Chapter 221: The Sweetheart

"Yue'er, you've finished absorbing your Soul Ring!" Shui Bing'er, as the older sister, was the first to notice Shui Yue'er waking up, but upon noticing the strange look Shui Yue'er cast toward her and Ning Feiliu, her pretty face instantly turned red.

"Perfect, I'm about to grill the next batch of meat..." Ning Feiliu chuckled and said.

"Ah... this brother... how should I address you..." Shui Yue'er felt shy facing Ning Feiliu now, and she said, fidgeting.

Just like Shui Bing'er and the others, Shui Yue'er also quickly grew closer to Ning Feiliu.

After happily finishing her skewers, Shui Yue'er once again spoke to her companions about the situation of her absorbing her third Soul Ring.

Ning Feiliu listened from the side, a smile on his handsome face.

This couldn't help but make Shui Yue'er, who was on the side, act love-struck once again.

And as she looked at Ning Feiliu's handsome and gentle face, she suddenly asked, "Brother Feiliu, do you have a sweetheart now?"

She stared intently at Ning Feiliu at this moment, as if she had gathered all her courage to ask.

This couldn't help but make everyone present freeze for a moment, including Ning Feiliu.

Ning Feiliu had never expected Shui Yue'er... to be so direct.

Daring to ask someone directly if they had a sweetheart the very first time they met.

"Yue'er, don't be unruly!" Shui Bing'er, as the older sister, stood up with a flushed face and scolded her.

However, she was also very curious about Ning Feiliu's... upcoming answer.

Does Ning Feiliu really have a sweetheart now? If he does... what kind of girl would she be? But if... he doesn't?

Does he really not have one? Aside from Jiang Xi, the other girls from Tianshui Academy present were all somewhat looking forward to Ning Feiliu's answer.

Ning Feiliu froze for a moment, then suddenly smiled lightly and said, "It's nothing... well, I do already have a sweetheart."

"You already have a sweetheart..." Shui Bing'er felt a bit dazed, but she quickly pretended not to care and said with a smile, "Then she must be an outstandingly beautiful girl."

Shen Liu Yu, Qiu Ruoshui, and the other girls also appeared somewhat disappointed, but they still tried hard to hide their disappointment.

Only Shui Yue'er, upon hearing Ning Feiliu say he had a sweetheart, did not hide her disappointment in the slightest.

Then she continued to press him, asking, "Then Brother Feiliu, what is your sweetheart like?"

"What is she like? I suppose she's a very good and very beautiful person." Ning Feiliu thought about Dugu Yan's merits and said with a gentle smile.

Dugu Yan was very good-looking and beautiful, but to call her the number one beauty of the Douluo Dalu or something like that might be an exaggeration.

Even compared to Shui Bing'er before them, Dugu Yan could only be considered evenly matched.

Therefore, Dugu Yan was just an "ordinarily" stunning girl.

Her personality... wasn't exactly that of a very gentle girl; she was always carefree and could have moments where she got angry.

But her nature was very good.

The key was that she was the first person Ning Feiliu had met after coming to this world, aside from Ning Mingrui, his first friend and the first person of the opposite sex he had known.

A person's heart only has so much space; the order of who comes first and who comes later is very important.

So... even if Ning Feiliu hadn't truly confirmed his relationship with Dugu Yan or said those things that sounded overly mushy.

She was still Ning Feiliu's sweetheart.

And Ning Feiliu was her sweetheart as well.

Ning Feiliu didn't want to hide anything, so he just smiled and admitted it directly.

It was just that his words describing Dugu Yan made Shui Bing'er and the others even more curious.

"I suppose?" Yu Hairou asked with some curiosity.

"I suppose she's very beautiful... then she must be very beautiful, beautiful enough for you, Feiliu, to fall for her." Shen Liu Yu said with a smile at this moment.

"Yes, she is the most beautiful in my eyes." Ning Feiliu said again with a smile.

"Then is she very powerful?" Shui Yue'er asked again, somewhat unwilling to give up, "To be worthy of Brother Feiliu, she must be a very powerful Spirit Master, right?"

Shui Bing'er frowned again and scolded her younger sister, "Stop it! Yue'er!"

"Yes." Ning Feiliu nodded with a smile again and answered directly, "Actually, I already told you about her just now..."

"You told us about her?" Shui Bing'er and the others were all stunned for a moment.

Then they quickly recalled the conversation they had just had while spending time with Ning Feiliu.

Among them, the only person of the opposite sex Ning Feiliu had mentioned was...

"That Miss Dugu, who is also of the Heavenly Generation?" Xue Wu was the first to speak up.

"Yes... but honestly, this 'Heavenly Generation' is really a bit exaggerated." Ning Feiliu said with a wry smile, "This is truly excessive praise, and this title is just too awkward."

