Xuan Ming opened his eyes. "Can I say I don't want to know you?"
Xue Qinghe's eye twitched slightly. "What do you think?"
"Your Highness, please don't be angry. I was just joking," Xuan Ming said.
"However, Your Highness also knows that I have a bad temper and speak harshly. The daughter of Sect Master Ning is delicate and precious; I'm afraid my manner might frighten her."
"My child is quite brave; he shouldn't be scared," Ning Fengzhi said.
"What if it scares you?" Xuan Ming asked.
"Let me make this clear first, I don't know how to coax people."
"..."
Chapter 68 It's normal to die.
The meeting, though not entirely smooth, ended in a pleasant manner. After having lunch at the Seven Treasure Pavilion, Xue Qinghe left with Xuan Ming.
" Uncle Jian, what do you think of this child's talent?" Ning Fengzhi asked.
Chen Xin thought for a moment, "Based on what I've seen, it's quite good."
"However, it's hard to say what level it will reach in the future."
Soul Master's cultivation is not something that can be achieved overnight; it requires decades of accumulation. Talent is just talent; the key is whether one can make good use of that talent.
"Of course, with the power of the Heaven Dou Imperial Family and this child's talent, as long as he doesn't waste his potential, reaching the Titled Douluo shouldn't be difficult," Chen Xin said.
" Fengzhi, you already have an idea?"
"We must be prepared for unforeseen circumstances and think about the future," Ning Fengzhi said.
"With the Clear Sky Sect retreating into seclusion, and the Spirit Hall expanding more and more recklessly, this continent may well face another upheaval in a few years."
" The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect needs to prepare as soon as possible."
The Spirit Hall's power is immense, putting pressure on both empires. Star Luo Empire is doing alright, but Heaven Dou is already feeling the strain.
In order to cope with the pressure from the Spirit Hall, Xue Ye intended to befriend the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and even hinted to them a few years ago that they could choose a prince as their supporter.
Initially, Xue Ye and the Heaven Dou Imperial Family were optimistic about the Second Prince, but no one expected that the Second Prince would suddenly die young.
Later, Xue Ye turned her attention to the Third Prince, who had exceptional talent in cultivation, but then that incident happened last year.
Now, only this eldest prince is capable of shouldering this heavy responsibility.
" Fengzhi, that old man and I aren't dead yet," Chen Xin said.
"Even if you really have ideas, you should at least investigate that kid's character first."
"Character... I can tell an adult's character, but a child changes every day. How well they behave depends on how the adults teach them," Ning Fengzhi said.
"I've only had this thought for a while; it's still a long way off."
"So what do you think of this crown prince?" Chen Xin asked.
"I've heard that this Xue Qinghe is no ordinary person."
The two princes who were expected to become crown prince died one after another, and the eldest prince Xue Qinghe, successfully ascended to the position of crown prince. It would be hard to believe that there were no problems involved.
"If the crown prince, the future emperor, is too simple, then he is doomed," Ning Fengzhi said.
The Heaven Dou Imperial Family had suspicions about the deaths of the two princes, but lacked evidence.
And in such cases, unless there is evidence, no one will speak out openly.
Even if the Crown Prince's tolerance and benevolence were all an act, at least he was willing to pretend, and no one could really find fault with it.
Since there's nothing wrong with it, what difference does it make whether this kindness is genuine or not?
It's meant to be seen by people; if no one can spot the problems, that's enough.
If you really want to get to the bottom of things, there's no such thing as a perfect person in this world.
Time flies, and Xuan Ming has spent another year cultivating at the Heaven Dou Royal Academy.
Since being named Crown Prince, Xue Qinghe has been busy and no longer visits him every few days as before. Qian Renxue, on the other hand, is more stable, appearing about once a month. After meeting, they exchange cultivation tips at the Crown Prince's residence and occasionally spar. Her attitude is much better than before.
Level 20? Are you serious?
