Douluo's Spirit Pearl Divine Sword

Gu Rong kept mocking him for being a stubborn tsundere, saying that even though he let Tian Lin walk his own path in the future, he was still worried so much that he wouldn't eat, drink, or sleep.

"Little monster, you must have been trying to get your sixth spirit ring these past few days. You were so secretive, sneaking away from everyone. Let us see what good stuff you got?" Dugu Bo asked with great interest.

"Old monster, I'll show you right now, but you'd better hold on tight and don't get scared," Tianlin reminded him, summoning the demon sword.

The previous configuration of one yellow, two purple, and two black spirit rings was already unique, but when the sixth red spirit ring appeared, it left everyone dumbfounded.

Although they had seen Tianlin's million-year soul ring before, that was obtained through the sacrifice of a soul beast. This hundred-thousand-year soul ring, on the other hand, was probably hunted by Tianlin himself, and the significance of these two is completely different.

Even the weakest 100,000-year-old soul beast is no less powerful than a Title Douluo. Ancient species like the Titan Giant Ape, even at the very beginning of its 100,000-year lifespan, are enough to contend with a Title Douluo of level 95 or higher.

No matter how strong Tianlin is, can he possibly overcome such a huge gap?

It wasn't until Tianlin explained what had happened that everyone understood. Chenxin was overjoyed, "Brilliant, Xiaotian. To think of a way to use a 100,000-year heavenly tribulation to hunt 100,000-year soul beasts, I'm afraid only Fengzhi among us has such wisdom."

From the initial planning in Gale Valley, to the diversionary tactic in Star Dou Great Forest, to the shifting of the battlefield, and finally the tribulation of lightning to slay the soul beast, everyone seemed to see a trace of Chen Xin and Ning Fengzhi merging into one in Tian Lin.

Being stared at like that by a group of big shots, Tianlin was a little embarrassed, but he didn't forget his business. He opened the soul tool at his waist and took out a soul bone that shimmered with light.

“Master, Uncle Ning, and several grandfathers, look, this is the soul bone I obtained by hunting a 100,000-year-old soul beast, the torso bone of the Earth Behemoth.”

"Tortoise bone!" Ning Fengzhi and the others were overjoyed. Tianlin was incredibly lucky; he had directly obtained the most precious torso bone.

Only Chen Xin asked with some dissatisfaction, "Xiao Tian, ​​since you have already absorbed the 100,000-year soul ring of that Behemoth, why didn't you absorb this soul bone at the same time? Don't you understand the principle that 'a common man is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime'? If you are discovered on your way back, you will be killed."

“That’s because I don’t intend to absorb this soul bone.” Tianlin handed the soul bone to Chenxin. “Master, I hope that you will absorb this soul bone.”

"What did you say?" Chen Xin was furious. "I don't want it. The effect of soul rings and soul bones of the same kind of soul beast can be maximized when absorbed by the same person. This is something I taught you a long time ago. Moreover, this soul bone comes from an ancient beast like Behemoth, and its earth attribute energy is so condensed. It is extremely compatible with you. You must not disregard such an opportunity for the sake of filial piety."

"My potential in this life has reached its limit. Even if I absorb this soul bone, I will probably find it difficult to break through again. But you are different. Your future is much brighter."

After venting his anger, Chen Xin began to earnestly persuade him, and even Ning Fengzhi, Dugu Boyin, and Gu Rong stood by his side this time.

Tianlin listened quietly until they finished speaking before saying, "I know how much this soul bone will help me, but more than my future achievements, I hope my family can be well."

Hearing Tianlin's words, Ning Fengzhi frowned slightly. "What do you mean? Could something bad be about to happen to us?"

As expected, Ning Fengzhi was the first to understand. Tianlin nodded, "Yes, Uncle Ning, grandfathers, I've told you before, my million-year-old skull has a soul skill called Predicting the Future. Not long ago, I wanted to see the future of the sect, so I used this soul skill."

"But what I saw was the scene of the sect being wiped out by countless men in black. Thousands of disciples in the entire sect were all killed. My master even fought until he lost an arm to barely keep the last embers alive."

Tianlin planned to embellish the original plot and tell Ning Fengzhi and the others that the Soul Hunting Operation was approaching and they should prepare in advance.

"What did you say?" Ning Fengzhi had completely lost his composure, and his former wisdom and calmness were nowhere to be seen.

After all, how could he remain calm upon hearing of the sect's annihilation?

