First Meeting with Qian Gu Zhangting

The next morning, dawn had barely broken.

Leng Yaoyu's Black-Rank Mecha departed from the East Sea Spirit Pagoda in Eastsea City, gliding steadily into the clouds. Leng Yaoyu sat in the pilot's seat, adjusting the mecha's autopilot.

Ziyang leaned against the window, with Na'er seated beside him, curiosity in her eyes.

After an unknown amount of time, a vast city finally appeared on the horizon.

From high above, the buildings were packed together like matchboxes, linked by streets resembling gray threads.

At the center of the city stood a tower that pierced the clouds.

"We're finally here." Leng Yaoyu's voice came from the front. "That tower is the Spirit Pagoda Headquarters. This will be where you live from now on."

As she spoke, the mecha slowly descended and landed on a platform outside the city.

"Can't we land directly inside the city?" Ziyang asked in confusion.

"The entirety of Shrek City is a no-fly zone, so mechas can't fly in," Leng Yaoyu explained to them.

The moment they stepped off the mecha, an extended black sedan appeared before them. The driver got out and opened the door for them.

The three of them changed vehicles and entered the city. After passing through the towering gates, the buildings grew taller and denser, while streams of people flowed endlessly through the streets.

This was Shrek City, the city where the sun never set.

In theory, it was the safest city on the Douluo Continent. The headquarters of three of the continent's four major organizations—the Tang Sect, Shrek Academy, and Spirit Pagoda—were all located here.

But clearly, the safer a place was, the more dangerous it could be. For example, in a certain safe District 13, one could enter just by taking the stairs.

After traveling for quite a while, the three of them finally arrived before the tower that rose into the clouds.

Ziyang looked up at the tower. It was even larger than he had imagined. As expected of the richest organization on the Douluo Continent.

The Spirit Pagoda and I are destined for each other. The Qian Gu Family has no virtue; I shall uphold Heaven's will and set things right.

Upon entering the Spirit Pagoda, they found the lobby even larger than expected.

The dome was terrifyingly high, covered in murals of the Spirit Ice Douluo.

Ziyang knew the story depicted above very well. It was called the Sea God's Dog-Training Plan.

The moment they entered, they saw a middle-aged man in formal attire. A badge was pinned to his chest, glimmering faintly under the lights.

A teenager stood behind him. He looked sixteen or seventeen, already quite tall, with reasonably refined features.

When he saw Leng Yaoyu, the middle-aged man greeted her with familiar ease. "Sky Phoenix, it has been a long time."

"So it's you, Qian Gu Dongfeng."

Leng Yaoyu did not give him a pleasant look. She even seemed somewhat disdainful of him.

Qian Gu Dongfeng cursed Yun Ming once again in his heart. His gaze naturally passed over her and landed on Ziyang and Na'er.

He recognized one of them. The so-called genius from the East Sea Spirit Pagoda with an External Martial Soul.

Ziyang raised his eyes to look at Qian Gu Dongfeng, sizing him up as well. Then his gaze shifted to the youth who somewhat resembled Qian Gu Dongfeng.

Judging by his appearance, he should be Qian Gu Zhangting—the man who only became a Titled Douluo at twenty-eight, the Spring Dream Douluo, the supreme grandmaster of the Dream Path.

He should not have reached that age yet. His strength was probably already at the level of a Soul King or Soul Emperor.

Qian Gu Zhangting glanced at Ziyang and could not help saying, "You're the genius with an External Martial Soul and Innate Full Soul Power?"

"Hello. If there isn't a second person, then you must be talking about me." Ziyang was somewhat speechless. Why was Qian Gu Zhangting provoking him right from the start?

What if I want to break his Coiling Dragon Staff but don't have the strength to do it?

"An External Martial Soul is still an External Martial Soul. It can't even provide the most basic physical enhancement of a beast martial soul. It is ultimately nothing but a useless martial soul. That was true twenty thousand years ago, and it is still true twenty thousand years later."

Qian Gu Zhangting directly mocked and belittled him.

Ziyang clenched his fists, first cursing Yu Xiaogang in his heart for ruining his reputation. Then he stepped forward and threw a punch directly at Qian Gu Zhangting. "Is that so? Then can you break through to Titled Douluo before the age of twenty-eight?!"

Bang—

The terrifying force made even Qian Gu Zhangting, who instinctively bent over to block, feel his arms go numb.

Yet for some inexplicable reason, parts of his body that had clearly not been struck spasmed with pain. Still, he endured it with a blank expression.

That punch was powerful, but with Ziyang's current strength, it was impossible for him to knock Qian Gu Zhangting back. Even so, he recovered a little of his dignity.

Something else had happened as well, though he did not know it.

Qian Gu Dongfeng had not stopped Qian Gu Zhangting's rudeness just now. In his heart, an External Martial Soul was a useless martial soul, and a soul master was the greatest weakness of such a martial soul. Moreover, this era had Soul Spirits to assist in battle, making External Martial Souls even more insignificant.

But no one had told him that Ziyang possessed inborn divine strength.

"Zhangting, step back."

Qian Gu Dongfeng still needed to maintain appearances in front of Leng Yaoyu. He immediately tried to smooth things over. "My grandson spoke out of turn and was rude first. These are merely thoughtless words from juniors."

He took out a large Storage Soul Tool. "Let this serve as compensation."

Leng Yaoyu accepted it, but when she glanced at the Storage Soul Tool, her eyes were filled with disdain. Anyone with money could get their hands on something like this.

It was only useful for fooling children.

"Ziyang, Na'er. Let's go." Leng Yaoyu ignored Qian Gu Dongfeng's apology and did not bother speaking further with him. She directly led the two into the red high-speed elevator and left.

Watching Leng Yaoyu's unfriendly retreating figure, Qian Gu Dongfeng said to Qian Gu Zhangting, "Zhangting, you were too reckless today."

"Grandfather, I was only telling the truth. I was planning to give him a warning," Qian Gu Zhangting said, scratching his head. But there was something he did not say: when he received that punch, he had sensed that something was off.

"Since you have already become enemies with that brat named Ziyang today, you must handle that child yourself from now on." Qian Gu Dongfeng was helpless, but Qian Gu Zhangting was his grandson after all.

The only remaining problem was dealing with Ziyang. In his view, given his grandson's talent, that would be no problem at all.

He could not solve everything for his grandson. He could not possibly leave behind a shattered Spirit Pagoda, could he?

To forge iron, one had to be strong oneself.

Meanwhile, the elevator doors opened again, and Leng Yaoyu brought Ziyang and Na'er to her private floor.

"From now on, this will be your home." Leng Yaoyu introduced the place to them. "Starting tomorrow, the two of you will begin your formal lessons."

"In the mornings, you will study basic soul master knowledge and secondary profession courses. In the afternoons, you will undergo combat training, and at night, you will meditate and cultivate."

"Enjoy your last day of happiness."

At those words, Na'er's body stiffened. Have some conscience, have some conscience. What kind of person could survive this schedule?

Ziyang blinked and asked, "Teacher, do we have classes every day?"

"Of course it's six days of work and one day of rest. How could I possibly give you no time off at all?" Leng Yaoyu replied naturally.

Ziyang nodded and set himself a dream of seven days off every week. He wanted to create a world with nothing but holidays.

That was the ideal social system.

The outdated system of the Douluo Continent had to be changed.

But after today, Ziyang and Na'er's hellish lives were only just beginning.