At the edge of the Land of the Dead.

Inside the Beast Taming Corps.

Master Xu Kai was a little slow to react to the sudden appearance of Shi Yu and the others.

"Ha... ha... ha..."

His gaze swept over Shi Yu, the gem cat, and Eleven.

"Shi Yu, what are you talking about?"

"Uncle Xu can't be scared. It's not April Fool's Day in Dong Huang."

The gem cat became impatient and said, "Who's scaring you? It's true. The Undead Nether Phoenix has awakened."

"Although it didn't break the seal, the power surge should be real. There may be a large-scale undead riot afterward, even a siege. I don't know if a new overlord of the dead will be born. Anyway, you guys should prepare quickly. Also, call a Legend over here. I'll be here to guard as well."

Xu Kai's expression gradually solidified.

Hearing what the gem cat said, he immediately understood that Shi Yu wasn't lying.

Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit.

So what the hell is going on? What did you guys do in the Land of the Dead?!

What a disaster!

Who let you in? Stand at attention for 10 days and 10 nights!

"Shi Yu, answer the phone!!!"

At that moment, a shout came from the landline on Xu Kai's desk.

Shi Yu recognized it as Principal Feng.

"It's been a few days. Why is his temper getting worse?"

"Come back to me now! Back to school!!"

Shi Yu walked over and picked up the phone. Principal Feng's roar immediately came from the other end.

Principal Feng's tone was urgent. Shi Yu closed his eyes from the shouting, and even the gem cat next to him felt a little guilty.

"Principal Feng is right. You should go back to school now. Leave this to us. Report the details to Principal Feng."

At this point, Master Xu Kai couldn't care less and ran to sound the highest alert.

...

Ancient Capital University.

Shi Yu was caught and dragged back by Principal Feng on the way.

After catching Shi Yu and bringing him back to his dormitory, Principal Feng's face lit up.

"Alright, tell me what happened."

Shi Yu sat obediently on the sofa. Eleven and Ginseng Baby sat next to him, while Buggy and Little Chi Tong in bird spirit form landed on the back of the sofa.

Shi Yu said with a bitter face, "This really isn't my fault."

"Ying and I just went to the Land of the Dead to level up Chi Tong's Spirit Release and then went to Undead Pool for sightseeing and to check in."

Principal Feng looked at Chi Tong, who was already in bird spirit form and had broken through to the commander level, and nodded.

Other than that, Shi Yu indeed had no other reason to go to the Land of the Dead.

"So what's going on with the Undead Nether Phoenix?"

"Did it suddenly awaken, or was it because of you?" Principal Feng asked seriously, asking the most crucial question.

If it was an accident, then Shi Yu and the others who discovered it would be credited.

If Shi Yu and the others messed something up and awakened the Undead Nether Phoenix, then they could write a self-criticism!

The Undead Nether Phoenix's seal location was one of the eight forbidden zones of Dong Huang. Even members of the Eleventh Bureau couldn't approach it casually.

"It was all an accident." Shi Yu's expression became excited, and he said, "But it's a great discovery, a great archaeological discovery."

"We successfully communicated with the Undead Nether Phoenix."

Whoosh!

Principal Feng was so shocked that he stood up, his eyes wide. Huh?

"Its consciousness possessed a phoenix fire, but it didn't break the seal itself."

"It said it awakened because it sensed Chi Tong's awakened phoenix bloodline after Spirit Release."

Principal Feng: "...So, it really was your fault?!"

"No..."

"It said it was Chi Tong's and the Empress's mother, and that General Mu Huiyin's and the Empress's bloodlines all originated from it."

"Also, it said it voluntarily sealed itself in the Land of the Dead due to some accident. It's a good phoenix and told us to gather enough strength to rescue and purify it, splitting the seal to save its mother."

"It also told us the location of a secret realm that contains legendary and god-level resources. After saying that, it went berserk. Can you understand?"

Principal Feng: @.@

Go to hell.

Wait, he was a little confused.

"If this is true, it's an epoch-making archaeological discovery."

