Early in the morning, a series of urgent knocks on the door startled Chen Nan awake.
The little princess was outside, knocking on the door and shouting, "You scoundrel, open the door now..."
Chen Nan opened the door and said lazily, "Is there something you need?"
"Didn't you say you'd dispel the 'Soul-Trapping Spirit's Force for me today?"
"Oh, so that's what it is. Why are you yelling at me like that? Do you think I'd lift the restrictions for you?"
The little princess circled him, scrutinizing him from head to toe, and said, "Don't even think about making me beg you. I have something on you, hmph!"
"Last night, someone spilled a large bag of chili powder on the dragon arena at the Divine Wind Academy, causing the dragons to go berserk and disrupting the entire City of Sin. The vice-principal and his team worked all night to calm the dragons down. The dragon knights are furious and are currently searching the entire city for any suspicious individuals."
Chen Nan asked, "What does this have to do with me?"
"Because that person was you. I didn't expect you to be so audacious. But this was indeed an interesting thing, it's a pity you beat me to it." The little princess looked regretful.
"Hey, you little devil, don't talk nonsense, okay? Do you think I'm as wicked as you, interested in this kind of thing?"
"Hmph, I've been observing you ever since you came in. The fact that you showed no surprise upon hearing this means you already knew. But you lazybones, you only just got up. If it wasn't you, then who was?"
"This is absurd! Making wild guesses without any evidence—who would believe that!"
"Those people are really stupid. They kept suspecting those cultivators searching for the ancient gods' treasures, but they never imagined that you were the culprit." The little princess smiled maliciously and said, "If I gave them a heads-up, what do you think they would do?"
Chen Nan felt a chill run down his spine. If dozens of dragon knights charged at him all at once, he might as well just commit suicide. He reached out and tapped the little princess's smooth forehead, saying, "You little devil, you're always causing trouble, but I'm innocent and have nothing to fear. However, if you try to frame me, don't expect me to lift the restrictions on you from now on."
"Ouch, that hurts..." The little princess covered her forehead with her hand, crying out in pain, "You scoundrel, if you dare to disrespect me again, I will really report you. I'll fight you to the death!"
"You lecherous tiger, if you dare glare at me again, I'll skin you alive."
The little princess glared at Chen Nan resentfully and said, "Remove the restrictions on me, and do one more thing for me, and I will keep your secret."
"You need my help, and you're actually trying to negotiate with me?"
"It's not a harsh condition, I just want you to help me beat someone up."
"Renjian, the third prince of Baiyue Kingdom."
"Yes, that's the wretched guy. I really regret not giving him a good beating when he was on his way to our country last year."
Chen Nan said, "Although I really want to teach him a lesson, I will absolutely not be threatened by you, because I did not do what happened last night."
The little princess shouted, "You scoundrel, you're still pretending! I'm 100% sure you did it. Humph, he's your enemy too, haven't you forgotten? Every time you enter or leave Shenfeng Academy, you're universally hated. I think he noticed you during freshman registration. Aren't you afraid he'll secretly send someone to attack you first?"
Chen Nan pondered for a moment and said, "I don't take him and his men seriously yet."
"You used to get chased and beaten up, and now you're all smug, huh! But it's really strange how you've become so powerful in just a few months. I'll ask you one more time, are you going to help me beat him up or not?"
Chen Nan said, "I can help, but I have to make a condition."
The little princess asked, "What are the conditions?"
Chen Nan stared at Xiao Yu in her arms and said, "This lecherous tiger disappeared for a few days last time and then brought back the right hand bone of the ancient god. It must have gone to a mysterious place. If you can get it to take me there, I'll not only beat Ren Jian up, I'll beat him up ten times over."
Ever since the day the Tiger King brought back the divine bone, Chen Nan has been eyeing it constantly. Having been resurrected from the ancient tomb of gods and demons, he is eager to learn all the secrets about the ancient gods and demons.
Upon hearing this, Xiaoyu glanced warily at Chen Nan, then shrank closer to the little princess.
The little princess sighed, "I've asked it to take me more than once, but it just won't."
"The more this lecherous tiger acts this way, the more it proves that there's something strange about that mysterious place. Let me think of a way to make it obedient."
Upon hearing this, Xiaoyu let out a low growl at Chen Nan, then buried her head in the little princess's arms and refused to look at him again.
Chen Nan said to the little princess, "Give this lecherous tiger to me, and I have a way to make it obey."
"No, I can't let you torture Xiaoyu."
"Don't worry, I won't hurt it."
The little princess hesitated upon hearing this. She had always been very curious and eager to know where Xiaoyu had found the divine bone, but she couldn't bear to force it.
