Escaping Far to Heaven Dou, Encountering "Xue Qinghe"

Two and a half years later.

Heaven Dou Empire, Heaven Dou City.

The blazing sun hung like fire as two young people, a man and a woman, entered through the eastern city gate.

Ling Qianyue now stood around 1.7 meters tall. With sword-like brows, starry eyes, and a handsome face, he wore his black hair tied atop his head, with loose strands falling naturally and fluttering in the wind.

He wore a fitted light-black outfit that accentuated his tall, lean frame, the lines of his muscles faintly visible.

The woman beside him was Zhu Zhuqing. Her figure was voluptuous and shapely, while her fitted dress tightly wrapped around her graceful body, outlining her astonishing curves.

Her hair was black as ink, draping lightly over her shoulders. A hint of heroism showed between her brows, yet it did not diminish her feminine softness.

Her steps were light as she walked hand in hand with Ling Qianyue. The two moved side by side, an indescribable tacit understanding and intimacy evident between them.

"Qianyao, Heaven Dou City really is prosperous." The girl's voice had shed its former immaturity, gaining a measure of maturity and composure, yet it remained crisp and pleasant, as captivating as a mountain spring.

Ling Qianyue nodded. "After all, this is the imperial capital of an empire. There are far more nobles here than in Star Luo City. Many businesses are run directly by the nobles, so its prosperity is on another level."

"Extravagant," Zhu Zhuqing said with a curl of her lips.

"But its prosperity leans more toward commerce. If we're talking about the holy land in the hearts of Soul Masters, the most flourishing place is still Spirit City, a city made entirely of Soul Masters. That is the place Soul Masters truly yearn for, filled with the aura of Soul Masters."

The two stopped before an elaborately decorated hairpin shop. The store was filled with dazzling displays, all kinds of hairpins arranged neatly across the counters.

Ling Qianyue personally selected a purple butterfly-shaped hairpin from the topmost display and placed it in Zhu Zhuqing's hair.

"Do you like it?"

"Of course I do." Zhu Zhuqing gently touched the hairpin, smiling at herself in the mirror.

Seeing this, the shopkeeper immediately approached with a broad smile. "You two are truly a perfect match. This purple butterfly hairpin makes this young lady look even more ethereal."

Ling Qianyue and Zhu Zhuqing exchanged a smile, thanked the shopkeeper for the compliment, and paid before preparing to leave.

Suddenly, the sound of hooves and rolling wheels came from the street. A lavish carriage slowly entered from the city gate, accompanied by several mounted guards, each wearing a solemn expression.

The carriage was exquisitely decorated, inlaid with golden trim, its tassels swaying in the breeze with incomparable nobility. The curtain lifted slightly in the wind, revealing a handsome face within—it was Xue Qinghe, Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire.

The street grew quieter for a moment as people began making way of their own accord. Ling Qianyue and Zhu Zhuqing also paused.

"That's a royal carriage. It looks like it might be His Highness Xue Qinghe," the shopkeeper beside them murmured, a trace of envy and reverence flashing through his eyes.

Ling Qianyue was intrigued. He truly wanted to see what "Xue Qinghe" looked like.

The Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire had actually been killed by Spirit Hall's Young Master, Qian Renxue, long ago. She had replaced him in order to carry out Spirit Hall's so-called plan to usurp the empire.

This peerless genius, who had received God-bestowed Spirit Power and possessed level 20 Innate Soul Power, had taken the initiative to accept this mission to infiltrate the Heaven Dou Empire because she was angry with Bibi Dong, wasting her precious cultivation talent for nothing.

Before reaching the Soul King realm, and before the age of twenty, Soul Masters received a natural boost to their cultivation speed.

Even with level 20 Innate Soul Power, Qian Renxue had only been nine years old when she went undercover in the Heaven Dou Empire. At most, she had been a Soul Elder or had just reached the Soul Ancestor realm.

Her talent had gone completely unutilized.

Ling Qianyue had his own guesses as to why Qian Daoliu had agreed to let Qian Renxue go to Heaven Dou.

First, Bibi Dong naturally bore hostility toward her and had even wanted to kill her. It was unsafe for her to remain in Spirit Hall, so the old man had arranged for her to go undercover in the Heaven Dou Empire, far from Bibi Dong's threat.

Second, Qian Renxue wanted to prove herself. Longing for maternal love, she had hoped to gain Bibi Dong's approval by completing the crucial step in Spirit Hall's unification of the continent—taking control of the Heaven Dou Empire.

Of course, he had other wild thoughts as well, such as whether the Angel God Trial required Qian Renxue's temperament and leadership abilities to be tested afterward. Well, that possibility was minuscule.

With Qian Renxue's talent, reaching the Soul Saint realm before the age of twenty should have been a certainty.

After that, once she received a god trial, she could have directly challenged for godhood within ten years and become another legend of Douluo Continent.

By then, what would the Heaven Dou Empire or Star Luo Empire amount to? They would not be worth mentioning. Even if Tang San obtained opportunities such as immortal herbs, he likely would not even have reached the Soul Saint realm. She could have swept through everything in her path; no one would have been able to stop her.

Yet now, she had hidden her identity and played another role in Heaven Dou City. Ling Qianyue could not help feeling a touch of regret.

"Hm?"

Qian Renxue suddenly furrowed her brow and involuntarily raised her right hand to her chest.

Her heart stirred slightly as an indescribable sensation rippled through her.

The feeling was both familiar and strange, as though she had resonated with some powerful Martial Soul strength. It came from deep within her bloodline.

"This..." Qian Renxue was instantly startled. "A Martial Soul Fusion Skill's resonance? How is that possible?"

Her Martial Soul was the Six-winged Angel, inherited from the Angel God, the first generation who had ascended to the God Realm ten thousand years ago.

As the purest and most powerful Martial Soul of the angel lineage, it had always stood alone. There had never been a precedent for it forming a fusion skill with another Martial Soul.

Moreover, given her talent, it would not be an exaggeration to call her Martial Soul a God-tier Martial Soul.

One crucial factor for a Martial Soul Fusion Skill was that the two Martial Souls had to be comparable in strength. Did that not mean there was a Martial Soul in Heaven Dou City as powerful as her Six-winged Angel Martial Soul, perhaps even capable of triggering resonance with it?

"Carriage, slow down."

A gleam flashed through Qian Renxue's eyes. She calmed herself and carefully sensed the source of that resonance.

At the same time, Ling Qianyue frowned. The fluctuation coming from the Shattered Star Sword within him made him instinctively turn his gaze toward the distant carriage carrying Qian Renxue.

"Zhanxing."

The result was Wujiu, yet the star signs kept shifting back and forth between fortune and misfortune.

Without the slightest hesitation, Ling Qianyue fully activated Star Concealment, hiding every fluctuation of the Shattered Star Sword.

"Huh?" Qian Renxue frowned as the sensation of Martial Soul Resonance completely vanished.

"Could I have sensed it wrong?" Qian Renxue muttered inwardly, but she quickly dismissed the thought.

As the possessor of an angel Martial Soul, her perception of Martial Souls was exceptionally sharp. There was no way this sensation had been mistaken.

"Interesting. Truly interesting." A playful smile curled Qian Renxue's lips.

"I didn't expect such an unexpected gain. Heh, it seems they can even conceal the aura of their Martial Soul. Trying to hide? Hmph, let's see how I drag you out."