Chapter 165

After a round of motherly affection and filial duty, Tang San calmed his excited heart, and his eyes were filled with a feeling of filial longing.

Translation: After a bout of maternal affection and filial piety, Tang San calmed his excited heart, his eyes filled with a feeling of filial longing.

But we need to be concise, not add extra. Let's think: "After a round of motherly kindness and filial piety, Tang San calmed his excited heart, his eyes filled with a feeling of filial longing." That seems okay.

After a round of motherly affection and filial duty, Tang San calmed his excited heart, and his eyes were filled with a feeling of filial longing.

We'll produce: After a round of motherly affection and filial duty, Tang San calmed his excited heart, his eyes filled with a feeling of filial longing.

He finally has a mother! "Mom, what did you mean earlier about countering the ferocious beasts? Are there many ferocious beasts that exceed the hundred‑thousand‑year limit?"

Translation: He finally had a mother! "Mother, what did you mean earlier about resisting the ferocious beasts? Are there many ferocious beasts that exceed the hundred‑thousand‑year limit?"

We need to keep quotes. Use double quotes? The original uses Chinese quotes. We'll use English quotes.

Thus: He finally had a mother! "Mother, what did you mean earlier about resisting the ferocious beasts? Are there many ferocious beasts that exceed the hundred‑thousand‑year limit?"

Qian Renxue forcibly suppressed the slightly awkward corners of her mouth, retracted her martial soul, turned and said lightly: "That's correct. Among the circle of Titled Douluo, the fame of the Ten Great Ferocious Beasts is circulated; the so-called Ten Great Ferocious Beasts are merely a ranking by human soul masters of the top ten strongest spirit beasts on the continent. It only evaluates the portion of spirit beasts we know, not all of them."

"The dark-gold dreadclaw bear that just attacked is the sixth-ranked Bear Lord among them; its pair of dark-gold dreadclaws is extremely sharp. If it weren't for your father buying me time, even I couldn't have repelled it."

Tang San's heart jolted, "Mother, could it be that you didn't just kill that dark-gold dreadclaw bear?"

Qian Renxue let out a light sigh, "Ferocious beasts aren't that easy to kill; moreover, just now there wasn't only one ferocious beast—the sinister and crafty Myriad Beast King attacked me together with the Bear Lord. If it weren't for your father's timely intervention, I would likely have fallen now."

"Cough—cough."

Seeing Qian Renxue's frail figure coughing nonstop as her injury flared up, Tang San's eyes turned red with anxiety, "Mother, are you alright?"

Qian Renxue waved her hand casually, with an airy, carefree demeanor, "It's just some old injuries from before, not worth mentioning. This information is known only to Titled Douluo of rank ninety-five and above. Do you know why I'm telling you this?"

Tang San looked at her somewhat bewildered and shook his head, "I don't know."

After the spirit soul ceremony ended, she had already learned from the Bear Lord their purpose for coming here; the ferocious beasts have not only occupied the Barak Kingdom but also sent the Bear Troops and the Myriad Beast King to follow Xiao Wu here to exterminate Tang San. However, before Xiao Wu made contact with Tang San, she attracted attention herself and went all‑out against herself, which caused the assassination to fail—otherwise Tang San would likely have been killed outright by the ferocious beasts.

Since the ferocious beasts followed the Three‑eyed Golden Toad out of the Star Dou Great Forest, let them have some fun—we'll use Tang San as bait to lure the ferocious beasts over; her second martial soul is badly lacking in spirit rings.

Qian Renxue turned, her slender hand gently resting on Tang San's black hair, "Little Three, may I call you that?"

"Of course! You are my elder."

Tang San's face flushed, his traitorous heart suddenly pounding violently; he immediately straightened his body, daring not to move a muscle, yet despite that, the faint fragrance on Qian Renxue's body kept wafting into his nose.

This fragrance reminded him of the Immortal Fragrant Vermilion Lattice that can counteract a hundred poisons; Tang San vaguely recalled that the Heavenly Treasure Record mentioned that when such a fragrance appears on a person, it is called innate vermilion lattice fragrance. Although it cannot counteract a hundred poisons like the Immortal Fragrant Vermilion Lattice, it is greatly beneficial to the human body.

If one could smell it every day, it would not only prolong life but also strengthen one's immunity and give a feeling of intoxication.

