Xu Family, Divided Powers

Star Crown?

Ye Xunhuan was somewhat surprised.

Wasn't this the inherited martial soul of the Star Luo Imperial Family ten thousand years later?

Suddenly, the way he looked at Xu Qingqing changed.

The Star Crown martial soul was a top-tier martial soul capable of both control and support. In terms of quality alone, it was not inferior even to the inherited martial souls of the Upper Three Sects.

The fact that the Star Crown could stand in the same tier as them showed just how terrifying it was.

In later generations, Douluo Continent and Sun Moon Continent collided, unleashing a protracted war.

The Star Luo Empire bore the brunt of it. After that battle, the Dai Family's imperial line suffered devastating casualties, and their bloodline dwindled.

The Dai Family could no longer hold on, but the Star Luo Empire could not be without a leader.

That was why they had no choice but to invite the reclusive Xu Family to take charge.

The imperial inherited martial soul also changed from the Evil-Eyed White Tiger to the Star Crown.

Xu Qingqing, the Xu Family.

Ye Xunhuan narrowed his eyes slightly.

He had not expected even a reclusive family of this caliber to send its descendants to study at Spirit Hall.

Did that mean he had a chance to use Xu Qingqing as a connection and win over the Xu Family?

Ye Xunhuan's thoughts drifted far away.

It was true that he had joined Spirit Hall, but that did not mean he would give up on building his own power.

How did that saying go again?

Just because you gave birth to me did not mean you were my father.

Just because you raised me did not mean I had to sell my life for you.

In the end, Spirit Hall still belonged to the Qian Family.

Before he had truly grown powerful, he was nothing more than a chess piece swaying with the wind.

He needed strength of his own.

With that in mind, the look Ye Xunhuan gave Xu Qingqing became increasingly fervent.

It was not that he had any thoughts about Xu Qingqing herself. He was not deranged enough to set his sights on an eight-year-old girl.

The Xu Family behind her was what Ye Xunhuan wanted to get in touch with.

But Xu Qingqing knew none of that.

All she knew was that a man who had seen her naked ten minutes ago was now staring at her with an intense look, his gaze carrying some inscrutable calculation.

That gave Xu Qingqing quite a fright.

Could this roommate of mine be some kind of pervert?

The more Xu Qingqing thought about it, the more frightened she became, cold sweat soaking her back.

"Um... I'm going to take a bath!" Xu Qingqing suddenly grabbed the canvas bag beside her pillow. "Don't peek!"

Bang! The bathroom door slammed shut.

Immediately afterward came the sound of the lock turning.

Only then did Ye Xunhuan realize he had been somewhat out of line just now.

He smiled awkwardly and sat back down on his bed.

The sound of running water came from the bathroom. Ye Xunhuan leaned against the headboard with his eyes closed, continuing to ponder the Xu Family.

Trying to force his way in definitely would not work. For a family like the Xu Family, what they hated most was someone approaching them with overly obvious intentions.

He would have to take it slowly.

First roommates, then classmates. They could talk about anything else afterward.

Ye Xunhuan made up his mind.

After the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the sound of water in the bathroom stopped.

A little while later, the door opened. Xu Qingqing came out wearing pink pajamas, her hair dripping wet and her small face flushed from the hot water.

She jumped onto her bed and sat cross-legged, drying her hair with a towel while secretly glancing at Ye Xunhuan.

Once she confirmed that he was no longer staring at her with that fervent gaze, she quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

He probably... isn't a pervert, right?

Maybe he's just slow to react?

Whatever. I'll keep watching him.

"Right." Ye Xunhuan took the initiative to speak, his tone casual. "Sorry about what happened earlier. To make it up to you, how about I treat you to a meal?"

Xu Qingqing's eyes lit up, and even her hands stopped moving. "The cafeteria?"

"Yeah. My treat."

"Sure!" Xu Qingqing immediately perked up. She jumped down from the bed and put on her shoes. "Let's go, let's go. I happen to be broke at the end of the month."

Ye Xunhuan stood, and the two walked out one after the other.

After leaving the dormitory building, they headed toward the cafeteria along the bluestone path.

