The next morning, in Qian Yu's room.
Qian Yu awoke from his sleep, feeling a heavy pressure on his chest.
He didn't even have to think about it. That little rascal Qian Renxue had sneaked into his bed again.
Helpless, Qian Yu pushed Qian Renxue away as usual, tucked her in, then began his daily training: a hundred laps with weights, five hundred push-ups, and five hundred pull-ups.
Time flew by in the blink of an eye.
Fifteen days passed in a flash. Along with training hard, Qian Yu had spent those days poring over the Worship Hall's ancient books, searching for anything about the giant hammer. In the end, he confirmed that it was the Clear Sky Hammer, unique to disciples of the Clear Sky Sect.
"Clear Sky Sect!!!" Qian Yu finally had a general idea of his target. He wanted nothing more than to go wipe out the Clear Sky Sect right then and there, but he was still insignificant. There was nothing he could do but endure.
He had found no news at all about his younger siblings, which only drove him to train and study harder.
Meanwhile, after fifteen days of cultivation, Jin Guang had reached Soul Power Level 10. Even more remarkably, the bandages on his body had long since disappeared, a testament to the power of his Golden Crocodile King Martial Soul.
Qian Daoliu summoned Qian Yu, Qian Renxue, and Jin Guang to help them obtain their First Soul Rings.
Golden Crocodile Douluo had originally wanted to lead the expedition, but Qian Daoliu politely declined.
Inside the Star Dou Great Forest.
Qian Daoliu led Qian Yu, Qian Renxue, and the others into the Star Dou Great Forest.
They entered the forest's outer reaches.
Qian Daoliu decided to test the three of them.
He asked, "Xiao Yu, Xiao Xue, Jin Guang, do you know the maximum age limit for a Soul Master's First Soul Ring?"
"I know this one!" Jin Guang raised his hand, eager to answer.
Beside him, Qian Renxue looked at Jin Guang's competitive eagerness with an expression of disdain.
Qian Yu, meanwhile, remained calm, quietly waiting for Jin Guang's answer.
Qian Daoliu took note of each of their reactions.
Jin Guang had worshipped Qian Daoliu since childhood and had long wanted to make a good impression. Seeing his idol pose a question, he immediately raised his hand.
"I remember Grandpa telling me about this," Jin Guang thought with a silly grin.
"Hm?" Qian Daoliu was rather surprised by Jin Guang's eagerness to answer. In his impression, Jin Guang had been lazy and good-for-nothing since childhood, a typical spoiled third-generation Soul Master.
When it came to Soul Master theory, he wasn't sure Jin Guang could answer at all.
"It's four hundred... four hundred and what was it?" Perhaps because he was nervous, Jin Guang couldn't quite get the answer out.
"As expected." Qian Daoliu sighed inwardly.
The kid's clever enough, but he refuses to buckle down and work hard. I'll have to get Second Brother to put him through his paces when we get back.
Qian Daoliu turned to Qian Renxue. "Xiao Xue, what do you say?" He passed the question to her.
Qian Renxue replied unhurriedly, "According to the Worship Hall's records, the highest known age for a First Soul Ring on the continent is 423 years, and the highest for a Second Soul Ring is 764 years."
Hearing Qian Renxue's answer, Jin Guang nodded vigorously. "Right, right! That's exactly what my grandpa said."
"Not bad." Qian Daoliu stroked his beard, very pleased with Qian Renxue's answer.
"Xiao Yu, do you have anything to add?" Qian Daoliu continued, turning to Qian Yu.
Hm? The Worship Hall already has records of this. So Yu Xiaogang's so-called Ten Core Competencies of Martial Souls really were copied from Spirit Hall's books. At least the maximum age limit for Soul Rings was already common knowledge in Spirit Hall. Qian Yu made a mental note, his already low opinion of Yu Xiaogang sinking even further.
Qian Yu gathered his thoughts. Since this was the first time Qian Daoliu had formally asked him a question, he answered with great care. "Grandpa, I think the maximum age limit for a Soul Master's Soul Ring isn't set in stone. As Martial Souls evolve from one generation to the next, and with factors like medicine and physical training, this maximum can only serve as a guideline."
"Bullshit." When Qian Renxue had answered, Jin Guang had nodded along with an ingratiating smile. Now he started nitpicking Qian Yu's answer.
"Generations of experience and hard lessons from our forebears aren't yours to challenge, you little brat." Jin Guang invoked the wisdom of the ancients, hoping to get the better of Qian Yu on this question and win Qian Daoliu's favor.
To his surprise, Qian Daoliu ignored him and instead looked at Qian Yu with interest. "Xiao Yu, explain your reasoning." His tone was relaxed and encouraging.
