Snake Lady (Chaotianxiang) was quite surprised by Su Ming's question. However, seeing that Su Ming was polite and had even spoken up for Meng Yiran earlier, she replied, "If possible, I would look for another rare snake-type spirit beast for my granddaughter's third spirit ring. If we can't find one, we may consider the Man-Faced Demon Spider. It is a terrifying existence in the spirit beast world and would be very suitable for my granddaughter."
Su Ming thought to himself that this confirmed his theory. In the original story, the Dragon Duke and Snake Lady likely couldn't find another rare snake-type spirit beast and encountered a Man-Faced Demon Spider instead. However, that spider was over two thousand years old and far beyond what Meng Yiran could handle. Even Tang San had difficulty absorbing it.
Su Ming contemplated for a moment and then said, "Snake Lady, may I offer a suggestion? If you happen to find a rare snake-type spirit beast, that would be ideal. But if you encounter a Man-Faced Demon Spider, please be sure to carefully assess its age. It could be dangerous if it's too old."
Meng Yiran, curious about Su Ming's advice, asked, "What's your name, and why do you say that?"
Su Ming chuckled, realizing he hadn't introduced himself. "My name is Su Ming. As for why I'm saying this, it's because the spirit rings of the Man-Faced Demon Spider are known to be quite powerful. For instance, a two-thousand-year-old spider could easily devour a three-thousand-year-old spirit beast unless it encounters a beast with a stronger bloodline or a natural predator."
"My advice is that if you do encounter a Man-Faced Demon Spider, make sure its age doesn't exceed fifteen hundred years. Otherwise, the power of its spirit ring could be too dangerous for you. Snake-type martial spirits don't enhance physical attributes as much as beast-type ones, and the Man-Faced Demon Spider's rings tend to be much more aggressive than those of snake-type spirit beasts."
Su Ming wasn't just giving this advice out of the blue. He wanted to ensure the Dragon Duke and Snake Lady wouldn't fall into the same trap they did in the original story, where the spider's web was depleted and became Tang San's opportunity. Additionally, he respected the Snake Lady's integrity and wanted to give something back, as the Dragon Duke and Snake Lady had a much better reputation in the spirit master world than Zhao Wuji, whose reputation was infamous.
In fact, Su Ming was a little puzzled by the original story. With their high level of strength and experience, why would the Dragon Duke and Snake Lady target a two-thousand-year-old Man-Faced Demon Spider when it was clear Meng Yiran couldn't handle it? With their vast knowledge, they should have known better.
Su Ming's intentions were purely kind, with no ulterior motives toward Meng Yiran. Although she was indeed a beautiful girl, she didn't match his aesthetic preferences—he preferred fairer skin.
Though Meng Yiran acknowledged the logic in Su Ming's advice, she still felt a bit defiant and wanted to argue.
Snake Lady, however, looked deeply at Su Ming, sensing he might be hinting at something without concrete proof. Her raspy voice responded, "You make a valid point. If we encounter a Man-Faced Demon Spider, I will carefully assess its age."
With that, Chaotianxiang took Meng Yiran and left.
Su Ming noticed the look Snake Lady gave him but didn't mind. He wouldn't be seeing them again anytime soon.
He had given them a reminder; what they did afterward was out of his control.
Now, all that remained was for Oscar to absorb the Phoenix-Tailed Crest Serpent's spirit ring. What Su Ming didn't know was that while Meng Yiran had appeared, the three girls (Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and Ning Rongrong) had been watching her intently, trying to see if she behaved suspiciously. However, Meng Yiran showed no odd behavior, which strongly suggested she didn't have a copy of the diary. If she did, she wouldn't be only at the thirtieth level and certainly wouldn't have agreed to a duel with Tang San, knowing she would lose.
With this conclusion, Xiao Wu felt relieved. One less rival, she thought happily.
Watching the Snake Lady and her granddaughter leave, Zhao Wuji also breathed a sigh of relief. If the Dragon Duke had shown up, the Snake Lady would have been much more difficult to deal with.
Dai Mubai, Tang San, and Ma Hongjun sat cross-legged near Oscar, recovering their spirit power. Zhao Wuji stood guard for them. After about half an hour, Oscar finally woke up, and the others opened their eyes soon after.
Oscar exhaled deeply, and three spirit rings appeared around him. Feeling the boost in his power, he was elated—he had finally broken through to the thirty-first level and reached the Spirit Elder rank.
He felt amazing!
He glanced at Tang San with gratitude in his eyes. Without Tang San's help, he would never have been able to compete with Meng Yiran for the spirit ring.
Zhao Wuji smiled. "Not bad, Oscar. You've reached the Spirit Elder rank at just fourteen. Your future is limitless!"
With his third spirit ring, Oscar's appearance had changed slightly—he had grown taller, and his peach blossom eyes now glinted with a seven-colored light, which, to Su Ming, only made him look more perverted.
Dai Mubai was curious. "Come on, little Oscar, show us your third spirit ability!"
