Young An Lan

Douluo Continent, Shangling City.

A ninety-nine-story, eight-sided tower pierced the clouds; this was the location of a branch of the Spirit Pagoda, one of the four giants of the continent.

"Mwah... mwah..."

"One kiss for the Second Master, and one for the First Master."

The corridors inside the tower were wide and tranquil, the white jade floors polished to a mirror finish. Under the glow of the soul-guide lamps, a child with a youthful face, well-versed in the art of balance, finished kissing his Second Master and immediately stood on tiptoe to peck the First Master on the cheek as well.

The two who were kissed included one with long, holy golden hair that draped gently over her shoulders—none other than the ninety-eight-level Super Douluo titled "Judgment," Le Lingzhao.

At this moment, her eyes curved into crescents as she reached out to ruffle the little boy's hair, chuckling, "Little An Lan is such a good boy."

The other woman stood to the left, a pale purple gown accentuating her slender figure. Her long hair fell like purple ink, and her eyes were a deep, crystalline purple, as if they held endless stars.

She was the branch master of the Spirit Pagoda in Shangling City, a ninety-nine-level demigod titled "Purple Phoenix"—Leng Qingning.

She also raised a hand to stroke An Lan's hair, saying softly, "You're awakening your martial soul soon. Are you nervous?"

An Lan looked up at Leng Qingning, shook his head, and then gave a small nod. "A little, I suppose."

After all, this was the martial soul awakening that would determine his entire life; he couldn't help but feel some tension.

"Don't worry." Leng Qingning took his hand, her tone filled with both confidence and doting. "With your Second Master and me here, even if your martial soul is mediocre, we can still feed you up to the level of a Super Douluo."

"A Super Douluo?"

An Lan was stunned for a moment at these words, then advised her like a little adult, "Teacher, let's keep a low profile. If people didn't know better, they'd think you were the Heavenly Phoenix Douluo."

Heavenly Phoenix Douluo Leng Yaozhu, the Vice Tower Master of the Spirit Pagoda, head of the Phoenix Family, and a Four-Word Battle Armor Master, was one of the few people standing at the very pinnacle of the entire continent.

If she had said that, An Lan would have believed it one hundred percent, but Leng Qingning was merely a Super Douluo; saying such things was clearly a bit arrogant.

Of course, this was because he was unaware of the true strength of Leng Qingning and Le Lingzhao.

An Lan knew that Leng Qingning's martial soul was the Purple Phoenix, a mutation of the Heavenly Phoenix, and as a tower master among the Eighteen Heavenly Pillars of the Spirit Pagoda, she was at least a Super Douluo.

Since Le Lingzhao could hang out with her, she certainly wouldn't be weak either.

Therefore, he had assumed from the start that he was a top-tier second-generation heir with two Super Douluos as his backers, capable of reaching the heights of the Heavenly Phoenix Douluo and the Angel Douluo.

But Super Douluos, while not exactly common, weren't exactly rare either; it was better to keep a low profile.

"Pfft~"

Le Lingzhao was amused by An Lan's words, her golden eyes filled with playfulness.

The Heavenly Phoenix Douluo—if she remembered correctly, the Heavenly Phoenix Douluo hadn't even broken through to the ninety-ninth level yet, and was famous across the continent primarily for being a Four-Word Battle Armor Master.

But Leng Qingning was different; not only was she a Four-Word Battle Armor Master, but she had also broken through to the realm of a demigod, her cultivation two levels higher than the Heavenly Phoenix.

What was even more coincidental was that the Heavenly Phoenix was actually Leng Qingning's own aunt. With that connection, An Lan's "earnest advice" seemed all the more adorable.

An Lan was drawn by Le Lingzhao's laughter and looked up at her. "Second Master, did I say something wrong?"

"No, no." Le Lingzhao immediately stopped laughing and straightened her expression. "I just suddenly remembered that the Heavenly Phoenix is actually Qingning's aunt. I'll have her take you to meet your relative another day."