What Tang San did not know was that when Qian Renxue initially absorbed the Vermilion Lattice Fragrance and the Eight‑petal Immortal Orchid—a pair of yin‑yang immortal herbs—in the Ice and Fire Yin‑Yang Well, the floral scent emanating from her body once triggered the Immortal Fragrant Vermilion Lattice to cleanse her.

A sensation of a girl's smooth, soft, fragrant skin came upon Tang San's head, instantly causing his emotions to fluctuate and his reactions to slow by half a beat.

Whether in his previous life or this one, he had never been this close to a girl before, let alone made contact.

Tang San's gaze shifted slightly as he lowered his head to accept his foster mother's caress; this mother‑son intimacy made him somewhat embarrassed, yet he also greatly enjoyed it.

Qian Renxue nodded, her usually cold voice now tinged with gravity, "Because those two ferocious beasts target you, aiming to kill the Son of Fate born of destiny."

Tang San first gave an embarrassed cough, then asked with some doubt, "What is the Son of Fate? Am I the Son of Fate? Could it be my twin martial souls? Why would those ferocious beasts want to kill me? I don't even know them—only a handful of people know about my twin martial souls."

Qian Renxue said softly, "I don't know who the Son of Fate is, but he must be a genius. The matter of the Son of Fate is not yet the time to tell you; you only need to know that it is because of a spirit beast called the Three‑eyed Golden Toad, which is an auspicious beast that governs the Eye of Destiny."

"Its eyes can see others' destinies; perhaps it suddenly saw your future destiny, so it decided to send ferocious beasts to hunt you down. Moreover, the divide between soul masters and spirit beasts is inherently hard to bridge—killing human geniuses brings them only benefit, no harm."

"That's why I have been secretly hiding the geniuses I found, to prevent the ferocious beasts from discovering them."

A flash of ruthlessness crossed Tang San's eyes; these ferocious beasts not only endangered his father's life, but also seriously injured his foster mother, and they even spared no mercy for him, a six‑year‑old who had just awakened his martial soul.

With such aggression, they are practically begging for death!

"I have been investigating the ferocious beasts' whereabouts, but after they break the hundred‑thousand‑year limit they gain the ability to assume human form, making them hard to detect in ordinary times. However, since Tang Hao has entrusted you to me, I will teach you wholeheartedly—rest assured, as long as I am here, they cannot take your life."

During the conversation, a boy and a girl about Tang San's age walked into the courtyard from opposite directions.

On the left was a youth whose hair was mostly turned gold, his pupils as clear as the azure sky; when his gaze fell upon them, it carried a gentle yet proud feeling, as if he were destined to be a king who embraces all.

On the right was a girl with smooth silver‑white long hair flowing down her back; her originally amber pupils—one had turned vibrant green full of life, the other deep and black. Seeing Qian Renxue's bare feet in white robes, she froze for a moment, then eagerly flung herself into her arms.

"Qian Teacher! Wah‑wah‑wah, thank goodness you're alright, otherwise I don't know how I'd live!" The first three words Xue Ke bit especially hard, making it clear she was dissatisfied.

Atoliss smiled at them, then stepped forward and patted the still‑dazed Tang San on the shoulder, "Do you still remember me? Little Three?"

Tang San looked at the rather unfamiliar handsome boy before him with some confusion; he had seen him outside the academy just earlier, but they had never spoken. He asked strangely, "Who are you? How do you know my name?"

Upon hearing this, the boy's smile grew even brighter; he grabbed Tang San's shoulders and shook them left and right vigorously, "I'm Atoliss! How about it—isn't my change huge?"

"You're Atoliss?!" Tang San could hardly believe it—could this cute, aristocratically dressed child before him really be the former rag‑picking, door‑to‑door begging little waif? Atoliss pointed to Xue Ke, who was clinging all over Qian Renxue, and chuckled gently, "Haha, because I've been hanging out with Xue Ke sis all this time, I've been doing great; later I even ran into His Highness with Xue Ke sis, so I eat well now! Even my martial soul is innate full soul power!"

Hearing "innate full soul power," Tang San's eyes flashed with surprise; he curiously asked, "How did the two of you come to know my mother?"

Atoliss's bright smile froze instantly; he even thought he had misheard, "What did you say? Mother?"

