"What's your name?"
"How old are you now?"
"Where do you live?"
"Do you have any other relatives?"
"What Martial Soul did you awaken?"
"What level is your Soul Power now?"
After Gao Lu agreed to travel with them, Qian Renxue approached Su Chen, her eyes gleaming with interest as she began an interrogation that felt like a household registration check.
Su Chen thought to himself, If it's a blessing, it won't be a disaster; if it's a disaster, there's no escaping it.
Meeting Qian Renxue did not seem entirely bad for him.
His first Soul Ring had come from an eight-hundred-year Blazing Pheasant. His second Soul Ring needed to be at least two thousand years old.
With a Soul Ring configuration that defied common sense, without anyone powerful to support him, he could easily be captured by certain major factions and studied.
He had to dispel Qian Renxue's suspicions, truly earn her trust, and make her willingly become his protector.
What came next depended on Su Chen's "performance"!
As a seven-year-old child, he naturally had to make full use of the advantages of being young!
Faced with the questioning, Su Chen's little face showed caution. Instead of answering, he looked to Gao Lu for help.
Under the watchful stares of the two golden-armored guards, Gao Lu was so nervous that he walked with the same hand and foot forward, cold sweat pouring down his back.
When Su Chen asked him for help, he could only smile bitterly and nod, signaling for Su Chen to answer truthfully.
Su Chen's expression was perfectly controlled. He did not answer too eagerly and still maintained a degree of wariness.
"My name is Su Chen. I'm seven this year."
"My Martial Soul... the Battle Soul Grandmaster who awakened it for me said it was a Three-Legged Fire Crow. This time, I want to absorb my second Soul Ring."
He had not said much, but the information revealed was substantial.
Qian Renxue and the two golden-armored guards all showed looks of shock.
A twenty-level Quasi-Soul Grandmaster at seven years old!
What did that mean?
It meant Su Chen definitely possessed Innate Full Soul Power, and he had raised his Soul Power by nine levels in just over a year!
Even within Spirit Hall, such a case was unprecedented!
Qian Renxue's gaze became fervent. It was fate! She had come to hunt her fifth Soul Ring and had actually encountered such a genius.
What was the saying about geniuses?
First come, first served!
This genius had to come home with her.
Su Chen's tense little face, filled with vigilance, further convinced Qian Renxue that this had been an accidental encounter.
Not some carefully orchestrated approach.
Qian Renxue had already made up her mind. When they left the Star Dou Great Forest, she would definitely take this genius with her.
The expression on her pretty face grew gentler, even taking on the maternal glow of someone coaxing a child.
"Su Chen... I'll call you Xiao Chen from now on."
"Xiao Chen, my name is Qian Renxue. You can call me Sister Xue'er. The two guards behind me are called She Long and Ci Xue. You can call them Uncle."
"We're from Spirit Hall, and we're absolutely not bad people. I came here to hunt my fifth Soul Ring, so I can help you obtain your second Soul Ring as well."
Su Chen was delighted inwardly. This was certainly a good thing.
On Douluo Continent, not many people could enjoy having two Titled Douluo hunt their second Soul Ring for them.
He would need to choose the target for his second Soul Ring carefully.
Though that was what he thought inside, outwardly, he showed resistance as though keeping them at arm's length.
Even Liu Bei had visited Zhuge Liang's cottage three times.
If he let Qian Renxue have him too easily, she would never cherish him. He had to make her invest enough sunk cost.
Su Chen's delicate brows knitted together as he kept edging closer to Gao Lu.
"I don't even know you. Why are you being so nice to me? What exactly do you want?"
Like a mother hen protecting her chick, Gao Lu tightly shielded Su Chen behind him. He regretted coming to the Star Dou Great Forest more than ever.
This was Nuoding Academy's genius, yet this Qian Renxue, who claimed to be from Spirit Hall, clearly wanted to take Su Chen away.
"My lords, I am the headmaster of Nuoding Academy, and this is a student of Nuoding Academy. He's still young, only seven. Let him study at Nuoding Academy for a few more years."
She Long and Ci Xue surrounded the pair from either side, both folding their arms with confident smiles. Qian Renxue stood before Su Chen and Gao Lu.
The scene looked rather like a pair of thugs forcibly abducting a young woman.
The more Su Chen resisted, the more excited Qian Renxue became. It felt as though a kitten were constantly scratching at her heart. She stared at Su Chen with blazing eyes. If she waited another five years for a genius like this, it would be too late.
Leaving aside Su Chen's top-tier cultivation talent, Qian Renxue would never let him go merely because his Martial Soul could resonate with hers.
Qian Renxue took a deep breath and revealed her most charming, warm smile.
"Headmaster, the fact that you personally brought Xiao Chen out to hunt a Soul Ring shows that you are sincerely nurturing him."
"Search your conscience. With Xiao Chen's talent, can he truly receive the best training at a junior Soul Master Academy?"
"If you truly want what is best for him, then you must learn to let go. Don't become a burden holding him back from a better future."
Her words made Gao Lu lower his head. With Su Chen's talent, great sects and powerful clans would all be fighting to recruit him.
Nuoding Academy truly was holding Su Chen back.
"Ah..."
Joy flashed through Qian Renxue's eyes before she turned to Su Chen.
"Xiao Chen, your headmaster is weak. What kind of good second Soul Ring could he possibly help you hunt?"
"Your Uncle Snake Lance and Uncle Ci Xue are both Titled Douluo. Whatever second Soul Ring you want, they can get it for you."
"Even your third, fourth, and fifth Soul Rings can be left to them. We bear you no ill will. We only want to cultivate you better and fully bring out your talent."
Su Chen appropriately showed shock and hesitation.
"Titled Douluo!"
Gao Lu was stunned as well. These two golden-armored guards were actually both Titled Douluo.
If Titled Douluo could serve as her guards, then what kind of background did Qian Renxue possess?
Gao Lu did not dare think any further.
It was not something a mere Soul Ancestor like him could investigate.
"Xiao Chen, this lady is right. Nuoding Academy cannot provide you with the best training."
"My lady, then Xiao Chen's second Soul Ring will be entrusted to you. I am weak and only dared to bring Xiao Chen around the outer region. With you here, we can venture deeper."
Qian Renxue was overjoyed. Bringing such a genius under her command was absolutely something worth celebrating.
"Good. We'll go to the mixed region and select the best second Soul Ring for Xiao Chen."
Without realizing it, Qian Renxue had already taken the bait completely.
She had proactively dispatched two Titled Douluo to select the most suitable second Soul Ring for Su Chen.
They ventured deeper into the Star Dou Great Forest, moving from the outer region into the mixed region.
Perhaps it was fate!
Just as they entered the mixed region, a cry rang out from the sky.
It was an avian Soul Beast covered in azure feathers, two meters long with a wingspan exceeding four meters. Tiny flames burned along the edges of its wings.
Qian Renxue spoke the name of the Soul Beast.
"An Azure Flame Sky Luan. Among avian Soul Beasts, it possesses extreme speed. Once it locks onto prey, none have ever escaped successfully. Its short-distance burst is comparable to teleportation!"
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