Tang Hao's Envy

Tang Yuehua realized she had been staring at the little boy for too long and hurriedly shifted her gaze.

The inexplicable flutter in her heart did not fade with the movement of her eyes; instead, it felt like a compressed spring, rebounding with even greater clarity.

This feeling was so strange that she even began to wonder if she had been struck by some kind of soul skill.

But her reason told her that was impossible. Her two brothers were standing right beside her, and anyone capable of tampering with her under their very noses would essentially have to be an incredibly powerful existence.

"Spirit Hall truly has a wealth of talent in recent years," Tang Yuehua said, lifting her eyes again with a graceful smile on her lips. "First, there was the Saintess with Twin Martial Souls, and now, a young talent like little brother Deng. It seems our Clear Sky Sect cannot afford to be complacent."

The remark was tactful and well-rounded, flattering Spirit Hall while effortlessly placing the Clear Sky Sect on an equal footing.

Deng Tianxin nodded inwardly; she was truly worthy of being the future master of the Moonlight Pavilion, capable of maneuvering between major powers single-handedly.

Her level of eloquence was leagues ahead of her two brothers, who knew nothing but how to swing hammers.

However, looking at them, it seemed they hadn't been traveling for very long.

"Miss Yuehua is too kind," Deng Tianxin slid down from the bear's back and tilted his head to look up at the elegant and dignified young lady before him.

A standard, harmless smile hung on Deng Tianxin's small face. "We are new to this place and aren't familiar with Heaven Dou City yet. Since you all are out for training, you must know the city better than we do. I wonder if you could recommend a few places worth visiting?"

Tang Yuehua was slightly startled at these words, and a trace of imperceptible surprise flashed through her eyes.

She had assumed the child would just offer a polite greeting and leave, but she hadn't expected him to take the initiative to ask, and so naturally at that.

This saved her the trouble of finding an excuse to keep them a while longer.

"There are indeed many places in Heaven Dou City worth visiting," Tang Yuehua tilted her head slightly, adopting a thoughtful posture, her movements as elegant as a figure in a painting. "The Great Soul Arena is an excellent place for soul masters to spar and gain practical experience, and the Heaven Dou Auction House occasionally releases information on rare soul bones and soul rings. If you are interested, I could take you around to see them."

As she spoke, she kept her eyes on Deng Tianxin.

Looking at Deng Tianxin's chubby cheeks, Tang Yuehua felt a sudden urge to pinch them.

Tang Yuehua was startled by her own thought and quickly looked away, though her heartbeat accelerated uncontrollably.

"Yuehua is right," Tang Xiao nodded, stepping forward to stand beside his sister, his tall frame as steady and reliable as a wall. "Since the two of you are newcomers and unfamiliar with the area, having a guide will help you avoid some detours. As it happens, the three of us only arrived in Heaven Dou City recently and have no plans for today, so it would be no trouble to stroll around together."

His gaze remained fixed on Deng Tianxin as he spoke, his tone even more courteous than before.

As the eldest son of the Clear Sky Sect, he had seen countless geniuses, but he had never seen—or even heard of—someone who could tame a seven-thousand-year-old violent bear at the age of seven or eight.

This little fellow was definitely not simple; there was no harm in getting to know him better.

"Then I shall respectfully accept your offer." Deng Tianxin cupped his small hands together, putting on a well-behaved appearance.

In his heart, however, he was already calculating rapidly. The God of Love Fragment inside Tang Yuehua might not be large, but even a mosquito's leg was still meat.

The key was that the longer he stayed in contact, the greater the chance the fragment would loosen.

Now that they had taken the initiative to offer themselves as guides, it was exactly what he needed—like someone offering a pillow just as he was getting sleepy.

Liu Erlong, who had been standing in the back the entire time, watched all of this in silence. Her gaze swept back and forth between Tang Yuehua and Deng Tianxin, and the corners of her mouth twitched in a way that was difficult to detect.

She didn't have any concrete evidence, but she just felt that the way Tang Yuehua was looking at Deng Tianxin wasn't quite right.

They were both women; some things didn't need to be spoken aloud, as a single glance was enough to understand.

However, she said nothing, merely sliding off the bear's back in a calm, composed manner and walking behind Deng Tianxin to stand guard like a protector.

Tang Hao, on the other hand, was completely oblivious to these undercurrents; his attention remained focused entirely on the bear.

Taking advantage of the time the others were talking, he circled the One-Eyed Violent Bear, missing no detail—from its old scars to the empty, sightless eye socket, from the massive paws capable of crushing boulders to the short, almost invisible tail.

After he finished, he looked up, his tiger-like eyes filled with undisguised admiration.

"This bear is truly impressive," Tang Hao said, slapping the violent bear's thick shoulder with a dull thud.

The violent bear turned its head, cast a lazy glance at him with its single eye, and let out a low rumble in its throat, but it showed no hostility, clearly having categorized Tang Hao as a harmless large creature.

"Sturdy frame, well-proportioned muscles, and its claws and teeth are well-maintained. There is nothing but solid muscle under that fur. When there is an opportunity, I would like to spar with you," Tang Hao said while sizing it up.

The One-Eyed Violent Bear yawned, revealing a mouthful of sharp fangs, then turned its large head away, completely ignoring this genius soul master of the Clear Sky Sect.

Its mind was currently occupied only with whether it could get a few extra dried biscuits tonight; it had absolutely no interest in any sparring.

Watching her second brother act like a fool trying to challenge a bear, Tang Yuehua couldn't help but cover her mouth to hide a laugh before turning to Deng Tianxin. "Since it's settled, let's head to the Great Soul Arena first. It's the middle of the month, so there should be quite a few exciting matches."

With that, she walked forward naturally, standing beside Deng Tianxin and walking in step with him.

The Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena was located in the heart of Heaven Dou City, a massive, oval-shaped structure capable of accommodating tens of thousands of spectators.

Built primarily of marble, the entrance featured a monument engraved with the names of those who had fallen in battle throughout history.

The appearance of the One-Eyed Violent Bear attracted quite a bit of attention.

A soul beast with nearly eight thousand years of cultivation walking brazenly through the most prosperous district of Heaven Dou City, with neither collar nor shackles around its neck, was in itself a highly striking sight.

Fortunately, the staff at the Great Soul Arena were experienced; after a moment of shock, they quickly reacted, arranging a spacious area for the mount and thoughtfully providing several buckets of fresh water and a large platter of raw meat.

The violent bear was clearly more interested in the raw meat than in any sparring, burying its head to feast without even bothering to lift its eyelids.

Tang Hao stood outside the storage area, watching the bear eat with such gusto, then looked down at his own empty hands. He suddenly felt that his career as a soul master was a bit of a failure.

As the number one genius of the Clear Sky Sect's younger generation, with soul power far ahead of his peers, he didn't even have a decent mount, while that seven-or-eight-year-old brat had a bear to ride.