Douluo: In an extraordinary world, with unparallel understanding!

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The blonde-haired girl widened her eyes at Su Yu, looking completely bewildered. 

"You don't want it?" 

Finding Forbidden Magic Crystal in the Sun-Moon Empire was already a rare stroke of luck. Buying ten kilograms of it for 400,000 gold soul coins—was it a loss? 

To be honest, not really. 

However, she had initially planned to buy it at a bargain price, even trying to exploit a loophole to snatch the purchasing rights from someone else. In the end, she had to pay double its actual value. The disappointment hit her like a crashing wave. 

Four hundred thousand gold soul coins. 

The original price of just 5,000 gold soul coins had skyrocketed to 400,000. 

Ning Tian slightly regretted competing with Su Yu for it. 

No matter how you looked at it, Su Yu hadn't lost anything. 

Although Forbidden Magic Crystal was rare, the Sun-Moon Hall could still obtain some, just in limited quantities. He had purchased it mainly to add to Sun-Moon Hall's stockpile. 

And to make a profit in the process. 

But now, thanks to Ning Tian's interference, Su Yu had simply decided that no one should benefit. 

The Forbidden Magic Crystal was in Ning Tian's hands now, but sooner or later, she'd have to let go of it. 

"This esteemed customer, do you still want the Forbidden Magic Crystal?" 

Boss Wang asked Ning Tian again, confirming her decision. 

Gritting her teeth, Ning Tian stared at the dimly glowing crystal and handed over her black card. 

What else could she do? 

Rare metals were scarce in the Douluo Continent, with most deposits concentrated in the Sun-Moon Empire. Some speculated that it was due to differences in mining technology, but even now, the three Douluo nations had yet to solve this issue. Rare metals were always more expensive in the Douluo Continent than in the Sun-Moon Empire. 

Higher prices were one thing, but the real problem was how difficult they were to obtain. 

Many high-grade rare metals were nearly impossible to find in the three Douluo nations. 

Even someone as wealthy as Qian Duoduo struggled to acquire precious rare metals. His repeated failures in reaching the ninth-tier Soul Engineer level weren't just due to lack of skill—his understanding of high-grade rare metals was also insufficient. 

*** 

"There's actually a trace of life force fluctuation. I warned you before, but you wouldn't listen. And now you're adding it back in with your fifth soul ring?" 

Su Yu turned his head toward Tang Ya and shook his head, commenting on her cultivation choices. 

Even without activating his martial soul, he could sense the life force emanating from Tang Ya's Blue Silver Grass martial soul. 

She had infused so much poison into her first four soul rings, yet now she was adding life force with the fifth? 

Wasn't she worried about a conflict? 

At best, the increased life force would complement and enhance her poison, making it more potent. 

But Tang Ya's Blue Silver Grass devouring ability was originally linked to the Man-Faced Demon Spider's devouring ability. If her poison intensified, who knew whether the devouring ability would also be strengthened in a chain reaction? 

Even the Mandala Snake's venom paled in comparison to the Man-Faced Demon Spider's. 

In other words, the most dominant and powerful poison within Tang Ya's body came from the Man-Faced Demon Spider. If that attribute was further enhanced, it could mutate into something even more dangerous. 

On the other hand, if the newly added life force attribute managed to fuse with her devouring ability, things could take an entirely different turn. 

A worse outcome, however, would be that all her accumulated poison gets rejected. If that happened, her first four soul rings—aside from basic abilities like entanglement and imprisonment, as well as strengthening the Blue Silver Grass—would be rendered practically useless. 

What was the point of a Blue Silver Prison without its toxic properties? How could it effectively restrain an opponent? 

*** 

"No matter what, you originally suggested Tang Ya absorb a life-attribute soul ring with good intentions. On her behalf, I thank you," Bei Bei said. 

Although they had realized it too late, he still appreciated Su Yu's advice from their first meeting. 

His only regret was that he and Tang Ya hadn't followed Su Yu's suggestion back then. 

At the time, Tang Ya had only been absorbing her third soul ring. 

The influence of two century-old soul rings wasn't too significant, but from the third ring onward, with the addition of a thousand-year soul ring, the problem had deepened. 

Su Yu, however, remained indifferent. 

