Spirit Hall, Worship Hall.
Qian Daoliu sat cross-legged. Within him, the medicinal power of the Nine-Grade Purple Ganoderma was still slowly converting the Angel God's power into his own cultivation.
That borrowed demigod power was solidifying. He vaguely sensed that he was only one final step away from truly stabilizing his demigod realm through his own strength.
He needed to enter seclusion for a while.
Just then, the hall doors were pushed open.
Qian Renxue walked in.
Qian Daoliu opened his eyes, his gaze filled with affection. "Xue'er, Grandpa was just about to enter seclusion. You..."
"Grandpa." Cheng Ran (Qian Renxue) came straight to the point. "Tomorrow is my fifteenth birthday."
Qian Daoliu froze, guilt welling up inside him.
He had nearly forgotten his granddaughter's birthday.
Come to think of it, throughout Qian Renxue's childhood, he had celebrated very few birthdays with her.
Every time, he had either been in seclusion or on his way into seclusion, while Bibi Dong never even mentioned it.
"What would you like, Xue'er? Grandpa will buy you anything."
Cheng Ran (Qian Renxue) held out a hand, raised one finger, and said earnestly, "I want an Angel Soul Bone."
Qian Daoliu's expression stiffened.
The hall fell silent for a moment.
"Xue'er."
Qian Daoliu's voice grew grave. "The Angel Set is Spirit Hall's greatest treasure, and it does indeed suit your martial soul very well.
"But every piece of the Angel Set is ninety-nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine years old. Absorbing one will cause your soul power to surge.
"Your current level is too low. If you absorb too much at once and your soul power level rises too quickly, your foundation will become unstable. Your actual combat experience and fighting instincts won't be able to keep up either.
"That would only defeat the purpose, turning you into a showpiece with nothing but a high level..."
"Grandpa." Cheng Ran (Qian Renxue) interrupted him, his gaze candid. "My martial soul has already evolved into the Eight Wings Angel. My body has been tempered by ice and fire, granting me ice and fire immunity and immunity to all poisons. My physical reserves and foundation are stronger than even a Soul Douluo's.
"Besides, I believe you witnessed my strength and experience yourself when you were with me in Sunset Forest a few days ago."
Hearing this, Qian Daoliu sank into thought.
To be honest, if this had been the old Qian Renxue, he would never have agreed.
But now, in just a few short days, Qian Renxue's rate of growth had completely exceeded his understanding.
He pondered for a moment. "Xue'er, the Angel Set consists of six pieces: a Head Soul Bone, a Torso Soul Bone, left and right arm bones, and left and right leg bones.
"Before you infiltrated the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace at nine, Grandpa had already given you the Head Soul Bone. Using its disguise skill, you changed your appearance and martial soul's form to assume Xue Qinghe's identity."
"The torso bone is the core of the Angel Set and contains the greatest amount of energy. Your soul power must reach level one hundred before you can absorb it."
"Of the remaining four soul bones, Grandpa will give you the right arm bone today. But I'll keep the Left Arm Bone, left leg bone, and Right Leg Bone safe for you for now."
Qian Renxue frowned. "Grandpa, why?"
Qian Daoliu raised his hand to interrupt her. "It isn't because I'm reluctant to part with them."
His gaze was solemn. "Grandpa promises you this: advance one solid step at a time, and the moment you reach Soul Saint, I'll give you all three remaining pieces at once, without another word."
With that, Qian Daoliu rose, walked into a secret chamber deep within the Worship Hall, and retrieved an arm bone radiating golden light from a sealed hidden compartment.
"This is the Angel Set's right arm bone." Qian Daoliu handed it to Qian Renxue. "Xue'er, just follow Grandpa's arrangements. Grandpa won't harm you."
Cheng Ran (Qian Renxue) could only nod.
Qian Renxue: Evil God, you actually dared to ask for an Angel Soul Bone? That's Spirit Hall's greatest treasure!
Cheng Ran: Xiao Xue, rule two of the "General Principles of the Great Heroine's Treasure Manual": bold women enjoy the world first.
Your grandpa has six ninety-nine-thousand-nine-hundred-and-ninety-nine-year soul bones sitting around gathering dust. Better to take them out and use them. You already have the head bone, so we'll milk him for a right arm bone today and get the rest for free once you reach Soul Saint. It won't take long anyway.
Qian Renxue: Get them for free?
Cheng Ran: It means getting good stuff without paying. All right, I'm handing your body back. I'll go idle for a while.
Qian Renxue: ...
Qian Renxue took the right arm bone. "Grandpa, I'll absorb it now, then."
Qian Daoliu nodded. "Very well. I'll feel more at ease watching over you."
Without further ado, Qian Renxue sat cross-legged and pressed the right arm bone against her forearm.
Golden light instantly enveloped her right arm as the Angel Soul Bone began to fuse with her.
Vast, sacred energy poured into her meridians, and beads of sweat formed on her forehead.
But after being tempered by ice and fire, her body was far tougher than an ordinary person's.
