Chen Xiaojun exclaimed, "I see. There really is a lot of knowledge and intricacy to the Douluo Continent."
Chen Yu smiled. "That's right. The reason your brother chose a Gale Wolf-type Soul Ring for his third one was to gain the speed boost of an Azure Wind Cang Wolf or a Hurricane Wolf, along with the power to cut and assault."
"But the Lightning Windshadow Peng is even better. Besides its speed boost and the Wind Type's cutting and piercing, it also has the destructive power brought by its Lightning Attribute."
Chen Xiaojun thought for a moment, then said with certainty, "So my brother follows the Strength Type Power Attack System?"
"The first two are status skills, enhancement skills. This third Soul Ring looks like an attack skill, but in reality, it's also an enhancement skill."
Chen Yu looked at Chen Xiaojun approvingly. "Very good. I'm glad you've come to this understanding. Is there anything else you're unsure about?"
Chen Xiaojun said, "Well, there is something I'm wondering about. I don't know if I should ask."
Chen Yu stood with his hands behind his back, smiling as he looked at Chen Xiaojun. "Go ahead. What can't we ask each other, grandpa and grandson?"
Chen Xiaojun hesitated for a moment. "Um, was Great-Granduncle Yunxiao a little sensitive yesterday?"
Chen Yu sighed. "Heh, you child. Clever people think too much; their failing is that they think too much. Your great-granduncle is the same way."
"It's fine. We just need to talk it through and let him feel where we stand. After all, we've known each other for decades."
"He's your great-grandfather's sworn son, and he and your Grandma Han Xin were childhood sweethearts. He's also one of our Chen Clan Members."
Chen Xiaojun rubbed the back of his head, a little embarrassed. "That's true. But why does Uncle Chen Chen have the surname Chen?"
Chen Yu said, "Hahaha, that's because Chen Chen falls under the Martial Soul Inheritance and Affiliation Treaty."
"You know, on the Douluo Continent, women from Advanced or Top-Tier Martial Soul families like ours generally don't marry out, so their Martial Souls won't be passed on outside the family."
"Those families all have considerable influence. They might be Sects, Noble Tribes, or noble families, and have enough people within their ranks to take in their own talent."
"As long as a child awakens the Inherited Martial Soul, they can return to the Main Lineage of the Sect."
"But there are always exceptions. It might be a political marriage, an attempt to win someone over, or true love. Some women will always marry outside their families."
"That's how a number of tacit agreements came about."
"Eventually, they developed into a formal treaty to cover such cases. The main principle of the treaty is equality."
"The treaty has several specific clauses."
"Clause One: If a child awakens the man's Inherited Martial Soul, the child joins the man's family. If the child awakens the woman's Inherited Martial Soul, the child may return to the woman's family and take her surname. This is mainly to protect the woman's family's Martial Soul rights."
"Clause Two: If the child undergoes a mutation that is clearly a Beneficial Mutation based on the woman's side, it is handled as if the child had awakened the woman's Inherited Martial Soul. If the mutation is based on the man's side, the child belongs to the man's family."
"Clause Three: If the child awakens a Mutated Martial Soul that differs from both parents' Martial Souls, the way to handle it will be discussed further. In principle, the decision will tend to favor the man's family."
"Clause Four: If the man's family doesn't want the child to join the family for some reason, the woman's family may choose to accept the child."
"Clause Five: Special cases will be discussed further."
"Your Great-Granduncle's situation is just like that. He grew up in the Chen Clan, that's true, but the Wind and Cloud Fan is also a renowned Martial Soul of the Beichen Ling Family."
"When your great-grandfather was still alive, they agreed that if he married your Grandma Han Xin, they would follow this treaty."
"Actually, he would have done the same if he married a woman from any family with a high-level Martial Soul. He understands how these things work."
"Later, Chen Chen awakened the Seven Kill Sword and took the surname Chen. And his second son inherited his Wind and Cloud Fan, so everyone was happy."
Chen Xiaojun couldn't help asking in surprise, "Huh? Great-Granduncle Yunxiao has another son?"
Chen Yu gently stroked Chen Xiaojun's head and smiled. "Yes. Women of the Chen Clan don't cultivate the Seven Kill Sword as quickly as men, or reach as high a level. The Killing Qi also corrodes their bodies far less than it does the men of the Chen Clan."
"They were childhood sweethearts, so they married young. Your Grandma Han Xin was only twenty-nine when she married."
"They have a second son named Ling Xinghe. He'll turn thirty this year. He's working with your Second Uncle, Chen Zhang, and hasn't come back in years."
"I see. Will he come back for the clan celebration this year? I've never met him." Chen Xiaojun couldn't help feeling curious as he asked.
