Martial Soul is Soul Spirit

"Where is this..."

Shen Nanxun's eyelids felt incredibly heavy. When he forced them open, all he saw was a stark, blinding white. The scent of disinfectant drilled into his nasal cavity, stinging his senses.

He lifted his gaze to his side, and the first thing that came into view was a head of pale blue hair.

The long hair cascaded down to the girl's shoulder blades, the ends slightly curled, swaying gently before Shen Nanxun's eyes with the movement of her leaning over.

The visitor appeared to be in her teens, with delicate features and a graceful figure. Her eyes were a paler shade of ice blue, currently rimmed with red, with dried tear tracks still visible beneath them.

"Xiao Xun!" Seeing Shen Nanxun open his eyes, the girl straightened up abruptly. Her voice was filled with both shock and joy, the tail end of her words still raspy from crying. "You're finally awake! Do you have any idea that you've been unconscious for five whole days?"

Shen Nanxun adjusted himself into a more comfortable position before asking, "Second Sister, why are you back? Aren't you supposed to be studying in Mingdu?"

Shen Nanxun's second sister, Shen Xing, was currently studying at the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Master Academy.

"Hmph, and whose fault is that?" Shen Xing gave a light huff, pinched his nose, and chided, "I should have let you stay home in Mingdu, but you just had to listen to Eldest Sister and come here for classes. Look at you now, getting into trouble."

As she spoke, her eyes turned red again. She reached out and poked Shen Nanxun lightly on the forehead. "Do you have any idea how terrified I was when the news reached Mingdu? Evil Soul Masters—those were Evil Soul Masters! And one was a Soul Saint, the other a Soul Emperor. How did a kid with only two levels of soul power like you end up crossing paths with them..."

Shen Nanxun let her poke him, not bothering to dodge.

He knew his second sister's temperament well; the more she cared about someone, the sharper her tongue became. When he was a child and scraped his knee in the courtyard, Shen Xing would spend the entire time scolding him for not watching where he was walking while simultaneously ransacking the entire Shen estate for the best medicine. Now that he had nearly died at the hands of Evil Soul Masters, her words were sharp, but he knew she was likely terrified deep down.

Sure enough, as she continued, her voice softened. She lowered her lashes, her fingers unconsciously twisting the corner of the bedsheet. After a long silence, she spoke in a low voice, "Xiao Xun, and about your martial soul... don't rush."

Shen Nanxun looked up at her.

Shen Xing pursed her lips, seemingly weighing her words. "Innate soul power of two levels and no martial soul... it is rare, but that doesn't mean you have no future. The Sun Moon Imperial Soul Master Academy has mentors who specialize in researching abnormal martial soul awakenings; Eldest Sister said she is already asking around. Besides, with our Shen family's connections, you can enter the Mecha Academy in Mingdu whenever you want."

She reached out to ruffle Shen Nanxun's hair, her tone becoming earnest. "Don't listen to the gossip. All that talk about you being a waste is nonsense. You're my brother; don't I know you? You've been sharper than anyone since you were little. You could read at two and recite the Encyclopedia of Martial Souls at three. Even if you can't be a Soul Master, you will never be inferior to anyone in the future."

Shen Nanxun listened quietly, a surge of warmth rising in his heart.

"Alright, alright, I'm going to send a message to Eldest Sister. She'll be so happy to know you're awake." Shen Xing was a whirlwind of a person and immediately set off to use the soul guidance communicator.

The room fell silent. Shen Nanxun lay on the bed, his mind still somewhat muddled. He struggled to recall what had happened.

"Qian Renxue?"

Why did he remember seeing Qian Renxue? She had even said something to him—something about becoming a soul spirit, it seemed.

At this thought, Shen Nanxun raised a hand to rub his temples, his lips curling into a self-deprecating arc.

It must have been a dream.

This was the era of the Dragon Kings, not twenty thousand years ago; how could he possibly see Qian Renxue? With his current talent, it would be difficult enough to even meet the "Wisdom of the Ages," the Silver Dragon King.

Let alone becoming her soul spirit.

Besides, he didn't even have a martial soul—where would he get a soul spirit?

It was likely that his memories from before he transmigrated had left a deep impression of Qian Renxue, and his brain had haphazardly pieced together fragmented information while he was unconscious, conjuring up a golden-haired, purple-eyed savior. That was perfectly normal.

Shen Nanxun lowered his hand and stared at the ceiling, unable to tell if he felt disappointed or relieved.

It really was just a dream.

He sighed softly, preparing to close his eyes and rest a while longer.

But just then, a voice echoed in his mind.

"Awake?"

Shen Nanxun's eyes snapped open, every hair on his body standing on end.

He whipped his head around, scanning the entire hospital room.

Empty!

Damn it! If there was no one here, who was talking?

Did Douluo Continent have ghosts too?

"Who is it?" Shen Nanxun's voice was tight.

There was no response.

He held his breath, waiting for several heartbeats, but the room remained quiet, save for the distant sound of the sea breeze outside the window.

Auditory hallucination?

Shen Nanxun exhaled slowly, letting his body sink back into the pillows. It seemed his injuries hadn't fully healed, and his brain wasn't functioning clearly.

The moment this thought crossed his mind, his brain suddenly felt heavy.

