I Studied Abroad in the Modern Times-Chapter 116Book 2: : Ate Himself

Vol 2 Chapter 116: Ate Himself

As Xiao Yuying stepped out of the Hundred Treasures Hall, she immediately saw the palace gates swing open and the gods bowing their heads.

The vision lasted only a moment before disappearing.

Standing at the entrance of the Hundred Treasures Hall, Xiao Yuying looked at the tightly shut doors of the central great hall, then turned back to glance at the twelve towering divine statues inside the Hundred Treasures Hall, her eyes filled with contemplation.

She took two steps forward, gathered spiritual power in her hand, and pushed against the central hall doors.

The doors didn’t budge.

No one else had witnessed this scene—only Xiao Yuying stood there in silent thought.

……

Zheng Fa, of course, had no idea about the strange phenomenon in the Heavenly Palace.

He was too busy staring at the fiery red sprout in his dantian, feeling troubled.

According to the Divine Thunder of Shenxiao True Law, once he opened the Thunder Field, his spiritual power should have formed a Thunder Seed, which would then grow within the Thunder Field.

But this uninvited guest was far too overbearing—the moment it appeared, it started devouring all the spiritual power in his dantian.

It completely prevented his spiritual power from condensing into a Thunder Seed.

Worse still, this spiritual sprout was insatiably greedy—every time Zheng Fa took a breath, the spiritual energy he absorbed instantly became nourishment for the sprout…

At this point, Zheng Fa was certain:

His Divine Thunder of Shenxiao True Law had gone completely off track.

Fearing he might fall into deviation, he stopped cultivating altogether, deciding to leave the Heavenly Monument Realm and consult his master and senior sister before continuing.

By the time Zheng Fa reappeared in the Heavenly Palace, it was already back to normal.

He didn’t notice anything unusual as he walked into the Hundred Treasures Hall, browsing the Jade Tablet for spiritual materials and prices.

His master’s secret technique still required a few more materials, such as the Nine Heavens Thunder Fruit.

He still had some Heavenly Merit Points left—maybe he could afford something else.

"Nine Heavens Thunder Fruit: 1,000 Heavenly Merit Points."

"1,500 Heavenly Merit Points…"

"800 Heavenly Merit Points…"

The lowest price for any required material was at least 800 Heavenly Merit Points.

After redeeming the Millennium Yang Thunder Spider Inner Core, his Investiture Register should only have around 400 points left…

Hmm?

Why did the Investiture Register turn gold?

……

The Investiture Register inexplicably upgrading to a Golden Register left Zheng Fa even more confused.

Thinking it over, he tentatively concluded that it had something to do with the spiritual sprout in his dantian.

Looks like that thing was a big deal…

Flipping open the Golden Register, the most obvious change was that his invested territory had expanded—

From 5,000 li to 10,000 li.

This increase left Zheng Fa a bit puzzled…

According to Yan Wushuang, the Bamboo Register covered 50 li, the Bronze Register covered 500 li, and the Silver Register covered 5,000 li—each upgrade had been a tenfold increase.

In area, it was a hundredfold expansion each time.

But now, from Silver to Gold, it was only twice as much?

Was the Heavenly Monument Realm getting stingier?!

Zheng Fa suddenly recalled Yan Wushuang’s past words—

The Heavenly Monument Realm was just a small world.

Now, he vaguely understood—perhaps the issue was simply a lack of land to distribute.

So that meant, at most, the Heavenly Monument Realm was only about the size of a modern planet?

Flipping through the Investiture Register, he confirmed that his invested territory had indeed expanded fourfold.

More land meant more people.

And he still had Heaven’s Tribulation Thunder Talismans left!

The moment his divine sense touched the Investiture Register, he gained insight—

With the Investiture Register upgrade, he could now stay in the Heavenly Monument Realm for an additional month.

What was there to hesitate about?

Time to work overtime!

……

Yan Wushuang and Chu Tianque met in the Heavenly Palace.

"This time, I earned 120 Heavenly Merit Points." Yan Wushuang spoke first.

"I only got seventy-something. Senior Brother, your merit gains keep increasing each time!" Chu Tianque sighed. "Senior Brother, have you… already comprehended the Heaven’s Tribulation Thunder Law?"

