The Snipe and Clam Fight, Qian Daoliu Raids the House

"Child, would you be willing to take me as your master?"

Just as Xu Peinian was enjoying the spectacle inside without fearing the chaos would grow too great, a faint voice rang out in his mind.

Xu Peinian turned his head and discovered that Qian Daoliu was secretly transmitting his voice to him.

Who knew what the two men outside would think if they saw this, but Xu Peinian certainly had not expected Qian Daoliu to be such a schemer, actually poaching someone else's disciple right in front of his subordinate.

In its own way, that was pretty impressive.

But he already had a teacher and could not take another master. He was not one of those ladies from certain movies who cried, "No," while their bodies were perfectly honest. He could not do something so shameless and filthy.

"Grandpa Qian, I've already taken Qian Jun Douluo as my master, so..."

"Unlimited resources."

"Grandpa Qian, you know that Qian Jun Douluo is my highly respected teacher, someone I admire deeply. This isn't a matter of resources..."

"You can choose any soul bones you want from the treasury. And Qian Jun will still be your teacher. No one ever said a master could only have one disciple, or that a disciple could only have one master."

But then again, how could something from a movie be compared to taking a master?

"Disciple Xu Peinian pays respects to Master."

You really do have a keen eye for people... Xu Peinian immediately bowed and acknowledged him as his master.

But he was absolutely not doing this for those resources. It was simply because Qian Daoliu was indeed profoundly knowledgeable and made far too much sense. Besides, one more master meant one more safeguard.

"Mm, not bad. You can still call me Grandpa Qian from now on."

"Yes, Grandpa Qian."

The two Titled Douluo, Qian Jun and Jiang Mo, entered while panting heavily and happened to witness this scene.

Jiang Mo Douluo's gaze shifted back and forth between the Grand Worshipper and his own brother, his face full of bafflement.

Qian Jun Douluo, meanwhile, suppressed his anger and asked,

"Grand Worshipper, this is...?"

"Oh, I was just telling Xiao Nian that he should come to me more often for guidance in the future. The more teachers one has, the more skills one can learn."

Seeing that Qian Jun Douluo opened his mouth as if to say something else, Qian Daoliu cast him a casual glance. Without even growing angry, he radiated authority as he said,

"What? Sixth Worshipper, do you object to your disciple having better prospects?"

That single sentence choked back everything Qian Jun Douluo had wanted to demand. He could only reply sullenly,

"No. I have no objections at all."

"Um, since things have come to this, how about I guide Xiao Nian too?" Jiang Mo Douluo seized the chance to interject from the side.

Two murderous glares shot toward him. Jiang Mo Douluo could only laugh awkwardly, then shut his mouth and stepped back to make himself less noticeable.

"Xiao Nian, what exactly is this second martial soul of yours? A belt?"

Qian Daoliu withdrew his gaze and turned to ask Xu Peinian.

Qian Jun and Jiang Mo, the two Worshippers, also looked over curiously. They had never seen such a belt before. It seemed to be another mutated martial soul.

"Yes. It's called the Qili Belt, a tool martial soul. I obtained its first soul ring by chance."

"There is one unusual thing about this martial soul: the age of its attached soul rings can increase as my strength rises. In other words, perhaps one day I'll be able to attach nine Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Rings."

In truth, as long as he became strong enough, even million-year soul rings would be possible. But that was too exaggerated, and they might not be able to accept it, so Xu Peinian only said it could reach the hundred-thousand-year level.

Even so, the three Spirit Hall Worshippers standing at the pinnacle of the continent were deeply shaken by his words.

Qian Jun Douluo, the most excited among them, grabbed Xu Peinian by both arms. His hands trembled slightly as he asked,

"Xiao Nian, is everything you said true?"

Jiang Mo Douluo, on the other hand, kept shaking his head and sighing at the side, his fists clenched so tightly that he wanted to pound his own thighs to pieces.

Xu Peinian nodded and said,

"Everything I said is true. When I first obtained this soul ring, it had only just surpassed a hundred years, and its yellow color was extremely faint. But over the past month or so, I could feel it increasing by ten or twenty years. And that happened even though I hadn't done anything."

"Haha! Good, very good! To obtain a disciple like Xiao Nian, even if this old man dropped dead on the spot, my life would not have been in vain!"

Qian Jun Douluo was so excited that he started speaking nonsense. Where was the bearing of a top expert now? He looked exactly like an ecstatic parent whose child had ranked first in the entire city.

Xu Peinian did not dare respond. He could hardly tell him to hurry up and die. That would be the height of filial impiety.

Fortunately, Qian Daoliu retained a trace of calmness and spoke to rescue Xu Peinian.

"Enough. Xiao Nian is still young. He must be tired after traveling for so long, so let him rest first. In a few days, we'll take him to hunt the first soul ring for the Netherworld Blade."

Only then did Qian Jun Douluo come back to his senses and release the hands that had been tightly gripping his disciple. Xu Peinian's thin arms and legs ached from being squeezed, and he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

However, Qian Daoliu's words reminded Xu Peinian of something. If he absorbed the Netherworld Blade's first soul ring in a few days, he probably would not be able to absorb one of too high an age. After all, the limits of his body were right there.

