Time Flow Rate: The Graduation Exam Approaches

Boom!!

A tremendous force pushed the stone door open, and Xu Xiaonian and Xu Xiaotang emerged. The former lowered his head to look at the palm he had just used to push it open.

By his estimate, he definitely had five thousand kilograms of strength.

Even an ordinary Soul King probably fell short of him in physical strength. His physique rivaled that of a power attack system Soul King!

Xu Xiaonian raised his head and looked at the worried Hu Liena, Chrysanthemum Guan, and the others, then said with a smile:

"Nana, Elder Ju... sorry for worrying everyone. Luckily, I managed to absorb the Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring."

Seeing Xu Xiaonian's expression, as though everything had gone exactly as expected and victory had always been in his grasp, Chrysanthemum Guan and the others did not believe his nonsense for a moment. He must have prepared well in advance. Their worry had been entirely unnecessary.

"As long as you're all right." Hu Liena finally breathed a sigh of relief.

But she soon realized that Xu Xiaonian's very first ring was already a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring, while she would have to wait another seven or eight years, until her Soul Power reached level fifty, before she could possibly obtain one.

The gap was far too vast!

Hu Liena's expression grew complicated, countless emotions churning within her.

On one hand, she was genuinely happy that Xu Xiaonian's strength was improving so quickly. On the other, she felt disheartened at the thought that he might soon surpass her.

She was a genius in her own right, yet meeting Xu Xiaonian had dealt her one blow after another. Her confidence was almost gone.

Just then, powerful Soul Power fluctuations came from the direction of the female Hell Three-Headed Hound's corpse.

"Phew..."

The masked figure in black robes opened her golden eyes. Five Soul Rings—yellow, yellow, purple, purple, and black—rose from beneath her feet, her presence imposing.

Unfazed by everyone's gazes, the black-robed figure merely glanced around before suddenly asking in a clear voice:

"Where's the male Hell Three-Headed Hound's corpse? Did a Soul Beast eat it?"

Aboard the Ghost Dragon Shadow, among the group returning to Spirit City, Xu Xiaonian squirmed under the masked, black-robed figure's burning gaze. It felt as though she were violating him with her eyes.

All I did was show off my Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring. Don't you have one too? What's so strange about it?

Even if this black-robed figure might be Qian Renxue, who could stand being watched as though they were under surveillance?

"Why do you keep staring at me?" Xu Xiaonian could not take it anymore.

"We're the same kind of person, whether you believe it or not," the black-robed figure said slowly. "I think we could become friends."

Xu Xiaonian understood. She simply meant that they were both people with a chance of becoming gods.

"I understand what you mean, but—"

"But what?"

Xu Xiaonian recalled his mother's regrets involving the Qian Family. Sooner or later, he would have to pay them a proper "visit." His eyes took on a meaningful look as he said:

"But there's no rush. We'll meet again sooner or later, Xue Qinghe. Or perhaps I can call you Qian. Ren. Xue."

Qian Renxue's pupils abruptly contracted. Instinctively, she looked around to check everyone's reactions. Only after seeing nothing unusual did she suddenly realize that he had spoken the names "Xue Qinghe" and "Qian Renxue" without making a sound.

She let out a sharp breath of relief, a sense of gratitude actually rising within her. After all, her identity was tied to the grand plan for the empire years down the road. Nothing could be allowed to go wrong.

But how did he know who I was?

Aside from a few of the worship elders, her mother, and the two elders who guarded her in the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace, no one else should have known her identity.

He's so close to Hu Liena. Could it be Mother...

That must be it. With talent no weaker than mine, he would certainly draw Mother's attention. He might even already be one of her trusted confidants.

At that thought, Qian Renxue's gaze turned burning and sharp.

"You're the first person to interest me. I'll wait for you to grow stronger, so we can pursue a great undertaking together."

Back home, under Qian Peijiu and Xu Ke's curious gazes, Xu Xiaotang and Xu Xiaonian entered the bedroom and shut the door.

"Xiaonian, what's the Soul Skill of your Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring?"

"It temporarily changes the Time Flow Rate around me or an enemy. It has two modes: acceleration and slowing."

"What's the maximum multiplier? And what's the highest-ranked Soul Master it can restrict?"

"Tenfold. With my current Soul Power strength, I can restrict Soul Masters up to the Soul King level," Xu Xiaonian answered, then added:

"But if I change the Time Flow Rate tenfold, my current Soul Power can only sustain it for three seconds at most. It's not very useful in actual combat."

"Double or triple the rate is more cost-effective. I can maintain double for fifteen minutes, and triple for ten."

"..." Xu Xiaotang fell silent.

Through the Retainer Imprint, which had already advanced to level one, Xu Xiaonian could sense the shock within her. He chose not to disturb her, giving her time to digest it.

Taking advantage of that time, Xu Xiaonian began estimating what level of Soul Master he could fight with his current combat strength.

Both the two skills granted by the Holy Spirit Purcell Eternal Soul Ring and the skill from the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's first Soul Ring were exceptionally powerful. They would suit him at every stage of his growth.

The problem was that his Soul Power was too meager. He could barely use his Soul Skills a few times.

Xu Xiaonian looked thoughtful.

Through cultivating the Holy Spirit Heart Method and the Evil God Mark Method, he was certain that his Soul Power was unmatched among Soul Scholars in strength, quantity, and purity alike.

But taking a broader view, his Soul Power was probably only comparable to a Soul Elder's.

With the enhancement of Holy Spirit Purcell's or the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's ultimate attributes, its strength could probably rival a Soul Ancestor's, but its quantity certainly fell short.

His spiritual power was roughly at that level as well.

"An ordinary Soul Ancestor's cultivation level, an ordinary Soul King's physique. My strengths are powerful Soul Rings and Soul Skills. My weaknesses are meager Soul Power and limited combat experience."

Xu Xiaonian made a conservative estimate:

"If neither side knows the other, the vast majority of Soul Ancestors probably wouldn't be a match for me."

"Of course, that excludes Soul Ancestors with the potential to become gods, like Tang San, Qian Renxue, and Bibi Dong."

"As for Soul Kings, that's harder to say. I'd have to fight one to know."

Having more or less finished assessing his strength, Xu Xiaonian saw that his sister still had not recovered from her shock, so he raised a hand and waved it before her eyes.

"All right, Xiaotang, I still haven't asked you about the Retainer Mark."

Xu Xiaotang came back to her senses and said with a complicated expression, "What is it, you little freak of a brother?"

"Please leave out 'little,' thank you," Xu Xiaonian retorted before asking, "How much faster are you cultivating now compared to before?"

"About forty percent."

At the mention of this, Xu Xiaotang's face lit up with joy. "And my Soul Power has broken through to level twenty-seven. Originally, that would have taken at least another half month."

"But that day, after you absorbed the Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring and broke through, my Soul Power suddenly stirred for some reason, and I broke straight through the level twenty-seven bottleneck."

"You have to call me next time you absorb a Soul Ring! If I make another sacrifice, my cultivation will get even faster, and I might even break through again. Wouldn't that be killing two birds with one stone?"

Xu Xiaonian sensed the Retainer Imprint that had already sunk deep into Xu Xiaotang's soul. It felt as though a mere thought could gravely wound her fragile soul.

And that was indeed the case.

With the imprint embedded so deeply in her soul, he did not believe Xu Xiaotang could fail to sense it. Yet she acted as though nothing were wrong, even cheerfully talking about making another sacrifice.

It was hard to say whether Xu Xiaotang was doing this for herself, for him as her younger brother, or for both.