Tianlin continued, "In what I saw, there were several Title Douluos. Their martial souls were a golden crocodile, a snake spear, a porcupine, a flame eagle, and a bloodthirsty demon bear. The strongest one was a Title Douluo with a crocodile martial soul, and he even possessed a 100,000-year soul ring."

"Golden Crocodile Douluo!" Chen Xin blurted out. Although he was not familiar with him, he had heard of him. He was an existence older than his father.

At this point, everyone had no more doubts about what Tianlin said. The others were fine, but Tianlin theoretically couldn't possibly know about the existence of Golden Crocodile Douluo. He could only have foreseen this situation through his ability to predict the future.

"The Spirit Hall!" Gu Rong gritted his teeth. All the people Tian Lin had just mentioned came from the Spirit Hall. Could the person who destroyed the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School be anyone else?

"But how could Golden Crocodile possibly come? Hasn't he been retired for decades?" Yin Yang's face was also grim. When his martial soul had just awakened, Golden Crocodile was already a renowned titled Douluo. At that time, he was filled with admiration and awe for Golden Crocodile.

"It's because of me!" Dugu Bo sighed. It was all his fault for being too high-profile back then, liking to show off with the Snow Swan Kiss. ​​The Spirit Hall should be able to roughly deduce that to break through the amplified poison of the Snow Swan Kiss, at least a Title Douluo of level 97 or above is needed.

The Spirit Hall was unaware of Chen Xin's breakthrough, so the Golden Crocodile was definitely targeting him. This was to prevent him from resorting to desperate measures and, after his sect was destroyed, recklessly using the Snow Swan Kiss to perish together with the attackers.

The Golden Crocodile was there to kill him in one blow. To be honest, Dugu Bo wasn't even confident he could withstand a single move from the Golden Crocodile Douluo.

The atmosphere inside the entire Seven Treasures Hall became extremely tense. Fortunately, Tianlin possessed the soul skill of foreseeing the future; otherwise, they might have been caught off guard.

Tianlin pressed his advantage, saying, "So Master, this soul bone must be absorbed by you. No matter how great my potential is, how many levels will I reach by the time the Spirit Hall takes action? If I had another ten years, I would dare to fight my way into and out of the Spirit Hall seven times. Unfortunately, it's too late now. Perhaps I can deal with ordinary Title Douluos later, but only you, who has also absorbed a 100,000-year soul bone, can deal with a Super Douluo with a 100,000-year soul ring and soul bone. You are the strongest force in our sect."

"Please forgive me for morally blackmailing you this once, but for everyone's safety, you absolutely cannot lose the battle. If you are defeated, it will be a catastrophe for the entire sect."

Tianlin handed over the soul bone again, accompanied by an immense pressure that seemed to weigh down on Chenxin's shoulders.

“Uncle Jian, please accept it. Xiao Tian is right. No matter how great his potential is, he still needs time to grow. Before that, we also need to have enough strength to protect him.” Ning Fengzhi also advised, “We can find another 100,000-year soul bone, but once your family is gone, no amount of soul bones can bring them back.”

Upon hearing this, Chen Xin no longer hesitated and reached out to take the soul bone. "Alright, in that case, let's give the Spirit Hall a good fight."

Chapter 217 Ning Fengzhi's Deduction

Chen Xin went to the side to begin absorbing the soul bone. Absorbing it in the Seven Treasures Hall, with Ning Fengzhi and the other titled Douluo present, was absolutely safe.

However, everyone's mood was still very heavy. After all, who could accept the news that their sect was about to be destroyed?

Moreover, Tianlin's ability to foresee the future is temporarily unavailable. They can only know the approximate timeframe for the event. To obtain the exact time, they will probably have to wait for his ability to cool down.

Ning Fengzhi never placed his hopes on just one place. After pondering for a while, he ordered, "Uncle Ying, go back and find your most trusted disciples in the Investigation Hall to keep a close eye on the movements of the Heavenly Dou Imperial Palace. If there are any unusual changes, report them immediately."

Gu Rong was taken aback and asked, "Feng Zhi, what does this have to do with the Heaven Dou Empire? Do you think they are colluding with the Spirit Hall to deal with my Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School?"

Ning Fengzhi shook his head. "Collusion is impossible. The interests of the Empire and the Spirit Hall are too conflicting. Emperor Xueye would not do such a thing. However, based on the information Xiaotian just mentioned, I suspect that the Spirit Hall has already planted a very deep mole in the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace, and that mole is already in a high position."

Tianlin was startled; it seemed that his Uncle Ning had deduced something again.