Chen Yu said calmly, "He might come back. It wasn't just Chen Chen-even you would have had the surname Ye if the Martial Soul you awakened had been a mutation of the Seven-Color Bracelet."
Chen Xiaojun couldn't help exclaiming in surprise, "Huh? Was Mother also from an Inherited Martial Soul clan?"
Chen Yu said with a chuckle, "Of course. Xiuxin's family has been on good terms with ours for generations. The Nine Heart Begonia Ye Family, the Chen Clan, and the Beichen Ling Family are all renowned families across the land!"
Chen Xiaojun's head was spinning a little. He asked in confusion, "Nine Heart Begonia? But, Grandpa, Mother has a Seven-Color Begonia Bracelet, and that's an Instrument Martial Soul. It has nothing to do with a Plant Martial Soul."
Chen Yu found it a little strange that his daughter-in-law hadn't told him about this.
So he said solemnly to Chen Xiaojun, "The Nine Heart Begonia is a Top-Tier Martial Soul passed down to only one person in each generation. How could that be enough to carry on the inheritance of the entire renowned Ye Family?"
"Your mother awakened the Seven-Color Begonia Bracelet, the Ye Family's second-ranked Top-Tier Martial Soul."
"Though it isn't as powerful as the Nine Heart Begonia at healing, it has both healing and support abilities. It ranks Seventh Grade, and even if you only consider its healing ability, it's still among the top ten Martial Souls in the world."
"Among the Ye Family's direct Main Lineage, if someone doesn't awaken the Nine Heart Begonia, they awaken the Seven-Color Begonia Bracelet."
"Because the Nine Heart Begonia is inherited by only one person, the Seven-Color Begonia Bracelet is the Ye Family's main Inherited Martial Soul."
"Relying on these two Martial Souls, the Ye Family established itself as the foremost family in the Medical Alliance, one of the strongest Neutral Organizations in the world, and became the world's foremost medical family, known simply as the Begonia Ye Family."
"Of course, the Ye Family also has several Advanced Martial Souls, such as the Diamond Begonia, Iron Cross Begonia, and Pear Blossom Begonia. And unlike our Chen Clan, which dispersed the Branch Lines with Mutated Martial Souls to guard against risk, they didn't do that."
Hearing this, Chen Xiaojun was deeply moved. "That's incredible! But, Grandpa, I still don't quite understand."
"From what you're saying, the Seven-Color Begonia Bracelet is, like the Nine Heart Begonia, a Top-Tier Inherited Martial Soul of the Ye Family. If someone doesn't awaken the Nine Heart Begonia, they awaken the Seven-Color Begonia Bracelet."
"So here's the question: How can the Seven-Color Begonia Bracelet, an Instrument Martial Soul, be inherited alongside a Plant Martial Soul like the Nine Heart Begonia?"
Chen Yu said uncertainly, "I don't know about that."
"But it might be because the number of Nine Heart Begonias is restricted by the laws of heaven and earth. It might also have something to do with a special ability of the Seven-Color Begonia Bracelet."
"What special ability?" Chen Xiaojun asked.
"Do you know about Tool Martial Soul Beastification?"
Chen Xiaojun knew this inside out. "Yes. It seems to be a kind of Martial Soul between a Beast Martial Soul and a Tool Martial Soul. Though it's defined as a Tool Martial Soul, it can display the power of a Beast Martial Soul."
"A Tool Martial Soul that can truly fuse the two is called Tool Martial Soul Beastification. It has two forms. Usually, after Beastification, its Martial Soul Avatar takes the form of a Beast Martial Soul, rather than a Tool Martial Soul. Of course, it can also take the form of a Tool Martial Soul."
Chen Yu nodded. "Right, well said. Martial Souls of this kind include the Snake Lance She Family of Spirit Hall, the Serpent Cane Chao Family of the Silas Kingdom, and the White Dragon Spear, Emerald Demon Dagger, Nine Phoenix Arrival Flute, and so on. They're basically all Top-Tier Martial Souls."
"Likewise, there's a kind of Top-Tier Martial Soul that combines an object with a plant. It's called Tool Martial Soul Plantification. It lies between an Object Martial Soul and a Plant Martial Soul, and it's also a Top-Tier Martial Soul."
Your mother's Seven-Color Begonia Bracelet is a representative example of this kind of Martial Soul, so it's also a type of begonia.
"In fact, your mother has several Soul Skills where the begonia bracelet becomes a plant. You saw them yesterday."
Chen Xiaojun replied thoughtfully, "I see."
"You can ask your mother about the specifics." Chen Yu checked the time, then said, "It's about time. Come with Grandpa to the Ancestral Hall."
Before you continue