It's You, Old Chrysanthemum!

Xu Huxiao calmly wiped the tea from his face and repeated himself seriously.

"Father, I want to take Spirit Hall's Holy Maiden, Bibi Dong, as my master. I hope you can help me."

"Why?"

Xu Bayan frowned as he looked at his son. Take Bibi Dong as his master?

Why can't I keep up with this brat's train of thought?

Bibi Dong was no ordinary Soul Master—cruel, vicious, like a venomous snake ready to bare its fangs at any moment. That was Xu Bayan's impression of her.

A person like that only ever had herself and an unfathomable hatred in her heart. She was hardly suited to be a good teacher.

Without a reasonable explanation, Xu Bayan would never let his son become Bibi Dong's disciple.

Just as Xu Bayan waited for his son's explanation, Xu Huxiao dropped another bombshell.

"Because, like the Holy Maiden, I have Twin Martial Souls."

Cough, cough—!!!

This time, Xu Bayan did not spit out his tea. He choked on it instead.

"What did you say?! Twin Martial Souls?!!"

"Huxiao, do you know what Twin Martial Souls are? Just because you have two arms doesn't mean you have Twin Martial Souls. Your Platinum Dragon-Patterned Arms may be two arms, but they only count as one Martial Soul."

"You scared the hell out of me. Twin Martial Souls are a legendary talent that appears only once in a hundred years."

"Son, your Twin Arms Martial Soul is already quite good. Just cultivate steadily and stop thinking about all that nonsense."

"Besides, your father is a top-tier Titled Douluo. Though my level has dropped slightly now, teaching you is no problem."

Xu Bayan truly had been startled at first, but then an idea struck him, and he understood the reason behind this "Twin Martial Souls" claim.

Huxiao must have read about Twin Martial Souls in some biography somewhere and thought that having two arms meant he had Twin Martial Souls.

"Haha, you little brat really are adorably stupid. Do you understand now—"

"Holy shit!!"

"My fucking grandmother's leg! What is going on with you, brat?!"

Xu Bayan's face froze halfway through his laughter. His mouth fell open, and he could not hide his shock.

Because a berserk surge of Soul Power erupted from his son's body, and a terrifying green shadow appeared behind Xu Huxiao.

"A Martial Soul?!"

"Damn it! You really do have Twin Martial Souls!!"

Xu Bayan hurried over to Xu Huxiao, grabbed his hand, and sensed it. He immediately understood.

This really was a Martial Soul!

For a moment.

Father and son stared wide-eyed at each other, and the study was so quiet that a pin drop could be heard.

But soon, Xu Bayan strode to the door, looked around, and made sure no one was nearby.

Then Xu Bayan turned to his exceedingly calm son and said, "You silly brat, enough. Hurry up and put your Martial Soul away!"

"Oh."

Xu Huxiao did as he was told and withdrew the Hulk Martial Soul.

Besides the Hulk, he also possessed the spiritual-type Monster Shrek Martial Soul, which was born with nine white Soul Rings and could control Soul Beasts by bestowing white Soul Rings upon them.

"Father, do you believe me now? I've read the records. When Twin Martial Souls reach the later stages of cultivation and Soul Rings are added to the second Martial Soul, Martial Soul conflicts may occur, or the body may be unable to withstand the Soul Ring's power and explode."

"Either situation is extremely dangerous for a Soul Master."

"The Holy Maiden has already revealed that she has Twin Martial Souls. I think she must have a way to resolve the cultivation problems of Twin Martial Souls."

"Even if she doesn't, the Holy Maiden will surely find a way. In the future, I will definitely need to solve the problem of adding Soul Rings to my second Martial Soul."

"Therefore, taking the Holy Maiden as my master is preparing for the future. It is very necessary."

Revealing his Twin Martial Souls to his father had been part of Xu Huxiao's plan all along, because only this could persuade his father to help him.

As for whether revealing the secret of his Twin Martial Souls to his father carried any risks.

Xu Huxiao glanced at his father's steel prosthetic left leg. Others might harbor ill intentions toward him, but Xu Bayan would not.

He could even predict what his father's first words would be after recovering from the shock.

Of course Xu Bayan would not. After the initial shock passed, he looked at his son, and the smile on his face grew wider and wider.

"Brat, as expected of my son!"

Sure enough.

I knew it...

Xu Huxiao could not help but grumble inwardly.

But soon, Xu Bayan returned to a solemn expression and asked:

"Son, you haven't told anyone else about your Twin Martial Souls, have you?"

"No."

"Good. Huxiao, remember this: before you become a powerful Soul Master, do not tell anyone about your Twin Martial Souls. Also, do not add any Soul Rings to your other Martial Soul."

"Mm-hmm, I understand."

Next, Xu Bayan explained the cultivation advantages of Twin Martial Souls and the general path of cultivation to Xu Huxiao.

Xu Huxiao blinked and put on an earnest expression as though he were listening intently.

But inwardly, he was distracted.

Because Xu Huxiao already knew all of this. In fact, he knew even more than his old man about the cultivation arrangements for Twin Martial Souls.

Taking Bibi Dong as his master was only to ensure that this current killing God would escort him later, allowing him to obtain the Slaughter Domain in Slaughter City.

It was not to solve any cultivation problem involving Twin Martial Souls.

After Xu Bayan finished speaking, he suddenly recalled something and asked:

"Oh, right, son, what was your second Martial Soul again? It doesn't look like my Blood Demon Raging Bear King."

