Douluo Dragon King: The Blue Silver Divine Tree, The Holy Dragon Devours the Heavens

As night fell, soft lights illuminated the courtyard. Xu Mengqing continued practicing his marksmanship tirelessly, his clothes soaked with sweat, but his gaze remained steadfast and focused.

Time passed day by day, and half a year passed in the blink of an eye. In the courtyard, a tall and slender young man was seen holding a long spear. The spear tip was like a dragon, drawing silver arcs in the sunlight.

His movements were fluid and graceful, each thrust of his spear accompanied by a sharp whistling sound, his steps were steady yet agile, and his transitions between offense and defense were natural.

Zhou Lie observed silently from the side, his admiration for the child's perseverance and talent growing ever stronger.

Zhou Lie stood aside, his eyes filled with relief and emotion.

Six months ago, when he first met Xu Mengqing, the child, though incredibly talented, had virtually no basic marksmanship. But now, in just six months, Xu Mengqing has not only mastered all the basic marksmanship techniques, but has even begun to display the demeanor of a master in the application of certain skills.

But what moved people even more was the child's perseverance.

With this talent and perseverance, given time, he will surely achieve great things.

"Alright, that's enough for today," Zhou Lie said, his voice tinged with satisfaction. "You've made great progress in the past six months, and you've basically mastered the fundamentals of marksmanship. From now on, I'll be sparring with you so you can experience the application of marksmanship in real combat."

He knew very well that to truly master marksmanship, one needed not only solid basic skills but also constant practice in actual combat.

Xu Mengqing sheathed his spear and stood still. He gently twirled the spear in his hand, and it landed steadily on the ground. The tip of the spear trembled slightly, but he showed no sign of panting. Sweat slid down his increasingly angular face, soaking his clothes, but his golden pupils burned with a light more intense than the blazing sun.

"Okay, Uncle Zhou."

Zhou Lie stepped forward and patted his shoulder, the muscles he touched were much firmer than those of his peers.

"You are the most hardworking and quick-witted child I have ever met," Zhou Lie sighed. "It would take an ordinary Soul Master at least one or two years to learn basic spear techniques to reach your level, but you mastered it in just six months. You were simply born for the spear."

He paused, his expression turning serious: "I won't hold back in the upcoming sparring. Remember, marksmanship isn't just for show; every move must be made with killing intent, defensive intent, and composure. Your opponent won't wait for you to get into position, nor will they give you a second chance."

"I understand." Xu Mengqing gripped the spear made of blue silver grass tightly. Her first soul ring quietly lit up, and the Blue Silver Vajra Transformation was activated instantly. The spear turned dark gold, as hard as refined iron, and its aura suddenly became sharp.

Zhou Lie's eyes lit up, and he picked up a wooden spear: "Come on, attack!"

Before he finished speaking, Xu Mengqing took a step forward and darted out like an arrow, thrusting his spear straight at the target. It was a simple thrust, but he had practiced it so that it was fast, accurate, and steady, and the sound of the spear tip cutting through the air was crisp and piercing.

Zhou Lie parried with his spear, and with a muffled clang, the wooden spear tingled slightly from the impact. He was startled—this kid's strength had actually increased again?

Before he could think further, Xu Mengqing changed his spear stance, unleashing a series of basic moves—thrust, parry, chop, and sweep—without any fancy flourishes, yet each move was tight and relentless. Her footwork, both forward and backward, had long since lost its initial awkwardness, flowing smoothly and seamlessly.

Zhou Lie grew increasingly alarmed as the fight progressed.

He initially thought it was just basic instruction, but upon actually sparring, he discovered that the young man not only possessed incredibly solid fundamentals, but also terrifyingly sharp combat intuition. Despite his relatively low soul power level, his physical strength, power generation techniques, and reaction speed all far surpassed those of his peers.

"Good lad!" Zhou Lie's fighting spirit rose, and he suddenly accelerated with his wooden spear as he launched a counterattack.

Xu Mengqing remained calm and composed, retracting and blocking with her spear, using the momentum to retreat, nimbly avoiding the sharp edge, and then thrusting again with her backhand.

He didn't rely on soul power or overwhelming force, but only on pure marksmanship and physical strength to maneuver around the enemy. Every block and every advance was extremely precise.

Xu Zhan and Meng Ling'er, who were watching from the sidelines, were completely engrossed in the game.

Na'er lay on her stomach by the courtyard gate, her little face full of admiration, and said happily, "Brother is so amazing!"

After several dozen rounds, Zhou Lie put away his gun and retreated, letting out a long breath. His gaze towards Xu Mengqing had completely changed.

"Very good." He smiled sincerely, "To do this well on your first match against someone."

Xu Mengqing was slightly out of breath, but still stood ramrod straight, and said with a smile, "Hehe, it's all thanks to Uncle Zhou's excellent teaching."

"Don't be modest." Zhou Lie waved his hand. "I only taught you marksmanship. Being able to do this is your talent."

As he spoke, a bitter smile appeared on Zhou Lie's face.

Another six months passed, and time quietly flowed by in the daily battles. Xu Mengqing had grown from a slightly immature child into a tall and upright teenager.

Now, he has grown taller and his face is more handsome. He has shed his youthful naiveté and gained a more composed and cold demeanor. His golden eyes are more profound and clear. He is usually gentle and peaceful, but once he grasps the spear, he will exude a sharp aura like the tip of a spear, and his overall temperament will become more fierce.

Throughout the year of arduous training, from the first light of dawn to the deepest darkness of night, he never slacked off for a single day. With the help of his cultivation techniques and the Blue Silver Eight Trigrams Formation, his soul power had steadily climbed to the level of a sixteenth-level Soul Master, and his physical strength was terrifyingly comparable to that of an ordinary level thirty-nine Soul Venerable.

As for Uncle Zhou, he also left a month ago.

I really can't teach him anymore; he's starting to break down.

The main problem is that Xu Mengqing is learning too fast, and I have nothing left to teach him.

Moreover, he himself needed to recover. Initially, he could suppress the opponent with his skills and experience, but as the battles progressed day by day, he found himself increasingly exhausted. Several times, the boy even exploited his weaknesses and pushed him to the brink of defeat. Zhou Lie felt a mix of emotions. To think that he, the master of the Blazing Sun Spear, was rendered helpless by a nine-year-old child in terms of spear technique—if word got out, his fellow practitioners would laugh their heads off. If he continued teaching, he feared he would start to doubt the value of his spear training. So, he found an excuse to bid farewell to Xu Zhan.

In addition, Xu Mengqing also began learning about her second career during this year.

For her second career, Xu Mengqing did not study forging like Tang Wulin, but instead chose mecha design like her father.

Xu Mengqing made this choice because

Firstly, his father, Xu Zhan, was a level-three mecha designer, so he could certainly teach Xu Mengqing, a novice.

Secondly, compared to learning forging like Tang Wulin, I have a greater advantage in mecha design, having read countless novels and watched numerous films and television series.

Finally, his father didn't know any skilled blacksmiths, so Xu Mengqing ultimately gave up on asking Tang Wulin for help.

Compared to mecha design, forging takes too much time, and he also needs to learn marksmanship, so he chose mecha design after considering all factors.

After a year of study, he has now reached the level of a first-class designer.