Chapter 14: The Spirit of the Ring – A Maiden's Grace

The gathering at Longquan Palace concluded before sunset that same afternoon. It could not be helped; for those privileged young ladies, it was forbidden to revel outdoors at night. Should their reputations be sullied, marrying into a respectable family would become a daunting endeavor. Thus, the annual gatherings at Longquan Palace almost always ended by dusk. Once the beautiful heiresses departed, the remaining group of gentlemen found little reason to linger.

Within the private chamber, Du Long sat cross-legged, eyes closed in earnest cultivation. The little golden serpent rested quietly, coiled around his left arm, appearing to slumber, yet in truth, it too was diligently training.

At that moment, a faint golden light began to emanate from the dark serpentine ring on Du Long's left ring finger, which had always remained dormant. The little golden serpent sensed this and abruptly opened its eyes, fixing its gaze intently on the now-glowing ring.

Under the serpent’s wary watch, the ring shifted from its original black hue, gradually transforming into a dark golden color. Its surface was enveloped by a shimmering layer of dark gold, which began to writhe and undulate. Finally, to the serpent’s astonishment, the glow condensed into the exquisite figure of a translucent dark golden woman.

"Ah!" The little beauty, formed from the dark golden radiance, stretched lazily, streams of gold light accentuating the elegant curves of her form.

"Du Long! Du Long! Something huge has happened!" The little golden serpent, stunned for a moment, finally came to its senses and urgently transmitted its voice directly into Du Long’s mind.

"Little Golden Crystal, what could be so important as to disturb my cultivation?" Du Long opened his eyes, a touch of annoyance in his voice as he looked toward the serpent. His attention was quickly drawn to the palm-sized, ethereal woman hovering above the ring; without needing the serpent's explanation, he understood why he had been abruptly awakened.

"What... what is happening here? Who... are you?" Du Long, somewhat shaken, stammered as he addressed the enigmatic little woman.

The dark golden beauty did not immediately answer his question. Instead, she blinked her large, charming eyes, circling around Du Long and the serpent. Disappointment soon clouded her delicate features, and she sat down with a sigh, propping her chin on her hand in a troubled pose. "Alas! Who would have thought my new master would be a mere child at the Qi Accumulation stage? How unlucky!"

Du Long stared blankly at this self-absorbed, spectral beauty who seemed to ignore his presence entirely. Swallowing hard, he tried again: "What are you, exactly? Why are you here?"

"Hmph! You're the thing here! I'm not a thing—I'm a beautiful ring spirit! Do you know what a ring spirit is, you uncultured bumpkin?" The spectral beauty leapt up, hands on hips, pointing accusingly at Du Long’s nose and venting her anger. As she spoke, she covered her face and pretended to sob, "Ugh, as if it isn’t bad enough to be stuck with a child, now I find myself with a country bumpkin..."

‘A country bumpkin?!’ Du Long was dumbfounded. ‘No matter what, I am the son of a Second Rank Loyal Martial General of the Haotian Empire, a scion of a noble house—how could I ever be called a bumpkin to my face?’

Curiosity soon outweighed any wounded pride. Du Long pressed on: "Ring spirit life? Where do you come from? Why are you here?"

"You don’t know where I come from? Then where did you get this ring?" The spectral beauty blinked her lovely eyes, puzzled.

"Ring?" Du Long instantly realized it must be about the ring on his finger. "I found this ring in the rear garden and have worn it for ten years. Why did you never appear before?"

"Hmph!" The little beauty pouted. "Without the proper bloodline, ordinary blood is useless for awakening me!"

"Bloodline?" Du Long suddenly recalled how, during the day’s gathering, his left hand had been bitten by the little golden serpent, causing blood to flow and stain the ring. 'Could it be that this blood was what summoned the ring spirit?'

"Exactly! It’s the bloodline. Ordinary blood won’t allow you to claim the ring; only those with sufficient bloodline strength can become its master." The spectral beauty replied proudly.

"Bloodline strength?" Du Long murmured in confusion.

"Oh, heavens!" The dark golden beauty clasped her head in despair. "You really are the ultimate bumpkin, not even knowing what bloodline strength is..."

After a series of such insults, even Du Long’s patience wore thin. "You’re the bumpkin! I am the son of a high official of the Haotian Empire—a scion of the imperial capital's elite! How did I end up a bumpkin in your eyes?"

"Haotian Empire? What kind of place is that? I’ve never heard of it! I can’t believe I’ve ended up in such a primitive, backward world. Oh, I’ll never return..." The little beauty once again covered her face, stamping her feet as she wept.