"If it's fake... if it's fake... anyway, we're also victims this time." Shi Yu analyzed, "We can't take the blame for this."

Eleven and the others nodded. Chi Tong was also innocent. It inexplicably had another mother. It didn't even feel anything. What was going on?

Principal Feng: "What's all this nonsense? Start from the beginning, from when you entered the Land of the Dead, and tell me everything in detail, word for word, every detail."

The old principal's wrinkles trembled. His heart wasn't calm...

"Okay." Next, Shi Yu told everything again in detail. He already knew about Mu Huiyin's heroic spirit and her identity, so Shi Yu didn't need to explain it. After Shi Yu told him about his and the gem cat's experiences in detail, Principal Feng quickly understood.

Although he understood Shi Yu's words, their experiences still gave the old man a stomachache and a headache.

Holy shit.

The Empress was Mu Huiyin's sister, and their mother was the Undead Nether Phoenix?

This was something Principal Feng never dared to imagine when he was exploring the mysteries of the Phoenix Clan in his youth.

"You're knowledgeable and experienced, so what do you think... Is this the truth or a lie?"

Principal Feng's expression was dull.

Who the hell could judge this?

The Phoenix Clan's infighting during the Empress Dynasty was another historical fault, one of the ten unsolved mysteries of Dong Huang. Now, it was being said by the Undead Nether Phoenix, which was completely one-sided. Whether it was true or false, there was no evidence to confirm it. It could only be treated as a lie and maintain a certain vigilance.

Shi Yu: "Listening to your words..."

"I've been enlightened."

"Stop being so glib." Principal Feng had a headache, but his heart was also stirred.

Regardless of whether it was true or false, the Undead Nether Phoenix's awakening meant that there was a breakthrough in this unsolved mystery.

Principal Feng was also a member of the Eleventh Bureau. He was very uneasy when he heard such explosive news that involved the Empress's mother.

"Leave the Land of the Dead to Ying, the Ancient Capital Legends, and the Eleventh Bureau. Next, you stay in school and prepare for exams. Don't go anywhere. Do you hear me?"

"As for the Undead Nether Phoenix, it has nothing to do with you right now. Whether it's the secret realm it mentioned or splitting the seal to save its mother, don't have any unrealistic thoughts."

Principal Feng still had high hopes for Shi Yu. Shi Yu was an orphan, so he directly regarded Shi Yu as his junior. He didn't want Shi Yu to do anything reckless.

"Understood. I definitely won't mess around without enough strength."

Principal Feng: ???

So you're still thinking about it??

...

After obtaining information from Shi Yu, Principal Feng quickly rushed to the Land of the Dead.

The big shots of the Beast Taming Corps over there also obtained some information from the gem cat.

As Principal Feng left, only Shi Yu, Eleven, Buggy, Ginseng Baby, and Chi Tong were left in the room.

"Um..."

At this moment, the few of them looked at each other, a little dazed.

What was going on?

"There shouldn't be any problems over there, right?" Shi Yu looked in the direction of the Land of the Dead.

There wasn't even a Dominator-level being in the Land of the Dead. Even if a new overlord of the dead was born due to this change, it wouldn't cause any waves.

As long as there was a Legend, everything could be quelled.

Ancient Capital City was a first-tier city after all. There were several Legends sitting in the city, and there were countless forbidden weapons hidden that could strike Totems. Unless the Undead Nether Phoenix came out herself, it wouldn't pose any threat to the city.

The real threat to Dong Huang came from foreign creatures.

Dong Huang hadn't completely eliminated these ferocious beasts and spirits purely to protect the ecosystem. Their existence was still within a controllable range.

Thinking of this, Shi Yu stopped caring about the Land of the Dead. He was just a high-level Beast Tamer, and caring wouldn't do any good. After all, he might not even be able to beat a King-level undead.

"By the way, how much of the Undead Pool's power did you absorb?" Shi Yu asked Ginseng Baby, caring about his own problems.

He ran too quickly just now and didn't pay attention. Now, the Undead Pool was probably gone.

"Yi." Ginseng Baby stretched out its finger, and a flash of green light condensed a nine with a wooden strip.