Ning Fengzhi continued to explain, "If the Spirit Hall were to launch a massacre against the three upper sects, it wouldn't just target our family. The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan would also be doomed. Moreover, they would definitely attack both families simultaneously. Otherwise, if there were a time difference, the other family, upon receiving the news, would surely prepare for defense, or even migrate as a whole clan to seek the protection of the two great empires, thus completely standing against the Spirit Hall. This would be the complete opposite of their original intention to exterminate the clan."

"Think about it, if they were to launch an operation against both of our families at the same time, the scale of the Soul Masters they would mobilize would be enormous, at least ten thousand, and almost all of them would be mid-to-high-level Soul Masters above level 40, as well as nearly ten Title Douluo. Such a massive force would be impossible to enter the Empire silently, unless someone in the Empire is colluding with them from the inside."

"Then, Uncle Ning, do you have anyone you suspect?" Tianlin asked tentatively.

“Yes, there are three people: Grand Marshal Ge Long of the Tiandou Empire, Prince Xue Xing.” Ning Fengzhi first mentioned two people, then paused and looked at Tian Lin, “and your good brother, my good disciple, Crown Prince Xue Qinghe. Only the three of them have the power and ability to send in such a large force.”

"Compared to Xingluo, the power in Tiandou is far too dispersed. Ge Long controls the military, Xue Xing is in charge of soul masters, and Xue Qinghe is in charge of politics and people's livelihood. If any one of them were to rebel, it would be possible for them to use the power of the Spirit Hall to completely seize control of Tiandou. Especially Xue Qinghe, who has the least amount of power available for combat. Don't be fooled by his current position as crown prince; it is not very secure."

“Golong is not involved in factional strife, so it is of no help to him. As for Prince Xuexing, he has always supported Xuebeng. Xuebeng can fool others by pretending to be a playboy, but he can't fool me. He has great ambitions.”

Ning Fengzhi explained, and Gu Rong and Dugu Bo nodded slightly, acknowledging that Ning Fengzhi's deduction was not impossible.

Ning Fengzhi's speculation is very close to the truth. In fact, Tianlin also believes that this matter is inextricably linked to Qian Renxue.

In the original story, when the Spirit Hall launched its operation, Emperor Xue Ye was already suffering from a strange poison, and the power of the Heaven Dou royal family slowly began to shift towards Xue Qinghe.

Moreover, the poison that Emperor Xueye was poisoned with must be a slow-acting, deadly poison that would require several years to be gradually applied. Otherwise, if it were discovered and people started to treat it early, Qian Renxue's plan would be ruined.

This is why Tianlin believes that the Spirit Hall cannot act too early. Even with the addition of him as a variable, which makes the Spirit Hall even more anxious, Tianlin is still certain that the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School will be safe for at least three years. However, he is now hesitant about whether to reveal Xue Qinghe's situation.

Seemingly noticing Tianlin's unusual expression, Ning Fengzhi rolled his eyes and instructed, "Uncle Gu, Uncle Dugu, Uncle Ying, you continue to protect Uncle Jian. Xiao Tian, ​​come out with me."

As he spoke, Ning Fengzhi walked out of the Seven Treasures Hall and came to an empty pavilion, with Tianlin following behind him.

Ning Fengzhi turned around and said, "Xiao Tian, ​​there's no one around here. How about you tell me what you were about to say but couldn't say, just in private?"

Tianlin nodded, no longer hesitating, "Uncle Ning, your suspicion was correct. The Spirit Hall's spy planted in the palace is Xue Qinghe, and her true identity is actually..."

Tianlin told Ning Fengzhi about Qian Renxue, because only in this way could Ning Fengzhi counter her moves and prevent her from being deceived by Qian Renxue any longer.

Qian Renxue was quite important to Tianlin, but she was definitely not as important as the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School. For the sake of the school's survival, he had no choice but to reveal everything.

Of course, some details need to be slightly modified. For example, Tianlin cannot say that Qian Renxue is Qian Daoliu's granddaughter, because he can see Golden Crocodile Douluo by foreseeing the future, but how could he know Qian Daoliu? Therefore, Ning Fengzhi needs to deduce this himself. He still acknowledges Ning Fengzhi's wisdom.

Tianlin only told Ning Fengzhi that through cultivating the power of Tianxue with Qian Renxue, he discovered that his martial soul was not a swan, but a six-winged angel.

"The Spirit Hall's Qian family is truly something else. I never imagined they started planning this so many years ago. Xiao Tian, ​​if it weren't for you, our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School would have been caught off guard, suffering heavy damage at best, and annihilation at worst. For this, Uncle Ning must thank you."

