20+ Advance chapters on Patreon
"I'll speak, and you write," Ning Tian said with a casual grin.
'After all, I grew up watching korean dramas, so I'm pretty good at persuasion.'
Qian Renxue gave a soft hum, brushing off the topic. "Enough about me. Let's hear about you."
Ning Tian arched an eyebrow. "What's there to tell? Haven't you already dug up everything about me?"
"Come on," Qian Renxue pressed, her tone light but firm. "We're friends now. I've shared my story, so it's only fair you share yours. Besides, investigations can miss things. You're too smart to lay all your cards on the table."
She believed friends should be open with each other, sharing joys and frustrations alike, a view Ning Tian found almost too innocent. He glanced at her, then let out a small sigh. "Fine. It all started when I first awakened my martial soul..."
As he spoke, Ning Tian traced his journey. It began at Nuoding Academy, where he met Zhu Qing, Yu Xiaogang, Tang San, and Xiao Wu and then became her disciple.Then through Zhu Qing, he came in contact with countless books, discovering a way to evolve his martial soul and exposing Yu Xiaogang's hollow reputation in the process.
Day after day, he pushed himself harder than most, cultivating relentlessly. From his first Soul Ring to his second and third, his martial soul began to shift. By the fourth, it fully transformed, awakening a talent domain unique to his Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Sword.
Qian Renxue's eyes lit up. "No wonder you're not fazed by my Angel Domain. You've got your own talent domain. What happened next?"
"Xiao Wu invited me to join Shrek Academy," Ning Tian said, launching into that chapter of his life.
Qian Renxue listened, half-amused, half-impressed. "You've got quite a way with girls, huh? First Xiao Wu, then Zhu Zhuqing and then Ning Rongrong from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan. I bet even Ye Lingling's fallen for you by now."
"How'd you guess?" Ning Tian teased, a playful glint in his eye.
She rolled her eyes. "Please. Unless you're making this up, anyone could tell those girls are either into you or halfway there."
"And you?" Ning Tian sat up, locking eyes with her.
Qian Renxue smiled faintly. "If you can cut ties with them, I might give you a chance."
"Nah," Ning Tian said, leaning back. "I'm not the type to ditch a whole forest for one tree."
She didn't look upset. Although she admired Ning Tian, she didn't love him.
"So why'd you leave Xiao Wu in the Shrek academy?"
Ning Tian's voice took on a bitter edge. "You think I wanted to? After six years, even a stone would feel attached, especially someone like me, who gets sentimental. But I was forced out. Tang San's father, Tang Hao, gave me two options: leave Shrek after rejecting Xiao Wu, or die. I didn't even know what was happening until she confessed. That's when I realized I had no choice."
Qian Renxue's jaw tightened. "He's a scum."
"Exactly," Ning Tian agreed. "But I got off easy compared to some. You know Yu Xiaogang, right? Tang Hao wrecked him, stripped his soul power and left him like Dai Mubai, a eunuch."
Qian Renxue burst out laughing. "No way! The great Haotian Douluo did that?"
Ning Tian shrugged. "The Tang family's always been brutal. Don't believe me? Ask around. Yu Xiaogag is begging outside Heaven Dou City now. He is probably starving somewhere if he's not dead already."
She smirked, clearly enjoying the gossip. "Yu Xiaogang's got it rough."
At this moment, she was happier than she was ever before. Although she had already decided to reconcile with her mother, she was still very happy to see her being humiliated.
Whenever she thought of the scene where Bibi Dong learned that Yu Xiaogang had his soul power destroyed and became a eunuch, she could not stop smiling from ear to ear.
"Enough for today," Ning Tian said, standing. "Time to cultivate."
"Hold on," Qian Renxue said, rising too. "Help me write a letter first."
"Easy," Ning Tian grinned. Persuasion was his strength after all.
Soon, the letter was done. Qian Renxue blushed at the cheesy lines. "Will this actually work?"
"Of course," Ning Tian said confidently. "If the Pope's got any heart, it'll work. If one letter is not enough, just send more. Keep sending until she cracks."
Qian Renxue nodded, then started writing another letter.
Ning Tian blinked. "What's that one for?"
She grinned. "We've been at odds for years. Before we patch things up, I want a little payback."
Ning Tian was stunned and then smiled.
Outside, Snake Lance and Porcupine Douluo shared a glance as the laughter drifted out. Seeing the young master this happy was a rare treat.
...…..
The next morning, Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo returned to the Pope's Hall in Spirit City. Upon learning that they were empty-handed, Bibi Dong was furious.
Gripping her scepter, she faced away from them, her calm mask hiding a storm within. Both elders knew she was boiling inside.
"Tell me why you failed," she said, her voice low and sharp.
Chrysanthemum Douluo spoke up. "Your Holiness, we planned to ambush Tang San outside Heaven Dou City. But Yu Xiaogang showed up, and Tang San retreated back inside."
Bibi Dong's eyes flickered with something complicated. "Keep talking."
Ghost Douluo stepped in. "Yu Xiaogang's been stripped of soul power for a while now. He was begging outside the city until Flender, from the old Golden Triangle, took him in. He says Tang Hao and Tang San did it. The young master sent word too, saying Tang Hao is sticking close to Tang San, guarding him. We couldn't strike, so we came to report to you. Here's her letter."
Upon hearing that Yu Xiaogang's soul power had been destroyed and he had become a beggar, Bibi Dong could no longer remain calm. She flashed in front of the ghost douluo in an instant, opened the letter and felt as if the sky was about to fall.
Not only did Yu Xiaoang's soul power get destroyed, he was also castrated by Tang Hao. The reason was that Yu Xiaoang had ruined Tang San.
"Damn them," she hissed, her hatred spilling over. "Forget the mission. When the finals for the Elite Soul Master Tournament are held, I will personally kill Tang Hao and his son in Spirit City."
........
A month flew by.
Ning Tian stayed at the Crown Prince's mansion. He sent word to the New Heaven Dou Team, then settled in, practicing with Qian Renxue by day and occasionally sparring with Snake Lance and Porcupine Douluo to sharpen his skills.
Qian Renxue watched him, stunned by his drive. Next to him, she felt downright lazy and as a result, it pushed her to train harder too.
…..
The day before the promotion rounds, they faced off in the underground training hall, swords in hand. They didn't use soul power and martial souls, just plain steel.
Qian Renxue darted forward, fast as a breeze, thrusting her blade. Ning Tian blocked it. He flicked his sword back, knocking hers aside, then leaped, slashing down hard.
Clang!
She caught it, but his force pushed her back. He flipped midair, striking five times. She parried four but on the fifth, her sword flew from her grip, clattering to the ground.
His blade stopped at her throat.
"Not bad," Ning Tian said, sheathing his sword. "You've come a long way in a month."
Qian Renxue exhaled. "Still miles behind you."
"You've been busy pretending to be Xue Qinghe," Ning Tian said. "You wasted who knows how much training time. With your talent, you'd be a Spirit Saint by now otherwise. Whoever thought up that infiltration plan was a fool."
Qian Renxue rolled her eyes. "That was my mother."
Ning Tian snorted. "Then she's either clueless or cruel."
"If that's the case, then why do you still say that she has feelings for me?" Qian Renxue glanced at him.
━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━━━━━━
patreon.com/DUKE3500 for advance chapters for all the novels i translate for 2$