coobybook Chapter 442 - 279: The Best Investment Target (Part 2)
Chapter 442 - 279: The Best Investment Target (Part 2)
According to Qin Fengwu, the highest-ranked prodigy from the Potential Ranking he had just defeated was only in the 290s.
Plus, there were still six people who were somehow ranked ahead of him on the points leaderboard...
Furthermore, Kong Shuo, the expert ranked in the 100s of the Potential Ranking hired by the Purple Cloud Association, had yet to make an appearance.
All of this was enough to prove that he couldn’t just act recklessly and do as he pleased in the endless Forest Sea.
Therefore, even if he were a true fiend for women, he was nowhere near bold enough to accept Qin Fengwu’s "investment" and get down to business right then and there.
He hurried along, but he didn’t go at full speed.
Because of this, Qin Fengwu, who had only been cheering from the sidelines and hadn’t truly fought or expended any energy, was just barely able to keep up.
After searching for a while, they found a small Alien Race nest that had just been plundered, and Zou Feng ducked inside to hide.
He was severely depleted. Even after taking the Elixirs he’d looted from Guang Tianhua, he still needed time to recover. Thus, Zou Feng had no intention of venturing out again for the remainder of the monthly exam.
If he ran into Kong Shuo while not in peak condition, the risk would be immense.
So, the best strategy was to simply lie low until the monthly exam was over.
According to Qin Fengwu, the Alien Race nests in the Forest Sea were unusually dense this time, so the monthly exam would most likely end after just one more night.
Throughout the night, Zou Feng focused on recuperating, with no intention of going out and getting involved in anything else.
As for Qin Fengwu, she wanted to take advantage of the pitch-black darkness and their private situation to bring up the matter of dual cultivation again.
But seeing Zou Feng engrossed in his Cultivation, she decided not to bother him.
’Thinking about it now, proposing dual cultivation so directly probably wasn’t the best strategy.’
’If I seem too eager and calculating, this ’investment’ will just come across as cheap.’
’The best approach would be to wait until after the exam. I should keep building rapport under the guise of being teammates, find an opportunity to create the right atmosphere, and then let things happen naturally.’
In short, Qin Fengwu knew how to read a room, so she didn’t cause any more trouble that night.
Around midnight, Zou Feng checked the points leaderboard again.
He had actually dropped one spot to eighth place.
And when the night passed and morning came, Zou Feng found his rank had fallen again, leaving him in ninth place.
’Are the disciples ranked ahead of me all that ferocious?’
But Zou Feng quickly understood why.
According to the Martial Cultivator system, he was, after all, still only Second Grade. He hadn’t formed a Spirit Body and reached the First Grade Realm.
The Outer Disciples who could truly dominate the monthly exam either had some special inborn constitution or had long ago formed a powerful Spirit Body.
Possessing a Spirit Body meant automatically absorbing Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi at all times. This alone was a testament to their incredible endurance.
Looking at it from another angle, for someone who hadn’t even formed a Spirit Body to break into the top ten of the monthly exam... in the eyes of others, he was an absolute monster.
Not long after dawn, a voice announcing the end of the monthly exam echoed throughout the entire Forest Sea.
This meant that Zou Feng’s final ranking was fixed at ninth place.
Before being teleported, Zou Feng couldn’t help but feel something was odd.
’It’s true that I spent last night recovering and was unwilling to take any more risks.’
’But I was also prepared for Kong Shuo to come looking for me at any moment.’
’Logically, since Kong Shuo accepted the Purple Cloud Association’s commission, he should have had some way of locating me during the exam.’
’He couldn’t have been relying solely on luck to find me, right?’
And yet, the guy never showed up, right up until the exam ended.
’Furthermore, Kong Shuo’s name wasn’t in the top ten of the leaderboard.’
’The guy only ranked in the thirties.’
’Did he have such bad luck that he couldn’t find enough Alien Race nests?’
’Or maybe he ran into a powerful enemy early on, got injured, and didn’t dare make another move?’
The sensation of teleportation washed over him. A faint, fluorescent light began to emanate from both Zou Feng and Qin Fengwu.
Knowing he was about to be sent back, Zou Feng stopped thinking about it.
Meanwhile, Qin Fengwu said reluctantly, "Brother Zou, I owe you everything for this monthly exam..."
"I am eternally grateful and will definitely repay your great kindness!"
Looking at this stunningly beautiful junior sister, who looked young and gorgeous but was actually sixty years old, Zou Feng said casually, "When the rewards are distributed, you’ll get your fair share."