In the distance, flashes from released soul skills still flickered across the training grounds from time to time.

They were really working themselves hard.

Xu Qingqing walked beside Ye Xunhuan. She only came up to his chest, and her two short legs had to move quickly just to keep up with his stride.

Ye Xunhuan noticed and deliberately slowed down.

Xu Qingqing did not thank him, but the corners of her lips curled upward slightly.

Then she did not stop talking.

"Did you know that support-system soul masters are scored differently from other soul masters in individual battles and soul beast battles?"

"How is it different?" Ye Xunhuan became interested. He had not considered that question before.

"For individual battles, support-system soul masters still draw lots and fight in elimination matches like everyone else, but the scoring standards are different."

"Other soul masters only get points if they win. Support-system soul masters get the base score as long as they can last three minutes under their opponent's attacks. Lasting five minutes earns full marks."

Ye Xunhuan nodded. That rule was fairly reasonable.

Support-system soul masters were not good at fighting to begin with. Being able to hold out that long against agility-attack and power-attack soul masters was already impressive.

"What about soul beast battles?"

"That's even simpler. Say the two of us team up. Without my support, you kill a thousand-year soul beast. With my support, you kill a two-thousand-year soul beast. Then the extra thousand years counts toward me. Of course, you get additional points too."

"So I'm working for you, then!" Ye Xunhuan joked.

"That's right!" Xu Qingqing's lips curved high.

"Then wouldn't you be in high demand at the academy?" Ye Xunhuan asked casually.

Xu Qingqing fell silent for a moment at those words.

Then, as if she had not heard him, she continued speaking on her own.

"The academy's power structure is pretty complicated too. On the surface, the Genius Class has no factions, but in reality, most students have secretly formed soul master teams. Each team is an independent force."

She counted on her fingers. "There are currently three strongest teams. The first is the Blazing Team. Its captain is Zhao Lie, whose martial soul is the Blazing Flame Lion. He's eleven and level twenty-five. He has five people under him, and they usually occupy the best training ground time slots."

After a pause, she added, "Zhao Lie could actually have graduated smoothly last year, but he deliberately held himself back so he could achieve a better ranking and have a chance to be taken away by an important figure."

Ye Xunhuan nodded slightly. That was perfectly normal.

There had even been top scorers in the college entrance exams in his previous life. Who would not want to go somewhere better if they had the ability?

"The second is called the Shadow Team. Its captain is a girl named Shen Qingyue. Her martial soul is the Shadow Cat. She's eleven and level twenty-four. There aren't many members, but every one of them is formidable."

"The third is the Ironwall Team. Its captain is Huyan Li, whose martial soul is the Diamond Mammoth. He's ten and level twenty-one. All five members of his team come from the Huyan Clan, and all of their martial souls are Diamond Mammoths."

The corner of Ye Xunhuan's mouth twitched slightly. Weren't they the background fodder for Tang San and the others in the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament?

Huyan Zhen really was filial enough to stuff every member of his clan into Spirit Hall.

"The teams compete with each other too—for training ground time, cultivation resources, and teammates. Anyway, the open and secret fighting is pretty intense."

Ye Xunhuan suddenly interrupted her.

"You haven't joined a team?"

The moment the words left his mouth, Xu Qingqing stopped talking. Her pace slowed, and even her spirits wilted.

That was the second time, Ye Xunhuan thought. She had reacted similarly when he said she would be in high demand.

Logically speaking, a powerful martial soul like the Star Crown should have been fought over by every major team.

The boosts the Star Crown could provide in group battles alone were immeasurable.

There was no reason Xu Qingqing would not be sought after.

"No." Her smile was forced as she quickened her pace. "We're at the cafeteria. Let's hurry inside!"

Ye Xunhuan watched her slightly hurried steps and did not press her further.

A Star Crown martial soul, eight years old, level eighteen, and a control-and-support soul master who was highly likely to break through to level twenty before this Champion Selection.

She should have been someone every major team was scrambling to recruit.

Yet she had not joined any team.

Either she did not want to.

Or there was some other reason.