Douluo: Emerald Poison Emperor

Watching Chen Ming's choices, Ning Fengzhi was somewhat surprised. He had thought Chen Ming would select the ten-thousand-year-old petrified statue of the Jade Bird. After all, even though it seemed unusable, it was still a genuine ten-thousand-year-old soul beast. Almost every soul master who came here had set their sights on the Jade Bird's statue.

Originally, the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Clan had collected six Jade Bird statues over a thousand years, three of which were found in the same nest.

One of the clan leaders of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Clan tried dismantling one of the statues to study it, only to discover that these petrified Jade Birds were nothing more than oversized decorations. In the end, five statues were left in the clan's vault.

After becoming the clan leader, Ning Fengzhi took notice of these statues. When he was stuck at the maddeningly difficult level of Spirit Rank 79, he came up with an idea. He invited several specialized soul masters to see if they could open the Jade Bird statues and extract the ten-thousand-year-old spirit bones inside, hoping to forcibly break through to Spirit Rank 80 by absorbing the soul bones of the ten-thousand-year-old soul beast.

The result? All they got was another half-destroyed Jade Bird statue awaiting disposal in the vault.

Although Ning Fengzhi was curious about the mystery behind the statues, he did not delve too deeply into it. After all, with Dugu Bo's strength in the picture, Chen Ming wasn't someone without connections. Maintaining a good relationship was more beneficial, as forcing a confrontation could lead to problems.

"Thank you, Uncle Ning. These two treasures will be enough for me," Chen Ming said, satisfied, as he gave Ning Fengzhi a polite nod. Ning Fengzhi, in turn, glanced at Dugu Bo with great interest.

"Consider these two treasures my gift to both of you. I just wonder—what does Senior Dugu think of this arrangement?"

After all, Chen Ming had essentially taken both shares of the two treasures on behalf of Dugu Bo. Ning Fengzhi was curious about how much importance Dugu Bo placed on Chen Ming. Why was it that, despite Dugu Bo being a Titled Douluo, he appeared to be the one taking a backseat in their dynamic?

"I've never cared much for worldly possessions," Dugu Bo said, stroking his now slightly darkened beard. He spoke to Ning Fengzhi with an air of utter nonchalance.

Seeing Dugu Bo's demeanor of detaching himself from material concerns, Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo were momentarily stunned. They couldn't help but marvel at Dugu Bo's mindset.

In truth, neither of them had any idea that Dugu Bo had long grown accustomed to letting Chen Ming make decisions in these matters. Knowing Chen Ming's capabilities, Dugu Bo was confident that Chen Ming's judgment surpassed his own by an immeasurable margin.

Even if Chen Ming's choices didn't yield massive profits, there would at least be no losses. On the other hand, if Dugu Bo were to make the choices himself, any small profit would already feel like a huge gain.

Aside from the fine metals near the entrance—mystic silver and refined gold—Dugu Bo hardly recognized any of the materials stored within the treasure vault. He couldn't very well just pick out random gold ingots, could he?

Once everything was settled, Ning Fengzhi led the group out of the vault. As they left, Dugu Bo glanced at the soul sages and soul emperors guarding the entrance, his gaze now carrying a different meaning.

Before entering, Dugu Bo had felt that placing so many high-ranking soul masters to guard a vault was a waste of resources.

But now, after seeing the items inside, Dugu Bo thought Ning Fengzhi must have nerves of steel to entrust the treasure vault to mere soul sages and soul emperors, without a single soul douluo among them.

By all logic, Chen Ming and Dugu Bo could have left after securing their treasures. However, having just accepted such valuable items, even Chen Ming and Dugu Bo felt it inappropriate to simply walk away. Instead, they dutifully followed Ning Fengzhi through the formalities and shared a meal.

After the meal, Ning Fengzhi called for a servant. Not long after, the servant returned with two figures, one large and one small. Behind them, a third figure lurked, clearly trying (and failing) to remain hidden.

The larger figure was the dragonkin girl Chen Ming had seen auctioned at the Heaven Dou Royal Auction House a few days ago.

Now, under the care of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Clan, the dragonkin girl, who had once carried a look of fear in her eyes, appeared much calmer. She was dressed in simple, ordinary clothing—not overly luxurious, but modestly comfortable, which suited her background as a commoner. For the girl, such clothing provided a sense of security.

The smaller figure was a boy of about six or seven years old. He had a head of green hair, a thin frame, and a slightly timid look. His fingers fidgeted nervously in front of him, giving off a soft, delicate impression.

Seeing the two brought in, Chen Ming appeared confused. Ning Fengzhi began to introduce them.

"This young lady was the one from a few days ago. I noticed that you seemed interested in her, so I had her brought here."

"As for this boy, I recall you mentioning an interest in researching the Jewel Beast martial soul. Coincidentally, our clan has a child who has reached Soul Rank 10 but has yet to absorb his first soul ring. I thought he might be of some assistance to you, so I had him brought over."

Ning Fengzhi gestured toward the timid boy, who immediately introduced himself nervously.

"R-respected seniors, greetings! My name is Ning Tie. I am a disciple of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Clan. My martial soul is the Jewel Beast, and my soul power is at Rank 10, but I have not yet absorbed my first soul ring. Please guide me."

After finishing his introduction, the boy gave a deep bow to the group, leaving everyone a little amused.

Clearly, although Ning Tie was a disciple of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Clan, it seemed he rarely, if ever, had the chance to meet the clan leader, the two guardian Douluos, or other high-ranking individuals of this level. His nervous behavior made him resemble a sacrificial lamb being led to the altar.

It was almost ironic how mismatched his demeanor was with his rather bold name, "Ning Tie" (Iron Ning).

"Ning Tie, hello. I'm Chen Ming, twelve years old. You can call me Big Brother Chen Ming or Big Brother Chen. No need to be so formal."

Chen Ming patted Ning Tie's shoulder and, in doing so, sensed the boy's unique martial soul essence. Indeed, it was highly unusual, vastly different from the Jewel Beast martial soul of Ning Zhongze, who had already absorbed two soul rings. The boy's martial soul held remarkable developmental potential.

"Big Brother Chen Ming, hello!" Ning Tie stammered, nervously greeting Chen Ming. His tension eased ever so slightly during this interaction.

Chen Ming then shifted his attention to the silent dragonkin girl standing nearby.

Although she was only nine years old, the unique fusion of her life force with her martial soul caused her to grow at an extraordinary rate. She stood around 1.7 meters tall, a height that would already be considered normal for an eighteen-year-old female soul master. Though her frame appeared frail and easily bullied, Chen Ming could sense a volcano-like power and the pure essence of dragon energy coursing through her body.

Compared to Chen Ming at the age of nine, the dragonkin girl's physical strength was superior. Even without consuming special medicinal substances or undergoing soul-strengthening treatments, the mutation of her martial soul alone had granted her a level of raw physical power that most soul masters would find unreasonable.

It was clear that even though her martial soul mutation meant she couldn't cultivate traditionally, her half-human, half-dragon form allowed her to easily overpower most soul masters with average martial souls and soul rings.