Chapter 121: Hmph, Woman, You Offended Me, So I’ll Get You Pregnant!!
Hearing the star-faced girl’s excited words, Gong Lianyue immediately lost interest in the ancient book.
If this were a fantasy novel, following the typical tropes, this book wouldn’t be as valuable as the other two items. The most important items were always revealed last.
Besides, she could already guess the general content of the book just from the title, “Spirit Beast Rank Enhancement Through Breeding.”
It was probably about crossbreeding different spirit beast species to create stronger, mutated offspring.
Usually, crossbreeding resulted in flawed, intellectually challenged hybrids, like the Nine-Colored Cloud Dream Flower.
But with ancient techniques, perhaps it was possible to induce beneficial mutations and create offspring stronger than their parents.
Of course, there must have been significant limitations. The resources and materials required in ancient times might not be available now. This technique might be even more difficult to master than the Lost Scroll.
More importantly, Gong Lianyue was certain that this unorthodox method couldn’t create Saint-rank spirit beasts.
“There are only three successful examples in this book, all low-rank to mid-rank!” the star-faced girl said, her voice still filled with excitement. Mid-rank spirit beasts weren’t particularly valuable to her, but for an entire realm, it could be a strategic advantage.
If she presented this book to her faction, she might even be able to challenge for the Saintess position!
This made Gong Lianyue even less interested. No amount of mid-rank spirit beasts could influence a Saint-rank Spirit Master, unless it was during a large-scale war, where they might play a decisive role.
Her attention had already shifted. She casually picked up the exquisitely crafted wrist guard and examined it.
Was this… a spirit artifact?
She couldn’t examine its function yet. Spirit artifacts could only be used after forming a contract.
Seeing this, the star-faced girl offered, “Your Majesty, please take all three items. I wouldn’t have been able to obtain them on my own.”
“I only need to copy the text from the ancient book.”
“…”
After a moment of thought, Gong Lianyue shook her head.
She placed the ancient book back in the girl’s hands and kept the other two items for herself.
The star-faced girl stared blankly, confused.
She was giving up this strategically important resource, capable of influencing entire realms, for two seemingly insignificant items!?
Heh, she must not read enough novels~~~
Enjoying the girl’s grateful gaze, Gong Lianyue didn’t explain. She had a feeling that one of these two items, the parchment or the wrist guard, must be incredibly valuable.
“It’s almost time. I hope we meet again.”
“Farewell, Your Majesty!”
Neither of them revealed their faction or identity, an unspoken rule of the Soul Prison Trial.
There had been cases in previous trials where teammates, after separating and making plans, were immediately targeted and eliminated by powerful factions from other realms, their treasures stolen.
Even if their own faction was weaker, leaking such information could cause significant trouble for even the most powerful forces.
Being affiliated with a legendary Realm Overlord did have its advantages. Before encountering the Tyrant Demon Seed with the Wrathful Saintess, she had heard that the Cangsheng Palace was arranging a marriage.
The couple had a minor disagreement somewhere, and the other party had come knocking, demanding marriage.
Was this the legendary “Hmph, woman, you offended me, so I’ll get you pregnant!” scenario, usually only found in CEO romance novels?
She hadn’t expected inadvertently revealing the Cangsheng Palace girl’s identity to lead to such a happy ending.
She hoped the child would be alright~~~
Gong Lianyue offered a silent prayer.
With a whoosh, the two girls vanished from the dark cell, leaving that bloody, dark world behind.
[Congratulations on clearing the third level of the Soul Prison Trial.]
[Rating: Mid-rank]
[Reward: One Dual Soul Pill.]
[Note: The next level is a trial for spirit beasts. The Spirit Master will not participate.]
As the darkness faded, Gong Lianyue returned to the Moonlight Grass patch where she had left off.
She was surprised to see a rating this time. Defeating four pig-men with the Lost Scroll and obtaining two treasures had only earned her a mid-rank rating.
If the rating was based on spirit beast quality, then it was probably low, mid, high, saint, legendary, and mythical.
The higher the rating, the better the reward. Her mid-rank rating was probably quite average…
It couldn’t be helped. The truly capable participants had acted during the first session, while she had only started making moves in the last two.