Atoliss glanced at Qian Renxue, then asked cautiously, "Are you calling her Mother?"

Tang San nodded seriously, his eyes full of respect as he looked at Qian Renxue.

"Ah?" Xue Ke, who had been sniveling and taking advantage in Qian Renxue's arms, suddenly couldn't hold it in—how could it be that after just one day apart, Tang San has become Qian Renxue's son? Is this plot a bit too abstract? Qian Renxue is really good at bluffing.

Xue Ke's lovely face bore an expression of utter disbelief; she knew Qian Renxue all too well. When this woman is cute, you just want to kiss her to death; when she's hateful, you want to strangle her. In the Divine Realm, everyone knows that whatever the Angel God wants, it's best not to contend with her. Whatever she wants to do, it's best not to stop her.

But isn't she only interested in getting stronger? How come she's started collecting sons like me? This Qian Renxue is full of dirty tricks—taking Tang San as her son surely means she's scheming something nasty in her heart!

However, Qian Renxue is destined to be disappointed, for Tang San, as a transmigrant from a feudal era, can be said to be a loyal follower of the Tian Dou Snow clan.

In Tang San's era, sects like the Tang Sect were supreme, followed by imperial authority; in the original work, even though those royal family members had low soul power levels, Tang San still naturally tolerated the Tian Dou imperial family, not holding past offenses against Xue Beng against him—if it were an ordinary person, they'd already be begging for death; Tang San likely considers himself a citizen of Tian Dou.

Therefore, as long as the bottom line isn't crossed, Tang San will neither overthrow the Tian Dou imperial family himself nor allow others to do so; the Spirit Hall and Tang San share a blood‑deep feud, which in his eyes cannot be washed away.

Xue Ke coughed once, about to speak, but was cut off by Qian Renxue's cold voice.

"Little Three, this child is the disciple I mentioned to you—Xue Ke, innate full soul power, possessing the top‑tier martial soul with the life attribute—the Jade Swan."

"And there's Atoliss; his martial soul is the Sword of Oath‑bound Victory, also innate full soul power—so you all get along well from now on."

"Jade Swan?" Tang San's heart jolted; his gaze at Xue Ke shifted instantly—this girl must be the genius Mom said could one day become a Healing‑titled Douluo. He nodded to show he understood, then calmly said to Xue Ke, "Miss Xue Ke, hello, I am Tang San, martial soul Blue Silver Grass, also innate full soul power."

Xue Ke also slightly lifted her chin, responding proudly, "Although it's just Blue Silver Grass, since Teacher Qian values you, we will henceforth be teammates."

Tang San let out a slight sigh of relief; this genius, though proud, feels fairly easy to get along with—"Hmm."

Atoliss's face looked a bit off; he leaned against Tang San's back, poked his waist, giving a grimacing grin, and whispered, "You already have Xiao Wu, don't go stealing her from us, man! Xue Ke sis has been with me for over two years—if you have designs on her, don't blame us brothers for turning hostile."

Without a doubt, Atoliss likes Xue Ke—a wealthy, pretty girl who is willing to spend money on him and treats him especially gently; he's long been crazy about her. Where could you find such a peerless beauty in a past life? Had he not known that Xue Ke has somewhat unusual feelings for Qian Ling'er, he'd fear being rejected by the goddess and would have confessed long ago.

At this moment, seeing Atoliss's lecherous eyebrow‑waggling expression, Tang San's initial impression of him as cheerful and cute collapsed outright—this guy's expression is downright lewd.

"What?" Tang San, puzzled, asked: "What Xiao Wu?"

"Ah, right, I forgot you don't know her yet—she's just a new work‑study student, you'll meet her later." Atoliss, when reading novels and watching anime, is also a die‑hard pure‑love fan; he was previously moved by Tang San and Xiao Wu's romance.

Tang San nodded, then asked Qian Renxue: "Xue Ke just said we're a team? Mom is planning to let us grow up to resist"

"Alright." Qian Renxue cut him off directly, "Some things aren't for you kids to know; you just need to keep getting stronger."

At the same time, Qian Renxue's voice also reached Tang San's ears alone; that was the sound Tang Hao had just produced by forcing his voice into a line.

