"Of course."
Elder Shen smiled.
Occupying lofty positions, they already enjoyed the conveniences that power brought.
None of them dared claim that they or the families behind them had never broken a single Federation law. In fact, every family kept some deathsworn operatives to handle matters in the gray areas.
But that did not mean they would wallow in the same mire as truly depraved villains who had lost every shred of conscience. After all, such people had no integrity to speak of. Their promises were bubbles on the wind, and keeping their company was no different from bargaining with a tiger for its skin. More likely than not, it would end with a knife in the back and their schemes turning against them.
If you wanted to make your way in the world, you had to honor your word.
Unless it was something everyone was doing together.
As for the Qian Gu Family...
Seeming to recall something, Elder Shen gave a teasing smile and said playfully, "Looks like that brat Xu Ye already told you. So our little Qingjia likes the older-sister type. Still can't get her out of your head, eh?"
Xu Qingjia: ?
Xu Qingjia looked utterly bewildered, confusion written all over his face.
What on earth was he talking about?
What did he mean, I liked the older-sister type?
He did not deny that he had a broad heart and rather expansive affections, but why would his grandfather say that?
"What do you say?" Elder Shen asked with a smile. "Want your grandfather to have another talk with that bald bird from the Leng Family? With the parents' blessing and a matchmaker's word, we could probably make this happy affair happen for you. Surely that proud little phoenix doesn't want her old man to simply die of old age."
"..."
Xu Qingjia fell silent.
He felt he had figured out what his grandfather meant.
The Leng Family-excluding the smaller families that happened to share the name, the only one worthy of his grandfather's attention was the Spirit Pagoda's Leng Family, the family behind Heavenly Phoenix Douluo Leng Yaozhu. The bald bird his grandfather mentioned had to be someone of his own generation, most likely the Spirit Pagoda's former Leng Family Head, Heavenly Phoenix Douluo's father.
And that proud little phoenix should be Heavenly Phoenix Douluo herself.
Xu Qingjia asked curiously, "Grandfather, do you mean Heavenly Phoenix Douluo?"
"Was there something between me and Heavenly Phoenix Douluo?"
They had never even met.
Elder Shen studied the genuine confusion on his grandson's face. Seeing no hint of pretense, he immediately understood and smiled. "Looks like that brat Xu Ye hasn't told you everything yet."
"Yes, there was a little matter involving you and that Heavenly Phoenix girl before, but it's over now. She didn't agree, and neither did your mother. That brat Xu Ye probably wanted to use it as a stepping stone to secure more power for the Xu Family within the Spirit Pagoda."
"Scheming over the Spirit Pagoda..." Xu Qingjia murmured.
He knew that the Federation's great families all had designs on the Spirit Pagoda.
After all, practically every soul spirit used by the world's soul masters came from the Spirit Pagoda.
One could say that the Spirit Pagoda controlled the lifeblood of the soul master profession, or even its very foundation.
Soul masters could do without blacksmiths, mechas, battle armor, or soul tools, but they absolutely could not advance without soul rings.
No matter how extraordinary their talent or how world-shaking their wisdom, without soul rings, they still could not break through the bottleneck they encountered every ten levels.
Still, a situation where soul spirits were monopolized and could no longer be purchased was essentially impossible.
The Spirit Pagoda had Limit Douluos and even Quasi-God experts, but did that mean no one else did? If the Spirit Pagoda dared do such a thing, it would make an enemy of the entire world. The Federation parliament would probably pass a unanimous vote on the spot to bombard the Spirit Pagoda with Godslayer Fixed Soul Cannon Shells.
Until an supreme powerhouse appeared who could force everyone to submit, everyone had to play the game within certain rules. Anyone who dared break those rules would die.
Shrek and the Tang Sect, which had been bombarded with Godslayer Fixed Soul Cannon Shells in the original story, were textbook cautionary examples. It was precisely because those two kept trying to break free of the rules and stand above everyone else. If that was what you wanted to do, then you could hardly blame the rest of us for killing you.
