["Fear not, miss. I am Li Shaobai of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and I will keep you safe today."]
["Hey! Isn't that a rehash of what the hero says when he rescues the damsel in Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng's latest masterpiece?"]
[As soon as Li Shaobai finished speaking, the girl with the scorpion-tail braid lit up, as though she had discovered a whole new continent.]
[She actually ignored the Sea Soul Masters blocking her path, blinking rapidly as she asked with a face full of curiosity.]
["Hello! My name is Xiao Wu! Wu as in dancing!"]
["You're from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, so you must have been to Heaven Dou City, right? Do you have Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng's latest work?"]
["It's only sold in Heaven Dou City at the moment. Unfortunately, I've never had the chance to go."]
["If you have it, could you sell me a copy? I can pay double."]
["..."]
[Wait, wasn't something off about this situation?]
[Li Shaobai glanced at the black-robed Sea Soul Masters opposite him, then at Xiao Wu's soft, rosy face.]
[Had I walked into a honey trap?]
["...Li Shaobai, disciple of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Sword Douluo."]
["Although you're also on our kill list, you aren't our target this time."]
[The lead black-robed Soul Master ignored Xiao Wu, his sinister eyes fixed directly on Li Shaobai.]
["It's good for young people to champion justice, but you should consider who you're helping."]
["That girl behind you doesn't count as human..."]
["Hey! Who are you calling inhuman? Believe it or not, I'll kick you to death!"]
[Hearing the black-robed Soul Master's words, Xiao Wu immediately glared viciously at him like a rabbit driven to desperation.]
["Exactly! Although this young lady is a little... flighty, that's no reason to revoke her membership in the human race, is it?"]
[Li Shaobai nodded, taking the black-robed Soul Master's words as nothing more than an insult.]
["Very well. Since you insist on interfering..."]
[The black-robed Soul Master's gaze lingered on Xiao Wu, and four Soul Rings lit up around him, two yellow and two purple.]
[Completely unafraid, Li Shaobai likewise revealed four Soul Rings, two yellow and two purple.]
["Li Shaobai, level forty..."]
["Withdraw."]
["Huh?!"]
[Li Shaobai stared at the people opposite him in astonishment.]
[He had been ready to fight, and this was it?]
["You're... not fighting anymore?"]
[Even Xiao Wu stared at the Sea Soul Masters opposite them in astonishment.]
["Haven't you Sea Soul Masters always been keen on hunting down the continent's geniuses? You're just withdrawing?"]
["Am I, Sister Xiao Wu, not enough of a genius?"]
["Heh, that depends on how you see yourself." The black-robed Soul Master gave Xiao Wu a meaningful look.]
["Our alliance leader personally told me to deliver a message."]
["Little rabbits should stay in the forest. Run around carelessly, and someone might skin you and turn you into a spicy rabbit head."]
["And you, boy. Even when rescuing a damsel, you should check whether the one you're saving is..."]
["Forget it. No more words. Little rabbit, you'd better look out for yourself."]
["Move!"]
[At the black-robed Soul Master's command, over a dozen Soul Masters withdrew in perfect unison in the same direction.]
[Before long, they vanished from the pair's sight.]
["They really just left like that?"]
[Watching the Sea Soul Masters leave without the slightest hesitation, Li Shaobai turned to glance at the girl he was protecting, his handsome face full of suspicion.]
[Had I really walked into a honey trap?]
[Were Yu Tiansheng's novels drawn from reality?]
["Hey! What's with that look?"]
["Just because you helped me doesn't mean I, Sister Xiao Wu, have to give myself to you!"]
[At Li Shaobai's suspicious gaze, Xiao Wu felt an inexplicable flicker of panic.]
[She puffed out her little chest and glared at Li Shaobai with reddened eyes.]
["That's not what I meant. I was just wondering... why did those people leave like that?"]
[Li Shaobai rubbed his chin, looking the girl named Xiao Wu up and down.]
