"The Triple Sect has once again sent envoys to discuss the matter of affiliation. What are your thoughts, Ancestors?" Jun Linseng asked, presenting a new Jade Scroll.
"There’s no rush. Let’s delay them. We should focus on establishing our sect and solidifying our position first."
The city’s residents nervously watched the clan members disembarking from the Flying Boat, anxious that their loved ones might have met with misfortune.
Some were overjoyed, others were grief-stricken, but none of this concerned Chen Jiuge.
Since becoming an immortal, Chen Jiuge’s heart had hardened considerably. Compounded by the influence of his Asura Bloodline, death had become a rather mundane affair to him.
Provided, of course, that the deceased wasn’t a close friend or one of his Spiritual Beasts.
「Jiaoying City Government Hall」
Su Mei and Li Qiwen were busy issuing a relentless stream of commands. Chen Jiuge observed quietly for a while, then, feeling rather superfluous, he slipped away and returned to Eden Garden.
「In the small courtyard of Eden Garden」
Chen Jiuge placed the golden lion statue he had acquired earlier on the stone table, a hint of confusion on his face as he mused aloud, "This statue should be the Lion People’s Heritage Statue, right?"
It was crafted entirely from precious Sun Essence and pulsed with a formidable power. If this wasn’t a Heritage Statue, Chen Jiuge would have been tempted to swallow it whole on the spot.
He tried dripping blood on it, infusing Mana, striking it with a knife, burning it with fire, and submerging it in water.
The statue remained immovable, without a single scratch. Naturally, there was no sign of the heritage activating.
Yu Heng, appearing out of nowhere, scoffed, "What do you think you’re doing?"
"This is a conduit for a heritage, not a mere Treasure. Without the Lion People’s bloodline, how could it possibly be activated?"
Chen Jiuge scowled at the small, uproariously laughing jade figure. "Go back to assembling your figurines and stop bothering me."
At the mention of figurines, Yu Heng’s expression darkened. He had initially collaborated with Mo Yu merely to earn a few Spirit Stones for personal expenses. After all, he wasn’t Chen Jiuge’s Spiritual Beast; it would be far too humiliating to ask for Spirit Stones.
He never imagined the figurines would become such a sensation. Now, he spent most of his days assembling them, truly caught in his own trap.
The crucial part was that the income from Spirit Stones was too alluring to give up. If he actually stopped, all those glittering Spirit Stones would disappear—a loss he couldn’t bear.
"Actually, you could try using the bloodline of a lion-type Spiritual Beast. After all, they’re all lions, aren’t they?" Yu Heng suggested.
Chen Jiuge’s eyes lit up. That seems worth trying, he thought.
"Alright, spit it out. What do you want from me?" Chen Jiuge asked Yu Heng.
Yu Heng looked slightly sheepish. "I want to purchase a few Spiritual Beasts. Chen Tingting was dragged off by Su Mei and the others to help, and since she’s not around, I had to come to you."
"Spiritual Beasts? What do you need Spiritual Beasts for?" Chen Jiuge asked, puzzled.
Yu Heng patted his stomach proudly. "I’m a man of means now. I can’t be without a decent mount, can I?"
"Uh, fine. What do you want to buy?"
"I want nine Fire Flood Dragons, all at the True Immortal grade!" Yu Heng declared grandly.
Chen Jiuge knew about the profits from the figurines; Mo Yu had shown him the income statements. He could also roughly estimate Yu Heng’s earnings. But buying nine Fire Flood Dragons at once... isn’t that a bit overambitious?
After all, Fire Flood Dragons required careful rearing and consumed a vast amount of food. Moreover, the income from figurines was largely a one-time sale per customer; most people wouldn’t buy a second one unless they were major collectors or exceptionally wealthy. Furthermore, the figurine market in Jiaoying City was already nearing saturation.
Seeing Yu Heng practically emptying his pockets, Chen Jiuge kindly reminded him, "Raising nine Fire Flood Dragons is incredibly expensive. If you don’t feed them properly, they won’t obey you. They might even flee back to the ecosystem, and I won’t be able to help you then."
"Don’t worry! It’s just Spirit Stones. I’ll earn them back in no time," Yu Heng said, his eyes turning bloodshot as he clutched the nine Fire Flood Dragon Contract Orders.
Watching Yu Heng stride away, Chen Jiuge muttered, "Just don’t come crying to me later."
Eden Garden housed numerous Spiritual Beasts possessing the Spirit Lion Bloodline. Chen Jiuge collected samples from dozens of Spirit Lion Bloodlines at once, intending to test each one on the golden lion statue.
The Wind Thunder Lion bloodline—failure!
The Fiery Fire Lion bloodline—failure!
The Night Lion bloodline—failure!
Failure! Failure! Failure!
Chen Jiuge’s lip twitched as he saw all the Spirit Lion Bloodlines fail. I was so foolish to believe such a thing, he thought.
After drawing a few more samples of Spirit Lion Bloodline, Chen Jiuge’s mind raced. Finally, he retrieved some Merfolk Bloodline from his storage, muttering to himself, "If a Spirit Lion Bloodline devours Merfolk Bloodline... that should cobble together something like a Lion Person, right?" Check latest chapters at novel_fіre.net
He got straight to work. About fifteen minutes later, Chen Jiuge had infused this bizarre, concocted bloodline into the golden lion statue.
A brilliant beam of golden light erupted. Before Chen Jiuge, a massive golden lion materialized, so large it seemed to envelop the sky. Its elegant golden mane flowed freely. With a thunderous Lion Roar, it seemed to shake thousands of stars from the heavens.
A beam of golden light pierced Chen Jiuge’s mind.
Divine Skill—Lion Roar.
Chen Jiuge’s lip twitched. What do I need this for? To roar people to death?
"Oh well. Now that I’ve figured out how to activate the heritage, let’s see if any of the Spiritual Beasts are willing to learn it," Chen Jiuge said, somewhat disappointed.
"AHEM. I have some good news to discuss with you all."
Chen Jiuge produced the gleaming golden lion statue. "After working day and night to decipher it, I’ve discovered the heritage it contains: the Divine Skill, Lion Roar. See if anyone is interested in learning it?"
"It’s quite powerful."
Yue Meng said with a look of exasperation, "Master, I’m a girl, a refined lady at that. How could I possibly learn something that would spoil my delicate temperament?"
"No way! No way!" Chen Ziteng and Yaoyao chirped happily.
Chen Jiuge’s lip twitched. You enjoy smashing people’s heads in, and you still call yourself a lady? Utterly shameless!