Chapter 375: Instructor Ning's Abnormality (Three-in-One Chapter, So Sleepy)

Li Zhangsheng arrived beneath the Li Fire Parasol Tree and, under the puzzled gazes of the Qixi Wind Speed Cat and the Jade Rabbit, climbed up in a few swift movements.

Looking at Instructor Ning Bizhen, who was peacefully lost in a deep slumber, Li Zhangsheng was not foolish enough to test her breathing or heartbeat; the contract imprints of the Qixi Wind Speed Cat and the Jade Rabbit told him that Instructor Ning was still alive, and naturally, the Three-Legged Fire Crow was also still alive.

However, the Three-Legged Fire Crow's injuries had reached a point of being almost beyond saving, even worse than last month; even the Li Fire Essence of the Li Fire Parasol Tree could only delay the trend toward death.

【Spirit Beast Name】: Three-Legged Fire Crow (Mature Stage)

【Spirit Beast Realm】: Leader 9th Rank

【Spirit Beast Race】: High-Level Monarch

【Spirit Beast Quality】: Top Grade

【Spirit Beast Bloodline】: Golden Crow (Thick)

【Spirit Beast Attribute】: Fire Element

【Spirit Beast Status】: Extremely Near-Death (Bloodline Burning exhausted, soul damaged, unable to fight; can use Li Fire Essence and Soul Grafting Secret Technique to sustain life. To fully recover, a large amount of Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence is needed.)

【Spirit Beast Weakness】: Water Attribute

Compared to last month, the Three-Legged Fire Crow's realm had already shrunk from Lord 6th Rank to Leader 9th Rank; without the Li Fire Essence, the speed at which the Three-Legged Fire Crow was consuming its realm to sustain its life would only grow faster, and when the Three-Legged Fire Crow's realm had nowhere left to drop, that would be the moment it perished.

This was the first time Li Zhangsheng had looked at the Three-Legged Fire Crow from up close.

"It's a female!" Li Zhangsheng glanced at it subconsciously, then chuckled, taking out the Jade Ceramic Jar containing the Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence.

Beneath the Li Fire Parasol Tree, the old woman watched nervously without any intention of stopping him; Li Zhangsheng was her last straw, and she could only trust him.

Li Zhangsheng forcefully pried open the Three-Legged Fire Crow's Bird Beak, opened the lid of the Jade Ceramic Jar, and under the guidance of his Mental Power, the Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence inside transformed into a thin, long line of blood, slowly flowing into the Three-Legged Fire Crow's Bird Beak and straight into its stomach.

In the blink of an eye, 1/3 of the Spirit Essence in the Jade Ceramic Jar was gone, and it was at this moment that Li Zhangsheng actively stopped the guiding action; the Three-Legged Fire Crow was different from his own Demon Pets, as it had been in a near-death state for three years, and while its exterior seemed normal, its interior was likely riddled with holes and could only be described as terrible.

For the Three-Legged Fire Crow, the Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence could be called sweet dew after a long drought, equivalent to a Super Great Tonic Pill; Li Zhangsheng was afraid it would be too weak to handle the supplement, so he wanted to feed it to the Three-Legged Fire Crow in three portions.

As for the time interval, it would naturally be based on the Three-Legged Fire Crow's condition.

The next moment, the Three-Legged Fire Crow felt as if a fire had been lit in its stomach; for other Demon Pets, this might be excruciatingly painful, but not for it, because like the Blazing Flame Bird, it was immune to Fire Element energy.

Soon, the Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence fused with its blood, and as more and more Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence was contained in its blood, a large expanse of flames suddenly erupted from the Three-Legged Fire Crow's body, rapidly sweeping toward Instructor Ning Bizhen, who was holding it in her sleep.

Li Zhangsheng was quick-witted and, the moment the flames rose, immediately separated Instructor Ning from the Three-Legged Fire Crow, though a few flames still caught the fabric of her hem and showed a trend of rapidly growing.

Although the Three-Legged Fire Crow was Instructor Ning's Life-Bound Demon Pet, these flames were entirely a product of its unconscious state and could naturally affect Instructor Ning.

Furthermore, accompanying the flames was high temperature!

"Instructor, forgive me!"

Li Zhangsheng's hands were covered in Starlight Power, and he immediately patted out all the wisps of flame on Instructor Ning.

However, the temperature here was simply too high and showed a trend of becoming even more intense, so he hurriedly held Instructor Ning with one hand and grabbed the Jade Ceramic Jar with the other, jumping down from the tree hollow.

