Healed; Against Ning Fengzhi
The bet was soon accepted. It was easy to think actually. While Ja Sun only demanded consumable goods from everyone except the Attack clan, he also provided herbs of extreme value for the information. The techniques by themselves can be passed on, thus, their value was greater in the long term.
The match was... actually uneventful. The opposing team's coordination was great. They would have beaten others, too, but they lacked in quality. The clear sky clan's youth, too, seemed to have focused more on Xie Xan instead of Ah Yin who took the vanguard's position since Liu Erlong wasn't allowed to fight for a few days after her reckless but satisfying match.
Bibi Dong took the toll this time since her poison was slowly filling the air. After she had refined the Bloody Swan Kiss with Ja Sun's and Ah Yin's help, her poison now had a rousing effect, too, which clouded the thoughts of the participants that served to break their impeccable coordination. The only reason their own team wasn't affected was due to Ah Yin keeping her domain activated. Since her domain was practically invisible unless she begins growing blue silver variants, she could assist her own team in not being affected by the poison too much.
Once the match was completed and the winning bet was verified, Ja Sun completely isolated himself immediately.
Within his room, Ja Sun looked at a few items placed on his bed.
The first and foremost was a right leg bone in the shape of a purple crystal.
This was the 42000-year-old Thunder Scaled Leopard Bone. An A-ranked reward gained from undermining Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. Presently, this spirit bone was entirely useless.
Then aside from the ores, Ja Sun demanded and the crushed explosive coal that he wished to use as makeshift gunpowder, Ja Sun counted other minerals he won from today's match. It was a C-ranked mission but given five separate clans being in the match, the resulting reward came in higher quantity.
Right now, Ja Sun was pursuing the creation of guns and other modes of firearms purely out of curiosity's sake. He had even retrieved the gun given to Xie Xan. Ja Sun firsthand knew the corruption of power. He soaked in it daily and it was enticing, to say the least. Ja Sun had only planned to perfect a firearm in the form of Spirit Essence Tool and then provide it to only Tang Yuehua and Oscar since they had no effective method of self-defense. No matter how much puppy-dog eyes Hu Lana made with her added charm, Ja Sun rejected her quite coldly for this matter.
What actually surprised Ja Sun was the fact that he had gained a few blueprints that wildly represented a bazooka and even a smaller tank. Given that the creation of such items was nowhere seen in the Douluo Continent, it was clear that in some other island... and hopefully, continent, there are actually individuals growing a greater understanding of the art daily and because of them, Ja Sun could learn new things as well.
There was still a chance that these blueprints were stashed away and originated from the past but his trait creates an item in its current shape and condition and all the parchment and blueprint were in a relatively newer state. This hinted at their recent formation.
Finally, Ja Sun looked at the few notes on medicine making. He sighed softly. He had yet to fully dive into the Rakshasa Soul Devouring Technique. He had yet to complete his formation of firearms. He has yet to make sense of Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud that even his trait had to make sense of. And he was planning on creating durable clothes for himself, too. Now there was another matter on the list.
But the more he had to do, the better. Ja Sun thrived on short-term and long-term objectives. Right now, he only sighed because... well, he was tired but also wanted to keep on working. However, the trouble was that he also knew that constantly working would simply tire him out and extinguish his drive so it was quite a paradox of desire at play here.
Storing everything, Ja Sun only kept a small pitch-black case in front of him.
This was the item of attraction for Ja Sun.
Sitting on the bed, Ja Sun silently opened the case. The moment it was slightly opened, a thick medicinal scent wafted out. It was a bit unpleasant due to how stuffy it felt and within the case laid a crystal-like herb. If Ah Yin was present, just to tease her, Ja Sun might have even praised the structure of the herb but, in reality, for Ja Sun, it was the effect that mattered to him more than its... 'curves.'
This was the Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng. From its maturity, the herb will already be at the 9th Grade of its level. This meant, upon maturity, the cultivation of this herb would instantly advance to the rank of 90000 years. In another 10000 years, the herb would attain the Crimson ring level.
