Another golden drop, Thunderclap Douluo's past, and today Miss Ling was happy little Ling!

"I never imagined you would gain so much from just two trips."

An alley in the Heavenly Dragon Sect.

Having brought his blessed grandson back to the sect, Yu Yuanjue looked at Ling Luochеn, who was absorbing the Frost Abyss Cold Flood Dragon King's soul ring with a furrowed brow, then at Yu Tianjun, who was playing with a crystal-clear right arm bone. He felt as though their ancestral graves might have caught fire.

Yes, Yu Tianjun had scored another golden drop. After the Water-Congealing Frost Luan King, the Frost Abyss Cold Flood Dragon King had also contributed a top-grade soul bone. With its pure ancient ice dragon bloodline, it was another Blood River Treasure worth ten million if put on the market.

"None of the soul bones I've brought back are usable for me. My luck isn't actually that good."

Yu Tianjun set the soul bone on the Flame Lion King cushion beside him and gestured toward Ling Luochеn with his eyes.

"I like her more than the soul bone. Ling Luochеn, my newly sworn elder sister, is one of Shrek's current Seven Monsters. Becoming a Titled Douluo is a certainty for her, and becoming a Super Douluo is well within reach."

"With this contribution, I think I should have the right to rename the Heavenly Dragon Sect the Heaven-and-Earth Great Love Alliance someday. We could bring the Earth Dragon Sect and other sects into the fold, unite all the sects in Dragon City and even northwestern Heaven Dou, and stand on equal footing with Shrek and the Body Sect."

Yu Yuanjue picked up on the affection in Yu Tianjun's words and asked thoughtfully:

"You want to give her the soul bone?"

"Since I killed the soul beast, I should get to decide, right? Strike while the iron is hot and honor our bond as siblings."

As though possessed by Li Taibai, Yu Tianjun recited, "Heaven gave me talents meant for use; a thousand gold scattered will return. Soul rings and bones were born a pair—why pine for gold soul coins alone?"

Yu Yuanjue obligingly played along. "As you please, as you please. Once you become a Titled Douluo, we'll rename the Heavenly Dragon Sect immediately. If you become a god, we could even call ourselves Spirit Hall."

"But I'll certainly be dead by then. If you can, give your grandfather a hand. If not, forget it. Even Sea God Tang San's younger female cousin died of old age in the mortal world. I won't ask for too much."

The sect's entire future rested on his blessed grandson's shoulders, so Yu Yuanjue was naturally willing to indulge him in anything.

"You're too pessimistic. I think you could live to two hundred."

"Haha, I'd have to break through again for that. But the injuries I suffered in my youth were too severe. Breaking through to rank ninety-six in a crisis was already a tremendous stroke of luck. I won't advance any further in this lifetime."

Yu Tianjun raised an eyebrow. "You've never told me who beat you into this state."

"It's not that I don't want to tell you. You aren't strong enough to stand against them yet, so telling you would do no good."

"Shrek?"

"No..."

"The Body Sect? Radiant Virtue Hall? The Three Great Empires' Offering Halls? Or evil soul masters?"

"Evil soul masters."

"You could've just said so. I thought we'd have to start a civil war in the Original Three Kingdoms."

A flash of murderous intent crossed Yu Tianjun's face and vanished.

Yu Yuanjue sighed. "The evil soul masters have already grown powerful. Two hundred years ago, they attacked Shrek and severely wounded its previous Sea God Pavilion Master. How could I not fear them?"

"This is the first time you've mentioned that. Did you go help Shrek?"

"I wasn't even born then. I heard it from your Great Ancestor. I didn't believe it at the time. After becoming a Super Douluo, I was overflowing with righteousness and went everywhere punishing evil and promoting good, only to walk into an encirclement of evil soul masters."

"During the fierce battle, I advanced to rank ninety-six."

Yu Tianjun sat upright. "And you fought your way out?"

"An expert with ties to our sect saved me. Otherwise, not even my bones would have remained."

"Evil Soul Power still lingers inside me. Over the years, I've kept it suppressed in my palm, but it has greatly shortened my lifespan."

Yu Yuanjue raised his right hand. An eerie glow of evil soul power flashed in his palm before being suppressed by his wind-and-thunder soul power.

"After that, I focused on cultivating my character and rarely left home for decades."

"Wait. Thirty years from now, you can do whatever you like. Not now."

Yu Tianjun fell silent for a moment. "If it's Evil Soul Power, I might be able to treat your injuries."