Oscar's excitement faded a bit, and he awkwardly replied, "Uh... maybe later."
Su Ming had already guessed that Oscar's new spirit incantation would be just as inappropriate as the previous ones.
Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun were too curious to let it go, urging him to show it off and promising they wouldn't laugh. The three girls—Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and Ning Rongrong—had no interest in hearing another of Oscar's indecent incantations, having already seen its effects.
Oscar sighed, "Alright, but you all promised not to laugh, especially you, Boss Dai and Fatty!"
Both men nodded eagerly, though their faces betrayed their amusement.
Oscar recited his incantation: "I have a mushroom sausage!"
As expected, Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun couldn't contain their laughter.
Even Zhao Wuji roared with laughter.
The three girls tried their best to keep straight faces, thinking how even the spirit ring of a rare snake-type beast couldn't change Oscar's perverted incantations. They wondered if his inappropriate incantations reflected his nature. After all, other food-type spirit masters in Ning Rongrong's clan didn't have incantations like that!
Su Ming, having anticipated this, remained calm.
Seeing Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun laughing, Oscar's face darkened with embarrassment. "You promised not to laugh!"
Both men wiped away their tears and apologized. "Sorry, little Oscar, we couldn't help it. We won't laugh again, we swear!"
Zhao Wuji was the first to stop laughing and asked, "Alright, Oscar, tell us about your mushroom sausage's effect. Since it came from such a rare snake-type beast, it must be quite powerful."
Oscar puffed out his chest proudly. "Of course! My mushroom sausage grants the ability to fly!"
The moment he said this, the laughter stopped, and a stunned silence filled the air.
The three girls exchanged glances. Of course! Without Su Ming's diary, they might have been shocked at how powerful the ability to grant flight was. After all, auxiliary spirit masters who could give others flight were extremely rare.
But thanks to Su Ming, they knew that while Oscar's new ability was impressive, it had significant limitations, particularly its short duration of just one minute. In the grand scheme of things, it wasn't that useful—neither for combat nor long-distance travel.
Oscar wanted to impress Ning Rongrong, sneaking a glance at her to gauge her reaction. He hoped to see her in awe. After all, even in her powerful Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, auxiliary spirit masters who could grant flight were unheard of. But to his disappointment, Ning Rongrong's expression remained calm. It wasn't the reaction he had hoped for.
He then looked at Zhu Zhuqing, Xiao Wu, and Su Ming—all were just as composed. Something wasn't right!
Su Ming, sensing Oscar's frustration, decided to speak up. "Is it just flight? What about the speed, and how long does it last?"
Oscar, realizing they hadn't fully understood the power of his ability, cleared his throat and answered, "The flight lasts for one minute."
"Damn!" Zhao Wuji swore. He had thought Oscar's flight ability might be game-changing, considering how auxiliary spirit masters usually needed a sixth spirit ability or higher to gain flight. But only one minute? That wasn't very useful at all.
If Su Ming could hear Zhao Wuji's thoughts, he would likely agree. If Oscar's flight duration were longer, it might have been a valuable skill. But with just one minute, it wasn't worth occupying a spirit ability slot.
In fact, higher-level flight abilities from sixth or even eighth spirit rings would have much longer durations and faster speeds, incomparable to the Phoenix-Tailed Crest Serpent's capabilities. While fast for a thousand-year-old spirit beast, it would pale in comparison to ten-thousand-year flying spirit beasts.
That's why, in the original story, Tang San later chose not to use Oscar's mushroom sausage and instead relied on his Blue Silver Emperor's flying spirit bone ability—because it was much faster.
So, while having a flight ability early on might seem advantageous, it wasn't the best choice in the long run. Skills that could increase overall or specific attributes by a percentage were much more valuable, like Oscar's later pink sausage, which gave a ten percent boost in all attributes—far more useful than this flight ability.
Seeing the strange expressions on their faces, Oscar wasn't angry. "Don't forget, even though it's only a minute, the speed is incredibly fast!"
Dai Mubai asked half-heartedly, "How fast?"
Oscar's eyes gleamed as he proudly replied, "The flight speed matches that of the Phoenix-Tailed Crest Serpent!"
Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun were shocked. "What?"
Su Ming, remaining calm, said, "Why are you two so surprised? The spirit ring came from the Phoenix-Tailed Crest Serpent, so of course it matches its speed. Nothing surprising about that."
With those words, Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun calmed down, while Zhao Wuji quietly observed, curious about what else Su Ming had to say.
Oscar, feeling a bit irritated that Su Ming had deflated his moment, glared at him.
Su Ming sighed lightly. "While it's impressive that you've gained a flying ability at this stage, which is quite rare in the spirit master world, showing great potential..."
Everyone, except for the three girls, froze. What was Su Ming up to, praising him like this?
Su Ming then continued, changing his tone, "But have you thought about it? While this flying ability is convenient now, it's only because none of us can fly yet. Once you reach the Spirit Saint level, you'll be able to fly for short periods, and the speed won't be that slow."