My strength still isn't enough.
He sounded a warning bell for himself in his heart.
I can't let having an Undying Body go to my head. That thing only comes off cooldown once every three months. If I really run into a tough opponent like the Ghost Emperor, one life won't be enough.
It's time to put Three-Word Battle Armor on the agenda.
He thought.
The Two-Word Wuji's seventy percent boost is enough against ordinary opponents, but if I run into someone on the Dark Hummingbird's level again, it still won't cut it. Once the Battle Armor reaches three words, its boost should rise by at least another level.
With a thought, he made the space before him ripple faintly. A translucent screen only he could see slowly unfolded.
He hadn't checked today's Daily Shop yet.
[System Daily Shop] [Item 1: Six-Attribute Soul-Forged Metal] (Top-grade Soul-Forged Metal containing the six attributes of wind, lightning, darkness, time, space, and evil; exactly two kilograms) (Price: 8.7 billion Federation coins)
Qing Linyun's eyelid twitched.
What? Did my words get blessed? Or did the system get an upgrade? Can it hear what I'm thinking?
Soul-Forged Metal.
A necessary material for upgrading to Three-Word Battle Armor.
To upgrade Battle Armor from two words to three, Soul-Forged Metal had to be fused into the armor plates bit by bit, raising the armor's capacity and boost to another level.
He had been waiting for this stuff for a long time, but ordinary Soul-Forged Metal wasn't worthy of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger.
That Martial Soul was too overbearing. If the material fused into it was even slightly inferior, that destructive presence would burst it apart.
The two kilograms of Soul-Forged Metal before him contained all six attributes of wind, lightning, time, space, darkness, and evil-the exact six Qing Linyun needed. It was simply the perfect choice for making his Three-Word Battle Armor.
Just by scanning it once with his spiritual power, he could feel the violent, pure forces inside colliding with one another.
If this stuff were fused into the Wuji Battle Armor, the boost from the Three-Word Battle Armor would at least double.
It's practically tailor-made for the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger.
Good stuff.
Yeah, and expensive stuff too.
8.7 billion.
Qing Linyun clicked the abacus in his head.
Does this system know I'm short of this stuff, so it deliberately priced it this high?
The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed.
This lousy system had never been a pushover. Every time something he urgently needed appeared, the price landed squarely on his sore spot.
Last time, it was the Light Unicorn Soul Spirit. This time, it was Soul-Forged Metal. So the system was pricing things based on his needs: whatever he lacked was expensive.
What a shady shop, he cursed inwardly. It's even better at doing business than Ye Lingling.
But curses aside, he still had to buy it.
If he missed this chance, who knew how many years and months he'd have to wait for suitable Soul-Forged Metal to appear again? There probably wasn't a second piece of top-grade metal with all six attributes anywhere on the continent.
Two kilograms, no more and no less, was just enough to fuse into the Wuji Battle Armor.
I'm buying it.
He made a note of the first item and looked farther down.
[Item 2: Thousand-Year Phoenix-Tail Herb] (A thousand-year-old light-attribute healing spirit plant. Can be used as medicine or refined) (Price: 2.6 million Federation coins)
Qing Linyun glanced at it, not particularly interested.
It was light-attribute and used for healing, so he had no use for it himself.
But Ye Lingling's pharmaceutical factory was mass-producing wound medicine. This stuff could be useful there; tossed in as a supplementary ingredient, it might even improve the medicine's effects.
In the past, he wouldn't have batted an eyelid at 2.6 million. Now, after spending 8.7 billion, looking at that 2.6 million again, he suddenly thought it was pretty cheap.
I'll pick it up while I'm at it.
He made a note in his mind. I'll take it back for Ye Lingling, so she won't nag me every day about not caring about the company.
[Item 3: One Bucket of Douluo Brand Cola] (A golden, bubbly liquid. Specific effects unknown) (Price: 888 Federation coins)
Qing Linyun froze.
Douluo Brand Cola?
He stared at the line for a long time.
System, are you using my own warehouse as your supplier?
He suddenly began to question his life.
How had the cola business he'd worked so hard to build, with distribution across the whole continent, ended up in the system shop?
So the system's purchase price was even higher than the retail price?
Could Ye Lingling be the one who made this system?
He muttered to himself.
If she dares pull something like this, I'll dock her pay when I get back.
Complaints aside, he still bought it.
At 888 Federation coins, it wasn't expensive. He might as well try it.
What if the cola in the system tasted different from the one his company made? Maybe it was a limited edition from another world. He could have Ye Lingling study the formula later, and that would be another selling point.
[Item 4: Purple Brilliant Heaven Destroying Dragon Right Palm Bone] (400,000 years old, External Soul Bone, dragon bloodline, comes with Purple Brilliant Dragon Flame) (Price: 5 billion Federation coins)
Qing Linyun's expression gradually turned serious.
Four hundred thousand years old. An External Soul Bone.
External Soul Bones were different from main Soul Bones.
There were only six slots for main Soul Bones. Once they were full, that was it.
