Chapter 699

"I taught you so many poses, and yet you won't even call me teacher a few more times."

Xu Jingming muttered to himself as he left the villa.

But he didn't care much.

There was plenty of time ahead—he'd already called her Professor Ling for nearly two years.

Waiting a little longer didn't matter; eventually, Ling Shuang would get used to it.

Xu Jingming was simply that kind of serious and diligent person.

Since the act of defying his master was already a settled fact, he would see it through to the end.

Back at his own villa, he didn't see Xia Lan in the first-floor living room, so he went straight to the first-floor training room.

Swish-swish-swish—

Inside the training room, Xia Lan's slender figure flickered like a phantom across the hundred-square-meter space.

In just three or four seconds, she flickered nearly ten times!

"No wonder she's a space-type ability user—truly powerful," Xu Jingming thought inwardly.

Space-type abilities were absolutely among the most like-BUGs of all ability types.

For offense, there was space slicing.

For defense, there was self-contained space—impossible to lock onto.

For escape, teleportation was far more effective than any protective talisman.

Even the Sect of Heavenly Fate summoned a space-type Ninth-Stage Beast Emperor and a Ninth-Stage Martial Saint, yet still failed to hold onto Ling Shuang.

This alone proved the terror of space-type abilities.

Xia Lan's space-type ability was only A-rank, nowhere near Ling Shuang's level.

But once she grew stronger, she would become an extremely fearsome presence among peers.

"Jingming, you're back?"

Seeing Xu Jingming at the door, Xia Lan's face lit up, and she flickered through space to stand before him.

Perhaps from prolonged training, she looked as if she'd just been pulled from water.

Sweat coated her forehead, her hair clinging damply to her skin.

Her tight combat suit clung to her figure, revealing her curvaceous silhouette.

"Yeah, just got back."

Xu Jingming nodded and smiled: "I'm going to practice a combat technique soon—its aura might radiate through the whole villa."

"You'd better train at the martial arts academy building; otherwise, you might not even be able to move normally."

Remembering how last time his aura had paralyzed her, leaving her too weak to stand,

Xia Lan's cheeks flushed slightly, and she nodded faintly:

"Understood. I'll head over now and come back after you finish training."

She paused, then asked curiously: "By the way, Jingming, have you gotten stronger again?"

Previously, Xu Jingming had already given her a faint sense of pressure.

Now, that pressure had grown noticeably stronger.

"Yes, my strength has indeed improved."

Xu Jingming didn't elaborate, fearing Xia Lan might accidentally leak the news at the academy building and alert the mole.

"Indeed, every time you return from the wilderness, your strength has improved."

Xia Lan whispered in awe, half-joking: "I feel like you're playing an online game—wildlands are your leveling ground."

"Kill monsters, gain experience, get stronger."

Hearing this, Xu Jingming raised an eyebrow.

Damn, a prophet, huh? You guessed it right!

After Xia Lan left, Xu Jingming returned to Ling Shuang's villa.

He'd originally planned to sort through the three space rings he'd looted from the three Heavenly Fate Sect members.

But when he scanned with his spiritual force, he remembered there was still one unused heavenly treasure inside one of the rings.

Swish—

A flash of light from the space ring, and a wooden box appeared in his hand.

Opening it, he saw a fruit as dark as charcoal, resembling a dragon fruit.

The fruit emitted a faint, refreshing fragrance, as if urging him to swallow it whole.

"SSS-rank heavenly treasure—Black Phoenix Fruit?"

Ling Shuang blinked, then realized: "Was this your reward from the Qingfeng Secret Realm?"

"Correct."

Xu Jingming nodded with a smile. "This Black Phoenix Fruit can only be consumed after reaching Seventh Stage."

"I've kept it in the space ring all this time—I almost forgot about it until just now."

"You can forget an SSS-rank heavenly treasure? You're really loaded."

Ling Shuang couldn't help but tease.

SSS-rank cultivation resources were extremely hard for even her to obtain.

"Loaded and reckless—I'll take the second part."

"But the first part? I don't agree. I'm still short on money."

Xu Jingming joked instinctively.

"The second part?"

As sharp as Ling Shuang was, she only hesitated a moment before understanding his meaning.

Her beautiful face instantly flushed crimson, spreading to her pale, translucent earlobes.

Because it was true—exactly as he said—and she'd suffered greatly because of it...

"Alright, no more joking. Black Phoenix Fruit—we split it evenly."

Xu Jingming stopped teasing her, pulled out a dagger from his space ring, sliced the fruit in half, and handed one half to her.

"You're in your golden period of growth—just eat it yourself. Don't worry about me."

Ling Shuang shook her head softly: "Besides, I'm not incapable of obtaining SSS-rank cultivation resources."

"Fine. Then I'll eat this one now. When I get another SSS-rank resource later, I'll share it with you, Sister Shuang."

Xu Jingming didn't refuse—he spoke plainly.

Ling Shuang's help to him had been utterly devoted; no SSS-rank resource could ever repay it.

But as Ling Shuang said, he truly still needed to strengthen himself.

"Gulping~~"

Xu Jingming opened his mouth and swallowed the Black Phoenix Fruit whole!

Instantly, a hot stream surged down his throat, then an infinite force erupted within his body!

Chi—

His skin turned instantly crimson, steam rising from every pore.

His muscles, bones, even his spiritual force, all surged in strength.

Unlike leveling up, this enhancement didn't come from Qi—it came from the Black Phoenix Fruit's own energy.

The strengthening lasted over ten minutes before slowly subsiding.

Xu Jingming's base attributes rose again.

【Physique】: Blood Qi (+)

【Spirit】: He (+)

"Physique and Spirit both increased by over three thousand points! Physique broke 50, 00, Spirit broke 40, 00!"

Xu Jingming's face lit up—he felt boundless power flowing through his body.

No wonder—it was a fresh SSS-rank heavenly treasure.

The SSS-rank Holy Essence Fruit he'd obtained from the Thunder God's legacy in the Ruins.

It had been stored for over a thousand years—its essence had long since leaked away.

After consuming it, his Spirit had only increased by 1, 00 points.

Compared to this Black Phoenix Fruit, the difference was crushing.

"Of course, it still can't compare to the boost from a breakthrough."

Xu Jingming shook his head.

The higher the stage, the more limited the gains from external pills or heavenly treasures.

Still, gaining 3, 00 base attribute points when you can't break through? That's more than enough.

"Ding-dong~~"

At that moment, the doorbell rang suddenly.

A holographic projection appeared in the training room, showing the image from the villa's front gate.

A tall, thin figure with a kind, harmless appearance stood at the door.

"Feng Kuan? It's him? What's he doing here now?"

Seeing him, Ling Shuang frowned slightly.