After a brief spell of swelling pain, her meridians quickly adapted to the soul bone's energy.
Her Eight-Winged Angel Martial Soul manifested automatically. Platinum wings unfurled behind her, resonating with the soul bone.
Then her angel soul power guided the soul bone's energy into her right arm on its own. The entire process went far more smoothly than expected.
Watching from beside her, Qian Daoliu went from initial nervousness to gradual relaxation, and finally to gratification.
A quarter of an hour later, Qian Renxue opened her eyes.
She raised her right arm. Golden light gathered at her fingertips, forming a blade of light shimmering with flowing colors.
"Soul bone skill, Angel Blade." Qian Renxue moved her right arm, feeling the surging power within it. "Grandpa, it worked."
Qian Daoliu nodded, his eyes brimming with gratification. "Your talent far exceeds Grandpa's expectations, Xue'er."
He paused, then said, "Xue'er, your fifth soul ring slot is still empty. According to the continent's accepted theory of soul ring absorption, the limit for a Level 50 Soul Ancestor absorbing their fifth soul ring is around twelve thousand years."
"Your martial soul is the Eight Wings Angel, primarily possessing sacred and light attributes. Grandpa recommends Star Radiance Forest north of Spirit City. There's a community of light-attribute soul beasts there. I'll send people to escort you."
Qian Renxue shook her head. "Grandpa, who proposed this theory?"
Qian Daoliu said, "Our Spirit Hall proposed it originally, and Yu Xiaogang later refined it further. It's currently the continent's accepted guide to soul ring absorption. Although that man's strength is lacking, he's spent many years immersed in theoretical research. Why?"
Cheng Ran: Yu Xiaogang is just some roadside nobody. Has he ever even been a Soul King? He just writes nonsense based on his own assumptions. His theory is clearly wrong.
Qian Renxue repeated the words Cheng Ran spoke in her mind.
Qian Daoliu's expression changed. "Xue'er, the theory of soul ring absorption has been accepted by the continent's Soul Master World for decades..."
"Accepted doesn't mean correct," Cheng Ran (Qian Renxue) interrupted him. "Grandpa, Yu Xiaogang's theory draws its conclusions from the physical capabilities of ordinary soul masters. Ordinary soul masters have fragile meridians and mediocre constitutions, so naturally they can't withstand absorbing rings beyond their level. But this theory has one fatal flaw."
"It measures every soul master by the same standard."
Cheng Ran (Qian Renxue) continued, "My martial soul has already evolved into the Eight Wings Angel. My body has been tempered by ice and fire, granting me ice and fire immunity and immunity to all poisons. I've just absorbed a ninety-nine-thousand-nine-hundred-and-ninety-nine-year Angel Soul Bone as well. Do you think my physical capabilities match those of the ordinary soul masters in Yu Xiaogang's theory?"
Qian Daoliu opened his mouth, but for a moment, he had no answer.
He had to admit that his granddaughter had a point.
"Then what are you suggesting?"
Cheng Ran (Qian Renxue) said slowly, "Three hundred li southeast of Sunset Forest, there's a sun-facing volcanic cliff. An ancient phoenix-subspecies soul beast lives on that cliff. Thirty-eight thousand years old."
Qian Daoliu shot to his feet. "Xue'er, you're mad! Absorbing a thirty-eight-thousand-year soul ring at level fifty is throwing your life away!"
"Grandpa." Cheng Ran (Qian Renxue) raised his hand, signaling for him to hear him out. "This soul beast is called the Radiant Three-Headed Phoenix. It possesses three attributes: light, blazing fire, and sacred power.
"Light and sacred power share the same origin as my Eight Wings Angel and have a natural affinity with it. There won't be any rejection during absorption.
"As for its blazing fire attribute, I have ice and fire immunity. Not only will the flame energy not harm me, my body will absorb it and convert it into soul power instead.
"In other words, all three of this soul beast's attributes are friendly energy to me.
"A thirty-eight-thousand-year soul ring sounds frightening, but absorbing it might actually be easier than absorbing a ten-thousand-year ring."
Qian Daoliu frowned in thought.
He had lived for over a hundred years, and his understanding of soul ring absorption far surpassed that of ordinary people.
In principle, what Qian Renxue said did hold water.
He knew that countering an attribute reduced the difficulty of absorption.
But this was the first time he had heard of reducing the difficulty of absorbing a thirty-eight-thousand-year soul ring to below that of a ten-thousand-year ring.
"Where did you learn all this?" Qian Daoliu's gaze sharpened.
Qian Renxue's expression remained unchanged. "Your granddaughter has spent these years undercover in Heaven Dou reading ancient texts extensively. It hasn't been without gains."
Qian Daoliu looked at her for a long while before finally sighing.
This granddaughter of his was becoming harder and harder to fathom.
"Very well." He waved a hand. "Since you're confident, Grandpa won't stop you. But for a thirty-eight-thousand-year soul beast, someone must accompany you to stand guard. Who do you want?"
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