Clutching the token in his hand, Lin Huai headed resolutely toward the mountaintop.
With the token in hand, he passed the patrol guards along the way without being stopped or questioned.
When he reached the entrance to the Worship Hall, Lin Huai was about to ask the gate guard to announce him.
The doors suddenly opened, and Qian Daoliu's voice came from within. "Come in!"
"Little fellow, have you found a way to solve the flaw in your Martial Soul?"
"Lin Huai pays his respects to the esteemed elders."
Lin Huai's gaze swept over the several figures inside the hall, and he quickly bowed.
Then he looked toward Qian Daoliu and shook his head slightly.
"Grand Elder, I haven't found a way to solve my problem this past year. I've come here hoping you can help me obtain a Soul Ring."
"I intend to begin cultivating."
"Little brat, do you know what you're saying? You actually want the Grand Elder of Spirit Hall to help you hunt a Soul Ring that's only a few hundred years old?"
A rather burly old man seated to Qian Daoliu's right challenged him.
"Golden Crocodile, let the child finish," Qian Daoliu said, stopping the old man.
He rose and looked at Lin Huai. "Knowing full well that cultivation will shorten your life, why insist on obtaining a Soul Ring?"
Lin Huai met Qian Daoliu's eyes with a steady gaze.
"This past year, I've tried every theory I could think of, but I still haven't found a way to solve the flaw in my Martial Soul. The only thing I haven't tried is obtaining a Soul Ring...
"I won't ask the Grand Elder to help me for free. I can trade an important piece of information for your assistance."
"Heh! You've got quite a mouth on you, little fellow. Are you sure your information is worth having a top Titled Douluo take action?"
A handsome man who looked to be seventeen or eighteen spoke in a teasing tone.
Lin Huai pressed his lips together and looked seriously at Qian Daoliu, waiting for his response.
"Tell me, then. If the information is truly useful, I'll personally take you to hunt for a Soul Ring. But if I find out you're deceiving me..."
Qian Daoliu released a trace of pressure and spoke with a stern expression.
Under Qian Daoliu's pressure, Lin Huai found it hard to breathe, as if a mountain had been laid across his back.
Fortunately, the pressure came and went quickly.
After taking a moment to recover, he swiftly explained.
"While reading some biographies, I noticed that certain Soul Masters had no extraordinary encounters, yet had cultivated to levels their talents should have made impossible to reach."
Lin Huai paused to gather his thoughts.
"And I discovered they all had one thing in common—
"When they were with someone of the opposite sex, they liked to take Whale Rubber to get in the mood! And they used it in whole chunks. Both men and women did the same."
Seeing that several of the elders seemed lost in thought, Lin Huai hurried on:
"Their improvement was roughly like going from breaking through with innate fifth-level Soul Power to sixth level.
"From what I can tell, they didn't know Whale Rubber could improve talent. They simply thought they'd broken through their limits because a miracle had happened."
"I believe someone with the Grand Elder's abilities can quickly test whether what I've said is true."
The elders exchanged glances and fell into thought.
The handsome man seated first on Qian Daoliu's left spoke up before anyone else:
"Big Brother, whether or not this is true, we need to take it seriously.
"If a six- or seven-year-old child can analyze this much, then are the scholars conducting related research all useless?"
The other elders couldn't help nodding.
Lin Huai silently apologized to the scholars who were about to be criticized.
Truthfully, it would have been very difficult to reach the conclusion that Whale Rubber had such an effect by analyzing those people's biographies alone.
He'd arrived at it by relying on memories from his previous life and reasoning backward from the result.
"Azure Luan is right. We'll discuss this in detail later. Qian Jun, go find someone to test whether this Whale Rubber really works."
At Qian Daoliu's command, an old man dressed in a golden robe left the hall.
Qian Daoliu then studied the exceptionally clever little fellow before him.
After a moment's thought, Qian Daoliu asked:
"Are you sure you want to absorb a Soul Ring? As long as you don't break the law, I can make sure Spirit Hall gives you its full support."
"After all, nine years would be enough for you to travel across the continent and experience some of life.
