His Every Secret Laid Bare

[Name: Ning Huan]

[Age: Turning 12]

[Martial Soul: Spirit Bestowal Platform]

[Innate Soul Power: Unknown, suspected to be full Soul Power (investigation revealed that the supervising deacon deliberately skipped the test out of prejudice; he has since been dismissed)]

[Traits: Prefers quiet, thinks in unusual ways, and responds to kindness but not force.

Takes little interest in ordinary things, but is exceptionally decisive.

Hates trouble, so he tends to strike first. For example:...]

[Hobbies: Collecting Soul Beast materials and the belongings of the dead, such as antlers, bear fur, spider venom, scraps of clothing...]

His standards for treating others are unusual. He is exceptionally good to his own people (certified by the Tianluo City deacons), but decisive and ruthless toward his enemies (he has secretly killed several people who bore him ill will, then left their bodies exposed in the wilderness)]

[Relationship with the sect: An orphan. His parents were deacons from a collateral branch of the sect, both Soul Ancestors. Nine years ago, they died during a Soul Ring hunt in the Star Dou Forest amid a Soul Beast rampage.]

[History: His parents died when he was three. After awakening his Martial Soul at six, he was sent to Tianluo City...]

[Note: The above assessments were reached through extensive analysis of multiple intelligence reports]

As they read the densely packed writing in their hands, everyone was astonished.

"This kid... is one twisted little bastard!"

Wind Douluo scanned the report at a glance, finishing first, and spoke with considerable surprise.

Then he recalled Ning Hao's bold guess from earlier, and found himself agreeing with it more than a little.

"But there's one thing I don't get. With those strange... unusual hobbies of his, on top of what he needs for cultivation—"

"Add it all up, and even six years would've cost at least a million Gold Soul Coins."

"Without the sect's support, where'd he get all that money?"

Sword Douluo and the others looked up as well, staring straight at their sect master.

Unfortunately, Ning Hao, usually so resourceful, only shook his head this time, looking utterly helpless.

"We have no way of knowing where the money came from, but it's most likely connected to the sect."

"Otherwise, Ning Huan had no reason to suddenly make such a public show of wanting to return."

His answer, neither here nor there, left everyone staring at one another.

They'd talked for ages and still couldn't even figure out whether he was friend or foe?

The discussion ground to a halt, and the atmosphere in the loft turned chilly.

Just then, Ning Tian, who had been absorbed in the report in her hands, suddenly chuckled.

Everyone present immediately turned their attention to her.

"Father, Senior Three, I think you may be overthinking this."

The three senior sect members fixed their gazes on her, while her father looked at her with expectation in his eyes.

Ning Tian suppressed her smile and began laying out her thoughts in a clear, orderly fashion.

"He managed to stay hidden in such a small place for six years without being discovered. That's enough to show Ning Huan isn't a fool."

"So he must have anticipated that returning to the sect would arouse suspicion."

"Yet he chose to come back anyway. In my view, there are only two possibilities."

At this, Ning Tian held up two fingers, her delicate little face suddenly revealing a shrewdness and confidence far beyond her years.

"First, he believes he can explain himself after the competition."

"The second is that he has someone backing him whose power the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect absolutely cannot contend with right now."

"In other words, if we can befriend him, then no matter which possibility proves true, it won't be bad for the sect."

"Exactly! We were too close to see it! The fact that Ning Huan came back already tells us plenty!"

Shield Defense Douluo grinned broadly and slapped Wind Douluo hard with his fan-sized hand, making him writhe in pain.

"Old Shield, I get that you're excited, but why the hell are you hitting me?"

"Haha, I'm just happy!"

"Get the hell out of here!"

As the three elders dropped their dignified airs and bickered, Ning Hao slowly leaned forward, his face full of pride.

"Tian'er, since you believe Ning Huan harbors no ill will toward the sect, and we need to find out what he has backing him, what would you do if you were the sect master of the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect?"

At once, Sword Douluo and the others, who had been laughing and chatting, fell silent.

They didn't want their bickering to interfere with the sect master's test of the next generation's heir.

Meanwhile, Ning Tian lowered her head and thought for a long while.

Only after the crowd had dispersed from the distant training grounds did she voice the idea Ning Hao had been mulling over for some time.

"What if we changed the original elimination rounds into a team battle?"

"Haha! That's my girl!"

Ning Hao burst into laughter, satisfaction shining in his eyes.

The last trace of misgiving in his heart also faded away.

So what if the heir was a girl? She could still lead the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect to endure for all eternity!

The sect's legacy came before everything else.

"Conveniently, I also want to see just how talented Ning Huan really is, and what trump cards he has up his sleeve."

"To dare act with such abandon right under the nose of our mighty sect!"

"The sect master is wise!"

Wind Douluo and Shield Defense Douluo chimed in at just the right moment.

Only Sword Douluo wore a complicated expression, standing there as if he wanted to speak but couldn't.

Why do I have this feeling that disaster is about to befall us?

"What did you just say?!"

Early the next morning, a sudden roar shattered the quiet of dawn.

A dozen birds flapped frantically and shot into the sky.

It was as if even a moment's delay would let the terrifying thing behind them swallow them whole.

"Something this important, and you're only telling me now!"

"Young Master Ning, I didn't think the higher-ups would suddenly change the competition format either..."

Ning Zhen had no words to defend himself against the sharp rebuke.

In fact, the moment he learned about it, he'd understood what the higher-ups were thinking.

They simply wanted to see how far the person before them could go.

Of course, just changing the format wouldn't have been much of a problem.

But why did their reckless meddling have to drag him into it?

Now look at what had happened. After all that effort, he'd finally managed to leave this little ancestor with a slightly favorable impression.

And then their ridiculous stunt had ruined it all.

It hurt!

It hurt so much!

The more Ning Zhen thought about it, the more aggrieved he felt, until tears glimmered at the corners of his eyes. Ning Huan looked at him with contempt.

"Enough, enough! This isn't your fault!"

"Besides, I should've realized that, without breaking any rules, a free-for-all was the only way the higher-ups could think of to probe me."

"But there's one thing they probably miscalculated..."

As he spoke, Ning Huan rose and strode toward the gate, the aura of a forty-third-rank Soul Ancestor fully on display.

The faint Seven Kill Sword Qi radiating from him nearly made Ning Zhen's jaw drop.

"The cards in my hand are mine to play. They'll just have to deal with them!"

A short while later...

Ning Huan stood alone at the edge of the arena, facing thirty-one pairs of eyes from across the hundred meters between them.

For a moment, he recalled his earlier experience of being "the center of attention." His normally unruffled eyes revealed a rare trace of helplessness.

"Looks like changing the format gave these little brats hope they might beat me."

"I wonder if Mu En, back when he was a Soul Ancestor, could've beaten more than twenty Soul Grandmasters and three Soul Elders working together..."

As he spoke, he glanced at the packed spectator stands surrounding him and narrowed his eyes.

At least three times as many people as yesterday. Did they all come?

With a crowd this large, there's no guarantee there aren't spies from outside forces among them.

Never mind. Ning Hao isn't an idiot; he knows what to... Hmm? Here they come!

The sight of several figures appearing at the highest point of the stands made Ning Huan's heart tense. He hurriedly pushed all distracting thoughts aside.

"The sect master has arrived!"

"Disciple *** pays respects to the sect master!"

In an instant, a chorus of passionate shouts rose and swept across the sky like a roaring tide.

Ning Huan joined in too.

Not that he wanted to shout. He was simply standing in far too conspicuous a spot.

Hundreds of eyes were fixed on him!

Especially...