Dugu Yan Comes Calling Again, Only to Catch Li Qinglian Bathing

Early the next morning.

The sky had only just begun to brighten.

Autumn sunlight, veiled in a faint golden haze, streamed through the window lattice into the room.

Several slender bamboo stalks in the courtyard swayed gently in the morning breeze, casting fragmented, shifting shadows.

Li Qinglian slowly opened his eyes. The golden-white point of light deep in his gaze flickered faintly as his pupils focused.

He sat cross-legged on the bed, the soul power around him gradually receding like the tide, while the surging strength in his meridians settled into calm.

He lowered his head to look at his hands, then slowly clenched his fists.

He had broken through.

A Level Forty-Two Soul Elder.

The cultivation speed of the Death Divine Tree's transformed form had always far surpassed that of ordinary people. Coupled with the Eight Spider Lances drawing energy from the earth and continuously feeding Source Power into his body day and night, this breakthrough had gone even more smoothly than he had expected.

With a thought, his back grew faintly warm.

The next instant, eight dark-purple spider lances burst from either side of his spine. They unfurled beneath the morning light like a pair of ferocious yet magnificent wings.

A cold purple sheen flowed over the surfaces of the spider lances, reflecting the light outside the window and casting eight long shadows across the wall.

They had now completely fused with Li Qinglian's bones and meridians. The tip of every spider lance was incomparably sharp; even a slight movement could easily pierce hard stone tiles.

"They've fully fused with my body. From here on, nurturing them will be a slow process. There's no rushing it."

Li Qinglian murmured to himself, sensing the peculiar feeling of the Eight Spider Lances being connected to his flesh and blood.

They were like eight extra fingers growing from his body—nimble, precise, and responsive to his will.

He gently activated the Eight Spider Lances, and all eight lances pierced the floor tiles beneath his feet.

A warm current of energy surged from deep within the earth along the spider lances and into his body. It was not overwhelming, but it flowed without end.

"I cultivated all night."

"I should wash up first."

Li Qinglian rose and stretched his body.

Then he took a bathtub out of the Dragon Abyss Ring.

"Even for the sake of my quality of life, I should find a way to speed up Soul Tool development."

Li Qinglian yawned.

Soul Tools were not used solely for attack and defense. There were also lighting Soul Tools, sound-amplifying Soul Tools, and all sorts of Soul Tools for special purposes.

Ten thousand years later, Huo Yuhao and the others even had showerheads when they bathed, with Soul Tools constantly regulating the water temperature. It could be said that the Soul Tool development level of the Peerless Tang Clan era was nearly comparable to the technological level of Li Qinglian's previous life when he had crossed over.

Now that was true comfort.

This was also an important reason why Li Qinglian was confident that he could definitely advance the development of Soul Tools.

It was simply a matter of transforming the electrical world of his previous life into the soul power world of this one. Most of the underlying logic could work here.

"I can make these things myself."

"I'll start by improving my daily life."

Li Qinglian soaked comfortably in the bathtub, warm water enveloping every inch of his skin.

He closed his eyes and rested his head against the edge of the tub, while all kinds of Soul Tool concepts continued turning through his mind.

Heating arrays, constant-temperature arrays, water circulation arrays...

They were not actually complicated. As long as the basic arrays were linked together, they could be achieved. So-called Soul Tool Arrays were just circuit diagrams, weren't they?

Even the Level-Nine Soul Tool Arrays required for Level-Nine Soul Tools in the Peerless Tang Clan era could never compare to the cutting-edge chips from his previous life. Level-Nine Soul Tool Arrays were handmade and could be carved with a carving knife. Could anyone try carving the nanometer-scale chips of his previous life with a carving knife?

"When I have some free time in the next few days, I need to draw up some designs and send them back to Spirit Hall for Nana."

"The Soul Guidance Research Institute can begin with these little gadgets."

"A complete Soul Tool bathroom solution—if it succeeds, it can definitely open up the market quickly. While generating profits, it can also cultivate a large number of lower-tier soul engineers."

"As long as there are enough lower-tier soul engineers, some geniuses are bound to emerge."

Li Qinglian felt that he had temporarily found a development path for the Soul Tools of this world. Taking the route of smart homes and smart living would definitely make Soul Tools famous in a short time.

As for combat Soul Tools, there was no need to rush for now.

Once Spirit Hall's geniuses realized how extraordinary Soul Tools were, they would naturally enter this field.

If the ancient and rigid behemoth that was Spirit Hall could successfully transform, then with Soul Tools, it could definitely extend Spirit Hall's life for tens of thousands more years.

Li Qinglian had been lost in thought.

Suddenly.

The door was violently pushed open.

"Li Qinglian! My grandfather is here—!"

Dugu Yan's voice was clear and urgent. Her hurried footsteps made it obvious that she had run all the way here, her dark-green hair flying in the morning breeze.

"Where are you? Come out quickly—my grandfather, he—"

She shouted as she pushed open the door to the main room.

Then.

The whole world fell silent.

Dugu Yan froze in the doorway. Her dark-green pupils slowly widened, while her cheeks visibly changed from pale to crimson, then from crimson to a deep red that seemed ready to bleed.

Before her, Li Qinglian sat completely naked in the bathtub. The hot water reached his chest, and several unknown flower petals floated upon the surface.

His black hair was soaked and clung to his forehead. Droplets slid down his jaw, gleaming softly beneath the morning sunlight.

Their eyes met.

The air fell silent for a moment.

It felt as though something had slammed into Dugu Yan's mind, making it buzz as it exploded.

She saw it.

She saw everything.

Although the water concealed the most crucial part, there were still those broad shoulders, distinct collarbones, and the trails left behind as water droplets slid down his chest...

"You—!"

"Pervert!"

"Why aren't you wearing clothes?! Why are you taking a bath in broad daylight?!"

Dugu Yan's shriek nearly lifted the roof off the house.

She covered her eyes tightly with both hands, but the blush visible through her fingers exposed just how fast her heart was racing.

"I'm bathing in my own room. Why would I need to wear clothes? Did you knock before barging in?"

"You're seriously unbelievable."

"You call me a pervert, but you're the pervert here, aren't you? Why are you peeking at me through your fingers?"

Li Qinglian looked utterly speechless.

How was this any different from those women in his previous life who ran into the men's restroom because the women's restroom was full, then called the men perverts?

"You!"

"I..."

Dugu Yan's face burned as her entire mind turned to chaos.

She had not expected Li Qinglian to be so blunt.

Couldn't he have put it more tactfully? He had actually pointed out that she was peeking at him.

What an unbelievably dense man!

Dugu Yan hurriedly ran out of the room.

Even after reaching the outside, she could not stop the image of Li Qinglian in the bathtub from surfacing in her mind.

Why was Li Qinglian's thing so big and ugly?

Dugu Yan instinctively looked at her exposed arm and compared them.

The moment she did, Dugu Yan froze again.