Martial Soul Awakening, Sun and Moon Secrets

At this moment, Xu Mochen was radiating a soul-stirring light. His originally pitch-black eyes had shifted to a deep, purplish-black, and beneath his exposed skin, one could faintly discern dense, fine scales that flickered between light and shadow.

Accompanied by a low dragon roar emanating from within his body, an aura representing both extinction and creation surged from Xu Mochen like a tidal wave. An untamable, supreme presence caused everyone present to cast sidelong glances; although the crowd below did not recognize this Martial Soul, they began to whisper and speculate in secret.

"Look at the bearing of this Martial Soul—the grade is certainly not low. I wonder if this is a blessing or a curse for the Crown Prince."

"Why does this Martial Soul look so similar to the Purple Imperial Heaven-Extinguishing Dragon, one of the three great legacies of the Sun Moon Empire's royal family?"

"Perhaps it is a mutated version of the Purple Imperial Heaven-Extinguishing Dragon. I wonder how its grade compares to the original."

"I once saw the late Emperor's Purple Imperial Heaven-Extinguishing Dragon Martial Soul. While its soul power was incomparable to the current Crown Prince's, in terms of sheer quality and aura, this one might actually surpass the late Emperor's."

"No way, the late Emperor's Purple Imperial Heaven-Extinguishing Dragon was already heaven-defying. If the Crown Prince's Martial Soul is a grade higher, how are the rest of us supposed to live?"

Compared to the chatter of the masses, only Prince Yanyang and Prince Yinyue perceived the deeper implications. "This aura, this quality... could it be the legendary..." Kong Dehan, Prince Yinyue, felt his composure slipping. Although he found it hard to believe, the truth was laid out right before his eyes.

Meanwhile, Prince Yanyang, Xu Yuanding, who stood near the front of the stage, stared at Xu Mochen in a daze, muttering to himself: "This is the ancestor's Martial Soul! The primordial form of the Purple Imperial Heaven-Extinguishing Dragon! It seems the Sun Moon Empire is destined for great prosperity!"

Xu Mochen, however, appeared much more composed. Based on his deductions and the sheer momentum, his Martial Soul belonged to the dragon category—and a powerful one at that. It was very similar to the royal legacy, the Purple Imperial Heaven-Extinguishing Dragon, yet it felt more noble, and the dragon bloodline within it was far purer.

Though he didn't know why, Xu Mochen felt as if his Martial Soul were bound by sturdy chains. Even stranger, he could not accurately perceive his own Soul Power Level, yet he could clearly sense the terrifying aura contained within his soul. Exhaling a breath of stale air, Xu Mochen stood tall, his chest puffed out like a king descending upon the world, looking down at the living beings before him. At that moment, he felt an urge to let out a terrifying dragon roar, as if to announce his arrival to the world.

Surprise aside, Kong Dehan, who was presiding over the awakening ceremony on stage, quickly regained his senses. With a light cough, he picked up a crystal ball for testing soul power from the side table and continued the ceremony in a resonant voice: "Will Your Highness the Crown Prince please place your hand on the crystal ball so we may determine your innate soul power." Xu Mochen did not hesitate; he strode forward with an imposing gait and, under the watchful eyes of the crowd, placed his hand atop the crystal ball. As the silver light within the sphere flared brilliantly, everyone stared intently at every minute change.

But the next moment, something shocking occurred. The light in the crystal ball did not gradually intensify until it stabilized as it usually did during a test; instead, it flared up rapidly, then suddenly dimmed, only to flare up again... It repeated this cycle, making it impossible to gauge his specific soul power.

What was happening? The crowd below was bewildered, and Kong Dehan frowned. Could the crystal ball be broken? He proceeded to swap out several more, but the result was the same every time.

Strange, truly strange! Helpless, Kong Dehan had to venture a request to Xu Mochen: "Your Highness, your Martial Soul is somewhat peculiar. The crystal ball cannot display your soul power. Would you allow me to test it personally?" After a moment of thought, Xu Mochen nodded slightly. Upon receiving confirmation, Kong Dehan placed his hand on Xu Mochen's wrist to channel his own soul power. But then, something even more inconceivable happened.

The soul power Kong Dehan sent into Xu Mochen's body seemed to encounter something terrifying and was instantly repelled by the domineering power within Xu Mochen. Feeling the resistance emanating from within, Kong Dehan feared that an aggressive approach might harm the boy, so he had no choice but to withdraw.

Xu Mochen, however, felt something entirely different. At that moment, his internal Martial Soul seemed to be asserting its sovereignty against the foreign energy, exhibiting a haughty, immense repulsion toward the intrusion, as if offended by the audacity of the external soul power.

"Sigh, as expected of that Martial Soul." Kong Dehan sighed. Xu Mochen, feeling confused, asked softly: "Grand-uncle, do you know what my Martial Soul is?"

Kong Dehan pondered for a moment, but instead of answering immediately, he turned to the nobles below and announced loudly: "The Crown Prince's Martial Soul is quite mysterious. I may need to study it further with Prince Xu Yuanding."

He then gave Xu Mochen a subtle look. Xu Mochen understood immediately and declared: "Today's awakening ceremony ends here. I have matters to discuss with the Second Prince and my Grand-uncle. Everyone, please return."

Given Xu Mochen's status, no one dared to object. They could only offer their farewells and depart with various expressions on their faces.

