Douluo Dalu 2: The True God King-Chapter 221: [DD2]:

Looking at Di Mingli's aggrieved expression, Su Yu felt a pang in his heart.

With a helpless smile, he took two steps forward and gently hugged her head.

"Alright, Mingli, don't be mad," Su Yu said softly, stroking her golden fur to comfort her. "I already told you I'll come back."

"When I return, we can play together again, all you want."

"And when the time is right, I'll take you to see the human world. How does that sound?"

"And when will the time be right?" Di Mingli stared directly at Su Yu and asked.

"When I can deal with a few obstacles, that will be the right time," Su Yu replied with a smile.

"But how long will that take?"

Her golden eyes glimmered as she fixed them on him.

Su Yu chuckled faintly. "Mingli, I can't give you an exact time, but I promise I'll do my best to make it happen as soon as possible."

"Do you believe me?"

"Nope."

Her response was crisp and direct.

Su Yu: "..."

This silly Three-Eyed Lion! All his doting on her had been in vain.

Taking a deep breath, Su Yu spoke with mock seriousness: "Mingli, you've truly broken my heart."

"Hmph!"

Di Mingli snorted and turned her head away.

"You always tell me to wait. I've waited and waited, day after day, and I'm still waiting."

"Uh..."

Su Yu was momentarily speechless. She wasn't wrong.

But it wasn't like he could do anything about it! He wanted her to take human form as soon as possible, too.

He wouldn't mind having another beauty by his side every day!

But reality didn't work that way.

Seeing Su Yu at a loss for words, Di Mingli became even bolder.

"Tell me—exactly when are you coming back for me? If you don't say, I won't let you leave!" she demanded, brimming with authority.

"Uh... how about ten years?" Su Yu muttered softly.

"Hmm?"

Her golden eyes widened in disbelief. Ten years?

Why not just say a hundred years!

Out of sheer frustration, she lowered her head and rammed into Su Yu's chest, almost knocking him over.

The blow left Su Yu gasping for air. The strength of this silly lion was no joke.

"Eight years! Can we make it eight?" Su Yu quickly amended.

Di MIngli squinted her eyes, preparing to ram again.

"Five years! Five years, okay? I promise I'll come back within five years to take you to the human world," Su Yu said hurriedly.

Di Mingli remained silent, her gaze sweeping over Su Yu as if evaluating his sincerity.

Su Yu placed a large hand on her head and said, "Mingli, let's not overdo it. Five years is the shortest I can promise. No less."

"Even if you ram me to death today, I won't change my answer."

"And if you keep causing trouble, don't blame me for having Uncle Di Tian lock you up."

"I'll send you to the Great Sovereign's realm and have you locked away for a hundred years. Believe it or not!"

Di Mingli froze. Her outstretched head slowly withdrew.

Her golden eyes shifted as she muttered pitifully, "You're always bullying me."

Rolling his eyes, Su Yu replied, "Stop with the act. I'm telling you—this isn't up for negotiation."

"Uncle Di Tian!" Su Yu called out.

"Yes, Young Master!" Di Tian stepped forward.

Seeing that Su Yu was serious, Di Mingli panicked and quickly backed down. "Five years it is! But remember—you must come back for me in five years!"

"And I have one more condition: you must visit me within the next two years."

"Deal. I'll come back to visit you within two years," Su Yu said with a smile.

Di Mingli finally felt a little better. Her golden eyes glared at Su Yu as she muttered, "You're so awful. Always using your authority to push me around."

"I'm the Emperor Auspicious Beast, and yet you're the only one who dares to bully me."

"Well, what can I say? Rank always wins. My status is higher than yours," Su Yu said with a grin.

"Hmph! Just wait until I take human form. Then you'll get what's coming to you."

"Sure, sure. I'll be waiting."

Su Yu agreed cheerfully, though a glint of amusement flickered in his eyes.

By the time she took human form, who knew who would be bullying whom?

Even Gu Yuena had fallen to him. What chance did this silly lion have?

Su Yu smiled. His bond with Di Mingli was far closer than his initial relationship with Gu Yuena.

Winning over the transformed Three-Eyed Golden Lion would be as easy as pie.

Di Mingli blinked her golden eyes, looking at Su Yu suspiciously. "I feel like you're thinking about something inappropriate."

Her intuition was surprisingly sharp.

Su Yu chuckled softly but didn't answer.

With a wave of his right hand, a white orb appeared, radiating an intense, pure light. The surrounding air rippled with dragon might, exuding a powerful aura.

"Huh? This is..."

Di Tian's eyes flashed with astonishment.

"Such pure light energy—this is a Dragon Core from the Holy Light Dragon Clan?"

Di Tian, being well-versed in dragon lineage, instantly recognized the treasure.

"Indeed, Uncle Di Tian," Su Yu said with a smile.

"This Dragon Core is something I acquired from Shrek Academy. I've kept it all this time without using it."

"I think Mingli, with her ultimate light element and dragon bloodline, is the perfect match for it."

Di Mingli froze, stunned. "This... is for me?"

Though occasionally silly, she wasn't truly foolish. She fully understood the value of a pure dragon's Dragon Core.

For a soul beast with a light attribute, it was an unparalleled treasure.

And Su Yu was giving it to her?

"Who else would I give it to?" Su Yu chuckled and tossed the Dragon Core toward her.

Mingli quickly caught it with one paw, the platinum orb radiating brilliance in her grasp.

"Take some time to absorb it. Hopefully, when I come back, your strength will have improved greatly," Su Yu said, winking at her.

With a final smile, he turned to leave.

Glancing back toward the Lake of Life, Su Yu's gaze seemed to penetrate the underground realm, where he envisioned a beautiful silver-haired figure.

