The more Zhu Ziyang thought about it, the more ridiculous it seemed.
Not just Blue Silver Grass Soul Masters—even Soft-Bone Rabbit Soul Masters weren't any better. Both types were equally clueless.
If Jiang Nannan hadn't had Zhu Ziyang, she likely would have followed the traditional path of Soft-Bone Rabbit Soul Masters. After all, the soul beasts used for the first five rings of this martial soul were no secret in the Soul Master world.
"Nannan, do you know what kind of development path suits your Soft-Bone Rabbit martial soul?" Zhu Ziyang asked.
"Hmm, my martial soul is a rabbit. Rabbits are fast and jump high, so I think it suits the agility-attack type," Jiang Nannan replied after a bit of thought. She had learned the term "agility-attack type" from Zhu Ziyang.
"Exactly," Zhu Ziyang nodded. Indeed, geniuses really were different. At just six years old, Jiang Nannan had more insight than many Soft-Bone Rabbit Soul Masters in history.
But just identifying the soul master path wasn't enough, he thought to himself.
If a soul master wanted to go far, they had to define a target and a clear evolution path for their martial soul.
The Soft-Bone Rabbit was a pure rabbit-type martial soul, without any beastly bloodline. That meant it could only evolve into higher-level rabbit types. It also lacked elemental attributes, so it couldn't absorb element-based soul rings.
Looking at it that way, this martial soul was truly plain.
Choosing soul rings for such an ordinary martial soul was challenging. Luckily, Zhu Ziyang was no ordinary person. He had already planned Jiang Nannan's martial soul evolution path.
In a 20,000-year-old book, Zhu Ziyang had read about a soul beast called the Jade Rabbit. This was said to be a super soul beast—the ruler of the moon, possessing the power to control lunar energy and move faster than light and shadow. It was the only super soul beast among rabbit-types, the ancestor of all rabbit soul beasts, and their ultimate evolution goal.
Unfortunately, the Jade Rabbit had gone extinct on the continent, and no soul master had ever awakened a Jade Rabbit martial soul.
Currently, rabbit-type soul beasts on the continent were mostly ordinary animals. The only one barely qualifying as a high-level soul beast was the Moonshadow Rabbit—which is exactly what Zhu Ziyang chose as Jiang Nannan's first soul ring.
In Zhu Ziyang's plan, Jiang Nannan would first absorb a Moonshadow Rabbit soul ring to awaken the moon bloodline in her Soft-Bone Rabbit martial soul. She would then gradually absorb other moon-blooded soul beasts to strengthen this bloodline, eventually evolving her martial soul into the legendary Jade Rabbit.
It was a long and ambitious plan, but one that matched both their interests. Even if she couldn't reach the Jade Rabbit level, her achievements would still be extraordinary.
Zhu Ziyang shared his idea with Jiang Nannan.
"I'll follow your lead, big brother. I believe in you!" Jiang Nannan responded without hesitation.
"Good. Then we'll set off tomorrow," Zhu Ziyang said, clearly pleased. Nothing made a man happier than a beauty's trust. "There are Moonshadow Rabbits in the northern mountains. We won't need to go too far."
"Mhm!" Jiang Nannan smiled, her large eyes forming crescent moons.
The Moonshadow Rabbit was a rabbit-type soul beast known for its incredible speed and large size. Agile and mostly active at night, it was a favorite prey of the top-tier predator, the Cangyu Ghost Eagle. That's right—prey. Moonshadow Rabbit meat was exceptionally tender and energy-rich. Not only the Cangyu Ghost Eagle but also other large bird-type soul beasts hunted them. They were essentially hunted because of their value.
Of course, the Moonshadow Rabbit wasn't helpless. It could absorb moonlight to enter a phantom-like state, boosting its speed and jumping power for quick escapes. Millennia-old Moonshadow Rabbits could even awaken a soul skill called Phantom, said to be very powerful.
Zhu Ziyang was drawn to their moonlight acceleration ability. If Jiang Nannan could awaken her moon bloodline and gain a skill like Phantom at the same time, it would be a massive win. That's why he decided the Moonshadow Rabbit would be her first soul ring target.
The outer regions of the northern mountains had fewer large predators, so many Moonshadow Rabbits lived there—mostly decade-old soul beasts, but some century-old ones too. Surely, one would suit Jiang Nannan.
The next day.
The two of them asked their teacher for leave. When the teacher learned they were going out to hunt for a soul ring, he agreed without hesitation. He knew Zhu Ziyang and was aware that his parents were Zhu Changhe and Liang Ying, so he didn't bother suggesting academy supervision.
As Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan headed toward Beihe Village, they ran into Zhu Changhe and Hong Zhen.
"Huh? Xiaoyang? Why aren't you in class? What are you doing out here?" Hong Zhen was surprised to see them.
"Dad, Uncle Hong!" Zhu Ziyang greeted them politely before explaining, "Nannan just reached level 10. I wanted to ask Dad to help us hunt for her soul ring."
"What?" Both Zhu Changhe and Hong Zhen turned to look at Jiang Nannan in shock. She nodded shyly.
"Amazing. Another genius!" Hong Zhen muttered, smiling with an expression of admiration. Then he said to Zhu Changhe, "Well, old brother, I'll leave the task of helping your future daughter-in-law to you! I'm heading back."
It was half a joke—Hong Zhen was very close with the Zhu family. Ever since Zhu Ziyang awakened his martial soul, their relationship had grown even stronger. He knew how close Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan were and was happy to see two young talents bonding.
Jiang Nannan blushed.
"Alright. Goodbye, Brother Hong," Zhu Changhe nodded without comment.
"Goodbye, Uncle Hong!" Zhu Ziyang called, and Jiang Nannan joined him.
After Hong Zhen left, Zhu Changhe turned to his son.
"So, you've already planned everything out? Tell me now—if the location's far, we should go home to pack some food and gear."
"It's not far—just in the outer regions of the northern mountains," Zhu Ziyang said. "We'll find one easily. No need to go back, and I've already prepared the food."
He raised his hand and showed a jade bracelet on his wrist—an interspatial soul tool with a cubic meter of space inside, perfect for storing food, books, and supplies.
"Oh? So well-prepared. What kind of soul beast is it?" Zhu Changhe asked, clearly interested.
"Moonshadow Rabbit," Zhu Ziyang replied.
"Huh?" Zhu Changhe looked surprised and puzzled. "I thought Nannan's martial soul was the Soft-Bone Rabbit? Isn't the first soul ring usually a Soft Mist Snake?"
"That's the wrong path. The soul ring I picked for Nannan is the right one," Zhu Ziyang said arrogantly. His smug look made Zhu Changhe want to smack him—this brat clearly ignored all his fatherly advice!
"Fine then! Let's go." Zhu Changhe held back his frustration and agreed.
And so, the three of them set off toward the northern mountains.