"Medusa as your fourth Soul Ring? Not bad."
At that moment, Qian Xunji's thoughts were in complete disarray.
She wasn't paying the slightest attention to Bibi Dong's words.
The reason was that the instant her disciple had approached just now, her heart had inexplicably skipped a beat.
Ever since she had begun the God Ancestor's trial, her father had tried everything he could to hurry her into finding an outstanding husband, so that she could pass on the Angel Martial Soul.
She had looked high and low, but not one man had caught her eye.
They all seemed far too mediocre.
Her husband had to have not only peerless talent but also an incomparable face.
Simply put, Qian Xunji was a complete beauty fanatic.
"How could this be?"
"She's only twelve!"
"She's still a child!"
"Qian Xunji, how can you have such a vile thought? She's your disciple!"
Realizing how absurd her thought had been, Qian Xunji kept scolding herself in her mind.
If not for what had happened today, perhaps she would never have entertained such a thought.
The problem was, the moment it had surfaced in her mind, it had grown like wild weeds, impossible to stamp out no matter how hard she tried.
On the Douluo Continent, both men and women matured very early.
Many commoners already had children by the age of twelve.
Though Bibi Dong still had a touch of childishness about her, her looks and figure already belonged to a graceful young maiden.
And the kind who could make people fall for her at first sight.
"This isn't attraction. It's possessiveness—extreme possessiveness."
"I just don't want my disciple to belong to someone else so soon."
"Yes, that's all it is."
The more Qian Xunji thought, the more flustered she became.
On top of that, she was currently undergoing the Eighth Angel Trial. Her emotions were fluctuating more than ever, making this the hardest time to keep herself in check.
"What's going on?"
Watching Qian Xunji's expression shift again and again, Bibi Dong was baffled.
She had only mentioned the Soul Beast she hunted for her fourth Soul Ring and the Soul Skill she gained.
How could that possibly stir up such a strong emotional reaction?
That didn't make sense.
Her second and third Soul Rings had both been absorbed beyond the usual age limit. Her teacher knew that.
Besides, her own Eighth Soul Ring was a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring.
Qian Xunji might be surprised, but surely not this surprised.
"Teacher? Teacher, is something wrong?"
Looking at the peerlessly beautiful Qian Xunji, Bibi Dong instinctively took a step back.
She felt that something about Qian Xunji was off.
She had gotten used to Qian Xunji being a woman over the years, but that was precisely why she needed to keep her distance.
If she still had any hang-ups about it, she might not have thought anything of it.
She was just afraid that one day she'd really become a shameless disciple who seduced her teacher.
"N-no... nothing."
Only after Bibi Dong called out to her repeatedly did Qian Xunji come back to her senses.
She forced her jumbled thoughts out of her mind.
"What? What did you just say?"
"Your fourth Soul Ring is from a twenty-thousand-year-old Medusa!"
Only then did Qian Xunji realize what her disciple had just told her.
Based on her previous estimate, her disciple's fourth Soul Ring should have been around nine thousand years old. After all, she had repeatedly warned her that a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring caused Soul Shock.
She had never imagined that Bibi Dong's fourth Soul Ring would actually be a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring.
And a twenty-thousand-year-old one, at that.
Was this normal?
Was it reasonable?
It was simply too shocking and unbelievable.
"Xiao Dong, don't move. Let me check you over."
Qian Xunji immediately grew worried.
Since her disciple was standing right in front of her, that meant her body had reached the point where it could withstand absorbing a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring.
She didn't know exactly how it had happened, but given how monstrously gifted this little one was, accomplishing something miraculous wasn't impossible.
What worried her was whether there might be something wrong with Bibi Dong's soul.
After all, a twenty-thousand-year-old Soul Beast—especially one with a special bloodline—already possessed intelligence comparable to that of a thirteen- or fourteen-year-old child.
Perhaps it had some special means of taking over her disciple's body.
Was Bibi Dong still herself?
How could Qian Xunji not worry about that?
"Check, check... check me over!"
Hearing Qian Xunji say that, Bibi Dong shuddered from head to toe.
If any other elder had said it—even Yue Guan—Bibi Dong wouldn't have thought anything of it.
The problem was that the person before her was Qian Xunji!
The infamous Chamber Douluo.
No matter what she did, Bibi Dong wouldn't find it outrageous or absurd.
"Um... Teacher, I'm only ten. I'm still a child..."
Bibi Dong was already thinking about how to escape her clutches.
She knew this day might come, but she really wasn't ready for any of it. She still hadn't crossed that line in her heart.
Couldn't they just wait a little longer?
"What are you thinking about?"
Qian Xunji realized that her behavior and those words might have caused a misunderstanding.
She stepped forward and rapped Bibi Dong hard on the head.
Bibi Dong grimaced in pain.
There was no denying it: her face could take a beating.
Even with her features twisted into a grimace, she didn't look hideous or ferocious. Instead, she had a peculiar sort of charm and handsomeness.
Seeing that, Qian Xunji felt her hard-won composure waver again.
She hurriedly suppressed the restlessness and began examining Bibi Dong's soul.
That would have been fine, except the moment she examined her, Qian Xunji was utterly stunned.
"Xiao Dong, you... what kind of fortuitous encounter did you have? Not only has your physique improved greatly, but your spiritual power has reached a level comparable to a Soul Saint."
"It seems your Martial Soul has changed a little, too!"
Qian Xunji was completely astonished.
What she found most unbelievable was that Bibi Dong's growth hadn't caused her any harm. On the contrary, it had increased her potential and talent.
It was no less than directly fusing with a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone.
The whole thing was simply too shocking and unbelievable.
"Teacher, I owe it all to Uncle Yue Guan."
"He searched high and low and finally found the legendary Immortal Herb. That's why I changed so much."
Bibi Dong did her best to give Yue Guan and Gui Mei the credit.
She would need her teacher's help when the time came to hunt a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast for them.
She couldn't trust anyone else.
"Immortal Herbs really have effects that extraordinary?"
Qian Xunji was dumbfounded.
Before you continue