"Illusory Flame has given you the ability to fight people head-on, Nana, but spiritual power is still your foundation."
Bibi Dong said, "The stronger your spiritual power, the more powerful the Illusory Fire you summon will be. Your control over your enemies will improve along with it."
So the plan remained unchanged. Bibi Dong would still have Hu Liena follow the path of strengthening her spiritual power.
"Nana, this Crescent Moon Fox is six hundred years old, beyond the absorption limit for a first soul ring."
The limit for a first soul ring was 423 years, and this exceeded it by over a hundred years.
"Are you sure you want to absorb it?"
Luo Chen had proposed the six-hundred-year absorption limit. He believed that Hu Liena's physical constitution after Ascension would allow her to absorb a soul ring beyond the limit without any trouble.
Bibi Dong had been very hesitant at first, but Hu Liena had shown firm trust.
Bibi Dong did not want Hu Liena to take risks, even though her own second soul ring was a purple soul ring, and she knew that the maximum absorption age was not absolutely accurate for certain exceptionally gifted Soul Masters.
Only when Luo Chen said that his Martial Soul, the Celestial Star Crown, could determine a Soul Master's soul ring absorption limit did Bibi Dong relent.
"If anything really does go wrong, I'll interrupt Nana immediately."
It was only her first soul ring. Even if interrupting her caused a backlash, the injuries would still be within an acceptable range.
Most importantly, Luo Chen had already brought Bibi Dong far too many surprises.
Without realizing it, even Bibi Dong had developed an inexplicable confidence in Luo Chen, feeling that if he said it would work, there would be no problem.
"I'm willing!"
Bibi Dong thought that daughters really did turn their hearts outward. This girl had not even grown up yet, and her elbows were already bending toward outsiders.
"All right, then go kill it and absorb its soul ring."
"Yes, Teacher!"
Without hesitation, Hu Liena took the dagger Bibi Dong handed her and walked toward the Crescent Moon Fox.
"Will it really be all right?"
Of course, the Celestial Star Crown had no such function. The one who had actually given Luo Chen this knowledge was his Na'er.
"Don't worry, Master."
Na'er assured him, "Humans can't make accurate judgments and can only rely on their senses because your research into Soul Beasts isn't thorough enough."
But Na'er was different. Her true body was the Silver Dragon King, the common sovereign of Soul Beasts and the origin of the Soul Beast bloodlines on this planet.
So no one understood Soul Beasts better than she did!
At that moment, the Know-It-All King gave Na'er a thumbs-up!
"Mm..."
After nearly half an hour of absorption, Hu Liena had gone from tightly furrowed brows to gradually steadying breathing.
Only then did Bibi Dong's heart, which had been hanging in suspense all this time, gradually settle.
She knew that Hu Liena had successfully absorbed it.
She actually did it!
Bibi Dong's beautiful eyes filled with delighted surprise as she looked at Luo Chen. A six-hundred-year first soul ring! She's completely broken the Soul Master World's record.
Although Hu Liena's case could not serve as a reference, since super Beast Martial Souls were far too rare.
Still, the person who had accomplished this was her disciple, and the person who had made the suggestion was also her disciple.
Yes, round that off, and it meant she, Bibi Dong, was awesome!
"I did it!"
Withdrawing her Martial Soul, Hu Liena felt the abundant fluctuations of Soul Power within her. She had already reached rank fifteen.
Part of that improvement came from absorbing a six-hundred-year first soul ring.
Of course, an even greater part came from Luo Chen's Ascension Ritual not long ago.
The improvement in her Martial Soul's quality had also driven up Hu Liena's Soul Power, raising it by three whole ranks.
Absorbing her first soul ring beyond the age limit had given Hu Liena another two ranks of Soul Power, bringing her to rank fifteen immediately after absorbing her very first soul ring.
"Xiao Chen, I did it!"
After coming to, Hu Liena did not report to Bibi Dong first. Instead, she quickly threw herself into Luo Chen's arms, sharing her joy at absorbing a soul ring beyond the age limit.
Watching this, Bibi Dong felt a little jealous, thinking that this girl was a textbook case of forgetting her mother once she had a man.
Luo Chen, however, was not surprised at all.
That was simply Hu Liena's personality.
She was a love-brain. Once she set her heart on a man, she would devote herself to him wholeheartedly.
Originally, Hu Liena's love-brain trait had given Luo Chen a headache.
Yet he had to admit that when you became the object of that love-brain's affection, and all her thoughts revolved around you, the feeling was genuinely rather satisfying in secret.
Luo Chen checked Hu Liena's feelings toward him. Her attachment and admiration were growing ever stronger.
Based on Luo Chen's understanding of the Douluo Continent, the women of this world were extremely devoted.
