After the excitement of her breakthrough, Zhu Zhuqing's joy quickly faded from her face, replaced by a trace of worry in her cool, clear eyes.
Reaching Level Ten meant she needed to apply to her family for permission to hunt soul beasts and acquire her soul ring.
However, within her family, nearly everyone had aligned themselves with her older sister, Zhu Zhuyun.
If her sister Zhu Zhuyun were to interfere with her soul ring hunt, Zhu Zhuqing would be in grave danger.
Previously, Zhu Zhuyun's pressure on her had not been so severe. At least when Zhu Zhuqing was promoted to soul master, her sister had no reason to wish her harm, as she had not yet become a significant threat.
The usual pressure was to suppress her training and prevent her from forming useful connections.
But since the recent live stream exposed her victory over the detestable Dai Mubai, Zhu Zhuyun's attitude had shifted drastically, and the pressure had intensified.
Zhu Zhuqing did not doubt that Zhu Zhuyun would try to sabotage her soul ring hunt.
It was certain.
However, she couldn't let fear paralyze her; she had to proceed step by step.
With a complex expression, Zhu Zhuqing sighed deeply.
Collecting her thoughts, Zhu Zhuqing left the quiet room. Her face remained cold and aloof, exuding an aura of detachment as she made her way to the family's soul ring application office.
After undergoing a soul power test, Zhu Zhuqing completed her application to hunt for her first soul ring and then left, returning to her training.
On the other side, news of Zhu Zhuqing's breakthrough and application to hunt for her first soul ring quickly reached Zhu Zhuyun.
"What? My dear sister has already reached Level Ten?"
"Wow! It's been less than a year since she awakened her martial soul. Her innate soul power was only at Level Seven, and she's already advanced to Level Ten so quickly," Zhu Zhuyun's subordinate reported.
Zhu Zhuyun was taken aback by the news.
"Miss, should we take any action regarding the Second Miss's soul ring hunt?"
To Zhu Zhuyun's surprise, her loyal subordinate inquired.
"Hmm…"
Hearing this, Zhu Zhuyun frowned. Her mature, beautiful face showed deep contemplation.
Previously, she wouldn't have considered trying to kill her sister during her first soul ring hunt.
She had not regarded Zhu Zhuqing as a serious threat before.
But after the recent livestream revealed that her dear sister Zhu Zhuqing had eventually defeated both her and Davis alongside that worthless Dai Mubai, Zhu Zhuyun realized that her victory was not guaranteed.
After some thought, Zhu Zhuyun's face grew cold.
Although she had some feelings for her sister, the competition within the family was a matter of life and death, and she would never rely on others for her survival.
As the saying goes: Strike first, gain the advantage; strike later, suffer the consequences!
Her decision was clear: She couldn't miss this opportunity.
"Of course, we need to act! Why wouldn't we?"
"Find out who the family is sending to assist my dear sister with her soul ring hunt. Whether through coercion or bribery, you need to persuade them to come see me."
"I have my methods for dealing with my dear sister during her soul ring hunt, as long as they follow my instructions, it won't affect them!"
Making up her mind, Zhu Zhuyun clenched her fist and coldly said.
"Yes, I understand!"
The soul king-level steward responded respectfully to Zhu Zhuyun's orders.
…
Meanwhile, in a city on the western border of the Tiandou Empire.
Lin Yu was deep in thought in a hotel room.
He had been on the western border of the Tiandou Empire for almost half a year.
He had nearly finished eliminating all the wolf bandits in the area!
It was time for him to leave.
However, although he planned to leave the northwest border of the Tiandou Empire, Lin Yu did not intend to return directly to Nuoding Academy. Instead, he aimed to explore the Star Luo Empire.
From the last live stream, he had noted that the Wuhun Temple, Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, Tiandou Empire, and Star Luo Empire all likely had extensive libraries.
Among these, the Wuhun Temple's collection seemed to be the most comprehensive.
However, the other three major forces also had their unique collections.
Currently, Lin Yu has left a Ta Qing clone in Wuhun City. With Hu Liena's help, he will surely be able to review all the books in the Wuhun Temple in the future.
After all, although Hu Liena was a Saintess, her background was far clearer compared to the worthless Yu Xiaogang.
With Hu Liena's assistance, Lin Yu felt confident he could explore the Wuhun Temple's library after finishing with Wuhun City's junior soul master academy library and the public soul master academy library.
Lin Yu had almost completed his study of the Wuhun City's collection.
But he still needed to find a way to access the libraries of the Tiandou Empire, Star Luo Empire, and Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan.
Following the recent live stream, Lin Yu planned to visit Star Luo Imperial City to see if he could join the Ghostly Duke Mansion and gain access to their library.
Before that, Lin Yu intended to return to Nuoding Academy first.
Although the external soul bone's Supreme Bone soul skill could communicate between his main body and his clones, their cultivation and experiences were not shared.
Thus, Lin Yu planned to return to Nuoding Academy to retrieve his Shangqing clone.
Having practiced the Doomsday Spear Technique for six months, Lin Yu expected that the experience gained by his Shangqing clone would allow him to reach a certain level of mastery of the technique.
Afterward, he would create a new Shangqing clone with his current Level Seventy cultivation and share his Three Lives Martial Soul.
Returning to Nuoding Academy didn't take much time for Lin Yu.
With his improved cultivation and the external soul bone's Wind Thunder Wings, Lin Yu returned to Nuoding Academy in less than three days, collected his Shangqing clone, and spent a few days with Xiao Wu.
Afterward, he once again created a Shangqing clone, used the Wind Thunder Wings, and set off for the Star Luo Empire.
However, Lin Yu planned to make a brief stop in the Star Dou Forest on the way.
Not for any other reason, but to add two soul rings to his third martial soul, the Dual Pupils Martial Soul.
As he intended to join the Ghostly Duke Mansion under the identity of Ye Liangchen, his martial soul needed to be distinct from his main body, Lin Yu, and his Ta Qing clone Long Aotian.
A soul master under ten years old should be sufficient to attract the attention of the Ghostly Duke Mansion.