But in his memories, there was something that could increase the upper limit of the soul ring age a soul master could absorb.

Although he had only read the first Douluo novel in his previous life, according to the many fanworks he had read, if he remembered correctly, that thing was called Whale Rubber.

Thinking of Whale Rubber's effects, Xu Peinian said to Qian Daoliu,

"Grandpa Qian, when I was digging wild vegetables in the mountains around my village before, I met a mysterious old man. He told me many things, and one of them concerned raising the upper limit for absorbing soul rings."

After a pause, Xu Peinian added,

"He said there was something called Whale Rubber. If it was refined into a fluid with high-intensity flames and then consumed, it could strengthen a soul master's body and raise the upper limit of the soul ring age they could absorb."

Xu Peinian directly pulled out the all-purpose story of a chance encounter with a mysterious old man to patch up everything he said or did now and in the future, making the old man take the blame for him.

Anyway, if anyone asked, the mysterious old man had told him. If they asked what the man looked like or where he had gone, he would say he had been young at the time and only remembered that the man had two eyes, one nose, and one mouth. After telling him all that, the old man had wandered the world.

"Hm? Whale Rubber has such an effect?"

Qian Daoliu had lived for so long, yet this was the first time he had heard that Whale Rubber could strengthen the body.

Before this, it had been unwanted junk. Commoners could not afford it, while soul masters like them had no need for it.

If it truly could raise the age limit for absorbing soul rings, that would be extraordinary.

One had to know that, apart from the extremely difficult Divine Trials that could increase soul ring ages, the age of a soul master's absorbed soul rings was basically fixed. If news spread that the initial upper limit for soul ring absorption could be raised, the entire continent would go mad over it. Whale Rubber would certainly be driven to an astronomical price, and even then, it would be impossible to buy.

"It should work. Grandpa Qian can have someone test it. There's no loss in trying, and if it really works, we'll have struck it rich."

"Mm. If it truly has the effect you described, Xiao Nian, then you will have rendered a great service to Spirit Hall."

Qian Daoliu nodded slightly in agreement and did not ask further about the mysterious old man. Everyone had their own secrets. As long as they did not harm Spirit Hall, he would not pry.

The other Worshippers were either in seclusion or away on business, so Xu Peinian did not remain in the hall. Instead, Qian Jun Douluo led him to the room assigned to him for rest.

Over the following days, Xu Peinian mostly practiced blade techniques with Qian Jun Douluo or Jiang Mo Douluo, or trained his physique.

That was right. Seeing how jealous Jiang Mo Douluo was, Qian Jun Douluo thought that he was, after all, his beloved friend and brother. In the end, his heart softened, and he agreed to let Jiang Mo guide Xu Peinian as well.

So Xu Peinian was now, in a manner of speaking, a disciple of three families... No, a disciple under three masters.

This day.

Xu Peinian was practicing his basics alone in the bamboo forest behind the mountain. He had already learned the four basic moves—chop, thrust, block, and sweep—with some proficiency.

"Young Master Xu, the Grand Worshipper has summoned you. He says he has good news for you."

A figure clad in Spirit Hall's standard robe silently appeared to one side and respectfully reported to Xu Peinian.

Even though Xu Peinian was only a six-year-old child, the man did not dare show him the slightest disrespect.

"Thank you. I understand. I'll head over shortly."

The figure bowed, then quietly withdrew.

It seemed Whale Rubber had done its work.

Xu Peinian put away the Netherworld Blade, wiped the sweat from his face, and headed toward the Elder Hall.

Outside the Elder Hall.

Qian Daoliu stood with his hands behind his back, his silver hair meticulously combed as he gazed into the distance like a crane.

When a tiny figure appeared at the edge of his vision, Qian Daoliu's expression shifted slightly. In the blink of an eye, he vanished from where he stood, only to suddenly reappear in the distance.

Seeing Qian Daoliu appear beside him in an instant, Xu Peinian remained outwardly calm, but his heart jolted violently.

That scared the life out of me. But it looks like the Whale Rubber worked. Otherwise, a big shot as unflappable as Qian Daoliu wouldn't be this anxious... Xu Peinian looked at Qian Daoliu and pretended to frown slightly as he asked,

"Grandpa Qian, what is it?"

"Xiao Nian, we have the test results for that Whale Rubber you mentioned last time. The people below found several Spirit Hall soul masters whose Soul Power had reached its limit and had them consume Fluid Whale Rubber according to your method. Guess what happened?"

"How did it go?" Xu Peinian played along as the straight man.

"The results were unexpectedly excellent. Nearly every one of them absorbed a soul ring several hundred years older than originally estimated. And the Whale Rubber they consumed was only ordinary stock from a few hundred or thousand-year-old whales."

After a pause, Qian Daoliu revealed a sincere smile and continued praising him.

"This time, Xiao Nian, you truly rendered a great service. Tell me, what reward would you like Grandpa Qian to give you?"