As Heavenly Dao Power circulated, moonlight and starlight filtered through layer upon layer of treetops overhead, turning into streams of pure energy invisible to the naked eye. His eyes absorbed them and transformed them into Soul Power, which slowly flowed into his dantian.
The process was quiet. There were no strange phenomena, no flashes of light, and no energy fluctuations leaking out.
To an outsider, he looked like an ordinary young man sitting in a tree, lost in thought.
In reality, however, the Soul Power within him was growing at a terrifying rate.
Ordinary Soul Masters were limited by their Innate Soul Power when cultivating.
The higher their Innate Soul Power, the longer they could spend meditating effectively each day.
Even with Innate Full Soul Power—that is, Innate Soul Power at level ten—a person could only meditate for six to eight hours a day. Beyond that, the mind grew tired, the body resisted, and the effectiveness of meditation plummeted. Forcing oneself to continue would only backfire.
Qin Chuan wasn't subject to those limits.
Heavenly Dao Power was itself a force above the world's ordinary cultivation systems. Its energy-conversion efficiency far surpassed that of ordinary meditation techniques, and it placed very little strain on the mind.
As long as Qin Chuan wished, he could cultivate nonstop for twenty-four hours a day without needing to rest.
That was what gave him the confidence to spend the night deep in the Star Dou Great Forest.
Other people entered the forest to take risks. He entered to soak in a hot spring. The concentration of heaven-and-earth Soul Power here was countless times higher than outside, making it a natural cultivation sanctuary for him.
Qin Chuan's breathing grew slow and steady.
The night wind slipped through gaps in the canopy, carrying the damp scent of earth. Somewhere in the distance, a Soul Beast let out a low growl. It was muffled, and after traveling several kilometers, little of it remained by the time it reached him.
The insects, on the other hand, never stopped chirping. Their calls came in rhythmic waves.
Immersed in cultivation, Qin Chuan's awareness gradually blurred at the edges.
He could feel the Soul Power in his dantian filling up bit by bit, like water steadily pouring into a huge tank. The level rose slowly—an inch, two inches, three.
The first night passed, and Qin Chuan didn't move an inch.
The second day passed. The light in the forest shifted from dim to bright, then from bright back to dim.
The insects changed, and so did the birds. A thousand-year flying Soul Beast, oblivious to danger, swept over his head without even glancing at him.
On the third day, an almost imperceptible hum sounded in Qin Chuan's dantian. Only he could feel it. He had broken through the threshold.
The level 55 bottleneck shattered, and Soul Power surged into a new tier.
Level 56!
The corner of Qin Chuan's mouth twitched. One level every three days—search through the entire history of Douluo Continent, and there probably wouldn't be a second person like him.
Even for the genius direct disciples of the Upper Three Sects, with the finest heavenly treasures and the top cultivation methods, gaining one level in ten days after reaching Soul King would already make them peerless talents.
One level every three days—even Qin Chuan thought it was a little monstrous.
However, after several rounds of Soul Hunting and absorbing Soul Rings, he had already reached the late stages of level 55.
On the morning of the third day, Qin Chuan was meditating with his eyes closed when the perception of his Six Paths Reincarnation Eye caught a faint, unusual disturbance.
Eleven o'clock, about nine kilometers away.
Someone was fighting.
The clash of metal, the muffled booms of Soul Skills erupting, and several people shouting all mixed together.
Qin Chuan didn't open his eyes. His mental power extended toward the sounds, and the Six Paths Reincarnation Eye automatically magnified the scene in that area.
A valley. Its entrance faced south, with steep cliffs on either side. In the middle of the valley, a huge Soul Beast was rampaging.
Three young people were attacking it.
Qin Chuan first swept his gaze over the Soul Beast, then turned it to the three people.
He saw the first one.
A woman.
Qin Chuan's mental power locked onto her position.
She wore a tight-fitting purple-red dress. The fabric clung to her body, clearly outlining her waist and hips. Her neckline plunged low, and the patch of skin beneath her collarbones was dazzlingly white. The swell of her chest was bound by the dress's fabric, trembling faintly with each breath.
A slender silver chain circled her waist, fastened at its narrowest point and cinching her already slim figure into an almost unbelievable curve.
Her face was lovely, too.
Her features were delicate, her brows gracefully curved, and the corners of her eyes tilted slightly upward with a natural, alluring charm. Her lips were full and a little on the plump side; when pressed together, they seemed to hold a hint of moisture. Her chin was pointed, her neck long. Her long, purple-black hair was casually pinned up at the back with a silver hairpin, and a few loose strands dangled beside her ears, blown by the wind to cling to her cheeks.
With a face like that, she didn't have to make a single expression to draw a few extra glances.
Hu Liena, the direct disciple of Bibi Dong, the Pope of Spirit Hall.
Qin Chuan's gaze continued to the side.
Just behind Hu Liena on her left, a young man in black was half-crouched on the ground, a crescent-shaped short blade gripped in each hand. The blades were narrow and thin, their curves like new moons, and a layer of dark silver light flowed across their surfaces.
Xie Yue.
He was tall and slender, with a cold expression and tightly pressed lips. His jawline was sharply defined. His eyes remained fixed on the Soul Beast ahead, and every muscle in his body was coiled to strike.
The other person was on the western side of the valley.
The boy wore a fiery red outfit and had short, dark red hair that looked as though it had been singed by fire. His skin was dark, and his features were hard, with high cheekbones and a prominent brow.
Yan.
One of Spirit Hall's core disciples, with the Flame Overlord Martial Soul.
But these three weren't what truly caught Qin Chuan's attention.
His mental power continued to spread outward. Beside a large boulder at the entrance to the valley, he found a fourth person.
A middle-aged man in a plain white robe, of average height and slightly slender build, with refined features and hair neatly tied atop his head. A few strands at his temples had already turned white. He leaned against the cliff wall with his arms crossed over his chest, looking relaxed, as if he were simply watching the show.
But Qin Chuan's Samsara Eye clearly saw the unfathomable Soul Power within him.
Level 95, a Titled Douluo.
Qin Chuan's heart clenched.
Yue Guan, Chrysanthemum Douluo, one of Spirit Hall's guardian Douluos.
His Martial Soul was the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum, a top-tier immortal-grade Martial Soul of the Power Attack System.
His ninth Soul Skill, Chrysanthemum Withered, Ground Full of Wounds, was said to cover a radius of several hundred meters, wounding anyone it touched.
Qin Chuan quickly reined in the fluctuations of his mental power, shrinking his perception range until it was just large enough to observe the valley. He didn't want a Titled Douluo to discover him spying.
Although his Six Paths Reincarnation Eye's concealment was already as perfect as could be, caution was best when facing a level 95 powerhouse.
Crouched in the canopy, Qin Chuan silently sensed the Soul Power Levels of the group through gaps in the leaves.
Hu Liena, level 52, a Soul King.
Xie Yue, level 54, a Soul King.
Yan, level 50, standing right at the threshold between Soul Ancestor and Soul King.
They were all quite strong.
These three were core disciples carefully cultivated by Spirit Hall, with top-tier resources and cultivation methods. Their combat experience, coordination with their Soul Skills, and battle sense were all excellent.
"They're hunting a Soul Beast for Yan." Qin Chuan understood after just a couple of looks.
Yan was level 50 and needed his fifth Soul Ring to break through to Soul King. The Soul Beast's attributes and age suited his Flame Overlord Martial Soul perfectly.
Xie Yue and Hu Liena were handling suppression and support, while Yue Guan was there as backup.
Qin Chuan decided to observe from the shadows.