The Master-Disciple Ceremony! The Value of an Evolving Soul Bone!

With the apprenticeship ceremony concluded, the atmosphere within the hall was warm and harmonious.

Mu En looked at his new disciple, whose bearing was peerless, and the more he saw, the more satisfied and delighted he became.

In his life, he had seen countless people, but someone like Lin Ciyan—possessing top-tier talent, temperament, and comprehension, while also walking a unique "path" of his own—was truly a rare gem.

"Ciyan," Mu En smiled, his voice gentle yet carrying a hint of solemnity.

"Since you have entered my tutelage, I shall bestow upon you a gift. I hope you use it well, that you may soon clarify your heart, see your true nature, and ascend to the pinnacle."

As he spoke, he raised his hand in a beckoning gesture, and a stream of golden light—gentle yet incomparably pure, as if it had condensed the very first light of the world—flew from his sleeve.

The light dissipated, revealing a bone about a foot long.

Its entire body resembled the finest, warm white jade, yet it possessed a faint, translucent texture.

Inside, a liquid golden halo seemed to be slowly flowing and breathing.

The bone was elegantly shaped with fluid lines, radiating a warm and peaceful aura that was refreshing to the soul.

Furthermore, it contained an understated yet impossible-to-ignore essence of Ultimate Light.

"A Soul Bone!" an elder exclaimed softly, his gaze filled with surprise and realization.

Given Mu En's status, gifting a Soul Bone was not strange, but the aura of this particular one seemed exceptionally unique.

Lin Ciyan received the Soul Bone with both hands. It felt warm to the touch and was not heavy.

On the contrary, it possessed a strange sense of affinity, resonating subtly with the Holy Radiance Qilin martial soul within him, as if they were meant to be one.

"This bone is named the 'Source of Dawn'," Mu En said slowly, his voice tinged with reminiscence.

"It originates from a rare, long-extinct soul beast: the 'Dawn Pegasus'. This soul beast was not invincible in strength,"

"But they were born in resonance with the rising sun, capable of absorbing the purest light of dawn, and their core bloodline contained a trace of the origin of Ultimate Light."

He paused and looked at Lin Ciyan: "I obtained this Soul Bone years ago while traveling the continent, on the outskirts of an ancient ruin. I happened upon a Dawn Pegasus that had just fallen, its body still warm. Its most peculiar trait is its 'growth potential'."

"A growth-type Soul Bone?" Several elders gasped in shock. Growth-type Soul Bones were incredibly rare; each one was a priceless treasure.

Mu En nodded: "Indeed. Although this 'Source of Dawn' is only a hundred years old, it can absorb and fuse with the host's Ultimate Light attribute power, growing alongside the host."

"The stronger the host's light attribute, the faster it advances. Theoretically, given enough opportunity and time, it could even surpass a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone, or go even further!"

He looked at Lin Ciyan with a profound gaze: "However, to truly activate and sustain its growth characteristics,"

"I have studied this bone, and it has extremely high requirements for the quality of the host's light attribute. It must be Ultimate Light."

"Furthermore, the quality of the martial soul must be sufficiently powerful; otherwise, one cannot trigger its origin, and forced fusion might lead to a backlash."

"When I obtained it, my Soul Bone slots were already full, and although my Radiant Sacred Dragon was strong, it had not reached the level of Ultimate, so it was not a perfect fit. Thus, I have kept it until now."

Lin Ciyan suddenly understood; no wonder the original work never mentioned it. He also recalled the Light-Breaking Right Arm Bone given to Wang Dong in the original story. While its quality was good, it was undoubtedly inferior to the growth-type "Source of Dawn" in his hands, which possessed infinite potential.

Lin Ciyan also thought of the Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Bone from the auction in the original story, which also required an Ultimate attribute.

It seemed that not only the Ice Empress knew about this, but others did as well.

Such Ultimate Soul Bones were too precious and difficult to obtain; it was normal for few people to know of them.

Moreover, Mu En had said that only after studying it did he realize that an Ultimate attribute Soul Bone was not something an ordinary soul master could absorb.

One had to know that a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone was already precious, but a growth-type Soul Bone was even more exceptionally rare.

"Thank you, Teacher, for your generous gift! This disciple will certainly not let this treasure go to waste!" Lin Ciyan bowed solemnly, feeling that this apprenticeship was a massive gain.