Just as Li Zhangsheng landed, the Three-Legged Fire Crow suddenly opened its eyes; its sickly, listless gaze had lost some of its dullness and gained a bit of sharpness, staring straight at the Jade Ceramic Jar in Li Zhangsheng's hand.

To it, the Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence was simply a supreme panacea.

At this moment, the Three-Legged Fire Crow actively opened its Bird Beak and inhaled forcefully; a powerful suction force was generated, pulling at the Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence in the Jade Ceramic Jar.

Li Zhangsheng landed on the ground while holding Instructor Ning, and he naturally saw the Three-Legged Fire Crow's actions, but he did not stop it.

The Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence turned into a line of blood, continuously falling into the Three-Legged Fire Crow's open Bird Beak, and in almost the blink of an eye, the Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence in the Jade Ceramic Jar was wiped clean.

The Three-Legged Fire Crow revealed an exceptionally satisfied smile, and then its expression changed as it hurriedly closed its eyes to digest the Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence with all its might.

More flames rose from the Three-Legged Fire Crow's body, almost covering the entire Li Fire Parasol Tree, but unlike the previous flames, these were red with a hint of gold, the temperature was higher, and they carried a bit of the true essence of Sun True Fire.

"What a high temperature!" Li Zhangsheng exclaimed, hurriedly holding Instructor Ning and retreating a distance.

The old woman, the Qixi Wind Speed Cat, and the Jade Rabbit also could not bear such high temperatures and likewise retreated a distance.

At this time, the old woman's eyes were wide, staring straight at the Three-Legged Fire Crow in the flames, then shifting her gaze to Instructor Ning.

Li Zhangsheng had not lied; her master could be saved.

At this moment, a powerful aura brewed and emerged within the raging flames, and as time passed, this aura rapidly magnified.

Li Zhangsheng could clearly feel that the Three-Legged Fire Crow's originally fallen realm was rising rapidly, once again becoming a Monarch-level Demon Pet, and it was still rising quickly.

It was originally a Monarch-level Demon Pet, so the difficulty of recovering its original realm was not very high.

Suddenly, Instructor Ning's body trembled noticeably, and her originally tightly closed eyes slowly opened, looking with confusion at Li Zhangsheng, who was holding her.

Due to the Soul Grafting Secret Technique, as the Three-Legged Fire Crow recovered rapidly, her own state was also recovering quickly.

"Eh, Zhangsheng!" Looking at Li Zhangsheng, who was close at hand, Ning Bizhen felt as if she were dreaming, only this dream was far too realistic.

Wasn't she asleep? How did she wake up again?

"Great, the Instructor is awake!" Seeing Instructor Ning wake up, Li Zhangsheng revealed a smile of wild joy.

"Young... Young... Young Lady..."

The old woman on the side was even more excited; her lips trembled violently, and she wanted to speak but choked up.

Hearing the voices of Li Zhangsheng and the old woman, Ning Bizhen's dazed eyes regained clarity; she discovered this was not a dream, and furthermore, she could clearly feel her originally closed Consciousness Sea recovering rapidly.

"Put me down at once!" Ning Bizhen's complexion had a bit more ruddiness than usual; although she still didn't know what was going on, being held in one arm by Li Zhangsheng felt a bit shameful, and she was especially unaccustomed to the feeling of being held by a man, even if Li Zhangsheng was her student.

Li Zhangsheng hurriedly put his instructor down; upon finding Firm Footing, Ning Bizhen felt her state was much better than before, no longer as dizzy as in the past, and it was still recovering rapidly.

She knew very well what this represented and hurriedly looked subconsciously in the direction of the Three-Legged Fire Crow; at this look, she opened her mouth in surprise and did not close it for a long time.

Not far away, the Three-Legged Fire Crow had undergone another change; the red and gold flames suddenly exploded, and as if possessing spirituality, they hovered above its head.

These flames gathered rapidly, and in the span of a few breaths, they compressed into a large mass of golden Sun True Fire.

Within the Sun True Fire, a clear phantom of a bird was born, accompanied by a powerful Pressure that was as imposing as a prison.

This bird phantom was over a zhang tall with a wingspan of four or five meters, looking like a giant crow, but unlike an ordinary crow, it had three legs under its belly, and its eyes were like fire, filled with a majesty that looked down upon the world.

"Three-Legged Golden Crow!" Seeing the appearance of the phantom, Li Zhangsheng was not surprised at all; all along, among Fire Element Divine Beasts, the Three-Legged Golden Crow had been a presence as famous as the Phoenix and the Vermilion Bird.

