"Which of these two would be better to choose?"
Qian Xunji looked at the two Ten Thousand Year Spirit Bones in her hands.
One was a forty-thousand-year-old plant-type left leg bone, and the other was a thirty-eight-thousand-year-old Diamond Tiger right arm bone.
The Soul Skills they provided were healing and devastating damage, respectively.
Both of their attributes were also extremely well suited to Yue Guan.
For a moment, Qian Xunji was caught in a difficult choice.
"How about I secretly keep one for myself, then find a chance to reward Yue Guan with it later?"
As the thought crossed Qian Xunji's mind, she cautiously glanced around, feeling like a thief with a guilty conscience.
Then she casually put both Spirit Bones into her Storage Soul Tool.
The Spirit Bone she had chosen for Gui Mei was a thirty-two-thousand-year-old left arm bone.
This Spirit Bone was quite special. It came from an exceptionally rare Soul Beast. It did not enhance a Soul Master's abilities directly, but it did provide a Soul Skill that was highly suitable for Gui Mei.
It granted an eighty percent increase in immunity to holy light attributes.
Gui Mei's greatest weakness was that Soul Masters with holy or light attributes could easily counter and restrain him.
By choosing this Spirit Bone for him, Qian Xunji had made up for Gui Mei's greatest shortcoming.
After making her decision, she left the Spirit Hall's Treasure Pavilion.
At that moment, Gui Mei and Yue Guan had already successfully helped Bibi Dong hunt for a Soul Ring and were preparing to return to Spirit Hall from Sunset Forest.
His Second Soul Ring came from a two-thousand-four-hundred-year-old Shadow Spider.
It gave him a Soul Skill that combined stealth and concealment with rapid movement.
Bibi Dong named it Shadow Stealth Kill.
Gui Mei had chosen this Soul Ring for him, granting him great mobility. Even someone ten Soul Power Levels above him would have a hard time detecting his whereabouts. It was a Soul Skill that combined stealth, assassination, escape, and survival.
Bibi Dong was quite satisfied with it.
Although both of his Martial Souls were extremely powerful, at their core, neither was suited to head-on clashes. Mobility was the focus at this early stage.
"There are Soul Masters hunting for Soul Beasts ahead!"
Just as they were about to leave Sunset Forest, they suddenly sensed a fluctuation in Soul Power.
Without another word, Gui Mei's figure vanished from where he stood.
When he returned, he brought back accurate information.
"A Soul Saint has brought his son here to hunt for a Soul Ring."
"If I'm not mistaken, that Soul Saint is called Dugu Bo. He once had a clash with you at an auction over a Storage Soul Tool."
Gui Mei looked at Yue Guan as he spoke.
"So it's that kid. We can simply take another route."
Yue Guan clearly hadn't taken that clash to heart. When all was said and done, the young fellow hadn't outbid him for the Wishful Hundred-Treasure Pouch.
He was the one who had come out on top.
That clash didn't amount to anything.
The reason they were taking another route was simple.
It was an unspoken rule of Soul Hunting.
Soul Hunting was dangerous in itself. If you came across someone else hunting for a Soul Ring, it was best not to approach.
They couldn't possibly know what your intentions were. They already had to face powerful Soul Beasts, and on top of that, they had to be wary of strangers.
In such circumstances, anyone who approached could be considered a threat.
They could be killed without hesitation.
Unless they were someone they trusted, only a mortal enemy would rashly approach someone hunting for a Soul Ring.
"Dugu Bo?"
Bibi Dong considered it for a moment, then chose to follow Yue Guan's suggestion.
At this point, Dugu Bo wasn't especially valuable. He hadn't discovered the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well, he hadn't become a Titled Douluo, and his son hadn't yet been poisoned to the marrow. This wasn't the right time to try to recruit him.
It was better to wait a little longer.
Besides, now that she had come here, how could she let the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well fall into Dugu Bo's hands?
There were two reasons she had come to Sunset Forest to hunt for a Soul Ring. One was that the Soul Beasts here were very suitable for him; the other, naturally, was to see whether they could find the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well along the way.
Clearly, they weren't that lucky.
Then, with Yue Guan and Gui Mei leading the way, Bibi Dong left Sunset Forest.
She had given up on such a good chance to meet Dugu Bo.
As soon as she returned to Spirit Hall, Qian Xunji came looking for her.
"Xiao Dong, let me see your Soul Rings."
She could hardly wait to witness a thousand-year-old Second Soul Ring.
With a thought, Bibi Dong activated Martial Soul Possession, and two Soul Rings—one yellow and one purple—appeared around her.
"It really is a thousand-year-old Second Soul Ring!"
The moment she saw Bibi Dong's Soul Rings with her own eyes, Qian Xunji's eyes lit up.
In the midst of her excitement, she fell into thought.
"If Xiao Dong can manage a thousand-year-old Second Soul Ring, why shouldn't I try for a higher-year Eighth Soul Ring?"
At the thought, Qian Xunji grew inexplicably excited.
If she accomplished what even her father hadn't, who would dare defy her, the Pope?
For a moment, Qian Xunji even wanted her Eighth Soul Ring to be a hundred-thousand-year one.
Was it difficult?
Very.
But it wasn't impossible.
Her Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul had that potential. If her body wasn't strong enough, she could fuse with the Spirit Bones from the Angel God Set. If her spiritual power was lacking, she had a Head Soul Bone.
The more she thought about it, the brighter Qian Xunji's eyes burned.
"Xiao Dong, what's your Soul Power Level?"
Qian Xunji put aside her scattered thoughts. What she wanted to know more than anything now was her disciple's Soul Power Level.
That would allow her to verify her earlier conjecture.
"Level 23!"
"More precisely, Level 23 and a half. I can feel that if you give me about two more months, I'll be able to advance again."
Bibi Dong was quite pleased. The extra Soul Power gained from absorbing a Soul Ring beyond the usual limit would save her a great deal of cultivation time.
"As I thought!"
At this, Qian Xunji's gaze grew even more resolute.
If Bibi Dong's extra Soul Power after absorbing her first Soul Ring had been an accident, caused by the accumulation she'd built up beforehand, then her current Soul Power had reached Level 23 and a half. That proved her earlier conjecture.
Absorbing a Soul Ring beyond the usual limit granted additional Soul Power.
"I must get a hundred-thousand-year Eighth Soul Ring!"
In an instant, Qian Xunji made up her mind.
"Xiao Dong, from now on, study hard under Yue Guan and Gui Mei. If you need anything, come straight to me."
Having made up her mind, Qian Xunji would focus on improving her cultivation. As for Spirit Hall's affairs, she would neglect them for a while.
She even decided to find someone to take over Yue Guan and Gui Mei's current positions, so the two of them could focus on cultivation and become Titled Douluos as soon as possible.
That would also leave them more time to guide her disciple, which could make up for her inability, as his teacher, to personally teach her.
Then, a shimmer of light flashed in Qian Xunji's hand, and she took out three Spirit Bones from her Storage Soul Tool.
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