"The matter of the ferocious beast must not be casually told to others; not even A Ke and A Tuolis may know; furthermore, my identity as a Title Douluo and my soul rings must not be revealed; they two only think I am a Soul Emperor."

"They are different from you; although you are young, your temperament is extraordinarily calm; A Ke and A Tuolis have ample talent but insufficient disposition; if they were to learn early of the ferocious beast's existence, it would be harmful and useless to their future growth, and knowing my strength would only make them rely on me, which is likewise detrimental to their growth."

Tang San nodded without changing his expression, finding Qian Renxue's words quite convincing; after all, his father Tang Hao had always concealed his identity as a Title Douluo in Holy Spirit Village, likely out of the same consideration as his foster mother, fearing it would affect his own growth.

It is surprising that a Title Douluo would work as a blacksmith in a small village; perhaps his father's retirement is also related to the ferocious beasts.

Watching Tang San lost in thought, Xue Ke turned and asked curiously, "Qian Teacher, how did you defeat that dark-gold terrorclaw bear? We just saw the angel's true form outside; have you already become a Soul Saint?"

Under Li Teng's respectful gaze, Qian Renxue shook her head and said lightly, "Because Tang San's father, the Heavenly Douluo, appeared here; I have not yet broken through to Soul Saint, merely using the ability of the fused ring to forcefully manifest my own angel's true form; only with our combined effort did we barely repel that spirit beast, but Heavenly Douluo also suffered severe injuries because of it; if not for my timely seal, he would likely have perished now, and Tang San was entrusted to me by him before the seal."

Xue Ke then realized that the white platinum rectangular box held Tang Hao; Tang Hao, you are truly great— not even fleeing with your son would be enough, yet you sacrificed your life to save everyone; he really— I'm bawling— Heavenly Douluo truly lives up to its name!

"Repelled? It didn't die?"

"Of course not; have you seen here the corpse and soul ring of that dark-gold terrorclaw bear?"

Because of the soul spirit ritual, the bear lord's body had already turned to ashes; where would any corpse remain?

Seeing Xue Ke inexplicably let out a sigh of relief, Tang San asked, "Mother, so will you be the one to teach us cultivation from now on?"

"From now on, when outside, don't call me Mother; call me Qian Teacher, just use the way you first addressed me; understand?"

Tang San stared for a moment, finally realizing why he felt the woman's voice before him was familiar— his foster mother was actually the Qian Teacher who received him today, not some elder of Qian Teacher.

Beneath the white hood lay that excessively beautiful, youthful face.

"Mm, Qian Teacher, I understand."

Qian Renxue said calmly, "You need not be so surprised; the stronger a soul master's soul power, the greatly extended their lifespan; I merely look young; A Ke and A Tuolis can be taught by me, but you cannot, because you already have a master."

"Isn't Yu Xiaogang just become your master? If I were to teach you instead, it would be inappropriate, and the Master would have reservations; that previous teacher also said, in the soul master world, any soul master, whether or not they graduated from an academy, can only acknowledge one master; otherwise, they will not be tolerated by society."

For some reason, upon hearing this, Tang San's heart felt a huge gap; if it were before, he would think the Master truly is an excellent teacher, after all, what he currently needs most is theoretical knowledge; a master's power cannot be transmitted to disciples, only knowledge can.

But the premise of that idea is that he is merely a weak commoner, a penniless commoner; now Tang San knows he is the son of a Title Douluo and also has a foster mother who is a Title Douluo— would the Master's knowledge still be useful to him? Can the knowledge of an ordinary soul master like Yu Xiaogang compare to that of a powerful Title Douluo? Moreover, A Ke and A Tuolis both receive instruction from a Title Douluo, while he does not, giving him a sense of being overlooked. Tang San inevitably feels some resentment; if he had not met Yu Xiaogang as a teacher, then Qian Teacher's instruction of him would not be limited by secular ethics.

He only felt that he had been a complete blockhead before; why would he have been persuaded by Yu Xiaogang, whom he had just met, to become his disciple? If he had hesitated another two days, perhaps the outcome would be different; after all, he and Yu Xiaogang had only just met, claiming there is any deep master-disciple bond between them is pure nonsense.

A hint of hostility uncontrollably surfaced in Tang San's eyes, blocking his own path— Gangzi, you're practically asking for death?! (End of chapter)