"Comprehended is too strong a word—I’ve made some progress, that’s all."

Though Yan Wushuang remained humble in his tone, he couldn’t hide the hint of pride on his face.

"But still…"

Chu Tianque started with a smile, then sighed lightly.

He didn’t finish his sentence, but the other two understood what he meant.

"Nothing to regret," Yan Wushuang seemed to have come to terms with it. "It’s only natural that I can’t surpass Xiao Yuying…"

"That’s true. But Zheng Fa—what a shame. If it weren’t for his lower cultivation level…" Chu Tianque nodded, then suddenly paused. "Wait, Senior Brother Yan, are you gloating?"

Yan Wushuang quickly waved his hands. "You don’t understand—Zheng Daoist is far more extraordinary than you think. For some reason, Elder Han is extremely focused on him."

"……"

"Just thinking about how he also lost to Xiao Yuying makes me feel a lot better…"

"I get it now—that's schadenfreude…"

……

As the group stepped out of the Heavenly Monument, they saw a lone figure standing beneath it, gazing at the ranking list.

Who else could it be but Fairy Lingye, Xiao Yuying?

Seeing people emerge, Xiao Yuying glanced in their direction, as if she were waiting for someone.

Yan Wushuang, Chu Tianque, and Xue Zhenchuan looked up at the ranking list.

Sure enough, Xiao Yuying’s name was at the very top.

Zheng Fa’s name was now right beneath hers.

Even though they had expected this, Yan Wushuang still let out a faint sigh.

After glancing at his own ranking, he turned and walked out of the Thunder Pool, taking Chu Tianque and Xue Zhenchuan with him.

After a while, Yan Wushuang suddenly stopped in his tracks, his brows furrowed tightly.

"Senior Brother Yan?"

"Tell me—who is Xiao Yuying waiting for?"

"Waiting for…?" Chu Tianque was briefly stunned. "She’s waiting for someone?"

But Xue Zhenchuan, who had sharper observational skills, nodded. "As we left the Heavenly Monument, she looked at us twice—it really seems like she’s waiting for someone…"

"She must be waiting for Zheng Daoist!" Yan Wushuang clenched his right fist and smacked it into his left palm, speaking with absolute certainty.

"Waiting for Zheng Fa? Why?"

"He stole the top spot on the ranking list before. Now she probably wants to flaunt her victory in front of him!"

"…That’s a bit much, isn’t it?"

Chu Tianque and Xue Zhenchuan exchanged glances, as if feeling that Yan Wushuang was underestimating Xiao Yuying a little too much.

"You two don’t understand what kind of person Xiao Yuying is!"

Yan Wushuang, however, was absolutely certain. He grabbed both of them and started walking back.

"Senior Brother Yan, what are you doing?"

"Zheng Fa is my good friend. How can I stand by and watch him be humiliated by her?" Yan Wushuang declared loudly. "Naturally, I must go support him!"

Chu Tianque and Xue Zhenchuan had no choice but to follow Yan Wushuang back to the Heavenly Monument.

When Xiao Yuying saw them return, she only glanced at them before losing interest, as if she didn’t care at all.

The group stood in silence, simply waiting outside the Heavenly Monument.

As more cultivators exited the monument, they saw Yan Wushuang’s group standing there and were confused about what was going on.

But since Xiao Yuying and Yan Wushuang were the most respected and highest-ranking cultivators in the Heavenly Monument Realm,

they didn’t leave—so many other cultivators didn’t dare to leave either.

Days passed.

Zheng Fa still hadn’t come out.

Yan Wushuang began to frown. "Why is Zheng Brother staying in the Heavenly Monument Realm for so long?"

Chu Tianque and Xue Zhenchuan exchanged another glance—they didn’t know either.

"Look!"

Suddenly, someone pointed at the Heavenly Monument—

Zheng Fa’s name suddenly jumped to the top, reclaiming the first place that everyone had assumed was already decided!

A heavy silence fell over the crowd.

Everyone sneaked glances at Xiao Yuying.

But Xiao Yuying remained completely expressionless.

She stood still, her feet planted firmly, making no move to leave.

Chu Tianque was stunned for a long time before suddenly speaking,

"Senior Brother, do we still need to stay?"

