A long time later.
Dugu Bo miserably finished his training with Xiao Ze.
"Pfft~~~" Dugu Yan couldn't help but laugh when she saw Dugu Bo's current state.
"Grandpa, what do you look like? You're so pathetic. You're a Titled Douluo, yet you can't even defeat Xiao Ze."
"It's easy to talk when you're not the one fighting. This is a Spirit Ancestor." Dugu Bo pointed his hand out angrily, the dozen or so elves making him extremely uncomfortable.
He couldn't even move to fight back, being controlled one moment and knocked away the next; he truly had no ability to retaliate.
Dugu Yan didn't say anything further; Xiao Ze's strength was growing increasingly formidable.
Returning to the villa, Xiao Ze saw a familiar woman.
"Jiang Zhu, do you have something to do here?" Xiao Ze asked.
"Xiao Ze, this is a letter from the Dean." Jiang Zhu handed an envelope to Xiao Ze.
After speaking, she left.
She couldn't help it; Ning Rongrong and the others' gazes were constantly on her, and the pressure was too great.
"Could it be that Dean Liu Erlong has taken a liking to you?" Ning Rongrong said, a hint of jealousy in her voice.
"Silly girl, what are you saying? Liu Erlong and I are so far apart in age, how could she possibly like me?" Xiao Ze playfully pinched Ning Rongrong's nose.
"Who knows? Maybe some people like an old cow eating tender grass," Ning Rongrong teased.
"Then aren't you the same? You're a few months older than me."
"Hmph!" Ning Rongrong delivered a headbutt-like punch to Xiao Ze's chest. Xiao Ze dotingly embraced her and tore open the envelope.
As he read the message, Xiao Ze's expression grew increasingly strange.
"What's wrong?" Ye Lingling asked.
"Dean Liu Erlong wants me to accompany her to obtain her eighth spirit ring." Xiao Ze was a little confused; what could he, a Spirit Ancestor, do?
An eighth spirit ring would at least come from a Spirit Beast over sixty thousand years old. He couldn't possibly defeat such a Spirit Beast, could he?
"Ah? Could Dean Liu Erlong really have taken a liking to you?" Dugu Yan asked curiously.
Xiao Ze's mouth twitched: "Sister Yanyan, can you not be as reckless as Rongrong?"
"Awoo…" Ning Rongrong puffed out her cheeks and bit Xiao Ze's chin in dissatisfaction.
What did she mean by reckless? She was already much less reckless now, okay?
"But obtaining a spirit ring is a really important matter. If it's someone untrustworthy who attacks you, wouldn't that be the end? So Dean Liu Erlong really trusts you."
The girls nodded.
They all went with their families to obtain their spirit rings.
Many people outside paid others to accompany them.
But there was danger; after all, if a Spirit Bone appeared, wouldn't you be sure to die?
And if someone had a grudge against you and stabbed you in the back, you'd also be finished.
Every year, no fewer than a hundred Spirit Masters died due to such incidents.
The total number of Spirit Masters was small, partly because the chance of awakening spirit power was low, and partly because so many were killed in conflicts, greatly reducing their numbers.
According to Spirit Hall's records, excluding those of very old age, at least five hundred Spirit Masters died each year.
Xiao Ze was also at a loss. What was Liu Erlong thinking? With her own strength, obtaining an eighth spirit ring shouldn't be a very difficult task, right?
"I'm not sure about the specifics, but I plan to ask her this afternoon. I don't want to go with her to my death," Xiao Ze said.
"You really do need to ask properly. Even if she likes you, she still has to serve me tea," Ning Rongrong said proudly.
"Naughty." Xiao Ze naturally had no feelings for Liu Erlong at the moment, not even liking her. Perhaps only admiration, as she was a formidable person.
However, Liu Erlong was indeed a beauty.
Xiao Ze wasn't a narcissistic guy; he had only met Liu Erlong a few times, so how could she possibly like him?
"Don't overthink it. Yiran made a pizza for lunch; let's go see it," Ye Lingling said.
Ye Lingling had learned alchemy from Xiao Ze, while Meng Yiran had inherited the cooking skills.
Among the others, only Ning Rongrong was interested in cooking, but she truly had no talent for it. However, when it came to desserts, Ning Rongrong was quite good.
She might not be amazing, but at least the things she made were edible.
For her, that was already a huge improvement.
Now, every day, besides cultivating, Ning Rongrong spent her time in the kitchen making desserts.
Xiao Ze felt like his daily sugar intake was going to explode.
If she couldn't eat it all, Ning Rongrong would send the desserts home.
Xiao Ze didn't even need to think; Uncle Ning and the others must have been very happy, after all, it was a rare sight to see their little princess cook.
Even if it was leftovers.
Everyone came to the living room and saw a giant pizza, over a meter in diameter.
Meng Yiran had spent the entire morning making it.
It had seven different sections, and although it looked very flashy, Xiao Ze thought it would be delicious.
The first section contained the ribs of a lightning-element Spirit Beast and a special type of mushroom.
Xiao Ze didn't recognize this mushroom; Meng Yiran had bought it herself and spent a long time preparing it, fearing she might ruin them.
As for the ribs, they were genuinely pure Spirit Beast meat, with subtle blue electric sparks still flickering on them.
The moment he bit into it, his tongue tingled slightly.
Although the ribs tasted good, the mushroom was even more astonishing. When the translucent cap shattered in his mouth, it released a refreshing sensation similar to a spirit power replenisher.
"Mmm… this is delicious too." Ning Rongrong fed a piece of pizza into Xiao Ze's mouth.
This was a combination of creamy pumpkin and Soft Bones Rabbit meat. Although Xiao Ze didn't know what kind of monstrous combination this was, it tasted really good.
The dense pumpkin puree enveloped his tongue like a cloud, and the rabbit meat, slow-cooked for 12 hours, had already transformed into savory, sweet shredded meat.
Now, Xiao Ze somewhat admired Meng Yiran's imagination. These seemingly strange combinations tasted unexpectedly delicious.
The Douluo Continent truly had many ingredients that Earth didn't, which, for Xiao Ze, born in Longguo, was simply the best place to be.
Who in Longguo didn't need to satisfy their culinary desires?
Among clothing, food, housing, and transportation, food was ranked second.
If people didn't absolutely have to wear clothes when going out, then food would be ranked first.
"Yiran, I love you!" Ning Rongrong directly hugged Meng Yiran's arm, her slightly greasy mouth leaving a mark on her cheek. "Your cooking is getting better and better. I feel like in another year or so, your cooking will be better than Xiao Ze's."
"As long as you like it." Meng Yiran's mouth curved upwards; this kind of life was what she truly enjoyed now.
Originally, she spent every day cultivating, with no real strength of her own, and her talent was rather ordinary.
But now?
She had a lot of free time every day, cultivated faster, her Spirit had evolved, and her strength was greater. It couldn't be more comfortable.
What was cooking a meal every day?
(End of Chapter)
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