The Heavenly Soul Alliance

"Please, don't hurt them." Yan Feng's tone became cautious.

Five months ago, it was these children—who couldn't even feed themselves—who had saved him when he was starving and unconscious.

After a year of wandering and fleeing, Yan Feng fully understood the hardships of life and the depth of the bond they shared.

If this young soul master from a great family were to strike at these children, he would live the rest of his life in regret.

"Why would I want to hurt them?" Lin Yuan turned his head to look behind him.

A tall, middle-aged man in black robes had appeared behind him at some point, and he walked straight past Lin Yuan to Yan Feng's side.

He was none other than Bone Douluo, the man Ning Zhiyuan had called Uncle Gu.

"Child..." Bone Douluo's eyes filled with tears as he grabbed the shoulders of the bewildered Yan Feng.

The words that followed nearly made Lin Yuan lose his composure.

"I am your great-uncle!"

"Huh?"

Lin Yuan's mouth twitched as he looked at the children clinging to him. "Can you all let go of me now?"

What followed was a sentimental scene of Bone Douluo and Yan Feng reuniting; Bone Douluo even produced a family tree to prove that Yan Feng was indeed his distant cousin.

Meeting Yan Feng had resolved a long-standing knot in his heart, but learning why Yan Feng had ended up in such a state only deepened the bitterness within Bone Douluo.

Bone Douluo's name was Gu An.

In his youth, he had left his ancestral lands to travel within the borders of the Sun Moon Empire.

By the time he returned as a Soul Saint, his hometown was nothing but scorched earth and rusted blades scattered across the ground.

He had always harbored suspicions about who had wiped out his clan, but that behemoth of an organization was one he dared not name.

Because if that suspicion were ever confirmed, it would mean a path of vengeance he could never hope to complete in his lifetime.

Shrek Academy.

"Good, very good, Shrek Academy!" Gu An's eyes widened in fury.

By the time he became a patron of the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect, he had already reached the level of a Title Douluo.

Gu An was well aware of the existence of the Holy Spirit Cult.

Those people ignored such a massive "Evil Soul Master" organization right under their noses within the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect, yet they only bothered to hunt down these small fry.

In the end, Gu An let out a long sigh, as if he had lost all his strength and resolve.

He looked at Yan Feng with weary eyes.

At least his only living relative was alive, and at least he hadn't gone astray.

The Bone Dragon Martial Soul could truly fall into evil ways if one's emotions fluctuated too violently.

Having lost his fighting spirit, Gu An no longer wanted to manage or pursue anything.

He only wanted to raise this last descendant of his family well; he would be satisfied once the boy was capable of standing on his own.

"Great-uncle, are you really my great-uncle?" Yan Feng's eyes welled with tears.

He never expected to have family left in this world...

Lin Yuan felt he couldn't handle such sentimental scenes, and suddenly, Yan Feng turned back to look at him.

"Great-uncle, since you're a Title Douluo, how should we deal with this guy who bullied your grandson?" Yan Feng pointed at Lin Yuan.

"Er..." Gu An and Lin Yuan stared at each other.

It seemed this guy hadn't realized yet that he and Gu An were on the same side.

"You'll have your chance later. If you beat him back, your great-uncle promises not to speak up for him."

"Great-uncle, what do you mean by that?" Yan Feng asked, confused.

Gu An looked helplessly at Lin Yuan and said, "After you beat him back, you can train properly with this kid. Wei Na wants to see you."

Gu An had actually followed Lin Yuan only after he left the sect; Wei Na had sent someone to notify him before he departed.

"What for?" Lin Yuan silently shoved his half-drawn wooden sword back into its sheath.

"I'm not entirely sure of the details. I only know you should head back as soon as you finish your business."

Lin Yuan nodded and said, "Then I'll head back first. I won't disturb your reunion."

Gu An nodded, and before turning away, Lin Yuan cast a meaningful glance at the children gathered around.

He knew exactly what would happen next: Yan Feng would inevitably ask Bone Douluo to look after these children.

He would leave that headache to Gu An; it had little to do with him.

Upon returning to the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect, Wei Na was already waiting in the conference room.

Waiting alongside her were Du Busi and Ning Zhiyuan.

Seeing the top powers of the Heaven Dou Empire all present, Lin Yuan could roughly guess what had happened.

"Xiao Lin, is your business finished? Sit." Wei Na's practiced demeanor made her look more like the master of the house than Lin Yuan himself.

"Senior Sister Wei Na, let's be frank. Did you find out the secret of my martial soul from my master?" Lin Yuan plopped onto the sofa opposite Wei Na.

"Honestly, sometimes I really wonder how your brain works, Little Lin. I haven't even said anything, and you already know about this," Wei Na chuckled awkwardly.

"It wasn't the Sect Master who revealed it, I figured it out myself after finding something suspicious," Wei Na shrugged.

"The Sect Master wouldn't take a disciple with an ordinary martial soul as his disciple, even with his soul rings exceeding the limit and innate full soul power."

"This means your martial soul, Little Lin, is definitely not as simple as a common earth dragon; it should at least be a top-tier dragon-type martial soul."

"I told the Sect Master my suspicions, and since he felt he couldn't hide it, he told me that your martial soul possesses destructive attributes."

Lin Yuan looked at Du Busi, who merely spread his hands helplessly.

With Wei Na's inquisitive nature and her sharp intellect, Du Busi felt there was little point in keeping it a secret.

He decided to reveal that Lin Yuan's dragon-type martial soul had destructive attributes, but he kept the secret of his twin martial souls.

"So, Senior Sister Wei Na, what exactly are you trying to say?" Lin Yuan asked suspiciously.

"It's very simple," Wei Na placed her teacup down solemnly.

"Our Heavenly Soul Royal Family also wants to invest in you. We see the potential for you to become a Limit Douluo in the future."

"That's truly flattering," Lin Yuan looked at Ning Zhiyuan with a look of being overwhelmed by favor.

Ning Zhiyuan nodded, admitting that he was aware of and had approved this matter.

This meant Lin Yuan would be shouldering much more. While these forces would provide considerable assistance on his path to resisting Tang San, the responsibility was equally immense.

"Little Lin, you've seen it yourself recently, haven't you? Shrek Academy's encroachment on the continent's three major powers," Ning Zhiyuan said.

Lin Yuan nodded, "I just saw it. Senior Bone Douluo will brief everyone on the specifics when he returns."

Ignoring Lin Yuan's words, Ning Zhiyuan continued, "If Shrek continues to dominate us, the major powers on our continent will struggle to develop. Therefore, we want to use a genius as a link to unite the super forces within the Heavenly Soul Kingdom and break Shrek's monopoly."

"And the super genius who will connect the top forces within the Heavenly Soul Kingdom is you. We want to create an alliance, a Heavenly Soul Alliance, to break Shrek's monopoly," Du Busi added.

"Heavenly Soul Alliance?"