Xue Qinghe's Goodwill, Employee Benefits

Qi Dao cupped his hands in salute, neither servile nor overbearing.

"Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Prince!"

Xue Qinghe waved amiably. "No need for such formalities."

"Sit first. I have been waiting for you for quite some time, little brother."

With that, she raised a hand in invitation.

After the two sat down in turn, Xue Qinghe smiled. "I heard that you traveled a great distance to pledge yourself to me, little brother. I am truly moved!"

Qi Dao said mildly, "It only shows that Your Highness's wisdom and virtue have spread far and wide. Even while I was in Notting City, I had heard of Your Highness's reputation."

At this, a pleased look appeared on Xue Qinghe's face.

Qi Dao's decision to join her proved that the image of a virtuous ruler she had carefully cultivated over the years had been quite effective.

The Heaven Dou Empire?

Hmph, the entire situation was firmly under her control!

Xue Qinghe felt smug inside, but her expression remained calm as she shifted the topic to Qi Dao.

She asked, "Little brother, Marquis Mei Luo's letter of recommendation stated that although you possess only half a level of innate Soul Power, you relied on your extraordinary talent to reach level twenty at the age of eleven."

"Is this true?"

"Or is there some other misunderstanding involved?"

Xue Qinghe was giving Qi Dao an out.

When she had received Mei Luo's letter of recommendation, she had nearly thought that Mei Luo was making a fool of her.

Half a level of innate Soul Power, yet reaching level twenty at eleven years old.

How could those words possibly form a sentence?

It was simply absurd.

If she had not known that Mei Luo, a marquis, would never dare mock her,

and if not for her reputation for treating worthy people with respect, she would never have decided to meet this fellow who possessed half a level of innate Soul Power yet had reached level twenty at eleven.

She wanted to see whether he was truly a peerless genius or merely someone chasing fame and pretending to be mysterious.

Yet after seeing Qi Dao, Xue Qinghe instead began to have doubts.

Perhaps there was some other reason behind this, which was why Marquis Mei Luo had written false information in his letter of recommendation.

It could only be said that Qi Dao's first impression had been genuinely good. He did not seem like someone false or pretentious at all.

After all, that bearing could not be faked!

Xue Qinghe was extremely confident in her ability to judge people.

However, after listening, Qi Dao shook his head. "I do indeed possess only half a level of innate Soul Power. Everyone at my academy knows this."

Of course, some people did not believe it!

For example, Yu Xiaogang!

Xue Qinghe froze.

Could there truly be a Soul Master in this world with half a level of innate Soul Power who could reach level twenty at the age of eleven?

If Qi Dao was lying, his expression was simply too sincere.

Besides, such a matter would not withstand investigation.

In the end, Xue Qinghe still chose to believe him, though she remained curious. "Little brother, may I see your Martial Soul?"

Qi Dao drew Peerless from his waist.

"You wear your Martial Soul on your body?"

Xue Qinghe's face was full of astonishment.

What Tool Soul Master would wear their Martial Soul on them at all times?

Qi Dao explained, "This is my cultivation method!"

After saying that, he did not forget to add, "Of course, this depends on talent. I do not recommend that others imitate it."

At Notting Academy, some people had guessed that Qi Dao's rapid cultivation was related to his carrying his Martial Soul with him, so they scrambled to imitate him. It had even started a trend for a time.

The result?

Not only did it constantly consume Soul Power, it did not help cultivation in the slightest.

Xue Qinghe looked at him strangely. "Little brother's cultivation method is certainly unusual."

She had previously thought the sword at Qi Dao's waist was merely an ornament. Who would have thought it was actually his Martial Soul?

How ridiculous!

She then continued examining the Peerless Sword in Qi Dao's hand.

The blade was long and slender, its edge gleaming with cold light. A layer of crack-like patterns on its surface added a touch of beauty to it.

Xue Qinghe frowned.

