Little San, You Look So Much Like Your Mother

At the summit of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Ning Rongrong was utterly fed up. This eldest prince clung to her like a stubborn medicinal plaster, leaving her no time to finish the training assignments her master had set.

Over the past two days, whatever he saw in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect drew a "wow," followed by a torrent of praise and flattery.

He praised the disciples practicing martial arts, praised the service hall the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had established, and praised the sect for awakening Martial Souls for children from the surrounding area. Most absurdly, even when he saw that failed project that clearly drained money every year yet her master still firmly insisted on pursuing, he kept showering it with praise.

Ning Rongrong finally understood. He had not come for her at all. He had plainly come for her master.

If Xue Qinghe had not possessed a full forehead and a broad, square jaw, looking every inch a masculine man, she would really have suspected he had some peculiar tastes.

Could someone really grovel and lick boots this thoroughly? Ning Rongrong could not understand.

"Miss Rongrong, you still haven't told me about your master's most successful project. Does he require the children of nearby villagers to come to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and practice martial techniques for a while, even if they haven't awakened their Martial Souls? With all expenses covered by your sect?"

Here he goes again. Again.

The veins at Ning Rongrong's temples throbbed. How could anyone harp on someone else's failure every single day?

He must be doing this on purpose. Her master was a heaven-sent genius, and this was his only tiny mistake.

Every decision he had made before had earned the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect incalculable wealth. Only this project remained a bottomless pit. Not only was there no return in sight, but each year's investment exceeded the previous year's. It was an ever-growing black hole.

Not only did Xue Qinghe keep finding new ways to ask about it, he even acted as though it were the wisest decision in the world, making Ning Rongrong's little face flush red with anger.

"Are you doing this on purpose? You keep harping on this one thing. You're praising my master to his face, but behind his back, you must be laughing your head off!"

"Yes, yes, my master made a slight mistake, but that doesn't give you, the so-called eldest prince of the Heaven Dou Empire, the right to point fingers! Get out of my way. I'm going to train!"

With that, Ning Rongrong stormed off without the slightest concern for Xue Qinghe's reaction.

He was merely the eldest prince of the Heaven Dou Empire. If the Heaven Dou Imperial Family and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had not always enjoyed good relations, Ning Rongrong would never have wasted so much time on him. But now it seemed he was nothing more than a fool.

"Hey, young lady, have you misunderstood something?"

"Get out of my way!"

Watching the young girl storm away, Xue Qinghe smiled helplessly. It seemed she truly did not understand the deeper meaning behind these plans.

Beside him, Ci Xue Douluo quietly appeared.

"Young master, have you noticed something?"

Xue Qinghe nodded. "This Wang Qiye really does seem to have considerable ambitions, just as the Pride of Heaven Ranking said. If we leave him unchecked for a while longer, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect will certainly become our Spirit Hall's greatest enemy."

"How could that be?" Ci Xue instinctively objected. "Spirit Hall is an organization founded by the legendary Angel God. It existed before I was even born. To me, Spirit Hall is the highest authority on the continent. How could any other force possibly become its rival?"

"Young master, aren't you thinking too highly of them? Even the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's status as one of the Upper Three Sects was conferred by our Spirit Hall. How could they possibly qualify to be mentioned in the same breath as us?"

Qian Renxue shook her head helplessly. "If She Long Douluo were here, he would understand what I meant."

But this was the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. Even with Wang Qiye absent, there were still at least two Titled Douluos, so Xue Qinghe could only choose Ci Xue Douluo, whose concealment abilities were superior, to protect him.

Xue Qinghe wandered here and there around the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, occasionally jotting something down in a small notebook.

He had read the ancient books preserved by Spirit Hall and knew how, in ages long past, the Angel God had gathered faith across the continent, founded a religious organization, and fought the Evil Soul Masters to the death.

In his view, Wang Qiye's arrangements closely resembled those of his ancestor back then. Perhaps Wang Qiye intended to gather the continent's faith and retrace the path to godhood through faith.

Along the way, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's disciples greeted him respectfully, and Xue Qinghe always smiled and nodded in return.

Every disciple here seemed enthusiastic, lively, and cheerful.

"Ci Xue Douluo, have you noticed any obvious differences between these people and those elsewhere?"

After a long silence, Ci Xue's voice finally came, still hesitant. "The people here don't feel any different from those in Heaven Dou City. It's just... they seem a little happier."

"Yes, and more importantly, I've spent the whole day walking around here, yet not a single person has kowtowed to me."

Only then did Ci Xue Douluo see the light. "You're right. Not one of these lowborn wretches has respectfully knelt and kowtowed to you, young master. A bunch of unruly country bumpkins with no manners. I'll go teach them a lesson later."

Xue Qinghe hurriedly said, "Ci Xue Douluo, we're on someone else's territory. Without my orders, you are not to act as you please."

"Yes," Ci Xue Douluo replied respectfully.

Xue Qinghe had now completely given up on this Douluo's intelligence. From then on, whenever he encountered anything, he simply recorded it in his notebook and no longer spoke.

Amid writing and sketching, the day quickly passed.

Ning Rongrong had run off somewhere, while Ning Fengzhi and the Sword and Bone Douluos were even more elusive, like dragons whose heads appeared but whose tails were never seen. Xue Qinghe wandered the sect until night fell, still brimming with energy.

Meanwhile, in the cave in Star Dou Great Forest, Tang Hao finally succeeded in stirring the Soul Power within his body.

"Dad, you've already done very well. You've properly crossed the threshold of the Mysterious Heaven Skill in just a few days. But the Dragon-Tiger Ranking starts tomorrow, so let's continue cultivating later."

"All right, no problem." Tang Hao nodded.

After practicing the Mysterious Heaven Skill, Tang Hao discovered that his cultivation speed had increased considerably. Most importantly, the speed at which he could mobilize the Soul Power within his body had improved enormously.

This Mysterious Heaven Skill should have other ingenious uses, but he had only just begun learning it and had yet to bring them out. Still, his instincts as a top-level expert had already told him that this cultivation method was not so simple.

Watching Little San constantly bustle about, Tang Hao could not help having a few thoughts.

His movements as he mixed medicinal herbs were highly practiced, and he showed ample experience when teaching Tang Hao martial arts.

Yet Tang San had grown up under his very eyes. Where had he learned these things?

Watching Little San grind medicinal herbs and keep this crude cave in perfect order, Tang Hao suddenly felt an inexplicable stirring in his heart.

"Little San, you look so much like your mother."

At those words, Tang San also smiled gently. He loved these moments alone with his father. This feeling of being with family was something he had never experienced before.

[Registration has officially closed]

Looking at the registration closure notice displayed across the sky, Tang Hao prepared to get a good night's rest and strive for a good result tomorrow.

After all, none of them had a physical foundation, and everyone had level-zero Soul Power, putting them on the same starting line. Even Tang Hao himself did not dare claim he could win all the way to the end, but he had long since devised a foolproof strategy.