The Three-Legged Golden Crow was known as the Sun Divine Bird and was also called "Cun Wu," often residing within the Sun and having three legs under its belly.

Even if it was only a Three-Legged Golden Crow phantom, it still brought great pressure to everyone present.

Just at this moment, a figure appeared abruptly before Li Zhangsheng and the others; Li Zhangsheng looked closely and realized it was Vice Principal Xu.

Vice Principal Xu had just returned from Yecheng. The Liu Clan welcomed his visit on the surface, but even when Vice Principal Xu lowered his pride, he still received a polite refusal. They were unwilling to part with even a shred of Li Fire Essence; this Li Fire Parasol Tree seemed to be of great use to them, and even at the cost of offending Vice Principal Xu, they had to preserve it as much as possible.

Consequently, Vice Principal Xu returned to the Academy in a depressed mood. However, before he even reached his office, he sensed a powerful Pressure. Thinking something had gone wrong here, he used Instant Movement to appear directly on the scene.

The first thing Vice Principal Xu noticed was the phantom of the Three-Legged Golden Crow, as well as the Three-Legged Fire Crow below, which was perfectly fine.

Seeing such a scene, even Vice Principal Xu felt his brain stall.

Wasn't the Three-Legged Fire Crow dying? How had it become so full of life now? Was this a final burst of energy before death, or had it truly recovered?

Thinking of this, Vice Principal Xu hurriedly looked at Instructor Ning and asked, "Instructor Ning, what is going on here?"

"I don't know either!"

Ning Bizhen shook her head and couldn't help but look at Li Zhangsheng subconsciously. Although she hadn't seen the preceding process with her own eyes, she could guess that it must have been Li Zhangsheng who saved her.

"Zhangsheng, what method did you find?"

"Principal, some time ago I accidentally encountered a stroke of luck and obtained a jar of Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence!" Li Zhangsheng lied with his eyes open; he certainly wouldn't tell the truth.

Furthermore, Li Zhangsheng was not afraid of Vice Principal Xu investigating him in secret; he had plenty of ways to distance himself from it.

Steward Li Tong had used an anonymous method to register the mission at the Hunter Guild. Unless a massive amount of manpower and resources were used, it would be difficult to trace it back to him. Even taking a step back, even if they did trace it to him, it would take a considerable amount of time.

Taking another step back, even if they accidentally traced it to him, Li Zhangsheng could use various excuses to deflect, such as claiming he discovered the entrance to a Secret Realm that could only be opened with the blood of a Spirit Beast containing the Three-Legged Golden Crow Bloodline.

Most importantly, even if there were people in the know, they would likely only be people from his own Academy...

"I really didn't misjudge you; you kid are someone with great fortune!" Vice Principal Xu excitedly patted Li Zhangsheng on the shoulder with such force that Li Zhangsheng's shoulder ached.

However, Vice Principal Xu had no intention of getting to the bottom of it. Who didn't have a few secrets? Besides, Li Zhangsheng was the most prestigious student at Yuanling Academy; he was more than happy for Li Zhangsheng to have more secrets.

"Not at all, not at all!" Li Zhangsheng hurriedly acted humble.

"But you really were willing to part with it. That was a whole jar of Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence, a priceless treasure! Even I find myself coveting it!"

The "priceless treasure" in Vice Principal Xu's mouth meant its value was extremely high, but its exact worth was unclear.

Vice Principal Xu sighed, feeling admiration for Li Zhangsheng's loyalty and righteousness. If an ordinary Superior Quality or Top-tier Spirit Beast without a bloodline were to devour this jar of Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence, it could almost certainly obtain a Concentrated Grade Three-Legged Golden Crow Bloodline. That was a Monarch Species, and with the bloodline suddenly raised to the Concentrated Grade, there was a significant possibility that its quality would also leap forward.

Simply put, this jar of Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence, at the very least, represented a Superior Quality, Monarch Species Demon Pet. What if it were Top-tier quality?

It was no wonder Vice Principal Xu sighed. Faced with such a great temptation, if one were even slightly selfish, no matter how well Instructor Ning Bizhen usually treated them, they would certainly be unwilling to give it up.

At this moment, Ning Bizhen turned her head to look at Li Zhangsheng, her beautiful eyes shimmering with brilliance. She stared at Li Zhangsheng without blinking, not knowing what she was thinking.

"The Instructor has taught me with great care, never holding anything back. She has always taken good care of me, and was even willing to teach me her most guarded skills. Now that the Instructor is in trouble, what does it matter if I pay a high price as her student!"