"Little brother, I recall Marquis Mei Luo's letter of recommendation saying that your Martial Soul was an Iron Sword Martial Soul with a malignant mutation. But this sword does not look like a Martial Soul with a malignant mutation!"

Qi Dao smiled faintly. "Does Your Highness not know that after absorbing Soul Rings, Martial Souls evolve to varying degrees?"

On the Douluo Continent, every time a Soul Master absorbed a Soul Ring, their Martial Soul evolved once.

Even the most ordinary weapon could evolve into an unmatched divine weapon as long as its owner cultivated to the rank of Title Douluo.

Qi Dao stroked the patterns on the blade and continued, "These patterns used to be cracks. Later, I hunted a hundred-year Ironclad Turtle and used its metallic properties to repair the cracks in the blade. That is how it came to look as it does now."

Of course, there was another major reason.

Qi Dao's first Soul Ring had exceeded the normal age limit for a first Soul Ring. Otherwise, the restoration of the blade would not have been so effective.

Upon hearing this, Xue Qinghe completely believed Qi Dao's explanation.

"So that is how it is!"

She then said apologetically, "Little brother, I must apologize for doubting you just now."

"To be honest, before meeting you, I had always believed that all the information about you in Marquis Mei Luo's letter of recommendation was fabricated."

Qi Dao smiled calmly.

"That is only natural!"

Qi Dao's generosity made Xue Qinghe feel even more guilty. After some thought, she beckoned someone over and whispered several instructions.

Not long afterward, the person came running over from afar carrying an exquisite box.

Xue Qinghe accepted the box and opened it.

Inside lay a deep blue ring.

With a smile, Xue Qinghe pushed the box toward Qi Dao. "Little brother, please accept this as compensation for my doubts."

Qi Dao glanced at it. "This is a Soul Tool, isn't it?"

"Your Highness is certainly generous!"

Xue Qinghe smiled. "Little brother has a good eye. This Soul Tool is called the Deep Blue Ring, and it contains nine cubic meters of space."

A Soul Tool with nine cubic meters of storage space was already extremely valuable.

Tang San's Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges had a total of twenty-four cubic meters of space, and Yu Xiaogang had praised it as an invaluable treasure beyond price.

Clearly, this was not merely compensation. It was also Xue Qinghe's gesture of goodwill.

Although Xue Qinghe did not know how Qi Dao had managed to possess half a level of innate Soul Power yet break through to level twenty at eleven,

it was undoubtedly a miracle!

"I will accept Your Highness's sincerity."

Qi Dao did not stand on ceremony. After taking the box, he removed the ring and casually put it on his hand.

Never mind that it was Xue Qinghe's compensation. Even if it were not, he would still accept it with a clear conscience.

Nonsense, he had already pledged himself to Xue Qinghe. What was wrong with accepting a few benefits?

Afterward, the two continued talking for a while.

Most of the time, Xue Qinghe was displaying her respectful treatment of talented people to Qi Dao, while also handing out genuine employee benefits in gold and silver.

First, fifty thousand gold soul coins as pocket money, then a luxurious house in a prime central district of Heaven Dou City.

Finally, she said, "Little brother, since you have already reached level twenty, why wait for another day? Today, I will send someone to take you to Sunset Forest to hunt a Soul Ring."

Sunset Forest was located a hundred li east of Heaven Dou City, so traveling there from Heaven Dou City to hunt Soul Rings was naturally extremely convenient.

Qi Dao nodded. "Then I shall trouble Your Highness."

Xue Qinghe acted quickly and immediately arranged for an expert to accompany Qi Dao.

Of course, it was not Snake Lance Douluo and Pufferfish Douluo, the two who secretly protected her in the original story.

Unless she had gone mad, she would never expose those two trump cards before Qi Dao.

Still, even though this person was neither Snake Lance nor Pufferfish, he was a Soul Emperor.

As for whether he was a Soul Emperor arranged by Spirit Hall, Qi Dao did not care.

As long as he could help him hunt a Soul Ring, what did it matter whose side he was on?