Once they were gone, Xu Yuanding walked quietly to Kong Dehan's side and asked: "Cousin, could Chen'er's Martial Soul truly be that..."

"I cannot think of any other possibility," Kong Dehan replied with a bitter smile. He had to admit, the little Crown Prince had brought him far too many surprises today.

Xu Mochen did not know what riddles his two elders were speaking in, but it was clearly not the place for such a conversation, so he invited them to his study.

The study was not decorated with excessive luxury; rather, its style leaned toward the fresh and elegant. Aside from a few kerosene lamps, glass-covered candle holders, calligraphy, bookshelves, desks, stationery, and a few potted plants, there was nothing else.

Once the three were seated, Kong Dehan spoke with a solemn expression: "Does Your Highness know the origin of the Sun Moon Empire's royal lineage?"

Hearing this, Xu Mochen sat up straight and said respectfully: "I ask for your guidance, Grand-uncle." It must be said that this was knowledge never mentioned in the novel, nor present in the memories of his original self. Although Xu Mochen knew little, he could tell from the expressions and tones of Kong Dehan and Xu Yuanding that what was about to be revealed was of vital importance to him.

"In truth, the ancestors of the Sun Moon Empire did not come from the Sun Moon Continent, but from a place called the God Realm. More accurately, our ancestor was actually a Divine Beast!" Kong Dehan's first sentence stunned Xu Mochen. The God Realm! In the novel, it seemed to be an incredibly formidable existence! A place possessing countless powerful gods, led by the five Supreme Gods, and Divine Beasts led by the Dragon God. He never expected the ancestors of the Sun Moon Empire to have come from there!

Seeing the slight shock on Xu Mochen's face, Kong Dehan patiently explained: "The God Realm is composed of Divine Beasts and Gods. However, the God clan, led by the five God Kings, and the Divine Beast clan, led by the Dragon God, have always been at odds. The Divine Beasts sought to break free from the control of the Gods to create their own realm, but the Gods refused, leaving the two sides in a state of constant conflict."

"Our royal ancestor was one of the three commanders under the Dragon God, leading the Chaos Dragon Guard, one of the three elite legions of the dragon race. His strength was in no way inferior to the Dragon God's nine sons, the Nine Great Dragon Kings! For a long time, our ancestor followed the Dragon God into battle, guarding the borders and maintaining order and peace for the Divine Beast clan." As he spoke, a look of pride inadvertently flickered in the eyes of Kong Dehan and Xu Yuanding. To be one of the three commanders of the Dragon God's elite guards—a hero among Divine Beasts—was enough to make anyone's blood boil!

But then, Kong Dehan's gaze grew complex. He sighed and said: "Unfortunately, our ancestor held views that diverged from the vast majority of the dragon race. In his eyes, while Gods were often inferior to Divine Beasts of the same level in individual strength, they possessed unique advantages. For instance, the wisdom of the Gods surpassed most Divine Beasts, and they were better at inventing new skills and things. The physical structure of the Gods was also more suited to comprehending the Heavenly Dao."

"Therefore, our ancestor hoped that Divine Beasts would learn from the strengths of the Gods. He advocated for Divine Beasts to learn transformation, to comprehend the Heavenly Dao in the state of a God, and to learn to research and create just as the Gods did. But due to the inherent prejudice and pride of the Divine Beasts, the vast majority opposed his proposal. The Dragon God himself was one of the fiercest opponents."

"They believed that the most important thing for a Divine Beast was to strive to produce more offspring, not to waste energy on 'clever tricks' like the Gods. Furthermore, they argued that since Divine Beasts were already inferior to Gods in wisdom, following the same path would only lead to suppression by the Gods and a waste of their own talents."

"For a time, our ancestor was in a very passive and awkward position. Not only did the Divine Beasts disapprove of his ideas, but some even began to accuse him of colluding with the Gods. Because of his disagreement with the Dragon God, compounded by the slander of other Divine Beasts, our ancestor was not only stripped of his position but also expelled and exiled. His name was completely erased from the dragon race's genealogy."

"Heartbroken and devastated, our ancestor began to wander the lower realms. Eventually, he chose to settle on a continent during its primitive society period. In human form, he fell in love with two women who were the leaders of the two most powerful tribes on the continent at the time: the Yanyang Tribe and the Yinyue Tribe. They each possessed top-tier Martial Souls—the Yanyang and the Yinyue. Our ancestor had descendants with them and lived a loving life for a long time."

At this point, Kong Dehan's eyes dimmed. "But good times did not last. The Gods learned that our ancestor had been exiled by the Dragon God. Hoping to extract useful information about the Divine Beasts to use against them, they sent a large number of Gods to hunt him down. Although he had been cast out by the Divine Beasts, our ancestor remained grateful for the Dragon God's past kindness and refused to betray him."

"Sensing the approach of the Gods, he quietly left the continent one night to avoid implicating his two lovers, drawing the pursuing Gods away. From then on, there was no word of him. The descendants of our ancestor and the two tribal leaders worked together, conquering far and wide, and eventually established a great empire on this continent. They merged the names of their original tribes to name the empire and the continent 'Sun Moon'—the Sun Moon Empire and the Sun Moon Continent of today. Thus, the Xu family of the Yanyang Tribe and the Kong family of the Yinyue Tribe became the two royal families of the Sun Moon Empire."