Qian Renxue was momentarily stunned, then burst into a wry laugh. Though she had been somewhat lax in her cultivation, she was still a Soul King-level powerhouse.
The pride of an angel forbade Qian Renxue from being coerced by anyone. Just as she was about to subdue Ye Wen, he preemptively sent a wind blade slicing toward her, causing her to break out in a cold sweat.
"It's clear that you come from a good background, and your cultivation level is likely above that of a Soul Elder. But I can assure you—my wind blade will strike you a second before you even activate your soul power.
After all, I've already killed two scumbags today. Killing you might be a mistake, but for my own safety, I have no choice but to eliminate you here.
So don't do anything foolish.
Besides, this oath won't cost you your life unless you're the same kind of filth as those two on the ground. In that case, I'd feel even less hesitation." Ye Wen said calmly.
As Ye Wen had guessed, the soul skills he possessed were quite similar to those of the future Silver Dragon King, Gu Yuena—they both involved mastery over various elements.
Thus, the potency of his soul skills didn't depend on their age but rather on his spiritual power and how deeply he had developed them.
Having consumed countless works of fiction in his past life, Ye Wen had a wildly imaginative mind. He had developed four self-created soul skills based on his mastery of wind element control.
The first was the crudest: directly summoning wind energy to form a weak wind shield capable of blocking minor attacks.
The second was an explosive self-created skill called Instant Step (T/N: Shun Bu, or Shunpo, from Bleach), which gathered wind energy beneath his feet and released it suddenly for a burst of speed.
The other two were offensive skills. One was the most powerful: a compressed wind blade called Void. The other was the instant-activation wind blade, Slash.
Though Slash wasn't particularly potent, if the opponent hadn't activated their martial soul or formed a protective layer of soul power, their mortal body would be instantly obliterated.
Moreover, these two offensive skills borrowed a concept from the early chapters of the Douluo manga—they could be cast faster using specific hand gestures.
For Void, Ye Wen would form seals with both hands, focusing his attention to compress the casting time as much as possible. This was why Ye Wen had managed to strike before the two red needles could react.
At this moment, the two Title Douluo spectating nearby broke into a cold sweat. They realized they might have underestimated the situation!
Thorns Pufferfish Douluo anxiously asked, "Old She, that kid isn't simple. Are we really okay just standing here without intervening?"
Snake Spear Douluo didn't know what to say. Though both were Title Douluo, they were among the weakest of their rank. While they could suppress Ye Wen instantly with their soul power, Ye Wen was standing too close to Qian Renxue. If they provoked him and he injured their young master, even killing him afterward wouldn't save them from punishment. Snake Spear Douluo was at a loss.
But just as Snake Spear Douluo resolved to intervene, even if it meant risking punishment and hurting Qian Renxue, she casually tossed aside her sword and smiled, saying:
"I understand. I, Xue Qinghe, swear upon my martial soul, the swan, that I will not reveal today's events to a third party. If I break this oath, may my martial soul shatter, may I suffer a miserable death, and may I never cultivate again."
Although Ye Wen didn't believe in the concept of swearing upon one's martial soul, seeing her discard her weapon and make such a straightforward vow left him no room to renege. He promptly withdrew his soul power.
However, Ye Wen soon noticed something amiss.
Wait… what did she just say her name was?
Xue Qinghe!? Holy crap!
Realizing this, Ye Wen inwardly cursed.
He also knew there was no easy way out now, as this big shot was undoubtedly guarded by two Title Douluo.
Ye Wen silently lamented. Why was Xue Qinghe here? Shouldn't she be in the Tian Dou capital at this time? This part wasn't covered in the original story!
But since Qian Renxue's identity was tied to a major secret, Ye Wen couldn't show any signs of suspicion. Acting naturally, he approached the two corpses lying on the ground.
What Ye Wen didn't know was that these two scumbags were comrades of Bu Le—the infamous trio of perverts from the Douluo series—E Kao and Tian Ya.
Their martial souls were a kitchen knife and a swan, respectively. Neither was particularly high-quality, but reaching the Soul Elder level at their age during this era was unusual. Despite appearing to be ordinary civilian soul masters with no notable background, their cultivation rivaled that of elite graduates from top academies.
Ye Wen casually searched through their belongings, as if scavenging for loot.
Despite their decent cultivation levels, they were utterly broke—not even a single storage-type soul tool on them. This left Ye Wen feeling somewhat unlucky.
However, while checking their clothing, he discovered a hidden compartment. Curious, he pulled out its contents.
"What's this?"
Looking at the booklet in his hand, Ye Wen felt speechless.
Though it contained illustrations that made one blush, compared to the resources of his previous life on Earth, it was laughably primitive. At this moment, Qian Renxue, now curious, walked over.
Though she was unfazed by blood and death due to her high position and experiences hunting soul beasts, seeing the booklet in Ye Wen's hands caused her cheeks to flush slightly.
Before Ye Wen could react, Qian Renxue snatched the booklet and incinerated it with a flash of golden flames, reducing it to nothingness.
Though the flames vanished in an instant, Ye Wen's keen perception of elements left him marveling at the purity of the fire and light elements.
But soon, recalling his current persona, Ye Wen's expression turned stern, and his tone grew harsh:
"Hey, what are you doing? That was my loot! Why did you burn it?"
With the dirty object destroyed, Qian Renxue regained her composure. A warm, spring-like smile spread across her face as she softly explained:
"Little brother, that contained forbidden cultivation methods for corrupt soul masters. It's illegal throughout the Douluo continent. If other soul masters saw you with it, it would only bring you harm. I was helping you."
By now, Qian Renxue had pieced together why the two men's aura had felt evil yet weak and ambiguous—it was because they practiced a sinister technique involving absorbing yin to supplement yang. Though the technique was wicked, they clearly hadn't mastered it, leaving their aura muddled.
Hearing this, Ye Wen feigned a conflicted expression before finally nodding slowly.
"I see. Then I should thank you."
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