"The gap between our cultivation levels is too great. It could be dangerous."

"We'll take it a little at a time. You know what I can do."

"...All right. Give me a few days to prepare."

Unable to prevail against his dear grandson, Yu Yuanjue could only let him have his way.

A little later, the aura of Ling Luochеn's soul ring absorption began to stabilize.

Yu Yuanjue looked closely and nodded gently. "Your sworn elder sister is very talented, and the Frost Abyss Cold Flood Dragon's soul ring is excellent too."

"With the soul bone as well, she can advance another step. Her ice element will become pure enough to approach ultimate ice."

"But why would Shrek let such a talented elemental martial soul wielder go soul hunting alone? Are their holdings so vast that even losing one of the Seven Monsters wouldn't hurt?"

Yu Yuanjue was puzzled. The Heavenly Dragon Sect was no small sect either. Yu Tianjun and the Red-and-Blue Twin Stars led this generation of disciples and stood a chance of becoming Soul Emperors before twenty. Another five or six could become Soul Kings before twenty.

But that hardly meant those five or six slightly lesser talents weren't important. Losing even one would hurt for a long time.

"Who knows? Didn't eight of them die just a few years ago? My sister comes from a small clan. Perhaps Shrek's higher-ups don't consider her one of their own."

Yu Tianjun swirled his wineglass and took a small sip of Dragon City's signature Blazing Dragon Yang wine, a look of careless mockery appearing on his face.

Yu Yuanjue nodded gently, growing even more certain that his dear grandson must not attend Shrek.

"Although you've gained a great deal this time, avoid dealing with people from Shrek in the future. Not everyone is as reasonable as little Ling. When I was young, I dealt with Shrek's current Four Deans. Not one of them was normal, and their romantic relationships were a mess too."

"I understand. Love triangles and quadrangles, right? I've heard that happens often at Shrek Academy. They even come to blows during the Sea God's Fate Matchmaking Tournament, sometimes leaving the Senior Sister of the Inner Court hosting it in a very awkward position."

Yu Yuanjue's eyes immediately lit up. Everyone enjoyed a juicy piece of gossip.

"When that happens, what do Shrek's elders say?"

Yu Tianjun took a sip of wine to wet his throat before answering.

"They watch the show. Their school motto is 'Anyone who doesn't dare stir up trouble is mediocre.' Perhaps they think men and women brawling together on Sea God Lake is brave and romantic."

"Surely not? I can understand two people in love standing together against everyone else, but they even watch a love-triangle free-for-all for entertainment?"

"Didn't you say it yourself? Not one of the Four Deans is normal."

"It seems they've become even less normal after all these years."

Yu Yuanjue sighed. He could no longer keep up with the changing times.

Boom!

A tremendous disturbance erupted as the soul ring contracted. Grandfather and grandson turned to look. The Frost Abyss Cold Flood Dragon King's ten thousand year soul ring settled obediently beneath Ling Luochеn's feet. Long-suffering little Ling had splendidly advanced to Soul King!

"Congratulations."

The first thing Ling Luochеn saw upon waking was a face so handsome it was almost bewitching. His eyes were clear as two pools of spring water, and a gentle, refined smile rested at the corners of his lips.

"So you're this good-looking..."

Recognizing her sworn younger brother by his voice and expression, Ling Luochеn felt her heart inexplicably quicken. A blush spread from her ears down her swanlike neck.

"This is for you. Soul rings and soul bones work better when taken as a matching set."

Naturally, Yu Tianjun didn't wear a mask at home. This first glimpse of his face, entwined with the complicated emotions between them, sent Ling Luochеn's heart into upheaval. His inborn, outrageously good looks and extraordinary bearing eclipsed every male student at Shrek.

After absorbing it in a daze, she felt as though her little boat had already sailed past ten thousand mountains. Little Ling had been reborn!

When she opened her eyes again, she saw tea warming over a glowing stove and Tianjun sipping wine, radiance in his every glance. The smile playing at the corners of his eyes quietly seeped into her heart.

"Little brother, if someone like you appeared at the Sea God's Fate Matchmaking Tournament, those long-starved senior sisters would go mad."

Ling Luochеn sighed in heartfelt admiration. With that face alone, there would be no shortage of women across the continent willing to spend money on him.

"Thank you. Princess Vina of the Heavenly Soul Royal Family really wants to keep me, but I didn't agree to go to Heaven Dou City."

