An Unyielding Character

They rose and walked over to Qian Renxue, then dropped to one knee and said, "Thank you for the medicine, Young Mistress!"

"Please rise, uncles." Qian Renxue hurriedly helped them up and asked curiously, "How effective was it?"

Snake Lance Douluo took a deep breath, suppressing his excitement, and said solemnly, "Reporting to Young Mistress, this pill is truly miraculous! I can feel the qi and blood and Soul Power within my body becoming exceptionally active, while my meridians have relaxed considerably. My physical strength has increased by at least five hundred jin!"

"The speed at which I absorb the energy of heaven and earth has nearly doubled! Whenever I circulated my Soul Power before, I always felt obstructed, but that feeling has completely disappeared now! Give me three years, and I will definitely break through my current realm!"

Porcupinefish Douluo nodded repeatedly, his tone just as excited. "I feel the same as Snake Lance! I have no way to repay Young Mistress for this generous gift!"

"Looks like the effect is pretty good." Qian Renxue smiled.

"However, the effects of this pill will only last anywhere from three months to a year. You must make good use of this time."

"Please rest assured, Young Mistress! I will give it my all!" Snake Lance Douluo and Porcupinefish Douluo replied in unison.

"Young Mistress, the Grand Elder also brought a piece of news." Porcupinefish Douluo hesitated for a moment before speaking.

"What news?" Qian Renxue raised her eyes, puzzled.

Porcupinefish Douluo took a deep breath and slowly explained, "A little over three months ago, during the awakening ceremony at the orphanage in Spirit City, three peerless geniuses appeared, along with a Soul Master possessing innate level-nine-and-a-half Soul Power."

"All three of them possess Innate Full Soul Power—Ling Feng, whose Martial Soul is White Tiger, and who became a disciple of His Holiness the Pope."

"Hu Liena, with innate level-nine-and-a-half Soul Power and the Martial Soul Heavenly Fox, is also a disciple of the Pope."

"Ye Fan, whose Martial Soul is Qilin and who possesses Innate Full Soul Power, became the second elder's disciple. Li Taibai possesses Twin Martial Souls and was personally accepted as a disciple by the Grand Elder."

He paused, then continued, "After Li Taibai became the Grand Elder's disciple, he produced an ancient text that recorded the wondrous uses of Whale Rubber, claiming that it could greatly improve one's physical constitution."

"Now, their first Soul Rings are all far beyond those of others at the same level—Ling Feng absorbed a thousand-year Soul Ring, while Ye Fan and Li Taibai absorbed Soul Rings over two thousand years old. In just three short months, all of them have advanced three levels, progressing at an astonishing speed."

After listening, Qian Renxue asked indifferently, "Why are you only telling me this now?"

"I... I..." Porcupinefish Douluo was rendered speechless by the question. His face flushed red, and his eyes darted about as he instinctively dropped to his knees with a thump.

"Please forgive me, Young Mistress! I didn't mean to conceal it. It's just... just..." He stammered, unable to come up with a proper explanation.

Seeing this, Snake Lance Douluo also dropped to one knee, clasped his fist, and said solemnly, "Young Mistress, you... seem to no longer have any Soul Power fluctuations within your body."

He cautiously raised his eyes to look at Qian Renxue and continued, "Porcupinefish and I noticed this long ago, but since your body showed no abnormalities and your qi and blood were instead growing stronger by the day, we didn't dare ask."

"If we weren't worried that learning the news would affect your state of mind, we wouldn't have delayed until now."

A stone had always hung over their hearts. If Qian Renxue's condition had not seemed stable, they would have already returned to Spirit City to report it.

Qian Renxue looked at the two of them. After a moment of silence, she said frankly, "For special reasons, the Soul Power in my body has been temporarily sealed. It will naturally recover after a few years."

"Don't tell Grandpa about this." She knew that there was no way to hide the absence of Soul Power from two Titled Douluo. Rather than conceal it, she might as well admit it openly.

"Yes, Young Mistress!" Snake Lance Douluo and Porcupinefish Douluo breathed a simultaneous sigh of relief. As long as her Soul Power could recover, everything was fine.

What they had been most worried about was that something irreversible had happened to Young Mistress's body. Now that they knew she had encountered an opportunity and could even refine such miraculous pills, the last trace of doubt in their hearts vanished.

"Keep a close watch on those geniuses in Spirit City."

Qian Renxue said coldly, "I want to know their every move at all times."

"Yes, Young Mistress!" Snake Lance Douluo and Porcupinefish Douluo replied in unison, their tones respectful.

"You may leave."

"Yes." The two bowed, then slowly left the room and gently closed the door behind them.

The room fell quiet once more. Qian Renxue walked over to the table, picked up the jade bottle containing the Body Tempering Pills, and asked, "Master, can I take this Body Tempering Pill now?"

"You have no Soul Power within your body, so refining the pill will be very slow." Chen Qingxuan's voice rang out. "You can only take one pill a month. Taking more won't help and will only waste its medicinal effects."

"All right." Qian Renxue answered with some reluctance, pouting slightly.

She walked over to the bed and sat down. Pulling out the stopper of the jade bottle, she poured out a Body Tempering Pill.

The pill's surface was covered in clear patterns and gave off a faint medicinal fragrance. Without hesitation, she tossed it into her mouth.

The pill melted the instant it entered her mouth, transforming into a warm current that slid down her throat into her abdomen and quickly spread throughout her limbs and bones.

Qian Renxue immediately sat cross-legged and circulated the Primordial Nirvana Sutra, guiding the medicinal power through her body.

She could clearly feel her qi and blood becoming exceptionally active, like a surging river repeatedly crashing against her meridians. Her muscles trembled faintly under the influence of the medicinal power, while a tingling itch spread through her tendons and bones, as if countless tiny forces were tempering every inch of her body.

The night passed without incident.

The next morning, the first ray of sunlight shone through the window lattice and into the room.

Qian Renxue slowly exhaled a breath of foul air, which contained faint black impurities.

She rose and moved her hands and feet. Her bones made faint cracking sounds, and her entire body was filled with inexhaustible strength.

"This Body Tempering Pill really is powerful." She clenched her fists, feeling the strength that had grown within her, and smiled delightedly. "If only I could take one every day."

"No." She immediately patted her cheeks, as if warning herself. "Master said I can only take one a month. Taking more is useless. I can't waste it."

She shook her head and cast aside her distracting thoughts. "I'll wash up first, eat something, and then it'll be time to practice my sword."

Half an hour later, Qian Renxue took more than ten pieces of Black Iron from the room and tied them to her arms, calves, and back.

The Black Iron was pitch-black and heavy. Altogether, it weighed more than thirty jin. Once strapped to her body, she immediately felt much heavier.

"Normal training isn't very effective anymore." She rolled her neck.

"Only additional weight can quickly exhaust my strength. The accumulation of power comes from repeatedly recovering after exhaustion, breaking through my limits time and time again, and gradually building up."

With that, she drew her sword and began practicing the Body Refining Sword Art.

Although she had temporarily lost her Soul Power, Qian Renxue was not the least bit dejected. Instead, she was filled with fighting spirit.

So what if Spirit City had geniuses? She possessed opportunities beyond anyone else's imagination. One day, she would make everyone understand who the true favored daughter of heaven was.