Douluo Continent, Spirit City.
A side hall in the back hills of the Pope Palace was enveloped in a vast yet subtle aura.
"Phew..."
Lin Qiu sat cross-legged on the bed, eyes slightly closed, his breathing slow and steady.
The place where his Bitter Sea should have been was not completely silent.
If anyone could peer inside his body, they would surely be astonished to discover a golden ocean.
Golden waves surged within him. Each one crashing against the walls of his Bitter Sea gave rise to a faint rumble of thunder.
His blood and qi coiled like a dragon, dormant within his seemingly young body.
This was the Covering Sky Method.
A powerful cultivation system wholly out of place on the Douluo Continent.
As Lin Qiu completed his final cycle of cultivation, the golden vision slowly receded and settled into stillness.
He slowly opened his eyes, and a glint of gold flashed across them.
Lin Qiu let out a long breath, climbed down from the bed, and stretched his limbs.
His bones crackled all over, like beans popping in a pan.
He had been in the Douluo World for several years now.
He had not only become Bibi Dong's adopted son but was also deeply doted on.
In Spirit Hall, even the elders treated him with a measure of respect when they saw him.
It was a practically perfect start.
Lin Qiu's thoughts stirred.
A pale blue screen slowly unfolded before his eyes.
[Covering Sky System] [Host: Lin Qiu] [Current Environment: Desolate Ancient Waste Star—Unknown Small Sect] [Recent Evaluation: You were born into a small sect called Spirit Hall. Although resources are scarce and spiritual energy is thin, you have successfully obtained a basic cultivation technique through astonishing perseverance.]
"..."
Looking at the evaluation on the screen, Lin Qiu's lips curled slightly.
Small sect.
If Qian Daoliu or Bibi Dong found out that the Spirit Hall they took pride in was nothing more than an unknown small sect in the system's eyes, who knew what they would think?
As for scarce resources and thin spiritual energy...
That wasn't wrong, either.
Compared to the Shrouding the Heavens World, where people casually shattered stars, the energy level of the Douluo Continent really was pitifully low.
Lin Qiu was curious.
The basic cultivation technique the system had identified was the nameless ancient scripture currently circulating inside his body.
Simply reaching the entry level had given him physical strength far beyond that of his peers, despite not having awakened his Martial Soul.
If he unlocked higher-tier rewards in the future, what wonders might await him?
Just as Lin Qiu was pondering how the system's power worked,
the atmosphere in the main hall of the Pope Palace was unusually oppressive.
On the lofty papal throne, Bibi Dong wore a splendid papal robe and the Nine-Curved Purple Gold Crown.
She was breathtakingly beautiful.
Her beauty embodied a nobility and authority untouched by time. Her fair skin was flawless as white jade, and her perfect features were without a single blemish.
But at that moment, her beautiful face was covered in frost.
Holding her scepter, she gazed indifferently at the small figure below the steps.
Qian Renxue lowered her head, her hands clutching the hem of her clothes tightly.
She was eight years old.
She wore a little golden dress, and her long golden hair fell smoothly behind her. Her skin was soft and rosy, making her look like a porcelain doll of exquisite craftsmanship.
But the doll's eyes were red-rimmed, and she looked rather aggrieved.
Bibi Dong's voice echoed through the spacious hall.
"Is this what you've accomplished after a week of training?"
"Your Soul Power is increasing too slowly, and your control over your Martial Soul is a complete mess."
"You're a member of the Qian Family, and you possess a Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul. Is this all you're capable of?"
Qian Renxue bit her lip, wanting to defend herself.
She had already worked very hard.
She trained day and night, with no time left to play.
But when she met Bibi Dong's cold gaze, the words died in her throat.
Bibi Dong rose to her feet without sparing Qian Renxue another glance. She left her with only a cold remark:
"Look at Lin Qiu. He hasn't even awakened his Martial Soul, yet his understanding of power is already better than yours."
"If you've made no more progress by next time, don't bother coming to see me."
"..."
With that, Bibi Dong turned and walked away, leaving behind a resolute figure.
Qian Renxue stood where she was, tears welling in her eyes, but stubbornly refusing to fall.
Lin Qiu again.
Lin Qiu again!!
I'm your own daughter. Why do you only have eyes for that adopted child?
Why can't you even spare me a smile?
Jealousy spread through Qian Renxue's young heart.
She roughly wiped her eyes, turned, and ran toward the side hall.
Qian Renxue refused to accept it.
She wanted to see what made Lin Qiu so special.
In the small courtyard beside the side hall,
Lin Qiu sat on a stone stool, studying the exchange list in the System Mall.
Suddenly, someone shoved the courtyard gate open.
The force was so great that the wooden gate banged loudly.
Lin Qiu instinctively looked up.
A small golden figure stormed inside.
It was Qian Renxue.
The little girl's eyes were red, as if she had just been crying, but her face was tense as she struggled to look fierce.
Lin Qiu was just about to greet her.
In his mind, the system's utterly emotionless mechanical voice suddenly boomed.
[Ding!!] [Warning! A Dao Palace Realm powerhouse has been detected near the host!] [Life-or-death crisis!] [Mission issued: Survive for one hour under the pressure of a Dao Palace powerhouse.] [Reward: Unknown]
Lin Qiu froze.
He instinctively stood up and warily scanned his surroundings.
A Dao Palace powerhouse?
That meant someone in the Shrouding the Heavens World who had opened the divine storehouses of their five organs, a powerful cultivator who could split mountains and shatter rocks with a casual gesture. Against someone like that, he would be utterly outmatched.
And yet...
The courtyard was empty.
Apart from the rustling of leaves in the breeze, the only person there was the little girl in front of him, puffed up with anger.
Lin Qiu's gaze slowly fell on Qian Renxue.
The Dao Palace powerhouse the system had mentioned...
Could it be her?
Lin Qiu found the idea absurd.
He gave Qian Renxue a careful look.
Eight-year-old Qian Renxue had an Innate Full Soul Power of rank twenty.
According to the Douluo system, she should already have obtained a Soul Ring and become a Soul Grandmaster.
By the system's outrageous conversion logic,
a rank-twenty Soul Grandmaster was equivalent to someone in the Dao Palace Realm?
The difference between the two was simply too great.
One was a Dao Palace Cultivator who could fly through the sky and burrow into the earth, and cultivate into a deity.
The other was a little girl who could only use a couple of Soul Skills and was merely a bit stronger than an ordinary person.
Looking at Qian Renxue's adorable face, which practically screamed "I'm furious," Lin Qiu felt his tension vanish in an instant.
This was no life-or-death crisis.
It was practically a freebie.
Seeing Lin Qiu stare at her without saying anything, Qian Renxue grew even angrier.
She strode up to him, pointed at his nose, and spoke with anger and a trace of a sob in her voice:
"It's all your fault!"
"Lin Qiu, it's all your fault!"
Lin Qiu looked at the girl before him, his older sister, and felt rather helpless.
Though he knew the reason, he still tentatively called out:
"Xue'er, big sister?"
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