Ning Fengzhi did not disappoint him. He immediately guessed that Xue Qinghe was related to Qian Daoliu. After all, the Six-Winged Angel was the inherited martial soul of the Qian family.

"Uncle Ning, what do you plan to do next? Go and expose Xue Qinghe directly?" Tianlin asked. "If that's the case, could you please leave her a way out so that she can leave Tiandou and return to Wuhun City?"

"Xiao Tian, ​​it seems that over the years, you and Xue Qinghe have developed a true friendship. But since you know that your friend wants to destroy my Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School, are you still going to plead for him?" Ning Fengzhi questioned sharply.

Tianlin lowered his head and said, "I suppose this is selfish of me. I told you about him because in my heart, he is not as important as you, Rongrong, Master, and others, but that doesn't mean I don't consider him a friend."

“Sigh, being sentimental is a good thing, but if you care too much, it will become your shackles. Xiao Tian, ​​although Rongrong will be the successor to the sect leader, Jian Shu, Gu Shu, and I both believe that you are the one who can truly take over the sect’s cause. So sometimes, you have to be more ruthless.” Ning Fengzhi sighed. “Don’t worry, I won’t touch him, and I won’t even expose him.”

Chapter 218 A Heart-to-Heart Talk with Ning Fengzhi: The Future Path of the Sect

After hearing Ning Fengzhi's words, Tianlin was slightly taken aback. He originally thought that Ning Fengzhi would definitely try to find a way to restrain Qian Renxue, but he did not expect that he would just let it go. Could it be that he, like himself, actually had a real master-disciple relationship with Xue Qinghe?

Ning Fengzhi smiled and said, “Surprised? Don’t misunderstand. I’m not like you. The master-disciple relationship between me and Xue Qinghe is just a superficial phenomenon. In my heart, he is not even worth a hair on your head compared to Rongrong’s. However, such a large-scale operation by the Spirit Hall could not have been a spur-of-the-moment decision. They would not only have Plan One, but also Plan Two, or even Plan Three, Four, or more.”

"Now that we know their Plan One, why expose Xue Qinghe and force them to come up with Plan Two, which we don't know about? Knowing yourself and your enemy is the key to victory. Moreover, with some preparation, this may not be a crisis that destroys our sect, but rather a good opportunity to counter the Spirit Hall."

Upon hearing Ning Fengzhi's words, Tianlin realized he had been overthinking things again; Ning Fengzhi always thought further ahead than he did.

The more important point is that Ning Fengzhi has roughly guessed the identity of the fake Xue Qinghe, which is related to someone in the Spirit Hall whom they absolutely cannot afford to offend. Even Chen Xin's father, Chen Jianjun, was easily killed by him. If he harms Xue Qinghe, it will bring great disaster to the sect.

"Uncle Ning, do you plan to continue cooperating with the Heavenly Dou Empire?" Tian Lin suddenly asked.

"What's wrong with that? With the Empire at our backs, we can develop better." Ning Fengzhi was puzzled. Their Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School had been doing this for generations, and it had indeed achieved great results.

"When I went out to train with my master, I killed countless villains. Among them, bandits and bullies were actually a minority. More often, they were fallen nobles and evil soul masters. The laws of the two empires regarding nobles and soul masters are far too lenient. I am well aware that in a world where strength is paramount, it is impossible for everyone to be equal. As a privileged class, they should enjoy more, but since they enjoy more, they should pay more. If they do not protect their own side, what right do they have to have privileges?"

“I am now a nobleman, but while enjoying the resources, I have also saved countless lives. I take these resources with a clear conscience. In recent years, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School has also protected countless villages and provided relief to the people. But do other nobles in the Heaven Dou Empire dare to say the word ‘with a clear conscience’ as decisively as we do?”

Tianlin questioned Ning Fengzhi for the first time, and his ideas shocked Ning Fengzhi. Soul Masters and nobles are a privileged class. Commoners only need to serve them, while they do not need to pay any responsibility to the commoners. This has been the law for thousands of years.

But then he thought that if he wanted to get more, he had to give more, which didn't seem wrong.

“Uncle Ning, the Heavenly Dou is corrupt, the Star Luo is tyrannical, and the Spirit Hall is full of good and bad people. With the three largest forces on the continent in such a state, how do you think the continent can develop better?” Tian Lin said in a deep voice. “The continent needs reform, and it would be best to achieve unification. This first requires someone who can truly speak up for the people, and such a person is neither me nor you. Among all the people I have met, there is only one who can do it.”