Mu En smiled with gratification: "Since the fate has arrived, fuse with it here. With your grandfather and me guarding you, there will be no mishaps."

Under the envious and expectant gazes of the crowd (especially Bei Bei, whose little face was practically shouting "Brother Lin is awesome"), Lin Ciyan sat cross-legged and placed the "Source of Dawn" against his right arm.

Unlike the impact and pain that might accompany absorbing a soul ring, the process of fusing with the "Source of Dawn" was an indescribably wonderful pleasure.

The Soul Bone melted upon touching his arm, turning into a warm, mellow golden current that slowly merged into his arm bones and meridians.

There was no rejection, only a harmony like water and milk.

Lin Ciyan felt as if his right arm were breathing and cheering.

Every cell was greedily absorbing this pure origin of light.

His Holy Radiance Qilin martial soul trembled slightly on its own.

It emitted joyful fluctuations, the Ultimate Light attribute and the "Source of Dawn" attracting and nourishing each other.

He could even clearly perceive that this Soul Bone was like a newborn infant.

Instinctively and slowly, it was absorbing the wisps of Ultimate Light elements he radiated, beginning its long journey of growth.

The entire process was quiet and sacred; in less than the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, the fusion was complete.

Lin Ciyan opened his eyes, a flash of golden light passing through them, and he felt warm all over.

His soul power was more solid and pure, and his affinity with the light elements of heaven and earth had increased significantly.

More importantly, he clearly perceived that the right arm Soul Bone had actually granted him two soul skills.

One had to know that two soul skills were the exclusive domain of soul rings and Soul Bones over a hundred thousand years old.

Lin Ciyan could only attribute this to the fact that the Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast that produced this ultimate soul bone—the Dawn Pegasus—was of an exceptionally high quality.

Although it was only a hundred years old, its rarity was no less than that of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.

"Ciyan, how does it feel? What kind of soul skill did this Source of Dawn bestow upon you?" Lin Qingmo asked impatiently, and the others cast curious gazes his way as well.

Lin Ciyan raised his right arm, a thought flickering through his mind. A layer of golden light, thin as a cicada's wing yet flowing with the luster of dawn, covered his arm and his entire body, radiating a stable and auspicious aura.

"The first skill is called Sacred Radiance Shelter. It is a defensive skill that can cover a specific area or my entire body at will, and its defensive power increases alongside the growth of the soul bone and my own strength."

"At the same time, while in the Sacred Radiance Shelter state, I can slightly increase the absorption and conversion efficiency of light-attribute energy, and provide a minor boost to the soul power recovery speed of nearby friendly units."

He paused, then continued: "The second skill, Radiant Impact. It compresses the ultimate light soul power and erupts it instantly from my right fist, forming an energy beam with extremely strong penetration and purification effects."

"It deals additional damage to evil and dark attributes. Likewise, its power will increase as the soul bone grows."

After hearing Lin Ciyan's description, a collective gasp echoed through the hall.

"It combines defense, cultivation assistance, area-of-effect buffs, and powerful attacks! This... this combination of soul skills is far too comprehensive!"

"And it can grow! If it reaches the Hundred-Thousand-Year level in the future, I can't imagine how powerful these two soul skills will become!"

"It is a perfect match for the Holy Radiance Qilin! Mu En, this soul bone was simply born for this child!" an elder sighed sincerely.

Mu En stroked his beard and smiled, his eyes filled with gratification and anticipation.

He looked at Lin Ciyan, as if he could already see a future where the boy, clad in brilliant soul bones, led Shrek to awe the world.

"Very good." Mu En nodded slowly, already beginning to calculate in his heart.

"Once Ciyan grows up, I will convene a Sea God Pavilion meeting to have him join..."

Meanwhile, Lin Ciyan gently stroked the soul bone that had perfectly fused with his right arm.

Feeling the immense potential contained within and the promise of "growth," his heart burned with excitement.

"Source of Dawn... with you here, my 'slacker' cultivation is truly going to turn into a 'guaranteed win.' System, did you see that? This is what a god-tier start looks like!"

He could already envision the beautiful future where he lay basking in the sun while watching his soul bone and martial soul upgrade automatically.

This soul bone was not just a powerful weapon; it was one of the most solid cornerstones on his "path of relaxed cultivation."