First Contact, Thoughts of a Marriage Alliance

The pressure increased once more, and Su He felt his bones creaking under the crushing force.

Seeing this, "Xue Qinghe" immediately opened his mouth to say something, but Ning Fengzhi stopped him with a glance.

Ning Fengzhi then nodded at "Xue Qinghe," signaling that Sword Douluo Chen Xin bore no ill intent and was merely testing Su He's strength.

Only then did the latter relax and continue watching.

At this moment, the Soul Power pressing down on Su He had already exceeded Level Fifty and was advancing toward Level Sixty.

Just as the pressure reached Level Sixty-Eight Soul Power and was about to hit Level Sixty-Nine, the Abyssal Golden Lion behind Su He automatically possessed him, letting out a thunderous roar.

Seeing that Su He had already undergone Martial Soul Possession, Sword Douluo Chen Xin withdrew his Soul Power suppression. With the pressure abruptly gone, Su He let out a relieved breath.

"Not yet thirteen, yet already possessing such cultivation. You withstood the pressure of Level Sixty-Eight Soul Power without even using your Martial Soul. You truly are a remarkably gifted youngster." The white-haired Sword Douluo chuckled as he appraised Su He.

"Thank you, Senior." Su He cupped his hands toward Sword Douluo, thanking him for the praise.

One had to know that Titled Douluo possessed extraordinarily broad horizons. Not to mention a Super Douluo like Sword Douluo, who belonged to an aristocratic sect like the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect—what kind of genius had he not seen before?

Receiving such high praise from Sword Douluo, whose fame shook the continent, was itself a great honor.

"Qinghe, won't you introduce this genius to us?" Ning Fengzhi still wore his signature gentle smile as he asked Xue Qinghe. "Seeing this powerful lion Martial Soul reminds me of that Golden Lion who caused such a stir in the Great Soul Arena some time ago."

A place with such immense foot traffic as the Heaven Dou Imperial City Soul Fighting Arena naturally had people from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect present. Ning Fengzhi knowing of the Golden Lion did not surprise Su He in the slightest.

"Teacher, this is the talented Soul Master I rescued from Prince Xue Xing's men several months ago. His name is Su He, and he is indeed the Golden Lion you mentioned. He is now my personal guard." "Xue Qinghe" replied with cupped hands.

"Su He, these two are my Teacher, Sect Master Ning of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and Sword Douluo." "Xue Qinghe" then introduced them to Su He.

"This junior, Su He, greets Sect Master Ning and Sword Douluo." Su He cupped his hands and bowed to them in turn, and both nodded in acknowledgment.

"I have long heard of you, little friend Su He. You defeated your opponent despite a ten-level Soul Power disadvantage, then escaped Prince Xue Xing afterward. Ning is deeply impressed." Ning Fengzhi smiled at Su He.

"You praise me too highly, Senior. It was merely good fortune. Without His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's assistance, this junior might already have spilled his blood on the battlefield." Su He accepted Ning Fengzhi's praise while deftly placing the credit upon Xue Qinghe.

As Xue Qinghe's nominal teacher, Ning Fengzhi saw that his disciple had such a courteous and humble genius Soul Master assisting him. No matter how calculating he was, he could not help but develop some favorable feelings toward Su He.

"Very good. Having your assistance at Qinghe's side is truly a blessing for the empire." Ning Fengzhi tapped his scepter. "I imagine the Emperor also greatly values little friend Su He's talents."

"This junior's abilities are shallow, and I would not dare claim to have caught the Emperor's eye." Su He continued modestly. "But since this junior has sworn to assist His Highness Qinghe, I will certainly give it my all."

Hearing this, Ning Fengzhi nodded in satisfaction.

Ever since Bibi Dong succeeded as Spirit Hall's Pope, the continent's situation had become terrifyingly calm. This old fox, Ning Fengzhi, had caught a whiff of something unusual.

