Douluo Continent: Little Huo Niang Taken Away by Di Tian

"Not just any Tom, Dick, or Harry is qualified to join my sect," he suddenly said, his voice not loud, but it silenced the entire branch.

"The Scorpion Tiger Offering is right." The branch manager was taken aback, then smiled ingratiatingly, "Then... let's start with Yu Fang, go up on stage and introduce yourselves!"

A trembling young man was pushed onto the stage, his voice barely audible: "Yu Fang... twenty years old... Martial Soul Iron Sword, Level 27 Soul Master..."

Then there was Li Fan, that burly man with a crazed expression, whose eyes were shining as he introduced himself.

Finally, it was Nana's turn.

She walked slowly onto the stage, her figure thin and her face pale, but her back ramrod straight. Her head was bowed, and her voice was eerily calm:

"Nana... eighteen years old. Martial Soul: Ghost. Level 52... Soul King."

A level 52 Soul King?!

Zhang Peng's pupils contracted slightly. An eighteen-year-old Soul King—that's top-tier genius in any academy!

Moreover, the martial soul is "ghost," which is inherently yin in nature. If it is brainwashed and transformed by the Holy Spirit Cult, it can evolve into a true evil soul master with a little guidance!

More importantly—she's only eighteen and hasn't been completely corrupted yet.

Zhang Peng's mind raced.

We must hold them off. As long as we can hold them off until the hunt begins and the main force of the Holy Spirit Cult leaves, these branches will fall apart. We can save as many as we can then.

As for the people in front of him... it's not that he doesn't want to save them, but with his current abilities, he'd be lucky to protect even one of them.

The path of infiltration is fraught with danger at every turn; your own life is the most important thing, and you can't bite off more than you can chew.

He slowly stood up, extended a finger, and pointed at the girl on the stage.

"You, come out."

Nana froze, slowly raised her head, and met Zhang Peng's unfathomable eyes.

"You have considerable talent." Zhang Peng's voice echoed in the hall, carrying an undeniable authority. "From now on, you will be my disciple."

The entire audience erupted in uproar.

The branch manager paused for a moment, then put on a smile: "Congratulations, Scorpion Tiger! You've acquired a promising talent!"

"Then, Nana, you're the first person to be baptized!" The branch manager rubbed his hands excitedly.

"Wait a minute." Zhang Peng raised his hand to stop him. "You just obtained a soul from the Spirit Pagoda, didn't you?"

Nana paused, then nodded subconsciously: "...Yes."

"Do you know," Zhang Peng's gaze swept across the entire room, his tone turning somber, "how many pillars of our Holy Spirit Sect have we lost over the years in our quest for spirit rings? The Spirit Pagoda's spirit system has already blocked our path. Now that she already has a spirit ring, the Spirit Pagoda could potentially provide her with a second one. If she formally joins our sect, we'll inevitably have to poach in the Star Dou Great Forest to gather another spirit ring for her—and how many more brothers will be lost in vain if we're not careful?"

He paused, then spoke with a firm and resolute tone:

"How can I let my brothers risk their lives for my newly accepted disciple? This matter—we'll discuss it later."

The branch manager opened his mouth, seemingly wanting to refute, but under Zhang Peng's icy gaze, he ultimately lowered his head: "Scorpion Tiger Offering...you make sense. Then let's leave it at that for today."

Zhang Peng sat down again, letting out a long sigh of relief.

It's been saved for now.

After the gathering ended, the crowd gradually dispersed.

As Zhang Peng walked off the stage and passed by Nana, he didn't stop, only leaving behind a whispered message:

"Come with me."

"Yes……"

Nana followed behind him with her head down, her hands gripping her sleeves tightly, her nails almost digging into her flesh.

She was scared.

In her mind, Zhang Peng was an utterly wicked evil spirit master who wanted to take her as his disciple.

What...what does he want to do?

A terrible thought flashed through Nana's mind.

