Chapter 90: Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Bone and a Royal Alliance
After Xiao Qiang whispered something in Meng Hongchen's ear, she stood stunned for a moment. Then, her fair cheeks flushed a brilliant red.
"You! You pervert!"
Meng Hongchen pushed Xiao Qiang away with force, her voice suddenly rising in volume and drawing everyone's attention.
"What's going on?" Xiao Hongchen walked up to them quickly, glaring at Xiao Qiang as if he was ready to fight.
"I'm not sure," Xiao Qiang said, raising his hands innocently. "Senior Sister Meng kept insisting on knowing how my cultivation speed increased so rapidly. I had no choice but to tell her the truth—and then she pushed me away."
"What exactly did you say to Meng?"
"I told her that my cultivation improved quickly because I sleep on a bed made from ten-thousand-year-old Black Ice Marrow. I offered to lend it to her if she needed it. But for some reason, she pushed me away before I could even finish explaining."
Meng Hongchen: "…"
"When did you become an Ice-type Spirit Master?" Xiao Hongchen asked suspiciously.
"Oh, a while ago. You just never noticed. You didn't even wonder what I use to pick my teeth after meals," Xiao Qiang said with a grin, summoning a slender ice needle between his fingers.
"So you really have twin martial spirits? Wait… you've been using spirit ring fusion to accelerate your cultivation?"
"It's that, and also thanks to the medicinal pills Senior Sister Meng gave me," Xiao Qiang replied. "That's why I offered her the bed—out of gratitude."
"The medicine Meng gave you?" Xiao Hongchen's expression changed slightly. If he remembered correctly, the extra pills Meng had were originally from his supply.
"You should be thanking me then, right?" he asked.
"Oh, right. Thanks, nephew."
"You bastard! You're lucky I'm your senior!"
The brief interlude ended with some laughter, and the auction resumed.
Xiao Qiang returned his focus to the items being presented. Among the items up for bid, he acquired the eighth-level soul tool weapon, the Tyrant Tiger Soul-Refining Blade, originally targeted by Dai Yueheng. He also secured a batch of fixed-type soul-guided shells at a cost of 610,000 gold soul coins.
Though he didn't particularly need more of those shells, the price was reasonable considering his current wealth, so he casually added them to his haul.
As more items came up, Xiao Qiang continued browsing and buying selectively—until the next major highlight appeared: the Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Bone.
After briefly appeasing the Ice Empress within him, Xiao Qiang entered the bidding. With his deep pockets, the price rose rapidly. However, when it climbed past 30 million gold soul coins and others were still raising bids, Xiao Qiang decisively gave up.
He already possessed the Ice Explosion soul skill and had no intention of absorbing another ice-type bone. His only plan was to use the soul bone as a life-saving item, which in his view was preferable to relying on constructs like the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. But 30 million was his limit—there was no point in spending more on something that offered him no tangible benefit.
Furthermore, since the Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Bone wasn't an external soul bone, it couldn't be fused with his own external bone. Nor did he have other companions capable of absorbing an Extreme Ice attribute. Giving it away wouldn't help much.
Meanwhile, in the most luxurious box of the Starlight Auction House, Princess Xu Jiujiu of the Star Luo Empire was reporting to her royal brother, Emperor Xu Jiawei, regarding the acquisition of the Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Bone.
"Royal Brother, Shrek Academy didn't bid much, but the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy fought fiercely. In the end, we successfully acquired the Ice Jade Scorpion's soul bone."
Xu Jiawei sighed in relief. "You made the right call. Even if we lose some money, we can't let that soul bone fall into the hands of the Sun Moon Empire. Still… it's a shame."
The emperor gently stroked the soul bone before him. It was an extremely valuable item. Soul bones could be sold or used to bolster the strength of the empire—but unfortunately, the Star Luo Empire lacked any powerful Ice-attributed Spirit Masters.
That is, until Xu Jiujiu spoke up with a plan.
"It's not a loss, Royal Brother. While we don't have a top-tier Ice Spirit Master among our Protectors, we can use this soul bone to create one."
"Oh?" Xu Jiawei's eyes lit up. "Go on."
"There's an Ice-type Spirit Master named Ling Luochen currently studying at Shrek Academy. Her grandfather, Ling Tian, is an 89th-level Soul Douluo, and he has traveled to Star Luo City to assist Shrek in suppressing the students' evil fire. He's just a step away from becoming a Titled Douluo. This soul bone could be the key to pushing him over that threshold."
Xu Jiawei stood up with excitement. "Jiujiu, you've done a great service to the empire!"
"Even if trading a soul bone for a Titled Douluo seems costly, the timing makes it worthwhile. Not only do we gain a powerful new protector, but we also deepen our connection with Shrek Academy. This deal is more than worth it."
"Quickly—inform that senior Ling Tian!"
"Please leave it to me, Royal Brother," Jiujiu replied with a calm smile.
Thanks to her personal involvement, everything moved with lightning speed. Before long, Ling Tian—who had only come to Star Luo to help his granddaughter's classmates—was staring at the priceless Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Bone.
It was nearly 70,000 years old, and such a treasure could only be passed down to someone truly worthy. For Ling Tian, it was a divine opportunity.
He didn't hesitate. The benefits to his cultivation and family were too great. With this, he could break through to Titled Douluo, and his entire family would rise in status within the empire.
The Ling family officially pledged allegiance to the Star Luo Empire, swearing loyalty as they awaited Ling Tian's breakthrough. With a new Titled Douluo in its ranks, even noble families would have to respect the Ling clan. In this era, a single Titled Douluo carried immense weight.
Even dukes and members of the royal family gave way to those who had attained such power. As a clear example, Princess Xu Jiujiu—the empire's crown jewel—had once respectfully addressed a 93rd-level Titled Douluo as "Grandma Manyi."
"Welcome to the Star Luo Empire, Senior Ling Tian."
"Your Majesty is too kind. It is both my duty and honor to serve the empire and protect my family."
The two sides exchanged pleasantries with mutual respect. Xu Jiawei did not bring up that they had never offered the soul bone earlier, and Ling Tian refrained from saying he would've joined sooner if they had.
All formalities concluded quickly, and then—solemnly—Emperor Xu Jiawei personally handed the soul bone to Ling Tian.
"Senior Ling, without delay, I present this soul bone. Please help protect the Star Luo Empire."
"Your Majesty, rest assured—I will not fail your trust."