Dugu Bo, who had just returned from a long trip to check on his granddaughter's cultivation, overheard Dugu Yan and the others discussing taking Xuan Ming to hunt for her Second Soul Ring as soon as he entered the door.
"You're not incapable of sensing it," Xuan Ming said.
"What I mean is..." Dugu Bo's expression was somewhat unnatural.
"I've used quite a few good things before," Xuan Ming said.
When Bibi Dong was repairing his Martial Soul, the medicinal baths she prepared and the medicine she gave him for almost a month were all treasures, but these things needed time to be digested.
Bibi Dong had also told him that most people would need at least ten years to slowly absorb so much information, and for him to absorb it so quickly in such a short time was tantamount to suicide.
Because the medicine is too potent, it is very easy for the body to be unable to tolerate the tonic. However, due to his Martial Soul Mutation, his body and Soul Power are vastly different from ordinary people.
Of course, the main reason is the Blood Spear's devouring ability. He can't directly absorb so much stuff, but the Blood Spear can devour it and slowly feed it back to him, just like doing kidney dialysis.
However, this method would cause the quality of the Blood Spear to improve too quickly, making it too greedy. Therefore, in order to keep up with the progress of the Blood Spear, he has been cultivating with his two minds in shifts for nearly two years, almost without sleep or rest.
"Grandpa, now that you're back, why don't you take Xuan Ming with you to hunt for Soul Ring?" Dugu Yan said.
"The Education Committee member Meng Shenji said that Xuan Ming can already withstand Thousand-Year Soul Ring."
" Thousand-Year Soul Ring?" Dugu Bo raised an eyebrow, reached out and put his hand on Xuan Ming's shoulder, releasing his Soul Power and Divine Power to test it.
A moment later, his expression turned extremely strange.
His physical strength is already comparable to Soul Elder of level 30 or higher, and his Divine Power is also somewhat off...
"Alright." Dugu Bo withdrew his hand.
"I happen to be free these days. Tell me, what kind of Soul Ring do you want to get? I'll see if there are any in Sunset Forest and take you to find a suitable one."
"A lightning-attribute, ferocious, and preferably a sub-dragon or dragon beast with the Dragon Clan blood," Xuan Ming said.
Dugu Bo thought for a moment, "There are quite a few lightning-attribute beasts, but dragon-type Soul Beast are extremely hard to find. Let's give it a try."
Sunset Forest.
Because Xuan Ming needed to hunt for Thousand-Year Soul Ring, and the age of the soul ring was not low, he needed to go deep into the living area of Thousand-Year Soul Beast, which was somewhat dangerous. In addition, finding a suitable Soul Beast would often take ten days to half a month, and sometimes even several months. Therefore, Dugu Bo did not let Dugu Yan and the others come along.
Under the cover of night, the two walked one after the other through the dense forest. Having lived in this forest for decades, Dugu Bo naturally knew a lot about the distribution of Soul Beast here, at least having a general idea of the area, so he didn't have to slowly try his luck in the vast forest.
"I have two suggestions for your situation," Dugu Bo suddenly said.
"To be on the safe side, Soul Ring under two thousand years old. If you're confident enough, you can try two to three thousand years."
"Of course, the difficulty and danger will also be higher."
Ten-Year Soul Beast reaches a milestone before reaching a hundred years old; every ten years is a critical juncture.
Hundred-Year Soul Beast reaches a point a thousand years ago; every hundred years is another hurdle.
The same applies to thousand-year-old and Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
Especially between a thousand years and ten thousand years, and between ten thousand years and one hundred thousand years, even if there is only a one-year difference, the quality of the Soul Ring and the improvement it brings are two completely different concepts.
Of course, absorption difficulty is also a different concept.
"So, my limit is three thousand years?" Xuan Ming asked.
"Not that much, at most two thousand five," Dugu Bo said.
"To be honest, I don't recommend you try to get the Limit Soul Ring."
"Why?" Xuan Ming asked.
"Absorbing Limit Soul Ring, while providing a greater boost to Soul Master, is also extremely dangerous. Very few Soul Master would risk it, as it's very easy to die," Dugu Bo said.