Fortunately, it was still okay. While the Undead Nether Phoenix was telling its story, it was still condensing mutant fruits.

It guessed that it had absorbed 90% of the Undead Pool's power. It wasn't a loss.

"Wu~" At this moment, Buggy also opened space and threw out the death spirit fruits condensed by Ginseng Baby.

One by one, the black fruits were spread out on the table. There were about 13 of them.

"13? That's a lot."

Shi Yu was slightly stunned when he saw so many mutant fruits, and his expression was pleasant.

This wave, Ginseng Baby wasn't far from evolution.

Time Soil + Death Spirit Fruit + Time Secret Realm + Moon Gem, oh yeah, invincible.

Eh, wait.

Since the max-level Mutant Body could condense mutant power outside its body, could it condense time fruits in the Time Secret Realm of Imperial Capital University in the future???

That was much more valuable than death fruits.

Shi Yu had a bold idea.

"Yi!!" At this moment, Ginseng Baby's expression was also particularly smug.

After this evolution, it would be the true Ginseng Emperor.

Although the process was a little tortuous, it was determined to learn the power of death...

Even if... Soon, Ginseng Baby saw Little Chi Tong and couldn't help but grimace.

Evolution was evolution, but it was still a Wood-type.

There was a Sword Spirit here with a Sun Phoenix bloodline and a high-level overlord race. Even though none of its skill proficiencies exceeded proficiency, its energy value was already close to Buggy's, which had a bunch of max-level skills. When Shi Yu started nurturing Chi Tong, Ginseng Baby felt that even if it evolved, it wouldn't be able to obtain the Emperor position in the team.

Buggy's skills were so abnormal, and it was unknown whether it could beat it...

Ginseng Baby looked at Eleven with expectant eyes.

It seemed that the only one it could possibly surpass after evolution was the leader?

At least the leader's skills... were traceable.

Eleven: ???

"Roar?" Eleven pointed at itself.

Ginseng Baby shook its head repeatedly.

Eleven puffed up its cheeks. Damn it, it wasn't like it couldn't evolve anymore!

"Wu~"

Buggy squinted its eyes tiredly. It was too competitive. It was about to push the leader to the bottom.

"Mi!!" Little Chi Tong flew away without a care, took out a glass of ice water, and started drinking with a straw.

Shi Yu was still sitting on the sofa, sighing, not yet recovered from the Land of the Dead.

"Undead Nether Phoenix..."

Forget it, he should listen to Principal Feng and not think about it for now. He definitely wouldn't go to the Land of the Dead again.

In the future, he would just rely on skill points to level up Little Chi Tong's Spirit Release.

As for the secret realm that the other party mentioned where resources were stored, Shi Yu was also powerless.

That secret realm was in Seven Islands. Without Legend-level strength, even if he had the gem cat with him, it would be difficult for him to cross borders.

Even if he had the chance to enter, the secret realm might not necessarily be a good place. If the Undead Nether Phoenix lied, it might be a trap.

"Let's just pretend we don't have this mother for now and wait for the Eleventh Bureau to investigate carefully."

Shi Yu said to Little Chi Tong.

This time, the Undead Nether Phoenix revealed so much information. Regardless of whether it was true or false, the other archaeological big shots of the Eleventh Bureau would probably gain something. He would just wait for the results.

"Mi..." Chi Tong, who had melted a piece of ice, was speechless. It hadn't even called her "Mom" yet, but Shi Yu was already calling her "Mom" repeatedly.

Could he have a firm stance...?

...

Next, Shi Yu studied in a low-key manner, preparing for the final exams.

"About Me Recognizing a Top Totem as My Mom and Causing an Undead Siege but Still Having to Prepare for Final Exams" was no longer worth Shi Yu's deep consideration.

"What a disaster."

Shi Yu sighed while paying attention to the news from the Land of the Dead.

In the blink of an eye, a week passed.

Fortunately, there weren't any major problems. All the signs of an undead siege seemed to have been nipped in the bud by the Ancient Capital's big shots.

