After playing with his Soul Skill for a while, Lu Yu's mood gradually settled. He sat back down on the rock with Great Sage and gazed at the setting sun in the distance. His thoughts slowly unfurled as he began planning the road ahead.
Lu Yu was no longer alone. He had to make more plans for Lu Fei, the younger brother he had gained without lifting a finger.
"Right, Whale Rubber! How could I forget that? It's one of the must-eats for anyone who transmigrates to Douluo!"
Lu Yu thought it over. For now, he only needed to absorb Ten-Year Soul Rings, so he still had plenty of time to gradually hone and improve his physique.
But the original owner's family had been destitute, and the two brothers had suffered from hunger and cold for years. Lu Fei's foundation was frail, and Lu Yu even suspected that, with his current physique, Lu Fei would struggle to withstand even a Hundred-Year Soul Ring.
Thinking of the original owner's circumstances, Lu Yu still could not help feeling wistful. In his previous life, Lu Yu had grown up in an orphanage, but at least he had never wanted for food or warmth. Yet from what Lu Fei had told him, the brothers had once considered even one full meal every two days a luxury. It was a great stroke of luck that they had managed to survive until now.
"Alas, life was freer when I was alone in my previous life. I had no ties or worries and could do whatever I pleased. Now, in this life, I've gained a younger brother out of nowhere who needs looking after."
Lu Yu sighed softly, then let the matter go in an instant.
"Forget it. I'll treat it as payment for taking over this body."
Lu Yu shook his head, rose, and brushed the dust from the hem of his clothes before turning toward the dense forest. He had already made up his mind. Since he had taken over this body, he was, after all, Lu Fei's biological older brother. It was only right that he nurture Lu Fei with care.
Although Lu Yu had only just set foot on the path of cultivation, he had lived in an age of information overload in his previous life. The all-powerful netizens had long since sorted through the various cultivation insights and tricks of the Douluo Continent, laying them out crystal clear.
Once he filled in his knowledge of this world, and combined it with all manner of heavenly treasures and known opportunities, wouldn't raising a Titled Douluo be as easy as could be?
As for what those heavenly treasures and opportunities were, there was no need to say more. Those in the know would naturally know!
Night was slowly falling by the time Lu Yu started home, carrying two snow-white Soft Bone Rabbits, with Great Sage lying quietly on his shoulder. Lu Yu would never be like Yu Xiaogang, keeping his Martial Soul cooped up in the Martial Soul space all day.
When he was still twenty or thirty meters from the hut, Lu Fei, who had been keeping watch at the door, spotted him first.
"Brother!"
Lu Fei called out loudly and hurried toward him.
Since awakening his Martial Soul and gaining Soul Power, Lu Fei had changed visibly. He had always looked sickly before, but now he was full of life, with all the vigor a lively child ought to have.
"Wow, Brother, you're amazing! You actually caught two rabbits!"
Lu Fei rushed to Lu Yu's side and circled him, his eyes fixed on the rabbits in Lu Yu's hand. He only gave Great Sage, lying on Lu Yu's shoulder, a quick, curious glance.
"Don't worry. We're both Soul Masters now. From here on, our lives will only get better and better." Lu Yu lifted the rabbits and swung them in front of Lu Fei, his tone certain, as though he had never considered the possibility of failure.
"Mm! I'll definitely cultivate with all my might, become a powerful Soul Master someday, and earn lots and lots of money. Then I'll buy lots and lots of meat so you can eat it every day, Brother!"
As Lu Fei spoke, he gestured constantly with both hands, his eyes full of longing.
"All right, all right. Our Xiao Fei has the greatest ambition. Did you finish cleaning the house?"
"Don't worry, Brother. I finished tidying up ages ago. You can inspect it whenever you like!" Lu Fei thumped his chest, looking thoroughly pleased with himself.
Chatting and laughing, the brothers soon returned to the shabby hut. There had not been many belongings inside to begin with, nor much to tidy. Lu Yu had another reason for sending Lu Fei away: he wanted to use the time to investigate the secret of his Second Martial Soul.
It was not that he distrusted Lu Fei or anything. Some things were best known only to himself. When the time came and both brothers were capable of protecting themselves, he would naturally tell him.
The furnishings inside were as crude as could be: a wooden bed, a broken wooden table, two rickety chairs, and two enormous wooden barrels. The door hung crooked and loose, with only a lotus leaf barely covering the gap.
After stepping inside, Lu Yu placed the meditation method Su Yuntao had given him and a bag of Copper Soul Coins on the bed, then turned to Lu Fei.
"Xiao Fei, go gather some firewood nearby. We'll roast rabbit tonight. I'll stay here and prepare these two rabbits."
"Got it, Brother!" Lu Fei answered and skipped out the door.
Lu Yu went to the barrels, fetched a wooden basin, and scooped up some clean water before putting the two rabbits in to soak. There was not even a knife to be found in the house, so he could only skin them by hand.
Looking at the skinned, bloody rabbit carcasses in the basin, Lu Yu found himself in a bind. Without a blade, he could not cut open their bellies and remove the entrails, and his tastes were not so strong that he would roast and eat them innards and all.
Lu Yu put the rabbit back in the basin and went to the door to look outside. Only after making sure Lu Fei was nowhere around the hut did he shut the wooden door. Returning to the basin, Lu Yu summoned his Soul Ring and gave a low cry:
"First Soul Skill-Vajra Indestructibility!"
Lu Yu did not know why he instinctively called out the number and name of his Soul Skill when using it. Perhaps it was instinct, just as one naturally called out a card when playing it.
The instant his voice fell, a pale golden light swept over his body, coating his skin and his jet-black hair alike in a gilded sheen.
Lu Yu clenched his fist, then picked up a rabbit with his left hand and gripped it firmly by the back. He extended his right index finger and jabbed it hard into the rabbit's belly.
Splurt-
The sound of flesh being pierced rang out. Blood welled up and ran down the rabbit into the basin. He dug both hands into the opening he had just made and tore it apart. Before long, he had split the belly fully open. He scooped out all the entrails in one handful and tossed them beside the basin with a hint of distaste.
He dealt with the other rabbit the same way, and soon both carcasses were cleaned. Looking at the pile of entrails beside the basin, Lu Yu had intended to throw them away, but after a moment's thought, he changed his mind.
He would go hunting in the mountains tomorrow, and the entrails would make perfect bait. Even if they attracted a large ferocious beast, Lu Yu was not afraid in the slightest. He still had his Second Martial Soul, the Ruyi Staff, which weighed a thousand jin.
Any beast that dared bully Lu Yu would be crushed!!
A sliver of crimson light shone through the shabby window lattice, overpowering the oil lamp's faint glow. Surprised, Lu Yu leaned out to look and saw Lu Fei returning slowly with a large bundle of firewood in his arms, in his Martial Soul Possession state.
Lu Fei's Martial Soul was a Beast Martial Soul-the Fire Monkey-with innate Soul Power of rank five. Strangely enough, only the tip of the Fire Monkey's tail bore a fist-sized ball of flame; there was no fire anywhere else. Perhaps that was simply what a Martial Soul with innate Soul Power of rank five was like.
"Haha, looks like this younger brother I gained isn't dull-witted. He even knows to use his Martial Soul for light."
Lu Yu smiled, bent down, and carried the wooden basin with the prepared rabbit meat outside.
"All right, here will do. Stay a little farther from the house. Don't set it on fire."
When Lu Fei was still five or six meters from the house, Lu Yu called him to a stop. Shabby as it was, the hut was currently the brothers' only home. Lu Yu had no wish to take the sky for a blanket and the ground for a bed.