["The Sea Soul Master organization has been constantly hunting down the continent's geniuses these past few years. They rarely retreat outright like they did today. Miss Xiao Wu, could you..."]
["Huh? What are you talking about! I was just passing by when those people blocked my way for no reason. Who knows what they were thinking?"]
[Xiao Wu showed no shyness around a stranger at all, poking Li Shaobai's clothes with her finger, her eyes red as though she were about to cry.]
["Is it wrong for me to be lucky enough to escape disaster?"]
["Uh, don't cry!" Things had changed so quickly that Li Shaobai struggled to keep up.]
[This girl seemed even harder to handle than the Little Demoness!]
"At last, a genius from our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect has taken the stage!"
Ning Fengzhi breathed a sigh of relief and remarked.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had been under considerable pressure lately.
Ever since the Celestial Screen appeared, Spirit Hall had presented far too good an image, especially that Qian Daoliu.
Early on, the Celestial Screen had briefly shown the deeds of Spirit Hall's Great Enshrined, and he had also appeared in several subsequent films of the future.
If this kept up, before they even reached the point of fighting,
Spirit Hall would become the people's choice, an army of justice, while imperial and sect forces like theirs would instead become the rebels.
"This child... looks about thirteen, fifteen at the oldest, and he's already a Four-Ring Soul Ancestor at this age."
"His Martial Soul seems to be of good quality too. At least on the surface, it should be on the same level as the Seven Kill Sword."
Sword Douluo Chen Xin rubbed his chin, a trace of a smile appearing on his stern face.
Although Qian Daoliu had secured Dugu Feng, this child Li Shaobai looked good too.
It was just a pity that the child's Soul Ring Configuration lacked a ring beyond the age limit, unlike Xie Guhong's and Dugu Feng's.
"Sword Bastard, our priority is to find this child using his portrait and Martial Soul. Don't let another faction get there first."
Bone Douluo Gu Rong patted Chen Xin's shoulder in reminder.
"Don't worry, Uncle Jian. I've already made the arrangements."
Ning Fengzhi smiled. With a genius appearing in the sect, he, as its Sect Master, was naturally the happiest of all.
"I've already assigned several Soul Masters whose Martial Souls relate to painting. By now, they should have finished the portrait and distributed it."
"I imagine it shouldn't take long before we hear something."
Ever since Spirit Hall found Dugu Feng first, Ning Fengzhi had reflected bitterly on the painful lesson.
He had poured a large sum of Gold Soul Coins straight into creating a special department dedicated to finding the opportunities and genius Soul Masters that appeared on the Celestial Screen.
As the head of a support sect, Ning Fengzhi understood the importance of geniuses all too well.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's ceiling was fixed. Unless they gathered more geniuses, they would be finished sooner or later.
Hearing that Ning Fengzhi had already made the arrangements, Chen Xin nodded and continued watching the images of his future disciple on the Celestial Screen.
[Li Shaobai offered Xiao Wu no words of comfort and simply watched in silence.]
[After all, they were merely strangers whose paths had crossed like drifting duckweed.]
[Li Shaobai even harbored some suspicions about Xiao Wu's identity. After all, those Sea Soul Masters had acted far too strangely toward her.]
[They had actually withdrawn without even making a move to test them?]
[With so many of them, even as a Soul Ancestor, he could only hold off their leader. Their chances of winning had been very high.]
[The boy and girl fell into a stalemate just like that.]
[The girl wiped away her tears on one side, while the boy stood beside her with his sword in his arms, watching quietly.]
[In the end, Xiao Wu was the first to crack. She chose to break the silence and introduce herself again:]
["I belong to no sect or school. I'm a Soul Master student from West Sea Academy in West Sea City, though I just graduated."]
["Oh, right. That man just said you were Sword Douluo's disciple..."]
[As Xiao Wu introduced herself, she furtively looked around, as though only just realizing something.]
["Is your master, Sword Douluo, traveling with you? Or is Sword Douluo somewhere nearby?"]
Before you continue