"Little Qi Lin, you're not lying to me, are you?"
Si Si hesitated for a moment before walking up to Qi Lin and gently patting his head.
"It's okay that we didn't get a good soul ring this time. We can always try again later. But lying isn't right, you know?"
Honestly, no one could blame her for doubting him. After all, getting four soul skills from a first soul ring sounded like pure fantasy. Maybe no one in the history of Douluo Continent had ever done that.
Off to the side, Su Yuntao listened to her gentle tone and suddenly felt a little bitter.
'Si Si, how come you're never this sweet when you talk to me?'
Qi Lin's heart, though, felt warm at her concern.
"Sisi-jie, I would never lie to you. If you don't believe me, I'll show you my soul skills right now!"
With that, he held out his hand, and a four-leaf clover bloomed from his palm.
Compared to how it looked before he absorbed the Skydream Iceworm's ring, the clover had grown slightly larger. But the most noticeable change was the golden patterns on each of its leaves. They gleamed softly with a radiant light.
"Gift of Fate – Strength!"
"Gift of Fate – Speed!"
"Gift of Fate – Defense!"
"Gift of Fate – Soul!"
As Qi Lin chanted each skill, the white soul ring hovering over his head flashed four times in sync.
Then, four streams of golden light surged into Si Si's body.
Qi Lin grinned and teased, "Si Si-jie, you should try sparring with Brother Tao now."
Feeling the surge of power within her, Si Si instinctively turned toward Su Yuntao.
Seeing her gaze, Su Yuntao quickly waved his hands and said, "Si Si, no way! How could I bear to hurt you?"
His martial soul was the Lone Wolf, while Si Si's was an ordinary green vine. In terms of attack power, he had the upper hand, and his spirit power level was higher too.
So the outcome should have been obvious. Why even spar?
What if he accidentally hurt her?
Even with Qi Lin's buffs, how much could a one-ring Spirit Master really boost someone as strong as a two-ring Spirit Grandmaster?
But Si Si wasn't about to waste this perfect chance to test her new strength.
She shot Su Yuntao a sharp glare.
"Stop talking and fight!"
"Ugh…"
Su Yuntao turned and glared bitterly at Qi Lin
'You little punk! You've completely stolen Si Si's heart!'
"Fine, fine…"
"Sisi, I'll go easy, I promise."
"Who said I want you to go easy on me?!" Si Si snapped, her brow furrowed.
She felt amazing, like she could crush mountains right now.
The spar began.
Si Si's Green Vine martial soul wasn't suited for head-on combat. Normally, she would rely on control tactics to wear down an opponent like Su Yuntao, who had the advantage in close combat.
But this time, she didn't back down. She charged straight in.
Under normal circumstances, she wouldn't last long. But now?
She was keeping up blow for blow!
Even Su Yuntao began to look shocked as the minutes passed.
Si Si's strength, speed, defense, and soul power had all noticeably increased. Maybe one boost wouldn't matter much—but with four combined?
He was struggling!
And the worst part? It just wouldn't wear off!
"Okay, okay! I give up!"
Seven or eight minutes later, Su Yuntao staggered back, waving his arms in surrender.
Si Si stopped too, her goal accomplished. She hadn't wanted to win—just test Qi Lin's skills.
Now both she and Su Yuntao were completely convinced.
"Little Qi Lin," Si Si said with awe, "what kind of soul beast did you absorb? These skills are insane!"
It wasn't just the amount of boosts—it was the duration. The only thing left to worry about was whether there were any side effects.
Su Yuntao nodded in agreement. "Yeah, even some thousand-year skills aren't this ridiculous."
"You really hit the jackpot!"
"Oh right—what level are you now?"
Qi Lin smiled. "I absorbed the ring of an Iceworm. I'm already at Rank 13."
(Note: In the original story, Tang San reached Rank 13 after two or three extra months of training. Qi Lin's current soul ring is still sealed at around 800 years.)
"Huh?!"
Su Yuntao sucked in a cold breath.
A ten-year soul ring can boost someone by three levels?
Now he didn't know what was special—the beast Qi Lin absorbed, or Qi Lin himself.
Si Si, on the other hand, caught a clue.
"Iceworm?" she asked. "Could it be related to that Iceworm we saw earlier?"
Qi Lin nodded silently.
Si Si didn't ask further. She understood that any more questions might cross into personal territory.
Still, she felt genuinely happy for him.
"All right," she said with a smile, "since you've got your first soul ring, let's head home."
Su Yuntao nodded in agreement, and the three of them began making their way out of the forest.
On the way, they encountered a hundred-year-old Jade Horned Bull.
Qi Lin noticed its horns were like green jade and asked Si Si and Su Yuntao to help him cut them off.
"These are worth a lot," Su Yuntao said, inspecting the horns. "If you make accessories from them, they'll fetch a good price."
Qi Lin took the horns, tapped them thoughtfully, and said, "I like doing crafts when I'm bored. I want to make two combs—one for Si Si-jie, and one for Xiao Wu."
Si Si's joy was written all over her face. She reached out and pinched Qi Lin's cheek.
"You really are the sweetest little thing!"
Su Yuntao saw it all, and sighed internally.
'This kid… does he have some kind of Innate Gentleman's Physique?'
'He's way too good at winning girls' hearts. Good thing he's still young. Otherwise, I wouldn't even stand a chance with Si Si…'
On their way out, Qi Lin also found a piece of emerald jade.
He decided to turn it into a bracelet for his mom.
As for his dad?
Qi Lin thought long and hard, but couldn't come up with anything meaningful.
So at the market outside the forest, he bought a piece of thousand-year whale jelly.
People hadn't discovered its true value yet—it was mostly used as an aphrodisiac.
Qi Lin didn't have anything better to offer to his dad so… whale jelly it was.
When they got home, Qi Tian and his wife were a bit disappointed that their son had only gotten a "ten-year" soul ring, but they didn't blame Su Yuntao or Si Si.
Besides, both of them explained that even though the ring was only ten years, its soul skills were better than those from a thousand-year soul ring. So really, it was a blessing in disguise.
Even so, Su Yuntao and Si Si still felt a little guilty. To make up for it, they offered to take Xiao Wu to the forest next.
But surprise!
Just a few days later, Xiao Wu came back with her own soul ring.
And it was a hundred-year ring!
Turns out, she'd been out playing when she stumbled across a hundred-year Soft Bone Rabbit being hunted by its natural predator. It was already half-dead when she found it.
So she gave it a finishing blow and claimed the ring.
It was such a bizarre coincidence that no one quite knew what to say.
Still, compared to Qi Lin's absurd streak of luck, it was nothing.
So Qi Tian and his wife weren't suspicious at all. Even Su Yuntao and Si Si just chalked it up to Xiao Wu's good fortune.