Ja Sun wasn't quick to absorb it. In fact, every immortal herb has its own method of reproduction. All the herbs Ja Sun and Ah Yin had given out already had a few materials collected from them for replantation. Ja Sun did the same again. Cutting off the tiniest root and plucking one of the ruby-red shards on its surface, Ja Sun stored the two items inside the case itself and then retrieved it into his storage ring.
Done with all this, Ja Sun silently gazed at the immortal herb.
'After absorbing the core of Yin-Yang Petals, my body will directly absorb and break down energy that is directed to enhance physique. When I absorbed the Beautiful Silk Tulip, its energy was mostly directed to the metaphysical aspect but...'
The actual use of the Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng was restructuring one's physique. Ja Sun, at the moment, didn't want to advance his Physique any further than he already had. But this herb was needed to heal his body entirely and also remove any hidden method the strange figure might have left. Ja Sun looked at his left arm.
It was entirely possible that he may also lose this cool arm forever... he actually began to care for his left arm. The restriction of absorption of only one immortal herb clearly didn't fall on him due to the Yin-Yang War Physique but there was no telling when he might reach his limit so Ja Sun also didn't want to spend another slot of immortal herb for healing but advancement itself.
The absorption of the herb would definitely propel his spirit rank... but what of it? It would be two or three ranks at most. Just to heal... just to heal...
'That red-eyed bastard,' Ja Sun sighed softly. Instead of anger he only felt annoyance. After all, the figure's appearance was strange and his strength unknown. But the benefit he gained from his domain would make all of this sacrifice worthwhile.
Not considering things any longer, Ja Sun silently activated his War God's Cauldron and the Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng began to float in front of him.
---
"This is different than I had imagined," Ja Sun mumbled as he set his consciousness within himself, observing the changes brought to his body after the absorption of the Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng.
His spiritual sea was completely healed and he even made a breakthrough by three ranks!
From rank 62 to rank 65.
But what he didn't expect was a change in his body. He had no information on the path after the ranks of Titled Douluo even when he was sure now that it existed. In a simpler term, the path ahead should give an individual the title of a God.
His body had already reached the confines of a Titled Douluo but now, after the absorption of the Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng, his body had strangely turned... crystalline from the inside. His silver arm, unexpectedly, remained the same. In fact, it wasn't only the view. Though crystalline, his body didn't turn into a crystal-like state. But it seemed to have been refined completely into another matter. His Yin-Yang War Physique continuously absorbed natural energy from the surroundings and Ja Sun clenched his fist to experience the explosive strength inside of him.
'Definitely... strange. Moving even further without proper information is not advisory now,' Ja Sun narrowed his eyes.
At this unknown level, his physique has begun to sense a new force around him. Yet, strangely, he could neither see it, mentally observe it, or even try and absorb it into his spirit sea despite the Final Buddha Array.
'Even contact with master is not possible at the moment... and the natural absorption of this strange force within my body is suppressing my absorption of spirit energy until I actually focus on it,' Ja Sun lied on his bed with a sigh. He wasn't tired. Far from it, he felt amazing. Silently, Ja Sun took out meat jerky from his stock and bit on it, idly chewing it to pass the time when he felt stunned.
'Really?'
Ja Sun again observed how not a single shred of the chewed food remained as even if was broken down into the basic units of energy and absorbed completely.
Ja Sun then drank water and the same thing occurred.
In the next two hours, Ja Sun ate many things and drank a lot. He neither felt full or hungry. It was a strangely annoying state.
'I guess... I should just shelf my digestive system then,' Ja Sun groaned.
'But I guess... the silver lining is the lack of using the bathroom. It saves time.'
*Knock*
*Knock*
"Are you planning on sleeping through the day?"
Ah Yin's voice interrupted Ja Sun's session of personal exploration as he looked down at his hand and let go of it.
"A minute... no, a few minutes!"
---
"What about your injury?" Ah Yin and Ja Sun walked together as she inquired.
"Didn't you already check it?" Ja Sun smiled as she clicked her tongue. It would be hard to explain Ja Sun's another rise in rank but it was necessary to deal with that kind of injury as soon as possible. Nobody could say what would happen if Ja Sun actually fell under rank 60. He had a spirit ring, after all.
