Chapter 48: The Girl Bathes, Remember to Be Gentle, A Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Rubber Appears
The night grew deeper, and moonlight cast mottled shadows through the forest.
The girl stood quietly among the trees. Behind her, the Eight Spider Lances, etched with blood-red patterns, swayed lightly, like the tendrils of a reaper.
"I've reached Rank 40… then this soul ring."
Zhu Zhuqing gazed at the soul ring before her, hesitation flashing across her eyes.
Although its cultivation seemed somewhat low, it was still a ten-thousand-year soul ring.
Leaving it here like this felt like a waste.
"Stop thinking about it. Give it up."
Bai Lu saw through her thoughts at once.
"The strongest abilities a normal Man-Faced Demon Spider possesses, aside from its web, you already have them all. No matter what soul skill you gain from it, the improvement to you would be limited."
He paused, his tone turning serious.
"Your fourth soul ring must come from a powerful soul beast of at least thirty thousand years."
He did not hide the disdain in his voice.
"This soul ring is not worthy."
"Alright. I'll listen to you."
Zhu Zhuqing nodded and no longer looked at the soul ring.
She waved the Eight Spider Lances experimentally, feeling the surging power within her body. Confidence shimmered in her eyes.
She was only twelve years old, yet already a quasi-Soul Ancestor.
With such talent, not only among contemporary geniuses but throughout the entire history of the Douluo Continent, she might be unprecedented.
Yet beyond pride and confidence, a deeper vigilance rose within her.
The faster her rank increased, the greater the risk of exposure.
Tang Hao's pursuit had already proven that truth. A common man is innocent, but possessing treasure is a crime.
She carried too many secrets: soul bones, an external soul bone, and her bizarre rate of advancement. Any one of them was enough to attract the covetous eyes of powerful figures.
"Don't overthink it. No one refuses to eat simply because they fear choking. Cultivation is the same."
Bai Lu comforted her softly.
"Strength is the foundation. As long as you are strong enough, no one will dare covet what belongs to you."
"Mm."
Zhu Zhuqing nodded, steadying her thoughts as she looked toward the distant valley.
There lay a Titled Douluo—danger and opportunity.
"Dugu Bo…"
Under the moonlight, Zhu Zhuqing's lips curved into a determined smile.
"Your immortal herbs will be mine."
"Don't!"
"Brother Tiger, don't!"
Back at her residence in Heaven Dou City, the girl sat in a bathtub, arms crossed over her chest, staring vigilantly at her reflection.
After a tiring day, she had only wanted to soak in hot water and relax.
She had not expected that the relentless tiger would still be "hunting" her.
"Be good. Let me take a look."
"This is all for helping you grow stronger, little kitty. Don't throw a childish tantrum."
Bai Lu controlled the White Tiger girl clone and approached the other White Tiger girl with a smiling expression.
There was a faint smile at the corner of his lips as he leisurely admired the girl before him, as fresh and beautiful as a lotus rising from water.
Bright eyes, pearly teeth, graceful curves.
Skin as smooth as congealed frost, fairer than snow—a single touch of rosy softness.
With just one glance, she was a peerless beauty in the mortal world.
Although only twelve years old, her alluring figure was already enough to make other women feel inferior.
Even so, Bai Lu remained extremely concerned about her body.
He wanted her to seize the opportunity to develop further and become even more perfect.
Unfortunately, the girl did not seem to understand his painstaking intentions.
"I just broke through. I still need to stabilize my realm."
"I don't want that thing!"
Looking at the thousand-year whale rubber in Bai Lu's hand, hard as iron, Zhu Zhuqing's face flushed faintly red.
The previous experience of refining whale rubber had been far too embarrassing and left her with no small psychological shadow.
Even now, she did not dare to recall it carefully.
More importantly…
Last time, a single piece of thousand-year whale rubber had already made it hard for her to control herself. This time, there are so many pieces.
'I absolutely won't be able to endure it. I might completely lose control.'
Thinking of this, the girl was filled with worry.
But soon, determination appeared on her face, her eyes firm as if making a solemn oath.
"It's not that I won't refine it. I'll refine it slowly, gradually, optimally, and in a planned way. I'll wait until I'm fully prepared, save it for my future self, and eventually refine all of it."
"Little kitty, you speak well, but you're thinking too naively."
As the tiger residing in her heart, Bai Lu instantly saw through her thoughts.
He crouched down and gently stroked her cheek, yet his words were merciless.
"Refining whale rubber is not something you can delay at will."
"The later you refine it and the stronger your physique becomes, the weaker its effect will be."
"If you do not refine it now and you consume immortal herbs later, then no matter how slowly you refine it, the result will be the same. Refining it would be meaningless."
He lifted her chin and looked into those flickering cat-like eyes.
"So tell me, right now, are you refining it or not?"
"I… I'll refine it."
Zhu Zhuqing felt as if her mind had overloaded. In a daze, she nodded.
"If… if that happens… remember… be gentle…"
She hesitated before whispering softly.
Strength was the foundation. It was only a little embarrassment and shame.
Endure it, and it will pass.
"Don't worry. I know my limits. Trust me."
"Open your mouth… ah…"
Bai Lu spoke solemnly and personally fed the softened whale rubber into her mouth.
Sure enough, as her physical constitution had improved again, refining whale rubber this time felt completely different from before.
The thousand-year whale rubber energy was still violent, but compared to the intense heat and itching she felt when consuming a hundred-year whale rubber before, it was far less overwhelming.
This made Zhu Zhuqing both happy and slightly disappointed.
Happy because everything was under control.
Disappointed because being controllable meant the effect was weaker.
Fortunately, something delighted her.
"The Vigorous Vajra Palm has started absorbing the whale rubber energy again!"
Zhu Zhuqing raised her left hand, which emitted a dark golden glow, and observed it carefully. She could faintly sense her strength increasing.
"This palm bone seems particularly fond of whale rubber energy."
Bai Lu glanced at her flushed body and said meaningfully,
"It seems you'll have to eat more of it in the future."
"Since it works, let's see if it can undergo another transformation."
Excitement flashed through Zhu Zhuqing's eyes, but when she noticed Bai Lu's gaze, she quietly lowered her left hand again to cover herself.
Her expression returned to a cold indifference as she continued refining the whale rubber.
One piece, two pieces, three pieces…
As the thousand-year whale rubber was consumed piece by piece, her body grew increasingly red.
Large amounts of dark red and black sweat continuously flowed out. Though she was soaking in cold water, her body grew hotter and hotter.
"Are you there yet?" Bai Lu asked.
"Mm? Hiss… almost."
The girl seemed dazed for two seconds, lightly rubbing her thigh as she replied.
"This is the last piece. Hold on a bit longer."
"There isn't any more after this."
Maintaining a calm surface, Bai Lu picked up the final piece of somewhat deteriorated thousand-year whale rubber.
"Go ahead. I'm ready."
The girl suppressed the burning sensation and clenched her teeth.
Flames flared up. The high temperature softened it.
However, this time was different.
Under the intense heat, the blackened surface gradually receded, revealing a crystalline golden interior.
This was not a thousand-year whale rubber at all.
This was clearly a surface-corroded piece of…
"Ten-thousand-year whale rubber."
Bai Lu's movements paused as the flames in his hand instantly extinguished.
He looked at the girl and whispered like a devil.
"The effect of ten-thousand-year whale rubber is far stronger than that of thousand-year whale rubber."
"Are you certain… that you're prepared?"
—
End of Chapter