Ten-Winged Angel Martial Soul

Meanwhile, deep within the imperial palace.

"You may all withdraw."

"Yes! Your Highness."

Inside the resplendent bedchamber, the youth dressed in gold-and-white finery dismissed the palace maids, the door clicking softly shut behind them.

As the gauze curtains fluttered, the crystal chandelier cast the youth's tall, upright silhouette against the wall. After a while, the youth set aside the book in hand, extinguished the light, and removed the outer robe before climbing into bed.

Listening to the steady rhythm of breathing within the room, the guards stationed outside slowly retreated.

In the darkness, the youth opened their eyes, a flash of coldness cutting through golden pupils.

"Ha..." A soft chuckle escaped their lips as they rose from the bed and activated the secret chamber hidden in the wall.

Descending the dark staircase, they reached a small, cramped room at the very bottom.

Seeing the visitor, Chrysanthemum Douluo immediately knelt on one knee. "Young Master! The item has been brought."

Chrysanthemum Douluo stood and stepped aside, revealing a small medicine vial resting on a tea table.

"I must trouble Uncle Chrysanthemum to keep watch outside for me. Notify me immediately if anyone approaches." The youth's voice was gentle and courteous.

"Rest assured, Young Master." Chrysanthemum Douluo nodded and exited the secret chamber.

The golden-haired, golden-eyed youth sat down slowly, white gloves adorned with gold thread covering their hands. They picked up the vial, a trace of chill rising in their eyes. "Breaking the limits of a martial soul? I certainly hope so."

Prying the stopper open with a thumb, they swallowed the pill without hesitation; the greenish-blue pellet slid down their throat, leaving a faint, sweet aftertaste.

The youth watched their own body, waiting for a change, but their brow furrowed slightly.

"What is happening?" In the next second, a wave of dizziness washed over them, their vision blurring with double images. Before they could react, they collapsed to the floor as an inexplicable power surged from their abdomen throughout their entire body.

They couldn't help but let out a soft, comfortable moan. The immense power tore through their disguise, revealing skin as pure as snow and long golden hair that spilled across the floor. Unable to bear the sensation, the girl bit her lower lip, sat cross-legged, and began to absorb the medicinal efficacy.

Behind her, the Seraphim martial soul manifested on its own, its golden radiance illuminating the pitch-black basement. Flowers and grasses sprouted from the soil, instantly transforming the cellar into a world of flora.

At the tips of the wings, a pair of snow-white pinions broke free from the constraints of her bloodline, extending bit by bit, followed immediately by another smaller pair emerging.

After a long while, Qian Renxue slowly opened her eyes. She stood up and looked at the Ten-Winged Angel wings behind her, her beautiful brows knitting together slightly.

"The dosage wasn't enough!" Qian Renxue suppressed the urge to curse.

Although she now possessed the Ten-Winged Angel martial soul, the tenth wing had not fully unfurled; it had merely sprouted.

And then... the damn medicine had run out.

"Young Master..." Chrysanthemum Douluo hurried in, only to freeze at the sight of the basement filled with flowers and his Young Master, who had shed her disguise and was wearing a dark expression. What had happened?

"The Young Master's martial soul?" Chrysanthemum Douluo stared in disbelief at the eight-winged angel.

The issue was that the tenth wing was so small it was completely hidden beneath the other eight.

"What is it?" Qian Renxue retracted her wings and used her spirit bone disguise skill to transform back into Xue Qinghe.

"Emperor Xue Ye is heading this way."

"Understood." Qian Renxue stepped toward the stairs, then paused halfway, turning her head slightly. "Investigate who sold that Evolution Pill."

Chrysanthemum Douluo was surprised but bowed his head. "Yes, Young Master."

The morning sun shone through the window into the room. The roses beneath the windowsill were in full bloom, and a magpie flew inside to peck at the snacks on the table.

Qingxi massaged her throbbing temples and slowly opened her eyes. Sunlight fell upon her face, casting shadows from her dark lashes, her obsidian eyes clouded with gloom.

"The Heavenly Dao, is it..." She remembered that her Nascent Soul tribulation had indeed been exceptionally fierce. If not for that unlucky hundred-thousand-year spirit beast sharing a portion of the tribulation, she might not have survived.

She had never triggered a tribulation during her Foundation Establishment or Golden Core stages, not until the Nascent Soul stage...

Little Yanzi hadn't faced a tribulation during her Foundation Establishment either; she had assumed that cultivators in this world didn't face such things.

Or perhaps, cultivation below the Nascent Soul stage simply didn't attract the attention of the Heavenly Dao.

