Qin Yao nodded and gathered his thoughts.
"My Martial Soul is called the Amethyst Winged Lion King. It's a Mutated Martial Soul with a fire attribute."
He paused, considering his words.
"That domain just now is called the Amethyst Heaven-Burning Domain."
"The Amethyst Winged Lion King." Qian Daoliu repeated the name. "I've never heard of such a Martial Soul."
"Big Brother, could it be an ancient Beast Martial Soul reverting to its ancestral form?"
Golden Crocodile Douluo leaned closer.
"I've heard that when a family's lineage has been passed down for enough generations, the occasional reversion can occur, awakening the original Martial Soul of an ancestor."
Qian Daoliu shook his head.
"Reversion doesn't change a Martial Soul's attributes. The Blazing Lion is indeed fire-attributed, but the flames of this Amethyst Winged Lion King are completely different from ordinary fire.
"You should have felt it just now, too. That Purple Fire has an extremely powerful corrosive and suppressive force."
"Indeed."
Azure Luan Douluo had finally recovered his wits.
"My Azure Luan is wind-attributed. Just now, within that domain, I could clearly feel my Soul Power flowing more slowly.
"It's truly incredible that Xiao Yao's Innate Domain can affect even me."
Qian Daoliu nodded slightly.
He had lived for more than a hundred years. What kind of genius hadn't he seen?
But this child, Qin Yao, had indeed exceeded his expectations.
A Mutated Martial Soul, an Innate Domain, and Innate Full Soul Power—all three in one person. Across the entire continent, you couldn't find another like him.
More importantly, the child belonged to the Spirit Hall.
Qian Daoliu had already made up his mind.
Xue'er would inherit the Spirit Hall one day, and she would need powerful people at her side to support her. If Qin Yao was properly nurtured, he would certainly become an exceptionally powerful Titled Douluo.
He might even have a chance to break through to Peerless Douluo!
By then, he would be both a member of the Worship Hall's bloodline and Xue'er's right-hand man. The foundation of the Spirit Hall would only grow more secure.
With that thought, Qian Daoliu took something from the Soul Tool Ring on his hand.
A complete skeleton glimmering with a reddish-gold light lay quietly in his palm.
"Xiao Yao, come here."
Qin Yao stepped forward. Before he could make out what Qian Daoliu was holding, a tremendous surge of energy washed over him.
A Soul Bone!
And it was definitely no ordinary Soul Bone.
Qin Yao's pupils widened in astonishment.
"This Soul Bone is my gift to you for awakening your Martial Soul."
Qian Daoliu spoke calmly, as if the Soul Bone were worth nothing.
Before Qin Yao could thank him, Mighty Lion Douluo Qin Xiong spoke up first.
"Big Brother! Is that the Hundred Thousand Year Blazing Griffin Left Arm Bone?"
Qian Daoliu glanced at him.
"Yes. The few of you already have complete Soul Bone sets, and Xue'er won't need to absorb any more Soul Bones in the future. There's no point in leaving this one with me, so I might as well give it to Xiao Yao."
Qin Xiong burst into laughter. "Xiao Yao! Hurry up and thank your great-grandfather!"
Qin Yao came back to his senses and bowed again.
"Thank you, Great-Grandfather!"
But inside, his thoughts were already churning like a storm-tossed sea.
A Hundred Thousand Year Left Arm Bone, a Blazing Griffin, fire attribute—perfectly suited to my Amethyst Winged Lion King. If I absorb it, my foundation will grow even stronger.
Great-Grandfather is amazing.
"All right, all right. Big Brother's given a gift, so we can't show up empty-handed."
Golden Crocodile Douluo stroked his chin and took a jade box from his storage ring.
"This is a Fire Ganoderma. It's extremely beneficial to the cultivation of fire-attributed Soul Masters. Xiao Yao, take it."
Qin Yao accepted it with both hands. "Thank you, Second Grandfather!"
Third Offering Azure Luan Douluo handed him a yellowed booklet.
