Twelve-Year-Old Soul Ancestor, Genius Youth

News reached the sect, and the upper ranks were shaken.

Throughout the Body Sect's long history, even its most extraordinarily gifted sect masters had never produced a precedent of Twin Martial Souls of the body type.

Yet in this generation, two had appeared in succession!

The first was Vina, princess of the Heaven Dou Empire. To follow Long Aotian, the sect's once-in-a-century genius, she had resolutely joined despite her status as a princess.

The second was Long Zhanye, born in this affiliated village.

The sect treated this anomaly with the utmost caution. They convened the elders for repeated discussions, consulted countless secret tomes, and even closely investigated the bloodline records of Long Yufeng and his wife Dantai Jing, along with the details of her pregnancy and delivery that year.

In the end, they struggled to reach a conclusion that was almost bizarre, yet the most logically sound:

In essence, Long Zhanye possessed only one Martial Soul of his own—the heart.

The origin of that miraculous "Heavenly Eye," however, pointed to a fetus that had never entered the world.

Back then, Dantai Jing had been carrying twins.

Yet at some indeterminable point, one of the embryos had quietly ceased developing.

Its unfinished life and faint spirituality had not dissipated. Instead, drawn by the blood they shared and toyed with by the fickleness of fate,

it had been completely absorbed and fused by the other, stronger embryo—the one who would later become Long Zhanye.

That younger brother or sister he had never met had "lived" on within Long Zhanye's life in another form.

This "Heavenly Eye" was the "gift" left behind by that departed life.

It was an exceedingly rare phenomenon, scarcely recorded in the world of Spirit Masters: Life-Fusion Martial Soul Parasitism.

Once the truth came to light, the sect sighed in wonder and regarded Long Zhanye as a priceless treasure.

No matter how extraordinary his origins were, the Twin top-tier Body Martial Souls and terrifying talent he displayed were indisputable.

This meant he was highly likely to grow into a towering pillar supporting the sect's future.

Thus, the resources already favoring him due to the legacy left by his grandfather, Long Tianxing, instantly became an utterly unreserved outpouring.

The Body Sect's core secret arts, customized plans for hunting Soul Rings, training guarded personally by Soul Douluo-level experts, and rare medicinal herbs that strengthened his foundation, nurtured his vitality, and even slightly nourished spiritual power... all were sent endlessly to Body Village.

Under such extravagantly lavish cultivation, Long Zhanye's growth traced an astonishingly brilliant arc.

At twelve years old, he had reached the Soul Ancestor realm!

Even more terrifying was his Soul Ring configuration: yellow, purple, purple, black!

It shattered the Spirit Master world's universally accepted theory of optimal ring ratios, proving that his foundations at every major realm had been reinforced to an outrageous degree.

Every Soul Beast ring he had absorbed beyond his level had tested the absolute limits of his body and will.

Among the younger generation of the current Body Sect,

only Long Aotian, the Radiance Ten Thousand Zhang figure hailed as the sect's hope for the future, had achieved the same at that age.

For this reason, the sect elders had personally visited this tiny village several times.

They spoke earnestly, hoping Long Zhanye would enter the sect's inner division and receive the most systematic, elite, and secluded training, lest such heaven-shaking talent go to waste.

Yet every time, Long Zhanye listened respectfully, solemnly agreed, and then...

he always found the most impeccable excuse to delay or slip back to the village.

Even if a mountain-patrolling steward "happened" to intercept him midway, he could remain perfectly composed and speak with complete sincerity:

"Elder, I shall remember Zhanhai's kindness. However, my father's heart condition often relapses, while my mother has fallen ill from constant worry and is not in good mental health."

"As a son, I dare not travel far, for fear of unforeseen misfortune. I can only shamelessly beg permission to travel between the sect and my home, so that I may fulfill my filial duty without neglecting my cultivation."

The sect even proposed stationing people permanently at Long Residence to care for his parents and completely remove his concerns.

Long Zhanye still politely declined, his reason entirely proper. "My parents prefer peace and quiet and are unaccustomed to being attended by outsiders."

"The sect's resources are precious. What merit or ability does Zhanye possess to dare waste them on family matters? Things are already very good as they are."

Such soft refusals left even the immensely powerful elders at a loss.

When dealing with such a peerless uncut jade, one tied to the sect's future fortunes,

they could neither beat him nor scold him, much less force him. They feared that the slightest coercion would damage the child's sense of closeness toward the sect, resulting in greater loss than gain.

They could only continue increasing their resource investments on one hand while secretly strengthening their attention toward and protection of the Body Martial Soul on the other, waiting for him to "come to his senses" on his own.

And behind this marriage, so clearly arranged for Long Zhanye, lay another scheme.

The girl, Xiahou Ling, came from the Bright Jade Sect within the Sun Moon Empire.

The Bright Jade Sect could not be considered a top-tier force in the Sun Moon Empire. There was no Titled Douluo overseeing the sect, and the Bright Jade Sect Master herself had stalled at the Soul Douluo realm.

Precisely because of her lack of strength, the Bright Jade Sect Master had spent years racking her brains, determined to attach herself to a top-tier power with a Titled Douluo, seeking protection and broader room for development.

However.

The Heavenly Dragon Gate, Nine Treasures Glazed Sect, Shrek Academy, Mingde Hall, and even the Body Sect had all explicitly rejected her before, shattering her dream of dependence time and again.

The turning point came nine years ago.

When a group from the Bright Jade Sect left the Body Sect's mountain gate in disappointment and stopped to rest at a village below the mountain,

they happened to hear rumors that "Body Village had produced a Twin Martial Souls genius whom the sect treasured like a precious jewel."

The Bright Jade Sect Master's thoughts immediately stirred.

If she could not attach herself to a great sect, then forming ties with this future giant of limitless potential while he was still young would be an unparalleled shortcut to rising in a single step.

She immediately and secretly selected dozens of sharp, reliable disciples, sending them under various identities into the villages and towns around Body Village to observe the Long Family's movements over the long term.

That covert surveillance lasted nine years.

Until recently, when her spies brought back definite news: Long Zhanye had turned thirteen, and according to the village's ancient customs, an engagement ceremony would be held.

The Bright Jade Sect Master knew that the opportunity she had waited years for had finally arrived.

She personally set out, bringing lavish gifts to visit Long Yufeng and Dantai Jing.

Everything she presented was a Soul Tool crafted with the Sun Moon Empire's finest workmanship, including two Class 6 Soul Tools—one defensive and one offensive.

For Long Yufeng, who often needed to travel outside despite his modest cultivation, they were no different from life-saving talismans, demonstrating complete sincerity.

But what truly moved Long Yufeng and Dantai Jing was the young girl who had accompanied the sect master.

Not only was Xiahou Ling exquisitely beautiful and graceful in manner, but she also possessed exceptional talent. At only thirteen, she was already a three-ring Soul Elder!

Seeing her poised yet faintly shy demeanor, then thinking of their son's cold temperament and his single-minded devotion to cultivation,

the couple hardly needed to consider it before happily agreeing to the marriage.

As for Long Zhanye himself...

After hearing his father's joyful and expectant account, he fell silent for a moment.

The words of refusal circled on his tongue before finally being swallowed.

"Alright." He heard his own calm, unruffled voice. "I understand, Father."

There was no joy, no resistance—only a heavy acceptance wrapped in reason.

For that fragile heart, for the expectation in his mother's eyes, and for...

the responsibility he believed he had to shoulder as a descendant of the Long Family.