As they entered the office, Ah Yin moved to the corner, unwilling to get involved in the political matters but also not wanting to interrupt the clearly taxing task. With Liu Erlong breaking into rank 60, everyone else had begun to focus on their cultivation once again.
"Today we're taking on the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan. Liu Erlong, you'll be back on the team."
"Yes!" Liu Erlong pumped her fists.
"Since the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan maintains the largest treasure trove on the entire continent, the Spirit Hall has many things to gain from it. In fact, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan is one of the most active factions in this competition behind the scenes so what they're afraid of isn't a large bet but the fact that they won't have good enough of a financial opponent to bet against. They have only been defeated by the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and like us, they have yet to face other seeded teams. These last twelve days are going to be the last leg of the competition where we finally begin to compete against the best.
Alright, this time, all of us can make personal bets of whatever amount."
Xie Xan gulped, "Even land?"
"Even land," Bibi Dong nodded, "But it is advisable to simply look a good piece of land personally. The areas provided by the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan will certainly come with conditions."
"Wait... they fear that they won't meet someone rich... do you think they will finally..." Ja Sun didn't complete his words. But Bibi Dong narrowed her eyes and grinned, "I've already received the compensation of a spirit bone from the Heaven Dou Empire to bet against the Seven Treasure Clan for another Spirit Bone.
If you have the resources... bet. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan will meet the bet easily."
Ja Sun's and others' gaze turned resplendent.
Even Ah Yin's.
Ja Sun still hadn't told anyone else except Bibi Dong and Ah Yin that he traded spirit bones and even when he did, he didn't give details on the number of spirit bones traded.
Now, he was going to bet 'all' of his spirit bones except for the 100000-year-old one and the four spirit bones he got from Redstar.
"Right... well, I want to know the complete list of the spirit bones held by each faction, well, the list they are willing to show." Ja Sun gulped.
All his complicated emotions from not being able to shit anymore were flung out of the window and he instantly got down to business.
---
"A 42000-year-old Thunder Scaled Leopard Right Leg Bone, a 35000-year-old Tiger Badger Skull Bone..."
Ning Fengzhi began to read loudly. The more he read, the stranger the expression of everyone from his team grew.
"And the permission to take one of our Clan's members to converse cultivation with in exchange for ours," Ning Fengzhi raised his brows.
"Is this from a single faction?" Lin Min inquired as she sat near him. Both of them wore an engagement ring but a clear distance could be seen between them.
"No, a single person," Ning Fengzhi heaved a deep sigh.
Others frowned as Ning Fengzhi continued, "This is a great risk. Even though everyone from the Spirit Academy wins barely... they have never used all seven of their members at once except the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy and even now, Bibi Dong, Ah Yin, Xie Xan, and Ka-ul have yet to reveal their sixth spirit ring's ability."
"We're the same, Lin Min stated."
"Ka-ul defeated Dai Taiyin when he was only a Spirit Elder," Ning Fengzhi looked at her.
"Because he was caught unprepared," Lin Min stated.
"So we should take the bet?" Ning Fengzhi smiled calmly.
Others felt silent at this point. Everyone knew that the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan would be a big piece of meat but their strength and teamwork had defeated everyone. In fact, Chen Xin also believed that even if they lost, they would lose to three opponents at best which meant that they have the chance to lose the bets three times and Ning Fengzhi, deep down, was alarmed that this might just be that moment.
"Ka-ul is injured. Whenever he fought, he has never once used his spirit ring." Lin Min hesitated.
"Doesn't this make him more dangerous? He is tiptoeing around Spirit Emperor geniuses without a Spirit Ring's ability..."
"What if we demand Ka-ul from the Spirit Hall in exchange for one of our own?"
Ning Fengzhi shook his head, "Father was very clear. Because of our martial soul, many individuals regard our clan members as resources, too. Long story short, we don't trade in members but only actual material resources. This time, the team is quite fierce... we will come up with a strategy to defeat them but for now, we need to be mindful of this bet."
"You're saying that we can win?" Lin Min's eyes grew dazzling as a sharp aura exuded from her body.
