Mu En didn't hurry to leave.
His gaze focused on that incomparably handsome face.
The face looked somewhat familiar to Mu En.
It wasn't anyone he knew.
It looked more like Lu Heqiu lying on the table, grown up.
"Can you speak!?"
Mu En tentatively sent his voice toward the figure, but it couldn't even pass through the first seal. The lightning completely destroyed it along the way.
Yet the seated figure understood what Mu En meant. He pointed at the first chain, indicating that Mu En could begin.
Mu En looked at the chain brimming with lightning, and hesitation stirred in his heart.
This person didn't seem to have the aura of an Evil Soul Master.
But why...
Would someone like this be sealed by a chain containing the aura of the Heavenly Dao?
Yan Shaozhe, Xuan Zi, and the others hadn't entered Lu Heqiu's Sea of Consciousness, so they couldn't see things clearly. But Mu En, who had entered and could see clearly, now found himself hesitating.
He didn't know whether it was right to help a Martial Soul like this break its seal. If Lu Heqiu turned out like this in the future and went down an evil path, would that really be what he wanted to see!?
The figure seated in the sky didn't urge him. He simply watched in silence, his gaze still kind.
Mu En didn't know how long he hesitated.
In the end, his spiritual power still spread toward the first chain, which radiated lightning.
That chain was far more powerful than Mu En had imagined. But an utterly terrifying aura burst from Mu En. As a Limit Douluo, he possessed power that came infinitely close to a god's in this world.
He simply lacked the blessing of a divine position.
The two forces collided.
Lu Heqiu's Sea of Consciousness began to churn. Terrifying power swept across the entire world, and the golden sea boiled. Yet the phantom seated atop it didn't move at all. He simply watched in silence.
Clearly, his Sea of Consciousness could withstand such turbulence.
Otherwise, Mu En wouldn't have been able to enter in the first place.
Mu En didn't completely destroy the chain, which was as thick as a tree trunk. Instead, he struck a gap in it, disrupting the flow of a small section. The lightning power throughout the entire chain was reduced by more than half.
The figure seated in the sky, bound by all nine chains, gently shifted his body. He moved his left hand a few times. He hadn't broken the chains, but he was clearly more comfortable than before.
Mu En withdrew from the Sea of Consciousness, exhaustion hard to hide on his face.
He was completely different from the upright phantom in the Sea of Consciousness.
Here in the Sea God Pavilion, his body was still stooped, like an ordinary old man. Even standing was an extremely difficult task for him.
"Teacher, did it work?"
Yan Shaozhe immediately went to Mu En's side and helped him sit down. They had no idea what Mu En had seen or done in the Sea of Consciousness. All they knew was that Lu Heqiu, lying on the table, soon fell asleep.
The aura around him was gradually growing stronger.
"It seems to have worked."
"Go help this child measure his Soul Power."
Mu En's words barely concealed his exhaustion, though his tone remained exceedingly gentle.
Yan Shaozhe didn't dare delay. He immediately flew off to the Soul Tool Department to fetch a device for measuring Soul Power.
At the same time, Xuan Zi withdrew his aura and waved to the elders guarding the perimeter. The elders were curious, but they didn't fly toward the Sea God Pavilion. They had the right to know, just not now.
Elder Mu was clearly tired. Even if the news was to be shared, it could wait until he'd had some rest.
"What kind of Martial Soul does this kid have?"
As he spoke, Xuan Zi walked over to Lu Heqiu. Lu Heqiu slowly opened his eyes at that moment, too. Unlike his earlier casual expression, his eyes now brimmed with intensity, as if he meant to see through everything in the world.
"Oh? You're awake?"
"Release your Martial Soul and let us have a look."
Xuan Zi wiggled Lu Heqiu's fingers and spoke with a chuckle. This kid's Martial Soul Awakening had put the Inner Academy on high alert. If he ended up with some rubbish Martial Soul, it would be a real embarrassment.
Not only would Elder Mu be embarrassed, but Xuan Zi wouldn't dare tell anyone about this, either.
Wouldn't that be a slap in the face?
Lu Heqiu waved his tiny hand and rolled over on the table. With nothing but the strength in his arms, his small body actually pushed itself upright. He still wasn't entirely used to this body, but at least he could manage a few simple movements now.
He could shake his head, stand, and walk. With the help of the golden pool and the reduced power of the first seal, he could finally take control of his body for short stretches instead of acting purely on instinct.
As long as Lu Heqiu's consciousness remained intact, something like his earlier crawl into Ma Xiaotao's bathroom probably wouldn't happen again.
As for falling asleep...
For now, he still had no way to control that.
After all, his consciousness had been resting at the time, too!
"He stood up!?"
Xuan Zi stared at Lu Heqiu in surprise. Lu Heqiu's whole body looked only a few months old, yet now he was standing on the table, looking up at Xuan Zi. He swayed a little, but he was still standing.
Mu En looked at him and repeated Xuan Zi's earlier words.
"Release your Martial Soul and let us have a look."
Though he already had a guess in his heart,
he still wanted to see it all with his own eyes.
Lu Heqiu didn't refuse. A vast aura emerged from his body. But unlike the way other Soul Masters released their Martial Souls, his body didn't change as it would with a Beast Martial Soul, nor did he simply hold an Artifact Martial Soul in his hand.
Instead, a phantom appeared behind him.
The phantom was a full head taller than Elder Xuan.
Golden light filled the air, and an otherworldly aura radiated from it.
It was the very figure Mu En had seen in his Sea of Consciousness. Only now, the figure was no longer seated cross-legged. He stood upright, his eyes seeming to hold disdain for the Heavenly Dao.
Xuan Zi abruptly took a step back, clearly at a loss for how to judge the phantom.
An Artifact Martial Soul? Clearly not.
A Beast Martial Soul? Could a person count as a beast?
A Body Martial Soul? Soul Masters whose Martial Souls were their own bodies existed. Du Busi, the sect leader of the Body Sect, was one. But Lu Heqiu's Martial Soul was entirely different from his!
Du Busi was himself: his Martial Soul reflected his own state.
Lu Heqiu was only an infant. How could his Martial Soul reflect what he would look like in the future?!
Ma Xiaotao watched from the side, also somewhat dazed. The phantom really was far too handsome. Was that what the little fellow would look like in the future?
Yan Shaozhe had been just as shocked by Lu Heqiu's Martial Soul the moment he entered the Sea God Pavilion.
This power was so holy that it was even more sacred than his Bright Phoenix!
Mu En looked at the phantom with admiration in his eyes. If the people from the Body Sect found out, they would surely storm Shrek and claim that Lu Heqiu was one of their own.
"Let's have this little fellow's Soul Power measured."
Before you continue