Chapter 50: Mother-Tier Leng Yaoju, Xuan Long Street, My Genius

“We’re home!”

Night fell; Na’er gazed at the eight towering spires piercing the clouds, her lovely face glowing with silly, radiant joy, her silver hair dancing in the evening breeze.

Beside her, Zhao Xuanzhen wore a faint smile—The Spirit Tower was his home too; after being away for over two months, having accomplished many things that reshaped the future, he could finally return for a brief rest.

The two rode the high-speed elevator with ease, arriving directly at the hundredth floor, where Leng Yaoju sat on the sofa waiting for them.

Her crimson dress clung tightly to her figure, outlining a flawless, curvaceous silhouette; her long, elegant legs extended gracefully downward, skin as delicate and taut as an infant’s, glowing faintly with a hazy luminescence under the soul-tool lights.

“Aunt Leng!”

At the sight of Leng Yaoju, Na’er let out a yelp and launched herself forward, burying her small head into the towering chest of the Heavenly Phoenix Douluo.

“Teacher.”

Zhao Xuanzhen sat down with a smile opposite Leng Yaoju; Na’er exploited her gender advantage to the fullest, while the legitimate disciple, too shy to cling, kept his distance.

“Two troublesome little brats.”

Leng Yaoju gently stroked the girl’s silver hair, smiling warmly as she scolded, then asked, “How was today? Did anyone at Shrek Academy bully you?”

“Not exactly bullying, but the elders, teachers, and students at Shrek Academy all look like they were carved from the same mold!” Na’er clung to Leng Yaoju and complained, “The elders recruit, the teachers brainwash, the students break promises!”

“By the way, Aunt Leng, Zhao Xuanzhen beat every one of the top four on the Young Genius Rankings—next update, he’ll be number one, the top Soul Master under eighteen on the entire continent!”

Hearing this, Leng Yaoju unconsciously parted her crimson lips, her eyes flickering with surprise: “The third and fourth were four-ring Soul Ancestors—beating them isn’t hard.

The second on the Young Genius Rankings is the Phantom Fox Soul King, with his Doukai nearly complete; the first is the Ice Jade Scorpion Soul King, directly descended from Ling Bing Douluo’s second martial soul, the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion. Xuanzhen… you challenged them… and won?”

“Just lucky.”

Zhao Xuanzhen smiled lightly; though his tone was humble, both the tall and small beauties sensed a thick layer of bragging beneath it.

Na’er puffed out her cheeks: “Zhao Xuanzhen, I have to criticize you—you’re too moral! Tang Dong swore before the fight he wouldn’t use his Doukai, but when he panicked, he ignored everything and still managed to transfer your Yin-Yang Reversal soul skill into the sky!”

"Tang Dong never intended to kill; there was no need to take a life—it was just a battle," Zhao Xuanzhen said calmly. "A young genius who has always been pampered, who suddenly realizes he's a frog at the bottom of a well—anyone would feel resentful."

When honor and dignity are at stake, promises no longer matter.

Of course, even after donning his Doukai, Tang Dong still couldn’t turn the tide—he’s lost both face and dignity. Compared to losing a single battle, the fracture in his heart is his real problem; if his spirit isn’t mended, he may be trapped by it for life.”

“That serious…”

Na’er froze for a moment, then nodded silently in agreement—for a monster at the top of the Young Genius Rankings, breaking a promise and losing was undoubtedly a psychological collapse.

In the middle of the night, when Tang Dong woke from nightmares, he’d regret it so deeply he’d slap himself hard—why show off as a senior before the fight? Don’t mention the Doukai, just show up and fight honestly—even if he lost, his Dao-heart wouldn’t have shattered.

“Zhao Xuanzhen, if someone your age ever defeats you, will you suffer the same mental collapse as Tang Dong?” Na’er asked curiously.

“Tch…” Zhao Xuanzhen covered his face and sighed: “Classmate Na’er, can you say something auspicious?”

“Don’t worry—I’ll protect your fragile little heart from now on!”

Na’er’s expression turned solemn and sacred as she pounded her chest, producing a hollow, echoing thud.

“Hmm, eat less tonight to prove your sincerity.”

“No way—that’s not how it works!”

Watching the two children bicker, Leng Yaoju smiled warmly, swept her fiery red hair over her left shoulder, and said: “You’re studying at Shrek Academy, where the currency isn’t the Federation coin, but special Shrek Contribution Points.

I bought a street inside Shrek’s inner city—it’s yours now, so you can focus on your studies without worrying about Contribution Points.”

Zhao Xuanzhen and Na’er’s eyes lit up; though exchange students weren’t as pitiful as work-study students—who got free meals—they still needed Contribution Points to use training facilities.

Shrek was the number one academy on the continent; its basic facilities like simulated training grounds rivaled those of the Spirit Tower, and it had several exclusive venues worth trying—they needed a stable source of Contribution Points.