All she needed to do now was break through the bottleneck and survive the Spirit Severing tribulation to determine if that person was real or a fake.

Qingxi sat up on the bed and immersed herself once more in the world of cultivation.

The pale red spirit of the Strange Flower flickered in her sea of consciousness, as if foretelling something.

At the same time, a silver-haired youth appeared within a Spirit Hall branch. The youth wore white robes and appeared to be sixteen or seventeen years old, his clothing adorned with an ice-arrow emblem. His brows were like silver snow, his eyes like a galaxy, and a patch of frost covered his left cheek.

"Did a little thing come by here a few days ago? She has a lotus birthmark on her forehead." Guang Ling held up a portrait and questioned the elderly gatekeeper. The image depicted a five- or six-year-old girl with black hair and eyes, and a single crimson dot between her brows.

"This is..." The old man adjusted his glasses and leaned in to examine it. "It seems to be this lass. Black hair and eyes, yes, that's her. A very cute little girl, seemed to be a Great Spirit Master."

"Of course she's cute, I don't need you to tell me that." Guang Ling lifted his chin proudly, folded the portrait, and asked, "Did she say where she was going?"

Six years. A full six years without a single word from that little radish.

They had clearly agreed that he would come to pick her up in half a year, but by the time he arrived, she was long gone.

If she hadn't registered as a spirit master at Spirit Hall six years ago—with an innate full spirit power of level twenty and an unknown martial soul—he wouldn't have had a single lead. Such talent had even shocked the main headquarters of Spirit Hall.

Six years had passed since then. Such brilliant, peerless talent, rivaling even the Young Master, yet she had never appeared on the continent again.

Guang Ling had been searching for her for six years. When he discovered recently that the child's stipend had been collected, he had rushed over without stopping, only to miss her once again.

"She didn't say, but someone handled the paperwork; she collected all six years of her stipends," the old man replied.

"Many thanks!" Guang Ling frowned slightly and offered his thanks, then unfurled his Frost Ice Wings and took flight above Soto City.

He looked down at the bustling, prosperous streets below, a layer of frost gathering in his eyes. His thin lips were pressed into a tight line, and an aura of coldness radiated from his entire being.

"Where could she have gone?" The youth lowered his head in thought. As if remembering something, he slowly closed his eyes, his soul power spreading outward as if sensing for something.

After a long while, Guang Ling opened his eyes in disappointment; she was no longer here.

He turned and flew off in another direction.

Two months later.

A powerful aura of life spread throughout the courtyard. Qingxi was startled awake, and seeing the trees and flowers growing wildly inside the house, she realized someone was breaking through and hurriedly set up a barrier to shroud the entire courtyard.

She rose and exited the house, flying into mid-air, only to see the flowers and plants in the yard growing frantically, green vines entangling everything, and towering ancient trees shooting up from the ground. The room she had originally been staying in collapsed with a roar the next second, and not a single part of the courtyard was spared.

Qingxi understood immediately; it was the Azure Wood Heart Method.

At this moment, a green light streaked across the sky, and Dugu Bo, clad in cyan-gold armor, landed on the eaves. Seeing the ruins beneath his feet, he couldn't help but frown, "What happened?"

Fortunately, the Sunset Forest was quite a distance from Tiandou City, so he had rushed back the moment he sensed this strange energy.

"It should be Yan'er breaking through." Qingxi looked at the mass of green vines in the northwest corner, where the vegetation was growing ever more lush. The massive aura of life was causing the plants to grow wildly; if she hadn't used a barrier to isolate the area beforehand, she feared the entire street would have suffered.

"In six years, to be able to refine the Azure Wood Heart Method to the third level is quite rare, though Yan'er's temperament still needs tempering."

"She's breaking through? Doesn't that mean Yan'er is about to form her core?" Dugu Bo asked in surprise.

"Yes." Qingxi nodded. "Those who cultivate the Azure Wood Heart Method will generate massive life energy during a breakthrough, which is of great benefit to the cultivation of the Azure Wood Heart Method. You might as well sit down and absorb it together."

"Will it have any effect on Yan'er?"

"It won't. Rather than letting these plants absorb it, it would be better for you to do so. Once Yan'er finishes her breakthrough, this power will dissipate."

Dugu Bo nodded, landed back on the ground, and sat cross-legged to absorb the surrounding power.

Suddenly, as if sensing something, Qingxi frowned and looked up at the cloudless sky, but there was nothing within her line of sight.

At the same time, at the God Realm Committee.

"Such a pure aura of life..."

A pale green figure appeared before the Star Disk, quietly watching a certain location in the lower realm.