Golden ripples abruptly spread.
A bronze mask emerged from the void, its surface covered in fine cracks, like an ancient artifact weathered by a thousand years of wind and frost, yet it exuded a hazy presence that defied scrutiny.
The Tool Martial Soul, Faceless and Formless.
When Jing Shanshan had accidentally come across it in the Gate of Babylon, he had learned roughly what this Martial Soul did.
Once worn, it blurred the wearer's face, presence, and figure. Most importantly, others would not find it particularly odd; they would simply find the wearer natural, as though a mask had grown on that person's face from birth.
He slapped the mask onto his face.
The instant the bronze mask touched his face, an icy sensation spread, and his presence underwent a certain change.
With his face hidden and his presence and bearing different, no one could connect the now rather famous King with this bedraggled child!
He turned around and saw three people standing at the entrance to the warehouse district.
Leading them was a woman of about twenty, with a nearly perfect figure and long black hair. There was an allure to her features that made even Jing Shanshan unable to resist stealing a few extra looks.
Beside her stood an extremely muscular man with long, fiery-red hair. As his gaze swept back and forth over Jing Shanshan, a trace of displeasure appeared at the corner of his mouth.
At the back was a man whose face bore some resemblance to the woman's. He had short black hair, stood around 1.9 meters tall, and wore a calm, cold expression.
"Little one, what brings you somewhere so deserted? Are you lost? Come to big sister. I'll take you out."
Hu Liena came within a few steps of Jing Shanshan, crouched down, and held out a hand with an utterly natural smile.
"You little brat! Hu Liena isn't going to eat you. Why are you backing away?!"
When the fiery-red-haired Yan saw that Jing Shanshan's response to Hu Liena was actually to take a step back, anger immediately surged within him!
"Yan, rein in your temper. He's just a child, and he hasn't done anything. There's no need to get angry."
Although the short-black-haired Xie Yue said this, he was curious himself and could not help looking Jing Shanshan over.
Normally, Hu Liena, who cultivated charm, naturally possessed a presence that drew others close, on top of the alluring presence she occasionally failed to suppress.
Faced with Hu Liena's smile, a child who looked as though he had only just awakened his Martial Soul should have involuntarily sought a hug from her. Wasn't this child's step backward abnormal?
Xie Yue's gaze finally settled on the mask the child wore.
Was this mask the child's Martial Soul? Could it forcibly keep someone calm?
Or was this child's will actually firm enough to resist the presence Hu Liena unconsciously gave off?!
Hu Liena's thoughts were much the same as Xie Yue's. A flicker of competitiveness stirred within her, and her suppressed alluring presence instantly spilled out. Yan and Xie Yue subconsciously looked toward her, their bodies involuntarily trembling.
Jing Shanshan likewise felt something intangible enticing his will. His brow furrowed, but his body did not move.
He was assessing something.
The Tool Martial Soul Faceless and Formless was not a Martial Soul that countered Soul Power. He did not know whether it would work on these three people, whose Soul Power Levels he could not see through.
So far, it seemed to be working quite well. The three could make out his build and judge that he was a child, yet none of them looked at him with the slightest puzzlement over why this child wore a mask!
Excellent. No one was curious about his face!
This way, no one would connect the King with the child who had been so bedraggled just earlier! He had successfully cut ties with his King identity at light speed! The King's dignity had been preserved!
At that thought, even Jing Shanshan's steps grew considerably merrier. He scampered over to Yan's side and looked at Yan's face, and the enticing effect of that intangible thing weakened.
Hu Liena: ???...
In this child's eyes, Hu Liena's charm actually fell short of a heavily muscled man like Yan?
Suddenly, Hu Liena recalled some meaningless rumors.
She had heard that some men liked their own sex, and in such people's eyes, a build like Yan's apparently held tremendous appeal, just as she did in the eyes of ordinary men.
Hu Liena looked at Yan with an odd expression, then at the masked child, and suddenly felt at ease.
