Battle Through the Heavens: Starting with Cao Ying as an apprentice

As the most astute elder in the clan, he had already guessed the truth from Su Baichen's calm demeanor.

Her Majesty the Queen must have successfully evolved, but for some reason cannot reveal herself immediately. As for Butterfly, she is merely repeating her usual prank.

"Sister, sister, she...she evolved successfully." Butterfly finally managed to utter the last part of her sentence, then burst into another bawling cry, "Waaah—!"

"Success?"

The First Elder didn't react for a moment, standing there muttering the word repeatedly. After a while, his eyes widened suddenly, staring at Cai Die in disbelief: "It worked?! Second Miss, say it again."

Butterfly looked up at the Elder with teary eyes and choked out, "Yes, I cried with joy when my sister successfully evolved."

While wiping away her tears, she secretly observed the elders' reactions, secretly pleased that her performance had achieved the desired effect.

"Sister has successfully evolved! Shouldn't we be happy? Look at me, I'm so happy I'm crying! I'm crying! Waaah!"

The First Elder then realized that he had been tricked by the mischievous Second Miss once again.

He first let out a long sigh of relief, then pointed at Cai Die with a wry smile: "You little brat, you really scared this old man to death!"

The other elders also breathed a sigh of relief. Some shook their heads and chuckled, while others glared reproachfully at Cai Die.

The tense atmosphere immediately eased, and a sense of relief filled the air.

Su Baichen then slowly spoke: "Queen Rainbow Scales has indeed successfully evolved, but due to excessive consumption during the evolution process, she is currently in a deep sleep to recuperate."

His gaze swept over the elders, and his tone became serious: "This matter is of great importance. I urge all elders to keep it a secret and not divulge even a single word."

The Second Elder nodded thoughtfully: "Mr. Su's consideration is correct. If the people below hear that Her Majesty the Queen is seriously injured and has fallen into a deep sleep, it may cause chaos."

The Grand Elder immediately understood the implications and solemnly promised, "Mr. Su, rest assured, I will keep the news under wraps and will absolutely not allow it to leak out."

Seeing this, Cai Die knew that it was time for her act to come to an end.

She dusted herself off and stood up, tears still on her face, but a sly smile had already appeared on her face: "Elder, your expression just now was really funny, I almost couldn't keep up the act."

The First Elder shook his head, both amused and exasperated: "Second Miss, how old are you and still so mischievous? You really scared the soul out of me just now."

Upon hearing this, Butterfly simply stuck out her tongue and chuckled.

Finally, Su Baichen stepped forward and calmly said, "Alright, I need to rest now. Don't worry about Cai Lin's safety, I'm here!"

After saying that, Su Baichen flashed away and disappeared.

Chapter 61 The Nine Heavens Spirit Nourishing Technique

Back in his room, Su Baichen lifted his sleeve and looked at the eight-colored Sky-Swallowing Python still sleeping inside. A rare tenderness flashed in Su Baichen's eyes.

This little creature shimmered with eight colors all over its body, and its scales still reflected mesmerizing colors even in the dim light, like a meticulously crafted work of art.

It curled up in a ball, breathing evenly, completely unaware of the commotion that had just occurred outside.

"You little rascal, you can really sleep. You didn't even wake up just now," Su Baichen murmured to himself, his tone filled with affection.

He carefully took the Devouring Python from his sleeve and held it in his palm. The little snake seemed to sense its master's touch, stirred slightly in its sleep, and then fell into a deep sleep again.

Su Baichen extended his slender fingers and gently touched the head of the Eight-Colored Sky-Swallowing Python. The touch from his fingertips was cool and smooth, and the scales were more delicate than he had ever imagined.

As he teased it, the Devouring Python finally slowly woke up. It raised its head, its pair of crystal-clear snake eyes looking at Su Baichen, its tongue flicking out as if asking something.

"woke up?"

Su Baichen smiled slightly and stroked the Devouring Python's chin with his fingertips. The little snake seemed to enjoy the touch, rubbing against his fingers affectionately.

