“I’m a white fox. My clan has a Secret Method to conceal one’s aura.”
“I’m an octopus—a pink one!” Zhang Yunwei shook her pink hair with a smile.
“I’m a lop-eared rabbit,” Bo Yuqiao followed, then asked curiously, “Sui Ning, didn’t your Beast Husbands come with you?”
Zhang Yunwei had brought two Beast Husbands, and she herself had brought one.
Females held a precious status in the Interstellar Beast World and were the focus of protection. Most females who came to enroll were already eighteen years old, and they typically had one to three Males accompanying them in rotation. This was also why even low-level Mental Power females were still given private residences.
Sui Ning said with a smile, “They’re busy. They should arrive in the next couple of days.”
“No worries, the security at Temple Academy is pretty good—360-degree surveillance with no blind spots, connected directly to the super Optical Brain.” Zhang Yunwei didn’t dwell on the topic, and called Bo Yuqiao to take the Star-pod with her to the shopping mall on campus.
Temple Academy covered a vast area, comparable in scale to the super cities in Sui Ning’s memory, only the buildings were less densely packed. After all, this academy provided education for females from across the entire Interstellar Beast World who were eighteen or older with a Mental Power level of C-rank or above.
Sui Ning knew nothing about any of this and could only take everything in half-understood, but fortunately Zhang Yunwei had done thorough research, with Bo Yuqiao adding details along the way.
She bought an all-purpose household robot that could clean, do simple cooking, wash clothes, and wash dishes—unbelievably convenient. Even though it cost one hundred thousand Star Coins, she gritted her teeth and bought it.
Various soft furnishings, clothing, snacks, and more filled her Optical Brain’s storage space to about seventy or eighty percent, and fifty-six thousand was swiped away.
“There’s a market up ahead. Want to go take a look together? It’s all supplies the Males collected from other celestial bodies…”
Sui Ning’s eyes lit up slightly. For Beastmen, Mental Power determined Combat Power Value, and raising one’s Combat Power Value and accumulating experience could in turn boost Mental Power.
On the various resource celestial bodies, there existed strange beasts. The Crystal Cores in the brains of strange beasts, once purified by purification-type females and then refined and tempered with equipment, could be made into High-Grade Nutrient Solution, or consumed directly to replenish Special Abilities and advance one’s cultivation.
Sui Ning got stuck at the very first stall. Gazing at an emerald-green Crystal Core, she asked softly, “Excuse me, how many Star Coins is this?”
“Esteemed Female, this is a wood-attribute Crystal Core, hunted from a mutated level-five plant.
As you know, wood-attribute Crystal Cores are hard to find. A level-five plant requires three to five level-six Male warriors to hunt down…” the Male enthusiastically pitched.
“So how many Star Coins exactly?” Sui Ning interrupted him.
“Five hundred thousand, non-negotiable,” the Male paused, then added, “You can ask around—this is a fairly reasonable price. Level-five Crystal Cores vary in quality, after all…”
Five hundred thousand—the price of one Beast Husband, and also the cost for the organization to support an A-rank Mental Power female for a year.
Sui Ning pointed at a Crystal Core with tiny blue specks. “And this one?”
“A level-four water-attribute Crystal Core. The strange beasts in the water are hard to hunt… three hundred thousand, non-negotiable!”
In the end, Sui Ning bought a level-four water-attribute Crystal Core for two hundred thousand, planning to go back and see if she could purify and absorb it.
While making the payment, she saw two friend requests, from her matches Jin Hao and Bo Zhou.
Sui Ning accepted them, and almost the instant they became friends, a message from Jin Hao arrived.
【Don’t Take a Chicken Feather for an Arrow of Command】: Your Mental Power level is too low—you can’t possibly Soothe me at all. How many Star Coins to unbind? Name any price you want!
Sui Ning wasn’t surprised. She typed out her reply, plain and proper, without a single extra punctuation mark.
【Speaking for Zhonghua in the Interstellar Age】: Five hundred thousand.
The other party was quite generous. Apparently afraid she’d back out, he transferred five million directly.
However, after receiving the money, Sui Ning returned four and a half million the way it came, then unbound and blocked Jin Hao in one smooth move!
It was like taking out the trash—she actually felt a weight lift from her heart.
Jin Hao froze for a moment when he saw he was free again. It was that simple?