Leng Yaoju had anticipated this, waved her hand, and bought a whole street—Na’er and Zhao Xuanzhen could earn Contribution Points effortlessly, without wasting time on random tasks.

She was as meticulous as silk, as gentle as water—she was mother-tier!

“That street is called White Tiger Street, originally named in honor of the first-generation Shrek Seven’s captain, the White Tiger Douluo, Dai Mubai. Tomorrow afternoon, Big White and Little White will take you to see it—you can redesign White Tiger Street however you like.”

“First, change the name!” Na’er raised her hand. “White Tiger Street sounds awful.”

Leng Yaoju didn’t care; Zhao Xuanzhen thought for a moment, then said slowly:

“What about Xuan Long Street?”

“Your ‘Xuan’—from the Silver Dragon Spear’s ‘Long’…” Na’er questioned, “Why not combine both our names and just call it Xuan Na Street?”

“Does that sound pleasant?” Zhao Xuanzhen countered.

“...What about Xuan Er Street?”

Zhao Xuanzhen was instantly speechless—oh, she was a Beijing dialect speaker!

“Let’s just call it Xuan Long Street.”

To prevent Na’er from suggesting something absurd like Zhen Er Street, Leng Yaoju swiftly settled it.

After a while, the grand meal Leng Yaoju had prepared arrived—a soul-tool dining cart rolled into the room; when the silver lid was lifted, steaming steak was revealed, plated like a work of art, its tantalizing aroma filling the entire floor.

“Steak feast!”

Na’er licked her lips, eyes glued to the steak—premium meat sizzling with oil, dark brown truffle sauce seeping along the grain, swirling into exquisite patterns on the silver plate.

“Celebrating Zhao Xuanzhen’s rise to the top of the Young Genius Rankings!”

Na’er raised her steak knife solemnly; Zhao Xuanzhen and Leng Yaoju raised theirs too, all three faces smiling.

The three intersecting steak knives reflected the lights, flickering and swaying softly.

…

Night was ink-black; the towering buildings outside the window blurred into hazy halos, like stardust fallen to earth.

Leng Yaoju leaned back on the sofa, her crimson gown slipping loosely to reveal a sliver of ivory-white neck and shoulder, the hollow of her collarbone holding a pool of warm light; she held a glass of aged red wine, gently swirling it.

After dinner, Leng Yaoju presented two phoenix pendants to the two children, each containing a strand of Heavenly Phoenix True Flame—powerful enough to instantly reduce a 95th-level Super Douluo to ash.

Na’er, full to bursting, staggered back to the ninety-ninth floor to rest; Zhao Xuanzhen stayed behind alone.

Master and disciple sat facing each other; Leng Yaoju, already extraordinarily beautiful, now had her fiery red hair loosely draped over her shoulders, strands falling to add even more allure.

She sipped her wine, leaving a crimson lip print on the rim, staining a small wet patch; her slender fingernails occasionally scraped the glass, producing a faint, delicate chime. Zhao Xuanzhen watched the faint blue veins along her inner wrist, pulsing with her heartbeat like vines unfurling in the dark.

He shifted his gaze away and reached for the wine bottle on the table—Leng Yaoju drank with elegance and pleasure; he wanted a glass too.

The instant before his palm touched the bottle, Leng Yaoju leaned forward and lightly tapped his handback, humming:

“You’re too young to drink wine—I’ll brew you some tea.”

The tea’s fragrance curled upward; Zhao Xuanzhen gazed at the steaming Starlit Chrysanthemum—this tea detoxified, nourished the skin, cooled internal heat; his eyes half-closed.

In her crimson pupils, the reflection of her thoughtful disciple made Leng Yaoju suddenly chuckle: “Don’t like tea?”

“It’s fine… but you drink wine and I drink tea—it just feels strange…”

Starlit Chrysanthemum was a rare fine tea; Zhao Xuanzhen lifted the cup, sipped, and felt a coolness pierce straight into his lungs.

“Drink wine again later,” Leng Yaoju said, her tone filled with nostalgia. “In the blink of an eye, you’ve grown so big. I still remember when I first brought you to the Spirit Tower—you were just a tiny child.

Now you’re not only a Soul Master, but even the Ice Jade Scorpion Soul King isn’t your match.”

“Teacher, I promised you—I’d become the top among my peers, starting from Shrek Academy.”

Zhao Xuanzhen’s dark eyes were clear and bright, burning with an intensity that struck Leng Yaoju unexpectedly.

“Young Genius Rankings champion, Inner Court Senior Brother, Elder of the Sea God Pavilion, and even the Sea God Pavilion Master, the Pillar Douluo—I’ll challenge them all, one by one.”

At these words, Leng Yaoju’s fingers tightened unconsciously around her wineglass; her breath quickened, her inner thoughts too complex to articulate.

Without flinching, she met his brilliant phoenix eyes; Zhao Xuanzhen made no effort to hide his fierce ambition—it was her wish, and his obsession.