If Tang San could still win over Hu Liena under these circumstances, Luo Chen felt he might as well buy a block of tofu and bash himself to death against it.
"Congratulations, Nana."
Luo Chen hugged Hu Liena gently. Although the little fox was completely unguarded around him, he still had an adult's mind, and there was no way he would actually harbor improper thoughts about a six-year-old little girl.
"Mm."
The little fox released him, but her gaze toward Luo Chen grew even more fervent. "Xiao Chen, you're amazing! I knew your judgment would definitely be right!"
"It was just luck."
As he spoke, Luo Chen looked at Hu Liena and asked, "By the way, Nana, what's your first Soul Skill?"
Soul Skills were extremely important to Soul Masters, so keeping them secret was essential.
But everyone present was one of their own.
Luo Chen, Hu Liena, and Wang Sheng would undoubtedly become teammates in the future, making knowledge of one another's abilities crucial.
"My first Soul Skill is called Hallucinatory Foxfire. After Martial Soul Possession, it lets me release flames that cause hallucinations from my nine tails."
With that, Hu Liena completed Martial Soul Possession, then invited Wang Sheng to help demonstrate.
Deep blue flames bloomed on Hu Liena's fox tails. Eerie and lively, the foxfire swayed like candle flames as she moved.
The girl spun in place, and the flames scattered into specks of streaming fire, instantly setting a patch of bushes directly in front of her alight.
"Mm, not bad."
Bibi Dong nodded in satisfaction. "Nana's Martial Soul can release foxfire. Even without teammates, she can deal considerable damage to her enemies."
This change made up for Hu Liena's lack of direct attacks.
Even if she encountered enemies with extremely strong spiritual resistance in the future, Hu Liena would not lose the ability to fight back.
If Illusory Fire could not burn them, she could simply materialize her spiritual power and burn her enemies to ashes with real flames.
As for Wang Sheng, he had miserably ended up as Hu Liena's target.
"Your fire isn't powerful enough."
Wang Sheng underwent Martial Soul Possession, and black fire stronger than Hu Liena's flames enveloped his entire body, directly negating the threat of her flames.
"Then try this!"
Hu Liena swayed her fox tails, lightly touched her lower lip with her index finger, and gave Wang Sheng an alluring smile.
Instantly, Wang Sheng felt his head grow heavy, and his entire being became muddled.
He tried with all his might to break free of this state.
Unfortunately, compared with Hu Liena's spiritual power, a brute like Wang Sheng had no resistance whatsoever. Her bewitching fire took control of him outright.
"Roar!!"
The next moment, Wang Sheng's eyes turned bloodshot. Like a crazed wild beast, he began rampaging through the forest.
"What's this?"
Luo Chen was a little worried, but then heard Hu Liena hastily speak.
Her foxfire had both illusory and tangible forms. She could freely switch between them, rapidly shifting between high-temperature flames and spiritual flames.
In fact, while Wang Sheng was defending himself, the shadowy flames transformed into spiritual power had already clung to his body.
Combined with Hu Liena's charm, the assault from within and without had thrown Wang Sheng straight into confusion.
"And then you made him go berserk?"
"Mm-hm."
Hu Liena nodded obediently, her eyes brimming with the excitement of someone asking for candy. "Wang Sheng is too young to have any sexual desire, so I chose anger and made him go on a rampage."
This was also where Hu Liena's spiritual power differed from the original story.
She could manipulate not only human lust toward the opposite sex, but also appetite, greed, wrath, and more.
"Silently leave behind intangible foxfire, ignite other people's various desires, and then control them."
Everyone soon summed up the style of Hu Liena's Martial Soul. Even Chrysanthemum Douluo could not help praising her. "Nana's Martial Soul has extraordinary potential. She'll definitely surpass me and Old Ghost in the future."
"Surpassing you is enough. Why drag me into it?"
"Hey!"
Chrysanthemum Douluo protested, "Old Ghost, you make it sound like you can deal with Nana's tricks."
"They are indeed hard to deal with."
Ghost Douluo acknowledged how troublesome Hu Liena was. Such emotion-based methods were not only impossible to guard against completely, but also exceptionally insidious.
It was no exaggeration to say that if Hu Liena fully developed this ability, she would practically be delivering a dimensional-reduction strike against straightforward Soul Masters or those with far too many schemes.
Brutes were the easiest to send into a rage, and those afraid to walk at night usually had ghosts in their hearts.
By targeting these things, Hu Liena would undoubtedly become countless people's nightmare in the future.
"Um..."
Luo Chen pointed at Wang Sheng, who was still punching and kicking a tree, and said with black lines across his forehead, "Could you let Brother Wang Sheng stop first?"
Luo Chen felt that Hu Liena was using this opportunity to settle a personal grudge under the guise of official business, but he had no proof.
