Kidnapping Little White Tiger

Chapter 23: Luring the Little White Tiger

After dawn, Meow Meow finally truly woke up.

Clear Radiance Pavilion was very quiet.

White Dew lay by the window, her tail hanging gently.

Qian Renxue had already changed into Xue Qinghe's robes and was sitting at the table reviewing several documents sent from the Crown Prince's Mansion.

Inside the Calming Bell, Little White Tiger Jianbing was curled up beside a small patch of warm Holy Fire light, his eyes half-open, half-closed.

He hadn't fallen asleep.

Probably because he had just come from a place like the Black Water Marsh, he couldn't trust anything.

Meow Meow stretched his front paws and slowly sat up.

"You're awake?"

A very small voice came from inside the Calming Bell.

Meow Meow looked down at the bell.

"You haven't slept at all?"

"Can't sleep."

Jianbing said in a low voice.

"I want to go back."

Meow Meow paused mid-motion.

"Go back where?"

"Black Water Marsh."

The little white tiger's voice grew quieter.

"There are still many auras there."

"Maybe there are other remnant spirits like me."

"I can't abandon them."

Meow Meow was silent for a moment.

That sounded a bit troublesome.

But it wasn't wrong either.

Jianbing had awakened from those bottles, his memories shattered into pieces, yet he still remembered his kind and the White Tiger bloodline.

It was normal for him to want to go back.

But normal was one thing; whether he could go back was another.

"What can you do if you go back now?"

Meow Meow asked.

"I..."

Jianbing faltered.

He lowered his head to look at his nearly transparent claws.

Forget fighting.

If he stayed away from the Calming Bell for too long now, he might even dissipate.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Meow Meow continued:

"The Black Water Marsh has already been noticed."

"The Black Eagle Family suffered a loss yesterday. They'll definitely send people to investigate today."

"If you go back now, not only will you not find the other remnant spirits, but you'll also likely get caught and stuffed back into a bottle."

Jianbing's form trembled slightly.

Clearly, he was very afraid of the bottle.

Meow Meow softened his tone a little.

"I'm not saying you can never go back."

"Just that you can't go back now."

"First, stabilize yourself. First, find out what they're really doing."

"Once you can hold yourself together without the Calming Bell, I'll take you there."

Jianbing lifted his head.

"Really?"

"Really."

Meow Meow nodded.

"Would this cat lie to you?"

Little White Tiger thought for a moment.

"Yesterday you said I was a cat."

Meow Meow: "..."

This kid sure holds a grudge fast.

Qian Renxue heard this, and the corner of her lips twitched slightly.

She couldn't see Jianbing inside the Calming Bell, but she could catch some of the sounds Meow Meow transmitted.

Meow Meow coughed a little awkwardly.

"In a broad sense, tigers count as big cats too."

"But if you don't like it, I won't say it anymore."

Jianbing corrected him seriously.

"I am a White Tiger."

"Fine, fine, White Tiger."

Meow Meow flicked his tail.

"But you're still small now, so consider yourself a White Tiger cub first."

Hearing this, Jianbing didn't argue.

He really was small.

So small that even White Dew could corner him in the cramped space of the Calming Bell.

White Dew walked over from the window and gently rubbed against Meow Meow's bell.

Jianbing sensed White Dew's presence and quieted down a little.

Seeing this, Meow Meow had an idea.

White Dew's calming effect wasn't as strong as Snowball's, but it still helped weak lingering spirits.

"White Dew, from now on, spend some time with him whenever you're free."

White Dew nodded.

Jianbing murmured softly:

"She's warm."

"She's a Sacred Flame Spirit Cat."

Meow Meow said.

"You'll get used to the Holy Fire Aura gradually too."

Jianbing thought for a moment, then asked:

"Can I become a Sacred Flame White Tiger too?"

Meow Meow was taken aback.

That question hit the mark.

He wasn't a cat.

Nor an ordinary soul beast.

He seemed more like some kind of shattered White Tiger bloodline remnant spirit.

Whether to perform Spirit Ignition, whether it was possible, and what the result would be—Meow Meow really couldn't say for sure right now.

He didn't make empty promises.

"Not now."

"You're too weak."

"Rest up first."

"Once you stabilize, I'll try to see if I can fuse the Holy Fire with your White Tiger origin."

Jianbing's eyes lit up.

"Then can I help you fight later?"

"Don't think about fighting yet."

Meow Meow reached out a paw and patted the bell.

"Your biggest task right now is not to fall apart."

Jianbing lowered his head.

"Oh."

This sight made Meow Meow a little amused.