"Xue Qinghe!" Ning Fengzhi's eyes widened. Among the people around Tianlin, this was the only one he could think of. Although he now knew that Xue Qinghe was an imposter, during his years as crown prince, he had indeed made the Tiandou court much more efficient and the people's lives gradually improved. As a result, Ning Fengzhi also received widespread praise. After all, Xue Qinghe was his disciple, and everyone thought that the crown prince was so outstanding because he had been taught by him.

"Xiao Tian, ​​you actually want to cooperate with the Spirit Hall!"

Tianlin no longer denied it. "That's right, but it's not me who's going to cooperate with them. I'm going to force them to cooperate with us. The Spirit Hall's plan to destroy sects is a good opportunity. I'm going to severely damage all the dregs among them first."

With Ning Fengzhi's intelligence, he had completely understood Tianlin's thoughts. "You've decided to strike at the Spirit Hall without destroying it, until Xue Qinghe herself realizes that as long as she's an enemy of us, she can't unify the continent, right? But there are two problems. First, what if she never realizes that as the hatred between the two sides deepens, she'll insist on destroying my sect? Second, once the continent is completely unified into a large empire, no matter how deep the previous cooperation was, it won't be useful. How can you guarantee that Xue Qinghe won't discard me after using me and slaughter my Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School again?"

Hearing this, Tianlin smiled and said, "Of course I have ideas. First, if she doesn't realize it, then we can destroy the Spirit Hall by inflicting heavy damage time and time again. Otherwise, do you expect me to beg someone who wants to destroy my sect? In that case, Xue Qinghe will also die. Although I want the continent to be unified, the most important thing in my heart is still you family members. This is a selfishness that I will never forget, especially Rongrong. If I had to choose between her and the entire continent, I would choose Rongrong without hesitation."

"Secondly, as long as we can overcome the crisis of the sect's annihilation, we will have a long period of respite. I will use this time to improve my cultivation. Once I break through level 70, with the help of my ultimate attributes, I will enter a period of rapid cultivation. In the future, I will be the suppressive force of the Spirit Hall."

Seeing that Tianlin had already thought of the points he was worried about, Ning Fengzhi nodded with slight satisfaction. "Very good. It seems that you did not act on a whim. But Xiaotian, I thought that you were already good enough in terms of temperament and wisdom, but that was based on the premise that your goal was only to become a Guardian Douluo. But now, your goal is much bigger than I thought. Don't blame Uncle Ning for speaking the truth. You are still far from it."

"Uncle Ning, I know my strength is still..."

Tianlin spoke with his head down, but was interrupted by Ning Fengzhi in a stern voice, "It's not just about strength, you also lack many other things: a firm determination, sufficient confidence, enough patience, and extraordinary wisdom. Do you have these? If not, no matter how high your skill level becomes in the future, it will only be the courage of a brute."

“Especially in terms of your character, you have a huge flaw. If you don’t overcome it, your so-called ideals will be nothing but a joke.”

"Mental state?" Tianlin was somewhat puzzled. He could understand the previous ones, but he didn't know what was wrong with his own mental state. Tianmeng Bingcan said so, and Ning Fengzhi also said so.

“Yes, temperament, but it’s best for you to discover that for yourself.” Ning Fengzhi didn’t intend to say more.

"Yes, Tianlin will remember!" Tianlin kept Ning Fengzhi's admonition in mind, and then said, "But since you've told me so much, you've actually agreed to my idea, right?"

"You acted first and informed me later, what good would my objection do?" Ning Fengzhi said with a laugh. He then realized that he had been tricked by Tian Lin. Tian Lin clearly knew the truth about Xue Qinghe all along, but he kept delaying telling him. Now, everyone outside was saying that Xue Qinghe's wisdom was taught by Ning Fengzhi, and that Tian Lin was also Xue Qinghe's best brother. Once Xue Qinghe's misdeeds were exposed in the future, how could the Tian Dou royal family still trust the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School because of these two extremely close relationships? Even if they didn't openly break ties, they would definitely suppress them in secret.

Unless Ning Fengzhi personally kills Qian Renxue, the two sides are bound to be on opposite sides. However, considering the person from the Spirit Hall, Ning Fengzhi would rather offend the Heaven Dou Royal Family.

Ning Fengzhi shook his head helplessly and said, "Fine, from now on, you and Rongrong will be the leaders of the sect. You will decide how the sect should proceed. But remember, if any of the conditions I just mentioned are not met, do not tell anyone else about your thoughts except me, including Uncle Jian and Rongrong."