Long Yu's Speculation

"How did you know?" Qian Renxue asked in surprise.

This matter could be considered Spirit Hall's highest secret. Apart from that woman, the elders of the Elder Hall, and Chrysanthemum Ghost Douluo, Qian Renxue believed no one else was qualified to know about it.

Of course, if anyone else had learned of this plan, Qian Renxue would have eliminated him immediately. The matter was too important to allow even the slightest carelessness.

"Actually, it was very easy to guess. For the granddaughter of Spirit Hall's Great Enshrined to personally take action, it had to be something major. As my teacher's disciple, even I hadn't been informed. This could only concern Spirit Hall further expanding its power, perhaps even unifying the continent."

"And on the continent, the greatest obstacles to Spirit Hall unifying it are none other than the Upper Three Sects and the two great empires. Given your current strength, you couldn't possibly launch a direct attack, so you could only use other methods, such as replacing someone. Among the Upper Three Sects, the Clear Sky Sect had already gone into seclusion. The direct-line Martial Soul characteristics of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect were far too distinctive, and their members knew each other well, making them difficult targets." Long Yu paused.

"Back in Death Grand Canyon, I learned that you possessed a special soul bone capable of concealing your aura, Soul Power Level, and even your Martial Soul. That made me even more certain that you intended to replace someone. That person would preferably be the next heir of a powerful force," Long Yu analyzed.

"Go on." Qian Renxue stared at Long Yu with shining eyes. This boy was even smarter than she had imagined, and he also understood something of the continent's situation.

"If the Upper Three Sects were difficult to infiltrate, then the only choice would be the two great empires. The Star Luo Empire's royal family had an extremely strong grip over the empire and followed an iron-blooded policy. Even Spirit Hall would find it difficult to infiltrate. In contrast, the Heaven Dou Empire had weak control over its territory. Back when I was in Holy Spirit Village, I learned that the major kingdoms and duchies under the Heaven Dou Empire were vaguely inclined toward independence, and some kingdoms even leaned toward Spirit Hall. If we chose to infiltrate the Heaven Dou Empire, Spirit Hall could make use of them later, sending word for them to support the Crown Prince's ascension. Most importantly, the current Xue Qinghe of the Heaven Dou Empire was not valued by Xue Ye and normally received little attention. You could take the opportunity to infiltrate and replace Xue Qinghe. As long as you didn't perform too poorly, combined with the Heaven Dou Empire's system of eldest legitimate son inheritance, inheriting the throne would be practically certain. At that point, Spirit Hall could control the Heaven Dou Empire's million-strong army without sacrificing a single soldier, making up for Spirit Hall's shortcomings. After all, soul masters were only a minority," Long Yu continued.

It all came down to whether someone could be replaced and whether they were worth replacing. There truly were very few people worth Qian Renxue personally replacing.

And among those who could be successfully replaced, Xue Qinghe, that inconspicuous figure, was probably the only one. Yet that inconspicuous figure happened to be the Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire. What a perfect target.

Long Yu continued adding in his heart.

"Your analysis is correct. As expected of someone I have taken a liking to. My mission is to infiltrate the Heaven Dou Empire and take Xue Qinghe's place. Then I will poison Xue Ye. Once the poison slowly takes effect and kills him, I can ascend the throne directly. After that, I'll win over some ministers and gain the support of several kingdoms and duchies. Inheriting the Heaven Dou Empire's throne shouldn't present any problems," Qian Renxue said.

"I'll help you too!" Long Yu said.

Qian Renxue had still failed in the original story, but with him here this time, she could not fail again! Since he knew how the plot would unfold, he could act first! "Then it's settled. You have to come see me often, or I'll ignore you," Qian Renxue said, secretly delighted.

"I definitely will!"

"In the past, Spirit Hall meant nothing to me beyond Grandfather and the various enshrined ones. I had no feelings, attachment, or bonds here. What I felt here was mostly heaviness and pain, until I met you..." Qian Renxue sighed.

"You gave me feelings and emotions completely different from anything before. You let me experience the emotions a normal girl should have. If it had been before, I would have chosen to infiltrate the Heaven Dou Empire without hesitation. But now, I don't want to go to that place. I want to stay here. I want to be with you," Qian Renxue said seriously as she looked at Long Yu.

"Xue'er, I have three loves: one for morning, one for evening, and one for you, who are both morning and evening. But if two hearts are meant to last, why must they be together morning and evening? Xue'er, if we want to stay together forever, why rush over this brief separation? Once Spirit Hall unifies the continent and we become gods, we will live forever. By then, what would be wrong with staying together for a lifetime?" Long Yu stroked Qian Renxue's jade-like hand.

"What a load of nonsense. I hate you!" Qian Renxue punched Long Yu.

"Enough. Now tell me, why were you so insistent on taking that... that His Holiness the Pope as your teacher? Weren't there enough elders in the Elder Hall for you to choose from?" Qian Renxue's expression changed the moment she was moved.

"Well... Xue'er, I have my own reasons. In any case, my teacher and senior sister both treat me very well now. I won't leave them, so don't force me," Long Yu sighed.

The relationship between his teacher and Xue'er really was difficult to resolve.

What should he do in the future? Help Xue'er? Or help his teacher?

"Fine, fine. I won't force you. On Douluo Continent, a person can only have one teacher, and I won't make you do anything. Since you have already taken a teacher, then cultivate properly. You only raised your Soul Power by one level in half a year," Qian Renxue said.

"I will. But enough about me. Tell me how you spent the last half year. Your Soul Power rose so quickly—you must have suffered quite a bit, right?" Long Yu said, taking the initiative.

Qian Renxue's cultivation speed truly was astonishing. In a little over half a year, she had gone from a level 48 high-level Soul Ancestor to a level 52 Soul King. That was simply too outrageous.

"It's all your fault! You never came to see me, so all I could do was cultivate nonstop. After reaching level fifty, Grandfather helped me hunt a fifteen-thousand-year-old Radiant Deer King. After absorbing it, my Soul Power rose two levels in a row, reaching level 52," Qian Renxue said with a pout.

"You've already surpassed the twelve-thousand-year limit for a fifth soul ring. Xue'er, you're amazing! It seems I was the one hindering my Xue'er's cultivation. If I had just kept..."

"Bastard, how dare you!" Qian Renxue said through gritted teeth.

"Besides, who can compare to a monster like you? Your second soul ring was already thousand-year level. At the very least, your fourth soul ring can reach the ten-thousand-year level. That's an entire soul ring's difference!" Qian Renxue shook her head as well.

Before Long Yu, Qian Renxue no longer wanted to maintain the pride of one chosen by the gods. She only wanted to be a little woman.

To others, she was a lofty goddess, but toward Long Yu, she felt an attachment that was hard to let go of.

"Mm, perhaps I can try absorbing a ten-thousand-year soul ring as early as my third soul ring." Long Yu took Qian Renxue's "monster" as praise.

Long Yu was not boasting. With his Dragon God Martial Soul and Dragon God Bloodline, he would not suffer from the soul shock produced after a ten-thousand-year soul beast's death.

With the Meteor Tear, his physical constitution could continuously break past its limits. Moreover, the Meteor Tear's healing ability was extremely powerful, so he hardly needed to worry that his body would be unable to withstand the immense Soul Power contained in a ten-thousand-year soul ring.

"Mm, I believe you. Your theoretical research runs far deeper than mine, and I believe you won't do anything reckless." Qian Renxue knew that after half a year of Long Yu's theoretical research, along with that woman's guidance, there probably would not be any problem. Though she hated that woman, she had to admit that her talent and theoretical achievements were truly formidable!