The Strongest Talent Tree

Yao Ying was a beauty, that was certain. But at the end of the day, beauties were still women, and no woman could resist accessories that made their heart flutter. Yao Ying was no exception.

In Yao Ying’s eyes, the designs for this revealing line of equipment in her hands seemed tailor-made for her.

Yao Ying’s daily fashion style already leaned toward the revealing. It wasn’t because she was particularly promiscuous, but because she loved expressing herself and enjoying the feeling of men drooling and women seething with jealousy when they looked at her.

Gazing at the gorgeous and sexy designs in her hands, Yao Ying’s breathing quickened unconsciously.

"These designs are beautiful. Can you make a few pieces for me?" Yao Ying couldn’t help but look up and ask.

Xiong Tianfang snorted and instinctively refused, "I’m busy."

"Ten thousand academy credits per piece," Yao Ying said with a faint smile, pursing her lips. After working together for so long, she knew exactly how Xiong Tianfang’s mind worked.

Just as she expected, upon hearing the price of ten thousand credits per piece, Xiong Tianfang nodded without hesitation. "Deal!"

"Try to make them as detailed as possible. The fine details must be perfect. I’ll come pick them up in a few days," Yao Ying said, her eyes twinkling.

"Don’t worry, you know my skill level, don’t you?" Xiong Tianfang puffed out his chest confidently, his eyes practically sparkling. He took the designs, glanced at them, and his expression turned strange. "Uh, are you sure you want to make these?"

"Is there a problem?" Yao Ying asked with a smile.

"You can, but... these pieces have too many exposed areas. They have terrible combat practicality. Fighting someone in this kind of gear is basically a death wish," Xiong Tianfang analyzed with professional diligence.

Yao Ying smiled coolly. "Looking good is enough. Who needs practicality?"

"Fine, whatever makes you happy. In any case, it’s ten thousand academy credits a piece. Just don’t try to skip out on the bill," Xiong Tianfang said nonchalantly.

Yao Ying gave a charming nod and couldn’t help but ask again, "Can you tell me where these designs came from?"

"Nope. That’s a trade secret." Xiong Tianfang smirked. In all their years of cooperation, this was the first time he’d had the upper hand when it came to designs, and he couldn’t feel more smug about it.

Hearing this, Yao Ying didn’t press the matter. Though she hadn’t found out their source, she was certain of one thing: Xiong Tianfang hadn’t drawn them himself. ’As long as I pay more attention from now on, I’ll eventually find my way to the source.’

After a bit more small talk, Yao Ying left the dormitory. Faced with the looks of envy, jealousy, and hatred from the female students, a playful smile touched her lips.

She was confident that in a few days, when she appeared in public wearing that revealing equipment, she would create an even bigger craze, especially among the female students.

After Yao Ying left, things returned to normal. Although some masters from the Crystal Stele rankings occasionally forced their way to the front of the line, it didn’t diminish the crowd’s enthusiasm for the cool new equipment...

After brewing for more than ten days, the craze for the cool equipment had long since spread through every street and alley of Five States City. From high officials and nobles down to common Mages, everyone was captivated by the cool equipment from the very start.

Meanwhile, the Five Provinces Academy was completely swept up in the fervor. It wasn’t just the students; even many of the young instructors were getting antsy!

Inside the main academy’s council hall, the upper echelons from the various colleges had gathered. The normally dull weekly council meeting had suddenly become lively.

The once-ignored dean of the Artifact Refining Department was, for the first time, the center of attention. The reason was none other than the equipment craze that had recently spread from his department. At the same time, Xiong Tianfang’s name also came up in the discussion.

The head of the Arts Department’s design division was undoubtedly the most excited. Like Yao Ying, she hadn’t been able to sleep at night since seeing the designs and was dying to find the mysterious designer immediately.

"Dean Li, the Artifact Refining Department has caused such a huge stir. Don’t you have anything to say?" The design division head, a fashionable middle-aged woman, was currently staring resentfully at the Artifact Refining dean, Li Ao.

The female dean of the Medical Department next to her chimed in, "Exactly! We leaders should have some special privileges, shouldn’t we?"

"That’s right. We can’t be expected to line up and fight for them like the students, can we?" a few of the younger department heads agreed.

Hearing this, the head dean, Xuchang, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up irritably, "You’re all grown adults holding important positions in your respective departments. How can you act like children? Aren’t they just some nice-looking designs?"

At his words, the younger members of the leadership all fell silent, but their eyes showed no sign of giving up.

Fortunately, at this moment, the dean of the Commerce Department spoke up. "Head Dean, I must disagree. Although I am old, even I can see the commercial value in these designs. If managed properly, they could not only increase the academy’s revenue but also further enhance the reputation of our Five Provinces Academy."

Hearing this, Xuchang couldn’t help but frown in thought. He hadn’t become the head dean by being a fool. After hearing the Commerce dean’s analysis, he quickly realized the importance of the matter.

After a long period of contemplation, he turned his gaze to the dean of the Artifact Refining Department. "Lao Li, do you have anything you’d like to say?"

"Well..." Li Ao shook his head with a wry smile. "It’s not that I don’t want to say anything, but Xiong Tianfang’s situation is rather unique."

"Oh?" Xuchang paused and asked with a frown.

"As you may not know, this boy Xiong Tianfang is talented, but he’s wild and untamable. None of the instructors at the academy can handle him. Most importantly, the kid has no official student status, and he has significant ties to the Thief God Hall," Li Ao explained helplessly.

"The Thief God Hall?" The leaders exclaimed in unison, instinctively frowning.

To be honest, although the academy claimed to be a neutral organization, its affiliation with the Student Federation clearly aligned it with the five major sects.

Therefore, they had always secretly suppressed the other small and medium-sized sects. And a major power like the Thief God Hall? That went without saying!

"In that case, is it possible this matter is connected to the Thief God Hall?" a few Elders asked, their expressions grave.

"I’ve never heard of the Thief God Hall having any amazing designers," the head of the design division said doubtfully. "As far as I know, the Thief God Hall is full of country bumpkins. Logically, they shouldn’t be able to create such high-end designs."

"You can’t be so sure. As the saying goes, it’s better to be safe than sorry. What if this is bait laid by the Thief God Hall?"

"Indeed, we can’t be careless. I suggest we first observe in secret for a while before making any moves," the dean of the Commerce Department proposed.

"I agree."

"I agree as well."

...

Feng Hao had no idea that a few randomly scribbled designs would cause such a massive uproar.

He had now led Houhuiyao and Xiyue Frost to the Origin Node in the Central District. Both Houhuiyao and Xiyue Frost had already used the Essence Storage Tank to condense their "Limitless Might," so entering as a team was no longer a problem.

Passing through the noisy crowd, they made their way to the foot of the Origin Node. The three of them formed a circle, placed their hands one on top of the other, and made a gesture similar to a "huddle up" cheer on Earth.

Then, they controlled their Divine Sense to draw out the power of the Secret Realm from the Genetic Tree, quickly establishing a "Might Link."

"Let’s go," Feng Hao said, his eyes full of anticipation.

With that, the three of them nodded, met each other’s eyes, and leaped into the Origin Node.