Chapter 538 - 536: The Plan

"The Young Master of the Lin Family..." Bu Lingyu looked stunned. He hadn’t expected the news to be so shocking.

"Father, you don’t pay much attention to the affairs of those Little Empires, so of course you wouldn’t know. I’ve been keeping an eye on news about the Lin Family for years, especially this recent business with Mu Shuang. After all, he’s the number one genius of the Empire. I had to investigate him thoroughly and see if his background was clean!"

Bu Qianfan’s gaze turned cold. "If he isn’t clean, we absolutely cannot let it slide..." His eyes were frigid. The situation was tense; every family had spies infiltrating their ranks, so they couldn’t afford to be lax for even a moment.

Especially with the Empire’s top genius. If they invested heavily in nurturing him only to discover he was a spy planted by another family, wouldn’t they just cough up blood from fury?

Bu Qianfan had considered this and had already sent people to investigate. In the end, they found that his background was clean and there were no issues.

"Although they erased all traces, some information still leaked out. A super genius once appeared in the Soaring Dragon Empire but was later killed by the previous Great Emperor. I don’t think that’s impossible, but for another super genius to appear right after... isn’t the Soaring Dragon Empire a bit too fortunate?"

Bu Qianfan smiled faintly. "So, I speculate that this person is actually the genius from the Soaring Dragon Empire, Lin Xuan! Not Mu Shuang... Besides, the name itself holds a deeper meaning. Mu Shuang... ’Shuang’ means double, and ’Mu’ is a homophone for wood. The character for ’Lin’ happens to be composed of two ’wood’ characters."

Bu Qianfan was meticulous and had pieced it all together. He wasn’t like the young masters of other families—useless gluttons, the lot of them. He was always cautious when handling Bu Family affairs, especially matters like this. He always got to the bottom of things!

Of course, Lin Xuan never believed his cover was perfect. ’There are bound to be holes, but even if there are, I’m not worried. I know the Bu Family holds a grudge against the Yan and Su Families. They’re unlikely to hand me over unless the Yan Family discovers my identity themselves.’

’Besides, they clearly don’t have any hostile intentions toward me right now. If they did, why would they let me enter the Spiritual Source Pool?’

"I see. I really hadn’t considered that," Bu Lingyu said with a laugh. "It seems your investigation was quite thorough. Otherwise, we would have been completely fooled by that boy."

"It’s not that you didn’t consider it, Father. It’s just that you have so many major affairs to manage. Let me handle these trivial matters for you," Bu Qianfan said with a faint smile. "If he really is Lin Xuan, the Young Master of the Lin Family, then everything makes sense. He’s destined to become a super genius! Of course, he’s already demonstrating it. So what if he has a Seventh-class Talent? So what if he has a Moderate Constitution? As his bloodline awakens, he could even reach the level of Great Perfection!"

"Great Perfection!" Bu Lingyu’s breath hitched. That was a truly shocking prospect. Among all the Super Races, none had ever heard of a talent reaching Great Perfection.

No one from the Lin Family had ever achieved it either, but Bu Qianfan deduced that it was very possible for Lin Xuan.

"Then, Qianfan, what are your thoughts?" Bu Lingyu didn’t state his own opinion, instead asking Bu Qianfan to voice his.

Bu Qianfan was the future heir of the Bu Family, so he wanted to hear his son’s plan.

"We need to build a good relationship with Lin Xuan. We’ll see just how much his potential can explode, and we’ll even help him find the remnants of the Lin Family..." Bu Qianfan narrowed his eyes, which shone with wisdom. "The Lin Family still has many powerful experts. If they were to join forces with our Bu Family, we could topple the Yan Family!"

"The Yan and Su Families are getting more and more ambitious. They want to swallow this entire continent and become its sole Overlord!" Bu Qianfan knew their ambition. Rather than being constrained by a balance of power, they wanted to be the ones on top.

Ultimately, the Bu Family had long sensed the looming crisis. The Lin Family had already been toppled. They estimated that it wouldn’t be long before a family like theirs could meet the same fate. Therefore, they had to be prepared and be extremely cautious about anyone who joined their ranks!

They constantly recruited powerful cultivators to solidify their position. Without new blood, the Bu Family would have been wiped out long ago.

"Qianfan, it seems you’ve thought this through very deeply..." Bu Lingyu’s eyes filled with relief. "Then I’ll leave it all to you. I won’t interfere in the slightest!"

"Now, let’s see if he’s a dragon or a worm. The Young Master of the Lin Family... is he a mighty dragon or a lowly worm?" Bu Qianfan said with a faint smile. "If he’s a worm, we can still befriend him, but he’ll never be able to keep up with us. We could only rely on the strength of his backers. But if he’s a dragon, then forging an alliance is a must!"

There are no eternal friends, only eternal interests. The relationship between the Lin and Bu Families wasn’t bad; in fact, the Lin Family had even looked out for the Bu Family in the past, so they were on fairly good terms.

"Then how long do you think he can last in there?" Bu Lingyu asked in a low voice.

"Ten days. If he lasts longer than that, he’s a dragon. Any less, and he’s just a worm," Bu Qianfan said with a faint smile.

As they were speaking, the surrounding Bu Family disciples were also discussing how long Mu Shuang could last inside the Spiritual Source Pool.

"This Mu Shuang will probably only last six days!"

"Six days? I bet he’ll only make it five!"

"No way. He took first place in the Imperial War. Even at his worst, he should be able to last more than six days in the Spiritual Source Pool, right?"

"More than six days? Our Young Master can only stay in the Spiritual Source Pool for eleven days. Don’t you think expecting six days out of him is already a lot?"

...

Bu Qianfan’s own limit in the Spiritual Source Pool was eleven days, which was why he had set the benchmark for Lin Xuan at ten days to be considered a dragon.

Surviving ten days was incredibly difficult. The main reason was that the Elemental Power within the pool was simply too dense. If one’s body couldn’t absorb it fast enough, it would be torn apart from the inside. It wasn’t that people didn’t want to absorb the energy; it was that their bodies would literally burst!

While the crowd was buzzing with discussion, Lin Xuan, who had just jumped into the Spiritual Source Pool, was instantly enveloped by a thick tide of Elemental Power. It wrapped around him completely, simultaneously rushing into his body. He didn’t even need to try to absorb it; the Elemental Power surged into him like a flood that had found a release, pouring into his system with frenzied intensity.

The Elemental Power that flooded in was exceptionally pure and free of any resistance, instantly causing his meridians to swell.

’What incredibly pure Elemental Power! It can strengthen not only my body but my meridians as well... This Spiritual Source Pool is an excellent Cultivation Site. I must use this opportunity to thoroughly temper myself!’

A glint flashed in Lin Xuan’s eyes. He closed them and immediately immersed himself in the process of absorption.

At the same time, he activated the Soul Pearl within him, allowing the soul of the Martial God to possess him in an instant. The control of a Void Spirit Level cultivator was immediately apparent as he brought the frenzied influx of Elemental Power completely under his command. He could decide exactly how much entered his body. The rest was blocked outside, held back by an unbreakable, rock-solid barrier!