"Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud and the Heart of the Sea God?" Ning Rongrong's words left Xue Qinghe and Zi Ji completely stunned. They never expected that the treasure of the Heaven Dou Empire was actually connected to a deity.
The Heart of the Sea God—just hearing the name made it clear it was related to the Sea God.
Though the Sea God Island was a well-kept secret, that depended on who you asked. After all, the Spirit Hall had once sent troops to attack Sea God Island, only to retreat in defeat.
"Is this accurate? Is the Heart of the Sea God related to Sea God Island?" Xue Qinghe pressed further.
"Not certain, but there are legends about it in Vast Sea City. Maybe it's just someone's fantasy."
Regarding the matter of the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud, to be honest, Ning Rongrong didn't want to reveal it. She had even considered finding a way to take it back to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, but she ultimately gave up on the idea.
Unlike the Ice Phoenix sealed in the Far North, which couldn't escape, the divine sense and soul that had leaked out could still be dealt with, especially since the seal had severed the connection between the main body and the escaped soul.
This was why Ning Rongrong dared to act against the Ice Phoenix's soul that had emerged from the Blizzard Valley.
But the Heart of the Sea God was different. The original text had already stated that Poseidon had left his divine sense within it.
Ning Rongrong hadn't fully recovered yet, and Tokisaki Kurumi and the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda were in a deep slumber.
Even if she did recover, she couldn't guarantee that she could seize the divine sense and soul without alerting Poseidon himself.
If discovered, it might lead to unnecessary trouble.
Right now, there was still plenty of time. There was no need to act so recklessly and invite disaster.
Besides, if she told Qian Renxue about it, the item would most likely end up in the hands of the Spirit Hall. At the very least, Tang San wouldn't be able to get his hands on it!
Unless Qian Daoliu had completely lost his mind and decided to gift the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud to Bo Saixi to win her favor.
Come on, Qian Daoliu had lived far longer than Bibi Dong.
With one love-struck idiot in the family already, surely Qian Daoliu, at his age, wouldn't be the same?
Qian Daoliu should be aware that the Spirit Hall was being watched by the Divine Realm. Given his cooperation with the soul beasts, he would surely be cautious when dealing with matters related to gods.
Based on these points, Ning Rongrong decided to reveal the information about the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud.
Disclosing only this much would simply imply that the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan's intelligence network was extensive, not that they possessed foresight.
Even if something unexpected happened, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan would have enough time to extract her from the situation.
The matter of the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud would keep Qian Renxue and the others occupied for a long time.
As it was getting late, after discussing some necessary precautions with Xue Qinghe—such as keeping an eye on Tang Chen's faction—Ning Fengzhi led Ning Rongrong and the others out of the palace.
"Zi Ji, what do you think?" After Ning Fengzhi left, Xue Qinghe ordered someone to retrieve the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud from the treasury. While waiting, they began discussing the matter.
"I'm not sure, but if you inform the Master about this, she might agree to send Bi Ji over if you request it."
"Then let's proceed as you suggested. Inform Her Majesty, the Silver Dragon King."
"Aren't you going to discuss this with your grandfather?" Zi Ji was somewhat surprised.
"No. Given that this involves Sea God Island, it's better not to tell him." Xue Qinghe had already had enough. Her mother was a love-struck idiot, and after hearing about Sea God Island at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, she had specifically looked up all the records related to it.
From those records, she learned that the Spirit Hall had once led an attack on Sea God Island and that Tang Chen and Qian Daoliu had both visited it.
Among the records was a secret note about Sea God Island, written in Qian Daoliu's own handwriting.
If that was all, Xue Qinghe wouldn't have paid it much mind.
But the note recorded how Qian Daoliu and Tang Chen had both expressed their love for Bo Saixi and competed for her affection.
What the hell?!
When Qian Renxue, disguised as Xue Qinghe, read this, she felt as if the sky had fallen on her.
Though, in the end, Qian Daoliu seemed to have stepped back, leaving the opportunity to Tang Chen.
But the problem was… she didn't want to gamble. She was afraid her grandfather, Qian Daoliu, might also be a love-struck idiot. What if, the moment she handed the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud to him, he ran off to Sea God Island to win Bo Saixi's favor?
The Spirit Hall was already walking on thin ice. Who knew what Poseidon's stance was?
Qian Renxue was now thoroughly wary and didn't want any more complications.
She'd leave everything to the soul beasts. If something went wrong, they could deal with the fallout.
At worst, she could claim that a soul beast disguised as a human had bought the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud with a soul bone.
Even if she didn't hand it over to the soul beasts, she couldn't keep it with her. If her identity was exposed—though gods might not interfere in mortal affairs—the fact that the Spirit Hall was being watched by the Divine Realm forced Qian Renxue to tread carefully.
"Sigh… Becoming a god… How difficult it is."
...
Back at their residence, Ning Fengzhi and the others gathered.
"Rongrong, I'm curious. Why did you tell Xue Qinghe about the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud?" Ning Fengzhi couldn't help but ask.
Ning Rongrong fell silent, then glanced at Ye Renxin.
Ye Renxin was momentarily stunned before quickly realizing what was expected of him. He swore on his martial soul not to reveal even a sliver of what he heard.
Seeing this, Ning Rongrong nodded. "I just wanted to see how they'd handle the Heart of the Sea God."
It was just a casual move. Regardless of the outcome, it might help gauge the Divine Realm's attitude—especially Poseidon's.
As for whether the Silver Dragon King would accept the Heart of the Sea God or if Qian Renxue would hand it over to the Spirit Hall, it didn't matter to her.
In short, since she had no use for it herself, she might as well see if it could serve some purpose.
Ning Rongrong chatted with Ning Fengzhi and the others for a while longer before they set off to return to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan.
Days passed one after another.
Ning Rongrong left Dugu Yan to cultivate near the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
After more than a month of purification, and with Ning Rongrong later using a similar method to cleanse Dugu Yan's mind, no accidents occurred.
A special engraving was added to Dugu Yan's martial soul to help her adapt to the conflict between her martial soul and the toxins in her body. Gradually, Dugu Yan gained full control over her Misfortune Poison Body.
During this time, Ning Rongrong continued to study the divine power and faith within the Angelic Sword to better understand the nature of gods and aid her own cultivation.
Just as the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament was about to begin, Ning Fengzhi received two relatively important pieces of news from the Heaven Dou Empire.
The first was that Xue Ke had awakened and disappeared. Xue Qinghe had been searching for her, and traces of her were reportedly found in the Balak Kingdom.
The second was that the former Shrek Academy, originally located in Heaven Dou City, had relocated entirely. According to some unreliable sources, they had moved to the Balak Kingdom.
Some of Shrek Academy's students went to the Balak Kingdom, while others joined the Heaven Dou Royal Academy. The less-valued commoner students enrolled at the nearby Four Element Academies outside Heaven Dou City.
A few days before the tournament began, the Balak Academy in the Balak Kingdom was renamed Shrek Academy.
Its dean was said to be the original Shrek Academy's dean, Flender, who had just reached the Soul Douluo level.
At this moment, Ning Rongrong and Dugu Yan stood at the gates of the Four Elements City's Glazed Academy, their luggage packed and ready.