It wasn't the sensation of dizziness or fatigue.

It was the feeling of being pulled from within, as if an invisible hand had gripped his very consciousness and was dragging it out of his body.

Shen Nanxun had no time to struggle before his vision went black.

After a brief sensation of weightlessness, his feet suddenly touched solid ground.

Shen Nanxun steadied himself, lifted his head, and froze in place.

This was not the hospital room.

He was standing in the middle of an infinite void. Beneath his feet was a surface of water as calm as a mirror, a thin layer that barely covered his ankles, sending out light, shallow ripples with every step he took.

There was no sky above. Looking into the distance, the void stretched out in all directions where water met the heavens.

Not far ahead of him, at the source of that halo of light, stood a person.

Six golden wings, a long palace-style dress, golden hair, and violet eyes.

"Qian Renxue!"

Shen Nanxun blurted the name out almost subconsciously. After all, he had just been thinking about her, and seeing someone with these exact features appear before him made the name slip out before he could stop it.

Qian Renxue did not find this strange; after all, she had already told Shen Nanxun her name back on that day.

With that, the peerless beauty stepped forward, her golden high heels clicking softly as she approached.

"Nice to meet you... well, let's call it that. I am Qian Renxue, the Angel God, and more importantly... your Soul Spirit!"

She stood before Shen Nanxun, her cold, clear eyes fixed on him. Her red lips parted slightly as she recounted the very thing he had just deemed impossible.

The two faced each other at close range.

Shen Nanxun stared at the Angel God, his brain racing to digest everything happening before him.

After a long moment, he asked slowly, "Why did you choose me?"

"It wasn't me who chose you." Qian Renxue's voice was cool and detached. "It was you who chose us. You could say that, according to the current understanding of human Spirit Masters, your Spirit is a Soul Spirit, and we are the manifestations of that Spirit."

Shen Nanxun pondered for a moment, catching the key point: "Us?"

"Yes." Qian Renxue nodded slightly. Her golden wings unfurled, and she drifted lightly onto a seat, crossing her legs and resting her chin on her hand, looking lazy and carefree.

"Within your body reside five Soul Spirits. They will gradually awaken as your Spirit Power level increases. One will awaken every twenty levels, and your first twenty levels—your first Soul Spirit—is me."

"The Angel God, Qian Renxue!"

Shen Nanxun fell silent for a moment, processing the information.

Five Soul Spirits. One awakening every twenty levels. The first was the Angel God, Qian Renxue.

He raised his head, looking directly into those violet eyes, and asked the most crucial question: "Who are the other four?"

"I don't know."

Qian Renxue leaned in slightly, her beautiful face drawing closer as her red lips parted. "But I can tell you one thing for certain: the other four are no weaker than I am. At the very least, they are all deities."

"Deities..." Shen Nanxun chewed on the word, unable to suppress a surge of restless excitement in his heart.

"Tsk..." Qian Renxue clicked her tongue, curious. "You little guy, aren't you even a little excited to see a deity? Or perhaps you have some words of worship you'd like to share? I am the Angel God, a figure existing only in legends."

She truly wanted to see that natural, star-struck excitement on Shen Nanxun's face.

"I suppose I do have some," Shen Nanxun nodded slightly, as if remembering something.

"Oh? Let's hear it."

Qian Renxue leaned forward, closing the distance.

"You never beat Tang San."

"..."

"You..." Qian Renxue gritted her teeth hard, barely suppressing the urge to give Shen Nanxun a sound thrashing. She squeezed a sentence through her teeth, "Is there nothing else?"

"There is, there is," Shen Nanxun nodded like a chicken pecking at rice.

"That's more like it," Qian Renxue huffed, her mood settling.

"Speak."

"Tang San beat you."

"******"

The profanity was high-grade.

"Alright, back to the point." After venting her frustration, Qian Renxue clapped her hands, her tone turning serious once more. "When you reach level ten and level twenty, I will bestow upon you a Spirit Ring each, both based on my own abilities."

"So, cultivate well. You're only at level two Spirit Power right now."

"Okay." Shen Nanxun rubbed the large bump swelling on his head and replied, then asked with some confusion, "That... Sister Xue, I can call you that, right?"

"Of course." She lifted her snow-white neck, clearly pleased by the address. She had finally heard something sensible come out of this little guy's mouth.

"Since my Spirit sounds so powerful, why am I only at level two Spirit Power?"

Even though the same Spirit could result in different innate Spirit Power for different people, his Spirit sounded so strong that it shouldn't be limited to level two.

It didn't make sense.

"Ahem." Qian Renxue coughed lightly, turning her face away with a shifty gaze. "It's time for you to leave."

Before Shen Nanxun could pose his next question, she waved her hand and sent him out of his spiritual sea.

"Whew—"

Qian Renxue let out a sigh of relief, though the corners of her lips curled into a smile.

"What did I do wrong? I only absorbed a tiny, tiny bit of your Spirit Power. It was only eighteen levels, and besides, I couldn't have saved you if I hadn't."

She arched her beautiful brows and whispered to herself, "Come to think of it, being a Soul Spirit is actually quite interesting. Perhaps one day in the future, you really will be able to help me return to my throne as a deity, and then... beat Tang San to a pulp!"