In the blink of an eye, winter had arrived.
Thanks to the furnace burning next door in the forge, the heat flowed through a connected pipe into Zhou Qing's room. As long as the windows stayed shut, it remained quite cozy inside.
"Tang san, your father still hasn't gotten his spirits up to work?"
Zhou Qing flipped through a soul tool core array Tang San had copied from the soul-guiding crystal, asking casually about Tang Hao's situation.
"Nope."
Tang San sighed. "Guess I was too soft-hearted. The money I earned from the villagers I left it at home, and he just took all of it without even asking... The only thing I'm glad about is that I kept my own savings in the storage soul tool I gave you."
Hearing the frustration in Tang San's voice, Zhou Qing couldn't help but smirk inwardly.
Tang San used to refer to Tang Hao as "Dad." Now it had become just "he." Their relationship was clearly growing distant.
"Why do I feel like some shady villain in a novel?"
That odd thought popped into Zhou Qing's head, and he decided to shift the topic. "A few days ago, Uncle Liu and the others went to Nuoding City to sell grain. I asked them to bring back more books. One of them is about Titled Douluos mainly their martial souls, the age they achieved their titles, and legendary stories about them. But it says nothing about their soul skills."
Tang San found that reasonable. With his growing understanding of martial souls and soul skills, he viewed the latter like techniques from his previous world—such as Mysterious Jade Hand or Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track. Although soul skills in this world couldn't be copied just from reading descriptions, knowing too much about someone's abilities could definitely give opponents an edge.
That's why the details of certain soul skills remained hidden.
"The youngest Titled Douluo on the continent was forty-four years old. His title: Clear Sky," Zhou Qing continued.
"Clear Sky? That's such an arrogant name," Tang San snarked.
"His real name is Tang Hao."
Zhou Qing hadn't planned to share this now, but considering Tang San could eventually access the book himself, he figured it better to act like a curious child sharing an interesting find with a friend.
"Hm?"
Tang San raised an eyebrow, put down the soul-guiding crystal, and accepted the book. It chronicled the deeds of the Clear Sky Douluo but without any portrait or even a depiction of his martial soul. It only noted that his martial soul was the Clear Sky Hammer, inherited through the Clear Sky Clan. The hammerhead was said to be as large as a water vat.
"Must be someone with the same name."
Tang San had long suspected his father might be a hidden soul master. But thinking of his father's disheveled, depressed appearance it was impossible to connect that image with a legendary Titled Douluo.
What exactly was a Titled Douluo?
Even though he hadn't awakened his martial soul yet, Tang San had read enough to understand that a Titled Douluo wielded earth-shattering power.
By the standards of this world's crude meditation methods, the training system seemed rough and unstructured. But to reach the title of Douluo, one would have to possess extraordinary determination.
Just like himself having lost everything in his previous life, body and cultivation alike, and being reborn with only his memories. Starting from nothing, he hadn't once complained.
So he believed that anyone who became a Titled Douluo had to possess the same unwavering will.
As for Tang Hao...
There was just no way he could be the youngest Clear Sky Douluo.
Even if he was how could such a mighty figure fall so low after a single setback? Even the widowers in the village who lost their wives and children eventually returned to the fields and got back on their feet.
But Tang Hao?
Aside from buying alcohol and visiting the forge once, he hadn't left that smithy at all!
At that moment, even though Tang San still kept a small part of his heart open to the possibility, he couldn't help but look down on him a little.
After all, his mindset had changed from the original novel. He had to prepare for entering the world of soul masters and couldn't waste time babysitting his father's feelings.
Besides, as a five-year-old child, there was no way Tang Hao would reveal the full story to him. It would be better to grow stronger and seek the truth himself later. If injustice had truly been done, he'd get justice in due time.
Reaching the realm of Titled Douluo... with Xuan Tian Gong, Tang San believed he could achieve it through steady cultivation. And if martial souls and soul rings could boost his training, even better.
Zhou Qing, seeing through Tang San's thoughts, didn't press the issue. He just exaggerated a sigh. "I thought you'd run straight home and ask your dad if he's the legendary Clear Sky Douluo. What a shame~"
Tang San rolled his eyes, closed the book, picked up the soul-guiding crystal again, and muttered while tracing its inscriptions, "I'm not three years old anymore."
"Yes, yes you're five."
Zhou Qing grinned, leaned back in his chair, stretched, and stared out the window at the falling snow. Feeling a sudden itch for fun, he turned to Tang San. "Hey, wanna go play in the snow? Snowball fight?"
"Boring."
"Come on! If you keep etching arrays nonstop, your brain's gonna rust." Zhou Qing dragged him outside, gathering the other kids in the village to join a snowball fight.
Now that Tang San had a "respectable" job, the kids in Holy Soul Village were more willing to play with him—even though he usually didn't mix well with them.
But Zhou Qing was different. Maybe because he was physically still a kid, with a not-yet-fully-developed brain, his personality sometimes had wild, playful streaks. He could easily blend in with the other children.
Dragged into the chaos, Tang San took a snowball to the face and reluctantly wiped it off. Then he scooped up a massive pile of snow, formed it into a head-sized snowball, and hurled it with a cold grin straight at Zhou Qing.
"Whoa! Are you trying to kill me?!"
In that instant, Zhou Qing swore he saw red glint in Tang San's eyes—as if he'd made it onto some hit list.
Splat!
The snowball slammed into Zhou Qing's head, burying him in snow.
"You little playing dirty, huh?!"
Zhou Qing scrambled to his feet, rolled up a head-sized snowball of his own, and lobbed it at Tang San.
But Tang San leapt to the left, leaving behind a faint afterimage. He dodged it with ease.
"What?! Who uses martial arts in a snowball fight?!"
Zhou Qing was indignant. This brat had used Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track! Totally unfair!
Tang San just chuckled. "No one said I couldn't."
Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track.
Tang San had already taught it to Zhou Qing, but Zhou Qing hadn't practiced it yet intending to wait until after his martial soul awakened.
Zhou Qing had his own plans for soul cultivation.
According to the basic meditation techniques of the Spirit Hall, every soul master had a method most compatible with their own martial soul. That's why Zhou Qing valued Xuan Tian Gong a Daoist technique known for its balance and comprehensiveness. In his view, its understanding of meridians far surpassed most soul master methods.
So, except for some rare soul masters, most people could train with it from a young age. And if someone became powerful enough, they might even merge Xuan Tian Gong into them.
PS:Read Avance in patreon.com/XenTronix