Although the rating was fair, Gong Lianyue still felt a little disappointed.
Composing herself, she examined the Dual Soul Pill she had just received. The name sounded strangely similar to her Dual Soul Body.
The next second, the girl’s ice-blue eyes narrowed. She remembered the Dual Soul Pill’s description in the elixir compendium!
It could temporarily grant an ordinary Spirit Master the ability to summon a second spirit beast simultaneously, like a true Dual Soul Body, though the effect was short-lived.
If she, already a Dual Soul Body, consumed it, she would probably be able to temporarily summon a third spirit beast.
It was either a coincidence or incredibly absurd that she, a Dual Soul Body, had received a Dual Soul Pill, an elixir only those with Dual Soul Bodies could refine.
Although a valuable item, it wasn’t useful to her at the moment. Gong Lianyue stored the pill in her Crystal Chamber.
Then, with a whoosh, the worn parchment and the exquisite wrist guard appeared before her.
Although she didn’t know their functions yet, Gong Lianyue was certain they were far more valuable than the Dual Soul Pill, or even the ancient book the star-faced girl had taken.
Thump, thump, thump!
Thud, thud, thud!
Suddenly, the sound of approaching footsteps made Gong Lianyue tense, and she quickly stored the two items.
Seven or eight young women in Gray Shadow Mountain uniforms, their expressions hostile, surrounded her.
The three girls she had robbed of their Moonlight Grass were among them, their faces a mixture of anger and shame.
“Shui Qingyue, I heard you stole my little sister’s Moonlight Grass. Are you looking for trouble?” the leader of the group, a woman wearing a headscarf, stepped forward, a hint of anger in her eyes.
“What? Do you want to be sent to the mines for the rest of your life?”
Gong Lianyue replied calmly, her words utterly unreasonable, like a true villain.
Chapter 122: The Mystery of Legends
“So, are you saying you’re on the same level as a senior instructor?”
“No, that’s not what I meant. Please, be reasonable, I just…”
“Then are you saying you’re willing to defy a senior instructor?”
“Shui Qingyue, don’t be so arrogant!!!”
“My teacher is a senior instructor!!!”
After a few minutes of this back-and-forth, the woman with the headscarf was about to explode. No matter what she said, this girl kept bringing up the senior instructor.
And because her words were technically correct, she couldn’t even tell if Shui Qingyue was genuinely stupid or just baiting them.
If this were a fantasy novel, this idiotic extra would definitely offend someone powerful and be sent to the mines along with her senior instructor.
“Shui Qingyue, let me give you some friendly advice. You’ve already offended the Saintess’s faction. If they decide to pursue this, a single senior instructor can’t protect you! And now you’re offending us over some worthless Moonlight Grass? I don’t know if you’re looking for trouble or just suicidal.”
The woman with the headscarf sighed. This was like a little girl getting her candy stolen by a delinquent, running home crying to her parents.
Then, the whole family goes looking for revenge, only to discover the stolen “treasure” was just a piece of candy…
It wasn’t just about revenge anymore. They felt their intelligence insulted.
This Shui Qingyue, picking a fight over a few stalks of Moonlight Grass… her senior instructor wouldn’t be able to protect her for long.
“What? You’re not from the Saintess’s faction…?”
Seeing the silver-haired girl lose interest, bending down to collect the withered Moonlight Grass, ignoring them completely, as if they were beneath her notice.
If they weren’t from the Saintess’s faction, then she had been putting on an act for nothing. How pointless.
For the Wind Realm Overlord’s birthday celebration, Gray Shadow Mountain only had three spots: two allocated by the higher-ups, and one for the designated Saintess.
The Ten Citadels combined had thirty spots, all included within the Gray Citadel’s hundred.
To have a chance to interact with the Gray Citadel, she needed official status within a subsidiary faction. The Wrathful Saintess, currently being hunted by the Windchaser Emperor, was a prime example of what not to do.
Strutting around the Storm Realm so openly… did she think the Shadowcandle Temple was blind?
Their current situation was this: release the Swallow God, and everything would be fine. Don’t release her, and be hunted. But if they released her early, who could guarantee they would receive the ransom?