"No new overlords of the dead were born this time. Only a dozen irrational undead monarchs were born, but they were all killed by Legend Yin."

"However, a large amount of plague and curses continue to cover the core area of the Land of the Dead. In the short term, we can't rule out the possibility of new high-level undead appearing, so we need to continue paying attention to the Land of the Dead."

Before long, Principal Feng brought back news, but the question he cared about most was, "How did you do on the exams?"

He cared about Shi Yu's studies.

Shi Yu smiled sheepishly and said, "I definitely got full marks on the useful subjects."

Principal Feng: ???

"What do you mean by 'useless'?"

"It's just... it's just the history of architecture, clothing, diet, and so on, as well as ideological courses, various archaeology-related laws..."

Shi Yu's energy was limited, and he couldn't study every subject. These were all prepared for ordinary archaeologists. He just needed to do big things.

Principal Feng's face darkened and said, "I've called Qingyi back. You're not allowed to run around during this vacation. Obey and follow Qingyi to study. The Eleventh Bureau will help you with the Undead Nether Phoenix. Don't cause any more trouble."

"Now I don't even want you to go to Dragon Palace City anymore. If you cause trouble there, it'll be more troublesome than releasing the Undead Nether Phoenix..."

"Uh... then..."

Shi Yu was just about to say, "What about the Martial Arts Tournament?" but seeing Principal Feng's expression, he immediately stopped talking. Well, he'll leave it to his beast-eared senior sister to worry about.

However, Principal Feng would probably have a headache over his grades this time.

Although he said he was preparing for the exams, it was more like he was preparing for the Martial Arts Tournament. Shi Yu had put more energy into Little Chi Tong.

He started adding points to it.

He didn't care about the other skills and maxed out Possession.

[Skill]: Possession (Skill Close to Dao)

Little Chi Tong didn't change much after this skill reached max level, but the power that Shi Yu could unleash after it possessed him was even stronger.

The strength in the possession state continuously increased until it reached the Perfect level.

The possession effect changed slightly after reaching the Transcendent level, changing from strength to skill.

At this moment, after Shi Yu entered the possession state, the burden on his body was reduced. In addition, in the possession state, Shi Yu could even transform into a sword spirit form, a bird spirit form, or a phoenix spirit body form. This was very magical.

It didn't seem like possession anymore. It was more appropriate to describe it as reverse possession or combination. In this state, the combat power of both parties was the same as ordinary possession, without any change. However, at this time, Shi Yu's human aura would completely disappear. Shi Yu thought for a long time and only thought of using this trick to disguise himself as an undead and blend into non-human areas. Other uses were yet to be discovered.

As for the Transcendent-level Possession, the effect was still relatively powerful. Shi Yu felt that in this state, Little Chi Tong, who possessed him, could use its power to subtly strengthen his physique. At the same time, in the possession state, Shi Yu would temporarily gain the phoenix bloodline.

At the moment, Shi Yu had reached his limit after breaking through and adding points to Buggy, Ginseng Baby, and Chi Tong. To obtain a new limit, according to the previous situation, he would probably have to break through to the Master level. However, the max-level Possession allowed Shi Yu, whose physique had reached its limit, to slowly improve again. Shi Yu was both surprised and delighted by this change.

He was delighted that his physique was getting stronger and stronger, which was naturally a good thing.

He was surprised that Shi Yu was really afraid that one day, he would also obtain the phoenix bloodline and become a mixed-blood human. If that was the case, he might really have to call the Undead Nether Phoenix "Mom."

He might even be invited to join the Twelfth Bureau, which was specifically set up for mixed-blood humans...

"In short, don't cause too much trouble next time..."

Principal Feng looked at Shi Yu tiredly. He thought that Lu Qingyi was already troublesome enough, but he didn't expect Shi Yu to be even more troublesome.

"Don't worry."

Shi Yu said quite seriously, "I swear, there will definitely be no more trouble next time."

The Martial Arts Tournament and the Martial Emperor Relics didn't seem like places where something could go wrong. Even if there was, it would definitely be a good thing!