Chapter 68 Bait and Game, Ignited Greed
Tian Dou City, the private residence of the Glory esports team.
A faint smell of gunpowder and blood lingered in the air. The once peaceful manor was now shrouded in a heavy and oppressive atmosphere because of the appearance of a soul bone.
Ning Fengzhi sat in the main seat. This sect leader, who had seen countless storms, was staring intently at the skull on the table, which emitted a colorful mist. Beside him, Sword Douluo Chen Xin stood with his hands behind his back. His seemingly calm eyes held a sharp sword intent that could even cleave space itself.
"Young friend Ye Feng," Ning Fengzhi finally spoke, his voice gentle and refined, yet carrying an undeniable air of authority, "you should know the significance of this soul bone. Although Shi Nian's Remnant Dream Martial Soul is insidious, this 'Spirit Condensation Wisdom Skull' is a top-grade gem-type soul bone. It is a coveted treasure for any control or support-type soul master."
Ye Feng sat casually opposite Ning Fengzhi, the Thousand Chance Umbrella spinning rapidly between his fingers. The sound of the umbrella ribs meshing together was exceptionally clear in the silent hall. He didn't activate any interfaces, but simply observed every detail with his extraordinary dynamic vision.
"Sect Master Ning, I know what you're thinking." Ye Feng stopped what he was doing, and the Thousand Chance Umbrella made a soft sound, transforming back into an ordinary long staff. "You're curious about how a Soul Sect Master could see through a Soul Saint's illusion and kill him. Or perhaps you're worried that this bone will bring disaster to Rongrong."
Ning Fengzhi raised an eyebrow slightly, finding himself increasingly unable to understand the young man before him. Those dark pupils held a calmness and madness beyond his years.
"Ye Feng, name your price." Ning Fengzhi looked directly into his eyes. "Whether it's gold soul coins, territory, or the three promises of my Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School, as long as this soul bone can stay with Rongrong, I will agree to it. This is not only for the future of the sect, but also for Rongrong's safety."
To everyone's surprise, Ye Feng gently shook his head.
"I won't sell it, and I won't give it away."
Sword Douluo Chen Xin's brows furrowed instantly, and a sharp sword pressure reverberated throughout the hall. Although he meant no harm, the pressure of a Title Douluo still caused the surrounding furniture to groan in pain.
"Kid, you've got quite the appetite," Chen Xin said coldly.
Despite the pressure, Ye Feng remained calm and even elegantly poured himself a cup of tea. "Senior Sword, don't rush. I'm keeping it not because I want to keep it for myself. Rongrong is only at the third level of the Heart of Constancy, and her spiritual power is far beyond that of her peers, but her resilience is insufficient. Forcibly absorbing this ten-thousand-year-old skull will only make her dependent on it in future battles. What I want is for her to break through her limits on her own through my training."
Ye Feng stood up, walked to the window, and turned his back to everyone.
"Moreover, this bone is now a 'bait'." His voice became deep and unfathomable. "Sect Master Ning, have you considered that it's impossible for someone like Canghui Academy to possess a soul bone of this level? This kind of thing is more like a 'reward' or a 'pre-existing opportunity' for some power. Now that the opportunity has ended, the original owner must be getting restless."
Ning Fengzhi's heart skipped a beat. He had indeed not thought deeply about this issue. As the leader of the three upper sects, he keenly sensed the political acumen hidden in Ye Feng's words.
Section 3: Shadows and Deadly Intent in the Night
The moment Ye Feng finished speaking, the shadows of the trees outside the hall trembled violently. It was an extremely subtle fluctuation of soul power, but to Ye Feng's keen hearing, it sounded like a thunderclap.
"Since you're here, leave something behind."
Ye Feng didn't even turn around. He suddenly flicked his right hand backward, and the Thousand Chance Umbrella instantly changed its form.
"Gazelle gun!"
Da da da da da—!
Soul power was converted into dense physical kinetic energy at the tip of the umbrella, and a string of flames instantly blocked the shadows in the corridor. Ye Feng's use of soul power was extremely stingy yet precise; every bullet sealed off the assassin's escape route.
