Qin Yuan

Yesterday, Qin Yuan had been so excited that he'd stayed up half the night. He'd barely been asleep for an hour when he woke.

He opened his clear, bright eyes and glanced at the faintly brightening sky outside. Then he threw off his covers, slipped on his shoes, yanked open the door, and dashed out of the courtyard.

At the entrance, the beautiful maid who had been dozing with her eyes half closed jolted awake.

All she saw was her young master's retreating figure. Her face went pale with fright, and cold sweat beaded on her brow.

She hurried after him. With her Soul Elder cultivation, catching up to a ten-year-old child who wasn't even a Soul Master was effortless.

"Young master, where are you going?" White Butterfly hurried along behind Qin Yuan, asking with concern.

Qin Yuan didn't answer. He charged straight into the East Palace and, with practiced ease, found Crown Prince Xue Qinghe's room. His fair little hand pounded on the door.

"Cousin, are you awake?"

White Butterfly didn't dare make a sound. She lowered her head and stood respectfully behind Qin Yuan. She wouldn't dare speak in front of the exalted Crown Prince.

"Is that Xiao Yuan? Wait a moment." Xue Qinghe's gentle voice came from inside, accompanied by the soft rustle of clothes.

After quite a while, the door creaked open, carrying a faint, delicate fragrance.

A handsome face came into view. Xue Qinghe was tall and slender, with a noble air that was beyond compare.

She came out with only a coat draped over her. There was no annoyance at having her sleep disturbed, only a fond, indulgent smile.

"Xiao Yuan, why are you up so early today? Don't you usually sleep until the sun is high in the sky?"

"I want to learn Go, Cousin. Could you find me a master?" Qin Yuan asked with a smile.

"Of course." Xue Qinghe nodded at once, without the slightest hesitation. She didn't ask why. Whatever Qin Yuan wanted, she would give him.

"Thank you, Cousin!" Qin Yuan thanked her with a smile. After chatting a little longer, he took his leave.

Qian Renxue watched the retreating figure of Qin Yuan, whom she had raised herself, her eyes filled with an affection too deep to hide.

Only after Qin Yuan had disappeared from sight did she look away and order her subordinates to find the most famous Go master in Heaven Dou City.

After running back to his courtyard, Qin Yuan told his maid White Butterfly to go to sleep while he waited, full of anticipation.

It had been ten whole years since he'd transmigrated to the Douluo Continent. Last night, he had finally awakened his cheat.

With a thought, a transparent panel appeared before his eyes.

[Name: Qin Yuan]

[Age: 10]

[Martial Soul: Little Grass Snake]

[Soul Power: Level 5]

[Skills: None]

[Evolution Points: 0]

His cheat was simple. By learning skills, he could earn Evolution Points, which he could use to increase his Soul Power or even evolve his Martial Soul!

For someone like him, whose Martial Soul had undergone a harmful mutation and whose Innate Soul Power was only half a level, it was a godsend!

Along with the panel, he had awakened an ability called [Life Miracle], which possessed the ultimate power of purification and healing. As long as he had enough Soul Power, he could even regrow severed limbs!

At the same time as he awakened [Life Miracle], he had gained complete knowledge of every plant. He knew the habits and properties of any plant like the back of his hand.

Unfortunately, [Life Miracle] wasn't a Martial Soul. It was merely an ability, something like an innate divine art.

At the center of the courtyard, a stone arch bridge spanned a clear, shallow pond. Qin Yuan stood on the bridge, dismissed the panel, and looked down at the brightly colored fish frolicking below.

But his thoughts weren't with the fish. They drifted back ten years.

Ten years ago, he had seen someone accidentally fall into the Yangtze River. Overconfident in his swimming skills, he'd acted on impulse and jumped in to save them.

He never expected the current to be so swift. He failed to save the person and ended up losing his own life instead.

Then he transmigrated.

Just like in his previous life, he was an orphan. But this time, Emperor Xue Ye was his uncle, and he had been born atop the pyramid of the Douluo Continent.