A friend nearby leaned over for a glance and sneered:
“Your marriage match sure knows what’s good for her. But how did the Optical Brain manage to slip you out? Even the million per year you pay in information-hiding tax didn’t work, and you got paired with a C+ Waste Female?
Can she even Soothe you properly?”
Jin Hao rubbed his forehead. He’d even adjusted his match rate up to ninety percent. “There must’ve been a bug.”
“Your Mental Irritability Value is at ninety-five percent, and you’ve been reassigned to logistics. Are you sure you won’t book an appointment at the Soothing Bureau?” his friend asked with concern.
Jin Hao shook his head. “This kind of thing only happens zero times or countless times. Better to put some effort into finding a Wife-Lord.”
“No wonder you applied to teach at Temple Academy. So that’s what you were plotting…”
Sui Ning finished her shopping and returned to the dorm. She released the housekeeping robot and, after some thought, named it 【Dongfang Hong No. 1】. Once all the parameters were set, she directed it to clean and tidy up her purchases.
【Give Me a Carrot】: [Image] Hello, Suisui. I’m leading a mission in the Z10 Star Belt and can’t rush to your side right away. Is there any local specialty you’d like to eat?
Then he listed the local specialties of the Z10 celestial body along with descriptions.
Sui Ning looked at the photo—a young man with frost-white tousled hair, the tips tinged with light gray, wearing a navy-blue combat uniform. His features were elegant and otherworldly, and his pitch-black, glossy eyes held the warm hues of sunset as he gazed at the camera with a focused smile. A streak of blood marked his pale cheek, and what tugged at the heart even more was that pair of drooping ears matching his hair color—so soft-looking she wanted to give them a ruffle.
Who could resist such a heartbreakingly fragile lop-eared bunny boy? Even photoshopped images couldn’t top this!
【Speaking for Zhonghua in the Interstellar Age】: I’m a C+. You don’t mind? I might not be able to Soothe you.
【Give Me a Carrot】: Suisui, you’re adorably blunt. How could we possibly talk about that on our first chat? Whether I can be Soothed or not—we’ll have to try and see, won’t we?
Sui Ning nodded in understanding. Fair enough. Males needed to consume plenty of resources to level up. They looked loaded when returning from missions, but once training drained their funds, they were dirt poor. Half a million was no small sum—it could buy a Level-5 Crystal Core.
A Wife-Lord was essentially a freeloading Soother. A C+ could raise one rank with medication and barely manage to Soothe an S-rank. However, excessively draining a Female’s mental strength caused irreversible effects—like the original owner’s rank drop!
【Speaking for Zhonghua in the Interstellar Age】: Alright, let’s meet and talk.
Bo Zhou persistently sent more pictures of local specialties—nothing more than relatively palatable wild fruits, game with tender meat, and handicrafts that Females liked.
The original owner had at least spent time in the Miao family and frequently attended banquets, so she knew the common fruits.
Sui Ning circled two or three familiar ones.
[I Speak for Flowers in the Interstellar Era]: [Image] If it’s not too much trouble, could you bring some for me? Thank you!
The fruits and vegetables at the supermarket are too expensive—sold individually, at prices comparable to High-Grade Nutrient Solution.
Once Bo Zhou brought them over, she would pay him wholesale price. Cutting out the middleman would be good for both sides.
[Give Me a Carrot]: Suisui, you don’t need to thank me.
Then he transferred two million to Sui Ning, with a note: “Wife-Lord’s allowance for this month!”
Sui Ning felt a warmth in her heart. Ever since her loved ones had left her one by one, she had gritted her teeth and disguised herself as a man just to survive—she had almost forgotten that she was a delicate young woman who also needed someone to care for and cherish her.
The moment the thought arose, she forcefully suppressed it. They hadn’t met yet or confirmed their relationship; the money was just being temporarily kept with her for now.
Sui Niing took out the Crystal Cores she had bought at the market and was just about to study them when Zhang Yunwei sent a message.
Along with the message came her doorbell ringing. [Takoyaki Balls]: Ning Bao’er, come out quick! Let’s go next door to watch the Interstellar Guard’s competition. [Preliminary Round Livestream Link]
Sui Ning went to open the door while tapping on the link. The host’s impassioned voice came through: “Next up, preparing to enter the arena, is the twenty-two-year-old who is already Combat Power Level Eight with S-rank Mental Power, Mo Che…”
Her eyes narrowed slightly as she opened her own matching information—the name, Combat Power Value, and Mental Power Value all matched!