Shy Qian Renxue

Hearing the child's explanation, light flickered through Qian Renxue's violet eyes.

Lu Jing's explanation was logically sound and closely tied to the foundations of soul master cultivation. She could not afford to take it lightly.

Looking into Lu Jing's eyes, which were far more serious than his age suggested, the suspicion in her heart was gradually replaced by a strange sense of trust.

"Raising the absorption limit of soul rings..." she murmured, her gaze turning fervent.

For any soul master aspiring to reach the pinnacle, this was an irresistible temptation!

With that thought, she stopped refusing and hugged the jade box tightly. Her face serious, she said, "I believe you! Then... how do I use this?"

"It needs powerful Soul Power to refine and purify it, remove the impurities, and preserve only the purest essence."

Lu Jing explained, "It would be best for a fire-attribute soul master to do it, or a peerless expert with cultivation as profound as your grandfather's."

A sharp glint flashed through Qian Renxue's eyes. "In that case, let's ask Grandpa to help!"

She acted swiftly and decisively, immediately grabbing Lu Jing and heading straight for the hall where Qian Daoliu cultivated in seclusion.

"Grandpa!"

Holding the jade box, Qian Renxue hurried over to Qian Daoliu. Excitement that was difficult to detect tinged her voice as she quickly said, "Hurry, help me refine this Whale Rubber!"

Qian Daoliu had just finished meditating. His golden eyes opened, carrying the cool detachment of someone interrupted and the authority of an elder.

His gaze swept over the jade box in his granddaughter's arms, then turned to the calm-faced Lu Jing beside her. His brows furrowed slightly. "Whale Rubber? Little Xue, what do you want that for?"

Having lived for more than a century, he had naturally heard of this item's "unconventional" uses.

"Grandpa, it's not what you think!" Qian Renxue hurriedly repeated Lu Jing's explanation, especially emphasizing its Body Tempering effects and its ability to raise the absorption limit of soul rings.

After hearing her out, a clear ripple appeared in Qian Daoliu's golden pupils for the first time.

His scrutinizing gaze fell on Lu Jing, as though he wished to see through his soul. "A discovery from ten thousand years in the future? Raising the soul ring absorption limit? Is that true?"

His voice was low and carried immense pressure. The air throughout the hall seemed to freeze.

"This junior would not dare speak recklessly. It is one of the secret methods widely recognized by soul masters in the future," Lu Jing said with a nod.

Qian Daoliu fell silent for several breaths.

He had lived for many years and possessed vast knowledge. He knew full well that the wonders of the world had limitless uses.

Lu Jing's identity, coupled with his absolute certainty, made him choose to believe.

After all, even if it proved useless, there would be no real loss.

But if it was truly as Lu Jing claimed, its significance for Spirit Hall and for Qian Renxue would be enormous!

"Good!"

Having made up his mind, Qian Daoliu no longer hesitated. He nodded and said, "Then this old man will refine it for you!"

He extended his right hand, his five fingers spread slightly. A vast, ocean-like golden Soul Power, pure and sacred, instantly enveloped the two pieces of Whale Rubber within the jade box.

Under the refinement of the incomparably pure Soul Power of a rank ninety-nine Peerless Douluo, the two pieces of Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Jelly melted into liquid at a visible speed. Thread by thread, their impurities were stripped away and burned to ash.

The Whale Jelly, already extraordinary to begin with, now emitted surging life essence like the tides. Its color became like the purest liquid amber, crystalline and radiant!

A strange fragrance filled the hall, soothing the entire body and making one's bones and muscles hum in resonance.

Watching the two masses of amber liquid, refined to the utmost purity, float above her grandfather's palm, Qian Renxue's beautiful eyes shone continuously as she sensed the vast energy contained within.

"Oh, right."

At that moment, she suddenly remembered something. Looking at Lu Jing with a hint of inquiry in her eyes, she asked, "Why did you think of giving this Whale Rubber to me? Shouldn't it have gone to Wang Dong'er?"

Lu Jing shook his head, his tone calm. "I gave it to her, but she didn't want it."

"She didn't want it?" Qian Renxue and Qian Daoliu both revealed stunned expressions.

She had refused such a precious treasure?

"Mm."

Lu Jing nodded, sounding a little helpless. "She said she ate too much of it as a snack when she was little and had long since grown tired of it. That's why her second soul ring could already absorb one at the thousand-year level."

"What?!"

"Her second soul ring? A thousand years?!"

Qian Renxue and Qian Daoliu cried out in shock almost simultaneously!