Li Zhangsheng spoke with great eloquence. He truly thought so, and besides, only he knew that Three-Legged Golden Crow Spirit Essence could be mass-produced, so he naturally didn't feel much heartache.

Additionally, during this time, Instructor Ning had gifted him many good things under various pretexts: a Giant Beast Egg suspected of being able to hatch a Top-tier Spirit, a Top-tier Secret Technique, an Advanced Secret Technique, two Superior Soul Crystals, a Low-grade Chema Mushroom, and an Advanced Demon Heart.

"Good, well said! I am very gratified. In a while, I will go discuss with my two old friends to try and compensate for your losses!"

Vice Principal Xu clapped his hands forcefully. The more he looked at Li Zhangsheng, the more he liked him. It was a pity he didn't have a daughter or granddaughter, otherwise, he would really have to try something.

The two old friends in Vice Principal Xu's mouth were naturally the two Deans, Zhang Kaishuo and Ning Wei. Whenever a major event occurred, he had to discuss it with them.

This time, Li Zhangsheng saved Instructor Ning's life, which meant a great deal to the Academy. Even though Ning Bizhen had wasted three years, at only 22 years old, she was still the youngest Fifth-rank Instructor at Yuanling Academy, and she had immense potential to be tapped; at the very least, she could become a Sixth-rank.

The current Yuanling Academy, including Vice Principal Xu, only had three Sixth-rankers in total, so Ning Bizhen's importance was self-evident.

At this moment, Vice Principal Xu looked at Ning Bizhen and noticed she was looking at Li Zhangsheng with an unusual gaze. His heart stirred inexplicably, but he couldn't help but shake his head.

This was a life-saving grace, especially since Ning Bizhen had endured three years of torment. Plus, Li Zhangsheng had packaged himself

too perfectly—at least in Ning Bizhen's eyes—so in the midst of her emotional agitation, it was inevitable that some feelings would arise.

This was normal, wasn't it!

Li Zhangsheng naturally sensed his instructor's strangeness, but he could only pretend not to notice and continued to look at the Three-Legged Fire Crow not far away.

After two or three breaths, Ning Bizhen finally reacted. Her face instantly flushed hot, and she hurriedly shook her head vigorously, temporarily dispelling the thoughts in her mind.

At this moment, the Three-Legged Golden Crow phantom let out a silent cry toward the sky, then dove down and merged into the body of the Three-Legged Fire Crow.

Chirp~

Within a few breaths, the aura of the Three-Legged Fire Crow became increasingly vigorous and high-rising. It let out a loud cry toward the sky, as if saying it had returned.

After fully recovering, the Three-Legged Fire Crow rushed to Ning Bizhen and opened its wings to embrace her.

"I'll be heading back first!" After confirming that the Three-Legged Fire Crow had indeed returned to health, Vice Principal Xu's figure vanished instantly, just as it had when he arrived.

After a long while, Instructor Ning and the Three-Legged Fire Crow finally separated.

The Three-Legged Fire Crow suddenly lay on the ground. Due to the Soul Grafting Secret Technique, Ning Bizhen understood its intention and immediately jumped onto its back.

However, the Three-Legged Fire Crow did not take off immediately; it continued to signal to Li Zhangsheng with its eyes. It kept Li Zhangsheng's life-saving grace firmly in its heart and prepared to show its gratitude in its own way.

"Zhangsheng, come up too!" Instructor Ning wore a bright smile. After fully recovering her health, she was no longer the sickly person she had been; her face had regained some color, and her charm had returned to its peak, barely inferior to Kailan.

"Alright!" Li Zhangsheng did not refuse and also jumped onto the back of the Three-Legged Fire Crow.

The tree hole of the Li Fire Parasol Tree could accommodate the Three-Legged Fire Crow, so its size was naturally not very large; it could barely squeeze two people in.

Li Zhangsheng sat in the front, almost sitting on the neck of the Three-Legged Fire Crow, while Instructor Ning sat in the back, squeezed tightly against Li Zhangsheng. Li Zhangsheng awkwardly realized that due to the limited space, he could clearly feel the softness on his back.

Ning Bizhen also felt the awkwardness, her pretty face instantly turning bright red, all the way to her earlobes. However, she did not change her posture, instead pretending not to notice and directing the Three-Legged Fire Crow to take off.

The Three-Legged Fire Crow spread its wings and, after two steps of running start on the ground, shot up like an arrow released from a bow, appearing a hundred meters in the air in the blink of an eye.

