Qian Renxue wrote swiftly, summing up the palace banquet in just a few lines.
She folded the letter paper, slipped it into an envelope, sealed it with wax, then picked up the Crown Prince's Private Seal from the table and stamped it on top.
"Elder Snake Lance."
Snake Lance Douluo, who had been waiting outside, pushed open the door and entered, dropping to one knee.
"Take this letter to Sunset Forest tomorrow and deliver it personally to His Highness the Holy Son."
Snake Lance Douluo accepted the letter with both hands and replied, "Your subordinate will carry out the order." Then, with a flash, he vanished into the night.
Qian Renxue stood and walked to the window.
The palace walls outside the Crown Prince's Residence towered high, and the night wind swept in, carrying the chill of early autumn.
She instinctively raised a hand to pull her collar closed, then suddenly remembered that the last time Qin Yao had visited, it had been a night just like this.
That little rascal had even stolen a kiss before he left.
Qian Renxue's ears burned. She hurriedly banished those chaotic images from her mind, then turned to change her clothes.
The next morning.
Heaven Dou City Martial Soul Branch Hall.
Prince Xue Xing's carriage stopped outside the main entrance to the hall, and two attendants from his manor went ahead to announce his arrival.
Prince Xue Xing himself remained inside the carriage, his fingers tapping restlessly on the armrest.
A ball of anger smoldered inside him.
He had come to the Martial Soul Sacred Hall under orders from Xue Ye, to speak with Qin Yao before the palace banquet, sound him out, and give him a heads-up about the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud, so there wouldn't be any unpleasantness at the banquet.
Put plainly, he had been sent to bow his head.
The more Prince Xue Xing thought about it, the more aggrieved he felt.
He was a dignified prince of the Heaven Dou Empire, yet he had to apologize to some young upstart. If word got out, where would he put his old face?
After roughly the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the attendant returned, his expression somewhat complicated.
"Prince Xue Xing, the Spirit Hall says that Holy Son Qin Yao isn't in Heaven Dou City."
Prince Xue Xing's brows drew together.
"What do you mean, he isn't here?"
"Platinum Bishop Salas received this subordinate. He said that Holy Son Qin Yao left Heaven Dou City several days ago and might be outside the city."
Prince Xue Xing's face turned pale, then green. He sat in the carriage for quite some time, then finally gritted his teeth and spat out two words:
"Back to the manor."
This couldn't be blamed on Salas.
Qin Yao truly didn't spend much time in Heaven Dou City. Most of the time, he was cultivating at the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well deep in Sunset Forest.
The Heaven Dou City Martial Soul Branch Hall was little more than a name for Qin Yao. He came and went as he pleased, and no one could do a thing about it.
Salas, for his part, was more than happy to see Prince Xue Xing hit a closed door.
Beside the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well, Sunset Forest.
Ye Lingling had been cultivating for nearly three hours.
Dugu Yan sat on a nearby rock with her knees hugged to her chest, staring at Ye Lingling's back.
Qin Yao leaned against the rock wall on the other side, resting with his eyes closed. His Soul Power perception covered the entire valley floor, keeping watch over Ye Lingling.
The Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid's medicinal effects were indeed gentle. Unlike those domineering Immortal Herbs, it didn't require her to suppress a surge of violent medicinal energy.
A soft, steady, pale-pink glow shimmered around Ye Lingling. The phantom of the Nine Heart Begonia Martial Soul appeared and disappeared above her head, its petals slowly unfurling one by one.
About half an incense stick later, the pink light around Ye Lingling suddenly flared. A clear wave of Soul Power then spread out from her body.
Dugu Yan sprang to her feet.
Qin Yao opened his eyes as well.
The Soul Power rippling around Ye Lingling continued to climb, rising from level thirty-five until it finally settled at the threshold of level forty.
Ye Lingling abruptly opened her eyes, a lingering glimmer still shining in her blue pupils.
She lowered her head to look at her hands, her fingers trembling slightly.
"F-Forty levels?"
Her voice quavered uncontrollably.
She had gone from just over level thirty-five to level forty, a leap of nearly five levels. One Immortal Herb had pushed her straight across the threshold into the Soul Ancestor rank.
The phantom of the Nine Heart Begonia Martial Soul swirled in her palm, its pink petals unfolding one by one, more vivid and full of life than ever before.
"Lingling!"
Dugu Yan rushed over in three quick strides and grabbed her arm.
"Level forty! You broke through to level forty!"
Ye Lingling was still completely dazed.
She had awakened her Martial Soul at the age of six and cultivated for more than a decade, only just managing to reach level thirty-five.
Though the Nine Heart Begonia's healing abilities were unrivaled across the continent, auxiliary Soul Masters had always cultivated relatively slowly.
Yet after eating one Immortal Herb, she had gained five levels.
Dugu Yan was so happy she could hardly keep from jumping.
"I told you His Highness's Immortal Herb was amazing! You didn't believe me!"
Ye Lingling came back to her senses and instinctively looked toward Qin Yao.
Qin Yao straightened from the rock wall and walked over.
"The Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid's medicinal properties are a perfect match for the Nine Heart Begonia.
Your Martial Soul is purely auxiliary and healing in nature. You have almost no impurities in your body, so the Immortal Herb's medicinal power didn't need to be diverted into cleansing your meridians. It all turned into Soul Power.
Five levels. No surprise there."
He said it casually, as though he had expected it all along.
Ye Lingling stood up and bowed deeply to Qin Yao.
"Your Highness, for your great kindness..."
"That's enough." Qin Yao raised a hand to cut her off.
