14: bride price

"Xiao Han."

Bibi Dong suddenly turned her head, looking towards Mo Yuhan, a captivating smile gracing her lips, her voice clearly reaching both Liu Erlong and Mo Yuhan.

"Auntie thinks this Spirit Bone has decent luster and its attributes are barely usable. How about... Auntie makes the decision for you, and we'll consider it a 'betrothal gift' for this girl? Anyway, your small body can't use a Spirit Bone right now, so it's not bad to save it for your wife in advance, is it?"

"Auntie!"

Mo Yuhan's small face instantly flushed, his dark eyes filled with shame and helplessness. He quickly glared at Bibi Dong, then swiftly lowered his head, wishing he could find a hole to crawl into.

"Betrothal... betrothal gift?!" Liu Erlong felt as if struck by lightning.

Her honey-colored face flushed scarlet in an instant, more vibrant than the morning glow in the sky. Her bright eyes widened instantly, filled with an unbelievable absurdity, the humiliation of being teased, and a hint of panic she herself hadn't noticed.

Her high bosom beneath the torn leather armor heaved violently, and the lines of her taut waist instantly contracted due to the sudden words "betrothal gift."

Liu Erlong felt all the blood rush to her head; her previous composure was gone. This woman, brought by that stinky brat and called 'Auntie,' with her terrifying strength, actually... actually joked about such a thing??

Moreover, her other target for teasing was that seven or eight-year-old brat.

She abruptly looked at the Spirit Bone floating in the air, emitting an alluring glow, then at Mo Yuhan, who was lowering his head in shame, and then met Bibi Dong's deep eyes, which held a playful smile. A strong mix of offended anger and immense embarrassment rushed to her heart.

"Don't... don't think that just because he saved me, you can make such jokes, Senior. Please... please show some self-respect."

Liu Erlong subconsciously regarded herself and Mo Yuhan as peers, while seeing Bibi Dong, who was roughly her age, as an elder.

Her voice carried a barely perceptible tremor as she forcibly suppressed her surging blood and shame, trying to make her tone sound firm. "This Spirit Bone... was dropped by this devil spider, but I had already planned to give it to this brat once I found him, to repay his life-saving kindness."

"But anything about 'betrothal gifts'... is simply nonsense!"

Her crimson eyes looked at Mo Yuhan, as if asking if he, the little pervert, had made such a disgusting request. Her wild pride made her unable to tolerate such frivolous teasing, especially with this little brat who had seen her body present.

Bibi Dong watched Liu Erlong, who was a mix of shame and anger, like a bristling female leopard, and Mo Yuhan's embarrassed look, as if he wanted to disappear on the spot. The smile in her eyes deepened.

She elegantly raised her hand, and the floating purple-black Spirit Bone seemed to be drawn by an invisible force, slowly drifting down in front of Liu Erlong.

"Alright, no more jokes."

Bibi Dong's voice returned to that faint sense of detachment, speaking with a tone that already held the nascent majesty of a future Supreme Pontiff. "The Spirit Bone is your spoils of war. How you deal with it is your decision. I am not so greedy as to covet such a small thing from you."

She had originally thought about whether to give Liu Erlong a Spirit Bone that suited her, but since Liu Erlong showed such resistance, she dropped the idea.

Furthermore, Liu Erlong was only the illegitimate daughter of the Blue Lightning. If it weren't for Mo Yuhan's interest in her, she wouldn't be worth her trouble.

She glanced meaningfully at Mo Yuhan. "Xiao Han, we should go."

Mo Yuhan felt as if he had been granted a great pardon and immediately scurried to Bibi Dong's side, not daring to look at Liu Erlong again the entire time.

Bibi Dong swept her sleeve, and a gentle force enveloped Mo Yuhan.

She took one last look at Liu Erlong, whose expression was constantly changing, and left a light remark: "Take care of yourself. If you wish to join my Spirit Hall, you can come to Spirit City. We do not discriminate based on bloodline and welcome all capable Spirit Masters."

As her words fell, a dark purple light flickered slightly, and their figures, like phantoms, silently disappeared from the spot, leaving only the fresh scent of grass and trees lingering in the morning light, and the purple-black Spirit Bone quietly suspended before Liu Erlong.

Liu Erlong stood rooted to the spot, the blush on her honey-colored skin not yet faded, emotions churning in her crimson eyes.

