Chapter 152: Dugu Yan: Despicable Couple!
The clan had invested many resources—simulated training environments at the academy, herbs to enhance cultivation, and constant attempts to recruit outside talents.
This was how such results had been achieved.
"The championship still seems a little out of reach," Little Snake said cautiously.
For the Dugu Clan, the Spirit Hall's Golden Generation was no secret.
They were three Soul Kings.
If it came to assassination, Little Snake was confident he could kill them.
But a battle on the tournament stage was different.
With limited time and space and such explosive power from the enemy, the advantage was great. Little Snake didn't dare underestimate them.
It seemed necessary to visit Canghui Academy and meet Shi Nian in person. Just how powerful was the Seven-in-One Fusion Technique performed by three Soul Ancestors and four Soul Elders?
He would have to experience it for himself.
The championship must be won.
A moment later, Little Snake left with Little Little Snake in his arms.
Dugu Feng, carrying a sense of duty and honor, arrived at Heaven Dou Imperial Academy.
He went straight to the villa where Ye Lingling lived. After the Emerald Dragon Serpent went in to announce his visit, the door quickly opened.
Ye Lingling and Dugu Yan stepped out together.
"Senior Ye, I've come to take you to absorb your next spirit ring," Dugu Feng said calmly.
Ye Lingling seemed to have expected that the Dugu Clan would send Dugu Feng.
She looked at Dugu Yan beside her. "Yanyan, I'm going to hunt for my spirit ring now. Let's train together again when I return."
Dugu Yan looked displeased. "Lingling, you refused help from the academy teachers and even from me. So, you were waiting for him!"
Ye Lingling wore a veil over her face, but her expressive eyes spoke volumes, and her voice was soft and melodious.
"Hunting soul beasts isn't a game. It requires caution. Yanyan, focus on your cultivation."
After saying this, Ye Lingling walked up to Dugu Feng. "Sorry to trouble you, Dugu Feng."
Dugu Feng smiled lightly and replied with ease, "It's only a fourth spirit ring.
Cousin, we're off!"
With a wave of his right hand, the Emerald Dragon Serpent's body expanded, becoming broader and flatter.
Dugu Feng leaped onto its back and extended his hand toward Ye Lingling.
She froze for a moment, surprised by his straightforwardness.
After a brief hesitation, she placed her hand in his.
"Goodbye, Yanyan!"
Ye Lingling stepped onto the Emerald Dragon Serpent, and with a gust of wind, they soared into the sky.
On the ground, only Dugu Yan remained, looking stunned.
"Despicable couple!
Ye Lingling, you—"
She fumed for a long time, unable to complete a sentence.
Ye Lingling's reaction had clearly caught her off guard.
She actually offered her hand to Dugu Feng.
Was this still the cold and aloof Ye Lingling she knew?
"I hate you, Ye Lingling!"
After holding it in for so long, Dugu Yan turned angrily toward the training grounds to vent her frustration.
Up in the sky, the Emerald Dragon Serpent maintained a steady speed as it flew toward the Sunset Forest.
Ye Lingling had only allowed Dugu Feng to hold her hand briefly.
Once she found stable footing on the serpent's back, she discreetly pulled her hand away.
After a moment of silence, Ye Lingling gathered her courage and asked, "Dugu Feng, why are you unwilling to join the Emperor Team?
Since the captain's death, the team's morale has plummeted.
Everyone at the academy hopes you'll join. You could lead the team to victory in the Soul Master Tournament!"
Dugu Feng looked into her eyes, smiling teasingly. "Your captain—my cousin—also wants me to join?"
Since Yu Tianheng's death, Dugu Yan, once the vice-captain, had taken over as captain.
Though she was powerful and had advanced to Soul Ancestor shortly after the battle in Soto City, she was still unable to rally the team's confidence.
With their current strength, they might reach the finals, but not one of them believed they could win the championship.
With Spirit Hall offering three spirit bones as rewards, Dugu Feng's potential value had skyrocketed.
Ye Lingling hesitated. "Both of you aren't that hard to get along with, so why do you always clash?
Yanyan works hard—for the team's progress, she's under great pressure.
I'm sure if you joined, even as captain, she would cooperate with you."
It was rare for Ye Lingling to speak so much all at once in Dugu Feng's presence.
After finishing, she grew nervous—worried she might have annoyed him.
This spirit ring hunt had been arranged by her grandfather, whose intentions she already understood.
After meeting Dugu Feng several times, she didn't find him cold or difficult to approach.
That was why she didn't resist her grandfather's arrangement.
Dugu Feng surely knew what their two families intended—so what was his attitude toward it?
Ye Lingling was anxious.
"There are things you wouldn't understand," Dugu Feng said evenly.
The poison and serpent cultivation lines carried two generations of resentment, mixed with hatred, jealousy, and disputes over cultivation methods.
Even though the clans now cooperated, erasing those divisions was far from easy.
It would take overwhelming strength from one side to suppress the other.
Now that Dugu Bo shared the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well with the family, a measure of alignment had been achieved.
Dugu Feng felt that this state was sufficient for now.
Later, once he grew stronger, he would completely subdue Dugu Bo.
After all, he might as well make him his own enforcer!
Ye Lingling was speechless. I don't understand?
You're younger than me—what's there I wouldn't understand?
But seeing Dugu Feng's calm expression, she didn't press the matter.
Soon, they reached the Sunset Forest.
Dugu Feng did not stop until they arrived at the mountain peak beside the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well—the highest point in the forest's center.
Standing there, the endless expanse of the forest came into full view.
Ye Lingling was stunned by the sight. For the first time, she realized how important the ability to fly truly was—she could finally see a world hidden from most people.
"What kind of soul beast are you seeking?" Dugu Feng asked.
"The Moonlight Butterfly. Grandpa said such beasts live in the Sunset Forest.
Its moonlight bloodline can enhance my healing abilities," Ye Lingling answered without hesitation.
Dugu Feng nodded and immediately released two Nine-Segment Emerald Serpents.
"My two spirit pets have always roamed the Sunset Forest. There's nothing in this place they don't know.
A harmless soul beast like the Moonlight Butterfly—
they'll catch it soon enough."
Ye Lingling was dumbfounded. "You can do that?"
She had thought they would have to explore the forest themselves, searching bit by bit.
Was it really that easy?
Indeed, it was. While Dugu Feng cultivated by the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, the two Emerald Dragon Serpents never stayed idle.
They roamed the Sunset Forest freely, almost playfully.
Soul beasts needed wildness to grow.
Dugu Feng believed that by letting them live freely for a time, they could avoid stagnation once they reached a certain level.
The results were clear.
The two serpents had run rampant through the Sunset Forest, challenging every powerful soul beast they could find.
(END CHAPTER)
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