Chapter 181: Victory Celebration Banquet
As the guards announced the opening, a one-meter-long red stick appeared on the tray.
A scorching heat rushed towards him, and Shi Lin immediately recognized that this was no ordinary thing!
Suddenly, Shi Lin thought of the Vast Ocean Universe Cover, which was the core of the Sea God's inheritance. Now, this thing didn't seem like something that Douluo Continent could create.
Given the temperament of the Heaven Dou royal family, Shi Lin strongly suspected that this red staff was an heirloom of a certain deity.
Shi Lin raised both hands above his head and caught the tray.
"By the way, this staff can't be put into the soul tool. I'll give it to you when we go out later." Emperor Xue Ye waved to Shi Lin and said with a smile.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Shi Lin naturally obeyed Emperor Xue Ye's orders, since he himself did not know what this thing was and there was no need to attract Emperor Xue Ye's attention.
However, the fact that this thing cannot be put into a soul tool proves from another angle that this thing may be extraordinary and is highly likely to be a divine artifact.
"Come, come, come with me to the banquet. I'll let you get to know the nobles of Heaven Dou City. This victory is all thanks to you." Emperor Xue Ye stepped down from his throne, personally took Shi Lin's hand, and led him towards the banquet hall at the back.
Shi Lin was also surprised that Emperor Xue Ye was so affectionate towards him.
For a moment, Shi Lin even thought that Emperor Xue Ye's orientation was abnormal.
When Shi Lin heard about the victory in the great battle, he looked bewildered. He had been in seclusion for some time and had no idea that a great battle had taken place outside, let alone that it had been won.
However, Shi Lin quickly realized that his healing pills must have played a very important role on the battlefield; otherwise, Emperor Xue Ye would not have so readily granted his family a noble title.
They wouldn't be this affectionate with him.
Soon, Emperor Xue Ye led Shi Lin to the banquet hall at the back.
At this moment, the banquet hall was filled with the younger generation of the Heaven Dou Empire.
Shi Lin recognized Dugu Yan at a glance. At this moment, Dugu Yan was chatting and talking with a young man in a blue suit. Their behavior was intimate and their expressions were close, clearly indicating that they were already in a relationship.
The children in Douluo Continent are quite precocious. Dugu Yan looks only eleven or twelve years old, yet she's already starting to date.
Shi Lin averted his gaze, avoiding looking at Dugu Yan. He was also afraid that Dugu Yan would target him. Shi Lin did not believe that his antidote could compare to Dugu Yan's poison.
The young man in the blue suit should be Yu Tianheng from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon family!
Shi Lin didn't recognize most of the other people, since he always sneaked into a corner to eat and drink at parties.
"Greetings, Your Majesty the Emperor!"
As Emperor Xue Ye ascended the steps, all the young talents bowed in respect.
"No need for formalities. Today is a joyous day. The Heaven Dou Empire not only withstood the invasion of the Star Luo Empire, but also reclaimed the territories it had lost in the past. Everyone is gathered here, so let's eat and drink to our hearts' content. Let's raise our glasses together to celebrate this hard-won victory." Emperor Xue Ye picked up a wine glass from the table, raised it excitedly, and said to the children in front of him.
This banquet mainly celebrates a major battle that took place three days ago, when the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire clashed on the border.
Originally, the Heaven Dou Empire's army was not as strong as the Star Luo Empire's, but the Heaven Dou Empire had Shi Lin's healing pills, which greatly shortened the recovery time. Therefore, the Heaven Dou Empire's soldiers could be used as two people, which is why they defeated the Star Luo Empire's soldiers.
This battle not only defeated the Star Luo Empire, but also reclaimed more than 200 kilometers of land, allowing the Heaven Dou Empire to recover a significant portion of its territory.
After all, the Star Luo Empire had been suppressing the Heaven Dou Empire for years, and Emperor Xue Ye was naturally very happy to finally win.
"Congratulations, Your Majesty! May the Heaven Dou Empire live a thousand years and be immortal!"
"Congratulations, Your Majesty! May the Heaven Dou Empire live a thousand years and be immortal!"
...
All the children congratulated Emperor Xue Ye at the same time.
Upon hearing the children's voices, Emperor Xue Ye's smile grew even brighter. After all, these children were the most innocent and their congratulatory messages were the most sincere.