It was simply a case of a Blue Silver Grass soul master trying to take the path of a battle soul master. Now that they regretted it and tried to change direction, they risked becoming neither one nor the other. 

*** 

"By the way, we didn't get to face each other in the last tournament. I look forward to fighting you this time," Su Yu said casually. 

Since they had at least shared a meal together, he offered a few polite words. 

It wasn't until Su Yu left that Bei Bei let out a sigh of relief. 

"Su Yu is really strong." 

Even Wang Dong, who had remained silent the entire time, nodded in agreement. 

"What's the matter? You two didn't even fight." 

"It must be psychological. Su Yu's performance in the last tournament was undeniably impressive, but that was only because Shrek faced an unexpected setback. No matter how strong he is, do you really think he could challenge a Soul Emperor while still at the Soul Ancestor level?"

Among the seven members of the Tang Sect, Wang Dong remained silent. Aside from nodding in agreement with Bei Bei's assessment of Su Yu's strength after he left, her gaze remained fixed in the direction he had departed. 

She couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. 

Due to her strange condition, which prevented her from using soul tools, Wang Dong was particularly sensitive to inexplicable emotions. 

When Su Yu stood before her, he hadn't shown the slightest hostility. Yet, deep within, Wang Dong felt a strong sense of rejection, as if she was instinctively supposed to be hostile toward him. 

She didn't know why. 

However, after experiencing firsthand how an unexplained emotion had rendered her incapable of using soul tools—despite them being a crucial means of improving her strength—she had developed a deep aversion to such irrational feelings. 

She refused to trust them. 

Still, if she didn't treat Su Yu as an enemy, did that mean she should befriend him instead? 

Her mind struggled to process the contradiction, but the sense of rejection lingered, disrupting her thoughts. 

Meanwhile, Su Yu hadn't let his encounter with the Tang Sect team delay his journey. 

If anything, he quickened his pace. 

*** 

"To be honest, the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda's treasure-hunting ability is really annoying." 

A single Forbidden Magic Crystal had cost Ning Tian 400,000 gold soul coins—surely, she couldn't have much left in her account after that, right? 

Just as he was thinking this— 

"Hm?" 

Su Yu stopped in front of a store. 

He stepped inside. 

Inside, over a dozen young men and women, all under twenty, were engaged in large-scale purchases. 

Unlike the Tang Sect's bargain-hunting strategy, this team was taking an entirely different approach—buying in bulk. 

Sure enough, it was the Shrek team. 

Su Yu's gaze fell on a girl—Su Tong. 

Something about her felt eerily familiar. It was a sensation Su Yu had only ever experienced with one other person—Xue Di. 

Of course, what truly caught his attention was her soul power. 

"She must be at the Soul Sage level by now… Where did Shrek even find such a genius?" 

As Su Yu entered and observed Su Tong, the Shrek team also noticed him. 

The moment they recognized him, their expressions turned hostile. 

Su Yu's gaze swept over He Caitou. 

Royal bloodline. 

His eyes flicked across the others—most of them unfamiliar faces. 

But their soul power wasn't weak. 

"Su Yu?" 

"That's right. I remember you—He Caitou. If I'm not mistaken, this must be the Shrek team. I have to admit, Shrek truly lives up to its reputation. Its ability to nurture soul masters is impressive." 

"You're strong too. I look forward to facing you in the competition." Su Tong stepped forward, speaking directly to Su Yu. 

"I look forward to it as well. Your strength is nothing to scoff at." Su Yu replied. 

After leaving the store, Su Yu sighed inwardly. 

Shrek was Shrek, after all. 

Or rather, the three Douluo nations were still the three Douluo nations. 

The overall quality of soul masters in the Sun-Moon Empire was still far behind. 

One Soul Sage, three Soul Emperors, and the rest were at least mid-level Soul Kings. 

Assembling such a team spoke volumes about Shrek's foundation. 

Or, more accurately, the foundation of the Douluo nations. 

But in the end, none of that mattered. 

Even if there were seven Soul Sages, Su Yu wouldn't be afraid—let alone just one. 

"I wonder if Qian Duoduo came to Sun-Moon as well. If he did, I should find out where he is." 

It was time for Xian Lin'er to play her part. 

(End of Chapter)