Li Zhangsheng wore a conflicted expression, looking both pained and happy. It wasn't just because of Instructor Ning; the surface temperature of the Three-Legged Fire Crow was very high, reaching seventy or eighty degrees, and he was being tortured every moment.

As for Instructor Ning, she didn't feel it as much as Li Zhangsheng because she had long since practiced the "Four Symbols Star Monster Taming Art" to a profound level. Her heat resistance far exceeded Li Zhangsheng's, and to her, it was no different from sitting on a heated kang.

However, Instructor Ning still noticed Li Zhangsheng's abnormality. She immediately thought of something and hurriedly opened her Star Apertures. She saw 25 points of light flickering on her body, and a touch of silver Starlight Power quickly spread across the surface of the Three-Legged Fire Crow.

At the same time, a Starlight Barrier wrapped them all up, resisting the biting cold wind.

Regarding the control of Starlight Power, Instructor Ning was naturally far superior to Li Zhangsheng. Li Zhangsheng could at most turn Starlight Power into a Starlight Barrier or cover his hands; more subtle changes were difficult for him to manipulate.

With the Starlight Power separating them, Li Zhangsheng felt a sense of relief, but he still took the initiative to lean his upper body forward, not daring to take advantage of Instructor Ning.

However, the flight speed of the Three-Legged Fire Crow was unimaginably fast. It hadn't flown for three whole years, so it naturally couldn't suppress the agitation in its heart.

At this moment, the Three-Legged Fire Crow was like a wild horse that had broken its reins, flying with all its might in the sky, the surrounding scenery flashing past like fleeting shadows.

Compared to the speed of the Three-Legged Fire Crow, the Flame Bird was nothing. Besides the gap in rank, quality, and species, it also had to do with their Bloodlines.

Although the speed of a phoenix is very fast, how can it compare to a Three-Legged Golden Crow, which is second to none when it comes to speed?

After about half an hour, the Three-Legged Fire Crow was barely satisfied and, under Instructor Ning's command, circled and landed in her courtyard.

After gaining Firm Footing, Li Zhangsheng breathed a clear sigh of relief; the Three-Legged Fire Crow had flown too fast, and his legs were inevitably a bit weak.

Looking at Instructor Ning, her expression remained as usual, and she even carried a hint of excitement; she had waited three years and finally experienced the feeling of riding the Three-Legged Fire Crow again.

Only then did they notice that there were a few more people in the courtyard; upon seeing that Instructor Ning was safe and sound, Instructor He Yan immediately rushed over and embraced her.

"Bizhen, it's so good that you're alright!"

Instructor He Yan's voice was full of emotion; she had been saved by Ning Bizhen back then, and if Ning Bizhen had died, she feared she would have lived in guilt.

Thus, as soon as she learned the news that Instructor Ning had recovered her Healthy state, Instructor He Yan couldn't wait to bring Luo Jing and Yuan Yongyan over.

Luo Jing and Yuan Yongyan watched excitedly from the side; they had originally wanted to hug their instructor as well, but they were beaten to it by Instructor He Yan.

"I'm fine, I've made everyone worry!" Instructor Ning's eyes were filled with tears as she comforted her close friend and students in return.

"It's good that you're fine, but how did you recover?"

Instructor He Yan let go of Instructor Ning; she was very curious, as Ning Bizhen had entrusted her students to her care that morning, only to suddenly recover her Healthy state by the afternoon.

It felt just like a dream!

"It is thanks to Zhangsheng; he saved me and Little Fire!" Ning Bizhen did not say how Li Zhangsheng had saved her; she knew very well that some things should not be known by too many people, otherwise, it would not be a good thing for Li Zhangsheng.

"You have cultivated a good student!" Instructor He Yan sighed; she could see that Instructor Ning did not want to say more, so she naturally and wisely did not ask further.

Li Zhangsheng just smiled without speaking, leaving the space to these women while he went to tease the Three-Legged Fire Crow, the Wind Speed Cat, and the Jade Rabbit.

After saving the lives of Instructor Ning and the Three-Legged Fire Crow, these three Demon Pets were naturally full of goodwill toward him.

Just as Instructor Ning and Instructor He Yan were conversing, in the Administrative Building conference room, Vice Principal Xu was also discussing the compensation for Li Zhangsheng with two Deans.

I cannot write romance scenes, so please do not mock me! As for the human female lead, I do not know myself; let it take its natural course, haha!

Today's goal: Three, Pigs, Verification!

(End of this chapter)