Bibi Dong

With the aid of Whale Rubber, Lin Beiya trained his physique with even greater intensity, but to the little angel, this seemed like putting the cart before the horse.

For a Spirit Master, wasn't the mastery of Spirit Power and Spirit Skills the true key?

On this day, watching Lin Beiya, who was frog-jumping incessantly in the garden with his eyes tightly shut, Qian Renxue finally could not suppress the doubt in her heart.

"Beiya, why do you keep doing these useless exercises?"

"Useless? That is only because you have yet to discover the benefits of a formidable physique."

"What benefits? In high-level Spirit Master battles, even if your physique is strong, you still can't withstand the opponent's Spirit Skills, right?"

Qian Renxue curled her lips, feeling disdain for Lin Beiya's rhetoric in her heart; a strong physique could only show off before the Soul Elder stage, when everyone's Spirit Skills lacked destructive power.

Lin Beiya rolled his eyes imperceptibly, feeling quite speechless toward the little angel who possessed Innate Full Soul Power of level twenty yet only had two yellow spirit rings.

"Let me ask you, what were the limit ages for the first two spirit rings again?"

"I know this! It's about 420 years and 760 years!"

She had once read this in the records of Martial Soul Hall, and now, hearing Lin Beiya's inquiry, she answered eagerly as if presenting a treasure.

Lin Beiya nodded imperceptibly and then continued to ask:

"Then, can an auxiliary Spirit Master choose to absorb a spirit ring right at that limit?"

Without even thinking, the little angel shook her head immediately.

"Probably not. An auxiliary Spirit Master's constitution is inherently weaker than a battle Spirit Master's, so it's safer to choose..."

Speaking to this point, Qian Renxue already understood what Lin Beiya meant; the role of a strong physique was not only reflected in Spirit Master combat, but it could also be utilized when absorbing spirit rings.

"Are you doing this so you can absorb a spirit ring right at the limit?"

"Not just that, I intend to exceed this limit when absorbing my second spirit ring."

"You're crazy!"

Hearing Lin Beiya say this, the little angel widened her eyes at him, wearing an expression as if looking at a madman.

"No. You also said that because an auxiliary Spirit Master's physique is weak, they choose lower-age spirit rings for safety. Therefore, if my physique can surpass that of the Spirit Master recorded in the documents who absorbed a 760-year ring, I will certainly be able to absorb one exceeding that limit."

"And don't forget, when the Sacred Cloth is equipped, it automatically enhances my physique by nearly ten percent."

Hearing this, the little angel hesitated, both worried that Lin Beiya would be in danger if he absorbed a spirit ring beyond the limit, yet feeling that his words made sense.

"You've certainly researched this quite a bit; I had never considered this before."

"Xiao Xue, you possess the peerless talent of Innate Full Soul Power at level twenty; you shouldn't hold yourself to the standards of ordinary Spirit Masters."

"This..."

Feeling a bit embarrassed by Lin Beiya's words, Qian Renxue lowered her head immediately.

Seeing this, Lin Beiya did not hesitate to reach out his "sinful" hand toward her soft golden hair.

"It's alright, Xiao Xue. In the future, when you absorb spirit rings, you can also wear the Sacred Cloth; absorbing a ring ten percent beyond the limit will be absolutely no problem."

"Mm, I understand. From now on, I will train my physique with you."

Seeing that he had persuaded the little angel to train with him in just a few sentences, Lin Beiya immediately revealed a satisfied smile, thinking she was a teachable student.

Every day thereafter, Qian Renxue would follow Lin Beiya to train her physique after he finished his lessons.

This made the passing Qian Daoliu shake his head for a while; he wanted to stop the two of them but feared dampening their enthusiasm for cultivation.

Only after probing his granddaughter did he learn of Lin Beiya's theory.

While skeptical, he also felt a sense of anticipation. In any case, he figured Lin Beiya would be the first of the two to attach his next spirit ring, so letting him be the one to verify the theory was fine.

If Lin Beiya could truly attach a spirit ring beyond the limit, then their seemingly nonsensical training method would be validated.

Time passed silently for half a month. As time flowed by, Lin Beiya could clearly feel the strengthening of his physique. Whale Rubber played a large part in this, but it was inseparable from his own diligent training.

As for his five senses, aside from his vision, they were all steadily improving, and he was very satisfied with his cultivation progress.

On this day, just as Lin Beiya met up with the little angel to train, he was intercepted by Qian Renxue.

"Beiya, Grandpa gave me the day off today. Why don't we go stroll around Martial Soul City?"

"..."

The refusal was on the tip of his tongue, but seeing the little angel's teary-eyed expression, Lin Beiya could only nod with helpless resignation.

Following the little angel toward the main gate of Martial Soul Hall, they passed by the Pope Hall on the way. Lin Beiya cast a strange look toward the magnificent, gold-adorned building.

He had been in the Douluo Hall for some time now, yet he had never seen the Pope, Qian Xunji. Logically, no matter how busy he was, he should have made time to see the little angel.

Seeming to see through Lin Beiya's thoughts, Qian Renxue explained softly:

"The relationship between Father and Grandfather is a bit tense, so he hasn't been to the Douluo Hall in a long time. Whenever I miss Father, I go to the Pope Hall to find him."

"I see."

Lin Beiya realized, not expecting such hidden circumstances. However, upon reflection, it was perfectly normal for Qian Daoliu to despise Qian Xunji for what he had done.

"Yes, I've tried to mediate a few times, but it hasn't had any effect."

"Don't worry. There is no insurmountable gap between father and son; as time passes, they will reach a reconciliation."

"Mm, that's what I was thinking too."

As they spoke, the two of them had already caught sight of the gates of Martial Soul Hall.

Coincidentally, just as they were about to continue forward, a woman completely shrouded in a black robe slowly walked into Martial Soul Hall after presenting a token to the guards.

Because the voluminous black robe concealed her body, Lin Beiya could not see her face clearly, but he was still able to discern the woman's identity from the murderous aura that soared straight into the sky and the color of the hair peeking out from beneath her hood.

Glancing unobtrusively at Qian Renxue beside him, Lin Beiya noticed that the little girl had hidden away the excitement of her leave; she now appeared extremely tense, her two small hands clenched into fists, trembling incessantly from the sheer force of her grip.

As the woman slowly drew closer, Lin Beiya finally saw the face buried within the black robe.

Without a doubt, Bibi Dong possessed a face that would make any other woman envious and jealous.

But her eyes—they were a pair of deep violet orbs of absolute purity. The depths of her pupils were not clear, but rather like bottomless pools; they reflected the sunlight outside the hall, yet failed to ignite a single spark of warmth. Wherever her gaze swept, it felt like a cold current brushing against the skin, carrying a soul-piercing scrutiny and a near-inhuman indifference.

Bibi Dong seemed to have noticed the two little ones before her as well. When her gaze swept over Qian Renxue, the indifference in her eyes faded slightly, replaced by hatred and disgust.

In just an instant, this woman, destined to become the most powerful in the entire continent, wiped away all expression, then acted as if she hadn't seen the two of them at all, intending to brush past them.

But Qian Renxue clearly did not want their meeting to end so hastily. As Bibi Dong swept past her without any intention of acknowledging her, she turned around anxiously and called out to the woman's retreating back:

"Mo... Mother, I..."