Douluo: The Venom System Is Awesome

"It's not a daily report."

Mu Junyu finally stopped his pen and looked up, his purple eyes appearing exceptionally bright under the lamplight.

"I'm discussing some... ideas with Teacher."

He picked up the few pages of letter paper he had written and handed them to Qian Renxue, his tone carrying a seriousness that belied his age.

"Sister Xue, look. The noble class in the Heaven Dou Empire is stagnant, and the path for commoners at the bottom to rise is almost completely blocked; resentment has actually been accumulating all this time."

"And while the Star Luo Empire has strong military power, its internal factional struggles are intense."

He pointed to a certain paragraph on the letter.

"I think that if Martial Soul Hall wants to truly unify... er, better maintain peace on the continent in the future, it cannot rely solely on the power of strong soul masters."

"Perhaps we could try to promote some reforms, such as establishing commoner Soul Master Academies in various regions supervised by Martial Soul Hall."

"Select talented children regardless of their background; or facilitate the opening of more commercial trade between the two empires, using economic interests to ease political opposition..."

"The most important thing is to cut off the nobles' monopoly on educational resources and absorb them, making their hearts loyal to Martial Soul Hall."

Qian Renxue took the letter paper in surprise, and the more she read, the more shocked she became.

How could the things written here be problems for an eight-year-old child to think about?

The macro perspective, the thorough analysis, and the boldness of the proposed ideas were like those of an old politician who had been immersed in power struggles for years!

Although some ideas still seemed immature, the core points were incisive. "You... how could you think of these?"

Qian Renxue looked at him in disbelief. She had always thought that Mu Junyu's intelligence was mostly reflected in his cultivation and those... well, little tricks.

Mu Junyu scratched his head embarrassedly and began to play dumb again.

"It's just... I hear you and Teacher talk about these things often, so I just thought about them randomly. And there are many records in books too..."

He pointed to the thick books nearby, such as Outline of Continental Politics and Economics and Research on Imperial Noble Lineages.

"You can think of all this just by thinking randomly?" Qian Renxue was extremely suspicious.

Mu Junyu didn't want to talk to Qian Renxue about these things, so he said casually.

"These are all ideas Teacher mentioned to me before!"

Mu Junyu waved his hands quickly, a look of admiration appearing on his face, cleverly pushing all the credit onto Bibi Dong.

"Teacher is far-sighted and saw these problems long ago. I just organized the scattered things Teacher said and added a little bit of my own wild imagination."

He pointed to a spot on the letter paper.

"Look here, regarding the pilot establishment of commoner soul master enlightenment schools funded by Martial Soul Hall in Nuoding City and other peripheral cities, that was something Teacher quietly promoted over the past two years."

"Although the scale is still very small, according to the news that came in recently, several children with good talent have already been discovered, and their loyalty to Martial Soul Hall is very high!"

He flipped to another page.

"And this, promoting the exchange of goods between small merchant groups on the borders of the two empires, was also something Teacher secretly instructed some deacons to facilitate."

"I heard that border friction has decreased recently; those small nobles are too busy making money."

Mu Junyu spoke with such vivid detail, his eyes sparkling.

He was completely in the role of a little fanboy who thought, "My teacher is the best, I'm just a repeater."

"Really?" Qian Renxue was half-convinced. In her impression, her mother was more of a cold-blooded and strong Pope, focused on the expansion of Martial Soul Hall's power and the management of soul masters.

She hadn't expected that in private, she was already laying out such far-reaching and... soft-handed strategies?

"Of course it's true!"

Mu Junyu nodded vigorously, his expression extremely sincere, without a trace of lying.

"Teacher said that military conquest is the inferior strategy, and winning hearts is the superior one. We must make people follow Martial Soul Hall sincerely, not just out of fear."

"Teacher has been doing these things silently; perhaps it isn't time for large-scale implementation yet, so not many people know."

He sighed, his little face showing just the right amount of emotion.

"Teacher really has it hard, having to consider so many things."

"I'm just able to help her record some ideas, read books, and see if I can add any insignificant little suggestions..."

These half-true, half-false words.

Successfully shifted Qian Renxue's attention from "Why is Mu Junyu so precocious?" to the surprise and slight admiration of "So Mother has been doing so much in secret."

She looked at the text on the letter paper, which was clearly organized and even marked with specific data and suggested implementation steps in some places.

Thinking back to Mu Junyu, his inhuman spiritual power and early wisdom, it seemed...

Only...

It was more reasonable to explain that these were all Bibi Dong's ideas and he was just an excellent recorder and organizer, right?

The doubts in her heart dissipated slightly, replaced by a complex emotion toward Bibi Dong.

That mother whom she had always felt was cold and only cared about power and strength seemed to have a side she didn't understand at all.

"So... Mother, she..."

Qian Renxue muttered to herself, looking at the letter with a complex expression in her eyes.

Seeing this, Mu Junyu secretly made a victory gesture in his heart and quickly struck while the iron was hot.

"So Sister Xue, you must help your teacher keep this a secret! These ideas are still in the exploratory stage and shouldn't be known by too many people."

"I only told you because I don't see Sister Xue as an outsider!"

Qian Renxue looked at him, and finally, her lingering doubts completely vanished as she gave a gentle nod.

"Mm, I know the gravity of this."

Mu Junyu knew when to stop, immediately slamming the thick book spread out on the table shut.