"I'm saying that in the event we lose, we need to be mindful of what we're wagering."
Lin Min snorted, clearly disliking this side of the man but Ning Fengzhi didn't care about this. He was no different than Lin Min on this matter. The traditions of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan will never allow a member of the clan to marry another auxiliary and support type master. And given Chen Xin's natural friendship with the clan alongside his father, the Sword Douluo felt appropriate to betroth his disciple to Ning Fengzhi.
The group began to discuss and aside from the first four spirit bones with age over 10000 years that would be wagered against the equivalent quality, Ja Sun actually offered the remaining low-leveled spirit bones entirely for another one over the age of 10000 years.
This meant that Ja Sun was betting quantity against quality... and it felt favorable to Ning Fengzhi.
He, of all people, did not doubt Lin Min's abilities. Although they lost against the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, they did not go all out and also managed to preserve their strength while the exhausted Dragon Clan members were wholly decimated by Liu Erlong which only made their situation worse as they lost a few more times now. It was clear to everyone that the mighty Blue Tyrant Dragon Clan wouldn't be able to win anymore.
But there wasn't the only bet against the Spirit Academy. If Bibi Dong's situation could be considered hectic then Ning Fengzhi's was three or five times worse. After all, the financial wealth of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan operated on a completely different scale.
---
"It's a shame that they wouldn't allow us to get a seven treasure glazed tile clan member," Ja Sun mumbled as they walked up on the stage. Those with astute senses already found Ja Sun different and his rise in rank was far from the entire change he had gone through in a single night.
However, surprising everyone further was the fact that aside from Lin Min and a defense-type spirit master, the remaining five members were all Spirit Kings and directly from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan. Aside from Ning Fengzhi, the remaining four were the backup members but...
Five supporting members clearly shocked many.
Not losing her cool, however, Bibi Dong looked observed the situation.
'One defense and one offense raised to extremity...'
Narrowing her gaze, Bibi Dong looked at Oscar and Jun'er.
"Oscar, once the match begins, step down. Jun'er, you too."
"But," while Jun'er agreed it was Oscar who felt the worse.
"After this competition ends, I'm not stopping lashing out on you all until you become Spirit Sages. Expect me to fully reprimand you on your weakness once we are done," Bibi Dong continued and Oscar's expression finally brightened somewhat.
Ja Sun mumbled internally, forming the most suitable mission through trials and errors. The more he did, the stranger his expression grew.
"She's a swordsman, let me take a lead on this one," Xie Xan stepped up. His task was to protect Oscar alongside Jun'er but it was clear from Bibi Dong's tone that this would be a hard match. Even Liu Erlong was allowed to stay since everyone acknowledged her strength.
"You don't even believe in your teammates," Lin Min called out loudly, pointing the tip of her sword in Bibi Dong's direction.
"Shut up," Bibi Dong coldly remarked, "I'm busy thinking."
"Khnnt," Ja Sun snorted a chuckled while Bibi Dong nodded, "Xie Xan, you'll be backed by Ka-ul. Liu Erlong, once the shields are raised, I want you to try and destroy them after Lin Min is busy with the two of them. Ning Fengzhi might have planned something so Ah Yin and I will support you from behind.
Ka-ul... are you going to use your spirit rings?" Bibi Dong looked at the most worrying member as he only grinned in reply. Of course, Bibi Dong had compressed her voice completely.
Being ignored, especially by one's opponent, was clearly not an enjoyable experience. Lin Min snorted coldly as she saw Xie Xan step forward.
"Prepare!"
The referee called out loudly.
"Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, activate!"
Five synchronized whispers enchanted the surroundings as a tall seven-storied multi-colored pagoda and four six-storied multi-colored pagodas rose from behind the five members of the clan. The other teammate instantly howled as his skin turned into a material similar to granite and he retreated towards the five supporters.
Lin Min, meanwhile, brandished her sword in the front. The sword itself was her martial soul— Nine Light Sword.
Except for Bibi Dong and Ja Sun, everyone else activated/spirit transformed their martial souls and gazed at the group coldly.
Xie Xan's sixth spirit ring was already pulsating, ready to be activated the moment the match begins.
***
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