"If I told you I'd died once and then crawled back from hell, would you believe me, sis?"
Qiangu Yunche spoke.
"You..." Qiangu Yunmei stared blankly at Qiangu Yunche in front of her, then suddenly hugged him tightly again.
"I can't stop you from doing whatever you want, but no matter what, you'll come back safely in the end, okay?"
From a young age, Qiangu Yunmei had always been unruly and defiant, and even Qiangu Yunche, who had grown up following her around, rarely saw her pleading or vulnerable.
"Sister, I promise you. After all, no one would want to live a life without their family."
A sense of guilt welled up in Qiangu Yunche's heart.
During the nearly one and a half years that they were apart, even Qiangu Yunmei, who was usually not good at expressing her emotions, was so worried. One can only imagine the torment and worry that they had endured for Xu Jiujiu.
After briefly recounting his experiences on this trip to Qiangu Yunmei, Qiangu Yunche began to speak:
"By the way, sis, where's Jiujiu?"
Qiangu Yunmei rolled her eyes at Qiangu Yunche, but she also knew that Xu Jiujiu others had suffered no less than she had in the past year.
"She should be in seclusion at the Star Gathering Platform in the palace. She's been a bit distracted lately. She should have broken through to Soul Saint a long time ago, but she only recently showed signs of a breakthrough..."
Before Qiangu Yunmei could finish speaking, Qiangu Yunche's figure had already vanished without a trace.
Looking at the empty pavilion, Qiangu Yunmei helplessly pursed her lips, and finally began to instruct the maids of the Princess Mansion to find some earth-type Soul Master skilled in civil engineering to repair the damage to the place...
The Star Luo Imperial Palace has stood here since the founding of the Star Luo Empire. Over the years, the palace has been rebuilt or renovated several times. What is presented to the world today is a city within a city that is magnificent yet dignified and profound.
As Qiangu Yunche flew along, he sensed several powerful auras, as well as the almost ubiquitous Soul Tool and attack/defense Soul Tool.
Qiangu Yunche had heard about Star Gathering Platform for Xu Jiujiu and had some understanding of its origins.
Thousands of years ago, the Star Crown Sect replaced the White Tiger Imperial Family to rule the Star Luo Empire. The emperor at that time discovered a strange mineral vein containing starlight characteristics in the Mingdou Mountain Range, which could attract and gather Star Power.
Since then, the Star Crown Imperial Family has spent a huge amount of money to slowly move that mine to the present-day palace. They also built the Star Gathering Star Gathering Platform in the place where the Star Power is most concentrated, to help the increasingly rare Star Crown Sect members cultivate or break through.
The Star Gathering Platform was last used when Xu Jiawei needed to condense his first Soul Core to break through to the Titled Douluo. Now, many years later, the Star Power accumulated within the Star Gathering Platform has become terrifyingly dense.
When Qiangu Yunche arrived at the outer perimeter of the Star Gathering Platform, he immediately saw Xu Jiujiu sitting cross -Xu Jiujiu legged in the very center of the Star Gathering Platform.
Given the embarrassing situation of almost not being recognized by his own sister, Qiangu Yunche did not conceal his Soul Power aura. Even the Evil-Breaking Dragon Emperor Spear was quietly suspended beside him, exuding an extremely Piercing aura.
" Yun Che, is that you?"
A figure emerged from the shadows, none other than Nebula Douluo, whose face appeared somewhat younger than before.
" Man Yi, it's me." Qiangu Yunche nodded, then went straight to the point without further ado:
"With Jiujiu's talent and foundation, breaking through to Soul Saint should not be a bottleneck for her at all. What exactly happened to her that makes her still stuck at the peak of Soul Emperor and unable to take that step?"
"This..." Before Nebula Douluo could speak, a steady voice rang out from not far away.
"Let me answer your question." Qiangu Yunche looked in the direction of the voice and saw Xu Jiawei, who was wearing a dragon robe and had not even taken off the crown on his head.
After bowing, Nebula Douluo quietly withdrew, leaving the two of them alone.
Xu Jiawei's gaze swept over Qiangu Yunche's entire body, then fell on Xu Jiujiu, who was sitting cross-legged in the center of the Star Gathering Platform with Xu Jiujiu frown, before he sighed softly:
" Yun Che, you're right. With Jiujiu talent and foundation, becoming Soul Saint shouldn't be a bottleneck for her. But behind the glory of being a genius, there are actually quite a few problems."
At this point, Xu Jiawei smiled helplessly, then turned his head and said:
"Perhaps your great-grandfather also told you that my brother and I are cut from the same mold. We have strong enough talent for cultivation and a strong enough and resolute and decisive character, but the desire for power also occupies a large part of our consciousness."
I have been on the throne for decades, at the pinnacle of power, and my desire for power has diminished considerably. But Jiujiu is different; she is still young, and her ambition is still growing rapidly.
During the year you were gone, her power nearly doubled, her ambition grew exponentially, and her character inevitably began to deteriorate. Your disappearance only added fuel to the fire for her...
Besides, the second culprit that drove her to this predicament is the Star Gathering Platform right in front of you."
As he spoke, Xu Jiawei raised his hand and waved it, and a huge stone wall rose up.
The stone wall is extremely rough overall, but it is inlaid with a total of eighteen diamonds that resemble stars.
At this moment, nearly half of the eighteen diamonds were shining, while the other half were dark.
" The Star Gathering Platform connects the boundless starry sky with the underground mineral veins. The eighteen diamonds symbolize the density of Star Power within it. When all eighteen stars are full, the Star Power inside the Star Gathering Platform is enough to kill a Super Douluo. Before Jiujiu entered the Star Gathering Platform Star Gathering Platform, the Star Power inside was at its peak."
I don't know what Jiujiu is going through, but I know perfectly well that a Soul Emperor breaking through to Soul Saint doesn't need to absorb a massive amount of Star Power comparable to the entire Soul Power of a Titled Douluo.
As soon as Xu Jiawei finished speaking, Qiangu Yunche almost immediately had a guess.
"If I'm not mistaken, Jiujiu's own state of mind is one reason why her breakthrough was delayed, but ultimately, it's the Star Luo Spirit Pearl she refined that caused her to fall into this predicament."
The Star Luo Spirit Pearl is a special Immortal Herb with starlight attribute. When fully matured, it can enhance the affinity between the Soul Master and the power of stars and their own Spiritual Power when consumed by Soul Master with high compatibility. However, what ordinary people do not know is that a fully mature Star Luo Spirit Pearl can also transform into a human's Soul Core, just like the Primordial Immortal Herb.
When the Star Luo Spirit Pearl was refined by Xu Jiujiu, it did not leave a seed. Qiangu Yunche was a little puzzled at the time, thinking that the Star Luo Spirit Pearl did not leave a seed because it was not fully mature. Now that he thinks about it, the seed of the Star Luo Spirit Pearl was very likely to have entered Xu Jiujiu's body at that time.
The Star Power within the Star Gathering Platform is an excellent cultivation aid for Soul Master who possess starlight power. Similarly, this Star Power is also an excellent tonic for the Star Luo Spirit Pearl, Immortal Herb that relies on Star Power for cultivation.
It is highly likely that the seed of the Star Luo Spirit Pearl took advantage of this opportunity to frantically absorb Star Power in order to seek regeneration. It was not that it was unable to break through for Xu Jiujiu, but that it was "implicated" by the Star Luo Spirit Pearl, which forced it into a semi-dormant state.