In the quiet hours of the afternoon, the warm sun cast a golden glow across the academy grounds. It was the perfect time for a siesta, and a rare moment of absolute peace for Fu Ye.
He wasn't losing a single wink of sleep over the upcoming Continental Advanced Spirit Master Tournament. Why would he? Following Dugu Yan's explosive breakthrough, three more powerhouse Spirit Emperors had officially emerged within his ranks.
Character:
Dugu Yan
Level 69 (Peak Spirit Emperor)
Team leader, just one step away from the Spirit Saint realm.
Shui Bing'er
Spirit Emperor
Main captain of Tianshui.
Shui Yue'er
Spirit Emperor
Main assault force.
Xue Wu
Spirit Emperor
Control and weather support.
Zhu Zhuqing
Level 49 Peak (Spirit Ancestor)
Agility and assassination, nearing the Spirit King realm.
Wu Ling
Level 49 Peak (Spirit Ancestor)
Close combat and disruption.
Meng Yiran
Level 49 Peak (Spirit Ancestor)
Mid-range attack and poison.
Ning Rongrong
Level 47 (Spirit Ancestor)
Lowest level in the team, full support.
Doudou & Xue Ke
Significantly Buffed Level
Focused on logistical and internal support.
Rest of the girls
Spirit King Level
Intermediate strength of the combat team.
As for the little cat girl Jiang Jing, Fu Ye hadn't given her any immortal herbs. Immortal grass was a sacred treasure reserved strictly for his wives, and her current status was merely that of a maidservant.
Yet, curiously:
[Current Favorability of Cat Girl Jiang Jing: 85.6%]
Fu Ye wasn't entirely sure how her system mechanics worked. He had essentially left her to her own devices for three solid months, completely ignoring her, yet her favorability had steadily skyrocketed. Then again, providing a deeply traumatized slave girl with a safe, luxurious, and respectful environment to live and study was bound to breed immense psychological gratitude.
Knock, knock, knock.
A soft, hesitant tapping echoed from the door. Fu Ye didn't even need to open his eyes to know exactly who it was.
"Come in."
Hearing his voice, the person outside seemed to freeze on the spot, hesitating for several long seconds before slowly, quietly pushing the heavy wooden door open.
"It's the middle of the day. Instead of taking a nap, what brings you to my room, Jiang Jing?"
The visitor was indeed the cat girl he had purchased from the Heaven Dou Auction Center three months ago. Fu Ye kept his back turned to her, lazily stretching across a massive, dark brown leather sofa, fully indulging in a luxurious sunbath. With a Spirit Master's powerful physique, ultraviolet rays couldn't damage his skin, making these quiet, sun-drenched afternoons his absolute favorite indulgence.
"I..." Jiang Jing opened her mouth, but the words caught in her throat. She seemed entirely at a loss for where to begin.
"If you have something to say, speak freely," Fu Ye said smoothly, his voice dripping with relaxed indifference. "If not, you can return to your training and rest. Within the walls of Tianshui Academy, I have no intention of restricting your personal freedom."
To be perfectly honest, Fu Ye already possessed two elite cat girls in his inner circle—Zhu Zhuyun and Zhu Zhuqing—both of whom far surpassed Jiang Jing in terms of physique, mature allure, and raw beauty. He didn't care much about what was going on inside Jiang Jing's head; as long as she didn't harbor plans to flee or sabotage the academy, he had no desire to force her into anything.
In the future, his path would take him far beyond this mortal realm, exploring other parallel universes of the Douluo multiverse. When that time came, the only people he would take with him were his official wives.
Looking back, outside of that chaotic, accidental misunderstanding with Ah Yin, he had never forced a single girl to be with him. Willing was willing; unwilling was unwilling. Perhaps Zhu Zhuyun had initially submitted purely out of a raw instinct to survive, but true affection had blossomed over their two years of deep intimacy.
As for this little cat girl... after her erratic behavior three months ago, Fu Ye hadn't placed exceptionally high expectations on her.
