Chapter 217: Is the Owner of the Tombstone Really Shameless?
Above the tombstone, Qin Bei unleashed a massive wave of soul power, probing into the tombstone.
According to Qin Bei’s speculation, as soon as his soul power entered, a soul mark would appear, inscribed with the greatest magical abilities or techniques the owner of the tombstone had mastered throughout his life.
All he needed to do was exchange the number of insights from the system to learn this magical ability at breakneck speed, snag the soul bead, and get out.
Perfect.
At least that’s how it had always been from the outside, but this time, an unexpected hiccup occurred.
Upon exploring with his soul power, not only did Qin Bei fail to detect the so-called soul mark, but there was also nothing else resonating.
Qin Bei was left feeling helpless, thinking that maybe this tombstone really had nothing to offer; it was impossible to acquire the soul bead.
With that thought, he prepared to withdraw his soul power.
Just then, an invisible force quietly manifested.
Suddenly, the soul power he was about to retract started uncontrollably drifting in another direction.
What the—?!!
Qin Bei was astonished; he had felt this strange pull twice before.
However, since he hadn’t exerted a lot of soul power earlier, the sensation wasn’t very pronounced.
This time, he distinctly felt something forcibly yanking his soul power toward an unknown destination.
A few seconds later, Qin Bei could no longer sense the presence of this soul power.
In other words, his soul power had completely vanished from this realm.
Once or twice, Qin Bei could tolerate it.
After all, being new here, he didn’t know if any unwritten rules were in play.
But this was the third time, and he had used the most soul power yet!
He came up empty-handed while losing a bit of soul power in the process.
For someone like Qin Bei, who was all about taking and never giving—this felt like the ultimate provocation!
So, after facing this situation, Qin Bei had only one thought.
That was to reclaim all the soul power he’d lost!
“I warn you! Don’t think I can’t see you hiding in there, sucking away my soul power! Just because you’re using some shady trick to keep me from knowing your location doesn’t mean you can recklessly absorb my soul power!”
Qin Bei pointed accusingly at the towering tombstone, shouting loudly.
If the previous two experiences didn’t evoke a strong feeling, he couldn’t say why.
But this time, the sensation was unmistakably strong. Although he didn’t know what method was being used to forcibly drag his soul power away,
Qin Bei could clearly perceive that familiar feeling akin to a raindrop merging into the ocean just before his soul power disappeared.
He was far too familiar with this sensation, as it mirrored the experience of absorbing the soul power from the soul bead before.
Only the roles had flipped.
When absorbing from the soul bead, he was the ocean.
But just now—he felt like a raindrop dissolving into another’s sea of souls.
So, Qin Bei could firmly conclude that his soul power hadn’t vanished into thin air; it had been absorbed by the owner of this tombstone.
He had long heard that the souls drifting in the inner circle had their own consciousness, and now, Qin Bei had seen it firsthand.
It wasn’t merely conscious; it was practically full-on rogue behavior!
The soul power he willingly sent over was absorbed without even a “thank you.”
If he didn’t strike back, one might think Qin Bei had come here to make offerings!
Mu Zhaoxue and her companions watched Qin Bei, puzzled.
Having never experienced it firsthand, they had no idea what Qin Bei was truly up to.
But one thing was for sure—they knew that Qin Bei was infuriated.
As for the consequences… Ling Tianyi had already affirmed that Qin Bei was indeed very angry, and who knows what could come next.
So, given the situation, Mu Zhaoxue and Ji Zhuyue decided they’d just sit back and enjoy the show.
Neither dared to predict what outlandish events might unfold next.
As for trying to calm Qin Bei down, Mu Zhaoxue and Ji Zhuyue felt that whoever wanted to take on that unlucky task could have at it.
The two of them were fully supportive of their husband’s rage.
……
Inside the Imperial Palace.
The Ninth Prince gazed at the nearly frantic Qin Bei, his mind a swirl of questions.
He understood how to obtain soul beads in the inner circle.
There were only two methods.
The first was to offer one’s soul power as a sacrifice to the owner of the tombstone upon encountering the tombstone. The owner was essentially waiting for such offerings beneath the tomb. As long as they were satisfied, they’d grant the soul beads to the ones who sacrificed.
This was the predicament Qin Bei now faced.
The owner beneath the tomb assumed Qin Bei had come to sacrifice for soul beads, unhesitatingly siphoning off the soul power he had used for probing.
However, there’s a catch with these soul beads—they can only serve as a pass to enter the core area of the imperial mausoleum, and they contain no actual soul power.
You could say these soul beads were even less useful than the first-level ones obtained in the outer regions of the mausoleum—at least for Qin Bei.
Now, the second method was a different story.
The second method involved obtaining soul beads from the leaders of each area. There are four leaders across four regions; obtaining soul beads from them guarantees a hefty amount of soul power.
For Qin Bei, these would be the ultimate soul beads.
Far better than any obtained in the outer regions—by thousands, even millions of times!
However, these soul beads were exclusively held by the leaders of the four major regions and were quite rare.
Thus, trying to acquire them from their hands posed quite the challenge.
In the region where Qin Bei currently found himself—the Demon Domain—
the leader was known as the Great Demon.
For the royal family, this Great Demon was the easiest source to snag soul beads from.
Hence, the Ninth Prince had previously made that bet.
…
So, witnessing Qin Bei’s furious demeanor, the Ninth Prince found himself puzzled.
What on earth could make Qin Bei so angry?
Was it because the owner of the tombstone was being ungrateful?
Curious, the Ninth Prince turned to Emperor Xia, who sat at the head, and inquired:
“Your Majesty, is the owner of this tombstone really that shameless? Looking at Qin Bei’s fury, he must have lost a significant amount of soul power. Why hasn’t the owner surrendered the soul beads? Is he being overly greedy? It seems his subordinates are just as unprincipled as the Great Demon himself!”
Seeing the Ninth Prince’s inquiry, the others around also became intrigued.
They too couldn’t glean how much soul power Qin Bei had sacrificed from the videos.
It wasn’t that their cultivation didn’t suffice, but because the royal family had provided these recordings.
Emperor Xia clearly didn’t want them to fully access the inside details.
Just as they had been curious before about the strength of Qin Bei’s soul power, they found themselves unable to see it.
The only individuals present who were in the know were Emperor Xia and his close confidants.
As for the Ninth Prince, he could have known—but, with his level of cultivation…
Ying, who had been silently seated, couldn’t help casting a glance at Emperor Xia after hearing the Ninth Prince’s question.
Awkward!
Truly embarrassing!
……
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