The Shadowcandle Temple was using the Windchaser Emperor to force their hand, to pressure them into releasing the Swallow God prematurely. This way, the Sea Region wouldn’t receive the ransom, they couldn’t hold the Wind Realm’s Four Guardians accountable, and the Swallow God might not even return safely to the Gray Citadel. In the end, the Sea Region and the Gray Citadel would become enemies.
Even knowing their intentions, there was nothing they could do. The Windchaser Emperor was one of the Wind Realm’s Four Guardians.
Who would dare to question the Wind Realm Overlord’s subordinate?
“…”
Seeing Shui Qingyue’s bored expression, the surrounding girls exchanged puzzled glances.
Judging by her earlier words, she had clearly intended to provoke the Saintess!
No wonder she had been acting so arrogant and foolish, deliberately trying to offend the Saintess.
After a moment, the woman with the headscarf said, “Shui Qingyue, are you looking for trouble with the Saintess? I know you have a high-rank spirit beast, but that woman is hiding something. She might also have a high-rank spirit beast!”
Hearing the woman’s well-intentioned warning, Gong Lianyue slowly raised her head, a mocking smirk on her face.
“I suggest you shut your mouth, unless you want to face the wrath of a senior instructor.”
“???”
Half a day later, at the entrance to the herb gathering area, the innocent-looking, silver-haired girl handed over a spirit crystal and exited.
Gong Lianyue sighed. Having been pestered by those insignificant extras, she had to leave the herb gathering area.
Without Moonlight Grass, her progress on the Steel Moon Chapter would be delayed…
She could try to buy some, but ordinary shops wouldn’t stock a large quantity, and buying too much would attract attention.
Back in her quarters, Gong Lianyue carefully enveloped the room with her spirit energy and then took out the two items she had obtained from the Soul Prison Trial.
A worn roll of parchment and an exquisitely crafted stone wrist guard.
The characters on the parchment were complex and jumbled, seemingly meaningless, but Gong Lianyue’s heart pounded.
She could understand them. She knew what they were, but she had been deliberately hiding it!
This wasn’t some cliché about remembering a language from her past life. This was something she had known since entering the Sea Concubine Palace—the language of humanoid spirit beasts!!!
That was how she had been able to understand the Frost Snow Woman’s telepathic message during the Saint-rank battle in the Wind Valley.
Of course, she couldn’t understand it in her current form. She simply knew, instinctively, that it was the humanoid spirit beast language, but she couldn’t decipher the characters yet.
[Switch]
The next second, the water in her eyes swirled, like ripples.
This wasn’t the usual rotation of her eyeballs, but the spinning of her pupils, the water spreading outwards like a small whirlpool.
Her gaze, unfocused, gave her a slightly vacant, foolish appearance.
This was the Sorrowful Saintess’s third form, Natural Form!!!
[See cover image for reference]
In Natural Form, Gong Lianyue’s intelligence decreased significantly, which was why she rarely used it.
The reason this form was ranked higher than Show-Off Form was because, in this state, she could understand most spirit beast languages and reduce the hostility of wild spirit beasts.
During her training on the Ice Plains, when she could only bully Snowtooth Rabbits, she had relied on this form to avoid being hunted by mid-rank spirit beasts.
Perhaps due to their shared… simple minds, they had seen her in this form and, instead of attacking, had even offered her raw meat.
Gong Lianyue, her intelligence temporarily reduced, had actually taken a bite, resulting in several days of nausea and vomiting. That was why she disliked using this form.
Now, in her Natural Form, the silver-haired girl carefully picked up the worn parchment.
Her swirling eyes focused, rearranging the jumbled characters into human language.
[The Mystery of Legends]
Just reading the title made Gong Lianyue’s eyes ache and throb, as if they couldn’t bear the strain.
But her fascination with legendary beings compelled her to continue, her gaze fixed on the text.
[This scroll records the information, characteristics, preferences, and history of ten humanoid legendary beings.]
[First: The Snow Monarch]
Bang!
The next second, the girl’s eyes, unable to withstand the strain, exploded, shattering into countless water droplets.