That was a fighting style never seen before, requiring neither lengthy soul skill incantations nor the need for charging.
"Ugh!" A muffled groan rang out.
A black-robed assassin was forcibly pulled from the shadows. He was a Soul King, and his Martial Soul was the extremely rare "Shadow Falcon." However, he was facing a madman who could use soul power as a precise mechanical device.
"Uncle Jian!" Ning Fengzhi called out softly.
Sword Douluo Chen Xin snorted coldly, forming a sword with his fingers and casually waving it. A pure white sword aura traversed dozens of meters, precisely severing the assassin's arm. Knowing he was outmatched, the assassin decisively detonated a poison gas bomb he carried, transforming into a blur as he fled.
"They were assassins from the Spirit Hall." Chen Xin frowned as he looked at the remains on the ground. "Only that place could teach such self-destructive escape methods. Ye Feng, did you know they would come all along?"
"I don't know." Ye Feng put away the Thousand Chance Umbrella, his tone calm. "But I do know that greed is an incurable disease. As long as this bone is still in my hands, people in the shadows will keep coming to my door."
Meanwhile, at Shrek Academy.
Tang San sat on the windowsill of his dormitory, the Blue Silver Grass in his hand twisting and changing continuously.
Ever since Shi Nian's death last night, he'd felt a deep emptiness inside. As a disciple of the Tang Clan, he trusted his intuition implicitly. It felt as if a smooth path that had once been his had been abruptly cut off.
"Teacher, I can feel it," Tang San said to Yu Xiaogang in the shadows. "That guidance... that was an extremely important opportunity for my spiritual power. It was in Ye Feng's hands. That feeling was more real than life itself."
Yu Xiaogang sighed, his eyes filled with worry. "Xiao San, you've been too impetuous lately. Ye Feng earned his spoils through his own strength. Besides, Ning Rongrong has completely sided with him now. If you force your way in, not only will your reputation be ruined, but your friendship will be completely severed as well."
"Friendship?" Tang San suddenly stood up, his eyes bloodshot. "The way Rongrong looks at Ye Feng now is completely different from how she looks at us. That man's martial soul, those strange steel mechanisms, are not something that should exist in the world of soul masters! He's an anomaly!"
He recalled Ning Rongrong's bizarre yet efficient fighting style on the field during the day. That elegant yet deadly footwork, that wildness in using the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda as a warhammer... Originally, Rongrong should have been his protector, his support!
Just then, a sharp bird cry suddenly came from outside the window.
A jet-black carrier pigeon landed on the windowsill, with a secret letter bearing a special mark tied to its leg.
Tang San opened the letter, his pupils suddenly contracting. The letter contained only one sentence: "Do you want to reclaim your rightful destiny? Meet me in Sunset Forest tomorrow night at midnight. —Someone who knows Ye Feng's background."
The conflict has temporarily subsided within the Glory team's base.
Ye Feng summoned Huo Wu, Shui Bing'er, and Zhu Zhuqing to the inner hall. The colorful skull remained quietly on the table.
"This bone is indeed top-quality." Ye Feng sat back down, his gaze sweeping over the three exceptional women in front of him. "But the reason I put it here is not to show off, but to set a benchmark for you."
He looked at Huo Wu: "You have plenty of aggression, but your control is too poor. If you can limit Thunder Academy's vice-captain for three minutes without using your soul skills in tomorrow's team match, I can consider giving you the right to use this bone."
Huo Wu snorted coldly, though she was unconvinced, her eyes burned with fervor. This direct incentive was far more effective than any hypocritical motivational speech.
Ye Feng then looked at Shui Bing'er: "Bing'er, your current ice seal relies too much on your soul ring. I want you to learn 'micro-management'. If you can use your soul power to condense an ice crystal rose that will never melt in your palm, I'll give you this bone."
A hint of shock flashed in Shui Bing'er's beautiful eyes. This requirement for the precision of soul power was simply too much to ask. But this challenge also thoroughly ignited her pride.
Finally, Ye Feng looked at Zhu Zhuqing.
