Star Dou Great Forest.
After hiding in the cave for nearly a full day, the two giant eagles finally stopped harassing them.
In truth, because of Tang San's "interference," their offspring had hatched prematurely. Although the immortal herbs were lost, the chicks had already absorbed enough spiritual essence, so the beasts no longer insisted on pursuing the group.
During this time, Tang San and the others had already finished absorbing the quasi-immortal herbs.
Dai Mubai's spirit power rose by three levels, reaching Level 44, and by the time of the Spirit Master Tournament, he was expected to reach Level 46.
Tang San's spirit power, originally at Level 36.5, broke through to Level 40.
Normally, the medicinal power of the quasi-immortal herbs would not have been enough to push him so far, but with the circulation of his Heaven Mysterious Skill, he barely managed to break through.
Oscar reached Level 38.5, and Zhu Zhuqing reached Level 37. With effort, both had a chance of reaching Spirit Ancestor level before the tournament.
However, it must be noted that what they absorbed were only quasi-immortal herbs. Aside from increasing spirit power, they did not improve their innate talent.
Compared to others, Zhu Zhuqing's path to breaking through Spirit Ancestor would still be long and difficult.
Grandmaster nodded in satisfaction. "In that case, by the time of the Spirit Master Tournament, we will have five Spirit Ancestor-level combatants. If Tianheng's side manages to obtain more immortal herbs, we might even form a full Spirit Ancestor team."
Liu Erlong looked forward to the future. "In past tournaments, any full Spirit Ancestor team could easily place in the top three. With Little San's command, plus Tianheng and Mubai's strength, we might even compete for the championship."
Tang San did not consider this an exaggeration. "Teacher, if we could also have fusion skills like yours, I believe the championship would be within reach."
Grandmaster placed his hands behind his back and said calmly, "I already have a plan. But it is still too early to talk about the championship, let's aim for at least second place."
"As for the next tournament, if you all compete together in the same lineup again, the championship will definitely be yours."
Tianheng laughed loudly. "Haha, with Uncle Xiaogang's guidance and everyone's strength, second place is definitely within reach."
The battle for the position of young sect master between him and Yu Tianxin heavily depended on performance in the Spirit Master Tournament. If he truly secured a top-two result, it would essentially confirm his victory in advance.
Flender clapped his hands to interrupt. "Those two have retreated. Let's leave first."
"Since Little San has already broken through, we might as well help him hunt his spirit ring along the way. Who knows, we might still encounter immortal herbs on the road."
Outskirts of Heaven Dou City.
Dugu Bo and Sword Douluo Chenxin appeared at the scene. In front of them lay a shattered carriage, along with the corpses of panicked escorts and a coachman.
With just one glance, Dugu Bo concluded, "A mental-attribute Spirit Master did this. It seems they were after that mental-attribute Spirit Bone."
Naturally, the most displeased party was the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
Ning Fengzhi had already prepared the funds to acquire the Spirit Bone, but it was intercepted during transport, an unacceptable humiliation.
Chenxin frowned and inspected the bodies, trying to find any clues.
Dugu Bo had been invited by Xue Xing to assist in the investigation, but he did not expect to find anything. He merely assisted Chenxin, while inwardly not caring much about the matter.
After all, the methods of mental-attribute Spirit Masters were beyond ordinary comprehension.
There was no one present who specialized in mental power, and the scene had clearly been cleaned up. There was simply nowhere to begin the investigation.
After some searching, Chenxin snorted coldly and left in frustration.
Dugu Bo also intended to leave. Just as he was about to go, something suddenly occurred to him.
Only he knew that Wu Qi possessed a head Spirit Bone, aside from the Seven Treasure team members. Even Ning Fengzhi had not been informed.
When dealing with a mental-attribute Spirit Master, the best countermeasure was another mental-attribute expert.
The Azure Luan Spirit had some mental attack capability, and with that Hundred-thousand-year head Spirit Bone, having Wu Qi intervene might yield results.
Of course, he had no intention of acting out of goodwill. His real goal was to "take advantage of the chaos" and seize the Spirit Bone for himself.
An incense stick of time later, he arrived at the Seven Treasure Academy and called Wu Qi away from training.
The members of the Seven Treasure team were confused, but seeing Dugu Bo's expression, they knew something major had happened.
In the reception room, Wu Qi asked impatiently, "Old man, the auction only starts tomorrow. Why are you looking for me today?"
The Heaven Dou Auction House had never had a recorded incident of lost goods. A transport carriage being hijacked was a disgrace they would not publicize.
Wu Qi being unaware was entirely normal.
Dugu Bo briefly explained the situation, then asked, "Kid, how good is your control over your Spirit Bone? If you can reconstruct what happened, we might be able to track down the thief."
Wu Qi did not answer immediately.
Something about this incident stirred a memory in him.
In the original timeline, Tang San and Xiao Wu had discovered an attacked auction convoy on the streets of Heaven Dou City.
The stolen Spirit Bone was identical to the one that Shi Nian later dropped, leading them to conclude that Shi Nian had been the culprit.
Now, however, Wu Qi's existence had changed many details compared to the original timeline.
For example, Tang San and the others' recent trip to the Star Dou Great Forest to hunt Spirit Beasts had never happened in the original timeline.
Furthermore, the convoy had not been attacked inside Heaven Dou City this time.
Wu Qi believed there was a high chance Shi Nian was still responsible. By the time of the Spirit Master Tournament, the truth would likely reveal itself naturally.
However, he could not reveal his knowledge of the future.
"Old man, I'm just a student, not some detective. Shouldn't you be asking someone else?"
Dugu Bo sighed. "Just try using your Spirit Bone. Otherwise, the stolen Spirit Bone will disappear without a trace, and we'll never find it."
Unable to refuse, Wu Qi agreed to go with him and inspect the scene.
Of course, even in the original timeline, there had never been any definitive proof that Shi Nian had stolen the missing Spirit Bone. It had always been speculation.
If someone else was actually responsible, they might even recover another Spirit Bone.
After requesting leave from the academy, Wu Qi set off with Dugu Bo for the crime scene.
Since Chenxin had failed to uncover any clues, the auction house, fearing news of the theft would spread, had immediately sealed off the area and begun cleaning up the aftermath.
By the time they arrived, soldiers from the Royal Knights had completely secured the scene.
Wu Qi couldn't help but marvel at the influence of the Heaven Dou Auction House, while Dugu Bo treated it as nothing unusual.
"Kid, half of the auction house belongs to the imperial family. Robbing one of its shipments is the same as provoking the royal family itself. Otherwise, why would they ask Chenxin and me to investigate?"
Wu Qi knew the imperial family was one of the auction house's owners, but he hadn't realized they controlled such a large share.
The Royal Knights recognized Dugu Bo and naturally did not stop him. However, when it came to Wu Qi.
Dugu Bo explained, "This kid has some unique insights into the case. I brought him here to see if he can uncover any additional clues."
"Have your men withdraw two li from the area. We'll take over the investigation for now."
The commander of the Royal Knights offered no objection and immediately carried out the order.
Before long, the two of them entered the scene.
Unfortunately, they had arrived a few minutes too late. The area had already been cleaned up, and many traces had been erased.
Dugu Bo shook his head helplessly.
"Take a look and see if you can find anything. I memorized the original scene before they cleaned it up. If anything is unclear, I'll fill in the missing details."
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