Xu Huxiao answered honestly, "I call it Hulk, a mutated Hulk Martial Soul. I can only sense that it is a Martial Soul far stronger than my Twin Arms, but for now, I cannot control it as I please."

"Does this Hulk Martial Soul also follow the strength-attack path?"

"Yes."

Xu Huxiao had not lied about the Hulk Martial Soul. At present, he truly could not control it as perfectly as his Twin Arms Martial Soul.

Because once he entered the possession state, he felt a chaotic and powerful fury fill his mind.

It constantly conveyed berserk urges to destroy and wreck everything.

After possession, he could only barely determine the target of his attacks and could not fully control his movements.

Everything was driven entirely by instinct.

Though he could not control it freely, because Hulk was his awakened Martial Soul, his mind would not be overwhelmed by rage to the point of forming another personality.

The Hulk Martial Soul was extremely powerful. Xu Huxiao had already decided that while training in martial arts, he would gradually seek a way to completely master this Martial Soul.

He was confident that he could master this powerful Martial Soul power.

For now, however, he first needed to find a way to become Bibi Dong's disciple.

After asking several questions related to Martial Souls, Xu Bayan began pacing and thinking with a furrowed brow.

There was no doubt that his son had Twin Martial Souls. Taking another Titled Douluo with Twin Martial Souls as his master truly was necessary.

After all, he had read records about the cultivation conflicts that arose in the later stages of Twin Martial Souls and knew about them.

At present, no Soul Master with Twin Martial Souls had been able to perfectly resolve this cultivation problem, yet his son would certainly encounter it in the future.

Therefore.

"Preparing for the future—well said, and thoroughly considered. As expected of my son, hehe~"

"Then, about taking a master?"

"Don't worry! Leave the matter of finding you a master to me. Your father will think of a way."

"Thank you, Father."

"Silly brat, why are you being polite with your old man? Play for a while longer, then go to sleep. I guarantee that before you enroll, I'll make sure you take this master successfully."

"But remember this as well: even if you do become her disciple, don't tell your teacher Bibi Dong about your Twin Martial Souls yet. It won't be too late once you have a certain level of strength."

"Understood."

Watching his son leave the study happily, Xu Bayan clasped his hands behind his back and paced as he thought.

He definitely could not be the one to bring up the matter of taking a master. The deal involving the Soul Bone in his left leg had already used up that favor.

Then who should he ask?

It had to be an Elder with influence, preferably one whom Bibi Dong valued and needed something from.

Names flashed through his mind one after another, only to be ruled out one by one...

Then, a three-character name appeared in Xu Bayan's mind.

Smack!

Xu Bayan slapped his hand, and a smile appeared on his face.

He knew who to find!

Chrysanthemum Pass!

Pope Qian Xunji was seriously injured now, and Spirit Hall was in the midst of undercurrents. The Holy Maiden Bibi Dong would surely seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to murder her master and seize his position.

Among the Elders, Chrysanthemum and Ghost were clearly the strongest. The main reason was that the Martial Soul Fusion Skill of those two was simply too monstrous.

Therefore, if Chrysanthemum Pass brought up the matter of taking a master, there was a ninety-nine percent chance it would succeed.

However, whether Bibi Dong could successfully murder her master and seize his position remained unknown.

But that was not a major problem. It was only taking a master, so there would not be too much entanglement. More importantly, the Lightning Ferret opposing the Xu Family was dead, Lei Dao was seriously injured, and She Long and Ci Xue had also been sent to Heaven Dou City.

Even if those two were here, Xu Bayan no longer feared them.

They were merely two fence-sitters.

So, taking a master was possible. It was very safe.

"It's decided, then—you, Old Chrysanthemum. I happen to have a thousand-year Tianshan treasure in my possession—a Seven-Colored Snow Lotus. With how much that old fellow loves flowers, it should be easy to handle him, hehe."

The thousand-year Seven-Colored Snow Lotus in Xu Bayan's possession was no ordinary item. It truly deserved the title of a Tianshan treasure.

Not only was the Seven-Colored Snow Lotus beautiful and exquisite, crystal-clear and rarely seen, but more importantly, if a Soul Master with a plant-type Martial Soul consumed this treasure, their plant Martial Soul would have a certain chance of evolving.

Even if it failed to evolve, eating this snow lotus would still bring immense benefits to plant-type Soul Masters. It could raise their Soul Power, and this effect worked on all plant-type Soul Masters below level ninety-five.

As an Elder, Yue Guan had not broken through level ninety-five, so this snow lotus would be useful to him as well.

The next day.

Xu Bayan left early in the morning with a gift box and did not return until noon.

Xu Huxiao noticed that his father returned empty-handed. The gift had clearly been delivered, and things seemed to have gone smoothly.

Sure enough, that evening, a family servant came with word that Chrysanthemum Douluo had invited Xu Bayan to his residence for a conversation.

"Hehe, Yue Guan, that old brat, is reliable after all. He handled it so quickly. Come on, son, we're going to take you to meet your master."

A smile appeared on Xu Bayan's face as he pulled Xu Huxiao into the carriage. Their destination was the Yue Residence in the northern district.

Xu Huxiao's heart settled completely. As long as he successfully became Bibi Dong's disciple, then with his abilities, securing a trial slot in Slaughter City in the future would be effortless.

Thus, he had taken another small step toward becoming a God.

A small step every day, and Godhood would sooner or later be in the palm of his hand.