Emperor Xue Ye was swamped with state affairs and had planned to hand him, a month-old baby, over to one of the imperial consorts to raise. But Xue Qinghe had volunteered to take him in.

By then, however, Xue Qinghe had already been killed. The one who truly raised him was Qian Renxue.

Although Xue Qinghe was his cousin in name, Qin Yuan felt nothing for a cousin he had never even met.

Besides, he had only been a baby. He'd even prayed that Qian Renxue wouldn't kill him. He'd finally gotten a dream start!

Fortunately, Qian Renxue wasn't cruel enough to kill a baby who posed no threat to her position as Crown Prince.

And so, ten-year-old Qian Renxue had looked after and raised him, a month-old infant.

Ten years had passed since then, and his relationship with Qian Renxue was as close as a mother and son... er, a brother and sister.

He could say that even if he wanted the stars in the sky, Qian Renxue would find a way to get them for him.

Before he turned six, Emperor Xue Ye had treated his nephew extremely well.

But after Qin Yuan awakened his Martial Soul at six and turned out to be a good-for-nothing with only half a level of Innate Soul Power, Emperor Xue Ye saw that he had failed to inherit his father's powerful Martial Soul. His attitude turned cold at once, and that very day, he drastically cut Qin Yuan's allowances.

It was after that that Qin Yuan understood what people meant when they said the imperial family was the most heartless of all.

His uncle had treated him well because Qin Yuan had been valuable. He'd hoped Qin Yuan would inherit his father's powerful Martial Soul.

Once Qin Yuan's Martial Soul suffered a harmful mutation and he was no longer valuable, his uncle discarded him without a second thought.

It had hurt at the time. In his previous life, Qin Yuan had been an orphan, so he'd treasured family bonds. He never expected things to turn out this way.

Fortunately, Qian Renxue hadn't changed her attitude toward him because of the quality of his Martial Soul. If anything, she doted on him even more than before, afraid he might suffer the slightest grievance.

She had even beaten Xue Beng and the other princes and princesses who had mocked his Martial Soul so badly that they couldn't get out of bed for three days. After that, no one in the Imperial Palace dared laugh at him again.

Seeing how Emperor Xue Ye and Qian Renxue had reacted to his Martial Soul's harmful mutation, Qin Yuan had actually felt that it wasn't entirely a bad thing.

At least now he knew who truly cared about him and who was only pretending.

"Ah." Qin Yuan's thoughts returned, and he sighed softly.

"Uncle, you really hurt me. Back then, I truly thought of you as my real uncle."

"Young master, breakfast is ready." Just then, his other maid, Red Moon, approached and spoke softly.

Qin Yuan had two maids in his courtyard, named White Butterfly and Red Moon. Both were beautiful, tall and curvaceous, with ample bosoms. They would have been rare beauties anywhere.

They were eighteen or nineteen, and both had reached the Soul Elder level. Four years earlier, when state affairs had grown more demanding, Qian Renxue had worried that Qin Yuan wouldn't be properly cared for. She had personally selected them to serve him.

Qin Yuan had only one comment: being born into the right life was a technical skill.

"Mm." Qin Yuan nodded, then walked over to the stone table in the courtyard and sat down to eat.

First, he ate the foul-smelling Whale Rubber. Even after eating it for six whole years, he still couldn't stand its pungent odor.

After six years of eating it, he'd developed a resistance to Whale Rubber. Ordinary Whale Rubber no longer did anything for him; only Whale Rubber that was over five thousand years old could improve his physical constitution.

Naturally, Qian Renxue paid for the Whale Rubber.

Before he turned six, Emperor Xue Ye had paid for it. But after Qin Yuan turned six, Emperor Xue Ye cut off his funding entirely, without a shred of mercy.

Even before obtaining his cheat, Qin Yuan had never given up cultivating, despite having only half a level of Innate Soul Power.

He had no hope of becoming a top-tier Soul Master, but even becoming a Soul Grandmaster would make him stronger than an ordinary person and extend his life a little.

With a status that placed him atop the pyramid of the continent, how could he not enjoy it for a little longer?