Learn from History, Learn from People

An innocent man is innocent, but his treasure makes him guilty.

Something like a God-given Soul Ring, which so severely disrupts the balance of power, would inevitably invite the frantic covetousness of the entire continent the moment it was exposed.

Seeing the unprecedented seriousness on Qian Xunji's face, Zhu Yan nodded solemnly: "Rest assured, Teacher, Yan'er will never breathe a word of this!"

"Good. Sit cross-legged and guide it with your intent."

Qian Xunji pressed the orb of light against the center of Zhu Yan's brow.

In an instant, the yellow halo transformed into streams of light, completely enveloping her petite frame.

Unlike the violent resentment felt when hunting and absorbing a soul beast's ring, the energy of the adaptive soul ring was gentle and pure. It probed and expanded her meridians continuously, only ceasing its ascent once it touched the physical limits she had forged through a month of medicinal baths.

Half an hour later.

"Hum—"

A crisp cat's cry echoed through the secret chamber. Zhu Yan snapped her eyes open, a pair of deep, purplish-black cat ears standing erect atop her head, while sharp claws unsheathed from her hands.

Beneath her feet, a soul ring of a deep, bright yellow hue pulsed slowly.

"Six hundred and thirty years!"

Qian Xunji swept his spiritual power over her, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

Through a month of self-discipline and medicinal baths, Zhu Yan had forcibly raised her physical limit by over two hundred years. Do not underestimate those two hundred years; while the increase in raw power might be modest, it served as an affirmation of her willpower and a testament to her future potential.

"How do you feel? What soul skill did you obtain?" Qian Xunji asked with keen interest.

Zhu Yan did not speak. Instead, the corners of her mouth curled up, and the yellow soul ring beneath her feet flashed.

Swish!

Right before Qian Xunji's eyes, Zhu Yan's petite body seemed to drop into the night like a single bead of ink, silently dissolving into the shadow of a thick stone pillar on the floor.

Not a shred of aura leaked out; even her soul power fluctuations dropped to freezing point.

"Interesting..." Qian Xunji sensed carefully. This camouflage would be difficult for any Soul Ancestor or lower to detect, unless they were specialists in spiritual power.

The next second.

Zhu Yan's figure emerged from the shadow of the chair behind Qian Xunji like a ghost, her sharp cat claws expertly stopping less than half an inch from his throat.

"First Soul Skill: Shadow Escape."

Zhu Yan retracted her claws and fully emerged from the shadows, her small face brimming with excitement.

"Teacher, as long as there is a shadow—whether it belongs to a person or an object—I can instantly slip into it to hide my presence. Furthermore, I can travel seamlessly between any shadows within a thirty-meter radius!"

Qian Xunji could not help but clap in praise: "Excellent! Appearing and disappearing like a phantom, following like a shadow—this is absolutely the god-tier opening skill every assassin dreams of!"

However, praise was praise, and Qian Xunji still poured a bucket of cold water on her.

"The skill is divine, but don't get too arrogant." Qian Xunji turned around and tapped her forehead.

"There is no such thing as an invincible skill in this world. Although your Shadow Escape can hide your aura, when facing experts with high-level spiritual detection, they will still be able to perceive that faint trace of soul power fluctuation within the shadows."

"Remember, the essence of an assassin lies in a single killing blow and restraint. Until your spiritual power is strong enough to completely mask all detection, you must never abuse this move in front of true powerhouses, or you will simply be walking into a trap."

Zhu Yan felt a chill in her heart, immediately putting away her small pride and nodding respectfully: "Yan'er will remember!"

"Let's go. Now that the soul ring is absorbed, I will take you somewhere."

Qian Xunji waved his hand, leading Zhu Yan out of the secret chamber and straight toward the deepest part of the Pope Hall, to the Martial Soul Hall's highest library—a place only the Pope and a few core elders were qualified to enter.

Pushing open the heavy oak doors, an ancient, heavy scent of parchment rushed to meet them.

Massive bookshelves, dozens of meters high, stretched all the way to the vaulted ceiling, densely packed with rare editions and top-secret archives spanning thousands of years of the Douluo Continent.

"Teacher, why are we here? Are we going to study more profound Martial Soul theories?" Zhu Yan looked around curiously.

She knew that Martial Soul Hall had recently published the General Theory of Martial Souls, which was selling like wildfire in every street and alley.

"Martial Soul theory?"

Qian Xunji walked to a wide mahogany table and tossed a hardcover copy of the General Theory of Martial Souls onto it.

"The basic knowledge written in this general theory can indeed help you avoid detours, but you only need to spend a few days reading it through to memorize the weaknesses of various Martial Souls and the habits of soul beasts. That is enough."

Qian Xunji turned around and pointed to the dusty, brick-thick ancient archives.

"For an ordinary soul master, understanding Martial Soul theory is enough to live well. But for my disciple, for a top-tier assassin who must dance on the edge of a blade, this is far from enough."

Qian Xunji walked to a bookshelf, pulled out a parchment scroll exuding a musty scent, and handed it to Zhu Yan. On it were four large characters: Chronicles of the Continent.

"What will truly allow you to be invincible and see through all enemies is not some 'Ten Core Theories of Martial Souls,' but this."

Qian Xunji's gaze was deep as he spoke earnestly:

"Yan'er, you must understand one truth: on this Douluo Continent, no matter how flashy the soul skills or how monstrous the Martial Souls, the ones ultimately controlling them are 'people'."

"And as long as they are people, they cannot escape greed, fear, betrayal, and the desire for power—myself included."

"Those so-called righteous sects, those sect masters and emperors who speak only of benevolence and morality—tear away their hypocritical masks, and inside, it is all disgusting calculations of profit. Your eldest sister's plight is the best example."

Zhu Yan gripped the thick history book, her small hands tightening slightly, her eyes becoming complex and profound.

"Does Teacher mean for me to learn how to see through the human heart from this history?" Zhu Yan was clever and understood instantly.

"That is correct."

Qian Xunji nodded in satisfaction. He walked toward the high, vaulted window, where the sunlight spilled over his snow-white Pope's robes, yet it brought no sense of warmth, only a chilling coldness.

"You are to take every record in Martial Soul Hall regarding the sect struggles, imperial successions, betrayals, and conspiracies that have occurred on this continent over the past thousands of years, and you will read them all thoroughly, chewing them up and swallowing them whole!"

Qian Xunji turned around, his voice echoing through the library like the tolling of a twilight bell:

"Go and see how those once-arrogant peerless geniuses met their untimely deaths because they trusted others too easily; go and see how brothers as close as kin turned into bitter enemies, stabbing each other in the back for the sake of a few spirit bones!"

"You must remember: there is nothing new under the Angel. The betrayals and conspiracies that have already occurred in this world will inevitably change their skin and play out once again in the future!"