Even Qian Daoliu, who had weathered countless storms, had disbelief written all over his dignified face!

A second soul ring absorbing a thousand-year soul ring? That was almost impossible according to everything he knew!

The soul ring limit theory had been an ironclad rule in the soul master world of his era!

Even Qian Renxue, the granddaughter he was so proud of, had only absorbed a soul ring of around seven hundred years for her second soul ring, just barely nearing the limit!

Qian Renxue was so shocked that she covered her mouth, her violet eyes widened round.

If the Body Tempering effects Lu Jing had mentioned earlier had stirred her heart, then Wang Dong'er's extravagant treatment of being able to absorb a thousand-year second soul ring simply because she had eaten too much of it as a snack dealt a tremendous blow to her understanding!

Had the foundations of sects ten thousand years in the future truly grown this profound?!

"So, she has no need for it."

Looking at the stunned pair, Lu Jing added, "Sister Xue, absorb it while it's still warm. The refined essence won't remain stable for long."

Suppressing the shock in her heart, Qian Renxue nodded and carefully wrapped the amber liquid that belonged to her in Soul Power.

Just as she was about to absorb it, she seemed to think of something and suggested, "You should absorb yours here too. With Grandpa protecting us, it'll be the safest."

At her words, a rare flush of youthful embarrassment appeared on Lu Jing's face.

He touched his nose and lowered his voice. "I won't do it here."

"Why?" Qian Renxue and Qian Daoliu both looked at him in confusion.

Lu Jing gave a light cough, his gaze drifting slightly. "Well... although Whale Rubber's Body Tempering effect is powerful, when refining and absorbing it—especially when absorbing high-quality Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Jelly for the first time... it will... it will cause the blood and vitality in one's body to boil, and that sort of... desire will become rather strong. It's difficult to control, so I need... an absolutely quiet place without anyone around to calm myself and resolve it..."

He tried to put it tactfully, but the meaning was already perfectly clear.

"?!" Qian Renxue instinctively repeated it, then immediately understood!

Though she was already a Soul Elder and her mind was far more mature than that of her peers, she was still only a nine-year-old girl physically!

Hearing such blunt, slightly taboo words from Lu Jing so suddenly—and realizing they concerned something she herself was about to experience—an indescribable wave of embarrassment instantly rushed to her face!

"Whoosh—!"

Her exquisitely beautiful face, once noble and cool, was dyed a vivid crimson at a visible speed, like morning clouds reflecting upon snow. The blush spread all the way to her delicate earlobes and slender neck!

Her grip on the jade box tightened unconsciously. Her long lashes fluttered in panic, and for a moment, she did not dare look at Lu Jing again—nor did she dare look at Qian Daoliu, whose expression had also turned somewhat strange.

Even the immense life essence filling the hall seemed to carry a trace of ambiguous warmth.

"W-What nonsense are you talking about..." she muttered in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz, so embarrassed that she wished she could hide immediately!

Qian Daoliu was, after all, an old monster who had lived for over a century. After his initial surprise, he immediately understood the crucial point.

Seeing his granddaughter's flustered state, a knowing yet helpless smile flashed through his eyes.

He gave a dignified cough, breaking the subtle, awkward atmosphere. Turning to Qian Renxue, he said, "Little Xue, since that is the case, you should do as Little Jing does. Return to your own room and absorb and refine it in peace!"

"Yes, Grandpa!"

As if granted a pardon, Qian Renxue hugged her mass of amber-colored "hot potato" and lowered her head. She did not dare glance at Lu Jing again. Like a startled deer fleeing in panic, she nearly ran away, her slender heels striking the polished floor in a string of hurried, flustered taps before she swiftly vanished around the corner beyond the hall doors.

Watching that golden figure rapidly disappear, Lu Jing touched his nose and gave Qian Daoliu a slight bow. "Thank you for the trouble, Great Enshrined Elder. This junior will take his leave."

With that, he carried his own portion of Whale Rubber essence and turned to leave as well.

Only Qian Daoliu remained in the vast, empty hall.

He looked toward the direction in which his granddaughter had disappeared, then at Lu Jing's departing back. A complicated, inscrutable expression surfaced on his dignified face.

The secrets of ten thousand years in the future, a Body Tempering method that overturned all understanding, and those two young guests with unusual identities... it seemed to foretell that the landscape of this continent might quietly change because of those two "stars" that had fallen from the heavens by chance.

His golden eyes narrowed slightly, as though they had pierced through the walls of the hall to gaze upon a broader, more unknown future.