He then crumpled the letter paper filled with writing and shoved it into the drawer, his movements so fast it was as if he were destroying incriminating evidence.

He stretched exaggeratedly and let out a huge yawn, even squeezing two tears of physiological response from the corners of his eyes.

"Ah—I'm so sleepy, Sister Xue."

He rubbed his eyes, his voice becoming soft and sticky, thick with heavy weariness.

"Let's think about these headache-inducing things tomorrow, shall we go to sleep?"

As he spoke, he naturally reached out his small hand and precisely grabbed Qian Renxue's soft palm.

Mu Junyu's small hand was warm and soft, like a piece of warm jade.

He didn't just hold it; he used his fingertips to playfully pinch it, his movements intimate and carrying a hint of coquetry.

Qian Renxue was taken aback by his sudden action, her face gradually turning red.

Having shared a bed for the past month, she was already used to the little guy's various restless habits while asleep.

For instance, rolling into her arms or draping his legs over her, but such direct intimate contact while he was awake still made her feel somewhat uneasy, her earlobes heating up slightly.

Chapter 35: The Octopus Sleeping Method

But looking at Mu Junyu's appearance, his eyes barely able to stay open.

With his look of complete reliance and lack of defense, her small resistance instantly dissipated.

She even found it a bit amusing; the little adult who was just holding forth on the situation of the Douluo Continent had turned back into a sleepy child in the blink of an eye.

"Go wash up if you're tired."

Qian Renxue tried to make her voice sound calm, letting him hold her hand while her other hand gently pushed his back.

"You smell like ink."

"Mm-hmm~"

Mu Junyu responded vaguely, but pushed his luck by leaning his entire weight onto Qian Renxue, hanging off her like a koala, his eyes closed as he mumbled.

"Sister Xue, pull me... I can't walk anymore..."

Qian Renxue sighed helplessly. Looking at his act of playing the rascal, her heart softened in the end.

Resigned to her fate, she half-supported and half-carried this guy who was "too tired to walk," heading toward the bedroom.

The lamplight stretched their shadows, weaving them together, and the air was filled with a warm and ambiguous atmosphere.

[Qian Renxue Favorability +2, currently 47%. Tolerance for intimate contact slightly increased.]

As Qian Renxue half-supported and half-carried Mu Junyu toward the bedroom, she suddenly paused, feeling a bit strained.

Only then did she realize belatedly that the "little guy" in her arms had become significantly heavier, and his height had shot up rapidly.

Just a month ago, Mu Junyu only reached her chest, needing to look up to speak to her.

But now, as he leaned on her with a slight slouch, the hair on the top of his head could already brush against her chin.

Qian Renxue was tall herself, and standing together, the height difference was now less than half a head.

What was even more critical was that he seemed to be in a key growth spurt.

His bones were quietly stretching, the contours of his cheeks, once slightly chubby with baby fat, becoming clearer.

His shoulders also vaguely possessed the width of a young man.

The weight leaning against her was no longer the soft, doughy feel of a child, but carried the slightly solid prototype of a male.

Qian Renxue's heart skipped a beat for no reason.

People on the Douluo Continent matured early, especially soul masters, whose bodies were nourished by soul power, leading to faster growth.

In ordinary households, it was not uncommon for people to marry at twelve or thirteen. At twelve, one was already considered a young adult capable of standing on their own in many respects.

And they could marry and have children.

And Mu Junyu, although only eight, had a growth rate far exceeding ordinary people, along with his monstrous intellect...

Qian Renxue suddenly realized that perhaps it wouldn't be long before this person in front of her, who still needed...

The "child" she had to half-carry to bed.

Would eventually grow into a youth in the truest sense... a teenager.

Or even a young man.

This realization made the arm Qian Renxue used to support Mu Junyu stiffen slightly.

The temperature where their bodies pressed together seemed to rise a little as well.

The faint, lingering air of ambiguity in the room suddenly became clear.

Mu Junyu seemed completely unaware, his eyes still closed as he trustingly surrendered his entire weight to her.

He kept mumbling complaints: "Sister Xue... hurry up... I'm so sleepy..." His warm breath brushed against the crook of her neck, carrying the clean, distinct scent of a young man.

Qian Renxue took a deep breath, suppressing the strange restlessness in her heart, and tried her best to ignore the contours of his body—which were gradually stretching out—against her arm as she quickened her pace.

"Honestly... I owe you."

She muttered under her breath, though there was little reproach in her tone; instead, it carried a hint of indulgence and... panic that she hadn't even noticed herself.

Qian Renxue began to realize that Mu Junyu's rapid growth and the differences in their genders were causing their intimate contact to spark more and more subtle shyness and heart-fluttering sensations.

Mu Junyu, however, continued to feign sleep, feeling secretly pleased.

Mmm... Sister Xue smells so good... Growing up fast really is a benefit...

Inside the bedchamber of the Crown Prince's Residence, night-luminescent pearls cast a soft glow.

Once Qian Renxue had finished washing up and changed into comfortable sleepwear, she had just lain down on the inner side of the spacious bed when that fellow who claimed to be "too sleepy to walk" fumbled his way over in a daze.

Relying almost entirely on instinct, Mu Junyu skillfully rolled over to Qian Renxue's side.

With a stretch of his arm and a toss of his leg.

He clung to her instantly, like an octopus that had finally found its tree.