You Haven't Formally Taken a Master Yet?

"Thank you, Senior."

After accepting the teacup, Chu Yan politely thanked her.

Leng Yaozhu lifted her teacup and took a small sip, but her gaze never left the boy in the moon-white robe across from her.

She wasn't staring at him deliberately, but with her keen eye, even a casual glance was enough to take in nearly every detail about him.

"Six years old?" She set down her teacup, her tone casual, as if they were simply chatting.

"Mm. I just turned six recently," Chu Yan answered honestly.

"How long ago did you awaken?"

"Half a month."

At that, Leng Yaozhu gave a slight nod. Her fingertip traced the rim of her teacup as she said, "Your spiritual power reached the Spirit Connection Realm in just half a month. That's not a common pace."

Chu Yan didn't answer. He simply listened quietly. At Leng Yaozhu's level, it wouldn't be difficult for her to see his spiritual power realm.

Since she had gone out of her way to keep him here, the Spirit Connection Realm clearly hadn't surprised her. There was probably another reason she'd brought it up.

Sure enough, Leng Yaozhu continued.

"But your spiritual power is secondary. I'm more curious about something else."

She looked up at him, a hint of curiosity in her gaze. It wasn't sharp, but it still gave him the feeling that she could see right through him.

"There's a fluctuation of Soul Power around you, and it's already exceeded level ten. But the Spirit Pagoda's records show no recent Soul Spirit acquisition under your name."

Chu Yan wasn't surprised to hear that.

In this era, Soul Masters had only two ways to obtain a Soul Ring. One was to hunt Soul Beasts, but the Star Dou Great Forest was surrounded on all sides, so that clearly wasn't an option.

The other was to obtain a Soul Spirit from the Spirit Pagoda. After all, the Spirit Pagoda had a complete monopoly on Soul Spirits, and anyone who obtained one there had to leave a record.

He hadn't been to the Spirit Pagoda since awakening, and there was no way to hide that from someone of Leng Yaozhu's stature.

If only he'd known to go to the Spirit Pagoda and buy a hundred-year Soul Spirit. That would have left a record, so no one would wonder how he'd obtained his Soul Ring. He'd been careless—but it didn't matter.

He hadn't planned to conceal it. He'd thought it through already: when dealing with someone like Leng Yaozhu, trying to cover things up would only raise more suspicion.

She was experienced and knowledgeable. What kind of unusual Martial Soul or rare talent hadn't she seen?

Rather than invent a lie full of holes, it was better to be honest to a reasonable extent.

As long as he gave her a plausible explanation, she'd most likely treat him as a special case.

After all, she wasn't the sort of person who would covet someone else's Martial Soul. That much was clear from her portrayal in the original story. Though her loyalties were complicated, she acted with integrity. She wasn't like Qiangu Dongfeng, who would stop at nothing to achieve his goals.

"To be honest, Senior, I haven't come to the Spirit Pagoda to obtain a Soul Spirit."

As he spoke, Chu Yan rose to his feet.

He walked to a slightly more spacious patch of floor in the center of the reception room, then released his Martial Soul.

Humm...

A moment later, the dark-gold Yan Divine Weapon appeared in his hand. Mysterious, ancient patterns flowed across its one-and-a-half-meter length, and a sharp, domineering aura silently spread through the cramped reception room.

Then a deep-yellow Soul Ring rose from beneath his feet, floating around him as it slowly revolved.

Leng Yaozhu's gaze paused.

Deep yellow?

Her eyes lingered on the Soul Ring for two breaths, then narrowed slightly.

A First Soul Ring with a limit of seven to eight hundred years was already outrageous for a six-year-old child.

More outrageous still, his Soul Power and spiritual power fluctuations both indicated that he had reached this state on his own, without absorbing any external power.

She could tell at a glance that the energy in the Soul Ring was extremely pure, without a trace of impurity. It was so closely connected to Chu Yan's Martial Soul that they seemed joined by flesh and blood.

She had only seen that kind of state in one circumstance: Soul Beast Transformation, when a Soul Beast condensed a Soul Ring on its own.

But by her perception, Chu Yan had no trace of a Soul Beast's aura. He was entirely human.

Leng Yaozhu's tone was calm, though a hint of curiosity remained as she asked, "How did you get this Soul Ring?"

Holding the Yan Divine Weapon, Chu Yan met her gaze without flinching. "To be honest, Senior, my Martial Soul condensed this Soul Ring on its own."

"Condensed on its own?"

At that, Leng Yaozhu's brows shifted ever so slightly.

She understood the term, of course, but understanding something and seeing it for herself were two different things.

As far as she knew, the only ones capable of condensing Soul Rings on their own were Soul Beasts after transforming into humans. Human Martial Souls had never grown Soul Rings by themselves.

A divine-bestowed Soul Ring required a deity to grant it. A Soul Spirit had to be hunted or purchased and bonded. But self-condensation... To put it kindly, this was a rare stroke of fortune. To put it plainly, she'd never heard of such a thing.

"What's your Martial Soul called?" Leng Yaozhu set down her teacup and leaned forward just a little, as if she'd suddenly become interested.

"Yan Divine Weapon," Chu Yan replied.

"Yan Divine Weapon..." Leng Yaozhu repeated the name. She'd never heard of such a Martial Soul in history. Her gaze returned to the dark-gold staff, examining it from end to end.

She looked closely. At her level of spiritual power, she could sense that something more lay within the staff, some energy structure compressed to its utmost limit.

The structure was extremely complex—so complex that even she couldn't fully analyze it right away.

"A weapon-type Martial Soul?" she asked.

"Mm. It's a staff." Chu Yan nodded, then thought for a moment and added, "But it can split into smaller forms."

"Split?" Leng Yaozhu raised an eyebrow.

Chu Yan didn't hesitate. With a thought, countless fine lines appeared across the Yan Divine Weapon's surface. Five palm-sized golden swords flew out through the cracks and floated around him. Their blades were covered in mysterious patterns, radiating a keen, piercing edge.

Leng Yaozhu's gaze passed over the five golden swords one by one.

Her expression barely changed, but her attention had clearly sharpened.

After a moment, she nodded slightly, leaned back against the sofa, and took another sip of tea, as if digesting what she'd just seen.

The room fell quiet for a few breaths.

Then Leng Yaozhu spoke, her tone gentler than before. "A Yan Divine Weapon, a Soul Ring condensed on its own, a First Soul Ring of around seven hundred and fifty years, spiritual power in the Spirit Connection Realm... This little fellow has more secrets than any prodigy I've ever met."

Chu Yan didn't answer. He simply drew the Yan Divine Weapon back into his body.

Leng Yaozhu glanced at him. The corner of her mouth curved slightly, the smile so faint it vanished in an instant. It was hard to tell whether it conveyed approval or amazement.

"You're quite honest. I thought you'd make up some excuse to brush me off. Your father should have taught you how to deal with questions like this," Leng Yaozhu said with a smile.

Chu Yan shook his head helplessly. "There's no point lying in front of you, Senior."

"Indeed, there isn't." Leng Yaozhu set down her teacup and looked at him again, a more serious expression in her eyes. She continued, "Since you're willing to be honest with me, I'll be direct as well. I am interested in you. I've never seen a Martial Soul like yours, and I've never heard of anyone being able to condense a Soul Ring on their own."

Chu Yan listened quietly without interrupting her.

Leng Yaozhu studied him for two or three breaths, as if weighing something.

After a moment, she asked, "You're only six years old. You haven't formally taken a master yet, have you?"