Yesterday he was as wary as a little hedgehog, but today he's already asking if he can help fight.

It seems Little White Tiger isn't that hard to coax.

Qian Renxue set down the scroll at this point and looked at Meow Meow.

"He's willing to stay?"

"Barely counts as willing,"

Meow Meow replied.

"But he wants to go back to Black Water Marsh to find the other lingering spirits."

Qian Renxue's expression tightened slightly.

"Black Water Marsh can't be rushed."

"I've already had people watch the Black Eagle Family, but I haven't made a move."

"Yesterday you snatched the wooden box—they're sure to investigate."

"If we actively approach now, it'll be easy to expose ourselves."

Meow Meow nodded.

"That's what I think too."

"So first, I'll lay the Cat Net."

"The Cat Net?"

Qian Renxue raised an eyebrow.

Meow Meow explained naturally:

"Near the Crown Prince's Mansion, West City, and around the Black Eagle Family, I'll first find some ordinary cats as the outer perimeter."

"Feed them a few meals, leave a bit of Holy Fire Aura."

"They don't need to fight—just remember scents, recognize routes, and keep watch on people."

"Once I get a clear picture of the Black Eagle Family's comings and goings, I'll decide the next step."

Qian Renxue thought it over.

This method sounded simple.

But for Meow Meow, it was indeed feasible.

No one in Heavenly Dou City would guard against a bunch of ordinary cats.

Especially near noble estates—cats were already common.

"What do you need me to do?"

"Give me some information on the Black Eagle Family,"

Meow Meow said.

"Terrain, personnel, and their dealings with Prince Xue Xing."

"Also, if you have the recent Soul Awakening Records from Heavenly Dou City, let me see them too."

Qian Renxue was a little surprised at the last request.

"Soul Awakening Records?"

"Yeah."

Meow Meow licked his paw.

"Black Water Marsh involves the White Tiger bloodline and Nether aura."

"If they're really doing a Bloodline Experiment, they'd likely screen targets from low-rank soul masters, collateral branch soul masters, or even children who've just awakened their spirits."

Qian Renxue looked at him, her gaze gradually turning serious.

"You've thought this through quite carefully."

"It's not careful."

Meow Meow shook his head.

"It's just that if this kind of thing is being done, they definitely wouldn't only look at high-rank soul masters."

"High-rank soul masters are too conspicuous."

"Instead, it's children who've just awakened, or family collateral branches, that are easiest to tamper with."

Qian Renxue was silent for a moment, then nodded.

"I'll have it delivered."

With that, she called for the steward.

Xue Qinghe's identity was very useful in the Crown Prince's Mansion.

Half an hour later, several compiled documents were delivered outside the Clear Radiance Pavilion.

Among them was a brief table on the Black Eagle Family.

Also included were records of anomalous soul masters across Heavenly Dou City's districts over the past three months.

Finally, there was a copy of a standard Awakening Brief forwarded from the Heavenly Dou branch of Martial Soul Hall.

Qian Renxue did not let the steward enter; she retrieved the items herself.

Meow Meow jumped onto the table and first looked at the Black Eagle Family.

The Black Eagle Family was not large.

It counted as a mid-tier noble family in Heavenly Dou City's West District.

Their family soul was mostly the Black Feather Eagle, and their number of soul masters was modest.

But they frequently interacted with Prince Xue Xing's estate.

On the surface, they handled some caravan and hunting ground affairs for the prince's household.

As for private matters, the documents did not record them.

After reading, Meow Meow lightly tapped the table with his tail.

"Hunting ground affairs."

"Soul beast blood."

"Black Water Marsh."

"Put these words together, and they don't smell clean."

Qian Renxue nodded.

"I'll audit their hunting ground accounts from recent years."

Meow Meow then flipped to the anomalous soul master records.

They listed several missing soul masters.

A few remote villages had reported agitated soul beasts.

There were also two records of low-rank soul masters suddenly losing their minds.

Not many.

But the distribution stretched from Heavenly Dou City's West District to the edge of the Sunset Forest.

"They haven't been at this for just a day or two," Meow Meow said.

"It's just that before, the scale was small, and no one connected these incidents."

Qian Renxue's expression turned slightly cold.

"Heavenly Dou nobles often suppress matters beneath them."

"If one or two commoner soul masters go missing, no one bothers to investigate thoroughly."

Meow Meow glanced at her.

"So in the future, your Martial Soul Hall can't be like that."

Qian Renxue was startled.

Then she nodded gently.

"Mm."

Meow Meow finally opened the last document—the Awakening Brief.

This material was quite miscellaneous.