Watching that brat leave with the woman without saying a single word, she felt an inexplicable sense of loss and confusion...

Bibi Dong's last words, "Spirit Hall welcomes capable Spirit Masters," echoed in her ears.

She looked at the Spirit Bone before her, exuding a cold and resilient aura. Anyone else would probably have eagerly taken it.

However, as soon as she thought of the words "betrothal gift" and Mo Yuhan's indifferent little face... a strong feeling of awkwardness surged up.

"Hmph! Who cares about this broken bone!"

Liu Erlong gritted her silver teeth and spat. She reached out and grabbed the purple-black Spirit Bone.

It was cold to the touch, and a resilient energy fluctuation emanated from it; it was indeed a genuine Spirit Bone.

But she didn't hesitate at all, directly stuffing the Spirit Bone into a crude pouch at her waist, her movements even carrying a hint of venting frustration.

"Stinky brat... and that powerful woman..."

Liu Erlong bit her lower lip, her eyes looking in the direction where Bibi Dong and Mo Yuhan had disappeared. The morning breeze ruffled her sweat-dampened crimson hair, brushing across the exposed honey-colored skin of her taut waist.

"Next time we meet, I'll beat you into a pig's head... I'll return this broken bone to you untouched, then let's see if you still dare to spout nonsense!"

She snorted heavily, suppressing the inexplicable stir in her heart, and turned to stride away from the messy stream bank.

Her torn fiery red leather armor fluttered in the morning light, her honey-colored long legs moving with a wild sense of power.

Only the pouch at her waist, containing the Spirit Bone, seemed to have become a hot potato, and also an object embodying her complex emotions.

...

The towering ancient trees of the Star Dou Great Forest rapidly receded beneath their feet, transforming into a flowing emerald light.

Bibi Dong, carrying Mo Yuhan, moved like a dark purple phantom above the forest sea, at a speed so fast that even the wind couldn't keep up.

Beneath them lay the perilous territory of Spirit Beasts, and above, dappled sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves. Yet, Mo Yuhan's small face still carried the lingering embarrassment from the stream bank earlier.

"Xiao Han."

Bibi Dong's lazy voice remained clear amidst the whistling wind, carrying an undisguised hint of teasing, "Your face is still red, isn't it? It seems Auntie's talk of a 'betrothal gift' truly resonated with you, didn't it?"

Mo Yuhan's body stiffened, his body, carried by Bibi Dong's Soul Power, tensed up. He mumbled, "Auntie! You... you shouldn't talk nonsense. She and I have nothing to do with each other. She's ten years older than me."

"Age isn't the problem, but 'nothing to do with each other'?"

Bibi Dong's beautiful eyes glinted as she glanced at the little fellow beside her, whose neck was stiff. The smile on her lips deepened. "Then who was anxiously watching when the little female dragon was injured? Who was so anxious they almost rushed up to fight that thousand-year devil spider themselves? And who... hmm... risked himself to suck the poisonous blood from her arm, taking full advantage?"

She deliberately bit out the words "took advantage" slowly and softly, full of mischief.

Mo Yuhan felt as if his face was on fire, hotter than his Xuan Huang Flame.

He abruptly turned his head, his dark eyes staring at the rapidly passing treetops ahead, his voice filled with exasperated shame: "That was to save her! Besides, since you were already there at that time, why didn't you show up earlier to save her? That way, I wouldn't have had to... If you say any more nonsense, I'll jump down!"

"Such a good opportunity, how could I possibly come out and disturb it?"

Bibi Dong chuckled lightly, the Soul Power enveloping him remaining perfectly still. "But if you really want to jump down and feed the Spirit Beasts, then Auntie would be heartbroken to death. Alright, alright, I won't tease you anymore."

Her tone shifted slightly, taking on a subtle seriousness. "But seriously, Xiao Han, that Liu Erlong, her temperament is a bit fierce, a bit wild, but her innate talent and bone structure are indeed excellent, and her character is pure and resilient enough. She's a good prospect."

"If she can be brought under the wing of my Spirit Hall and carefully cultivated, her future achievements won't be low. You and she... could be considered to have met through conflict. Auntie's words just now, though a joke, may not be impossible to come true. Cultivate well, and when you grow up, if you truly fancy her, Auntie will personally propose marriage for you. I reckon the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan wouldn't dare to refuse me."