Lin Feng's heart trembled.
In his memories, Xue Qinghe had already been assassinated by Qian Renxue at the age of nine and had long been impersonated. The person standing before him now wasn't the true Crown Prince of Heaven Dou Empire at all, but Bibi Dong's daughter—Qian Renxue.
Though shocked, Lin Feng quickly regained his composure.
No matter what, her identity couldn't be exposed now. After all, the war between Spirit Hall and the Heaven Dou Empire wouldn't erupt for at least another decade.
"System, Trait Insight."
[Xue Qinghe (Qian Renxue)]
[Gender: Female]
[Age: 14]
[Innate Soul Power: Rank 20]
[Martial Soul: Heavenly Swan (Xue Qinghe's disguise) / Seraphim (Top-tier)]
[Soul Power: Rank 33 (Actual: Rank 47)]
Traits:
[Innate Rank 20] (Gold)
[Divine Inheritance: Seraphim] (Gold)
[Fated Antagonist] (Purple)
[Holy Soul Power] (Purple)
[Six-Winged Angel] (Purple)
[Cunning Strategist] (Green)
[Stunning Beauty] (White)
Seeing the dense trait panel, Lin Feng couldn't suppress his excitement.
Two gold, three purple, one green, one white—absolutely dazzling.
He clenched his fists, unable to keep the corners of his mouth from curving up.
Wasn't this the perfect chance to use his trait-copying ability?
Unfortunately, it could only copy one trait.
Lin Feng began inspecting each one carefully. Most were self-explanatory by name, but three stood out:
[Divine Inheritance: Seraphim] (Gold): You will inherit the position of Angel God and become one before the age of 40.
[Fated Antagonist] (Purple): Your origin, talent, and power are all exceptional—but destiny forsakes you, placing you in opposition to the chosen ones.
[Holy Soul Power] (Purple): Your soul power is infused with divine angelic energy, capable of purification and disintegration.
To most, becoming a god by 40 would be heaven-defying.
To him? Useless.
The "Fated Antagonist" was a total liability—opposing destiny itself. Garbage.
The rest weren't suitable either.
Eventually, Lin Feng chose to copy:
[Innate Rank 20] (Gold): Your innate soul power is Rank 20.
Now came the dilemma—which of his existing traits should he replace?
He frowned.
Previously, during the break, he had already replaced the [Wandering Thoughts] trait with:
[Dragon-Seeking Compass] (Purple): Grants a compass that guides you toward hidden treasures or sacred grounds.
Thanks to that, he'd discovered a training sanctuary deep in the forest, which explained why he missed the start of school.
This trait had been extremely valuable, and his soul power had surged through his time training there.
"Wait—why didn't I think of the [Outstanding Talent] trait?"
"That's clearly the one to swap out."
Smacking his forehead, Lin Feng felt like an idiot.
"System, copy [Innate Rank 20] and replace the purple-tier [Outstanding Talent]."
[Ding! Trait copied and replaced successfully.]
As the notification rang out, Lin Feng immediately felt a dramatic transformation.
His bones, muscles, and meridians were reforged. His body felt lighter. The flow of soul power inside him sped up like a torrent.
His soul power surged.
He was now at Rank 40—only a soul ring away from becoming a Soul Ancestor.
"This feeling… incredible."
"Rank 20 innately—this is leagues above even full innate power. Just breathing naturally boosts my cultivation."
Lin Feng was beyond thrilled.
At this rate, he couldn't imagine how fast he'd grow in the future.
"Who's this?" Xue Qinghe asked, refined and graceful as always, feigning confusion at Lin Feng's sudden distraction.
"Lin Feng! Lin Feng!"
"Senior's talking to you!"
Dugu Yan's urgent whisper snapped Lin Feng out of his blissful daze.
"A-ah… Greetings, Senior!"
"I'm Lin Feng, a new member of the Preparatory Team."
He quickly composed himself and greeted with practiced poise.
"So you're Lin Feng," Xue Qinghe said with a gentle smile. "I've heard a lot about you from Teacher Qin Ming—Twelve years old and already a Soul Elder. Heaven Dou's number one prodigy. You've got a bright future ahead."
"Now that you're here, our Preparatory Team is finally complete."
Dugu Yan, upon hearing the Crown Prince's praise, beamed with pride.
That's my man—how could he possibly be ordinary?
The other team members were shocked.
Another twelve-year-old Soul Elder?
What was going on this year? Why were all these monstrous geniuses showing up at once?
"Haha, Xue Qinghe is absolutely right."
"I wouldn't be surprised if Lin Feng even breaks my own record."
From the distance, Qin Ming walked over with a glowing smile.
After all, both Lin Feng and Dugu Yan were students he had personally recruited—he had every reason to be proud.
Xue Qinghe simply smiled in return.
Truthfully, he had already heard plenty about Lin Feng back when Dugu Yan enrolled. He'd even sent people to investigate.
From what the reports said, Lin Feng's meteoric rise in cultivation was largely due to some miraculous medicinal herbs.
Even Dugu Yan's Martial Soul evolution into the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor was caused by one of Lin Feng's special elixirs.
Sure, those elixirs were impressive—but overreliance would eventually lead to backlash.
Spirit Hall had plenty of those kinds of herbs. He just didn't stoop to using them.
Unlike Lin Feng, he had Innate Rank 20—a true foundation. Who could compare?
"Wait a minute… where's Yu Tianheng?" Qin Ming looked around and suddenly realized someone was missing.
"Teacher, I'm here!"
Yu Tianheng arrived belatedly, casting a wary glance at Lin Feng before blending into the crowd.
"Now that everyone's here, go ahead and train."
"If you need anything, come to my office."
Qin Ming gave his instructions, glanced approvingly at Lin Feng, then left.
Once he was gone, Lin Feng looked around.
The full team had seven members. Aside from himself and Dugu Yan, the others were just cannon fodder—16-year-olds barely qualified for the Soul Master Tournament.
But that was fine. They'd eventually be replaced by people like Ye Lingling anyway.
What puzzled him was Xue Qinghe—why did she vanish from the lineup in the tournament's later stages?
That mystery would have to wait.
For now…
Let's see what treasures this academy has to offer.
From his soul tool belt, Lin Feng retrieved the Dragon-Seeking Compass.
"Seek dragon veins, find golden lands…"
He mumbled under his breath, his expression solemn.
The compass spun, then stopped.
Found it!
A smile crept across his face as he headed in the direction indicated.
Just then, Dugu Yan tapped his shoulder from behind.
"Gotcha, Lin Feng! Skipping class again?"
She feigned righteous indignation.
"Whoa—don't scare me like that!"
"Hey, Yan'er, don't distract me—I'm working!"
He flinched, waving her off.
"What's that in your hand?"
Dugu Yan looked curiously at the strange object in his grip.
"This is the Dragon-Seeking Compass. It's said to lead you to treasure and sacred sites."
He explained nonchalantly while continuing to follow its guidance.
"Wow! That amazing?"
"Then I'm coming with you!"
Excitedly, she latched onto the corner of his coat and followed closely behind.
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