Martial Soul Awakening

Winter passed and spring returned, the seasons turned, and in the blink of an eye, six years vanished in an instant.

Located in the center of Mingdu, the Imperial City, the golden glazed tiles shone with a dazzling radiance under the sunlight.

Looking from afar, the renovated Imperial Palace appeared even more magnificent and solemn than before. The ten-meter-high red walls were carved with beautiful patterns, and the pointed roofs displayed the classic style of ancient Chinese palace architecture.

Deep within the palace, a usually remote and quiet hall was quite lively and noisy today, for this was the day for the unified Martial Soul awakening, and this was the specific hall designated for such ceremonies.

Xu Lanqing stood quietly to the side, followed by two guards shrouded in bright armor.

Although he was only six years old, his appearance perfectly inherited the superior genes from his mother and father. A head of ink-black hair fell to his shoulders, his handsome face reflected the morning glow, and his skin was fair and supple—enough to make most women jealous and make anyone want to reach out and pinch his cheeks.

Unlike Xu Lanqing, who came alone, almost all the other children were accompanied by their fathers or mothers. After all, Martial Soul awakening was a major event concerning their child's future; no parent could be indifferent. Even though their presence didn't change the outcome—what would awaken would awaken regardless—the desire for one's child to succeed was a universal sentiment among parents everywhere.

On the other side of the hall, a group of children were clustered together, playing and laughing. From their positioning, it was clear that the leader was a somewhat handsome little girl, the youngest daughter of the current Emperor and Xu Lanqing's half-sister, Xu Tianzhen.

Xu Tianzhen wandered around with her group of followers, looking every bit the little boss. Her eyes darted over, and upon spotting Xu Lanqing standing to the side, she walked straight toward him.

"Xu Lanqing, why are you here all by yourself? Come and play with me."

Xu Tianzhen puffed out her chest, her childish voice ringing out.

Xu Lanqing looked at her and smiled. Her short, black hair fluttered softly, making her look even more like a boy than he did.

"I am older than you; you should call me Imperial Brother."

Xu Tianzhen paused for a moment, then raised her small, fair fist and pouted, "I don't care. Let's have a fight; whoever wins is the oldest."

"You want to fight that badly? Aren't you afraid of getting a spanking from your mother again?" Xu Lanqing said, gesturing with his chin toward a beautiful woman in palace attire not far behind her.

Xu Tianzhen immediately wilted like a frosted eggplant. She was pampered in the palace, but she feared her mother most of all. Every time she came home after a fight, she would be lectured, though she always forgot the pain once the wound healed.

Xu Tianzhen rolled her eyes, thought for a moment, and said confidently, "Fine, we'll fight after we get our Soul Rings. There's no point in fighting now. Just wait until you have to call me sister!"

"Fine, whatever you say," Xu Lanqing shrugged, giving a perfunctory reply.

"Alright, since everyone is here, let the children come in for their Martial Soul awakening. Everyone else, wait outside in peace."

A voice imbued with soul power echoed throughout the area, and the scene instantly fell silent. Everyone looked toward the entrance of the hall.

An elderly figure appeared there out of nowhere, standing tall with a head of white hair combed meticulously. This was the person in charge of the awakening, an elder of the Imperial clan.

All the children quickly lined up and followed the elder into the hall in an orderly fashion.

Xu Lanqing was the last to enter. He looked around; the hall was extremely clean and simple, without any decorations. Only the awakening array was placed in the center, and the four stone walls were covered in murals. He took a glance and saw they depicted the important history of the Sun Moon Empire.

Having been in this world for six years, he had learned all the basic knowledge he could under the tutelage of the royal family.

"Ready. Who wants to go first?"

The elder finished setting up the array and asked with a kind, smiling face.

"I'll go first!"

Xu Tianzhen stepped forward without hesitation and walked impatiently into the array.

"Close your eyes, focus your mind, don't be nervous, and follow the call from within your heart."

The elder instructed her, raising his right hand. Two yellow, two purple, and four black soul rings emerged, and a ball of orange-red light rose slowly—it was the inherited Martial Soul of the Sun Moon Empire, the Sun.

The Sun Martial Soul, supreme in its rigidity and yang energy, was a top-tier Martial Soul on the continent. Even if it wasn't the Ultimate Fire, it was not far off. It was by relying on this that the Sun Moon royal family had stood firm on the continent, never falling to dynastic changes.

Xu Lanqing suspected that there might be a flaw in the Sun Moon royal family's Martial Soul; otherwise, it was hard to explain why a Sun-based Martial Soul wasn't the Ultimate Fire.

Under the elder's control, Xu Lanqing felt a warm, comfortable sensation under the radiance of the Sun Martial Soul, which showed the elder's impressive strength.

Golden light enveloped Xu Tianzhen's entire body. Under the elder's guidance, she raised her right hand, and a small, orange-red ball of light condensed. As expected, she had awakened the Sun Martial Soul.

"Come, test your soul power."

The elder took out a blue crystal ball with his left hand and handed it to Xu Tianzhen.

Xu Tianzhen placed her hand on it, and the crystal ball immediately flashed with a blue halo. The number nine appeared on its surface.

"Innate Soul Power, level nine."

Innate Soul Power represented a person's cultivation potential and speed. The higher the innate soul power, the higher the future achievements. Level nine was already beyond the reach of most people.

Xu Tianzhen walked up to Xu Lanqing with a grin, "How about that? Follow me, and I'll look after you!"

Xu Lanqing shook his head with a smile, "Congratulations."

"Hmph." Xu Tianzhen wrinkled her cute little nose and walked to the side, signaling she didn't want to talk to him anymore.