Zhu Zhuqing remained silent, but her gaze never left Ye Feng. To her, the soul bone was merely an inanimate object; the "absolute control" Ye Feng displayed in battle was what she truly sought.
"Zhu Qing, you're in charge of guarding it." Ye Feng pushed the soul bone in front of Zhu Zhu Qing. "Anyone who wants it will have to get past you first. Starting tomorrow, your training will double. What I'm going to teach you isn't how to kill, but how to 'dominate the battlefield'."
"Okay." Zhu Zhuqing's answer was concise and powerful. She reached out, her fingertips tracing the cool surface of the soul bone, and then her figure flashed, disappearing into the shadows of the corridor along with the soul bone.
"Alright, Rongrong, you stay here. The rest of you go and rest."
With Ye Feng's command, only Ning Rongrong, who looked slightly awkward, remained in the hall.
"Captain... how did I perform today?" Ning Rongrong asked softly, her cheeks still flushed from the intense battle.
"Passable, but not enough." Ye Feng stood up, and with a click, the Thousand Chance Umbrella transformed into a giant spear. The spearhead gleamed with a chilling light, exuding a sinister quality under the moonlight.
"In today's battle, Yu Tianxin was suppressed by you because she underestimated her opponent. If she were facing a true agility-based attacker or a control-based attacker with long-range blocking abilities, your footwork would only make her die faster."
Ye Feng's words were like a bucket of cold water, instantly extinguishing Ning Rongrong's pride.
"Then... what should I do?"
"Learn to anticipate." Ye Feng pointed to his head. "The brain of a support-type Soul Master must be a sophisticated computer. You need to judge the trajectory of the opponent's next skill based on the flow of their Soul Power and the slightest twitching of their muscles. This doesn't require any system, just your instincts."
The next four hours were the darkest night of Ning Rongrong's life.
Without system prompts or cheat codes, Ye Feng used the Thousand Chance Umbrella to continuously simulate various tricky attack angles. Each of his attacks was just a fraction faster than Ning Rongrong's limit, forcing her to think on the brink of life and death.
"Support classes don't need elegance!" Ye Feng's voice was cold and ruthless in the night. "If you want to survive in this era, you have to become a freak that even assassins despair of!"
At three in the morning, Ning Rongrong was finally able to complete three complex directional shifts within a second, and even managed to use the base of the glass pagoda to deflect Ye Feng's spear tip. She collapsed helplessly to the ground, drenched in sweat.
Ye Feng walked up to her and handed her a bottle of recovery potion he had concocted himself.
"Remember this feeling. Tomorrow, we'll be facing the entire Thunder Academy team. I need you to coordinate with Huo Wu to complete a 'double control' combo. If you can't do it, you can forget about ever touching that soul bone again."
Meanwhile, in a dark corner of Tiandou City.
Bishop Salas stared at the one-armed assassin before him, his face so dark it was almost dripping with gloom.
"Even Sword Douluo is there... Ning Fengzhi, you really did choose this new seedling." Salas sneered. "However, that boy is too arrogant. He put the soul bone on the table, which is simply an insult to all soul masters in the world."
"Your Excellency, the plan has been set up," a subordinate reported in a low voice. "Although Tang San is somewhat hesitant, his hatred for Ye Feng is genuine. We just need to give him a push from behind."
Salas smiled cruelly: "Alright. Let Tang San test Ye Feng's trump card. Once they're both severely injured in Sunset Forest, we'll take action to retrieve the 'lost' sacred artifact."
However, Salas was unaware that while he was plotting his scheme, Ye Feng was sitting by the window, fiddling with some small metal parts in his hands.
There was no system interface in front of him, only a hand-drawn map of the Sunset Forest.
"Tang San will definitely go," Ye Feng muttered to himself, the moonlight casting a long shadow. "Salas will go too. Even Ning Fengzhi will secretly send people to follow him. Since everyone wants to play this game of vying for power..."
He gripped the Thousand Chance Umbrella tightly and clicked the parts back into the handle.
"Let's see who's the one who pulls the net last."
He faced the rising sun and flashed a standard, yet wicked, smile. There was not a trace of righteous warmth in that smile, only excitement at the impending climax of this contest.
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