Shi Lin stood nervously beside Emperor Xue Ye, unable to speak or make any significant moves.
Shi Lin really didn't want to have anything to do with these people. After all, all he wanted was a title, and he didn't want to get himself involved in this mess.
Emperor Xue Ye sensed Shi Lin's nervousness and patted him on the shoulder with a smile.
"Alright, you little ones, you must eat more so that you can contribute your strength to the Heaven Dou Empire in the future. I can't let you eat as much as you want while I'm here. I'll go to the back first." Emperor Xue Ye smiled and said to the children in front of him.
"Respectfully seeing off His Majesty the Emperor!" The children bowed to Emperor Xue Ye once again.
Then, Emperor Xue Ye led Shi Lin to the banquet hall at the back.
Although this banquet hall is smaller, the people inside are all core members of the Heaven Dou Royal Family.
Shi Lin only knew a few people: Prince Xue Xing, Qian Renxue, and Xue Ke.
There was also a large group of nobles dressed in gorgeous gowns. Shi Lin didn't recognize them at all, but their identities were easy to guess; they must be members of the Heaven Dou royal family.
"Congratulations, Your Majesty the Emperor!" Everyone bowed to Emperor Xue Ye.
"Come on, no need for formalities. Let's get acquainted. This is Shi Lin, the greatest contributor to our Heaven Dou Empire's great victory this time!" Emperor Xue Ye patted Shi Lin on the shoulder and then pushed him in front of everyone.
"Greetings, elders!" Shi Lin quickly bowed respectfully to the people in front of him and said in a respectful voice.
Everyone laughed when they saw Shi Lin's performance. The more innocent Shi Lin was, the more thoroughly he integrated into this circle.
After all, Shi Lin was more like a tool to them.
"So you're Shi Lin! Father often talks about you in front of us. I never imagined that you were the one who refined such precious healing pills." A seven or eight-year-old child walked up to Shi Lin and smiled at him.
"Greetings, Your Highness the Fourth Prince. My abilities are nothing special, but it is my honor to contribute to the Heaven Dou Empire!" Shi Lin smiled humbly at Xue Beng.
Within the Heaven Dou royal family, only Xue Beng has the right to say this, as Emperor Xue Ye's children have all been dealt with by Qian Renxue.
Therefore, the child in front of you must be the Fourth Prince, Xue Beng.
"You know me? That's wonderful, Father! I want him to be my study companion! I happen to be short of one." Xue Beng's eyes lit up, and he pointed at Shi Lin and said to Xue Qinghe.
"Father, Shi Lin needs to refine too many pills, and after this great victory, the Star Luo Empire is likely to target him. We must protect him." Qian Renxue stepped forward and said to Emperor Xue Ye.
Upon hearing Qian Renxue's words, Emperor Xue Ye nodded, acknowledging that Shi Lin's safety was indeed of utmost importance.
The truth will eventually come out. It won't be long before the Star Luo Empire finds out that the Heaven Dou Empire defeated the Star Luo Empire with the help of elixirs. At that time, they will probably send someone to Heaven Dou City.
Either invite Shi Lin to join the Star Luo Empire...
Either kill Shi Lin, or the Heaven Dou Empire doesn't deserve what the Star Luo Empire can't have.
"How about this, Prince Xue Xing, don't you have another courtyard near your house? Give it to Shi Lin, and give him fifty guards as well." Emperor Xue Ye thought for a moment, then pointed to Prince Xue Xing and said.
Shi Lin was taken aback by Emperor Xue Ye's words and was about to refuse when Prince Xue Xing beside him spoke first.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Prince Xue Xing replied without hesitation.
Prince Xue Xing gave Shi Lin no chance to refuse.
You should know that Shi Lin's house has secret rooms and underground passages. If they move, they will have to modify the secret passages, which is very troublesome. Moreover, the Hundred Stone Base will also be at risk of being exposed.
Shi Lin is currently unable to contact Shi An, so he is thinking of researching a Gu worm that can transmit information over long distances in the future.
"Alright, this is the first time I've brought this little guy to meet you all today. You must take good care of him from now on. He's a strategic weapon of our Heaven Dou Empire, so don't bully him." Emperor Xue Ye joked with the people in front of him.
"Of course, for the prosperity of the Heaven Dou Empire, we will definitely take good care of this little guy." The nobles of the Heaven Dou royal family patted their chests and assured Emperor Xue Ye.
