Spring passed and autumn came; the rain cleared and the sky turned bright. Qian Renxue sat cross-legged on the cultivation platform Qian Daoliu had built with his own hands. With each breath, spiritual energy naturally flowed into her body.
Chen Qi lay on the grass nearby, bored out of his mind. He pulled a bottle of Fat House Happy Water from the System Shop.
As it happened, Chen Qi had stumbled upon the modern goods section by accident. Its page looked just like the shopping apps he used to browse on his phone.
The difference was that Chen Qi only had to tap once, and the item appeared right in his hand. It skipped the delivery step entirely.
"Before I knew it, I'd been transported to Douluo Continent for two years. Back then, I was a force to be reckoned with in CSGO—getting crushed by bots like a dog. Now I can only be Qian Renxue's Martial Soul, and if I get more than three meters away from her, I'm automatically teleported back to her side. Every avenue for moving around freely is sealed off. My future is a bleak one."
Chen Qi sighed, then casually took a drink of Fat House Happy Water. Who came up with this stuff, anyway?
It was one thing that it tasted good, but the key was that it was cheap. One Favor Point could buy a whole truckload—more than he could finish before it expired.
What? You're asking why Chen Qi wasn't cultivating alongside Qian Renxue?
It was to make cultivation more challenging and avoid getting too full of himself. It definitely wasn't because he was lazy. Definitely not!
"Chen Qi, give me a bottle of Fat House Happy Water."
Over the past two years, Qian Renxue had grown from a pitiful little girl into a young lady whose beauty was just beginning to bloom.
That little swell on her chest was already enough to make many girls on Blue Star cry.
"Master, not to lecture you, but drinking too much of this stuff isn't good for you."
"If it's bad for me, then why do you drink it like water every day? You're only one step away from bathing in it."
Qian Renxue was unconvinced. She held out her right hand, signaling for Chen Qi to hurry up and give it to her.
Chen Qi had no choice but to take a bottle from the System Space and hand it to Qian Renxue.
"Because I'm a Martial Soul, I'm immune to all poisons."
Qian Renxue took the Fat House Happy Water. It felt cool to the touch; it was chilled, too. She unscrewed the cap and gulped down the liquid with abandon.
That taste, that feeling—it was as if she'd arrived in heaven.
"Since you put it that way, Chen Qi, I'll take care of dinner tonight!"
"By all means, don't! You're a young lady of noble birth. Your hands shouldn't touch a stove. Leave the cooking to the Spirit Hall's professional chefs."
When Chen Qi heard that Qian Renxue wanted to cook, cold sweat broke out all over him.
That wasn't cooking she did.
It was making bombs. The food went in all clean and white, so how did it come out charred black? And the taste was even worse than a mixture of fish mint, fermented bean juice, and the liquid squeezed out of a pair of sneakers after running a thousand meters.
In short, it could be summed up in one word.
Yue~
"Hmph, I knew you just didn't want to eat my cooking! I'll make some for my grandpa later. Last time, he was so happy he fell asleep."
Chen Qi immediately breathed a sigh of relief. As long as she wasn't cooking for him, that was fine.
Qian Daoliu was the one who'd suffer. Last time he took a bite, he'd nearly gone to meet the Angel God.
"By the way, Chen Qi, I'm already eight years old. I can go out and travel the continent now. When are we leaving?"
Thinking about it, when Chen Qi had arrived, Qian Renxue had just turned six and awakened her Martial Soul. Two years had passed, and she'd reached the age Qian Daoliu had set.
"Master, you know I lose my mind if I'm away from the house for twenty-four hours. Could we put it off for a few hundred years?"
Seeing Chen Qi's pitiful expression, Qian Renxue didn't feel sorry for him at all. She shot him down at once.
"You're already so grown up. Why are you still hiding at home like a child instead of going out? I have to cure you of this problem."
"What? No!"
Inside the Worship Hall, Chen Qi trailed after Qian Renxue, utterly bereft. His future was pitch-black.
The wilderness, and unfamiliar people everywhere—just thinking about it terrified him!
Qian Daoliu was sitting in the innermost chair of the Worship Hall, resting with his eyes closed. When he sensed someone approaching, he opened his eyes to look.
"Xue'er? Missed your grandpa?"
Qian Renxue smiled and said,
"Mm-hm. I missed you more than anyone, Grandpa. I came especially to cook for you today."
At the mention of cooking, Qian Daoliu went limp and nearly fell out of his chair.
The other elders couldn't help swallowing, too. The last time Qian Renxue had cooked was still vivid in their memories.
By comparison, Poison Douluo Dugu Bo was just a little girl.
"Now, granddaughter, there's no need to cook. Just missing your grandpa is enough."
"Hehe, I was just teasing you, Grandpa. I meant to talk about traveling the continent."
Only after hearing that she wasn't going to cook did Qian Daoliu let out a sigh of relief.
As long as she didn't cook, everything was fine.
"So that's what this is about. Grandpa promised you could travel once you turned eight. Now that you're eight, I'll keep my word and let you go."
When Qian Renxue heard this, she bounced three feet into the air with joy and hugged Chen Qi, who was two heads taller than her.
"Chen Qi, did you hear? Grandpa agreed to let me go traveling! He agreed!"
Some were happy, others were miserable. Chen Qi's face darkened, and he was on the verge of tears. Damn Qian Renxue, twisting the knife in him on top of everything else. This was so unfair.
Qian Daoliu sighed at the sight. Qian Renxue was already level thirty-nine and would soon reach level forty, becoming the youngest Soul Ancestor in history.
With talent like hers, keeping her cooped up in Spirit Hall without letting her see the world would only hold her back.
"Pufferfish, Snake Lance, you two go with Xue'er."
Two men walked in from outside the Worship Hall. In the original story, they were the Titled Douluo who accompanied Qian Renxue to the Heaven Dou Empire while she went undercover.
Pufferfish Douluo and Snake Lance Douluo.
"This subordinate understands. Please rest assured, Grand Elder. We'll be responsible for the young miss's safety."
On the way home, Qian Renxue bounced along, constantly bragging about how she was going to travel.
Chen Qi felt like bashing his head against a wall.
"Hey, big sis, give it a rest. You're going to wear out your voice."
"Hehe, Chen Qi, you must be scared out of your wits now. Don't worry. Since we're practically brothers, I might let us stay at inns."
We might as well stay in the forest.
The inns on Douluo Continent were terrible. Unless it was a big one, it either leaked wind or leaked water.
There was also a chance you'd find a strawberry tower growing on the bed.
Or the war remains of the previous occupant.
"By the way, Chen Qi, do you think I should pick a new name for traveling the continent?"
"If you want to, go ahead. I'm just a Martial Soul."
Someone like Qian Renxue had more than half the Titled Douluo on the continent protecting her. She wanted a fake name so people wouldn't be intimidated and refuse to hang out with her.
"Hmm... Let me think. What should I call myself? Oh! Why not Qian Xue?"
Qian Renxue removed the character Ren from her name, giving her the name Qian Xue.
Chen Qi was stunned. He didn't care what fake name she chose, but Qian Xue was way too casual.
If nothing else, Li Goudan would be pretty good. It was common and easy to say.
"Chen Qi, what do you think of my fake name?"
What could Chen Qi say to that?
"Great! It's a wonderful name. Anyone who hears it will be dazzled!"
"Hehe, then Qian Xue it is!"
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