“I look forward to that day.”

Black and crimson—two pairs of pupils burned silently like candles; master and disciple, as if sharing a single soul, reached a silent agreement.

“Xuanzhen,” Leng Yaoju turned her head, changing the subject. “Shrek Academy and the Spirit Tower headquarters are close—you’ll attend classes at Shrek in the morning, come to the Spirit Tower in the afternoon for study or training, and return to Sea God Island at night to meditate.”

Leng Yaoju didn’t want to let them go; her expression betrayed her reluctance—but she had to consider their future.

The Golden Ancient Tree on Sea God Island was one of the enduring sources of Shrek Inner Court’s power; its life energy was unmatched anywhere else in the world.

Training on Sea God Island at night would make them stronger; Leng Yaoju was willing to restrain herself.

“Alright. On weekends with no classes, Na’er and I will come back for the whole day.”

Their thoughts aligned perfectly; Zhao Xuanzhen agreed without hesitation.

“One more thing—before we went to Donghai City, the Doukai design I saw was yours, wasn’t it? The one you’re crafting for Zhen Wo.” Leng Yaoju said. “Given your cultivation progress and your second profession’s rank, it’s time to consider forging a Doukai.

What kind of forging metal do you choose? I’ll ask the Spirit Tower’s Saint Artisan to forge it.”

“Teacher, no need to trouble the Spirit Tower’s Saint Artisan—I have my own source of forging metal,” Zhao Xuanzhen shook his head.

“Qian Jin Jiutian, the direct disciple of Divine Artisan Zhenhua, who fought alongside you against the Shrek team?”

“Yes. Jiutian is a Level Four Artisan; once he breaks through to Soul Elder, he’ll complete Spirit Forging. Meanwhile, Divine Artisan Zhenhua will teach him Fusion Forging alloy techniques.

Teacher, one-character Doukai has too many flaws—it’s easy to be caught unprepared, and when upgrading a thousand-forged one-character Doukai to a spirit-forged two-character Doukai, you have to rebuild everything from scratch.

So I plan to skip one-character Doukai entirely and forge a two-character Doukai directly using a divine-grade spirit-forged alloy with over ninety-five percent fusion rate.” Zhao Xuanzhen explained his Doukai plan in detail.

One-character Doukai required five rings; two-character Doukai required six. With Zhao Xuanzhen’s formidable physique, skipping a rank to wear a Doukai posed no problem. Abandoning one-character Doukai and focusing directly on two-character Doukai would let him reach peak combat power in the shortest time.

“You have a clear plan—I won’t interfere,” Leng Yaoju’s crimson lips parted. “By the way, speaking of Divine Artisan Zhenhua, I recall someone… When I once asked Zhenhua to forge Heaven-Forged metal, I met his close friend and personal chef…

Xuanzhen, since you’ve connected with Divine Artisan, you must know him.”

“Uh…”

Zhao Xuanzhen broke into a cold sweat, feeling caught red-handed—how Zhen Wo achieved Golden Awakening, Leng Yaoju wasn’t stupid; she must know.

Leng Yaoju gently propped her chin, her exquisite smile tender beyond words: “Good disciple, tell me—how has the Master of the Body Sect treated you?

Between the two of us, who do you prefer as your teacher?”

“Teacher, let me explain… I’m not making excuses… I haven’t switched sects because of my second awakening or Body Sect techniques…

I’m still a loyal servant of the Spirit Tower!”

…

On the ninety-ninth floor, moonlight streamed through the gauzy curtains, draping the sleeping girl in a layer of frost; her silver hair stirred without wind, rippling in the silver glow, mirroring the soul bone floating before her chest.

The hundred-thousand-year left-leg soul bone emitted alternating shades of silver light; the girl’s slender white fingertip brushed its edge—the dormant dragon soul awakened; the room sank into eerie silence.

Countless silver light particles drifted, weaving behind the girl into a vast phantom silhouette of the Thorned Dragon Emperor, its scales and thorns layered in semi-transparent spatial strata.

Sensing the aura of the Silver Dragon King, the Thorned Dragon Emperor immediately sent a submission thought, weeping and begging to cling to her leg.

Naer exhaled gently, her soul power guiding the hundred-thousand-year left leg bone into her body; the Thorned Dragon Emperor felt no resistance. Had Zhao Xuanzhen absorbed the Thorned Dragon Emperor, this would have been a fierce battle of dragons and tigers, with the soul bone’s backlash probability nearing one hundred percent.

Making the dragon blood soul bones submit and merge harmoniously—this was the power of the Silver Dragon King’s half-body.

Activating the Silver Dragon King’s bloodline within her, Naer’s pupils transformed into magnificent purple, her gaze calm and distant: “Zhao Xuanzhen, that was truly my heart speaking—I will protect you. You become the greatest under heaven, and I will be the second greatest. Those who dare challenge you must first pass through me…”

“My genius shall never fall.”

(End of Chapter)