"Hey, hey! Enough with the crying! I have a question for you. After I acquired this ring, my strength diminished rather than increased, and I nearly became crippled. In hindsight, it must have been the ring’s fault..."

"Hmph! Serves you right. If someone with insufficient bloodline strength dares to wear the Dragon... ring, their energy will simply be drained away." The spectral beauty cast Du Long a disdainful glance.

"So it was true!" Though he’d suspected as much, hearing it confirmed made Du Long seethe with resentment toward the ring—before his rebirth, it had nearly ruined him.

"You’re rather fortunate, though. Not only did you luck into this ring, but you also acquired the bloodline of that little creature, just enough to meet the ring’s minimum requirement." The dark golden beauty adopted an air of seniority as she spoke.

"Nonsense!" Du Long snapped. "Were it not for this ring, I wouldn’t have spent over a decade as a cripple, nor would my family have been pushed to the brink of ruin, or my fiancée run off with another!"

The little beauty was momentarily bewildered by Du Long’s fury, but soon dissolved into peals of laughter, her delight at his misfortune all too obvious.

"Must you be so gleeful at my misery? What’s the origin of this ring? Will it ever drain my energy again? If so, I’d rather chop off my finger and toss it into a latrine!"

"You dare!" The little beauty shrieked. "If you throw me in a latrine, I’ll drain every ounce of your energy and blood, leaving you a dried corpse!"

"Hmph! If it turns me into a cripple again, I’d rather die and toss it in the latrine to vent my rage!" Du Long growled, his eyes fierce.

"No... Your bloodline strength now meets the standard, and the ring has formally acknowledged you as its master. It will never drain your energy again!" The little beauty seemed genuinely intimidated by Du Long’s ferocity.

A faint, imperceptible smile flickered in Du Long’s eyes as he feigned further anger. "Hmph! If this ring offers me nothing but misery, I’ll find a way to throw it in a latrine and be rid of it!"

"Benefits? Of course there are benefits! This is the Dragon... ring, with many advantages. First, you can use it as a spatial ring. Second, as your strength grows, it will grant you abilities appropriate to your stage. There are countless benefits..." The little beauty rolled her eyes, hastily listing a few.

"Oh? A spatial ring? What abilities, and how do I use them?"

"Using the spatial ring is simple. Now that you’ve claimed it with your blood, just focus your mind, and you’ll see a space about ten meters in diameter. You can store and retrieve items there at will—very convenient!" she explained. "As for benefits with each stage of strength, for now, only one: each time your power increases, the internal space expands. You’ll experience this for yourself in time."

Even as the dark golden beauty rambled on, Du Long had already turned his mind toward the ring on his left finger. Immediately, he sensed a space about ten meters across, empty except for his awareness.

He tried to move the little golden serpent from his arm into the space, but nothing happened. After several attempts, he glared at the beauty. "Are you lying to me? I can sense the space, but I can’t move the serpent inside! What’s going on?"

"You really know nothing, bumpkin..." The little beauty started to scold him, but seeing Du Long’s expression, quickly stopped and answered with a sigh. "You can’t store living creatures—only inanimate objects!"

Blushing slightly, Du Long ignored her disdain and scanned the room, focusing on a bundle he had packed earlier—provisions for his journey to Lingyun Mountain’s secluded valley.

He picked up the bundle, concentrated on the space, and with a thought, the bundle vanished from his hand, appearing in the empty space. With another thought, it reappeared in his grasp. After repeating the process several times without error, Du Long finally set aside his curiosity, excitement shining in his eyes as he looked at the dark golden beauty.

"Beautiful Ring Spirit, do you have a name?" After their exchange, Du Long sensed that, despite her cunning facade, she was actually quite naïve and easily deceived. He had already devised a way to handle her.

"Of course! I used to have a name; everyone called me Ling’er!" Being addressed as a beautiful lady made the little beauty beam with happiness.

"Ling’er? What a lovely name! Who gave it to you?" Du Long continued to charm her.

"Hehe, my previous master named me! I think it’s such a wonderful name, too!" Ling’er’s smile grew even brighter.

"Who was your previous master? To be the master of the enchanting Ling’er, they must have been an extraordinary person, right?" Du Long continued his flattery.

"My previous master was... No! I can’t say. She told me never to reveal her identity, or it might bring disaster upon my new master!" Ling’er abruptly stopped, terror flashing across her face.

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