The Eldest Miss's Attention

"Hmm, all of you, rise." Feng Baiyu gave a slight nod, and without a trace of movement, he activated his [Fire Phoenix True Sight], sweeping across the gathered crowd to assess their auras, soul power fluctuations, and even the most subtle expressions.

The Feng Family members in Spirit City had few with outstanding talent, but those here were even more disappointing.

Among the hundred-plus people, only six possessed an innate soul power of level seven, and the youngest of them was already twenty-seven years old.

Perhaps relying on the fact that their clan head was a Title Douluo, every one of them had neglected their cultivation. Looking at these people, Feng Baiyu could not discern a single genius among them.

They were barely sufficient for handling trivial matters, but building a core team of his own would be quite difficult.

Feng Baiyu's [Phoenix Art] could only be cultivated by Title Douluos or geniuses with an innate soul power of no less than level eight!

Selecting from within the clan was undoubtedly the most likely path, but these people were uninspired; they lacked both talent and the drive to improve, which left Feng Baiyu deeply disappointed.

Feng Baiyu then inquired about the business operations here, and Feng Ziqian answered fluently.

Even among the collateral branches, the Feng Family possessed several Soul Saints. They were a force to be reckoned with in Heaven Dou, and while running businesses, they also held shares in the Soul Fighting Arena.

The annual profits were quite substantial, though neither Feng Baiyu nor Feng Qingluan cared much for such wealth.

Feng Baiyu instructed Feng Ziqian to have the rest of the Feng Family continue managing things well. Anyone who made a significant contribution would be rewarded accordingly.

"Are these the only members of the Feng Family's collateral branches?" Feng Baiyu asked Feng Ziqian, the person in charge of the branch, adding, "Are there any daughters married off, or in-laws and the like?"

Within the Feng Family, only Feng Qingluan's martial soul had undergone a beneficial mutation, evolving into a top-tier beast martial soul. The martial souls of the other clansmen were merely standard, nothing particularly stunning.

Precisely because of this, the Feng Family had no mandatory requirements for collateral daughters to take in husbands. Over the years, twenty-four collateral daughters had been married off into other families with great fanfare.

"Reporting to the Young Master," Feng Ziqian said respectfully, "Over the years, my granddaughter married the Dean of the Wind Element Academy; Feng Ya's sister married the Heaven Dou City noble, Hill; Feng Jianxing's daughter married the City Lord of Soto City; and Feng Lang's younger sister married the Third Elder of the Wind Sword Sect..."

As the head of the Feng Family's collateral branch, Feng Ziqian possessed a Phoenix Thunder Eagle martial soul and was a level seventy-nine Soul Saint. He had neglected his cultivation over the years, but he had managed the collateral branches with great order.

When Feng Baiyu questioned him, he was not in the least bit flustered.

"In these next few days, investigate the descendants of those who married out," Feng Baiyu said to Feng Ziqian after listening. "Especially those with innate talent—bring them all to me."

"Yes, Young Master." Feng Ziqian hurriedly agreed, adding, "Within three days, I will ensure that all those who married out return with their offspring."

The clan head might not concern himself with the development of the collateral branches for decades, but now that the Young Master was showing interest, it was highly likely that someone would be promoted to a position of importance.

Feng Ziqian was desperate to advance!

If he performed well now, perhaps the clan head might offer him some guidance, allowing him to step into the ranks of the Soul Douluos?

Having finished meeting the collateral members, Feng Baiyu dismissed them.

War Eagle, standing to the side, spoke up: "Baiyu, I never realized you had such a talent for leadership! Aside from being a bit young and lacking a bit of presence, your performance just now was truly quite good."

"Thank you for the praise, Great-Aunt," Feng Baiyu said casually, though he sighed, "The Feng Family's foundation is still too shallow!"

The Feng Family's population was not exactly flourishing, but with several hundred years of accumulation, it had grown to several hundred people. Yet, among so many, one couldn't even find a single soul master with innate level eight talent.

In truth, this was normal.