" The Limit Soul Ring is a huge test for Soul Master's physical body, Divine Power, and Martial Soul. It's no exaggeration to say that it's like passing through the gates of hell."
"Dying is normal; surviving is just good luck."
"I've seen quite a few Soul Master attempt to challenge the Limit Soul Ring, but they either suffer physical accidents, such as damaged meridians, or their Divine Power is insufficient to sustain them, causing them to faint halfway through. Or their Martial Soul cannot withstand such a massive energy baptism, resulting in damage and collapse. In short, very few succeed, and even if they manage to succeed once by chance, they would never want to do it a second time."
Absorbing Limit Soul Ring is inherently a risky endeavor that far outweighs the potential rewards.
Although Soul Master who grow up in this way are much stronger, and their will and strength are far superior to those of ordinary Soul Master, it is... too dangerous!
In any case, he would absolutely not let Dugu Yan do such a thing!
Anyone who encourages others to challenge the Limit Soul Ring is either stupid or malicious!
Anyone who knows how dangerous this thing is would absolutely not say anything encouraging!
Chapter 69 Too Much of a Good Thing Can Be Overdone
"From what you're saying, you've tried it?" Xuan Ming asked.
"My Seventh Soul Ring was also the opportunity for my Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul to evolve into the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor. At that time, I acted impulsively and absorbed an Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor with more than 50,000 years of cultivation," Dugu Bo said.
"Although I succeeded by sheer luck, I never want to recall that feeling for the rest of my life."
For Beast Soul Master, if they can encounter a Soul Beast that matches their own Martial Soul and is of similar age, almost no one will give up!
Sometimes, even knowing they don't have the ability, many people will still try.
Absorbing that kind of Soul Ring not only provides an incredibly powerful boost, but also brings many unexpected benefits; success means a promising future.
But if we fail, we will die without a burial place!
"I heard from Yanyan that your First Soul Ring is eight hundred years old, which means you've already experienced that feeling once," Dugu Bo said.
"You don't necessarily want to do it again, do you?"
"I don't want to," Xuan Ming said.
"But some things, whether I want to do them or not, have little to do with whether I do them or not."
When he absorbed that eight-hundred-year-old Soul Ring last time, he felt like he was about to die. If it weren't for the Blood Spear's devouring properties, which reduced the pressure on him when fusing Soul Ring in the mid-to-late stages, he might already be dead.
He doesn't have masochistic tendencies, and he doesn't want to experience something so dangerous again.
"Are you that thirsty for power?" Dugu Bo asked.
"Would you really take such a huge risk to gamble?"
Absorbing Limit Soul Ring, to put it bluntly, is not much different from gambling!
No one who has absorbed Limit Soul Ring dares to say that they could succeed in persisting if they did it again.
"I don't crave power, I just need it," Xuan Ming said.
"You know I'm unlucky. My bad luck might strike at any time, and I'll be facing death again."
"I don't want to regret it later. If I had given it my all in the past, maybe this wouldn't have happened."
"Your temperament is quite surprising. It would be great if you could change that temper a bit more," Dugu Bo said.
"Then why didn't you join the Spirit Hall before?" Xuan Ming asked.
"Your skills are quite good, but it would be even better if you could control your temper."
Dugu Bo's eye twitched slightly. "Do you know what your biggest weakness is?"
"Temper?" Xuan Ming asked.
"No, it's your mouth!" Dugu Bo said speechlessly.
If this kid didn't have this mouth and was mute, he would be perfect!
"Hmm?" Dugu Bo suddenly stopped and looked into the depths of the darkness.
Xuan Ming followed Dugu Bo's gaze and, relying on his powerful night vision, clearly saw a pair of vertical pupils, gleaming with an eerie light, staring at them from the bushes a hundred meters away.
Because he was searching for Thousand-Year Soul Beast, Dugu Bo suppressed his aura to the point where he could only expel Hundred-Year Soul Beast.