Not long ago, Tang San had obtained a small opportunity. He brought back a few rare herbs that could strengthen the body.
After consuming them, Dai Mubai—who had just broken through to level 40—instantly gained three more levels, reaching level 43 Spirit Ancestor.
Ma Hongjun and Oscar also benefited greatly. One of them advanced to level 38, while the other reached level 39.
To put this in perspective, when Li Chang'an had left, Oscar had only just reached level 34, and Ma Hongjun had only recently obtained his third soul ring.
Tang San himself had also advanced significantly—he had stepped into level 40!
However, the herbs he gave to Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing did not produce much effect. After all, both of them had previously consumed Li Chang'an's immortal herbs. Compared with those, Tang San's herbs were of a lower grade.
As for Ning Rongrong, there was no suitable herb for her at all.
Upon hearing this, Li Chang'an frowned. He hadn't expected the "correction" of this world—or rather, the interference of the Divine Realm—to be this strong. Even after he had taken away the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, fate had still provided Tang San and the others with another opportunity!
But according to Xiao Wu, these were only common herbs, not true immortal herbs. The reason they had such a noticeable effect was that they were very precisely suited to each individual.
Moreover, Tang San had merely stumbled upon them in a forest—it wasn't some great treasure trove.
'That's fine then,' Li Chang'an thought to himself. After all, Tang San's greatest harvest from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well wasn't the immortal herbs, but the tempering of his body. That was what laid the foundation for his ability to absorb soul rings far beyond his level in the future.
Without that tempering, Tang San could never have absorbed a ten-thousand-year soul ring as his fourth. Once Li Chang'an sorted through these thoughts, he let out a quiet sigh of relief.
"So what if he's the child of destiny? Even if the Divine Realm lends him a hand, it won't change much."
Now that he was back, Li Chang'an's focus was no longer on Tang San. His eyes were set on the Clear Sky Sect, on the entire continent, and even on the Divine Realm.
Still, since herbs weren't the same as immortal herbs, Li Chang'an carefully checked Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing's pulses to ensure there were no side effects. Confirming there were none, he finally set his mind at ease.
With the foundation of immortal herbs in their systems, they didn't have much to fear.
"Zhuqing, you've been at level 40 for quite some time, haven't you?" Li Chang'an suddenly noticed, while taking her pulse, that her soul power was far denser than that of an ordinary level 40.
"Mm. About a week after you left, I broke through to level 40. But I still haven't gone to obtain a soul ring. I wanted to wait for you to come back and go with me," Zhu Zhuqing answered honestly, letting him hold her wrist.
Her situation was indeed special. Her third soul ring was already five thousand years old. For her fourth, she was confident she could absorb a ten-thousand-year ring. After all, her martial soul was no ordinary one. But the academy hadn't dared to make such a decision for her, so she had waited for Li Chang'an.
"Good. I'll go with you," Li Chang'an said, taking the chance to pull Zhu Zhuqing into his embrace. He gently stroked her silky black hair as he spoke.
"Mm." At that moment, Zhu Zhuqing shed her usual aloofness and curled up in his arms like a cat, obedient and gentle.
After their affectionate moment, Li Chang'an called Miao Ling out to join them. The four of them shared a warm lunch together. Afterwards, Miao Ling, Zhu Zhuqing, and Xiao Wu went off to class, while Li Chang'an headed for Flender's office.
By now, he had to start considering his departure. But first, he needed to discuss things properly with Flender. Fortunately, the academy had no direct conflict with Spirit Hall yet. As long as he managed things carefully, there should be no major issues.
Knock, knock, knock!
Li Chang'an tapped casually on Flender's office door.
"Come in, come in! Who else dares to knock like that if not you, Li Changsheng?" came Flender's lazy voice from inside.
Li Chang'an smiled helplessly and pushed the door open. Inside, Flender and Zhao Wuji were both reclining in rocking chairs, sipping tea in leisure.
"You two headmasters really have it easy. At this rate, if the academy were robbed, you wouldn't even notice," Li Chang'an said as he sat down on the sofa and poured himself a cup of tea.
"Bah! Flender, don't tell me you bought that three-copper-coin-a-jar tea again. You're already the principal—can't you be a little more generous?" Li Chang'an took a sip, then immediately spat it out, glaring at the notoriously stingy Flender.
"No choice. Running a school this size isn't cheap. Besides, you don't give me enough of your tea," Flender replied lazily, rocking back and forth.
"Not enough? Principal, you've already swindled at least twenty jars from me, and you're saying it's not enough?" Li Chang'an sighed, pulling another jar of tea out from his storage soul tool.
Flender instantly perked up, leaping from his chair. In a flash, the unopened jar of tea vanished into his possession.
"Haha! Changsheng, you really are a little tycoon. Here, here—let's drink the tea I already have. I'll save this one for later." Flender pulled out an older jar—the very first one Li Chang'an had given him—and personally brewed a pot.
"Principal, if I'm not mistaken, that's the jar I gave you the very first time, isn't it? You really know how to hoard things." Li Chang'an rolled his eyes, though he didn't press the matter further.
Flender always kept the good tea for himself and only brewed a little for others. The fact that the original jar was still unopened showed just how unwilling he was to use it.
"What can I say? I'm poor. Better to save it. And besides, your tea is from the Hong Commerce—it's top-grade. I can't bear to waste it."
Flender sighed again. He carefully pinched out just enough leaves for three and a half cups—pouring one for Li Chang'an, a half cup for Zhao Wuji, and two full cups for himself.
He had already calculated that this exact amount was the limit; adding any more water would spoil the taste.
Li Chang'an didn't mind. To him, it was just tea. Zhao Wuji, on the other hand, felt shortchanged with only half a cup, but he reluctantly accepted it.
"Haha, Teacher Li, I suppose I should be grateful. Without you, I'd never even get half a cup of this kind of tea." Zhao Wuji, the burly man, sighed as he raised his cup.
"Teacher Zhao, I'll send you some privately later. Don't worry, I won't let Flender see," Li Chang'an said deliberately in front of Flender.
For him, these so-called rare teas were practically worthless—not because he was wealthy, but because within the Hong Commerce, the production cost was dirt cheap.
"You dare! If you do, I'll tear you apart along with Old Zhao! Out with it, brat—what business brought you here?" Flender snorted, lying back down in his chair and sipping his tea with satisfaction.
He wasn't fooled; he knew Li Chang'an wouldn't come without a reason. Still, he had a good impression of the boy.
After all, who wouldn't want to befriend a "Rich man"?
"Principal Flender, I came today to inform you… I won't be able to represent Shrek Academy in the upcoming Continental—"
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T/N:
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