Cultivation and Planning

That night, Heaven Dou Royal Academy.

Forest Mimicry Training Ground.

After defeating Dugu Yan, Ye Zhou left the Great Soul Arena.

That battle made him realize that although his first soul skill was very powerful, he was far from proficient in using it. As long as an opponent was fast enough and did not move in a straight line, they could easily evade it.

Once a problem was found, it had to be solved.

So, he decided to properly practice his first soul skill, starting with his aim.

"Boom!" He immediately activated his soul power and swung the Sun Moon Halberd, sending a Solar Fire Line shooting toward a bird flying through the forest.

Hmm, he hit one—but not the bird he had aimed at.

"Keep going!" Ye Zhou said irritably, swinging the Sun Moon Halberd again.

That night, Crown Prince's Mansion.

"Young Master, we investigated. The man who appeared at the Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena this afternoon and suppressed Dugu Bo suddenly appeared in Heaven Dou City a few days ago. After arriving in Heaven Dou City, he stayed at an inn near the Royal Academy. Usually, he set up a stall outside the inn, telling fortunes and reading feng shui for people," Snake Lance Douluo reported to Qian Renxue.

After saying that, he explained to Qian Renxue what fortune-telling and feng shui were.

"That man has such abilities?" Qian Renxue asked suspiciously.

"No one knows whether it is real or fake. Many people think he is a fraud."

"That was before. After today, I fear many people will seek him out to have their... fortunes told," Qian Renxue said.

Then she asked, "Have you uncovered anything about his origins? Where did he come from before arriving in Heaven Dou City?"

"No. There is no way to trace it. However, he claims to be from Maoshan, but there is no mountain called Maoshan within either of the two great empires," Snake Lance Douluo replied.

"Mm... Tomorrow, I will go meet him." Qian Renxue frowned in thought, then spoke after hesitating for a while.

"You must not! Young Master, we still do not know that man's stance. If he is hostile toward the Heaven Dou Royal Family, you will be in danger if you approach him. If we intervene then, your identity will be exposed. If we do not intervene, the guards in the Crown Prince's Mansion will have no chance against him," Porcupinefish Douluo advised.

"Cixue is right, Young Master. Do not take the risk. Let me go meet him instead," Snake Lance Douluo agreed.

"You cannot go either. We should not rashly approach other Titled Douluo, lest we expose our identities," Porcupinefish Douluo objected.

"Then what do you suggest?"

"Let Salas go. As a Platinum Bishop, upon discovering such a powerful man in Heaven Dou City, Salas ought to represent Spirit Hall in recruiting him. If he succeeds, it means that man is inclined toward Spirit Hall, and Young Master will not need to show yourself. If he fails, Young Master can approach him afterward as the Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire. Surely it cannot be that he has no goodwill toward Spirit Hall while also being hostile toward the Heaven Dou Royal Family," Porcupinefish Douluo said.

Hearing this, Qian Renxue lightly tapped the tabletop with her fingers. Her gaze shifted slightly before she nodded.

"You have a point. Let Salas go first."

"Young Master is wise."

"By the way, which child was that Shi Jian standing up for today?" Qian Renxue suddenly recalled something and asked.

"Coincidentally, it was that boy you met a few days ago—the one who awakened Innate Full Soul Power," Porcupinefish Douluo replied.

"Oh, him? Could there be some connection between them?" Qian Renxue asked suspiciously.

"Young Master, you have already reviewed Ye Zhou's information twice. His family holds a hereditary barony in the Heaven Dou Empire, and he is already the sixth generation. It is impossible for them to have privately associated with a Titled Douluo, unless..."

"Unless what?"

"Unless that Titled Douluo took a liking to his Innate Full Soul Power talent and wished to take him as a Disciple, so he deliberately approached him." As he said this, Porcupinefish Douluo felt that his guess was highly likely.

Wasn't Ye Zhou a student of Heaven Dou Royal Academy? Yet Shi Jian had chosen to stay at an inn right beside Heaven Dou Royal Academy, even setting up a stall there.

The two of them were so close.

Qian Renxue took in every word Porcupinefish Douluo said.

Given Ye Zhou's talent, it was not strange at all for a Titled Douluo to take an interest in him and wish to accept him as a Disciple.

After all, it had been many years since a power-attack Battle Soul Master with Innate Full Soul Power had appeared on the continent.

"If that is the case, Ye Zhou's importance must be raised another level. Perhaps through him, we can win over a mysterious Titled Douluo," Qian Renxue murmured.

Then she turned to Snake Lance Douluo and said, "Make the arrangements. Have Salas approach Shi Jian tomorrow."

"Yes, Young Master," Snake Lance Douluo replied with a bow of his head.

The next day, the Mimicry Training Ground.

Ye Zhou was still practicing his soul skill here. After a night of grueling training, the accuracy of his Sunbeam Thrust had improved considerably. When attacking birds in the forest, he could hit his target seven times out of ten.

However.

That was far from enough.

With their ability to fly and the cover provided by the branches, all these factors combined made hitting those birds no easier than hitting an agility-type Soul Elder.

But that was only against a Soul Elder who was not using soul skills. Once the opponent used a soul skill—especially one capable of changing their speed—his accuracy would drop again.

So, he still had to keep practicing!

Besides, to prevent himself from being unable to cope once an enemy got close, he had to improve his close-combat abilities. He could not waste the martial soul in his hands by treating it solely as a tool for releasing fire or frost. That would be wrong.

Halberd techniques!

He had to learn a few halberd techniques. That way, if an enemy got close, he could still wield his halberd to defeat them instead of flailing around like he had when facing Yu Tianheng and Dugu Yan, only for them to spot an opening and kick him flying.

But...

Ye Zhou touched his Storage Bag. Inside were the corpses of ten soul beasts, hunted by Shi Jian and himself.

Was he really going to use them now?

A designated summon required sacrifices worth ten times the value of the summoned item. If he did that, few of those ten soul beast corpses would remain. What if he ran into some urgent situation later and needed to summon something, only to find that he lacked suitable sacrifices? That would be troublesome.

"Mm... I'll first master my first soul skill and find a way to get more sacrifices. Then I'll summon halberd techniques. I still haven't mastered my first soul skill. Even if I summon a manual or skill book right away, I won't have time to train it for a while." With that thought, Ye Zhou nodded and continued practicing his aim.

"Boom!" Another flame beam shot forth.

Not only had his accuracy improved, but even the firing speed seemed to have increased slightly.

Around nine in the morning.

Ye Zhou was already drenched in sweat. His body was exhausted, and more than ninety percent of the Soul Power in his body had been depleted.

Time to rest. If I keep going, I'll just be overworking my body. Ye Zhou spread open his right hand, and the Sun Moon Halberd vanished in a streak of red and blue light.

He tidied himself up, changed into a clean set of clothes, then left the training grounds and headed outside Heaven Dou Academy.

Yesterday, Shi Jian had publicly stopped Dugu Bo at the Great Soul Arena when he tried to bully Ye Zhou with his seniority. As the one who had been helped, Ye Zhou naturally ought to thank him.

And not merely thank him—he had to do it in front of many people.

That way, it would not seem strange for him and Shi Jian to walk together or appear in public at the same time from now on.

He saved me, I'm grateful to him, and we get along well. Like Dugu Bo and Tang San in the novel, we're an unlikely pair of friends despite the age gap. Nothing wrong with that, right?