As a wily veteran, Qin Fengwu had indeed provided Zou Feng with a great deal of convenience during the exam.
"Rewards and such are no longer important to me. I only ask that you don’t forget me, Brother Zou..."
Before she could finish, they both vanished in a flash of light.
When Zou Feng opened his eyes again, he was back at the teleportation circle where he had started.
But looking at the sky, it was clearly almost noon here at the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect. The time didn’t match the early morning in the Forest Sea.
’It seems the flow of time is different in these Alternate Spaces.’
’Even the day-and-night cycle in the Forest Sea was probably just something deliberately created by the mighty beings who forged the Alternate Space.’
’I just wonder what Realm of Cultivation one has to reach to create their own personal ’Sumeru Space’.’
"Don’t just stand there gawking! Get down, the next teleportation is about to begin!"
The Outer Sect Elder responsible for maintaining order during the monthly exam bellowed.
Zou Feng quickly followed the crowd off the teleportation platform.
There was no sign of Qin Fengwu nearby; she had evidently been sent to a different teleportation circle.
However, after stepping off the platform, Zou Feng quickly spotted Gongsun Jinghong and Teng County.
He went over and asked, only to learn that the two women hadn’t been sent to the Forest Sea, but to another Alternate Space.
With so many Outer Disciples, it was impossible for everyone to be crammed into one location.
At the moment, both Gongsun Jinghong and Teng County were injured to varying degrees.
Teng County’s injuries weren’t serious, but Gongsun Jinghong was hurt quite badly and needed Teng County’s support just to walk.
"Who injured you like this?" Zou Feng asked, rushing forward.
Though weak, Gongsun Jinghong’s expression was quite excited. "It’s from fighting the Alien Race. I got lucky and made it into the top hundred of the ’Snowy Domain Grotto’ leaderboard, ranked ninety-seventh!"
So she had risked her life in a desperate gamble to secure a spot in the top hundred, getting seriously injured in the process.
Competing for a leaderboard ranking always involved a fair bit of luck. Besides, even before coming to the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect, Gongsun Jinghong had already successfully formed her Spirit Body by "bombarding Jinluan Hall," reaching the First Grade Realm.
With her already impressive Talent, coupled with the boost from her Dragon and Tiger Kan and Li Skill, she truly was qualified to compete for a spot in the top hundred.
And to think she’d actually pulled it off.
"Let’s get back first!"
After giving Gongsun Jinghong one of the Elixirs "contributed" by Guang Tianhua, the three of them didn’t linger and quickly headed for Courtyard Nine.
As for the final results of the monthly exam, the Celestial Dao Cauldron would handle the analysis and settlement.
The results and specific rewards would be sent as a notification to their Tokens, which would also display other necessary public information.
「Meanwhile, at Chen Bogong’s residence in the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect’s Inner Sect.」
Today, because it was the Outer Sect’s monthly exam—an event with which he had some involvement—Chen Bogong hadn’t busied himself with other matters. Instead, he simply waited in his residence for good news.
’As long as Kong Shuo doesn’t slack off,’ he thought, ’Zou Feng shouldn’t stand a chance of survival.’
’Not to mention the many Purple Cloud Association members in the Outer Sect, all ready to snatch the credit for themselves.’
To be fair, though, even if the operation against Zou Feng went off without a hitch, Chen Bogong wouldn’t feel any sense of accomplishment.
After all, Zou Feng was just a reckless Outer Sect brute who didn’t know his place.
Therefore, Chen Bogong was merely rectifying his own mistake.
After all, the higher-ups had given him a task—Vice President Fu Jiaming had specifically requested that Zou Feng be recruited into the association.
He had personally gone to extend the invitation but had failed to get the job done.
Regardless of his excuses, many in the Purple Cloud Association would still see it as a sign of his own incompetence and inefficiency.
That was why Chen Bogong had extravagantly spent eight hundred points of Immortal Fate to remedy this failure.
He glanced at the midday sun. By his calculations, the results of the Outer Sect’s monthly exam should be out by now...
The next moment, the Token hanging at his waist began to vibrate.
Chen Bogong smiled faintly. ’Just as I predicted,’ he thought. ’Isn’t this the news arriving right on time?’
He picked up the Token, but his smile froze on his face, quickly replaced by utter confusion.
The Token had vibrated not because it brought the good news he was expecting, but because Kong Shuo had just fully refunded the two-hundred-point Immortal Fate deposit he had received earlier!