External Soul Bones, on the other hand, were additional parts outside the six main Soul Bones. One could fuse with multiple External Soul Bones, and they could grow along with their host Soul Master.
Any force on the continent would fight tooth and nail for a 400,000-year-old Soul Bone, let alone an External Soul Bone.
Of course, if you asked why this External Soul Bone belonged to a Purple Brilliant Heaven Destroying Dragon, or whether the Purple Brilliant Heaven Destroying Dragon knew it could produce this Soul Bone-
Don't ask. If you ask, it's the system's divine power.
The system is awesome. 666.
He instinctively pressed the spot where his torso bone was.
The dragon might contained within the million-year-old Golden Dragon torso bone had benefited him greatly to this day. If he fused with another dragon palm bone...
One inside and one outside, their dragon might might link together. When that happened, his Dark Demon Evil God Tiger Martial Soul might instead be able to draw on the Golden Dragon's power.
Purple Brilliant Dragon Flame didn't sound ordinary just from its name. A 400,000-year-old dragon Soul Bone couldn't have a bloodline of poor purity.
And Qing Linyun seemed to remember that the Purple Brilliant Heaven Destroying Dragon's ancestor was supposedly the Dragon God's companion dragon king, who wielded the power of destruction. This Purple Brilliant Dragon Flame should be a kind of destructive power too, right?
Good stuff.
He thought. But it really is expensive.
Five billion.
Added to the 8.7 billion for the Soul-Forged Metal, this one shopping trip would cost him 13.7 billion Federation coins.
Qing Linyun fell silent.
He took stock of the cash flow he had on hand.
The cola business distributed across the entire continent, Heaven-Supporting Pillar's operations were expanding, and the cost of training the Twelve Knights had long since been recouped.
Paying out 13.7 billion in one go would squeeze Qing Linyun's remaining cash flow completely dry.
It would take at least a year to earn that money back.
If Ye Lingling finds out I spent 13.7 billion in one go, she'll nag me for six months.
He thought. Six months of nagging in exchange for a 400,000-year-old External Soul Bone. Is it worth it?
Worth it.
He gritted his teeth.
External Soul Bones could only be chanced upon, not sought out, and 400,000-year-old ones were rarer than phoenix feathers and qilin horns.
If he missed this one, who knew when he'd get another?
As for money, money was a bastard. If it was gone, he could earn more.
He had businesses, a company, and Ye Lingling, that money-making machine. There was no need to panic about money.
The fusion would have to wait.
Upgrading with the Soul-Forged Metal to Three-Word Battle Armor would keep him busy for a while. There was no rush for the Purple Brilliant Heaven Destroying Dragon Right Palm Bone for now.
Buy!
[Ding: Purchase successful. Total spent: 13.7 billion Federation coins.] [Ding: Insufficient balance warning. Please top up promptly.]
Qing Linyun choked.
Well, there it is.
He thought. I'll have to tighten my belt for the next six months.
The system's prices really were extortionate. Soul-Forged Metal for 8.7 billion and an External Soul Bone for 5 billion added up to 13.7 billion, a sum that would cripple any force.
But the system had its own reasoning. The upper price limit for red items was ten billion, and Soul-Forged Metal was something one could only chance upon. Miss it, and it was truly gone.
As for the cola, well, maybe the system wanted a drink too and put it up on a whim.
Qing Linyun put everything away.
The Soul-Forged Metal was heavy. He wrapped it in spiritual power and stored it in his Storage Soul Tool.
The Purple Brilliant Heaven Destroying Dragon Right Palm Bone was wrapped in a layer of pale purple light. He could feel the pressure of a dragon even through his spiritual power.
He wasn't in a hurry to fuse with it. For a 400,000-year-old Soul Bone, he had to choose a safe time for the fusion.
He stood up, stretched his arms and legs, and walked to the window. Night had deepened, and a few students downstairs were still heading toward the teaching building with flashlights, probably for extra study.
He suddenly remembered that Wu Changkong was going to give those three little brats special training tomorrow.
The Class Promotion Tournament.
Right, the three little ones are about to start special training.
But none of that has anything to do with me for now.
He withdrew his gaze, returned to the bed, and sat down cross-legged again.
First, I'll nourish the materials for the Three-Word Battle Armor, then see how to design it and improve my Two-Word Battle Armor, raising it to three words. What should I call it then?
Outside the window, the moon slowly climbed higher. The night at Eastsea Academy was so quiet that only the wind could be heard.
He had spent 13.7 billion, acquired the materials to upgrade to Three-Word Battle Armor, and the Purple Brilliant Heaven Destroying Dragon Right Palm Bone was lying in his Storage Soul Tool, waiting for him.
Things would probably be tight for the next six months. Ye Lingling's funding couldn't be interrupted, so he couldn't take any of her funds either.
After all, the company's normal operations were Qing Linyun's real source of income. It looked like he would have to find some way to make money.
Still, it was pretty worthwhile.
Money...
His last thought before falling asleep carried a touch of the laziness unique to transmigrators.
Once it's spent, I can just earn more.
That girl Ye Lingling is much better at doing business than the system.