The scorching aura grew stronger and stronger. The fiery red light gradually shifted toward a dark purple hue.
"Ah!" After a brief struggle, a violet-black phoenix appeared around Leng Yulai as she let out a soft cry.
"The Dark Phoenix! A Mutated Martial Soul of remarkably high quality."
His eyes flickered as he offered his assessment. Although this kind of Martial Soul appearing in the outside world would more or less earn its wielder the label of a potential Evil Soul Master, he had seen every detail of the interaction between his youngest son and the Leng Sisters. As a Peak Douluo, Qiangu Dieting had missed nothing.
So, considering the possibilities ahead, he instead helped build up Leng Yulai's reputation.
"Now then, child, withdraw your Martial Soul and let's test your Soul Power."
With a benevolent smile, Qiangu Dieting surveyed those present, then gestured to Leng Yulai.
At the sight of that kind smile, Leng Yulai's unease immediately eased.
As the next step proceeded, the Soul Power Crystal suddenly lit up completely! She had Innate Full Soul Power!
"Magnificent, Innate Full Soul Power! Add that to a Mutated Martial Soul with such extraordinary potential, and it seems the Spirit Pagoda will have another Limit Douluo in its future! Hahaha!"
His hearty laughter rang out as he praised her, and the people present immediately grew solemn.
Many grateful looks came from the Leng Family's side.
"All right, next, Qiangu Mingyue."
Still smiling, Qiangu Dieting ushered Leng Yulai off the stage. Having already paved a fine road for his youngest son, he turned to Ming Yue, who had stepped forward.
"Are you ready, boy?"
"I'm ready."
"Then put your hand here."
As an inexplicable energy flowed into his body, Ming Yue felt as though something was about to emerge from within him.
He instinctively raised his right hand. A brilliant light flared!
Beneath the expectant gazes of Qiangu Dieting and everyone present, the light faded, revealing a golden regular hexahedron floating above Ming Yue's hand.
"..." Everyone.
Their anticipation dissolved into a long silence. The crowd stared at Ming Yue, baffled.
"Is that all?" someone asked without thinking.
"Is that your only Martial Soul?" Qiangu Dieting also looked at Ming Yue with a grave expression.
"That's all. This is my Martial Soul. It's called Void Archives."
Despite the strange looks from everyone, Ming Yue's expression remained calm.
"Void Archives...?" After a long silence, Qiangu Dieting said gravely, "Put it away and let's test your Soul Power."
Ming Yue did as he was told and placed his hand on the Soul Power Crystal. A faint light flickered to life: Innate Soul Power, level one!
Everyone present was dumbfounded. Another deathly silence fell.
With a loud "Bang!" the Soul Power Crystal exploded, and Qiangu Dieting vanished from the Awakening Platform.
After a moment's pause, Ming Yue lowered his eyes and fell into thought.
The crowd's gazes quickly shifted from respect and admiration to faint disdain.
Not only had he failed to inherit the Qiangu Family's ancestral Martial Soul, but his Innate Soul Power was only level one.
Just look at someone like Qiangu Dieting—he had lost his composure at the sight of it.
This Qiangu Mingyue, who'd been talked up as though he were some incredible prodigy, was nothing special after all.
[ Ding! Congratulations, Master, on unlocking the achievements: "Martial Soul Awakening" and "First Soul Power Test." ]
The Simulator's prompt rang out at just the right moment. He looked around at everyone, taking in their expressions.
When he saw the concern and indignation in the Leng Sisters' eyes, he turned and smiled at them.
Simulator, skip this part.
[ Ding! Skip successful. Memory sequence continuing! ]
[Age 7: After the Martial Soul Awakening ceremony that day, you noticed that your standing in the Qiangu Family seemed to have undergone some subtle changes.]
[Your mother, who had once cared for you, gradually grew distant. Your once-good older brother, Qiangu Dongfeng, also began to spend less time with you.]
["A frail body and paltry Soul Power!" Your eldest brother, Qiangu Qingfeng, even declared in public that you were the disgrace of the Qiangu Family.]
[Age 8: Although your standing in the Qiangu Family kept sinking, as the family head's son, you still had a small house of your own.]
[You often lived there alone, but the Leng Sisters visited you frequently. Their presence brought a little warmth into your home.]
[Come to think of it, just a change in talent had let you experience the warmth and coldness of human nature all over again in these two years. You couldn't help but sigh.]
[Age 9: Your cultivation was progressing slowly, so you began looking for a different approach and started tinkering with Soul Guidance Technology.]
[Although you worked on your own, your exceptional memory and broad knowledge helped you study hard using what you'd learned in the Library as a child.]
[But researching Soul Guidance Technology meant dealing with the problem of materials. That wouldn't have been an issue before, but given your current standing in the Qiangu Family, getting them was difficult.]
[Fortunately, when the Leng Sisters learned of your predicament, they sent you a large pile of materials without hesitation.]
[As Leng Yaozhu loaded the materials into the Space Soul Tool, she couldn't help but chuckle. "Since A-Yue is so amazing, why not become your big sister's exclusive Great Inventor from now on? Let's change the world together."]
Seeing this, Leng Yulai refused to be outdone and made the same declaration with a spirited cry.
[Although you had a strong, inexplicable sense of déjà vu, when Leng Yaozhu and Leng Yulai reached out their hands to you, you clasped them without hesitation, intertwining your fingers!]
[Age 10: When it came to Soul Guidance Technology, you were no longer bound by the work of those who came before you. Once you let your imagination run wild, your research topics became increasingly far-fetched.]
[You began inventing all sorts of strange things.]
[Age 11: You began to feel that all this research was meaningless. Soul Guidance Technology or mecha forging, it was all external—external things! External things!! You seemed trapped in a vicious cycle of knowledge.]
[You began craving more knowledge, so you shifted your attention to Martial Souls and Soul Masters.]
[The first thing you chose to study was your own Martial Soul: Void Archives!]
[Age 12: You began to shed your boyishness and immaturity. Perhaps because you had spent years studying and researching, you had also acquired an air of tranquil elegance. Anyone who saw you couldn't help praising you: "What a gentle, refined, handsome young man!"]
[But the more mature you became, the more you yearned for results. You began researching Void Archives even more obsessively, neglecting sleep and food. But today, Leng Yulai's sudden visit made you stop your work.]
Before you continue