The Feng Family was merely a small clan with a few hundred years of history; that Feng Qingluan had emerged with full innate soul power was already remarkable! Aside from their current clan head, Yu Yuanzhen, who had innate level nine power, even the elders of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan only possessed innate soul power of levels seven or eight.

Currently, they were having a stroke of luck, as only Yu Tianheng and Yu Tianxin among the younger generation had reached level eight or higher.

Beyond that, the last recorded genius of the Clear Sky Sect dated back several decades to the Clear Sky Twins, Tang Xiao and Tang Hao.

As for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, aside from Ning Fengzhi's innate level eight, only Ning Rongrong, who had yet to awaken her martial soul, had reached level nine.

Those with innate soul power of level eight or higher might appear every few years, but those with avian-type beast martial souls were truly rare.

Among those Feng Baiyu could think of was Shui Bing'er, but that fellow Shui Duanliu had never mentioned his niece's situation in front of him, and Feng Baiyu was not certain if she had awakened her martial soul yet.

War Eagle did not know the specific reason for Feng Baiyu's inquiry into the collateral branches, assuming he was simply concerned about the family's development. Feng Qingluan, however, knew that his grandson wanted to find a few reliable individuals to cultivate the [Phoenix Art] and strengthen the family's foundation.

It was just a pity that the younger generation was so disappointing, leaving him helpless as well.

No, I must put in more effort to win over War Eagle. If I succeed, my grandson will have another powerhouse by his side.

As Feng Qingluan thought this, he suddenly sensed a fluctuation in the aura outside.

Feng Qingluan's brows furrowed slightly, and he said coldly, "Get in here!"

Following the sweep of Feng Qingluan's soul power, the black-clad figure scouting outside realized at once that he had been exposed.

Seeing this, the figure stopped pretending, flew directly inside, and bowed, saying, "She Long pays his respects to the Third Elder."

"So it is Snake Spear," Feng Qingluan said, looking at Snake Spear Douluo. "Did the Eldest Miss send you?"

She Long bowed hurriedly, answering, "The Third Elder is perceptive; this subordinate would never dare to hide anything. The [Feng Mansion] is a location the Eldest Miss personally ordered to be kept under close surveillance. Should there be even the slightest disturbance within the mansion, this subordinate must report it to her immediately."

"Tsk tsk, it seems this is aimed at you!" Feng Qingluan had been teased by his grandson several times recently, and now, he finally had a chance to strike back. "Baiyu, I recall that when Xue'er left Spirit City, she was only nine and a half, and you were only three or four, right? It's been four years since you last met, and she's still thinking of you?"

"In this situation, if she doesn't have a grudge against me, then she must have feelings for me." Feng Baiyu naturally understood his grandfather was teasing him, but he didn't fall for it, instead analyzing it with a straight face. "Among the younger generation of men in our Spirit City, I am the only one who can be considered promising. It is perfectly reasonable for Sister Xue to have feelings for me. As for having a grudge... perhaps she wanted to bully me when we were children, and I didn't agree?"

Although Feng Baiyu had transmigrated as an infant, his memories of being one year old were only vague. Much of what he knew came from his mother's recollections while she was still alive.

For instance, that Qian Renxue had held him when he was small, or that Qian Renxue had discovered his anatomy was different from hers and had wanted to pull it off. It was fortunate his mother had stopped her, otherwise, Feng Baiyu would have had to "restart" his life.

As Feng Baiyu grew older, he had become Qian Renxue's playmate. Hmm... the Eldest Miss and her lackey, the Eldest Miss and her child-husband, the young master and the blonde maid...

Qian Renxue had been in a phase where she was starved for affection, and Feng Baiyu was the only peer she could talk to.

However, Feng Baiyu still didn't understand why Qian Renxue had always loved playing house back then.

It wasn't until Qian Xunji passed away and Qian Renxue went to execute the "Nation-Stealing Plan" that the two lost contact.

Now, four and a half years later, it was only natural for a childhood playmate to show a little concern.