"Next..."

"Continue..."

Soon, all twenty-something children had finished their awakening. Aside from Xu Tianzhen, the highest innate soul power among them was only level eight, and nothing special had occurred.

Xu Lanqing stood in the array, feeling a bit nervous, but he wasn't too worried. After all, whether it was the royal Sun Martial Soul or his mother's Ice Crystal Butterfly, both were powerful, top-tier Martial Souls. No matter which one he awakened, it wouldn't be bad. He only prayed that no accidents would happen.

The golden light gradually seeped into his body, and Xu Lanqing felt it intently. First, a warm soul power began to surge within him. After a while, this soul power turned cold, but he felt no discomfort. A bone-chilling coldness radiated outward, and tiny ice shards condensed and fell in the air, forming a thin layer of ice on the ground.

Immediately after, Xu Lanqing felt an unusual itch on his back, as if thousands of ants were crawling and dancing there. He resisted the urge to scratch it with his hands.

Outside, the moment the coldness appeared, the elder was shocked, followed by excitement and surprise. One had to know that the hall was filled with the light of his own Sun Martial Soul. To be affected by the coldness despite his Soul Douluo-level strength meant that his own Martial Soul was being suppressed by Xu Lanqing's. What could suppress the Sun Martial Soul besides an Ultimate Martial Soul? An Ultimate Martial Soul! The records of the Sun Moon Empire had never mentioned one, and today, it was about to be born under his watch.

The elder looked at Xu Lanqing. Xu Lanqing's body was trembling, and then, with a "bang," the clothes on his back shattered. A pair of ice-blue crystal wings extended from within, refracting dazzling colors under the sunlight. His originally ink-black eyes and hair also turned ice-blue, and behind him, the phantom of an ice-blue phoenix flashed by.

"Ultimate Ice, Ice Phoenix Martial Soul, the Sun and Moon Empire is truly blessed, hahahaha!"

The chill receded, and the excitement filled Xu Lanqing's eyes as they returned to their original pitch-black color. He had not expected the Ice Crystal Butterfly to mutate into an Ice Phoenix Martial Soul.

Just then, Xu Lanqing felt as though it wasn't over yet, for a second surge of soul power emerged within his body.

"Huh?"

The clan elder watched Xu Lanqing standing motionless, as if sensing something. He waved his hand at Xu Tianzhen and the other children, his tone urgent.

"Since the Martial Soul awakening is complete, you should hurry back. Your parents must be getting anxious."

As he spoke, he used his soul power to send them out of the great hall, sealed the perimeter, and looked at Xu Lanqing with a fanatical expression.

"Not only an Ultimate Martial Soul, but actually a Twin Martial Souls! The Sun and Moon Empire is truly blessed!"

Xu Lanqing continued to steady his mind, allowing his second Martial Soul to manifest.

This time, the soul power was filled with a sense of destruction. An urge to wreak havoc and indulge in wanton ruin surged into his mind, but as a purple dragon-shaped phantom emerged behind him, this influence vanished instantly. His fingers became sharp, layers of illusory purple dragon scales appeared on his fair skin, and his eyes transformed into the vertical pupils of a dragon.

"Good, good! Purple Imperial Heaven-Extinguishing Dragon. Like the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, it belongs to the top-tier True Dragon Martial Souls, mutated from a Sun Martial Soul. If I recall correctly, the Third Prince, Xu Tianran, awakened this very same Martial Soul."

The clan elder was grinning from ear to ear. With such talent, he could already foresee how powerful the Sun and Moon Imperial Family would become in the future.

Suddenly, an unexpected change occurred. A golden dragon shadow appeared in the air and coiled around the purple dragon shadow. Then, to the clan elder's utter astonishment, it bit down on the purple dragon shadow and swallowed it whole. This scene left the elder speechless; despite his vast experience, he had no idea what was happening.

The illusory dragon scales on Xu Lanqing's body rapidly changed from purple to gold, yet purple dragon patterns filled with a sense of destruction still shimmered upon the golden scales.

Within his Sea of Consciousness, a prismatic golden crystal resonated with the dragon shadow outside, while an aura filled with violence and slaughter constantly battered his consciousness.

"This is bad, Lanqing. Your Martial Soul awakening has broken the balance between me and it. For now, I can only try my best to seal it. Fortunately, it is merely an energy crystal core without conscious control; otherwise, with my current weak divine sense, I truly wouldn't be able to do anything about it."

The aged and majestic voice of Electrolux echoed directly within Xu Lanqing's Sea of Consciousness. Immediately following, gray currents of air surged from the bead, transforming into mysterious runes that connected into a sheet, encircling the golden crystal core. The golden crystal core refused to yield, crashing violently against them, and the two reached a stalemate.

Seeing this, Electrolux began to chant an obscure and difficult incantation.

Xu Lanqing could only grit his teeth and hold on for dear life. He felt as though his head was about to explode, but he refused to become a monster that knew only slaughter, so he had to persist.

"Teacher, are you almost done? I'm about to... lose my grip!"

Inside the Sea of Consciousness, as Electrolux finished his words, the gray bead shrank visibly to the naked eye. The golden crystal core was now covered in gray chains, and it gradually calmed down. The golden dragon shadow outside also merged into Xu Lanqing's body and vanished.

"It is finally done, but you cannot use your second Martial Soul for now, or the seal might loosen again. If that happens, we will both die."

Electrolux let out a sigh of relief, his voice sounding exceptionally weak.

Upon hearing this, Xu Lanqing could no longer hold on. His vision went black, and he collapsed, losing consciousness.