If outsiders were to witness this scene, they would be astonished—the infamous Eight-Colored Sky-Swallowing Python (Colorful Scales) would actually have such a gentle side.

After teasing it for a while, Su Baichen gently placed the Devouring Python on the bed, his expression gradually becoming serious. It was time to get down to business.

With a thought, he focused his mind and brought up the system shop interface.

The vast and seemingly endless list of items in the system's shop was displayed.

The shop interface is simple yet mysterious. On the left are categorized item bars: cultivation techniques, elixirs, magic weapons, rare items... Each category has countless subcategories, making it dazzling and overwhelming.

Su Baichen ignored the treasure icons that were shining with various colors and went straight to the cultivation technique section.

Instantly, information on countless cultivation techniques and secret manuals flowed down like a waterfall, ranging from the lowest-level Yellow Rank techniques to legendary supreme manuals that surpassed the Heaven Rank.

Each technique is marked with a price, followed by a long string of zeros that makes it daunting.

"System, search for a suitable cultivation technique for Cai Lin."

Su Baichen silently recited this in his heart. He specifically emphasized the word "suitable." The cultivation techniques in the system store were vast and numerous. Without a clear goal, it would be difficult to find the most suitable option even after searching for three days and three nights.

[Ding, searching...]

The system's cold notification sounded in my mind, and the content on the screen began to scroll rapidly, with countless cultivation technique icons flashing by.

[Ding! Search complete. Three suitable cultivation techniques found.]

In the end, only information about three cultivation techniques remained on the light screen, each radiating a unique light.

The logo of the "Nine Revolutions Devouring Heaven Technique" is dark red, as if it contains endless devouring power.

The cultivation technique is described in a concise yet powerful way: created by a serpentine demonic beast at the Dou Sheng level, it possesses immense devouring power, capable of absorbing the energy of heaven and earth, the essence of living beings, and even spiritual objects to accelerate cultivation. Upon reaching its peak, it is said to be able to devour even heaven and earth, possessing boundless power.

Su Baichen frowned slightly, as the idea of ​​devouring living beings bothered him quite a bit.

Although he was not a soft-hearted person, he did not want Cai Lin to become a being that relied on devouring living beings to increase its strength.

Moreover, the path of devouring rare and precious materials sounds extremely expensive. He could almost see himself going bankrupt in order to support Cai Lin's cultivation.

This cultivation method is not suitable for Cai Lin in his current state, nor does it align with his wishes.

The logo for the "Dragon and Snake Overlord Body Technique" is gold and black, exuding a wild and majestic aura.

The cultivation method is described as follows: Created by a powerful individual who transformed from a snake into a dragon, it focuses on physical training and allows serpentine magical beasts to gradually transform into dragon-like magical beasts. The cultivation process is extremely slow and requires enduring various painful trials, but once mastered, one becomes invincible among those of the same level, possessing an incomparably powerful physical body.

Upon seeing the words "extremely slow cultivation speed," Su Baichen couldn't help but shake his head.

Although he didn't expect Cai Lin to become an unparalleled powerhouse overnight, he couldn't choose a cultivation technique that progressed so slowly. More importantly, the thought of Cai Lin's body becoming exceptionally strong after practicing this technique made Su Baichen inexplicably imagine a future "sparring" scene with Cai Lin, and he couldn't help but shudder.

For the sake of long-term happiness, this method is also not advisable.

When his gaze fell upon the third cultivation technique, the Nine Heavens Nourishing Spirit Technique, Su Baichen's eyes immediately lit up.

The symbol for this exercise is a soft cyan-blue, giving people a feeling of vitality.

The cultivation technique description states that it was created by a Dou Sheng-level expert who possessed a companion spirit. The cultivator can nurture a companion spirit that is intimately connected to themselves. This companion spirit can not only be summoned to fight alongside the host, but can also cultivate together, allowing both to enjoy double the cultivation speed.

Even better, the host can also briefly merge with the companion spirit to forcibly enhance their strength and cope with emergencies.

Su Baichen carefully weighed the pros and cons of these three cultivation techniques.