Sensing his thoughts, Gu Yuena lifted her violet eyes slightly, as though meeting his gaze through space.

Su Yu smiled faintly and nodded.

Her gaze softened, filled with warmth.

With that, Su Yu turned and headed for the outskirts of the Star Dou Forest.

Hands clasped behind his back, Su Yu moved through the forest.

In the core area, powerful soul beasts roamed, but all recognized Su Yu's status.

There wasn't a single reckless soul beast daring enough to block Su Yu's path.

Unhurried, Su Yu simply walked forward. Even so, after two hours, he exited the Star Dou Forest's core zone.

As he walked, countless thoughts swirled through his mind. It had already been nearly three months since his return to the Star Dou Forest, and his level had reached 58.

However, after reaching the Soul King stage, the pace of his soul power cultivation slowed down compared to when he was a Soul Elder. During the Soul Grandmaster phase, his ultimate martial soul allowed him to increase his level by around five annually, even without external aids. As a Soul Elder, it dropped to about four levels per year. Now, as a Soul King, the speed had decreased yet again.

The higher the level, the harder it became to improve—this common wisdom was proving itself true. But Su Yu couldn't help wondering why the ultimate martial soul's influence was still dragging down his cultivation speed. The ultimate power of his martial soul should have primarily been directed toward nourishing his body. And now, with a physical constitution comparable to a Titled Douluo, the ultimate ice should no longer be holding him back.

But even with his strong physique, he still felt significant resistance during cultivation. It wasn't just the ultimate ice causing the drag.

"Could it be... the Dragon God Seal?" Su Yu murmured to himself. "Has the Dragon God Seal's ultimate attributes been silently slowing down my progress all this time? Its influence might have been subtle because I haven't yet cultivated it."

If his suspicion was correct, this was a significant issue. The Dragon God Seal contained multiple ultimate attributes—much more problematic than just one. If the Ice Emperor was like one hand pulling him back, the Dragon God Seal would be like several hands holding him down.

"No wonder I've been struggling to increase my soul power, even with the help of a Pure Body," Su Yu thought, his face darkening. "If I didn't have this physique, how much worse would it be? Would I even manage to gain two levels a year?"

The very thought sent a chill down his spine. Thankfully, his Pure Body ensured that his cultivation speed though slowed, still outpaced many other prodigies. After all, being a Level 58 Soul King at only 14 years old was already remarkable.

Even if it took longer, Su Yu felt confident he'd reach the Soul Sage level before the second Martial Soul Tournament. However, he resolved to further enhance his physical strength—if a Titled Douluo-level physique wasn't enough to overcome the resistance, then perhaps achieving the constitution of a Super Douluo would do the trick.

"The stronger my body, the better," Su Yu thought, quickening his pace as he entered the mixed zone of the Star Dou Forest.

Unlike the core zone, the mixed zone was filled with dense undergrowth, rotting leaves, and murky swamps. Traversing this area would be a slow and perilous task for most. But Su Yu's steps were light and effortless, his blue-and-white outfit remaining spotless despite the rugged terrain.

In no time, he had crossed a significant portion of the mixed zone. As he pushed through a thicket, Su Yu suddenly stopped in his tracks. His extraordinary perception alerted him to a battle taking place nearby.

His eyes flickered with curiosity as he turned toward the sound of conflict. Moving silently, Su Yu traveled several hundred meters before scaling a tall tree to get a better view.

Roughly 200 meters away, a group of people was engaged in combat. With his keen eyesight, Su Yu quickly identified their attire and recognized their affiliation.

"Shrek Academy?" Su Yu raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Are they here hunting soul beasts again?"

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There were about ten individuals, most wearing the academy's signature red uniforms—signifying they were inner court students. However, two of them wore purple, marking them as third- or fourth-year outer court students.

"What kind of team composition is this?" Su Yu muttered to himself, puzzled by the presence of both inner and outer court students.

While he was observing, one member of the Shrek group suddenly noticed something was amiss. A sharp gaze shot toward Su Yu's direction, accompanied by a blast of energy.

"Who's spying on us?" a cold voice demanded.

Su Yu chuckled softly and dodged the attack with ease, his figure flashing as he approached the group. Within moments, he stood before them.

The source of the attack was a mature woman clad in simple gray robes. Her figure was curvaceous, her beauty still evident despite appearing to be in her forties. Her aura exuded immense power—she was a seasoned Titled Douluo, and not a recently advanced one at that.

"No wonder she spotted me so quickly," Su Yu mused.

The woman's expression shifted slightly as she noticed Su Yu's youthful appearance. Her initial wariness lessened somewhat.

"Who are you?" she asked sternly. "Why were you watching us from the shadows?"

Before Su Yu could reply, a familiar voice exclaimed, "It's you!"

Turning, Su Yu spotted an old acquaintance. He grinned. "Ah, Brother Bei! Long time no see."

As he scanned the group, Su Yu noticed several familiar faces, including Bei Bei, Chu He, and Shi Yue, whom he had encountered during the previous tournament. Standing quietly among them was Zhang Lexuan, who seemed to be stealing glances at him.

"Hiding, are we?" Su Yu smirked inwardly. Earlier, a tree had obscured Zhang Lexuan's presence, so he hadn't noticed her right away. Now, it was evident she had come along as a guardian for the team.

Beside Zhang Lexuan stood another striking woman with a similar mature charm. She seemed slightly older than Zhang Lexuan, and her aura suggested she was nearing the Soul Douluo rank. Su Yu quickly deduced her identity.

Shifting his gaze, Su Yu finally turned his attention to the two outer court students in purple uniforms.