"Young Master Chu, are you a peerless genius cultivated by the Spirit Hall?"
Hearing that the Spirit Hall specialized in combating evil soul masters, Ma Jake's eyes lit up as he hurriedly asked.
"Uh, not exactly. But the Spirit Hall's young master is my girlfriend. Oh, and Old Ma—since you're my man now, you absolutely cannot join the Spirit Hall!"
As he spoke, Chu Chengzhou didn't forget to warn Ma Jake.
Qian Renxue's interests were his interests and the Spirit Hall's interests. The Spirit Hall's interests were Qian Renxue's interests—but they weren't necessarily his interests. These couldn't be conflated.
"Eh? Isn't the Spirit Hall's young master your girlfriend?"
Ma Jake froze briefly before asking.
Since the Spirit Hall's young master is your girlfriend—and you're practically family—why draw such strict boundaries?
Indeed, upon learning the Spirit Hall specialized in combating evil soul masters, Ma Jake—who had suffered greatly at the hands of evil soul masters—immediately felt drawn to them, despite knowing little about them.
Such a virtuous power was worthy of my joining!
"Who told you I only have one girlfriend? Can't I have others?"
Chu Chengzhou shot Ma Jake a disdainful look.
Ma Jake: "..."
You make a compelling point!
But with the Spirit Hall's overwhelming strength... aren't you afraid of getting beaten to death?
At that moment, the mischievous Titan Giant Ape spirit Xiao Ming bounded over with several shimmering soul bones clutched in his massive hands. Grinning widely, he presented them to Chu Chengzhou like a prize.
"Hmm, not bad!"
After verbally praising Xiao Ming, Chu Chengzhou accepted the soul bones.
The Moon Worship Sect had been one of the Sun-Moon Continent's top powers. Raiding their headquarters naturally yielded spoils.
"Old Ma, your strength is lacking. Since you're joining my ranks, take this soul bone as a welcome gift!"
With that, Chu Chengzhou selected the finest specimen—a 40,000-year left arm bone—and tossed it to Ma Jake.
Not everyone was a pillar of a major power. Given the Moon Worship Sect's lower tier compared to the Star Luo Empire, their high-ranking members' "worth" paled beside Star Luo's royal elders.
"This... thank you, Young Master Chu!"
Seeing Chu Chengzhou's generosity, Ma Jake hesitated briefly before accepting the soul bone and bowing in gratitude.
Confirmed: Boss Chu wasn't just powerful—he was also magnanimous. Granting a precious soul bone before I've earned a single merit? Truly an excellent boss!
"Alright, go pack your things. You might never return here."
Recalling his four spirits while keeping the Space Holy Dragon Xiao Yin for transport, Chu Chengzhou led Ma Jake back to the Ma residence in an eastern coastal city of the Sun-Moon Continent.
When they arrived, it was already late. With important matters tonight, Chu Chengzhou delayed their return to the Douluo Continent, planning to depart at dawn.
---
Late Night, Bedroom
Chu Chengzhou waited patiently for his martial soul's evolution.
Yes—the True Spirit Flag martial soul, which had been AFKing and upgrading in his attribute panel for a long time, would finally evolve tonight.
At this moment, Chu Chengzhou couldn't help but anticipate the changes after its evolution.
Two years ago, he had already "consumed" Hu Liena. Later, he "consumed" Tang Yuehua and Qian Renxue in succession. Yet none of their bellies had shown signs of life.
This wasn't due to flaws in their bodies—or his. He simply refused to have children before this martial soul evolution.
Because up to now, his True Spirit Flag remained merely a top-tier quality martial soul.
Had he already sown his seed, any children born to Hu Liena and Tang Yuehua would at best awaken top-tier martial souls.
Even if they inherited his True Spirit Flag, and even if his own martial soul quality evolved later, this couldn't be changed—not until he possessed divine power.
On the Douluo Continent, bloodline inheritance was fixed the moment life formed. Without heaven-defying fortune, ants remained ants—they could never become dragons.
Even if an ant did become a dragon, it was because it carried dragon bloodline from the start—not because it was an ordinary ant.
When soul masters ascended to godhood, it wasn't like that neighboring Doupo Continent (BTTH), where one person's ascension lifted their entire clan—even distant relatives—overnight.
Children born to Qian Renxue, and those born after his martial soul's evolution, would—according to martial soul inheritance rules—awaken a god-tier martial soul with innate domains, barring mutations.
Of course, this "god-tier martial soul" referred to the quality of the martial soul, not its raw power—much like how the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger possessed a bloodline of god-tier quality.
They were all his flesh and blood. How could Chu Chengzhou allow qualitative disparities in his children's martial souls?
For future family harmony, he couldn't have children before this evolution.
But after tonight? Everything would change. His late father's great wish—to see the family line flourish—could finally begin.
---
Fifteen Minutes Later
Chu Chengzhou felt a subtle shift within himself. Simultaneously, his body seemed ravenous. Without hesitation, his three Yin Yang Complementary soul cores roared to full power. His entire being became a black hole, greedily devouring the surrounding heaven and earth's spiritual energy.
Outside the bedroom, torrents of energy converged, forming a funnel-shaped cloud of spiritual energy beneath the night sky.
Time passed. Half an hour later, the external phenomenon faded. Inside the bedroom, Chu Chengzhou opened his eyes—a sharp radiance flashing within them. Brilliant blue light surged around him as a pale blue domain bloomed, engulfing the entire room.
Knock knock—
"Young Master Chu, has something happened?"
Suddenly, knocking rang out. Ma Jake's voice came from beyond the door.
The disturbance Chu Chengzhou caused hadn't gone unnoticed by the living man.
"Nothing—just cultivating. Rest now!"
Chu Chengzhou dismissed him with a reply.
Sensing the significant increase in both quantity and quality of his soul power—even though his level remained unchanged—he nodded in satisfaction. He then released his martial soul.
When martial soul quality improved, even without a level-up, one's total soul power would noticeably increase, and the soul power itself would grow purer. This was the fundamental reason high-quality martial soul users could challenge opponents beyond their level—apart from factors like soul rings, soul bones, and domains.
Examining the True Spirit Flag in his hand, Chu Chengzhou clearly perceived its changes.
The gray flagpole remained etched with white patterns representing the Killing God Domain. The equally gray flag surface still bore the images of his nine spirits.
But previously, the nine spirit patterns had been crude. Had Chu Chengzhou not known their meanings intimately, he might not have recognized what creatures they represented.
Now? The nine spirits were lifelike, every detail vivid—as if they were real.
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