His accumulated Soul Power neared thirty thousand, and his strength was about to soar

At the sight of this,

Yue Guan was genuinely stunned.

He had never expected the Eldest Young Master and the Third Young Master to get along so well.

He nudged his best friend Gui Mei with an elbow. Gui Mei stood there just as dumbstruck.

Back at Spirit Hall, hadn't the Third Young Master refused even to look at the Eldest Young Master?

Whenever they crossed paths, he had practically gone out of his way to avoid him.

Now he was serving tea and pouring water, more attentive than a personal maid.

Even stranger,

the two of them were far too relaxed.

Miss Xue was absorbing a thousand-year Soul Ring right over there.

She was pushing hundreds of years past the limit. One slip, and she would die.

Yet her two brothers sat there without a care.

How could they be so confident in her?

Weren't they the least bit worried their own sister might explode?

Just then,

a disturbance came from the middle of the lakeshore.

Qian Renxue's tightly shut eyes flew open.

The fine beads of blood covering her skin scattered in an instant under a burst of Soul Power.

At the same time, a purple Soul Ring slowly rose from beneath her feet and moved up and down around her body.

She had done it.

She had actually done it.

Both Douluo stood with their mouths open, their faces contorted in shock.

They were utterly floored!

This was a thousand-year Soul Ring.

An ordinary Soul Master's first Soul Ring could be no older than four hundred and twenty-three years.

Yet Miss Xue had pushed past that limit by more than double and fused with a thousand-year ring as her first.

It defied everything the Soul Master world took for granted.

If word got out, it would cause an uproar across the continent.

Spirit Hall's prestige

would climb to an entirely new level.

Meanwhile, Qian Renxue carefully felt the Soul Power within her.

Level twenty-two.

Just by absorbing her first Soul Ring,

her Soul Power had broken straight through its bottleneck to level twenty-two.

The feeling was incredible.

Even her proud, aloof face flushed with excitement.

She had really...

really done it.

She had surpassed her previous self and secured a flawless start to this life.

Then,

Qian Renxue seemed to remember something.

Ignoring the two elders still standing there in a daze, she walked straight toward Qian Renchuan.

Yue Guan and Gui Mei hurried after her.

They were still wondering what the Second Young Lady intended to do.

Then they saw her stop before the Eldest Young Master Qian Renchuan's reclining chair.

She bowed deeply to him, though he looked as lazy as ever.

"Thank you, big brother."

"Huh?"

Behind her,

Yue Guan rubbed his eyes.

He thought he must be seeing things.

The proud Miss Xue was bowing and thanking the Eldest Young Master?

Gui Mei sucked in a sharp breath.

Something about the three siblings' relationship had seemed strange throughout the journey.

Now it appeared the Eldest Young Master's standing in their little group was far higher than either elder had imagined.

Qian Renxue, meanwhile, was truly grateful to her big brother.

Without the half piece of top-grade Whale Rubber he had given her, which had strengthened her body enormously, she could never have withstood the impact of a thousand-year Soul Ring today.

Forget a thousand years.

Even the seven-hundred-year ring she had originally planned on would have put her through hell.

He had given her this opportunity.

Qian Renxue would remember what she owed him.

But Qian Renchuan merely smiled, unconcerned.

"Oh, come on."

"Little sister, what are you doing?"

"You surpassed your body's limits and absorbed a thousand-year Soul Ring because you have talent and fought hard for it. What's that got to do with me?"

Qian Renxue's heart stirred again.

She looked at her big brother's utterly sincere face, her eyes growing warm.

He had given her a treasure as rare as top-grade Whale Rubber without hesitation. Now that she had succeeded, he refused to take any credit at all.

That's just the kind of person my big brother is.

Qian Renxue told herself silently,

He acts lazy, as if he doesn't care about anything, but all he thinks about is us.

He's probably saying this so I won't feel indebted to him.

Beside them, Huo Yuhao set down his Carving Knife. As he watched, emotion rippled through him.

Ten thousand years later, at the White Tiger Duke's Mansion, brothers would have tried to destroy one another over a scrap of cultivation resources.

Yet his eldest brother had casually helped his second sibling accomplish something extraordinary without asking for so much as a thank-you.

This was what family should be.

Huo Yuhao clenched his fist, his chest tight.

The less his eldest brother asked for in return, the more Huo Yuhao felt he owed him.

And the harder it became

to bear the thought of leaving.

Seeing their complicated expressions, Qian Renchuan sighed inwardly.

Both Qian Renxue and Huo Yuhao

had turned thoroughly dark after starting life over, but deep down, they still craved affection.

He had given them exactly what they needed.

At that moment, the system's voice sounded in his mind.

[Ding!]

[Bond target "Qian Renxue" has increased her Soul Power Level. Tenfold return triggered!]

[Congratulations, host! Soul Power increased by +100 +100 +100...]

Boom.

A vast surge of pure Soul Power flowed through his meridians into his dantian.

Qian Renchuan felt wonderfully at ease, warmth seeping into his very bones.

Then he summoned the system panel as he had done so many times before.

[Host: Qian Renchuan]

[Martial Souls: Skin, Seraphim]

[Level: 25 (Soul Grandmaster)]

[Spirit: 236 (standard for an ordinary level 25: 135)]

[Body: 364 (standard for an ordinary level 25: 205)]

[Soul Power: 9345/3910 (level 26 Soul Power standard: 3910)]

[Bond target (1): Qian Renxue; current status: None]

[Bond target (2): Huo Yuhao; current status: None]

His accumulated Soul Power

had already reached more than nine thousand.

Once he found suitable Soul Beasts and obtained two Soul Rings, his strength would surge to a terrifying degree.

Qian Renxue's first Soul Ring was secured.

They ought to search for the other Soul Beasts next, but Qian Renchuan looked up at the sky and said helplessly,

"It'll be dark soon."

"The scenery's nice here, and there's water."

"Elder Yue Guan, why don't we stop for today and camp here overnight?"

Yue Guan wanted to object.

Nights in the Star Dou Great Forest were extremely dangerous, and staying put risked a Soul Beast attack.

But he glanced at Qian Renxue, who had only just absorbed her Soul Ring and still needed to stabilize her cultivation, and swallowed his objection.

"As you wish, Eldest Young Master."

Yue Guan nodded and began setting up a defensive perimeter around the lakeshore with Gui Mei.

Before long,

a roaring campfire burned beside the lake.

Several portable tents had also been pitched.

Huo Yuhao even took the unusual step of approaching Yue Guan on his own. Looking up at him, he said,

"Elder Yue Guan, sorry to trouble you, but could you catch a few fish from the lake?"

"I'd like to make everyone something to eat."

Yue Guan froze.

Me?

A Titled Douluo, catching fish?

But seeing the Third Young Master's earnest expression, he sighed and walked to the water's edge. A flick of his fingers sent several blasts of energy into the lake.

Several plump fish floated to the surface, bellies up.

Huo Yuhao deftly scooped them out, scaled and gutted them, then washed them clean.

Next, he threaded them onto sharpened branches

and set them over the campfire to roast, turning them as they cooked.