Reporting One by One

An hour later, in the front hall of the City Lord’s Mansion.

Arthur Candill sat high in the main seat, looking down at the three young men who were bowing their heads.

His gaze swept over them one by one, finally settling on the red-haired youth on the right. He asked in a threatening tone, "Tell me, what exactly was Lou Gao's purpose in going to the Spirit Hall Main Hall?"

The red-haired youth was named Kuku Candir, the eldest son of Arthur Candir. He was twenty-five years old and a level thirty-two Power Attack System Battle Soul Elder.

Hearing the oppressive question in his ear, Kuku Kandir pursed his lips, swallowed the word "father," and replied timidly in a low voice, "Teacher went to see Bishop Yao Qi to discuss the matter of hunting the Eighth Soul Ring for Grandmaster."

Arthur Candir, who had frowned at Kuku Candir's timid appearance, immediately forgot his disgust and displeasure upon hearing the specifics of the words, and subconsciously murmured, "It's actually true..."

Immediately, he leaned forward slightly, his eyes shining as he pressed on, "Quick! Tell me, how did that old man from the Tie Futu... how did he cultivate to level eighty?"

"He's already over eighty years old, yet he can still break through! Wasn't he stuck at level seventy-nine for over a decade?!"

If Bishop Yao Qi of the Spirit Hall Main Hall were to break through to level 80, Arthur Candir wouldn't be too surprised. He's only 42 years old and already a level 73 Soul Saint. In at most ten years, he'll probably be able to challenge the Soul Douluo realm.

But what gives that old man, the Tie Futu, the right to do this?

He's an old man in his eighties, and he was already at level 79 more than ten years ago. If he wanted to break through, why didn't he do it earlier? Why did he wait until now?

So there must be some secret here!

This was Arthur Candir's first reaction after learning the news from his servant Edgar.

Therefore, regardless of what his eldest son was doing or whether it would affect the other's level of trust in the Lou Gao, he directly summoned the other back to the City Lord’s Mansion and asked him directly.

Although Arthur Candir is currently only a level 65 Soul Emperor, he is only in his fifties and has a good chance of breaking through to level 79 before he turns eighty, just like Tie Futu.

If he could obtain the secret to the Tie Futu's breakthrough, would it mean that Arthur Candir had a chance to become Soul Douluo like his ancestor?

Hearing Arthur Candir's question, Kuku Candir lowered his head, looking at the ground with a bitter smile. He knew that his cold and tyrannical father had never cared about his wishes. His previous apprenticeship with the Blacksmith Association's president, the Divine Craftsman Lou Gao, seemed to be for the purpose of further controlling the Blacksmith Association's movements, and perhaps even planning to control the Blacksmith Association through his eldest son in the future.

At this moment, Kuku Kandir felt even more deeply about some of the things his Uncle Ling Yi had said earlier.

"Damn it, I'm asking you a question! Did you put your ears back in your wretched mother's womb?!"

As Kuku Candir became distracted and failed to respond immediately, the increasingly agitated Arthur Candir burst into a tirade, grabbing a teacup and smashing it against his eldest son.

"Bang! Crack—"

The porcelain teacup shattered above Kuku Kandir's head, and a few seconds later, bright red blood gushed out rapidly.

Blood dripped onto the stone slabs of the ground. Kuku Kandir did not cry out in pain, nor did he even move from his standing position. He kept his head down, his body trembling slightly, and his voice remained timid and weak as he spoke:

"Father... Father, I... I thought about it carefully, and I haven't seen my master since I became his disciple half a year ago."

But... but I heard from my teacher that my master master comprehended a higher level of forging techniques a year ago, which led to a spiritual baptism, a kind of enlightenment, which allowed him to find an opportunity to advance further.

Even so, it took a year to fully grasp that insight and break through the barrier of Soul Power ...

Kuku Kandir spoke slowly, appearing terrified, but if someone were to look up from the ground, they would see in his blood-red eyes indifference, composure, and murderous intent, but no fear.

The slow pace of the speech gave Kuku Candil time to recall some of the things his uncle Ling Yi had told him, and it also allowed Arthur Candil to listen more carefully, considering the veracity of those words as he listened.

It wasn't that Arthur Candir thought Kuku Candir was lying. In his mind, his cowardly eldest son wouldn't dare deceive him. Arthur Candir was simply subconsciously on guard, wondering if the Blacksmith Association, to keep their secret, might fabricate lies and use his foolish eldest son to deceive him.

For example, did that old man from the Tie Futu obtain Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone? Or some other magical treasure, which allowed him to break through the barrier and raise his Soul Power to level eighty?

Compared to the old man's elusive "enlightenment," Arthur Candir preferred that the other party relied on treasures like Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone, so that he could have a chance to make a plan.

With this thought in mind, Arthur Candir ignored his eldest son, whose head was still bleeding, and turned his gaze to another brown-haired youth, asking, "Mosang, tell me, a year ago, did the Tie Futu truly gain any insights or make any progress in forging?"

"Earl Excellency~" Mosang bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle before answering directly, before Arthur Candil could show any impatience, "As I reported to Mr. Edgar before, around September of last year, Chairman Lou Gao mobilized a large batch of precious metal raw materials through the association."

Upon hearing this, Arthur Candir turned his gaze to the last blond youth.

Edgar felt the gaze, which seemed almost tangible, and quickly nodded, saying, "That's true. At the time, as you instructed, Earl, the City Lord’s Mansion took the opportunity to raise the price by ten percent and made a profit from the transfer fee—"

"Hmm." Arthur Candir also remembered, but he used that Gold Soul Coin to buy an obsidian Lion statue, which was a masterpiece by Master Linley Ba Lu!

The image of the lifelike sculpture in the treasure room beneath the bedroom flashed through Arthur Candir's mind, and he turned his gaze back to the brown-haired youth Mosang: "Continue."

"Call--"

Edgar secretly breathed a sigh of relief, inwardly marveling that he hadn't forgotten Mr. Ling Yi's instructions and had kept these relatively prominent details in mind. In crucial moments, they proved very effective in dealing with Lord Arthur Candir.

"Earl Excellency, although Chairman Lou Gao didn't tell the others in the association what those precious metal raw materials were used to forge, during that time, both Chairman Lou Gao and the former chairman, Old Master Tie Futu, were always cheerful, as if they had encountered some particularly good news..."

Mosang, standing between Kuku Candil and Edgar, remained as respectful as ever, wholeheartedly remembering Mr. Ling Yi's instructions. His body language, tone of voice, and even the expression of looking down at the ground were all filled with reverence.