Yan and Xie Yue were equally full of questions.
Had this child run to the wrong person?
"Big sister, big brothers..."
Jing Shanshan paused.
He definitely couldn't use "this King," that distinctive way of referring to himself. If he did, they would surely think of the child who had caused a huge uproar at Spirit Hall, cheapening the King's image.
"What brought you to my secret base?"
Yan lowered his head to look at the child and raised an eyebrow. "Since when did this abandoned warehouse become your secret base?"
"Isn't it?"
Jing Shanshan displayed the innocence befitting a six-year-old, tilting his head in incomprehension.
"A secret base. I see. So were you crying here just now?"
Hu Liena asked directly.
Jing Shanshan's heart skipped a beat. He answered very quickly, his tone unable to hide the panic of having been seen through.
"No! I fell and got my clothes dirty."
Hu Liena stared at Jing Shanshan for two seconds, then suddenly could not hold back a chuckle. Her smile was very sweet.
"Oh, I see. Looks like I was mistaken. Sorry."
As she spoke, she pointed to herself and said gently,
"My name is Hu Liena. I'm a member of Spirit Hall."
Then she pointed at Yan.
"He's Yan, also a member of Spirit Hall. That aloof big brother behind us-"
"My name is Xie Yue."
The "aloof" Xie Yue spoke in a low voice.
Hu Liena nodded and continued, something unconsciously creeping into her tone.
"We're all students at Spirit Hall Academy, the Golden Generation of our generation."
The Golden Generation-as someone born and raised in Spirit City, he knew what those words meant!
To be crowned with the name "golden," talent, strength, and resources were all indispensable. They were the very finest youths among Spirit Hall's younger generation.
"My name is Shi Lang. Are you really strong?"
He asked with innocent curiosity in his voice, fitting a six-year-old's expected reaction perfectly.
Yan burst out laughing at that, planting both hands on his hips, his tone brimming with undisguised pride.
"We're all right. Among people our age, the three of us are the strongest."
Hu Liena asked naturally, "How old are you?"
"Six."
"Six? Have you awakened your Martial Soul?"
Hu Liena asked curiously, as though passing the time.
"I have."
"What Martial Soul? What level is your Soul Power?"
Yan grew interested too.
Jing Shanshan fell silent for a moment.
He couldn't possibly tell the truth!
Once he said he had Twin Martial Souls, it would be easy to connect it to what had happened before, easy to deduce a connection to the King!
"Innate full Soul Power. My Martial Soul is a greatsword."
Jing Shanshan's tone carried a hint of smugness.
"Innate full Soul Power, just like us!"
Yan's eyes went wide. Innate full Soul Power was hardly something found on every street corner. He had never expected a child they happened to bump into to possess talent not much different from theirs!
Xie Yue's interest was also piqued.
"Where's your home?"
This was a little genius worth recruiting!
"A little shop in Spirit City. My parents are ordinary people, not Soul Masters."
Hearing Jing Shanshan's words,
Hu Liena and the other two's pupils abruptly contracted slightly.
This child's background was much like theirs, and the looks all three directed at Jing Shanshan immediately softened considerably.
"What does your Martial Soul do? Could you tell big sister?"
Hu Liena looked at Jing Shanshan with a little more warmth.
If Jing Shanshan's Martial Soul was very good, she could directly recommend him to study in Spirit Hall Academy's inner court!
"My greatsword's effect..."
Hearing the invitation in Hu Liena's words, the corners of Jing Shanshan's mouth lifted slightly beneath his mask!
After learning that the three before him were the Golden Generation, he had begun hatching a little scheme.
Some things would definitely cheapen him if he did them as the King!
But not doing them would greatly slow his understanding of the Gate of Babylon.
As it happened, the Gate of Babylon contained a greatsword-shaped Martial Soul whose effect was heaven-defying in a very specific way! Most importantly, he could use it as he was now.
It would surely make these three's eyes light up!