Yan Wushuang understood what he meant—

Now that Zheng Fa had surpassed Xiao Yuying, there was no longer any humiliation for him.

"Yes. We have to stay." Yan Wushuang’s expression turned especially grim.

"Huh?"

"Before, we were here to protect Zheng Brother’s dignity." Yan Wushuang snuck a glance at Xiao Yuying, lowering his voice.

"But now… we might have to save his life."

Chu Tianque shuddered. "Senior Brother, you mean…?"

He didn’t finish his sentence—

But both he and Xue Zhenchuan looked at Xiao Yuying at the same time.

……

"Why are you all…"

The moment Zheng Fa stepped out of the Heavenly Monument, he saw the dense crowd waiting below.

Their expressions were all very strange.

Especially Yan Wushuang, whose eyelids twitched furiously, seemingly trying to signal him.

But no one dared to say anything—

Instead, one person strode confidently out from the crowd and walked toward him.

Xiao Yuying.

She stopped in front of Zheng Fa, carefully studying him from head to toe for a long moment.

Then, she suddenly spoke—

"It really is you."

"…What about me?"

Zheng Fa asked in confusion.

Xiao Yuying shook her head, as if speaking in riddles, or perhaps simply unwilling to explain in front of so many people.

Then, she lifted her hands and performed a formal salute.

"Inferior one, Xiao Yuying."

Her gesture was flawless.

Her tone was solemn.

Everyone behind her was completely dumbfounded.

Though still confused, Zheng Fa also returned the formal greeting.

"Inferior one, Zheng Fa."

"Zheng Daoist." Xiao Yuying nodded, then suddenly smiled.

"A pleasure to meet you."

It seemed she had been waiting a long time just to say these words—

Because the moment she finished, she didn’t even look at anyone else—

She simply turned around and left.

Zheng Fa watched her walk away, completely baffled.

Then he saw Yan Wushuang approaching, looking as if he was about to cry.

"So Fairy Lingye… is actually capable of speaking properly…"

Yan Wushuang muttered to himself.

Beside him, Chu Tianque and Xue Zhenchuan also nodded.

"Brother Yan?"

But Yan Wushuang didn’t seem to want to talk to Zheng Fa—

He simply waved weakly, looking utterly defeated, mumbling to himself as he walked away—

"So it depends on the person…"

"Depends on the person…"

……

"Brother Yan, what’s wrong with him?"

Zheng Fa asked Chu Tianque in confusion.

Chu Tianque pondered for a moment before answering,

"Fairy Lingye wounded his pride. Again."

"Again?"

……

As soon as Zheng Fa left the Thunder Pool, he saw Senior Sister Yuan waiting for him, holding a storage bag in her hand.

The moment she spotted him, she shouted excitedly—

"Zheng Junior Brother! Zheng Junior Brother! Hurry over! We made a fortune in spirit stones!"

"Made a fortune?" Zheng Fa walked over. "How?"

"Hehe, when I was in the Heavenly Monument, I noticed that all the gamblers were betting on Xiao Yuying as the top rank."

"The odds for betting on her were less than 1:1."

"But betting on you was 1:5!"

"So I just…"

Zheng Fa understood immediately.

Senior Sister Yuan had used insider knowledge to scam the gamblers!

This was probably a one-time opportunity…

"Here! These are the spirit stones we won! I’ll give you 20%!" Senior Sister Yuan opened the storage bag—

Inside, there were hundreds of spirit stones.

"For me?"

"You’re the reason we won!" Senior Sister Yuan said generously.

"But I won’t give you too much! I still need to buy food!"

Zheng Fa chuckled and shook his head.

Suddenly, Senior Sister Yuan sniffed the air, as if catching an unusual scent.

She turned to look at Zheng Fa.

Then, she leaned in close, her face right in front of his, sniffing back and forth.

"Junior Brother… your body smells really good!"

"…Huh?"

Senior Sister Yuan then took out a few more spirit stones and held them out.

"I’ll give you another 20%… if you let me take a bite!"

"……"

"I’ll make it 30%—just one bite!"

Looking into her eyes, Zheng Fa realized—

She wasn’t joking.

The sourc𝗲 of this content is freēwēbηovel.c૦m.

Senior Sister Yuan… actually wanted to eat him.