Joining the Royal Dou Team

Clap, clap, clap! Qin Ming's applause broke the silence of the training ground.

This genius teacher, who had entered the Soul King realm at the young age of thirty, looked at Zhao Ming with undisguised admiration in his eyes.

He slowly stepped forward, a gentle smile on his face, though his tone carried heartfelt astonishment. "Zhao Ming, you're very impressive. Not only do you have exceptional talent for cultivation, but your talent in combat is equally remarkable."

"To be honest, I originally thought that since your first two Soul Rings were both enhancement-type, it would affect your combat strength in the early stages. After all, without active offensive soul skills, you would indeed suffer quite a bit in the beginning as a Soul Master. Now, it seems I underestimated you."

Qin Ming was not merely being polite. As the leader of the Royal Dou Team, he had seen no shortage of geniuses, but there were truly very few like Zhao Ming, who could apply combat techniques to such a degree at only seven and a half years old.

What surprised him even more was the composure and maturity Zhao Ming displayed in battle. That was not something talent alone could explain, but a fighting instinct that could only settle in after being tempered through countless real battles.

Where could a seven-year-old child have gained such combat experience? The question lingered in Qin Ming's mind for a moment before he quickly found the answer.

Hearing this, the sharpness on Zhao Ming's face instantly faded, replaced by a bashful smile.

He put away the Steel Whip, scratched his head somewhat sheepishly, and began talking nonsense in a slightly childish tone. "Thank you for the praise, Teacher Qin. Actually, I wasn't this good at first. It was the retired soldiers in His Highness the Crown Prince's residence who kept teaching me how to fight."

"They said I was young and my Soul Power was low. If I didn't even know how to fight, I'd definitely suffer if I ran into bad people in the future."

The moment he said this, everyone present wore looks of sudden realization.

The members of the Royal Dou Team were either direct descendants of great clans or the offspring of Titled Douluo. Their breadth of knowledge and experience far surpassed that of ordinary Soul Masters.

As soon as they heard Zhao Ming's explanation, they immediately understood why this youth of commoner birth possessed such formidable practical combat ability.

The friction between the borders of the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire had never truly ceased. Which of those veterans who had retired from the battlefield had not crawled out from mountains of corpses and seas of blood?

The fighting techniques they had learned on the battlefield contained no flashy flourishes. Every move and stance existed to take an enemy's life in the shortest possible time.

If such soldiers had no real ability, they would have died on the battlefield long before reaching the day of their retirement.

By learning fighting techniques from them, Zhao Ming had effectively begun receiving the purest form of practical combat training from the age of six. It would have been strange if his combat ability were not strong.

More importantly, those retired veterans were not people one could recruit casually.

Truly capable battlefield veterans were either eagerly recruited by the major nobles or chose to return home and retire. The fact that the Crown Prince's Palace could gather them together and make them willingly teach a child was itself proof of His Highness the Crown Prince's influence and boldness.

"Worthy indeed of His Highness the Crown Prince. He truly possesses remarkable foresight." A cool female voice rang out. The speaker was Ye Lingling.

The heir of the Nine-Hearted Begonia family was usually quiet, always carrying an indifferent and distant air, yet her tone now held sincere admiration.

The Nine-Hearted Begonia family had practiced medicine for generations and maintained connections with all the major powers of the Heaven Dou Empire. Having been influenced by what she saw and heard since childhood, Ye Lingling was no stranger to the open and hidden struggles of the imperial court.

In her view, the fact that Crown Prince Xue Qinghe had already begun cultivating talent for the empire's next generation while everyone else had yet to notice showed that his vision and insight truly surpassed those of ordinary people.

Dugu Yan stood to one side and nodded in considerable agreement.

To be fair, Dugu Yan loathed that wastrel Xue Beng to the extreme.

That fellow relied on his status as a prince to run rampant through Heaven Dou City, committing countless acts of bullying men and women alike. Yet every time, Prince Xue Xing cleaned up after him, allowing him to remain at large to this day.

If not for the enormous favor her grandfather Dugu Bo owed Prince Xue Xing in his early years, and Xue Xing's close relationship with Xue Beng, Dugu Yan would have openly declared her support for Xue Qinghe long ago.

In her eyes, Xue Qinghe was the only suitable choice for Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire. He was refined and courteous, valued worthy talent, handled state affairs in perfect order, and enjoyed soaring popularity among the common people.

Only such an heir apparent was the true hope for the Heaven Dou Empire's future.

As for what her grandfather Dugu Bo had privately told her—"Xue Qinghe appears kind and amiable, but he is actually ruthless. For the position of Crown Prince, he even dared to kill his own two brothers"—Dugu Yan did not feel the slightest aversion after hearing it.

Instead, she found it perfectly natural.

That was the throne! The supreme seat of the Heaven Dou Empire, the ruler of vast lands. Was it not entirely normal to kill two brothers for the throne?

Throughout history, which succession to the throne had not been accompanied by rivers of blood?

The fact that Xue Qinghe had cleanly eliminated two rivals only proved that he possessed courage and skill, and that he had the makings of a qualified emperor.

Of course, Dugu Yan had never revealed such thoughts to anyone.

Her grandfather Dugu Bo stood on Prince Xue Xing's side, and Prince Xue Xing had treated him with great respect over the years. As his granddaughter, she would never undermine her own grandfather.

This stance forced her to maintain a certain sense of distance when facing Zhao Ming, a child from the Crown Prince's Palace.

Thus, when everyone else stepped forward one after another to welcome Zhao Ming into the Royal Dou Team, Dugu Yan also offered a few polite words, but her attitude was clearly colder than the others'.

She merely nodded, said, "Welcome aboard," then stepped back to the side. With her arms crossed over her chest, she quietly scrutinized the youth in whom His Highness the Crown Prince had placed such high hopes.

In stark contrast to Dugu Yan's indifference was Ye Lingling's attitude.

The heir of the Nine-Hearted Begonia family displayed undisguised curiosity toward Zhao Ming.

Among the Royal Dou Team's current eight members, the oldest was their captain, Yu Tianheng, who was thirteen this year. He looked like a young man of eighteen or nineteen because absorbing Soul Rings accelerated physical development, making a Soul Master's apparent age far older than their actual age.

Dugu Yan was twelve. The Shi Mo brothers, Yu Feng, and Osler were all eleven and a half, while Ye Lingling had only recently celebrated her ninth birthday.

Before this, she had always been the youngest member of the team. Although everyone took good care of her, the age difference was there, and there was still some distance between them.

But now, Zhao Ming had arrived, more than a year younger than she was.

A child not yet eight years old had already reached level twenty-two Soul Power, and he had just defeated Captain Yu Tianheng in a sparring match—a crushing victory, no less.

Even if Yu Tianheng had been somewhat overconfident, a win was still a win.