, it's just that the medicine shop hasn't opened in Suotuo City yet, so caring would be pointless.
Until the evening of the fifth day.
Flender returned from the Suotuo City's mansion, walking twice as fast as usual. He pushed open the academy gate, the copper bells on the gate jingling loudly, and everyone eating in the courtyard looked up in unison.
"Dean?" Dai Mubai put down his chopsticks.
Flender glanced around the yard to make sure everyone was there, then said, "Everyone, come to the meeting room after you finish eating." He then turned and called out to Yu Xiaogang's room, " Xiaogang! You're here too!"
Zhao Wuji lit an extra oil lamp in the conference room, illuminating both sides of the long table, but the faces of the people sitting at the table did not look very bright.
Flender stood at the head of the table, his hands resting on the surface, silent for a long time. Yu Xiaogang sat beside him, his brows slightly furrowed, clearly unaware of what had happened.
Flender took a neatly folded piece of parchment from his pocket, unfolded it, and placed it on the table.
The inscription at the bottom bears the clan emblem of the Nine Heart Begonia Clan —a blooming begonia flower with thorns Entanglement around its petals.
"This is a public statement issued by the Nine Heart Begonia Clan," Flender's voice was not loud, but it silenced the entire conference room. "We obtained it from the Suotuo City's Mansion this afternoon."
The statement reads that the Martial Soul that had plagued their family for millennia—limiting the survival of only two Nine Heart Begonia Soul Master at a time—has been lifted by the Godwind Academy's Pill Pavilion. In gratitude, the entire Nine Heart Begonia clan Pill Pavilion.
The meeting room fell silent for a moment. Then, Ma Hongjun suddenly stood up.
The chair leg scraped against the floor with a sharp screech. Everyone looked at him.
"Dean," Ma Hongjun's voice trembled slightly, "Is what Rongrong said last time—the ability to compensate for Martial Soul defects—real? Or just empty talk?"
"You think you can even break the curse of the Nine Heart Begonia?" Flender looked at him.
Ma Hongjun opened his mouth, then plopped back down in his chair. He lowered his head, his hands clasped together, his knuckles white from the force.
The Evil Fire Phoenix, Mutated Martial Soul, is powerful, but its side effects are even greater. He has never described in detail the pain he experiences when the Evil Fire flares up, but everyone can see the bloodshot eyes and pale lips after each attack.
"Fatty." Dai Mubai raised his hand and patted his shoulder hard.
Yu Xiaogang he entered. He placed his hands on the table, his expression seemingly calm, but if you looked closely, you could see that his fingers were slightly clenching.
Luo Sanpao's mutation backlash trapped him at level 29 for life; this mark had been etched into his bones for far too many years.
"It's not just Fatty," Oscar suddenly spoke up, his voice unusually devoid of his usual joking tone. "If the curse of the Nine Heart Begonia can be broken, then the ability to increase the strength of Martial Soul and change Martial Soul attributes—that must also be true, right?"
Upon hearing this, the expressions of the people present changed.
Dai Mubai lowered his arms from his chest. The White Tiger Martial Soul is known for its fierceness; further enhancing its strength would take it to the next level.
Zhu Zhuqing leaned back in her chair, tapping her fingers lightly on the edge of the table twice—speed was her greatest advantage; even a mere ten percent increase could mean the difference between life and death in actual combat.
Xiao Wu didn't speak. She lowered her eyes and looked at her palms.
If the Soft Bone Rabbit could further enhance her softness techniques, that would certainly be a good thing. But she was thinking about something else— the Pill Pavilion's pills could even compensate for flaws in Martial Soul, so could they... conceal her aura? She didn't need to improve any attributes; she just needed a way to safely pass in front of Titled Douluo.
The thought only flashed through her mind for a moment before she suppressed it.
"There's one more thing." Flender tapped the table. "News from Heaven Dou City indicates that we're not the only ones eyeing Pill Pavilion."
