Chapter 709

Did I see that right? She's coming this way!

Seeing the red-clad woman, the center of everyone's attention, walking toward them, the thin man's eyes lit up instantly.

The fat man beside him stared wide-eyed, clearly unable to believe the thin man had such luck.

As the fat man had expected, the beautiful woman didn't even glance at them.

She walked straight to the bench beside them and said with a hint of apology to the man sitting there:

"Sorry, it took a little longer to prepare the gift."

Both men widened their eyes in disbelief—she prepared a gift? Did I hear that right?

But after noticing the man's demeanor and appearance on the bench, they relaxed.

Hmm, given his looks, it's understandable why a woman would be obsessed with him.

"No problem, let's go—I'm just starting to feel hungry now." Xu Jingming smiled, stood up, and left with Ling Shuang.

Only after Xu Jingming and Ling Shuang had vanished into the crowd did the two men finally retract their envious gazes.

How envious—how I wish I were that man; I'd gladly give up decades of life for it...

Ling Shuang's invitation was at the five-star hotel, Himan Hotel, located in the prime section of Laiying Business Street.

Aside from the initial reception staff, the entire hotel operated under fully automated management.

"The signature dishes at Himan Hotel—'Fire Snake Soup' and 'Fierce Lion Meatballs'—are both made from ninth-tier beast meat.

You can order them to try, but it depends on luck—sometimes the ingredients run out."

Ling Shuang smiled as she introduced them after entering the private room.

There were no servers in the room; orders could be placed directly via a smart tablet.

"Looks like I'm lucky—both dishes are available." Xu Jingming spotted the two dishes on the smart tablet.

Their prices were 400, 00 and 500, 00 Blue Star Credits respectively—fairly reasonable for ninth-tier beast meat.

After all, the flesh of such beasts was not only delicious but also counted as an A-class resource in itself.

Yet each serving was too small; if the portions were larger, they could even qualify as an S-class resource.

In the end, Xu Jingming ordered both signature dishes along with several others, totaling 2 million Blue Star Credits.

"Your ordered dishes will begin serving in about half an hour."

After placing the order, a brief notification popped up on the smart tablet.

At that moment, Ling Shuang handed over a small wooden box, smiling gently:

"This is the gift I prepared for you—open it. I think you'll like it."

"Oh? Then I'm looking forward to it."

Xu Jingming smiled and opened the wooden box.

Inside lay a plain, jet-black ancient ring.

Etched upon it was an intricate eastern dragon.

The entire black dragon coiled around the band, lifelike and strikingly realistic.

"Is this... a space ring?" Xu Jingming froze slightly.

"Yes."

Ling Shuang smiled brightly. "I had this space ring crafted this afternoon by a master armorer.

Its internal space is the same as mine—1 million cubic meters.

Also, its design matches mine as a pair.

My space ring is called the Black Phoenix Ring; yours will be the Black Dragon Ring."

Ling Shuang extended her right hand, revealing on her slender, porcelain-white index finger another black, ancient ring.

Only, the pattern carved upon it was a magnificent black phoenix.

"Black Dragon Ring... one million cubic meters?" Xu Jingming's heart trembled.

That meant he now had a personal space, one hundred meters long, wide, and high!

"A space ring with one million cubic meters capacity—S-class. This is an extremely rare treasure."

Eva's astonished voice echoed in his mind.

Space rings of this capacity were typically possessed only by ninth-tier adepts.

"Like it? Do you like it?" Ling Shuang bit her red lips, smiling softly.

"Like it? Of course I like it."

Xu Jingming hurried to reply, his face filled with wonder: "So this is what it feels like to be with a wealthy woman? It's beyond amazing."

"I'm not some wealthy woman."

Ling Shuang sighed helplessly. "You're too powerful, and you lack nothing in cultivation resources.

I didn't know what to give you—this space ring is the most useful gift I could possibly offer."

For an ordinary seventh-tier master, any single item in Ling Shuang's space ring would have been invaluable.

But unfortunately, Xu Jingming had no shortage of resources—he'd even swallowed an SSS-grade fruit that morning.

"Thank you, Sister Shuang."

Xu Jingming smiled, then pulled out the phoenix hairpin he'd bought earlier at the Treasures Pavilion:

"This is the gift I prepared for you."

"For me?" Ling Shuang's face lit up with surprise.

She eagerly opened the gift box, and the pale purple phoenix hairpin appeared before her eyes.

"It's a hairpin." Ling Shuang's eyes sparkled as she reached for it.

The instant her jade hand touched the hairpin, a powerful surge of spiritual energy erupted from within, flooding into Ling Shuang.

In an instant, her eyes lost all focus.

"Sister Shuang!" Xu Jingming's expression changed—he unleashed the terrifying Heavenly Divine Thunder.

But Ling Shuang showed no reaction at all—her eyes remained vacant, motionless as before.

"Eva, what's happening?" Xu Jingming asked, his face grim.

He wasn't a spiritual energy adept; he dared not probe her condition with his own spiritual force.

One misstep, and Ling Shuang could become permanently brain-damaged.

"This resembles the methods left behind by the strong of the Second Civilization Era."

Eva's holographic projection emerged from her smart bracer, her cute face unusually serious:

"Some masters imprint their spiritual energy onto objects—to attack, or to pass on legacies.

Ling Shuang has been affected by the spiritual energy embedded in the hairpin."

"Then why didn't it activate when others touched it?" Xu Jingming frowned.

The hairpin had been displayed at the Treasures Pavilion—countless people had handled it.

Not to mention himself and the manager—they'd both touched it, yet nothing happened.

"This spiritual imprint triggers only upon contact with a space-energy adept."

Eva mused. "Ling Shuang cultivates a combat technique related to spiritual defense.

If this were an offensive imprint, she'd have shown signs of distress.

But her breathing is steady—this must be a legacy imprint.

A supreme space-energy master leaving behind a space-energy legacy is entirely plausible."

"A space-energy legacy?" Xu Jingming exhaled slightly in relief.

Yet he still didn't relax—the brilliant Heavenly Divine Thunder continued to swirl around them as a shield.

PS: Something came up today—only one chapter. I'll make it up tomorrow.

P. .: Something came up today, so only one chapter. I'll make it up tomorrow.