Yu Tianheng told the direct-line clan members to return first, keeping Yu Xiaolong behind.
Once everyone had left, only Yu Tianheng and his father, Yu Xiaolong, remained in the vast clan council hall.
Yu Tianheng said, "Father, these are the final two levels of the Innate Skill. They're for you." As he spoke, Yu Tianheng took out the booklet containing the cultivation method and handed it to Yu Xiaolong. He explained, "Grandfather is in seclusion, trying to break through the level 95 bottleneck. It's best not to disturb him unless something happens, so teaching the cultivation method to the clan members can only fall to me. But I need to cultivate too, and in a few years, I'll also be leaving the clan to cultivate at a Soul Master Academy. I simply won't have the time."
"So, Father, I'll have to trouble you with it."
Yu Xiaolong nodded and took the booklet containing the cultivation method. "All right, I'll take care of it."
"By the way, I have a question for you."
"What is it?"
"Since the Innate Skill is so miraculous and can increase a Soul Master's cultivation speed, why not teach it to the collateral clan members? If they cultivated this method too, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's strength would increase tremendously!" Yu Xiaolong asked.
Yu Tianheng thought for a moment before answering, "There are too many collateral clan members, and dragons and fish are bound to be mixed together among them. One moment of carelessness could let the cultivation method spread outside the clan."
"Father, you just experienced how miraculous the Innate Skill is yourself. Once it spreads, it will definitely attract the attention of the major powers in the Soul Master World. Even Spirit Hall will take notice. The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan will become the target of every arrow. When that happens, do we hand over the Innate Skill or not?"
"If we hand it over, can you bear to miss the chance for our clan to rise?"
"If we don't, those major powers will grow wary, then afraid. After that, they'll join forces to attack the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, wipe it out, and seize the cultivation method!"
Yu Xiaolong's heart shook at his words. "It's only a cultivation method. Surely it wouldn't be that serious?"
"Besides, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan is one of the Upper Three Sects, with formidable strength. Your grandfather is a Titled Douluo, no less. Who would have the guts to attack the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan? Are they tired of living?"
"People are greedy. That can't be avoided. As for which power has the guts?"
"Spirit Hall is definitely first on the list. Even the Clear Sky Sect, the foremost of the Upper Three Sects, was forced by Spirit Hall to seal its mountain and didn't dare let out a single fart. That's a warning from the overturned cart ahead of us. We'd better be careful too."
Hearing this, Yu Xiaolong nodded gravely.
After a few more words, father and son went their separate ways.
Yu Tianheng returned to his residence and opened the Heavenly Mandate System's character interface:
Name: Yu Tianheng Age: 10 Affiliation: Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan Realm: Soul Master level: level 25 Power Attack System Soul Master; Martial Dao realm: first level of the Sinew Refining Realm Skills mastered: Thunder Dragon Claw, Thunderous Might, Dragon Claw Hand Cultivation methods mastered: Innate Skill (fifth level), Tyrant Dragon Body Tempering Art (beginner) Heavenly Mandate Points: 1,830 Backpack: Body Tempering Liquid, several Essence Stones
Previously, he hadn't had enough Heavenly Mandate Points to raise the Innate Skill to perfection. Now, after earning a large number of Heavenly Mandate Points by teaching the cultivation method, Yu Tianheng spent 320 Heavenly Mandate Points without hesitation, raising the Innate Skill to perfection at the sixth level.
After improving the technique, Yu Tianheng could clearly feel that his strength had risen a notch, and his cultivation speed had doubled from before.
Yu Tianheng then opened the system shop and began browsing. After choosing for a quarter of an hour, he selected a secret method called the "Aura Concealment Technique" and spent 200 Heavenly Mandate Points on it.
Then he spent another 100 Heavenly Mandate Points to raise it directly to perfection.
This secret technique had no offensive power whatsoever, but it could conceal a cultivator's presence. Once raised to perfection, even a Titled Douluo-level expert couldn't see through Yu Tianheng's true cultivation. This way, he could better play the pig to eat the tiger.
In the years that followed, Yu Tianheng continued to cultivate in the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. With the perfected Innate Skill aiding him, his cultivation speed reached a terrifying degree. Even while cultivating both Martial Dao and his Martial Soul, his progress far surpassed that of his peers.
Even Yu Tianxin, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's other Soul Master genius whose fame matched his, was left far behind.
Two years later, Yu Tianheng's Soul Power Level reached level thirty. With the clan's help, he successfully obtained his third Soul Ring, a Soul Ring from a draconic Soul Beast as old as five thousand years. He shocked the entire clan, becoming the first genius Soul Master in a century of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan to reach the three-ring Soul Ancestor stage before the age of twelve.
Upon hearing the news, Yu Yuanzhen emerged from seclusion. At the same time, he had also officially reached level 95 as a Titled Douluo, becoming a Super Douluo.
Yu Tianxin, meanwhile, was still lingering in the twenties and wasn't even qualified to compete with Yu Tianheng.
Thus, Yu Yuanzhen immediately announced that Yu Tianheng would be the successor to the position of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's next patriarch.
Not a soul in the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan dared oppose the proposal; all of them supported it.
At a training ground within the clan.
Yu Tianxin stood alone in the center of the clan's training ground, his fists clenching involuntarily, his heart full of frustration.
He had just learned that his younger brother, Yu Tianheng, had been chosen as the successor to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's patriarch. Yu Tianxin had always believed that his own talent was considerable, and he had put a great deal of effort into the clan. He had thought he stood a good chance of competing for the position, but now he found the outcome hard to accept.
In truth, he didn't have much objection to Yu Tianheng inheriting the position of patriarch. Yu Tianheng was stronger than him in both talent and strength. The position of patriarch had always gone to whoever was stronger, and since his own skills fell short, he had nothing to say.
But he still felt somewhat uncomfortable.
While Yu Tianxin was immersed in his thoughts, steady, familiar footsteps came from behind him. Yu Tianheng's voice followed. "Big brother, I knew you'd be here. What, are you still cultivating?" Yu Tianxin stiffened slightly. Without turning around, he said indifferently, "Tianheng, congratulations on becoming the patriarch's successor." His tone carried a trace of bitterness that even he could barely detect.
Yu Tianheng walked over and stood beside him, looking at the scene in the training ground. After a moment of silence, he said, "Big brother, I know you're feeling upset."
Yu Tianxin snorted. "You're the clan's heir now, the future patriarch. How could you understand how I feel?"
Yu Tianheng frowned slightly and turned to look at Yu Tianxin. "Do you think becoming the successor is something worth celebrating?" Yu Tianxin looked at him in puzzlement. "Isn't it? It's a position countless people dream of."
Yu Tianheng let out a long sigh. "Big brother, the position of patriarch brings more than glory. It brings even greater responsibility. The clan may seem prosperous now, but danger lurks on all sides. The pressure from outside and the conflicts within the clan will all fall on me to bear in the future."