"If you really want to thank me, then focus on improving your strength. The Nine Heart Begonia's healing is what I need most. The stronger you are, the safer the people around me will be.
Don't waste time on formalities."
Ye Lingling straightened and nodded firmly.
Dugu Yan wrapped an arm around Ye Lingling's shoulders, grinning as she nudged her with an elbow.
"See? That's just how His Highness is. He's all bark, but his heart's as soft as they come."
Qin Yao glanced at her.
Dugu Yan snatched her arm back in a flash and tucked it behind her back, putting on an obedient expression.
Qin Yao ignored her and continued speaking to Ye Lingling. "Now that you're level forty, you'll need a Soul Ring."
Ye Lingling froze.
She had just broken through and hadn't even had time to think about that.
Qin Yao turned his head toward Dugu Yan.
"Yanzi."
Dugu Yan immediately stood straight, her chin lifting slightly.
"I'll leave Lingling's Soul Ring hunt to you."
Dugu Yan didn't say anything, but Qin Yao noticed her clench a fist, her knuckles turning faintly red.
"You've been cultivating at the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well for over half a year. Your Soul Power is at level forty-five, and you should have mostly mastered the four Soul Skills of your Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor.
Go to the middle region of Sunset Forest and hunt down a four-to-five-thousand-year-old healing or auxiliary Soul Beast for Lingling."
"Prove to me that all this time you've spent training hasn't been wasted."
Dugu Yan's back snapped ramrod straight.
"Don't worry, Your Highness!"
Her voice carried an eagerness she had kept pent up for a long time.
Ever since she started following Qin Yao, she had done nothing but cultivate, cultivate, and cultivate.
The snake venom cured, her Martial Soul evolved, her Soul Power increased—all of it had been given to her by His Highness.
She had kept receiving, but had never had a chance to show what she could do.
Now she finally had her chance.
Dugu Yan held out a hand to Ye Lingling.
"Lingling, come on. Big sister's taking you to hunt a Soul Ring."
Ye Lingling hesitated and glanced at Qin Yao.
Qin Yao nodded to her.
"Let Yanzi handle it. She can do it. I'll wait for you here."
Ye Lingling placed her hand in Dugu Yan's palm, and Dugu Yan pulled her to her feet.
The two girls headed up the mountain along the way they'd come. As they walked, Dugu Yan told Ye Lingling about her progress in cultivation, her voice carrying loudly across the valley as it echoed off the rock walls.
"Let me tell you, that fourth Soul Skill after the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor evolved is incredible—the Serpent Shadow Entanglement!
I'll take the initiative and control it first, then use Serpent Shadow Entanglement to bind it. The poison mist will finish the fight in no time, and you can just stand by and wait to absorb the Soul Ring..."
Their voices gradually faded into the distance.
Qin Yao leaned back against the rock wall again and sat cross-legged.
He closed his eyes, but his thoughts weren't on cultivation.
Dugu Yan was straightforward, decisive, and utterly devoted.
Dugu Bo's granddaughter, heir to the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor—her level-forty-five strength still had room to grow, but she was already outstanding among her peers.
More importantly, her loyalty to him was completely genuine.
Someone like her was worth cultivating.
Two hours later.
Deep in a dense thicket in the middle region of Sunset Forest.
Dugu Yan withdrew her Martial Soul and wiped the sweat from her brow.
A roughly two-meter-long Emerald Feather Spirit Phoenix lay at her feet. Three deep-purple snakebite marks marred its neck, and the grass around it had been scorched black by a ring of emerald-green poisonous mist.
The Emerald Feather Spirit Phoenix was an auxiliary Soul Beast skilled in healing and enhancement. It was about four thousand eight hundred years old, with an exceptionally abundant reserve of Soul Power.
Dugu Yan had defeated it all by herself.
The entire battle had taken less than a quarter of an hour.
First, she used her third Soul Skill, Jade Phosphorous Purple Poison, to spread poisonous mist and block the Emerald Feather Spirit Phoenix's escape. Then she used her fourth Soul Skill, Serpent Shadow Entanglement, to lock its limbs and wings in place.
The Emerald Feather Spirit Phoenix struggled a few times, but the serpent shadows tightened around it, and its strength rapidly drained away.
Dugu Yan seized her chance and struck the Emerald Feather Spirit Phoenix on the head with her palm. Using Jade Phosphorous Red Poison and Jade Phosphorous Blue Poison together, she beat it to the brink of death with crisp efficiency.
Ye Lingling stood ten paces away and watched the entire fight, unable to stop herself from clutching the hem of her clothes.
"Lingling, what are you standing around for?" Dugu Yan beckoned. "Come absorb your Soul Ring!"
Ye Lingling hurried over and finished off the Emerald Feather Spirit Phoenix with a knife. Then she sat cross-legged and began absorbing the purple Soul Ring.
Dugu Yan stepped back a few paces and released the aura of her Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor, driving away any Soul Beasts that might approach.
She had already become quite used to doing this.
The Soul Ring absorption went far more smoothly than expected.
The four-thousand-eight-hundred-year Emerald Feather Spirit Phoenix Soul Ring was highly compatible with the Nine Heart Begonia. Ye Lingling encountered almost no resistance and finished absorbing it in about forty minutes.
The fourth Soul Ring settled securely within her.
Her Soul Power also rose to just over level forty-one.
Ye Lingling was still reeling from the shock of "rising six levels in a single day" when Dugu Yan came over and tugged at her sleeve.
"Come on, come on! Let's go report back to His Highness!"
Before you continue