The apprenticeship ceremony was complete, and the hall was filled with a warm, peaceful atmosphere.
Mu En looked at his new disciple, whose bearing was truly extraordinary, and the more he looked, the more satisfied he became. He was in an excellent mood.
In his life, he had met countless people, but someone like Lin Ciyan, whose talent, character, and insight were all top-notch, and who had forged a unique "path" of his own, was truly one in a million.
"Ci Yan," Mu En said with a smile, his voice gentle yet carrying a trace of solemnity.
"Now that you've joined my tutelage, I'll give you a gift to mark the occasion. I hope you'll make good use of it, see clearly into your heart soon, and ascend to the peak."
As he spoke, he raised a hand and gestured. A golden stream of light, gentle yet incomparably pure, as if it held the world's first light, flew from his sleeve.
The light faded, revealing a bone about a foot long.
It was as smooth as the finest warm white jade, yet faintly translucent.
Within it, golden light seemed to flow and pulse like liquid.
The bone had a graceful shape and elegant lines, radiating a soothing warmth and peaceful aura.
It also held a restrained yet unmistakable essence of Ultimate Light.
"A Soul Bone!" one of the senior elders blurted out, surprise and understanding in his eyes.
It wasn't strange for someone of Mu En's stature to give away a Soul Bone, but this one's aura seemed particularly unusual.
Lin Ciyan accepted the Soul Bone with both hands. It felt warm and smooth in his grasp, yet it wasn't heavy.
Instead, it had a peculiar sense of affinity, resonating faintly with the Holy Radiance Qilin Martial Soul within him, as if they had always been one.
"This bone is called the Source of Dawn," Mu En explained, his voice carrying a trace of reminiscence.
"It came from a rare Soul Beast that went extinct long ago—the Dawn Pegasus. These beasts weren't invincible,"
"but they were naturally attuned to the rising sun and could absorb the purest light of dawn. 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 mainland. I happened upon a hundred-year-old Dawn Pegasus at the outskirts of an ancient ruin, freshly fallen, its body still warm. Its most remarkable feature is its growth potential."
"A growth-type Soul Bone?" Several senior elders looked astonished. Growth-type Soul Bones were exceedingly rare; every one was a priceless treasure.
Mu En nodded. "That's right. Though the Source of Dawn started out at a hundred years, it can absorb and fuse with its host's Ultimate Light Attribute power, growing alongside them."
"The stronger the host's light attribute, the faster it advances. In theory, given enough opportunity and time, it could even surpass a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, or reach an even higher level!"
He looked at Lin Ciyan with a meaningful expression. "However, to truly activate it and bear its growth potential..."
"I've studied this Soul Bone. It demands an exceptionally high quality of light attribute from its host. Only Ultimate Light will do."
"The host's Martial Soul must also be powerful enough. Otherwise, they won't be able to draw out its origin, and forcing a fusion could instead trigger a backlash."
"When I obtained it, I'd already filled all my Soul Bone slots. And though my Radiant Sacred Dragon was powerful, it still hadn't reached the ultimate level, so it wasn't a perfect match for this bone. I've kept it in my collection ever since."
Lin Ciyan understood. No wonder it hadn't been mentioned in the original story. He also remembered the Right Arm Soul Bone of Light-Breaking Evil given to Wang Dong in the original story. It was high quality, but compared with the growth-type Source of Dawn in his hands, a Soul Bone with limitless potential, it was clearly inferior by more than just one tier.
Lin Ciyan also thought of the Ice Jade Scorpion Soul Bone at the auction in the original story, which likewise required an Ultimate Attribute.
It seemed that not only the Ice Empress knew about it; other people did too.
Such Ultimate Attribute Soul Bones were too precious and difficult to obtain. It was only natural that few people knew of them.
Moreover, Elder Mu had said he only discovered after studying it that Soul Bones with Ultimate Attributes couldn't be absorbed by ordinary Soul Masters.
A Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Bone was already exceedingly precious, but a growth-type Soul Bone was even rarer.
"Thank you for this generous gift, Teacher! I won't let you down!" Lin Ciyan bowed solemnly, marveling inwardly that becoming his disciple had truly been a phenomenal bargain.
