Even if they can barely manage, they will fall behind other soul master families and forces, and the soul masters they cultivate will be worse than those of other forces.
The worse the Soul Masters, the less resources the family's power receives. With even fewer resources, the Soul Masters they cultivate become even worse, thus creating a vicious cycle.
"If this is how it is to not accept the Spirit Hall's Soul Master subsidy, then these four great families must be incredibly poor!"
Upon hearing this, Dugu Yan pursed her lips.
Upon hearing Dugu Yan's words, Qing Mu's lips twitched, and he said, "Well... if there aren't any special ways to make money, the Spirit Hall's subsidies for Soul Masters are indeed quite substantial."
Qingmu's father, as a powerful viscount in the Kingdom of Häagen-Dazs, could only collect a little over a thousand gold soul coins in taxes a year. In contrast, a Soul Master could receive 1,200 gold soul coins in subsidies alone each year, which was more than the taxes collected by a viscount.
This is why the Spirit Hall's subsidy stopped at the Soul Sect level. If the previous pattern had been followed, the Soul Sect would have needed 12,000 gold soul coins a year, which the Spirit Hall simply couldn't afford, even with the support of two great kingdoms.
If it's just Soul Venerable, it's actually not so bad. After all, people who can cultivate to Soul Venerable have a high chance of breaking through to Soul Sect, and they can't stay at Soul Venerable for many years.
As for those who can't break through to the Soul Master level even by middle age, they'll probably be stuck below the Soul Master level for their entire lives. A Great Soul Master only gets 120 gold soul coins a year, so the burden isn't too heavy.
Dugu Bo also agreed, saying, "Qingmu is right. Yanyan, you've never lacked money since you were little, so you don't have any special feelings about it. In reality, most of the industries that make money are monopolized by large families and the state. Without enough ability, you simply can't get in."
Take, for example, the four major clans with a single attribute. Apart from the Breaking Clan, whose pharmaceutical business is somewhat profitable, the others barely make any money.
Dugu Yan nodded thoughtfully, recalling that Qing Mu hadn't been particularly wealthy in the past.
"Senior Dugu, I would also like to recommend someone to you."
At this moment, Qing Mu suddenly spoke to Dugu Bo, "I think Ye Lingling's mother should also know something about herbs. If we encounter any problems when developing immortal herbs, we can consider asking her for advice."
"Ye Haitang, she does indeed know quite a lot."
Dugu Bo also knew Ye Haitang; he had visited her several times in order to treat the poison in his body.
However, after discovering that even the Nine-Heart Begonia could not cure the poison in his body, he chose to rely solely on the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Eye to suppress the poison.
"Okay, I will take your suggestion into consideration." Dugu Bo nodded.
Upon hearing this, Qing Mu smiled slightly, then seemed to remember something and continued, "I almost forgot the important matter. Senior Dugu, do you know of any soul beasts that would suit my requirements?"
Seeing Qing Mu bring this up again, Dugu Bo's mind started racing, trying to recall what kind of soul beasts in Sunset Forest met Qing Mu's previous requirements.
After a while, Dugu Bo seemed to have found the answer and pondered, "There are indeed a few soul beasts that meet your requirements."
"Those few?"
Upon hearing that there was a soul beast that matched her, Qing Mu's eyes lit up, and she quickly asked.
Dugu Bo: "Phantom Azure Owl, Lightning Vine, Streaming Roaring Ape!"
"These three types of spirit beasts are all very fast and all have the wood attribute, which should meet your needs."
Qingmu stroked her chin. "It sounds like the wood element doesn't make up a large percentage."
Dugu Bo rolled his eyes at Qing Mu, "Wood attribute is not known for its speed. No soul beast is faster than a pure wood attribute one. If you want to pursue wood attribute, then choose the Flowing Light Roaring Ape. Its wood attribute ratio is higher."
As he spoke, Dugu Bo took out a scroll from his storage soul tool and tossed it to Qing Mu.
"These are maps showing the distribution of soul beasts in Sunset Forest. Be careful not to go to the places marked with red crosses. Even I have to be careful in those places."
Also, be careful of the black areas; those are the habitats of ten-thousand-year-old soul beasts. Although I don't know your current strength, you won't fare well if you trespass into their territory.
Qing Mu took the soul beast distribution map and smiled at Dugu Bo, saying, "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
Then Qingmu opened the Soul Beast Distribution Map and began to study it carefully.
At this moment, Dugu Bo smiled and patted Qing Mu on the shoulder, saying softly, "Actually, you don't need to be in such a hurry. You're still three levels away from level fifty. I'll personally help you hunt for your fifth soul ring when the time comes."
Although Dugu Bo is known as the weakest Title Douluo in a one-on-one fight, even the weakest Title Douluo is still a Title Douluo, and he can easily defeat spirit beasts under 70,000 years old.
Even against a soul beast with a power of 80,000 or 90,000, Dugu Bo is not necessarily outmatched, since he still possesses a piece of Medusa's skull; it just might require him to exert all his strength.
As for 100,000-year-old soul beasts, forget about them. 100,000 years is a qualitative change. In Douluo Continent I, an ordinary 100,000-year-old soul beast was enough to rival an ordinary level 95 Title Douluo.
Those powerful soul beasts, such as the Titan Giant Ape and the Azure Sky Bull Python, are even capable of rivaling level 96 or 97 Title Douluos, far beyond the reach of ordinary Title Douluos.
As for the matter of Douluo Continent, ordinary 100,000-year-old soul beasts can only be compared to level 92 or 93 soul masters. Apart from the fact that the prestige of 100,000-year-old soul beasts has been reduced to pave the way for the appearance of ferocious beasts later, it can only be attributed to the fact that the cultivation system of Douluo Continent has become more complete, and the strength of ordinary titled Douluo has been improved.
"Yes, Qingmu, with Grandpa guiding you, capturing a ten-thousand-year-old soul beast will be a piece of cake."
Dugu Yan echoed this sentiment.
The next moment, Dugu Yan also smiled slightly and said, "And now, if anyone should be preparing, it should be me who starts preparing."
In Dugu Yan's view, she is currently level 49, while Qing Mu is only level 47. She can't use the Immortal Herb Soul Bone every day, so her breakthrough speed to Soul King will definitely be faster than Qing Mu's.
However, after hearing Dugu Yan's words, Qing Mu shook her head and said, "That depends on whether you use the immortal herb or not. Otherwise, Sister Yan, you might not be as fast as me."
"Impossible. I can break through level 50 in a few months at most. How could someone be faster than me?"
Upon hearing this, Dugu Yan raised an eyebrow, somewhat disbelieving.
Qing Mu simply smiled and offered no explanation.
Indeed, with normal training, it would take Qingmu at least a year to reach level 50.
But Qingmu wouldn't train like that. Gaining experience by fighting monsters is much faster than ordinary cultivation, and there's no bottleneck in this improvement.
However, Dugu Yan's cultivation has reached a bottleneck, and in reality, she may not necessarily be the one who breaks through level fifty faster.