Furthermore, Fu Ye rarely hid the fact that he had multiple partners, though Meng Yiran and Wu Ling were still somewhat in the dark—they currently believed he was exclusively with Xiao Wu, entirely unaware that the rest of their close sisters had long since fallen into his embrace.
Jiang Jing didn't leave despite his dismissive words. She stood anxiously behind the sofa, her lips parting slightly as she struggled to find her courage.
After a long, heavy silence, she finally managed to whisper: "M-Master."
Fu Ye didn't drive her away for standing there like a statue. He simply remained draped across the leather sofa, soaking in the ambient warmth.
"I... I came to offer you my deepest apologies," she murmured, her voice tight and trembling with a wave of intense, volatile emotions.
"Mm."
A single, non-committal hum was his only reply, carrying a dozen different unsaid meanings.
"Master, I..." Jiang Jing squeezed her eyes shut. She knew with absolute certainty that she possessed nothing of material value to offer a man of his stature. The only asset she had left was her own body.
"If that's all, go back and rest," Fu Ye interrupted, his tone completely flat, as if discussing the most mundane weather. "Your situation isn't all that different from Xue Ke's. She was cursed with a absolute garbage pile of an imperial father, and you were cursed with a degenerate, gambling addict for a dad."
He shifted slightly, leaning his head back. "If your ultimate desire is to regain your absolute legal freedom and live a quiet, ordinary civilian life, then focus entirely on your cultivation inside this academy. In less than five years, I will be taking my battle team and leaving this place permanently. When that day comes, I will naturally dissolve your contract and grant you total freedom."
Jiang Jing's heterochromatic eyes widened in profound shock and disbelief. Yet, contrary to what anyone would expect of a slave being promised her freedom, her face didn't hold a single shred of joy.
"M-Master... you are leaving this place?" she stammered, her voice cracking. Fu Ye offered no response, staring idly out the window. "Then... then what about me? Are you going to abandon me, Master?"
Her blue and green irises shook with a deep, sudden hollow panic as she stared at the man lounging elegantly under the sunlight. She couldn't comprehend it. Why was he acting so distant?
"That depends entirely on your own choices," Fu Ye said, finally rolling over to look her dead in the eye.
Meeting his gaze, the cat girl instinctively shrank back, her mismatched eyes darting away in sheer awkwardness, her small hands tightly twisting the fabric of her skirt in utter anxiety.
"The harsh treatment I gave you on day one was strictly to break your wild temper and ensure you'd behave," Fu Ye explained calmly. "As for the golden soul imprint I placed between your brows, its sole function is to act as a safety barrier to ensure you can never physically harm Xue Ke or any of the other young girls here."
His tone suddenly sharped, carrying a cold, realistic edge. "But you must also remember this: I bought you out of that cage purely because I found your plight pathetic. Leaving a rare mutation like you to be torn apart by those depraved, rotten nobles felt like a waste of potential. That is the beginning and the end of it."
Jiang Jing fell into a stunned silence. Deep down, she knew every single word he spoke was the absolute, unvarnished truth.
"And don't you dare go making the foolish mistake of assuming that refined, elegant middle-aged noble who brought your mother along to the auction block was some sort of saint," Fu Ye sneered softly, a cold smirk playing on his lips. "I've dealt with that man for over twenty years. For him to willingly drop two million gold spirit coins to bid against me... the only way that happened was because your desperate mother agreed to whatever cold, transactional terms he demanded behind closed doors."
The words struck Jiang Jing like a physical blow, her eyes filling with profound confusion and hurt.
"He is the Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan. Above all else, Ning Fengzhi is a ruthless, calculated businessman to his very marrow. Do you honestly believe he stopped bidding because his clan ran out of money?"
Fu Ye let out a mocking laugh. "No. He stopped because his analytical mind determined that your life simply wasn't worth a single penny over two million. Your mother likely signed away her entire existence to him just to get him to bid that far. Never mistake cold corporate investment for genuine mercy."