"These are the flying combat techniques I compiled when I was young. Your Martial Soul has a pair of wings on its back, so they'll certainly come in handy."
"Thank you, Third Grandfather!"
Fifth Grandfather Light Feather Douluo tossed him a small, exquisite case.
"There are three Ice Crystal Arrows I made myself inside. They could save your life at a critical moment. Don't waste them."
"Thank you, Fifth Grandfather!"
Sixth Worship Thousand Jun Douluo and Seventh Worship Falling Devil Douluo exchanged a glance and spoke in unison.
"We'll give you a set of notes on staff techniques together. You don't use a staff, but the principles of applying force and the footwork are universal."
Qin Yao thanked them one by one. His arms were soon full of gifts.
Qin Xiong grinned so widely that his mouth nearly reached his ears. He slapped Qin Yao on the back, almost knocking the six-year-old off his feet.
"Hahaha! My grandson's blessed!"
Qin Yao stumbled a step, thinking, Grandpa, could you watch how hard you're hitting? I'm only six!
Golden Crocodile Douluo said helplessly, "Fourth Brother, go easy. Don't knock the child flat."
"Hey, I'm just happy!"
Qian Daoliu waved a hand.
"All right, that's enough for today. Fourth Brother, discuss Xiao Yao's cultivation plan with me. We mustn't waste the child's talent. Starting tomorrow, all the cultivation resources of the Worship Hall will be made available to him."
Qin Xiong nodded firmly. "Rest assured, Big Brother!"
Time flew by. Six years passed in a blink.
Over those six years, Qin Yao devoted almost all his energy to cultivation.
With the seven Worships taking turns to guide him, the top-tier resources of the Worship Hall at his disposal, and his own extraordinary talent, his Soul Power rose at a terrifying pace.
During that time, Qin Yao also did something else.
He told Qin Xiong about the method for tempering the body with Whale Rubber that he remembered from his previous life.
Whale Rubber came from deep-sea whale-type Soul Beasts. Once softened over a flame and consumed, it could greatly strengthen the body. A stronger body, in turn, allowed a Soul Master to absorb Soul Rings of a greater age.
At first, Qin Xiong was skeptical, but with Qian Daoliu's support, the Spirit Hall made use of its maritime resources and confirmed that the method worked.
From then on, Qin Yao began tempering his body with Whale Rubber.
The results were immediate.
Now twelve years old, Qin Yao stood nearly one meter ninety tall.
The people of Douluo Continent matured early, and Soul Masters even more so.
With his Lion Clan bloodline and the double boost of Whale Rubber body tempering, twelve-year-old Qin Yao looked no different from an adult.
His hair was dark purple, his features sharply defined, and an imposing aura radiated from him.
As for Qin Yao's Soul Power, it had reached level forty-three.
His Soul Ring Configuration was even more astonishing: yellow, purple, purple, black.
In this era, there wasn't a second Soul Ancestor on the entire continent who was twelve years old, had reached level forty-three, and possessed such an outrageous Soul Ring Configuration.
On this day, at the Worship Hall,
Qin Yao had just finished his usual cultivation and was about to return to his quarters when Qian Daoliu sent someone to summon him.
"Great-Grandfather, what did you need me for?"
Qin Yao entered Qian Daoliu's private hall and found Qin Xiong there as well. His grandfather's expression was strange; he could barely keep the corners of his mouth down, as if he were holding in some wonderful news.
Seated in the main chair, Qian Daoliu got straight to the point. "Xiao Yao, I plan to propose to the Pope Palace that you be named the Holy Son of the Spirit Hall."
Qin Yao stopped in his tracks.
The Holy Son?
The Spirit Hall's Holy Son was no simple title. It represented the status of the Spirit Hall's next-generation core successor, ranking just below the Pope and the Worships.
"Great-Grandfather, this..."
"You're worthy of it."
Qian Daoliu's tone brooked no argument.
"At twelve years old, you're already level forty-three. You have an Innate Domain and a Mutated Martial Soul. Among the Spirit Hall's younger generation, no one is more suitable than you."
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