As for this "Heavenly Generation," it would be fine if they just praised him directly.

But to include such a title when praising him made it feel awkward to the extreme.

However, Shui Bing'er and the others didn't think so; Ning Feiliu, a fifteen-year-old Soul King, was simply unprecedented and would likely never be surpassed.

And Dugu Yan was not a bit inferior, a fourteen-year-old Soul Ancestor who now had combat power approaching the Soul King level; if not for Ning Feiliu being such a rare gem, she would undoubtedly be the number one young Spirit Master of this generation.

As for Yu Tianheng... it could only be said that Yu Tianheng was a product of hearsay; Ning Feiliu hadn't said much about Yu Tianheng's situation, only that he came from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect.

The key was Dugu Yan; upon hearing Ning Feiliu say his sweetheart was Dugu Yan, that genius Spirit Master who had broken through to the Soul Ancestor realm at fourteen.

Shui Bing'er and the other girls naturally felt a sense of inferiority, feeling they couldn't compare.

Among them, even the most outstanding one, Shui Bing'er, was only at level 35 soul power at fifteen years old, still far from being a Soul Ancestor.

Let alone the Soul King realm.

In fact, in terms of talent, Shui Bing'er and the original Dugu Yan's talents were actually about the same.

It was just that Dugu Yan now had Ning Feiliu's help; not only did she swallow an Immortal Herb, the Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid, but she also used the Moonlight Breathing Method to increase her cultivation while simultaneously operating the Poison Core Condensation Method.

Her cultivation could be described as advancing by leaps and bounds, far faster than ordinary people.

This made Shui Bing'er and the others feel the gap was more than just a little bit, to the point where they didn't even have any thoughts of catching up, and the romantic feelings in their hearts instantly faded quite a bit.

Shui Bing'er forced herself to pull it together at this moment, smiled slightly, and said, "This is not excessive praise. The talent you and that Miss Dugu possess is something I have truly never heard of anyone else having. Isn't it a generation as high as the heavens?"

"That's right, even looking back at the last three Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournaments, I have never seen a young Spirit Master who could break through to a Soul King before the age of 20." Jiang Xi, the instructor of Tianshui Academy, also sighed at this moment and said, "Let alone a young Spirit Master like you, Feiliu, who broke through to the Soul King realm at fifteen."

In fact, let alone those who broke through to Soul King before the age of 20, even the three people in the Spirit Hall known as the Golden Generation—Hu Liena, Xie Yue, and Yan.

Among them, except for Hu Liena who broke through to the Soul King realm at 19, the others, Xie Yue and Yan, were both older than Hu Liena, and their ages were definitely over 20.

Therefore, for talents like Ning Feiliu and Dugu Yan, it can only be said that only the Shrek Seven Devils, who also consumed Immortal Herbs, can compare.

Even the Shrek Seven Devils, except for Tang San, are inferior to Ning Feiliu and Dugu Yan.

After all, Xiao Wu and the others were not taught cultivation techniques by their dear San Ge, the way Ning Feiliu taught the Moonlight Breathing Method to Dugu Yan, or the way he taught the Mysterious Heaven Skill.

Even Xiao Wu did not receive instruction from Tang San. Perhaps Tang San felt that the Mysterious Heaven Skill, as the supreme technique of the Tang Sect, could not be easily passed on to outsiders.

Then, he casually passed it on later to Jixiang, a nominal disciple he met on the trip to Sea God Island.

In any case, it is hard not to feel that Tang San's actions were because he did not want his companions to also learn the Mysterious Heaven Skill and thereby surpass him.

That way, he would be surpassed by his companions; after all, Tang San's Innate Full Spirit Power at the beginning clearly indicated that it was not something he was born with, but something he obtained by practicing the Mysterious Heaven Skill.

If he had Innate Full Spirit Power from the start, Tang San should have felt he reached a "bottleneck" when he was just practicing by himself.

Instead of practicing for a long time before discovering he had reached the "bottleneck" of level ten soul power.

It is likely that Tang San suffered damage during his infancy in the battle between Tang Hao and Qian Xunji, and his congenital deficiency meant he was not originally a genius.

Then he used the Mysterious Heaven Skill to cultivate himself into a genius.

So, of course, it was impossible for him to pass the Mysterious Heaven Skill on to others.

Actually, while selfish, there is nothing wrong with this.

Ning Feiliu doing so is, on the contrary, overly generous; his personality is just like that.

Toward those close to him, he is truly not stingy at all; one could say he is the opposite of Tang San.

What he looks down upon most is a person like Tang San.

Facing Jiang Xi's praise, Ning Feiliu said nothing more.

Sometimes, many words really do not need to be overly humble.

"Alright, we have finished resting, let's check the time... we should still be able to travel for a while." Jiang Xi stood up at this moment and said, "If we cannot leave the Star Dou Great Forest tonight, then we can only temporarily camp here and rest for the night."