If Spirit Hall truly was plotting some major move, then the Upper Three Sects and the Two Great Empires would all become grasshoppers tied to the same rope. The reason was simple: this enormous Soul Master organization openly possessed no fewer than ten Titled Douluo, more than the combined number of Titled Douluo in the Upper Three Sects.

What Ning Fengzhi did not know was that Spirit Hall possessed far more than merely ten Titled Douluo.

Counting only the seven Super Douluo of the Worship Hall, Pope Bibi Dong, and the Chrysanthemum and Ghost Douluo, the number already exceeded ten. That was without even mentioning Spirit Hall's low-profile elders.

In Ning Fengzhi's view, as military allies on the same side, it was a good thing for the Heaven Dou Empire's imperial family to recruit a completely loyal genius Soul Master like Su He. Moreover, Crown Prince Xue Qinghe shared a teacher-disciple relationship with Ning Fengzhi, so it was also beneficial from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's perspective.

After all, his disciple's subordinate could be considered half one of his own people, and this gave Ning Fengzhi the thought of drawing Su He in.

Such a powerful lion-type Beast Martial Soul would surely produce an incomparably formidable Battle Spirit Master once fully developed. He was only a little over twelve, yet he was already a Soul Ancestor. If Su He and Rong Rong could be brought together...

Ning Fengzhi fell into deep thought and reached a conclusion.

If the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect could form a marriage alliance with Su He, not only would it strengthen their ties with the Heaven Dou Imperial Family, but their own strength would also take a tremendous leap forward.

Once Su He matured, he could guarantee the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect a century of peace at the very least.

No matter how he calculated it, this was a deal with guaranteed profit and no loss. It stirred Ning Fengzhi's thoughts of a marriage alliance.

Ning Fengzhi could certainly be considered a qualified, even exceptionally outstanding sect master, but he could not be considered a qualified father.

In his heart, the sect's interests would always come first. If it could bring sufficient benefits, he could even sacrifice his daughter's happiness.

Today, the seed of a marriage alliance had already taken root in Ning Fengzhi's heart, but he had no intention of raising the matter today.

Ning Fengzhi was exceptionally skilled at handling interpersonal relationships. He would not be foolish enough to openly poach his disciple's people.

Moreover, although Su He modestly claimed that his abilities could not catch Xue Ye's eye, anyone who truly believed such polite words would be a fool among fools.

Ning Fengzhi had dealt with Xue Ye many times and understood him to some extent.

Unlike the Star Luo Imperial Family, the Heaven Dou Imperial Family did not consist of powerful Soul Masters with the high-grade Beast Martial Soul, the White Tiger, nor did they have the Zhu Clan's Hell Spirit Cat Martial Soul to unleash a powerful Martial Soul Fusion Skill.

Ever since that Titled Douluo-level consecrated member of the Heaven Dou Empire's imperial family had declined in vitality and passed away, the Heaven Dou Imperial Family had remained without a Titled Douluo to oversee it.

Xue Ye desperately wanted a genius Soul Master like Su He, someone with the potential to become a Titled Douluo.

With that thought, Ning Fengzhi had already weighed everything in his mind.

Maintaining that signature gentle smile, he walked over to Su He and "Xue Qinghe," then said with a smile.

"I came abruptly today to ask Qinghe about the Emperor's condition, yet I did not expect to make the acquaintance of a young genius of our Heaven Dou Empire."

As he spoke, he handed Su He a calling card and continued.

"If little friend Su He has some free time, Ning will welcome you to visit the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect at any time. My Rong Rong is particularly fond of talented Soul Masters."

After that, Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin strode out of the Crown Prince's residence and took a carriage back to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

The implication in those final words was quite obvious, making Qian Renxue beneath Xue Qinghe's disguise furrow her brows.

With her self-control, she could have completely reined in her emotions. But Ning Fengzhi trying to set her man up with someone else was utterly intolerable.

After Ning Fengzhi left, Qian Renxue immediately fixed Su He with a dangerous gaze.

(Su He: Wife, don't hit me. I really didn't do anything, sob sob sob.)

Second update!

These two chapters involving the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect needed some groundwork laid in advance.