Seeing her expression, Chen Nan knew she was already interested. He beckoned to Xiao Yu and said, "You lecherous tiger, don't you get tired of always staying up high in the mountains?"
The little princess, her face flushed with anger, retorted, "You scoundrel, you filthy thief, you bastard, what nonsense are you spouting!"
Xiaoyu glanced at the little princess, then at Chen Nan, and with a "whoosh," it darted towards Chen Nan. Chen Nan reached out to catch it, but instead of rushing into his arms, it leaped high and landed on his head, its four little tiger paws scratching wildly at his head, making his hair a mess, like straw.
"I... ...
The little princess laughed first, then cried out urgently, "Don't hurt Xiaoyu..."
Chen Nan had severely injured the Tiger King, almost causing it to be killed by the mercenary group. Although it managed to escape, its strength dropped from the third tier to the first tier. In the City of Sin, it was subdued by Chen Nan several times and even swallowed his smelly socks, so it has always harbored hostility towards Chen Nan.
The tiger king let out a low roar, its body instantly growing larger, and then it opened its mouth and spat out a bolt of lightning. Chen Nan had no intention of harming it, only wanting to scare it, but he didn't expect it to suddenly attack. It was too late to dodge; the enormous tiger body stood in front of him, and the powerful lightning struck his chest.
The little princess cheered, "Xiaoyu is amazing!"
The powerful electric arc instantly turned Chen Nan's clothes to ashes, but the intense current did not cause him any harm. A soft, holy light emanated from his chest, and lightning surged toward that light as if drawn by it. Finally, all the light was gathered into the jade ruyi on his chest.
Chen Nan was truly terrified and broke out in a cold sweat. If he had been struck by that lightning at such close range, he would have lost half his life. Fortunately, this ancient god's relic, which specifically absorbs energy, helped him escape a calamity.
Xiaoyu stared in surprise at the crystal-clear jade ruyi on his chest, a look of fear suddenly flashing in her eyes, and then she immediately prostrated herself on the ground and began to tremble.
The little princess, whose view was obstructed from standing behind the Tiger King, did not see the jade ruyi emitting light. Now, seeing Chen Nan unharmed while the Tiger King looked so frightened, she was shocked and completely puzzled.
"Hey, you scoundrel, how come you're alright? Xiaoyu, what happened to you?"
As the Tiger King saw her approach, it quickly shrank and then "whoosh" burrowed into her arms.
Chen Nan observed all of this and noticed that Xiao Yu was extremely afraid of the jade ruyi, as if it were an innate fear. He decided to use the jade ruyi to subdue it, make it obedient, and lead him to explore that unknown and mysterious place.
He found a long robe on the bed and put it on, then walked up to the little princess and said, "Give me the lecherous tiger, I have a way to make it behave."
"No, what exactly did you do to Xiaoyu? Why is she so scared now?"
At this moment, Xiaoyu was nestled in the little princess's arms, her body still trembling slightly, looking extremely frightened.
Chen Nan reached out and pressed several acupoints on the little princess, causing her to lose consciousness. Then he placed her on the bed and pulled Xiao Yu out of her arms.
Xiao Yu struggled for a while, but no longer showed any ferocity. Realizing that it could not break free, it stretched out its two furry little tiger paws and covered its eyes, looking cute and adorable.
Chen Nan was overjoyed, not expecting such a reaction. He reached out and forcefully moved its two little tiger paws away, saying, "You lecherous tiger, look at me carefully and tell me if you know of a mysterious place?"
Forced to meet his gaze, Xiaoyu realized that the jade ruyi had disappeared. Its courage gradually grew, but it didn't dare to attack Chen Nan. It was still somewhat afraid, its eyes filled with anger and hostility. It let out a low growl in resentment, then shook its fluffy little tiger head.
"You lecherous scoundrel, how dare you lie to me even now!"
Chen Nan took the jade ruyi out of his pocket and said, "If you don't behave, I'll hang it around your neck."
Upon seeing the jade ruyi, Xiaoyu's eyes flashed with terror again, and her body trembled slightly. Seeing that he had achieved his goal, Chen Nan hurriedly asked, "You don't know about a mysterious place?"
Xiaoyu hesitated for a moment, but when she saw the crystal-clear jade ruyi swaying in front of her, she hurriedly closed her eyes and nodded.
Although Chen Nan had already guessed that such a mysterious place existed, he was still excited when Tiger King confirmed it.
"You lecherous tiger, you're taking me there later, you hear me?"
Upon hearing this, Xiaoyu opened its eyes in terror, its fluffy little tiger head shaking like a rattle drum. Chen Nan was furious and suddenly hung the jade ruyi around its neck, startling it so much that it broke free from Chen Nan's hands, jumped onto the bed, and burrowed into the bedding, trembling uncontrollably.