"Do you mind, Feiliu?" She looked at Ning Feiliu again, smiled slightly, and said.

Jiang Xi did not feel that Ning Feiliu staying with them girls in the wilderness was an issue.

Still the same point, Ning Feiliu's temperament and appearance destined girls to feel very at ease with him.

Even if one took a step back and said he suddenly gave in to animal instincts.

Jiang Xi felt that Shui Bing'er and the others would also be very willing.

"Then I will keep watch for everyone when the time comes," Ning Feiliu said with a light laugh.

"How could we be so embarrassed..." the girls began to chatter shyly.

But soon, they all set off together.

However, as expected, because of waiting for Shui Yue'er to absorb her Soul Ring, plus chatting with Ning Feiliu and resting for a while, after they traveled for a distance, it was soon going to get dark.

Traveling in the jungle at night is a very dangerous thing; not only might one encounter groups of Soul Beasts in the wild, but one might also lose their way.

Furthermore, in this era of the Douluo Continent, major cities generally impose a curfew at night.

That is to say, most businesses in the city stop operating, and only a small portion of red-light districts remain open.

And outside the city, entry and exit are prohibited.

Of course, if one has some City Lord token, or if you are a famous figure in the local area, then you can certainly pass through without obstruction.

Although Shui Bing'er and the others are famous students of Tianshui Academy in Tianshui City, it is clear that their status is not enough to have such great fame.

So if they went back at night, they would only be turned away.

Then it would be better to camp and rest on the spot for the night.

Before it got completely dark, Ning Feiliu helped them set up camp, and then they each returned to their own tents, starting to "rest" by using soul power to cultivate instead of sleeping.

Ning Feiliu helped them stand guard and keep watch; he sat in front of the crackling, popping campfire and did not cultivate.

Looking at the thin moonlight in the sky, he simply decided not to cultivate tonight.

After all, it is better to stay focused.

He also happened to practice some other things.

"Hiss—" Just then, a long, emerald-green animal appeared from under Ning Feiliu's sleeve.

It was exactly the Nine-Section Jade, Xiao Jiu.

Usually, Ning Feiliu let it wrap around his right hand to be prepared for any emergency.

Xiao Jiu itself also has strong defensive power and is not afraid of being killed by the aftermath of attacks directed at Ning Feiliu during battle.

"Xiao Jiu, come, let me give you a midnight snack," Ning Feiliu said with a slight smile.

During the day, because he was afraid of scaring Shui Bing'er and the others, he did not let Xiao Jiu show itself.

Now, he could let Xiao Jiu consume some food.

He took out bloody pieces of raw meat and fed them to Xiao Jiu along with some herbs.

Xiao Jiu is very intelligent and ate very happily.

However, as an Exotic Beast, that triggered task related to Vastaya Xayah—【Obtain ten different types of Exotic Beast Essence Blood to gain the secret of the evolution of Vastaya Xayah.】

It has not been completed yet.

Ning Feiliu did not expect that even with the combined capabilities of Dugu Bo, the Poison Douluo, and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, they had not yet collected ten different types of Exotic Beast Essence Blood.

It is just because Exotic Beasts are truly too hard to find.

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect has an illustrated guide recording the existence of Exotic Beasts, but according to the records, most Exotic Beasts are already extinct.

After all, this world does not seem to have any concept of protecting rare animals; the Spirit Hall only slightly controlled the hunting behavior of Spirit Masters entering the Liehun Senlin to prevent Soul Beasts from being hunted in large numbers.

However, the Spirit Hall only intentionally protected Soul Beasts slightly; after all, Soul Beasts are the key to Spirit Masters' Soul Rings and advancement. If Soul Beasts went extinct, Spirit Masters would have no way to advance to higher realms.

But Exotic Beasts are not.

Therefore, no one paid any attention to protecting Exotic Beasts at all.

Moreover, Exotic Beasts were inherently rare; in the original work, the only Exotic Beasts that appeared were the Nine-Section Jade, the Dark Gold Bat, the Ten-Headed Fierce Sun Snake, and the Blood-Red Bat represented by the Blood-Red Nine-Headed Bat King parasitic on Tang Chen.

It could be said they were few and far between.

And they were all concentrated within Slaughter City.

It is evident that only the unique, isolated environment of Slaughter City could protect those Exotic Beasts.

Thus, Ning Feiliu had currently only collected eight types of Exotic Beast Essence Blood, and there were still two more...

He would probably really have to go to Slaughter City to enter Hell Road and face the Dark Gold Bat and the Ten-Headed Fierce Sun Snake in order to collect the final two types of Exotic Beast Essence Blood...

And just at this moment...

"Feiliu." A gentle voice came from behind him.

(End of this chapter)