The Secret of Martial Souls and the Bilin Seven Absolute Flower (Part 1)

The Secret of Martial Souls and the Bilin Seven Absolute Flower (Part 1)

The Chen Family lived in Chen Mansion, a place built several hundred years ago when Biluo City had just been founded and the Chen Family head became its City Lord. Though located in the heart of the city, it still covered a considerable area—nearly a hundred mu. It was roughly the size of seven or eight large football fields from Chen Ming's previous life. A full third of the city center could be said to belong to the Chen Family.

Chen Mansion had originally been the product of a former family head abusing his authority for personal gain. However, because the Chen Family had too few members, they simply could not manage such a vast estate, and all sorts of problems easily arose. Later family heads had no choice but to gradually alter the buildings, divide the grounds into streets, and lease them out. Even so, the land remaining to the Chen Family was still far too large for the number of clansmen they had, enough even to build several different simulated training grounds.

Moreover, after several centuries of operation, the remaining areas had undergone dozens of rounds of reinforcement and maintenance. Rather than a mansion, the entire Chen Mansion was more like a fortified stronghold standing within the city—easy to defend and hard to attack, with even a small marketplace inside.

There were over a thousand women, children, and servants combined. Spears, sabers, swords, bows, crossbows, and armor were stored within, while winding underground passages led to various places both inside and outside the city. It had its own water source independent of the city, small fields cultivated by the family, granaries stocked with large amounts of grain and fodder, as well as poultry and warhorses.

Any City Lord of Biluo City who saw the Chen Family would get a headache. Most passing outsiders even assumed the Chen Family was a city within the city. This was one of the key reasons every faction wanted to take a bite out of the Chen Family, yet none dared open their mouths.

This was only possible in a remote and dangerous place like Biluo City. In any other major city, without a major figure such as a Titled Douluo, the Chen Family would have long since been raided and exterminated for doing this.

Chen Ming's second uncle carried him as he followed Chen Ming's grandfather through the twisting paths of Chen Mansion. After passing several mechanisms and hidden doors, they arrived at a secret chamber beneath the Chen Family estate. Several rows of tables and chairs made from dark, gloomy wood stood inside, clearly a place where the Chen Family had once held confidential discussions.

A row of oil lamps hung on the walls of the secret chamber. They had been made by the Chen Family's ancestors using the fat of deep-sea whale-type soul beasts. They burned without smoke or odor, and a small amount of lamp oil could last for a long time. Over the centuries, the Chen Family had barely needed to replenish their supply. When Chen Ming was little, he had thought the lamps burned Whale Rubber and had felt heartbroken over it for quite some time. Later, he learned they were not the same thing at all.

After lighting every oil lamp, Chen Ming's grandfather, Chen Shijie, sat at the head of the secret chamber, then gestured for his second son, Chen Tianyun, and Chen Ming to sit on either side of him.

Just as Chen Ming habitually moved to sit on his grandfather's right, his second uncle, Chen Tianyun, reached out to stop him. He placed Chen Ming in the seat to Chen Shijie's left, then took the right-hand seat himself.

Although Douluo Continent lacked many of the historical allusions from Chen Ming's previous world, it unexpectedly shared much in common with it. For instance, in this world, the left side was also considered the place of honor. Given Chen Ming's status and seniority, he could normally sit on the right only because no one else competed with him for it. He had never had any right to sit on the left.

Seeing his second son's actions, Chen Shijie was somewhat puzzled, though he also had some guesses. He did not stop Chen Tianyun. Instead, he nodded slightly and allowed Chen Ming to sit.

"Father, Xiao Ming's Martial Soul awakening today went very... smoothly!"

"He awakened a Jade Scorpion with Innate Soul Power at rank five."

Chen Tianyun did not mention any irrelevant details and went straight to the crux of the matter. Upon hearing that Chen Ming had awakened with rank-five Innate Soul Power, Chen Shijie froze for a moment before his expression turned to wild delight.

"Rank five Innate Soul Power? Our family actually has a chance to turn things around?"

"What do you mean, turn things around? Rank-five Innate Soul Power... isn't especially high, is it?" Chen Ming could not understand why his grandfather was so excited.

The Chen Family's Innate Soul Power level was certainly a problem, but it was not as though he had Innate Full Soul Power. Was there really any need to be this excited?

"Xiao Ming, you don't understand. What you have seen and learned is only the surface. There are things about the Chen Family's problem that you have never known."

Chen Shijie waved his hand, and his previously excited expression grew somewhat dejected.

"Normally, we would only consider telling this secret once a family member came of age. But you were born intelligent, and you possess rank-five Innate Soul Power, so we must tell you about the family's problem now."

"You should know that our Chen Family originally rose to nobility through military merit, correct?"

"Our ancestor, Chen Ergou, was a child born into an ordinary family. By a stroke of luck, he awakened the mutated Jade Scorpion Martial Soul and possessed Innate Soul Power as high as rank seven."

"At that time, a regional war broke out between the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire. After becoming a Soul Elder, the Chen Family's ancestor, Chen Er, chose to join the army for training. Twenty years later, the war ended. Our ancestor had become a Soul King in the military, and because he had accumulated enormous merit, he was granted the hereditary title of count."

"This is what everyone in the family knows, but there are actually things hidden behind it that no one else knows."

"After the war ended, because he had saved several important people on the battlefield, our ancestor was fortunate enough to enter the royal treasury during the rewards ceremony. He was permitted to choose some treasures that normally would never appear in the outside world."

"During that selection, our ancestor discovered a treasure that was comparable to a Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone for Poison System Soul Masters... perhaps even more valuable."

"What treasure?" At the mention of a treasure, Chen Ming's eyes immediately lit up, and he could not help asking.

"It was a seed of the Bilin Seven Absolute Flower." Seemingly afraid Chen Ming did not know what the Bilin Seven Absolute Flower was, Chen Shijie stroked his beard before explaining.

"The Bilin Seven Absolute Flower is an exceptionally potent poison, as well as an exceedingly rare plant-type soul beast. Among plants, none possess venom more ferocious than it. Among beast-type soul beasts, only a small number of legendary soul beasts should be able to surpass it."

"This plant is extraordinarily precious. Its status among ordinary soul beasts is comparable to that of the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear, perhaps even slightly higher."

"Its deadly venom can easily corrode gold and iron and dissolve soul beasts. It surpasses the Bilin Five Poisons by an unknown margin."

"Although our inherited Jade Scorpion is a beast-type Martial Soul and is not perfectly compatible with the Bilin Seven Absolute Flower, the quality of this soul beast is simply too high. Even at a discount, ordinary soul beasts could never catch up to it. Once it can be absorbed, even a Soul Ring that has only just surpassed a hundred years in age would be more effective than ninety-nine percent of Thousand Year Soul Rings. If we can obtain the deadly venom of the Bilin Seven Absolute Flower, the quality of the Jade Scorpion Martial Soul may even reach the level of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan."