Pleasantries

Seeing that Elder Ma Chengyuan seemed lost in recollection, the Spirit Hall envoy solemnly bowed to him. "Jin Huang, level eighty-three Power Attack System Soul Douluo, Martial Soul: Primal Crocodile, greets Uncle Ma."

By then, Ma Chengyuan had fully come to his senses, and a flicker of curiosity passed through his eyes.

Back then, because he and his brother had acted on their own initiative, his brother had been confined to Spirit City by his own ancestor. Though that ancestor had also protected Ma Chengyuan, the price was that he could never approach Spirit City without permission or publish any theories for the rest of his life.

Now that his old friend's descendant had come here, it showed, on the one hand, that there was nothing seriously wrong with his theory. On the other, it meant that the ban on him had been temporarily lifted.

Good news!

Ma Chengyuan grinned, so delighted that he bared his teeth.

But before he could speak further with Jin Huang, he caught sight of his old friend's chrysanthemum-like face. His friend was also a teacher, though the two had only joined forces partway through their careers.

Embarrassed, Old Master Ma gave his old friend an apologetic look.

After a few pleasantries, he turned Jin Huang's attention from himself to his old friend.

"Jin Huang, I don't need to tell you that headquarters must have given you information on this fellow." Ma Chengyuan raised a hand and pointed at his old friend. "Qing Xiunuo, a level seventy-two Soul Saint. His Martial Soul is the Ice Sea Cave Turtle, and he specializes in defense and control."

Old Master Ma, who still had some standing to maintain in front of a younger clansman, winked at Jin Huang. "When it comes to teaching, more than a dozen Soul Saints at his level have come from his tutelage. His teaching ability is quite good."

Jin Huang nodded.

He agreed wholeheartedly with Old Master Ma's assessment of the bishop in charge of Spirit Hall's main branch in Vast Sea City.

Even their Yellow Golden Crocodile lineage had only managed, over the years, to find two paths that could reliably bring one close to becoming a Titled Douluo.

Yet not many members of the clan could follow those two paths.

That was because the most basic requirement for either path was level-eight Innate Soul Power.

An Innate Soul Power level that would mark someone as an outstanding talent anywhere else was barely enough to qualify for those paths.

Level nine only meant a greater chance of success.

As for level-ten Innate Soul Power, aside from that ancestor, practically no one in their clan had ever possessed it.

But Old Master Xiunuo was different. He had trained youths with level-five or level-six Innate Soul Power into Soul Emperors, even Soul Saints. His talent for teaching was plain to see.

Seeing Jin Huang nod, the two old men, whose Soul Power Levels were much of a muchness, both gained a touch of color in their cheeks.

Old Master Ma continued, "The genius we usually speak of has been following the overall direction set by the two of us, with the deacon closest to him carrying it out."

"Just yesterday, the little fellow finished practicing the Basic Soul Power Cultivation Method. We don't know how many cycles he completed, but something unusual happened."

Bishop Xiunuo picked up where he left off. "The little fellow's Martial Soul is extremely unusual. So unusual that it consumes its host's own energy during Soul Power cultivation, causing the little fellow to lose weight. If this old man hadn't instructed the kitchen to make him high-energy food, he might not even have been able to cultivate."

But at that moment, Old Master Ma gave Old Master Xiunuo a rather odd look. "Wasn't it that he accumulated too much Soul Power and lost a great deal of nourishment while tempering his body, so he urgently needed a Soul Ring to enhance the quality and capacity of his Soul Power?"

For a moment, the two old men glared at each other.

Their presences began to clash, and just as they were about to turn the place into a fighting arena, Jin Huang stopped holding his presence back.

The ferocity of the Primal Crocodile, which had ruled the wilderness for countless years and endured through endless ages, was even more terrifying than that of the Yellow Golden Crocodile.

In an instant, the very nature of his Martial Soul suppressed the two old men, who had been at daggers drawn.

"Elders, this isn't the time to argue over your theories and discoveries. Let's hurry and see this genius with Innate Full Soul Power."

"If possible, I've been instructed by the worshippers of the Worship Hall to hunt the little fellow's first Soul Ring for him."

As he spoke, a trace of envy and jealousy flashed through Jin Huang's eyes, which had already taken on a beastlike appearance.

The two old men still had no idea how glorious a future awaited this youth with Innate Full Soul Power.

But Jin Huang knew.

It was precisely because he knew that he had grown curious about the youth.

Of course, he also intended to size him up.

If the youth wasn't worth such a sacrifice from their Golden Crocodile Clan, then he wouldn't mind dealing with him beforehand, since he might consume some of the clan's resources.

Jin Huang concealed his racing thoughts well, however, and neither of the two old men noticed them. The pressure from the quality of his Soul Power had left them unable to open their eyes for the moment.

Only after the two old men heard Jin Huang's declaration and nodded with difficulty did he rein in the might of his Martial Soul Possession, returning to the appearance of a refined, courteous middle-aged envoy.

The two old men also reined in their presences and led Jin Huang toward the library.

But the closer they got, the more uneasy Jin Huang felt.

He looked at the other two old men, who felt nothing at all, and frowned.

Jin Huang had once heard his father say that the Primal Crocodile Martial Soul he had inherited had far stronger perception than the innately powerful Yellow Golden Crocodile Martial Soul.

That was because the Yellow Golden Crocodile was an apex predator from birth, while the Primal Crocodile was not. He had to hunt crocodilian Soul Beasts bit by bit to grow stronger.

Yet it was precisely because of those countless life-and-death struggles that the Primal Crocodile had developed a combative, ferocious, yet cautious nature.

That trait was also rooted in their Martial Souls.

And because Jin Huang had been born after his father, Primal Crocodile Douluo Jin Yuan, became a Titled Douluo, the trait was especially pronounced in him.

More than once, he had sensed fluctuations in the presences that several worshippers of the Worship Hall released while cultivating, and fallen into a panic.

That was the suppression those worshippers exerted over him through both their cultivation and the level of their Martial Souls.

But now, before he had even approached the so-called library, he could already feel that faint, intermittent pressure. The Primal Crocodile's instincts were even urging him to leave at once the area that might already be a place of trouble.

In an instant, Jin Huang's gaze sharpened.

Old Master Ma, however, failed to notice the change in Jin Huang, who followed behind them and spoke to them now and then. He simply kept talking about his own theory.

"Jin Huang, I discovered something in Spirit Hall's many books on Soul Beasts. Long ago, aside from apex creatures like dragons, there should have been other races that could match them. Otherwise, so many Martial Souls and Soul Beasts wouldn't have come into being."

As Old Master Ma spoke about his theories, however, Bishop Xiunuo looked at his old friend with a rather helpless expression.

"Old Ma, I told you long ago not to spout your theories whenever you please." Bishop Xiunuo spoke up, trying to shut Elder Ma Chengyuan's mouth. "Your theory is obviously correct. After all, apex Martial Souls like the Phoenix exist too."