"Yu Hengqing?"
Zhou Yan felt the name was familiar. Suddenly, he remembered that there was only one large family in the entire royal capital with the surname Yu—the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon!
And the third young master of their family was called Yu Hengqing!
"You're the third young master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon!"
But by the time Zhou Yan came to his senses and looked up, wanting to call out to Yu Hengqing, Yu Hengqing had already vanished from sight.
Zhou Yan could only give a helpless, wry smile.
"You left so fast! No wonder I couldn't catch up with you earlier. But it's fine; I'll see you again tomorrow. For now, I'd better focus on training!"
With Yu Hengqing's answer, Zhou Yan's steps felt lighter than usual, and the burden on his shoulders seemed to have eased.
Back at Thunder-Fire Hall, Zhou Yan casually joined a group and continued training.
He had to work hard to improve his strength. Even though Yu Hengqing had promised to help him in the future, that would only treat the symptoms, not the root cause. His family's problems were still unresolved.
Back then, Zhou Yan's grandfather had served as the marshal of the Heaven Dou Empire. He had reached Soul Douluo and was deeply trusted by Xue Ye.
It was precisely thanks to that trust that the Zhou Family, a force that had migrated to the royal capital from outside, had gradually established itself there.
But one day, five years ago, everything changed.
His grandfather suddenly lost control of the lightning power that had built up inside him. It backfired, leaving him gravely wounded, and in the end, he succumbed to his injuries.
When the various forces in the royal capital saw that the Zhou Family had lost its pillar, they began thinking about dividing up its share of the pie.
After all, the pie in the royal capital was only so big. The more the Zhou Family got, the less there'd be for them!
Under all that pressure, his father broke through to Soul Saint, temporarily stabilizing the Zhou Family's position.
Only then did those wolves draw back their claws and bare teeth.
Of course, Yu Hengqing knew nothing about these matters, and Zhou Yan didn't want him to know.
Yu Hengqing returned to the sect and found Yu Yuanzhen, who had just finished handling the sect's affairs.
"Dad, do you know how to process Century-Old Purple Vein Ginseng? I want to take it to improve my cultivation speed!"
Yu Hengqing rarely hid anything from Yu Yuanzhen. He took out the Century-Old Purple Vein Ginseng and placed it in front of him.
Seeing the Purple Vein Ginseng Yu Hengqing had handed him, Yu Yuanzhen furrowed his brow, his expression turning serious.
"Century-Old Purple Vein Ginseng? How did you get this? And judging by its quality, it's one of the finest, too."
Knowing Yu Yuanzhen would ask, Yu Hengqing told him everything about his encounter with Dugu Yan that day.
"Interesting. That old poison's granddaughter actually did something like that!"
After hearing the whole story, Yu Yuanzhen looked with interest at the box on the table.
"Go meet her tomorrow. After all, you've already accepted the item; it wouldn't be right not to go."
"But remember, if you don't want to do something, you can simply refuse. Dugu Yan isn't the only one with a Titled Douluo backing her."
Watching Yu Yuanzhen, who was radiating authority, Yu Hengqing thought,
It's great having a dad who fiercely protects his own!
"As for the Purple Vein Ginseng, don't use it. Your Soul Power Level is still low. Taking it would only make your foundation unstable."
Yu Yuanzhen closed the wooden box, worried Yu Hengqing might chase a momentary boost at the cost of a shaky foundation.
"Don't worry, Dad. The Cangming Lightning from my God Trial can temper my Soul Power. Even if I ate the entire root of Purple Vein Ginseng, I'd be fine!"
Yu Hengqing understood Yu Yuanzhen's concerns and immediately explained the hidden function of the Cangming Lightning.
Hearing the words "Cangming Lightning," Yu Yuanzhen first froze, then recalled that Yu Hengqing had indeed told him about two God Trial rewards at the time.
But he had been more focused on "a three-level increase in Soul Power" and had overlooked the reward called "Cangming Lightning."
"I didn't expect the Cangming Lightning to have that effect. As expected of a God Trial reward! Since that's the case, I'll take care of this Purple Vein Ginseng. I'll call you when it's ready."