Mostly routine records from various Martial Soul Hall branches.

Such-and-such village, awakened a common farming tool soul.

Such-and-such town, a child appeared with Innate Soul Power at level three.

Such-and-such city, a new scion of some family awakened a mutated beast soul.

Meow Meow read quickly.

Until he reached a line of small text, and his movements suddenly stopped.

[Fasnuo Province, Holy Soul Village, male child, name Tang San, soul Blue Silver Grass, Innate Full Soul Power.]

The entire cat froze.

It's here.

Finally here.

Though it was just an unremarkable line in the data, to him, this single line stood out more than the entire page on the Black Eagle Family.

Qian Renxue noticed his change.

"What's wrong?"

Meow Meow stared at that line of text for a few breaths before slowly pulling his gaze away.

"Nothing."

"Just saw a slightly unusual awakening record."

Qian Renxue looked over.

"Blue Silver Grass, Innate Full Soul Power."

Her brow twitched slightly.

"That is rare."

"But Blue Silver Grass is too weak a spirit. Even with Innate Full Soul Power, it may not go far."

Meow Meow glanced at her and sighed inwardly.

That statement was correct under normal circumstances.

But this one was not normal.

Tang San.

Son of Clear Sky Douluo Tang Hao.

Blue Silver Emperor bloodline.

Mysterious Heaven Skill.

Hidden weapons.

Later, a pile of divine seats added on top.

The problem was, the current Tang San was just a child who had just awakened his spirit in Holy Soul Village.

To Martial Soul Hall, he was merely a strange outlier.

Not even worth special attention.

And Meow Meow knew that if nothing was done, this "strange outlier" would cause Martial Soul Hall no small amount of trouble later.

But he couldn't rush yet.

Tang San was still a child.

Tang Hao was still in the shadows.

Acting rashly might instead startle the Clear Sky Douluo directly.

Besides, his current focus was on Qian Renxue, Bibi Dong, the Martial Soul Hall regret line, and this new Black Water Marsh side branch.

"Keep it noted for now."

Meow Meow said quietly.

Qian Renxue heard him.

"You think he's a problem?"

"Innate Full Soul Power with Blue Silver Grass is itself a problem."

Meow Meow didn't spell it out directly.

"Just let the Martial Soul Hall branch record it by the rules. Don't raise any special alarm."

"If a child like this truly has potential, it will naturally show itself in time."

Qian Renxue nodded.

She didn't press further.

But she had already committed that name to memory.

Tang San.

Holy Soul Village.

Blue Silver Grass.

Innate Full Soul Power.

Meow Meow looked over the data again and found an additional note below.

[This male child has already enrolled at Notting Junior Soul Master Academy.]

"Notting Academy, huh."

Meow Meow murmured softly in his mind.

The original main storyline had already begun to move.

He didn't linger on this record any longer and closed the file.

"Qinghe."

"Hmm?"

"The Black Eagle Family needs to be investigated."

"The Black Water Marsh needs to be watched."

"And this Awakening Brief—show me a copy every year from now on."

Qian Renxue raised an eyebrow.

"Every year?"

"Mm."

Meow Meow nodded.

"A lot of trouble starts small."

"The sooner you see it, the easier it is to handle."

Qian Renxue was silent for a moment.

"Alright."

Meow Meow breathed a sigh of relief.

He didn't bring up Tang San now.

No point saying it yet.

Qian Renxue might not believe him.

And Tang Hao wasn't someone to provoke right now.

Just watch first.

Take it slow.

Inside the Calming Bell, Jianbing suddenly asked in a low voice:

"That Blue Silver Grass Child—is he important?"

Meow Meow's heart stirred.

It could sense his emotions?

It seemed this Little White Tiger, though weak, had no lack of spiritual awareness.

"He might be important later."

Meow Meow said.

"But no rush for now."

Jianbing nodded.

"Then I'll remember him too."

Meow Meow gave a faint smile.

"First, focus on getting yourself stable."

The Little White Tiger obediently curled back beside the Holy Fire.

The Clear Radiance Pavilion fell quiet again.

Qian Renxue continued reading the Black Eagle Family files.

Meow Meow lay by the table, his gaze drifting out the window.

Heavenly Dou City was vast.

The Black Water Marsh was just the beginning.

The Black Eagle Family was just the beginning.

Tang San's name had already appeared.

That meant the main thread of the original Douluo Continent was slowly drawing closer from afar.

"Alright then."

Meow Meow flicked his tail lightly.

"Since I'm here, this Meow will just watch."

"This time, let's see who can still walk the same path."