"But once you absorb a Soul Ring and begin cultivating, you won't have many years left to live."
Feeling Qian Daoliu's genuine concern, Lin Huai sighed inwardly: As expected of one of the few upright, kind-hearted old fellows in the original story who still had a knight's spirit.
"Thank you, Grand Elder, but I don't want to live out my days clinging to life. Even if there's only the slightest hope, I want to try!"
"I want to see the scenery at the summit with my own eyes!"
Lin Huai looked at Qian Daoliu with determination.
The hall fell silent. The elders all looked stunned.
Looking at the small child before them, who possessed such force of spirit,
they suddenly felt like tossing the younger generation of their families into the library.
Qian Daoliu looked at Lin Huai, but the image before his eyes was of that stubborn, adorable blond girl.
"I'm going to carry out this plan myself. I'm going to prove my abilities to her!"
A quarter of an hour later, an excited voice shattered the silence in the hall.
"Big Brother!"
Douluo Qian Jun entered and immediately spoke up.
"Whale Rubber really can improve a Soul Master's talent, and it works even better than young Lin Huai said.
"Our Spirit Hall may be able to double the number of Titled Douluos in the future!"
Smiles appeared on the elders' faces too.
The younger generation of their families might have a chance to inherit their legacy after all.
As if he hadn't heard Douluo Qian Jun, Qian Daoliu spoke with a note of reminiscence:
"I'd like to take you as my disciple. I can also use Spirit Hall's resources to help you find a cure. Would you be willing to become my student?"
Qian Jun stared at the scene in bewilderment.
What had happened?
He'd only been gone for a little while. Why was his big brother suddenly taking on a disciple?
And one who only had a few years left to live?
Qian Jun looked at his younger brother, Demon Subduing Douluo, trying to get an answer.
Demon Subduing casually turned his head away.
Don't look at me. I have no idea either.
Lin Huai was astonished. When he came back to his senses, he quickly bowed.
"Teacher, please accept your disciple's bow!"
Qian Daoliu smiled with delight. "Good. But from now on, just call me 'teacher.' 'Master' sounds too formal."
"Qian Jun, did you bring back any ten-thousand-year Whale Rubber? Give it to my disciple to try, so we can see how much it improves the talent of a genius with Innate Full Soul Power."
The five elders offered their congratulations.
"Congratulations, Big Brother, on accepting such an excellent disciple!"
Douluo Qian Jun hurried to offer his congratulations too, then handed two pieces of ten-thousand-year Whale Rubber to Lin Huai.
"I suggest you cut it into small pieces before eating it. Swallowing a whole chunk at once is pretty rough on the throat."
Lin Huai looked at him strangely. "Senior Qian Jun... did you just have the others swallow it whole?"
Qian Jun replied with complete seriousness, "That's right. When I tested the ten-thousand-year Whale Rubber, I specifically found Beast Martial Soul Soul Masters and had them use Martial Soul Possession before taking it."
Looking at the expression in Douluo Qian Jun's eyes, as if he were saying, "Well? Pretty clever, right?"
Lin Huai reminded himself that he had only nine years left to live. Just nine years.
Suppressing the urge in his heart, he tried to make excuses for Qian Jun. "I understand. Senior Qian Jun probably doesn't need to use Whale Rubber himself, so he doesn't know much about it."
Lin Huai looked perfectly serious.
"Actually, Whale Rubber can be melted over a fire. It's easier to take that way, and the effects should be even better."
After a moment of silence, Qian Daoliu issued his orders.
"Take care of the Whale Rubber matter over the next few days."
"Little Huai, I'll take you to the cultivation room to take the Whale Rubber. After that, we'll go obtain a Soul Ring."
He reached out with his right hand, took Lin Huai's hand, and led him toward the cultivation room.
He stopped as they passed Qian Jun, whose expression had stiffened, and patted Qian Jun on the shoulder.
"While I'm away these next few days, read some books."
After Qian Daoliu left with Lin Huai,
bursts of laughter erupted inside the Worship Hall.
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