Chapter 0371: Fifth Pattern

When Li Luo opened his eyes again, he was back in a familiar place—the backyard of the Xia Kingdom's Golden Dragon Bank.

His first response was to check his body. He found his resonance seeds glowing and wobbling unsteadily, sparking with new resonant power that had not fully integrated itself inwards. Five resonance marks could be seen on the surface of his resonance seeds.

Resonant power burned steadily around it like a star's corona.

Li Luo was stunned.

He was... a Fifth Pattern?!

His resonant power had brought him from the third subtier of the Pattern Genesis Tier to the fifth?!

He was pleasantly shocked. He had estimated one subtier at best. But the dao-gold cultivation breakthrough had exceeded all of his expectations by a happy margin.

Was the dao-gold cultivation breakthrough that strong?

Li Luo was overjoyed. Two subtiers meant that he had pushed his cultivation schedule by two or three months, which was a godsend for someone short on time like himself.

And it was not just his resonant power—he realized that the ugly wound on his palm had also healed completely. He marveled at the meticulous nature of the Dao Fields; they had really thought of everything. Not only did they top you up full of power and stuff your pockets with treasures, they even gave you a kiss on the head and healed your wounds before they sent you on your way.

Completely healed...?

Li Luo jerked around with a sudden realization.

BOOM!

He was smacked with a terrible roiling wave of resonant power, wet with the rusty smell of blood. Who else but Lin Suo?

Li Luo understood the menacing glint in Lin Suo's eyes immediately. The latter was charging over to seize Lu Qing'er before anybody could react!

"Dog!" Li Luo shouted. He had been careless. Of course the Golden Dragon Dao Fields had not just healed the wounds of their trio. The half-dead Lin Suo had also been fully restored!

Not even Li Luo could do much to stop him at the moment.

Lu Qing'er had noted Lin Suo's movements as well, but she stood stone still, staring at Lin Suo with an icy gaze and making no move to defend herself.

CRACK!

When Lin Suo's hand clawed out at Lu Qing'er, a ferocious swish came from above, lightning quick and out of the blue, smashing Lin Suo into the ground.

He lay sprawled in a crater, coughing blood in a way that spoke of crushed organs. He was hit so badly that even his skin had broken down, blood seeping out of woeful splotches.

Soon enough, he was as sorry a sight as before the Golden Dragon Dao Fields had healed him.

Li Luo looked up to see Yu Hongxi and some of the Golden Dragon Bank's higher-ups standing outside the transportation formation. Her face was full of cold fury as she stared down at Lin Suo like he was a maggot. She was a terrifying avatar indeed.

A Duke expert.

Li Luo shuddered a little. This was his first time seeing Yu Hongxi attack out of anger. The intensity... it was a Duke's rage, raw and unfettered. Enough to bend worldly natural energy to her will.

No wonder Lu Qing'er had not moved a muscle in the face of Lin Suo's attack—she had absolute trust in her mother.

"Lin Suo? What are you doing!?" Vice President Ning Que shouted severely, alarmed.

No one besides Yu Hongxi had reacted in time. They had hesitated because Lin Suo was also a member of the Golden Dragon Bank. Yu Hongxi's motherly instincts had kicked in. Of course she would protect her daughter.

She did not care about what Lin Suo intended, good or bad. Raising a hand against her daughter was out of bounds. If he died for it, so be it.

Li Luo, Lu Qing'er, and Qin Zhulu walked out of the transportation formation, along with the conflicted-looking duo of Ning Zhao and Zhu Xuan.

"Mother." Lu Qing'er ran to her mother, pointing at Lin Suo. "Someone must have sent him. He was out to get me."

She told her mother everything that had happened in the Golden Dragon Dao Fields.

"Golden Dragon Qi?"

Both Yu Hongxi and Ning Que gasped upon hearing the news, and an excited murmur broke out among the other higher-ups. When they heard that Lin Suo had stolen Lu Qing'er's Golden Dragon Qi, Yu Hongxi's delight turned to anger.

"Ning Zhao, is what Qing'er says true?" Vice President Ning Que quickly asked.

Ning Zhao nodded. "Father, it is... Lin Suo was a bad egg, and he even had us fooled. We thought we were joining forces to protect Qing'er, but that scum attacked her in secret."

Vice President Ning Que and the other higher-ups were looking sober. This was a grave matter.

Lin Suo had hidden his true intentions very well. It was beyond the work of a mere Resonant Master. Planting an agent so deep for so many years meant that there had to be a deeper, more sinister plot behind it all.

Perhaps he had been waiting for this opportunity all the while?

But why sabotage Lu Qing'er's Golden Dragon Qi?

Yu Hongxi's face was like stone. She turned to Lin Suo, who was still crushed into a crater at her feet. "Guards, take him to Dragon Dungeon. Make him talk. I want to know who was behind this."

A dozen shadows appeared immediately. They pulled black, spiked chains out of their sleeves, which they wrapped tightly around Lin Suo. The spikes buried themselves in his flesh, biting into his skeleton. They dragged him off into the sky and vanished.

Lin Suo had not been able to even make a sound. Li Luo silently bade him farewell. “Goodbye, friend. Looks like I won't be able to treat you to that meal like I hoped.

“Still, all I did was to bring you back to the Xia Kingdom. The rest has nothing to do with me. If you have a complaint, take it up with Yu Hongxi, Brother.”

He jerked back to reality to find Yu Hongxi staring at him. He quailed a little, her terrifying presence from a moment ago still fresh in his mind. He could see that the wrath of the Xia Kingdom's Golden Dragon Bank leader was not to be incurred. Unless one had a death wish, of course.

While he squirmed, her features suddenly melted to a warm, glowing smile, filled with satisfaction.

"Li Luo, you did very well. I am proud of you."

Li Luo was a little startled by her sudden change of attitude. "Er," he offered cautiously, "does this mean I don't need to pay for the Resonant Bubble skill?"