But that did not mean the Spirit Pagoda itself had little say.
One could even say that, over the past ten thousand years, the Spirit Pagoda had grown in strength more than any other organization.
To obtain precious soul spirits and opportunities to advance them, countless treasures of heaven and earth and all manner of precious resources flowed steadily into the Spirit Pagoda. Even its seats in the Federation parliament kept increasing. Everyone wanted a bite of this juicy prize, and there had never been a single unified voice within the Spirit Pagoda. The Federation wanted to scheme over the Spirit Pagoda, and the Spirit Pagoda did not reject its overtures. It wanted greater power within the Federation as well.
"Your father handled this whole thing himself," Elder Shen said. "Ask him when you get home, and you'll understand. By the way, do you still have any power of faith left?"
"About one-fifth of what I used to extend your lifespan last time, Grandfather," Xu Qingjia answered honestly.
His reserves really were scraping the bottom.
"Good." Elder Shen chuckled, a shrewd gleam appearing in his eyes. Still chuckling, he said, "I'll bring that Yu lad over later. When the time comes, tell him this is what you collected over more than half a year."
Time to fleece him.
Extending one's lifespan was something countless people begged for without ever obtaining.
Surely that deserves a handling fee.
"All right." Xu Qingjia nodded.
Birds of a feather flocked together.
Xu Qingjia rode home in his grandfather's private car, with a Three-Word Battle Armor Master driving and escorting him.
As soon as he entered the estate, he headed straight for his bedchamber. Pushing open the door, he saw a dainty figure, like a little golden kitten, sitting dejectedly on the sofa. White socks hugged her slender ankles as they swung gently beneath her trouser cuffs, conveying a hint of helplessness and gloom.
"What's wrong?" Xu Qingjia strode over and took the girl's cold little hand with practiced familiarity, his voice gentle. "You don't look very happy, Xinglan. Did something happen?"
Ye Xinglan had been so immersed in her thoughts that she had not even noticed someone approaching. Feeling warmth spread through her hand, she instinctively tried to pull away. But upon hearing Xu Qingjia's familiar voice, she stopped resisting and let him gently stroke her slightly cool palm.
"Xu Qingjia..." Ye Xinglan's cherry lips parted slightly. The moment she spoke, Xu Qingjia lightly pinched her soft, rosy cheek.
"Mmph." The girl gave a little sound of protest, and some of the gloom in her eyes dissipated.
"Call me big brother." Xu Qingjia chuckled, sounding rather pleased with himself. "We agreed on that, remember?"
Until Ye Xinglan defeated him, she had to keep calling him big brother.
"B-big brother." Ye Xinglan's little face flushed instantly, her voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz.
Such an intimate form of address always made her feel as though she were acting coy. At home, when addressing her older brother or male cousins, she always said their given
names, followed by "older brother" or "older cousin."
Once her embarrassment passed, Ye Xinglan revealed the reason for her low spirits. "I feel like Shrek Academy is far too different from what I expected."
In her vision of the continent's finest academy, the students should have excelled both in cultivation and character. They should have respected their teachers and cared for their fellow students, and outside the academy, they should have punished evildoers and helped the weak. The teachers there should also have possessed the bearing of true powerhouses.
But the reality was that the students were arrogant and overbearing, while the teachers behaved like rabid dogs.
"What you hear may be false; what you see is real," Xu Qingjia said.
"If they can make 'Those who don't dare stir up trouble are mediocrities' a school rule, how could they possibly have any decent teachers or students?"
It clearly should have been, "Those who stir up trouble indiscriminately are fools."
Shrek's behavior certainly fit that saying.
"But..." Xu Qingjia sounded puzzled. "Surely that isn't enough to make you this upset?"
Ye Xinglan lowered her eyes, her fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes. Her voice carried a hint of grievance and resistance. "My... my father told me earlier that he plans to send me to enroll in the Shrek Inner Court."
Huh? Did the Ye Family no longer intend to make its way in the Federation?