"Is that so?" An Lan blinked suspiciously, feeling as though Le Lingzhao was pulling his leg.

He secretly replayed his words in his mind and couldn't find anything wrong with them, unless... the First Master was even more powerful than the Heavenly Phoenix.

But how could that be?

He was a transmigrator, a noble person from Blue Star, and he knew very well that the Phoenix Family didn't have two Limit Douluos.

Furthermore, he had been raised by his two masters personally; he hadn't been separated from them since he could remember.

Even if one had to go out occasionally, the other would always stay behind to keep him company.

In his memory, this recent business trip Le Lingzhao took to Tiandou City for over half a month was the longest they had ever been apart.

Yet even then, she had rushed back specifically before his martial soul awakening, and the moment they met, she wanted to cuddle.

Two such clingy masters—if they were just ordinary Super Douluos, it might be understandable.

But to say they were Limit Douluos? That was simply impossible!

An Lan couldn't wrap his head around it no matter how hard he tried; what kind of Limit Douluo would be so idle as to watch over a child all day?

Leng Qingning shook her head with a light smile, never expecting An Lan to react this way.

Over the years, she and Le Lingzhao had indeed kept a low profile to raise the child.

It couldn't be helped; their precious disciple was just too delightful, and they didn't want to be disturbed by others.

She held An Lan's hand and walked toward the awakening room, asking as they went, "So, did you find the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well?"

Le Lingzhao lifted her chin proudly. "With me on the job, wasn't it as easy as reaching out to grab it?"

"That's good then." Leng Qingning nodded gently.

"Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well..."

Hearing this familiar name, An Lan was stunned for a moment before realization dawned on him.

No wonder the Second Master had been away for so long; it turned out she was looking for immortal herbs for him.

Any family with a bit of history on the continent knew that the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well was in the hands of the Tang Sect. However, because Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect were so powerful, other factions didn't dare to tear off the mask of civility and seize it by force, even if they coveted it.

The two masters were clearly intending to provide him with an extra layer of security; if his martial soul aptitude proved mediocre, they would bypass the Tang Sect and go to the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well to "borrow" some immortal herbs for his use.

However, this was not something that could be accomplished by just two Super Douluos.

On the surface, the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy were branches of the same family, with their headquarters located in Shrek City, but in reality, the core of the Tang Sect had always been in Tiandou City; the entire underground of Tiandou City had practically been hollowed out by them.

Furthermore, the plant-type soul beasts of the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well were not without the power to resist; the remnant souls of the Fire Dragon King and the Ice Dragon King were enough to threaten even a Limit Douluo.

An Lan looked up, intending to dissuade his two masters, but caught a glimpse of a strange black light flashing through the amethyst eyes of Leng Qingning.

He swallowed hard and instinctively tightened his grip on Leng Qingning's hand: "Teacher, it looks like there is black light coming from your eyes..."

"What are you talking about?" Leng Qingning lowered her head to look at him, her amethyst eyes curving into beautiful crescents. "You saw wrong. My cultivation has improved recently, and the purple is just so deep that it appears a bit black."

"Is that so?" An Lan blinked and looked carefully, only to feel that his teacher's eyes were indeed a very deep purple, so deep they were almost black; perhaps his eyes had truly played a trick on him.

Soon, the trio arrived at an awakening room.

Given Leng Qingning's status, An Lan naturally did not need to crowd in with the other children outside to undergo his awakening.

The awakening room was exquisitely furnished, with an awakening platform made of precious metals in the center, its surface engraved with intricate awakening patterns.

It was also worth mentioning that the room, from top to bottom, was decorated in Leng Qingning's signature purple style; it was clear that the staff of the Spirit Pagoda were very eager to advance their careers.

An Lan curiously reached out and picked up a Soul Tool ornament on the table, which was carved with a magnificent Purple Phoenix pattern. As his fingertips touched the cold surface of the object, he asked: "Teacher, what do you think my martial soul will be?"