After learning of the Cangming Lightning's hidden function, Yu Yuanzhen picked up the Purple Vein Ginseng from the table and put it in his Storage Soul Tool.
Having achieved his goal, Yu Hengqing got up and went back to train. His cultivation was slow, but every little bit added up.
The next morning.
Yu Hengqing had just stepped down from the carriage when he saw Zhou Yan, who had been waiting for some time.
"Zhou Yan, good morning! I didn't expect you to get here so early!"
Yu Hengqing smiled and gave Zhou Yan a punch on the shoulder. Zhou Yan still hadn't gotten used to Yu Hengqing becoming his leader, and answered him stiffly.
"G-good morning, boss!"
Yu Hengqing hooked an arm around Zhou Yan's shoulder and said with a grin, "Zhou Yan, don't be so formal! 'Boss' sounds awkward. Just call me Hengqing!"
"Okay, boss—no, Hengqing!"
Zhou Yan stumbled a little as he changed his form of address from "boss" to "Hengqing."
After greeting him, Zhou Yan conscientiously took a jade box from his Storage Soul Tool.
"Hengqing, the Golden Lightning Pattern Fruit is in this box!"
Yu Hengqing didn't even look inside. He took the box straight from Zhou Yan and put it in his Storage Soul Tool.
Seeing Yu Hengqing accept the box without even looking, Zhou Yan asked, confused, "Aren't you going to check? What if there's no Golden Lightning Pattern Fruit inside?"
Yu Hengqing looked Zhou Yan in the eye and said, each word deliberate, "I trust you! So there's no need to check!"
At that, Zhou Yan, who had been somewhat nervous, finally relaxed. It felt good to have someone trust him.
"Okay, Zhou Yan. I'm going to class. See you at Thunder-Fire Hall at noon!"
Yu Hengqing checked his pocket watch and saw that Martial Soul Theory Class would start in half an hour, so he said goodbye to Zhou Yan.
"Sure, see you at noon!"
After watching Yu Hengqing leave, Zhou Yan headed for the classroom where he had Soul Beast Taxonomy.
After lunch, Yu Hengqing and Zhou Yan met at Thunder-Fire Hall as agreed.
"I'm only training until two today, then I have to leave. I've arranged to meet Dugu Yan at No. 3 Training Ground at three this afternoon."
Yu Hengqing told Zhou Yan as they walked.
Hearing this, Zhou Yan slowed his steps and asked softly, "Do you want me to go with you?"
Having studied at Heaven Dou Royal Academy for so long, Zhou Yan had naturally heard of Dugu Yan: the granddaughter of a Titled Douluo, a top student in the champion class, and a master of poison.
But Zhou Yan couldn't understand it. Yu Hengqing had only just started school—how had he already gotten into trouble with Dugu Yan?
Yu Hengqing waved him off at once.
"It's fine! Dugu Yan just wants me to help her train her combat skills. Don't worry; just focus on training at Thunder-Fire Hall."
Dugu Yan, a poison expert, wanted a One-Ring Soul Master like Yu Hengqing to help her train her combat skills?!
Hearing this, Zhou Yan felt a headache coming on. He didn't know whether Yu Hengqing was unaware of Dugu Yan's abilities or was simply charging headfirst into trouble.
"All right."
Thinking of Yu Hengqing as his leader, Zhou Yan didn't feel he could say much more.
Time passed quickly as they trained at Thunder-Fire Hall, and before long, it was time for Yu Hengqing to meet Dugu Yan.
"Zhou Yan, thanks for telling me about Dugu Yan's methods. But don't worry about me; I'll be right back!"
Yu Hengqing said calmly to Zhou Yan, who was worried about him.
Seeing that Yu Hengqing was still going, Zhou Yan said no more. He silently watched Yu Hengqing leave.
But not long after Yu Hengqing was gone, Zhou Yan didn't return to training at Thunder-Fire Hall. Instead, he left and headed toward the infirmary.
No. 3 Training Ground was some distance from Thunder-Fire Hall. By the time Yu Hengqing arrived, Dugu Yan had already been waiting there for quite a while.
"Junior, I thought you wouldn't come!"
"How could I? I took your things, so naturally I have to do what I promised, senior!"
Before you continue