Chen Nan pulled it out, took the jade ruyi from its neck, and said, "Are you taking me with you or not?"
Xiaoyu looked at him pitifully and finally nodded helplessly. Chen Nan was overjoyed, but fearing it would escape, he reached out and randomly pressed acupoints on its body, sealing many of its pressure points. Then he threw it on the bed and released the little princess's pressure points.
After opening her eyes, the little princess first checked her clothes in a panic. After confirming that there was nothing wrong, she angrily said, "You scoundrel, why did you press my pressure points? What did you do to Xiaoyu?" She then hugged the motionless Tiger King in her arms.
Chen Nan said, "That guy has already agreed to take me to explore that unknown and mysterious place."
The little princess's anger turned to joy, and she said, "Great! I must see what kind of place it is."
Chen Nan said, "You'd better stay in Freedom City. Judging from the terrified look on Se Hu's face, it's definitely a dangerous place. I can't guarantee your safety if you go there."
"Hmph, who needs your protection? You're so self-righteous. I'm going anyway."
"Alright, I will now fulfill my promise and help you break free from the power of the Demonic Finger."
The little princess was overjoyed upon hearing this. Since leaving the capital of Chu, her martial arts skills had been sealed, which had been a great torment for the lively and active girl. Today, she was finally going to be freed from her shackles, so how could she not be happy?
Chen Nan moved his hands in quick succession, and streams of golden true energy flowed into the little princess's body like water. In an instant, the room was filled with light, and at the same time, the little princess's painful groans could be heard.
An hour later, the light in the room faded, and both of them were drenched in sweat. The little princess tried to wave her hand, but found that her body was still empty, without a trace of true energy. She angrily shouted, "You scoundrel, you lied to me! The restriction wasn't lifted at all!"
Chen Nan said, "If I were to completely untangle the Binding Spirit Finger for you, it would probably exhaust all my power, and I wouldn't be able to recover for several days. However, I have already untangled half of it for you, and I will untangle the other half another day."
The little princess huffed in dissatisfaction and said, "Fine, I'll ask you to help me again tomorrow. I feel awful, I'm covered in sweat, I need to go back and take a shower. I need to help Xiaoyu recover quickly."
Chen Nan said, "I told you I wanted it to take me to that mysterious place, so I'm borrowing it from you for two days."
"No, I want to go too."
"That place is too dangerous; you can't take small children there."
The little princess retorted angrily, "Pah! You're the child! Give Xiaoyu back to me right now!"
Chen Nan didn't reply. He grabbed Xiao Yu from the bed and darted out of the room. The little princess was both anxious and angry, and hurriedly chased after him, but when she came out, Chen Nan had already disappeared.
At this moment, everyone in the streets and alleys is talking about the earth-shattering dragon roar from last night. Many cultivators who came for the ancient god's relic did not go to that divine war ruins today, but instead stayed in the city to observe how things would develop.
Chen Nan walked down the street, his heart pounding with fear. He was extremely guilty and decided to force the Tiger King to take him to explore that mysterious place as soon as possible in order to avoid the current trouble.
He took Tiger King to another inn, where he spent most of the day meditating and recovering his depleted strength. Judging from Xiao Yu's terrified expression, he guessed that the mysterious place was no safe haven, and he needed to be in peak condition to deal with any possible situation.
The next morning, Chen Nan woke up early, washed up, bought a large bag of food on the street, and then dragged Xiao Yu away from the city of sin.
"You lecherous tiger, are you taking me or not? Didn't we agree yesterday? How dare you change your mind today!" In the woods outside the East City, Chen Nan held the jade ruyi and threatened Xiao Yu again and again. He gradually understood that what the tiger king feared was the holy radiance emitted by the precious jade. He channeled a wisp of true energy into the jade ruyi, causing it to emit a faint light, which startled the tiger king and made him tremble.
By this time, the Tiger King had regained its full size, its pair of pure white wings had spread out from its ribs, and its crystal-clear jade horn had emerged from its forehead. Chen Nan, fearing it would escape, held onto one of its ears. To his reassurance, the Tiger King seemed terrified and dared not move an inch, merely trembling at his feet.
Finally, under Chen Nan's tyrannical power, the Tiger King reluctantly nodded. Chen Nan was overjoyed and quickly climbed onto the tiger's back.
A beam of white light shot into the sky, and the Tiger King carried Chen Nan high into the air. The wind howled, and white clouds drifted by. Looking down at the earth, the green mountains and clear waters appeared like mud balls or thin lines. The scenery on the ground rushed past, and Xiao Yu flew eastward like lightning.