She is eighteen years old this year, in the prime of her life, while Zhang Peng, although older, is no less abnormal among evil spirit masters.

Dad, Mom... if... if it really comes to that...

Nana quietly reached for the dagger she had been hiding in her bosom.

I'll come and keep you company.

She gritted her teeth and followed Zhang Peng through the dark corridor to the training ground deep inside the branch.

In the empty space, the Soul Power Lamp cast a pale white light.

Zhang Peng turned around and looked at the girl standing trembling at the door.

"Let me see what you're capable of," he said calmly.

"...P-please tell me, what does Your Majesty the Scorpion Tiger want me to do?" Nana was stunned, her voice trembling. She thought she would be taken to some dark room, not the training ground.

"Now that I've accepted you as my disciple, I will naturally guide your cultivation. Martial Soul Possession, come on." Zhang Peng waved his hand impatiently. "Hurry up, don't waste time."

Nana was stunned.

It took her a full three seconds to snap out of it, and her eyes instantly welled up with tears.

With trembling hands, she activated her martial spirit.

A pale blue spirit emerged from her body, emanating a faint chill under the light. A fluctuation of level 52 soul power spread throughout the training ground.

Zhang Peng stood with his hands behind his back, a barely perceptible hint of gentleness flashing in his eyes.

"Use all your soul skills at once, let me see your true strength."

"Yes, sir!"

Nana took a deep breath, and finally, for the first time, a faint glimmer of light appeared in this hellish place.

As Zhang Peng watched the girl desperately unleashing her soul skills, he silently thought to himself:

Child, you must survive first. Master will figure out the rest.

After the battle ended, Nana put away her martial spirit and stood there in a daze.

Sweat streamed down her face, but she didn't bother wiping it away. She just stared wide-eyed at the evil spirit master in front of her.

During the "sparring" just now, Zhang Peng did not use any evil soul master techniques. There was no devouring, no curses, only extremely precise guidance. He pointed out the soul power gap when she released her third soul skill and corrected the angle deviation of her ghost clone...

Is Zhang Peng really guiding her in her cultivation?

In this place filled with bloodshed, twistedness, and madness, at the moment when she thought she was about to fall into hell, someone, a demonic spirit master, was earnestly teaching her to become stronger.

"From now on, you will stay in the branch to cultivate," Zhang Peng said. "Every afternoon at three-quarters past three, I will personally guide you here."

"..." Nana opened her mouth, as if to say something, but ultimately bowed deeply, "Thank you for your guidance, Your Majesty!"

She paused, as if making a decision, and looked up with a pleading look in her eyes: "However... Your Majesty, I am actually still a student at the Mingdu Soul Master Academy. I... I want to go back and complete the withdrawal procedures so that I can serve Your Majesty wholeheartedly from now on."

"Drop out?" Zhang Peng raised an eyebrow, as if he had heard a joke. "No need for that kind of trouble."

He waved his hand, his tone casual yet meaningful: "You can continue to attend Mingdu Soul Master Academy as usual, and just report to the branch office during your weekly holidays."

Mingdu Soul Master Academy...

Zhang Peng sneered inwardly. Sure enough, the Holy Spirit Cult had already deeply penetrated the lifeblood of the Sun Moon Empire.

Nana's talent is so outstanding that she must have come from a wealthy and noble family, yet she was forced to join the Holy Spirit Cult, which shows how deeply this malignant tumor has infiltrated.

"Oh, right," Zhang Peng said, as if suddenly remembering something, his gaze falling on Nana's face, "there's a name you should have heard of, the young master of the Spirit Pagoda, Huo Yutong. Didn't she come to the Sun Moon Empire to study?"

Nana was taken aback, not expecting Zhang Peng to suddenly ask about this, and quickly replied, "Yes! I even participated in the exchange match between Mingdu Soul Master Academy and Shrek Academy a few days ago."

"Very good." Zhang Peng nodded.