Testing His Mettle, the Presence of the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul
Bibi Dong studied Xu Feng with curiosity in her eyes. She had heard him call the Great Enshrined "Old Qian" and even address her teacher as "eldest nephew." She had imagined Xu Feng would surely be a man who behaved coarsely, had no manners, and looked rough around the edges. She had never expected the man before her to carry himself so remarkably. The contrast was striking.
What surprised her most was that she saw not the slightest stray thought in Xu Feng's eyes. His gaze was utterly clear.
She knew very well how charming she was. Not only was her talent astonishing, but her beauty was also breathtaking and unmatched. With the added halo of her status as Spirit Hall's Holy Maiden, she could drive any man in the outside world mad.
Yet the man before her was utterly blind to her charms. It was the first time she had ever encountered such a situation, and she was unwilling to admit defeat. Has my charm faded? she wondered, doubting herself.
Even so, she still had no favorable impression of the man before her.
"An alliance through marriage..." A trace of loneliness appeared in her eyes. She had never imagined that one day she, too, would become a sacrifice in an exchange of interests. The helplessness of being unable to control her own fate left her somewhat despairing, and it also meant she felt no goodwill whatsoever toward the man before her.
She could naturally tell from the expressions of the Great Enshrined and her teacher that they had probably already settled on this marriage alliance.
And while Bibi Dong was studying Xu Feng, he also took a look at her.
So this is what Bibi Dong looked like before she grew into that ambitious, awe-inspiring, domineering Pope who could make the continent tremble with a stamp of her foot? Xu Feng wore a satisfied expression. The Bibi Dong before him had yet to show her edge and was still growing.
He knew just how powerful Bibi Dong's talent was. In the original story, she had kept her Second Martial Soul a secret until after she ascended to the papal throne. Relying on the vast, intricate machine that was Spirit Hall, she raised her strength to a terrifying level. She had also fought her way through the road to godhood on her own and become the new Rakshasa God.
Qian Renxue had Qian Daoliu to open the Angel God's divine trials for her. Tang San was a child of destiny, favored by the Sea God and the Asura God. Only Bibi Dong had fought her way down the divine path and attained godhood through her extraordinary gifts.
"Xu Feng, you came to Spirit Hall for a marriage alliance with Dong'er. With your talent and strength, you are naturally qualified to enter such an alliance with Spirit Hall," Qian Daoliu said slowly. Then he changed the subject. "But before that, I have two conditions."
"Oh? What conditions?" Xu Feng asked curiously, raising an eyebrow.
"First, I want to examine your foundation and vitality to see whether they match your apparent age." Qian Daoliu seemed worried that Xu Feng would read too much into it, take offense, and throw up his hands and walk away, so he continued to explain, "In this day and age, capable people emerge in droves. If you happen to be an old monster who has cultivated for ages, whose flesh and blood burst with vitality upon reaching Limit Douluo, an old tree putting out new shoots, that is naturally something I cannot allow."
A level 99 Limit Douluo in his twenties and one who had only barely reached level 99 after cultivating for many years were naturally worth very different amounts.
He was also concerned that a Soul Master who had absorbed a special Soul Ring might be able to use a disguise Soul Skill. If Xu Feng's nine Soul Rings were a disguise, Spirit Hall would suffer a huge loss. If that really were the case, he reckoned he would slap Xu Feng apart on the spot!
He had to test Xu Feng's mettle.
"Rest assured, the examination is very simple. It won't expose your secrets or hidden reserves, and you can ask to stop it at any time," Qian Daoliu continued to explain.
"What's the second?" Xu Feng asked directly. He could understand Qian Daoliu's approach. If a stranger suddenly came to your home and proposed a marriage alliance, wouldn't you want to find out what he was really capable of and establish his background?
"Second, I will send people to Sea God Island to confirm whether a power called Sea God Island exists," Qian Daoliu said. He was weighing Xu Feng's value. A young level 99 Limit Douluo, with the added weight of a transcendent power like Sea God Island, would make him attach great importance to Xu Feng.
After hearing Qian Daoliu's two conditions, Xu Feng inwardly marveled that he truly was an old fox. He had considered everything from every angle, without the slightest oversight.
At this point in the timeline, Spirit Hall had yet to discover Sea God Island's existence. In the original story, Spirit Hall had sent two thousand Soul Masters to bring Sea God Island under its command, only to return with their feathers in disarray and even lose two Titled Douluo. After learning of this, Qian Daoliu invited Tang Chen, the Clear Sky Sect's Limit Douluo, to travel to Sea God Island with him.
As a result, the two of them were defeated by Bo Saixi in turn on Sea God Island.
It was this decisive battle that established the supremacy of the sky, the land, and the sea. It also led both Tang Chen and Qian Daoliu, each independently, to fall for that woman of peerless grace.
"All right, agreed," Xu Feng said.
Qian Daoliu then instructed Qian Xunji to send people to visit Sea God Island by the route Xu Feng had given them and ascertain the truth.
Qian Xunji inwardly marveled that old ginger was indeed spicier. His father's arrangement was masterful: not only could he establish the other party's background, but he could also draw Xu Feng and the power of Sea God Island to their side.
"Good. Next, I'll test your foundation and the vitality of your flesh and blood," Qian Daoliu said. Soul Power slowly circulated within him, and strands of radiance wound around his body. His whole figure seemed cloaked in golden light, as though cast in brass, incomparably holy.
The presence emanating from him was exceedingly sacred, as if it could purify a person's soul and brush away the dust in the corners of their heart. It was utterly pure. Had some lower-level Soul Masters been present, they might well have fallen to their knees and kowtowed as though they had encountered a true god.
This is the presence of the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul. There really is something to it, Xu Feng murmured inwardly. He naturally knew that Qian Daoliu's Martial Soul was the legendary Six-Winged Angel, one of the very finest Martial Souls in the world, and that it could never be underestimated. Though Qian Daoliu had yet to release his Martial Soul, a holy presence was already flowing from his whole body. He was indeed Spirit Hall's Great Enshrined, one of the exceedingly rare Limit Douluo of the present age.
At that moment, golden light flowed through Qian Daoliu's eyes and shot out, enveloping Xu Feng as though giving him a "full-body scan." The method resembled a Soul Skill, yet it did not quite seem to be one. Perhaps it was merely an additional ability within the range of the Six-Winged Angel's presence.
At first, Xu Feng tentatively allowed the golden light to scan him a few times and sensed it carefully. Once he had confirmed that the light posed not the slightest threat to him, could not pry into his secrets, and had no side effects or hidden dangers, he still wasn't reassured. System, check whether there are any hidden dangers in the golden light, he asked inwardly.
"None." The system's answer was simple.
Excellent. Xu Feng was finally reassured. With matters like this, it was best to be a little more cautious.
Under the golden light's scan, Bibi Dong, Golden Crocodile Douluo, and the others could clearly hear Xu Feng's flesh and blood gurgling within him. His heart sounded like a pounding drum. His life force was exceptionally vigorous, and his vitality and blood were boundless.
This was indeed a "newcomer," not "an old tree putting out new shoots."