"Let me give an example. Xiao Xue's Martial Soul is the Six-Winged Angel, and her Innate Soul Power is Level 20. That means her physical constitution is already comparable to that of a Soul Grandmaster at Level 20. In theory, then, her First Soul Ring could have the same age limit as a Second Soul Ring: 764 years." Facing Jin Guang's provocation, Qian Yu calmly supported his argument with evidence. "On top of that, the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul strengthens the body. I think Xiao Xue's First Soul Ring could exceed 764 years. Then, after the First Soul Ring strengthened her body further, she could obtain a Thousand-Year Soul Ring as her Second."
"Wow, Qian Yu, is that really true?" Hearing that her Second Soul Ring could reach a thousand years, Qian Renxue was overjoyed.
"Mm, good. That's a very apt example, Xiao Yu," Qian Daoliu praised him with great approval.
"Hmph. A useless know-it-all." Jin Guang muttered and fell silent, though his bulky body kept edging toward Qian Renxue.
"Enough. Theory is only a guideline. My advice is that Jin Guang and Xiao Yu aim for a Soul Ring between 300 and 400 years."
"As for Xiao Xue, she can aim for 600 to 700 years for her First Soul Ring, and try for around a thousand years for her Second." Qian Daoliu taught as he tested them.
Then Qian Daoliu withdrew the aura of a Limit Douluo and gave his orders.
"From here on, you'll have to obtain your First Soul Rings yourselves. The geniuses of the Worship Hall can't be sheltered flowers." Qian Daoliu's voice was not loud, but it rang with authority. In the next instant, he vanished from their sight.
The three of them were deeply shaken.
Hearing that he'd get to team up with Qian Renxue to hunt Spirit Beasts, Jin Guang was so happy he nearly took flight.
His Golden Crocodile King Martial Soul was raring for action.
"Fatso, get lost!" Qian Renxue snapped at him again and again.
Unlike Jin Guang and Qian Renxue, Qian Yu understood the meaning behind Qian Daoliu's words.
He suggested to Qian Renxue and Jin Guang, "Xiao Xue, Jin Guang, Hundred-Year Soul Beasts are incredibly powerful. We need to form a team and work together if we want to complete this mission."
"Mm, good." Qian Daoliu couldn't help but secretly nod at Jin Yu.
"Hmph." Jin Guang wasn't stupid. Hearing Jin Yu's suggestion, he knew he couldn't hunt a Hundred-Year Soul Beast alone, so he had no choice but to reluctantly agree.
"Sure! I nominate Qian Yu as our captain." Qian Renxue was quick-witted and immediately understood. Of course she took Qian Yu's side.
"Why?" Jin Guang protested.
"Because both of us have higher Innate Soul Power than you." Qian Renxue stuck her tongue out at Jin Guang.
"Hmph." Qian Renxue had hit Jin Guang right where it hurt.
What could he do? His Innate Soul Power was half a level lower than theirs.
"Since no one objects, let's share the characteristics of our Martial Souls as teammates," Qian Yu suggested at once, seeing that things had fallen into place.
"Qian Yu, I'll go first. My Martial Soul is the Six-Winged Angel. I specialize in close combat and flight. My Soul Power Level is that of a Soul Grandmaster." Qian Renxue introduced herself first.
"Mm, my Martial Soul is the Desert Eagle, a Power Attack System weapon Martial Soul. I specialize in close-, medium-, and long-range combat." Seeing Qian Renxue being so cooperative, Qian Yu immediately explained his Martial Soul's traits as well. Afraid they wouldn't understand, he added, "You can think of my Martial Soul as a kind of Hidden Weapon."
"Hmph, just because you say it can fight at close, medium, and long range doesn't make it true. To me, it looks like nothing but a fire poker," Jin Guang jeered, unconvinced.
Bang. Qian Yu didn't bother to explain. He summoned his Martial Soul into his hand and fired. The bullet skimmed past Jin Guang's ear and shot toward a distant tree.
The bullet pierced through more than a dozen trees before finally stopping inside one a hundred meters away.
Jin Guang clapped his hands over his ears as if he'd been terrified. "Ah!" he shouted.
"You... you..." Jin Guang covered his ear and stumbled backward in fright.
"What a powerful Martial Soul." As a Level 99 Limit Douluo, Qian Daoliu could feel the immense power of Qian Yu's Martial Soul. Even he couldn't help praising it.
"Wow, Qian Yu, your Martial Soul is amazing! It's so fast!" Qian Renxue was happy for him and couldn't help praising him.
"I'm Jin Guang. My Martial Soul is the Golden Crocodile King, a Beast Martial Soul of the Power Attack System, with dual Earth and Gold attributes. I have a powerful body and specialize in strength and defense." Having felt the strength of Qian Yu's Martial Soul, Jin Guang had recovered. His face still pale, he introduced himself.
Just as Jin Guang tried to edge toward Qian Renxue again, a terrifying roar rang out: "Awooo!"
"This is bad. Something's coming!" Qian Yu didn't have time to let them get used to working together first. All three were among the finest of the Worship Hall's younger generation, and they immediately took up battle formation.
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