Worried for Nothing

Qiansha was quite pleased with the anxious look on her grandfather's face.

It never crossed her mind that her grandfather had acted this way for the sake of her future.

As she nodded, she looked at Mu Tian'en, who had now lost a full five jin, with a hint of alarm in her eyes.

"Grandpa, little Tian'en is only six, and he originally weighed just thirty jin. You couldn't exactly call him skin and bones, but he was malnourished."

"Didn't I put in a request with you for a whole batch of nutritious whale fat the other day? I finally managed to force-feed little Tian'en up to thirty-five jin, which was about normal. His cheeks even had that chubby baby fat when you touched them."

Qiansha paused.

Right after that, her grandfather gave her a sharp knock on the head. "Don't stop for a big breath at a time like this. Say it all at once."

"But the little guy was perfectly fine yesterday, and now, even though his height hasn't changed much, he's a full five jin lighter."

As Xiunuo listened to his granddaughter, his beady eyes grew somewhat fierce beneath his furrowed, graying brows.

His granddaughter hadn't finished speaking.

But Old Master Xiunuo could naturally read between the lines.

The little guy had been attacked in secret after he went back last night.

Although he didn't know why those people hadn't done any damage to the little guy's Martial Soul, the depletion of his body alone meant that security at Spirit Hall's Vast Sea City main hall had grown lax.

A chill burst forth from the old man.

A great purge!

It seemed their Vast Sea City main hall needed to purge the spies from the various factions too.

They would even harm an exceptional talent that their Spirit Hall had taken a liking to.

And that fellow Yan Bohan-just how was he doing his job?

Something had happened to the child, yet he hadn't even come to report it.

If his granddaughter hadn't told him in time, he might really have remained unaware until the envoy from Spirit Hall's Worship Hall arrived.

By then, not only would his dream of climbing another step have gone up in smoke, he might even have been punished and lost his current position.

The old man had always been exasperated by his granddaughter's unreliable nature, but for the first time, he felt he had been right not to stop her from feeding the child.

Otherwise, he might never have discovered that a little child could still be left without enough to eat after explicitly joining Spirit Hall.

Bishop Xiunuo's face visibly darkened.

But when he remembered that he was still holding Mu Tian'en, he hurriedly gathered back the chill he had let escape.

He set Mu Tian'en on the ground.

Watching Mu Tian'en shake his little feet, delighted to have regained his freedom, Old Master Xiunuo managed to force a radiant smile. "Little Tian'en, have you been eating your meals on time these past few days?"

In fact, the old man wanted to ask little Tian'en about what he had been eating lately, and at the same time check his suspicions against the face of the little guy, who was no good at lying.

When he asked, the old man even went so far as to use a tiny bit of spiritual power, lending his words a hint of persuasion.

Mu Tian'en subconsciously patted his belly, a satisfied smile appearing on his face. "Grandpa Xiunuo, I've been eating well. I can eat three bowls of rice every meal, enough for my belly to stretch out my clothes."

"It's just, I... I..." A trace of hesitation appeared on Mu Tian'en's face when he thought of his Soul Power cultivation method.

That hesitation made both Qiansha and Old Master Xiunuo's expressions turn ugly.

It seemed their guess hadn't been wrong.

Someone really was jealous of the little guy's talent and had actually tried to deplete his Innate Soul Power by starving him.

This was outrageous!

The old man could barely hold back the roar of a Soul Saint from ringing out through the main hall.

But with Mu Tian'en still standing before him, he maintained the most basic composure.

With a smile that didn't reach his eyes, Old Master Xiunuo reached out and rubbed Mu Tian'en's head. Hiding his anger as best he could, he coaxed him in his usual gentle tone, "Then, little Tian'en, are you hungry now? If you are, Grandpa will have your Aunt Qiansha take you to get something tasty."

With that, Old Master Xiunuo signaled Qiansha with his eyes to take Mu Tian'en away.

But just as Qiansha took Mu Tian'en's little hand and prepared to lead him away, he planted his feet and released Aunt Qiansha's hand.

He took a few steps over to Bishop Xiunuo, tipped his head back, and looked at the bulging veins on the bishop's forehead. Then he said loudly, "Grandpa Xiunuo, I just learned to control my Soul Power yesterday, and I tried using the Basic Soul Power Cultivation Method."

"Oh?" Bishop Xiunuo had seen his granddaughter take Mu Tian'en's hand and prepare to lead him away, so he had turned to deal with the dining hall issue. Now he stopped in his tracks.

The Basic Soul Power Cultivation Method...

The old man, who had been on the verge of flying into a rage, calmed down in an instant.

He studied Mu Tian'en.

When he had scanned him with his Soul Power earlier, he had already sensed that something was slightly off.

The little guy's nearly congealed Soul Power had begun to flow.

Although it still hadn't passed level ten, it was in a far better state than when he had first arrived at Spirit Hall's Vast Sea City main hall, when it had almost stopped flowing altogether.

One complete cycle, or more?

The old man had never encountered a genius with Innate Full Soul Power in his life, much less one whose Martial Soul was also a Mutated Martial Soul.

For a moment, even Cardinal Xiunuo, experienced as he was, couldn't be sure.

But the old man had caught a glimmer of insight.

Since Mu Tian'en was bringing up the so-called Basic Soul Power Cultivation Method at a time like this, his change in weight was very likely related to the cultivation method.

So, without thinking too much, the old man asked tentatively, "So, the reason you suddenly lost weight is...?"

"I found that whenever I use my Soul Power, I get hungry really easily." Mu Tian'en rubbed his head, a trace of embarrassment appearing on his face. "And then my weight goes down."

As Mu Tian'en spoke, his voice grew quieter and quieter, while he remained entirely unaware that what he had just described might be something some female Soul Masters dreamed of.

"I only noticed it this morning. I was going to the library to ask Grandpa Ma about it, but I ran into Sister Qiansha before I got there, and then she brought me straight to you, Grandpa Xiunuo."

"I didn't even have time to explain." Mu Tian'en spoke in a rather small voice.

But his quiet voice only made Old Master Xiunuo's expression grow more solemn.

Old Master Xiunuo blinked and looked at Mu Tian'en, who had drawn in his neck and was watching him cautiously. Then he glanced at Qiansha, who had no idea what the little guy's words meant, and slowly crouched down.

He gazed at Mu Tian'en at eye level.

"Little Tian'en..."