Although the Nine Revolutions Devouring Heaven Technique is progressing rapidly, it follows an evil path and consumes enormous resources, making it an unsustainable long-term solution.

The "Dragon and Snake Body Technique" focuses on body refinement, which is slow to progress and will make Cai Lin's personality arrogant and domineering due to his dragon transformation, which is not the result he wants.

The Nine Heavens Spirit Nourishing Technique, however, is entirely different. Its greatest advantage lies in its ability to cultivate a companion spirit that complements the colorful scales. This companion spirit is not only a loyal battle partner but also provides a boost to double cultivation speed. In times of crisis, fusing with the companion spirit is an even more powerful trump card.

Su Baichen's gaze involuntarily fell back onto the eight-colored swallowing python on the bed.

The little snake was curiously observing its surroundings, its eyes pure and innocent, showing none of the ferocity of an adult giant python.

The thought that this little guy might lose his true nature in the future because Cai Lin cultivates other techniques made Su Baichen's heart soften.

"This little guy is innocent. His fate was decided right after he was born. It's so unfair to him."

Su Baichen murmured to himself. Although he knew in his heart that the main reason was that the little guy was too cute and aroused pity, it was indeed a factor that could not be ignored.

Thinking that the Nine Heavens Nourishing Spirit Technique could preserve the Devouring Python's spirituality while greatly enhancing its strength, Su Baichen finally made up his mind.

"System, I choose the Nine Heavens Spirit Nourishing Technique," Su Baichen silently recited in his mind.

[Ding! Purchase of "Nine Heavens Spirit Nourishing Technique" confirmed, costing 60 million gold coins.]

[Congratulations, host, on successfully purchasing the "Nine Heavens Spirit Nourishing Technique".]

[Ding! As this is your first purchase, the system is granting you a 50% discount and has credited 30 million gold coins to your account.]

A series of system notifications startled Su Baichen for a moment, then a look of surprise appeared on his face.

He had prepared himself to go bankrupt, but the system was so generous that it gave him a 50% discount!

"Damn, this system is pretty user-friendly."

Su Baichen couldn't help but exclaim in admiration. He wouldn't be polite about such a good deal, and immediately asked tentatively, "System, can you give me another discount? Please offer more of these kinds of discounts in the future."

Chapter 62 The Treasure Hunt of the Eight-Colored Sky-Swallowing Python

Su Baichen stared at the system interface, still holding onto a sliver of hope.

Although reason told him that the 50% discount for first-time purchases was a rare opportunity, what if the system had some hidden benefits?

After all, the prices of items in the system store are incredibly high, so every little bit saved counts.

After all, who among high-level Dou Zong or even those stronger than high-level Dou Zong still uses gold coins for trading? They've all started bartering.

"System, can you still give me a discount?" Su Baichen asked tentatively, already prepared to be rejected.

[Ding! The 50% off discount is gone, but the 60% off discount is still available for 30 minutes.]

[The timeframe begins from the completion of the first purchase.]

The system's cold notification tone startled Su Baichen at first, then he abruptly sat up in bed.

"Damn it! Why didn't you say so earlier?"

He practically shouted it out, his heart filled with both shock and anxiety.

A 40% discount for 30 minutes is like a windfall, but the time is too tight!

[Ding! The host didn't ask either.] The system's response carried a hint of self-righteousness.

"Damn, you're amazing, you're right." Su Baichen was both amused and exasperated, but now was not the time to argue.

His mind raced, calculating: a 40% discount, while not as good as a 50% discount, would still save him a considerable amount of money. Any item in the system shop was priceless, and thirty minutes of the discount period was more than enough time for him to do many things.

"I'll risk it!" A resolute glint flashed in Su Baichen's eyes.

Before he finished speaking, the space around Su Baichen suddenly fluctuated.

With a wave of his right hand, the space in front of him was torn apart like cloth, revealing a pitch-black void. Without hesitation, he stepped into it and vanished from the room in an instant.

First stop: The Serpent Clan's Treasury