Ling Luochеn grew very serious at that. "She has good taste, but she's a little greedy."

The Heaven Dou Empire had been crushed so thoroughly by Shrek in the battle for talent that not even scraps remained. In Ling Luochеn's eyes, a princess who wanted to keep this young prodigy, destined to stand at the continent's summit, was truly dreaming too big.

"Other than those of us on your side, does any outsider know your true strength?"

After a moment's thought, Ling Luochеn's expression grew grave.

"Princess Vina and Mu Xue from the Snow Demon Sect. Just those two. During the last assignment, I had them swear on their martial souls to keep it secret."

"That's good. Don't take assignments like that anymore, all right? They're dangerous, and you aren't short of money."

Yu Tianjun looked at Ling Luochеn in surprise. Shutting the door as soon as you're aboard?

"I want to support myself. I spend freely and often treat the entire sect to outings to socialize."

"I can tell you're generous. You even gave a Blood River Treasure to a girl you'd only known for a few days."

Ling Luochеn teased him with a smile. "Luckily, you're young. Otherwise, I'd have trouble sleeping from now on."

"That's a rather inappropriate thing to say, big sister. Our pure sibling bond might change into something else."

"Haha, then I won't say it anymore. How about this? Whenever there's a guiding assignment, you handle the route planning, and I'll guide the clients. We'll split the earnings thirty-seventy—seventy for you, thirty for me."

Ling Luochеn smiled beautifully and proposed going into business together.

"My strength isn't far behind yours now. I can even fight a ten-thousand-year soul beast."

But Yu Tianjun heard the deeper meaning in her words. "You're not going back to the Shrek Inner Court, big sister?"

"There's no need anymore."

Ling Luochеn shook her head. "Actually, inner court disciples spend most of their time outside the inner court, carrying out various Inspection Corps assignments. I've already learned enough. As long as I don't neglect my cultivation, the academy won't concern itself with a peripheral figure like me."

"For me, there's no better cultivation environment than the outskirts of the Far North. Here, I can see the people I like, avoid the people I don't want to see, and cultivate faster."

"As long as I return to the academy before the Continental Advanced Soul Master Elite Soul Fighting Tournament in two years to join the Seven Monsters' training camp, and complete my Inspection Corps assignments on time, the academy won't object."

"Cultivating on the outskirts of the Far North is reason enough to answer them. If I return to Shrek, various factors will only keep dragging my cultivation down."

"I'm reserved by nature and only have two or three friends at the academy whom I talk to. They'll understand."

"I just don't know whether you're willing to take in a little Soul King like me."

After hearing that, Yu Tianjun turned and called loudly to Yu Yuanjue, "Grandpa, my sister's asking you a question! Does our sect have any luxury detached villas left? If so, arrange one for her. If not, hurry up and build one."

"Yes, yes, yes. I'll take you both to choose one. We'll make sure little Ling is satisfied."

Yu Yuanjue stood up cheerfully. Like an ordinary old man taking a stroll around mealtime, he took his grandson and granddaughter by the hands and led them off to look at houses.

"Ah, our Heavenly Dragon Sect has always had far more men than women. I've always wanted an adorable granddaughter, but my sons let me down. Today, my wish has finally come true. My grandson really is the best."

"Senior Thunderclap..."

"Hehe, don't be shy, little Ling. The atmosphere in our Heavenly Dragon Sect is very good. If you don't want to socialize, just speak to Tianjun whenever you need anything. He gets along with everyone in the sect."

Yu Yuanjue felt he might wake up laughing from his dreams tonight. A future Super Douluo with ice approaching ultimate ice had become his granddaughter. Thirty years from now, the Heavenly Dragon Sect would shake the world!

Yu Tianjun reassured Ling Luochеn, "Now that you're here, settle in without worry. Don't dwell on unhappy things. I don't know what grievances you suffered at Shrek, and I won't ask.

"Whenever you want to tell me, big sister, I can be the best listener."

"We only live once. What matters most is living happily, living in the present, and enjoying every moment of happiness."

"Mm!"

Tears glimmered at the corners of Ling Luochеn's eyes as she nodded firmly. Today, Miss Ling was cheerful little Ling! Happy little Ling!

Watching Ling Luochеn moved to tears, Yu Tianjun sighed inwardly.

How badly did Ma Xiaotao bully her at Shrek Academy? Yan Shaozhe is truly ruthless. They're both among the Seven Monsters, yet he let it happen? Mu En too...