Mu En smiled in satisfaction. "Since fate has brought us together, fuse with it here. Your grandfather and I will protect you. There's no chance of anything going wrong."
Under the envious and expectant gazes of everyone present—Bei Bei most of all, her little face practically shouting, "Brother Lin is awesome!"—Lin Ciyan sat cross-legged and pressed the Source of Dawn against his right arm.
Unlike absorbing a Soul Ring, which could bring pain and violent surges of energy,
fusing with the Source of Dawn was an indescribably wonderful experience.
The moment it touched his arm, the Soul Bone melted into a warm, rich golden current, slowly seeping into the bones and meridians of his arm.
There was not the slightest rejection, only a harmony like milk blending with water.
Lin Ciyan could almost feel his right arm breathing and cheering.
Every cell greedily absorbed this pure source of light.
The Holy Radiance Qilin Martial Soul within him trembled faintly on its own.
It radiated joy. The Ultimate Light Attribute and the Source of Dawn drew one another in, nourishing each other.
He could even clearly sense the Soul Bone, like a newborn baby,
instinctively and slowly absorbing the traces of Ultimate Light that spilled from him, beginning its long journey of growth.
The entire process was quiet and sacred. In less than the time it took to burn a stick of incense, the fusion was complete.
Lin Ciyan opened his eyes, a flash of golden light vanishing from his gaze. His whole body felt warm.
His Soul Power had grown purer and more condensed, and his affinity with the light elements of the world had improved as well.
More importantly, he clearly sensed that the Right Arm Soul Bone had granted him two Soul Skills.
Two Soul Skills were supposed to be exclusive to Soul Rings and Soul Bones of a hundred thousand years or more.
Lin Ciyan could only attribute this to the exceptional quality of the Soul Beast that had produced this Ultimate Soul Bone—the Dawn Pegasus.
Though it was only a hundred-year-old beast, its rarity was no less than that of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
"Ci Yan, how does it feel? What Soul Skills did the Source of Dawn give you?" Lin Qingmo asked impatiently. Everyone else turned their curious gazes his way.
Lin Ciyan raised his right arm and focused his thoughts. A golden glow, thin as a cicada's wing yet shimmering like dawn, spread over his arm and then his entire body, radiating a steady, peaceful aura.
"The first skill is called Sacred Radiance Shelter. It's a defensive skill that I can extend over an area or my entire body at will. Its defensive power will increase as the Soul Bone grows and my own strength improves."
"While Sacred Radiance Shelter is active, I can also slightly improve the efficiency with which I absorb and convert light-attribute energy, and slightly increase the Soul Power recovery rate of nearby allies."
He paused, then continued. "The second skill is Radiant Impact. It compresses my Ultimate Light Soul Power, then releases it from my right fist in an instant, forming an energy beam with tremendous penetrating power and purifying effects."
"It deals additional damage to evil and dark attributes. Its power will likewise increase as the Soul Bone grows."
A wave of gasps swept through the hall as everyone listened to Lin Ciyan's description.
"It combines defense, cultivation support, an area-wide enhancement, and a powerful attack! This... This combination of Soul Skills is far too comprehensive!"
"And it can keep growing! If it reaches a hundred thousand years one day, who knows how powerful these two skills will become! What a sight that would be!"
"It's a perfect match for the Holy Radiance Qilin! Elder Mu, this Soul Bone was practically made for him!" one senior elder exclaimed sincerely.
Mu En stroked his beard with a smile, his eyes full of satisfaction and anticipation.
He looked at Lin Ciyan and seemed to see him in the future, wielding a dazzling Soul Bone and leading Shrek to awe all the lands.
"Very good." Mu En nodded slowly, already beginning to make plans.
"When Ci Yan is older, I'll hold a Sea God Pavilion Meeting and have him join..."
Lin Ciyan gently stroked the Soul Bone, now perfectly fused with his right arm.
Feeling the immense potential it contained and the promise of growth, his heart burned with excitement.
"Source of Dawn... With you, my 'slack-off' cultivation might really turn into 'lying down and winning.' System, do you see? Now this is a god-tier start!"
He could already picture the wonderful future: lounging in the sun as his Soul Bone and Martial Soul upgraded themselves.
This Soul Bone was not only a powerful weapon, but also one of the firmest cornerstones on his path of "relaxed cultivation."