"Let's see..."
"Dai Mubai should still be a little brat of twelve or thirteen."
"His brother Dai Weisi had just been suppressing him, so he'd fled to the Heaven Dou Empire."
"Perfect. He'll be easy to handle."
Lin Qiu stood up.
He stretched.
Since the system was giving him a freebie, he wouldn't stand on ceremony.
"Knock, knock, knock."
A knock sounded at the door.
"Lin Qiu, are you there?"
A charming, melodious voice came from outside.
Lin Qiu went over and opened the door.
Hu Liena stood there, looking lovely and fresh.
She wore a fitted golden team uniform that outlined her still-developing, graceful figure.
Her long, straight legs were especially eye-catching.
Her short hair brushed her ears, giving her a capable air without diminishing her charm.
When she saw Lin Qiu,
Hu Liena's eyes clearly lit up.
"Lin Qiu, I heard you're going out?"
Lin Qiu nodded.
Leaning against the doorframe, he looked at her with a faint, teasing smile.
"What?"
"Can't bear to see me go?"
Hu Liena's pretty face flushed slightly.
She glared at him reproachfully.
That look was brimming with charm.
"Don't flatter yourself."
"I came to say goodbye."
"I'm going out too."
"My Soul Power has reached level thirty. Teacher has given me permission to hunt a Soul Beast and obtain my third Soul Ring."
As she said this,
Hu Liena's eyes dimmed a little.
There was even a hint of dejection in them.
"I thought..."
"If I trained hard, I could catch up to you."
"But I never imagined..."
"You'd already become a Soul Saint."
"I've only just become a Soul Elder."
"Being born in the same era as you is a tragedy for the rest of us."
Back then,
at the awakening ceremony,
she had even brazenly claimed she would protect Lin Qiu.
Thinking about it now,
she was mortified.
Lin Qiu looked at her dejected expression.
He couldn't help reaching out to pinch her plump, collagen-rich cheek.
It felt great.
"Come on, don't be so down."
"You're a genius."
"I'm a cheat."
"We're not even the same species. There's no comparing us."
Hu Liena slapped his hand away.
She puffed up her cheeks in a huff.
She didn't know what "cheat" meant,
but it definitely didn't sound like anything good.
"Hmph. I'm not talking to you anymore."
Lin Qiu smiled.
"Perfect."
"I'm going to hunt... ahem, I mean, go do a task too."
"Want me to take you along?"
"I can help you sort out that Soul Ring business while we're at it."
Hu Liena's eyes lit up.
She looked up at him in delighted surprise.
"Really?"
"You'll take me with you?"
With a freak like Lin Qiu around,
hunting Soul Beasts would be a piece of cake.
Besides,
getting to go out and train with Lin Qiu
was an opportunity most people could only dream of.
"If you don't want to, forget it."
Lin Qiu made as if to close the door.
Hu Liena hurriedly reached out and grabbed his arm.
She pressed right up against him.
"I want to! I want to!"
"You're the best, senior brother!"
The soft sensation made Lin Qiu's heart stir.
This little fox.
She was already this dangerous before she'd even grown up.
What would she be like later?
Half an hour later,
two figures left Spirit City.
They headed south.
In the shadows,
a ghostly figure followed them without a sound.
It was Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan.
He had been ordered by His Holiness the Pope to protect them in secret.
Watching the unhurried youth ahead,
Yue Guan couldn't help sighing to himself.
"This kid..."
"A Soul Saint at twelve."
"That kind of talent is enough to make anyone despair."
"His Holiness the Pope is only worried about him."
"With his strength, even if he ran into a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, he could still get away if he couldn't win."
"How is this protection?"
"This is a vacation."
Star Dou Forest.
Ancient trees towered overhead, blocking out the sun.
It was a paradise for Soul Beasts and a forbidden zone for humans.
Lin Qiu took Hu Liena straight into the depths of the outer region.
Most of the Soul Beasts here were around a thousand years old.
Just right for Hu Liena.
"Senior brother, what kind of Soul Beast are we looking for?"
Hu Liena followed close behind Lin Qiu.
She warily watched their surroundings.
Even with Lin Qiu there, she didn't dare let her guard down.
Lin Qiu stopped.
His gaze was profound.
"No rush."
"Let's find someone first."
"Someone?"
Hu Liena was stunned.
They'd come to Star Dou Forest to look for someone?
Lin Qiu didn't explain.
He formed hand seals.
A profound, inscrutable ripple spread out from his body.
At that moment,
his entire bearing changed.
He was no longer the spirited young man he had been.
He seemed like a deity who had walked here from antiquity,
radiating mystery and majesty.
"Nine Nether Prayer Technique."
"Open!"
Lin Qiu gave a soft cry.
Above his head,
the void rippled.
Countless points of starlight gathered,
forming a gigantic eye.
The eye was pale gold, cold and emotionless, gazing down over the entire forest.
Like the eye of heaven,
it saw through all things.
Hu Liena covered her mouth.
Her beautiful eyes were filled with shock.
What kind of Soul Skill was this?
She had never seen anything like it.
It wasn't a Martial Soul Avatar, nor was it Soul Power released outward.
It seemed more like a kind of... rule?
"Found him."
A playful smile curled Lin Qiu's lips.
Beneath the enormous Star Eye,
nothing within a hundred li could escape its notice.
To the southwest of the forest,
there was an exceptionally flamboyant aura.
It was the bloodline fluctuation of the White Tiger.
Though faint, to Lin Qiu's senses, it shone like a firefly in the dark.
"Let's go."
Lin Qiu wrapped an arm around Hu Liena's slender waist.
Golden light flashed beneath his feet.
Nine Secrets: Xing activated.
The two figures vanished from where they stood in an instant.
Only a fading afterimage remained.
The outskirts of the Star Dou Forest.
Beside a clear stream.
A blond boy was leaning against a tree trunk.
He looked about twelve or thirteen.
He was handsome, and his pair of oddly colored eyes added an extra touch of charm.
He was none other than Dai Mubai, who had fled the Star Luo Empire and just arrived in Heaven Dou territory.
At that moment.
He was busy lavishing attention on the two girls in front of him.
The two girls weren't Soul Masters, just village girls from nearby.
Dazzled by Dai Mubai's fine clothes and handsome looks, they were completely smitten.
"Two beautiful ladies."
"The moon is lovely tonight."
"Would I be so fortunate as to invite you both to enjoy the moonlight with me?"
Dai Mubai tossed his long golden hair.
He flashed what he thought was a charming smile.
Though he was still young.
That roguish, womanizing air came to him as naturally as breathing.
Just as the two girls blushed and were about to nod in agreement.
An ill-timed voice suddenly rang out.
"Ahem."
"Excuse me for interrupting."
Dai Mubai furrowed his brow.
A flicker of displeasure passed through his eyes.
Who was this fool?
How dare they ruin this young master's good time?
He turned around.
A man and a woman emerged from the woods.
The man was tall and handsome enough to make even him a little jealous.
The woman was even more alluring and bewitching, a veritable beauty beyond compare.
Compared to her.
The two village girls before him instantly became nothing but vulgar beauties.
Dai Mubai stared, transfixed.
Lin Qiu paid no mind to Dai Mubai's gaze.
He stepped forward.
His face wore the excited expression of a fan meeting his idol.
Before you continue