All Sides Take Notice! The Calm Before the Storm! (Bonus Chapter, Request Monthly Ticket)

At Tiandou Imperial Palace, Qian Renxue, disguised as Crown Prince Xue Qinghe, fell into thought as she reviewed the latest intelligence.

There were two key terms in it.

One was Whale Rubber.

According to the information that had come in, Dugu Bo had gone to sea this time to obtain Whale Rubber.

This substance, used as an aphrodisiac, had clearly been discovered to have another use. It was very likely the key to Super Theoretical Limit Absorption Soul Ring.

But its exact usage was perhaps known only to Dugu Bo, Ailin, and the few others who had gone to sea with him.

The other key term was Lu Duzhou.

She had a dossier in her hands that recorded, in exhaustive detail, every piece of information that could be found about Lu Duzhou from his birth until now.

An orphan with Half-level Innate Soul Power, he had earned living expenses at the academy by developing the special effects of his Martial Soul. He had then taken Xiao Wu and Tang San, both with Innate Full Soul Power, as his Second Sister and Third Brother.

Later, through Liu Feng's connections, he got acquainted with Yao Zi, captain of the Plant Academy Battle Team, and through Yao Zi's introduction, he met Dean Ailin.

Not long afterward, Ailin's Niece, Aimi, became Lu Duzhou's Fourth Sister.

Lu Duzhou helped the other Soul Masters at Plant Academy increase their Soul Power and won the friendship of most of Pano City's families.

Then, likely while obtaining his Second Soul Ring in Sunset Forest, he met Dugu Bo.

After staying in Sunset Forest for several days, Dugu Bo picked up Ye Lingling and her mother, and the group went to sea to hunt a Demon Whale.

After analyzing everything, Qian Renxue was certain that the function of Whale Rubber had to be connected to Lu Duzhou.

That meant the secrets of Super Limit Soul Ring Absorption and Martial Soul Evolution could both be traced back to Lu Duzhou himself.

An orphan Soul Master barely eleven years old, moving cautiously at every step while harboring such a huge secret—he was truly fascinating!

"Interesting."

Qian Renxue spoke the two words.

Snake Lance Douluo She Long, standing beside her, said,

"Your Highness, Dugu Bo owes Prince Xuexing a favor and supports Prince Xuebeng. Now that he holds such a major secret, why don't we strike first and dispose of Lu Duzhou and everyone connected to him in advance?"

"If Your Highness is worried that Old Poison will fly into a rage, we can ask the Pope to send Chrysanthemum Ghost Douluo as well. The four of us can join forces and swiftly kill Dugu Bo, leaving him no chance to escape."

At the mention of the word "Pope," a flash of disgust passed through Qian Renxue's eyes.

Bibi Dong had given birth to her but never raised her. Because of her hatred for Qian Xunji, she had been incomparably cold toward her own daughter.

Qian Renxue had never felt a mother's love. That was why, at a very young age, she had voluntarily requested this infiltration mission and come to Heaven Dou's imperial capital—to get away from Bibi Dong.

Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo were Bibi Dong's direct subordinates. Among all the elders of Spirit Hall, Qian Renxue trusted only Snake Lance Douluo and Ci Xue Douluo, whom her Grandfather Qian Daoliu had sent to protect her.

"We must not act rashly."

"We are not the only ones watching Lu Duzhou now. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is near Heaven Dou City. Once we make a move, Sword Douluo will certainly appear to stop us."

"That could cause our plan to fail completely."

"Wait for now. I'll find an opportunity to see whether I can recruit him."

Qian Renxue's words made sense, and She Long and Ci Xue nodded before withdrawing.

Elsewhere, at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

After reading all the information, Sect Master Ning Fengzhi abandoned his usual composure and paced back and forth inside the hall.

This intelligence was simply too important.

All this time, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda had been limited to Level Seventy-Nine and had never been able to break through to become a Soul Douluo.

They could only survive by recruiting other powerful Soul Masters.

For a Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Soul Master, their future and potential were practically fixed from the moment they were born.

Every Soul Skill had the same effect.

But if one could absorb Soul Rings beyond their limits, then even at the same level, their Soul Skill Power could undergo a qualitative leap.

His only daughter, Ning Rongrong, would soon reach Level Twenty. If she could obtain a Thousand-Year Second Ring, they could immediately verify this conclusion.

Super Theoretical Limit Absorption Soul Ring might even improve a Martial Soul. If she could obtain a Ten-Thousand-Year Third Ring like Dugu Yan, perhaps the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda could transform.

Of course, Dugu Yan's Martial Soul Evolution might have had another cause.

But judging from the intelligence they had gathered, everything pointed to Lu Duzhou, this crucial figure.

Gu Rong spoke up,

"Fengzhi, stop pacing around. This concerns Rongrong's Martial Soul Evolution. I'll go capture that brat right now."

"Dugu Bo can't stop me!"

Ning Fengzhi hurriedly stopped him.

"Don't! Gu Shu, if Dugu Bo flies into a rage, it would be difficult for even two hundred of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's two thousand disciples to survive. We absolutely cannot be so impulsive."

Chen Xin said,

"We won't make a move. We'll go to Dugu Bo and talk to him. Whatever conditions he has, he can name them."

"Would he really refuse to show two old fellows like us some respect?"

Ning Fengzhi did not refute that. He indeed had the same idea.

"Jian Shu, Gu Shu, how about this? Tomorrow, I'll arrange a meeting with Dugu Bo and speak with him first."

"If we truly cannot reach an agreement, then I'll ask you two to step in. How does that sound?"

Chen Xin and Gu Rong exchanged a glance, then nodded.

Meanwhile, within the Papal Palace far away in Spirit City, the current Pope Bibi Dong had also finished reading the collected reports.

Appreciation glimmered in her beautiful eyes.

"This Lu Duzhou is quite clever. He made Tang San become Dugu Bo's student and gained the protection of a Title Douluo. Step by step, he made it to where he is today. For an eleven-year-old child, that is very remarkable."

She, too, was a Commoner Soul Master, and her Twin Martial Souls had arisen from a mutation. Seeing Lu Duzhou's experiences, she seemed to see her own journey toward becoming Pope, which was why she felt appreciation.

But her expression quickly turned cold.

"With a Title Douluo protecting him and such a major secret in his grasp, he will inevitably become a problem in the future."

"He is always at Dugu Bo's side now and remains in Heaven Dou City, so it is not convenient to act. We'll find an opportunity to eliminate him later."

"Yue Guan, investigate information concerning Super Limit Soul Ring Absorption. While you're at it, look into Tang San's background."

"Once you confirm it, if he truly is Tang Hao's Illegitimate Child, do not alert him. First determine Tang Hao's location, then await my orders."

She had no conflict of interest with Tang Hao. In fact, if Tang Hao had not severely wounded Qian Xunji, she would not have been able to kill Qian Xunji for revenge and ascend to the Pope's throne.

But publicly, Tang Hao had gravely injured Qian Xunji, causing his death from his wounds. He was Spirit Hall's most wanted enemy, so she needed to kill Tang Hao personally to consolidate her position, preserve Spirit Hall's prestige and ruling authority, and lay the groundwork for what came next.

Yue Guan accepted the order and left Spirit Hall.

Lu Duzhou had been staying in Dugu Bo's manor. He guessed that after that day, he had been directly exposed to the sight of all the major factions.

This day had also been part of his plan. When he had sought Dugu Bo as a backer, he had already considered this possibility.

He had long since made plans for it.

But before dealing with this matter, he had something more important to do.

That day, he brought Tang San and followed Dugu Bo to the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well.