Elephant Armor Academy, Thunder Academy, Plant Academy, Exotic Beast Academy —all the academies you can name are scrambling to buy pills from the Pill Pavilion. Long queues form outside the pill shops in Heaven Dou City and Seven Treasure City every day; if you arrive late, you won't get anything.
"Are they going crazy for it?" Ma Hongjun looked up, his eyes still red. "When will Suotuo City be available?"
"It won't be anytime soon," Flender shook his head. " Pill Pavilion's shops currently only cover the area around Heaven Dou City; Suotuo City is too remote. We'll have to wait until they expand—"
"By the time they get here, the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Elite Tournament will be over." Yu Xiaogang continued, standing up and walking to the continental map on the wall, pointing to the location of Suotuo City.
"We are currently in the Balak Kingdom, on the southern border of the Heaven Dou Empire. It will take at least ten days to get from here to Heaven Dou City. The Pill Pavilion has a limited supply of pills each month, and even the local academies in Heaven Dou City can't get enough, so how could we possibly have a chance?"
His tone was unhurried, as if stating an objective fact, but everyone understood the meaning behind his words—waiting wouldn't bring it.
"What should we do?" Ma Hongjun asked anxiously. "We can't buy them, and we can't afford to wait—are we just going to sit here and watch?"
Yu Xiaogang turned around, his gaze falling on the other end of the long table.
" Rongrong."
His voice was very gentle.
Ning Rongrong looked up. From the start of the meeting until now, she had barely spoken, sitting quietly next to Xiao Wu with her hands on her knees. But the moment Yu Xiaogang's gaze fell on her, her shoulders tensed very slightly.
"Your Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda evolved into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda because your father made connections with the Godwind Academy, right?"
"Yes," Ning Rongrong said.
"You've seen the Nine Heart Begonia's statement— Martial Soul defects can be remedied. Compared to what was said before, such as increasing Martial Soul strength or changing Martial Soul attributes, it's all true."
Yu Xiaogang's gaze swept over each student present, his tone unhurried, "Everyone here— Hongjun's Evil Fire, Mubai's White Tiger, Xiao Wu's Soft Bone Rabbit, Zhu Zhuqing's Hell Spirit Cat, Oscar's Food System —all have areas for improvement."
He paused, then continued.
"The sooner you address the flaws and bottlenecks of your Martial Soul, the better. You are still young, you still have opportunities. But opportunities don't wait for anyone."
He didn't say another word, but the hook in his words had already been thrown out.
Ma Hongjun was the first to turn his head and look at Ning Rongrong, followed by Oscar, and then the others.
There was no coercion in their eyes, but the look that was a mixture of expectation and longing carried more weight than any words.
Ning Rongrong sensed it.
She opened her mouth. In that instant, what flashed through her mind was not the price of the pills, nor the purchase process, but Feng Lingtian's eyes in the Godwind Academy's reception room—calm, composed, and in control of the rhythm from beginning to end.
Dealing with him is not so simple.
But the bloodshot in Fatty's eyes was real. Boss Dai's silence was serious. Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing didn't speak, but they were also waiting.
Ning Rongrong took a deep breath.
"I..." Her voice was a little hoarse, but she still managed to say, "I can try."
I'll write to them immediately to see if I can use my connections with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect to help them purchase a batch."
The air in the conference room suddenly relaxed, like a bowstring being released. Ma Hongjun was so excited he almost stood up again, Oscar let out a long breath, and Dai Mubai nodded slightly.
Yu Xiaogang didn't speak, but simply nodded slightly, his expression remaining gentle.
Seeing everyone's relieved expressions, Ning Rongrong forced a smile. No one noticed that her hands, resting on her knees, were tightly gripping the hem of her skirt, her knuckles turning white.
Outside the window, night had completely fallen. The lights of Suotuo City in the distance flickered in the darkness, as if something was brewing in an unseen place, waiting to break through the ground.