After all, they would need to ask Shi Lin for something in the future.
"Alright, I won't get in your way here anymore. You won't feel comfortable around me anyway. It's getting late, so I'll go back to rest." Emperor Xue Ye waved his hand, then turned and left, smiling as he went.
It seems that the victory in this war has made Emperor Xue Ye feel extremely pleased.
"Respectfully seeing off Your Majesty!" All the nobles bowed to the departing figure of Emperor Xue Ye.
As soon as Emperor Xue Ye left, all the nobles surrounded Shi Lin.
"Truly, heroes emerge from among the young!"
"I never imagined that so many healing pills came from your hands alone!"
"Haha, there's still a surplus of healing pills, isn't there? We all have private armies, and we need these pills too."
...
Finally, some nobles spoke their minds.
Each of them has their own territory, though the size may vary. However, as members of the Heaven Dou royal family, each of them has a considerable number of soldiers under their command.
Their soldiers are also a major fighting force of the Heaven Dou Empire, so they also want to make their soldiers even stronger.
Therefore, a large number of healing pills are needed, since healing pills can be used not only on the battlefield but also in the training ground.
On the training ground, these soldiers can train harder, which can genuinely improve their combat effectiveness.
Therefore, Shi Lin's elixirs were very important and valuable to these nobles, of course, only in terms of the value of refining the elixirs.
"Prince Xue Xing, as you know, I'm already exhausted from refining pills for the border troops. With so many pills, I have no energy left for cultivation." Shi Lin looked at Prince Xue Xing with difficulty, hoping that the prince would speak on his behalf.
Shi Lin didn't want his healing pills to become cheap.
After all, this thing is linked to one's title.
Mass production would only make healing pills cheaper, and then Shi Lin's title would be over.
"That's true, but all the elders need your pills, and you can't just not give them any. How about this, starting today, I'll increase the amount of herbs you receive by 20%. You can work hard to refine these herbs into pills and give them to these elders." Prince Xue Xing smiled as he approached Shi Lin, patted Shi Lin on the shoulder, and then spoke to Shi Lin in a seemingly casual manner.
Shi Lin was stunned. He hadn't expected that Prince Xue Xing would be so ruthless, taking all the benefits and leaving him only a little bit of soup and water.
When he said that, everyone would think it was because of Prince Xue Xing's influence.
"Prince Xue Xing, aren't you making things difficult for me? I already only have half an hour of cultivation time left each day. If this continues, I won't have any time to cultivate at all." Shi Lin complained to Prince Xue Xing about his poverty while gesturing to the nobles.
Those who can survive here are all shrewd and immediately understood what Shi Lin meant.
Tell these people to go find Shi Lin after the banquet.
"Third brother, this won't do. We need to ensure young friend Shi Lin's cultivation time. After all, the stronger he becomes, the more effective the pills he refines will be."
"Yes, third brother, let's give him some time to cultivate, right, young friend Shi Lin?"
In an instant, all the nobles stood up for Shi Lin, and Prince Xue Xing also showed a helpless expression. He knew that this was because Shi Lin had made some promise to those nobles.
"Fine, fine, you can figure this out yourselves. I don't need your help anyway. Be careful not to get tricked by this little guy," Prince Xue Xing said to them irritably.
"Haha, oh well, we've been tricked." The others laughed and said.
The banquet continued, and all the nobles began to drink and converse.
Shi Lin naturally found an opportunity to come to Xue Ke's side.
"Do you have any healing pills? Could you give me some?" Xue Ke asked Shi Lin with a smile.
"What do you need that for? The Heaven Dou Empire, it seems the princess doesn't have an army?" Shi Lin looked at Xue Ke with a puzzled expression and asked curiously.
"It was Xue Beng who made me ask. He wants, he wants a thousand first-tier healing pills," Xue Ke whispered to Shi Lin.
"Here you go." Shi Lin took out a bag full of first-tier healing pills from his personal space and handed it to Xue Ke.
"Wow! So many!" Xue Ke exclaimed, her mouth agape in shock.
"Hurry up and put them away, your uncles and elders are all eyeing these things." Shi Lin patted Xue Ke's hair and said with a grin.
Xue Ke nodded seriously, then put the pills back into her soul tool.
Then, Shi Lin and Xue Ke chatted and drank juice together...
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[end of the chapter]