"All right."
Hu Liena playfully stuck out her tongue, then severed the Soul Power restraint she had placed on Wang Sheng.
This method of control required Hu Liena to continually expend Soul Power to maintain it. Bewitching someone did not mean the job was done once and for all.
Wang Sheng had willpower too.
So Hu Liena needed to keep making minute adjustments to ensure both the degree and duration of her control.
"Hiss..."
Meanwhile, Wang Sheng came out of his confusion.
His hands felt numb. Looking down, he saw that both were covered in wood chips.
Although he was not injured, his clothes were filthy beyond recognition, sending Wang Sheng straight back to his original form as the orphanage's little beggar.
"You rotten girl! You tricked me!"
Almost instantly, Wang Sheng figured out the key point and immediately glared fiercely at Hu Liena.
"You volunteered!"
Hu Liena and Wang Sheng did not get along at all. It was his own fault for always staying with Luo Chen, leaving her no chance whatsoever to be alone with her dear Xiao Chen.
Now that she had a chance to play dirty, how could Hu Liena let it slip? She had promptly treated Wang Sheng to a full wood-chip-and-mud package.
"All right, all right, you two."
Luo Chen helplessly stepped forward. While calming Wang Sheng down, he also lectured Hu Liena, telling her not to play tricks on their own people.
Hu Liena and Wang Sheng could not stand the sight of each other, but Luo Chen had both of them firmly in hand.
Once he spoke, neither dared refuse.
They hurriedly nodded again and again, then promised not to do it again.
Yes, they could not let their conflicts erupt in front of Luo Chen again.
As for in private...
"Hmph!"
Hu Liena gave Wang Sheng a disdainful look, and he returned it in kind.
Hu Liena: Stupid tiger! That's what you get for being a third wheel!
Wang Sheng: Stinking fox! I'll never approve of this marriage!
"Tsk, tsk."
Luo Chen rubbed his forehead. Knowing that the two were simply incompatible, he stopped trying to persuade them. A little squabbling seems pretty nice too.
Bibi Dong watched the farce without intervening. Instead, she left the three little ones all the space they needed.
She could also see that Luo Chen was the team's absolute core.
Both Hu Liena and Wang Sheng obeyed Luo Chen's every word.
"Even his leadership is so outstanding. Xiao Chen really is far too exceptional."
Despite these inward sentiments, Bibi Dong still had to face reality. "Next, it's Xiao Chen's turn to choose a soul ring."
No matter how long they delayed, they would eventually have to face this difficult problem.
The result did not fall outside Bibi Dong's expectations either. First, everyone found a four-hundred-year Soul Beast for Luo Chen to kill.
Their choice of a four-hundred-year Soul Beast also came with a measure of wishful thinking.
In any case, Luo Chen's Martial Soul could sense whether he could absorb a soul ring. Since there was no danger, why not give it a try?
"Xiao Chen, kill it."
Looking at the Soul Beast before them, which Chrysanthemum Ghost Douluo had beaten half to death and then suppressed with Soul Power, Bibi Dong handed Luo Chen the dagger.
Luo Chen hesitated for a moment, but it was only hesitation.
"Yes, Teacher."
He had come to this world six years ago and suffered so much. His mindset had long since changed.
And so, his hand rose and the blade fell without the slightest hesitation.
"Hum..."
Soon, a yellow soul ring emerged from the Soul Beast's corpse.
After killing this four-hundred-year Soul Beast, Luo Chen carefully sensed the energy contained within the soul ring.
"It won't work, Master."
Na'er's voice rang out in his heart. "The energy contained in this soul ring exceeds what you can withstand by far."
Na'er was experienced. She had already assessed Luo Chen's condition and concluded that he could not absorb a Soul Ring over a hundred years old.
"I'm sorry, Teacher. I can't absorb it."
Luo Chen withdrew the hand he had held above the Soul Ring in a pretense of sensing it, then turned to Bibi Dong and said, "My Martial Soul tells me that, with my current physical condition, I can't absorb a Soul Ring over a hundred years old."
"Sigh."
This was the second time Bibi Dong had heard Luo Chen say this. She let out a wistful sigh and finally accepted the fact.
"Then let's wait a little longer."
Bibi Dong intended to give up. She planned to wait until Luo Chen's body had recovered somewhat before trying again.
"Teacher."
Just then, Luo Chen spoke. "I want to absorb a Soul Ring today."
"What?"
Bibi Dong cried out in surprise, "But, Xiao Chen, you can't absorb..."
"I plan to absorb a Ten-Year Soul Ring."
Before Bibi Dong could speak to stop him, Luo Chen said, "Teacher, please don't rush. Could you hear my thoughts first?"
(End of chapter)