Starry Sky Attribute

(ps: Thanks to a correction from one of our reader brothers, the Xu siblings' Innate Soul Power has been changed to level ten; the attack boost of the protagonist's First Soul Skill has been changed to 250%; the storage device Leng Yaozhu gave him has been changed to three hundred cubic meters. Please take note.)

As soon as the spirit fruit landed in his hand, a cool sensation seeped through his palm and into his skin, silently spreading along his meridians. It was as if a clear, cool spring had washed over him, dispelling much of the exhaustion that had built up after days of staff training.

Chu Yan raised the fruit to eye level and examined it closely.

Its skin was a deep blue-purple, covered in fine silver-white patterns that looked like threads slowly drifting beneath the surface. A faint, crisp fragrance wafted from the fruit, and just one breath of it left him feeling refreshed.

He had read about this kind of spirit fruit in the Chu Clan's Soul Beast compendium and its books on spirit plants.

The Deep Orchid Spirit-Focusing Fruit was a rare spirit plant that grew in the depths of ten-thousand-year-old icy pools in the Far North. It flowered once every five hundred years and bore fruit once every thousand. Each fruit took fifteen hundred years to mature.

It nourished spiritual power and strengthened the foundation of one's spiritual awareness. It provided no direct boost to Soul Power cultivation, but was exceptionally effective at increasing spiritual power.

It was almost never seen on the market. On the rare occasions it appeared at auction, it was usually snapped up at a high price by major powers or top Soul Masters.

Even two years of the Chu Clan's income would hardly be enough to secure one of these spirit fruits at auction. Yet his teacher had casually put six fruits of this caliber in her storage bracelet, and the other three were just as valuable.

So this was the wealth of a Limit Douluo?

Chu Yan turned the Deep Orchid Spirit-Focusing Fruit over in his hand, inspecting it, but didn't rush to eat it. Instead, he carefully put it back into the bracelet's constant-temperature storage space.

The storage space inside the bracelet could block out the outside temperature, preserving the fruit and slowing the loss of its medicinal effects as much as possible. He decided to take it during his evening meditation, when he could absorb it more effectively.

He sent his awareness into the storage space again and examined the other items one by one, apart from the nine spirit fruits.

Along with the two Deep Orchid Spirit-Focusing Fruits, seven other spirit fruits of various sizes and colors rested quietly in a corner of the storage space.

Three were deep red, their skins covered in fine golden patterns. They felt warm to the touch and gave off faint fluctuations of fire-attribute Soul Power. These were Crimson Flame Blood Fruits.

They were used specifically to temper the body and strengthen the blood and qi, and were exceptionally effective at improving physical constitution. They were particularly suitable for Soul Masters with Power Attack System tool Martial Souls.

The next two were a vivid emerald green, shaped like beads carved from jade. Their skins were smooth as mirrors, and when held, they let off a gentle vitality that slowly seeped through the palm. These were probably Azure Wood Spirit Fruits.

Their medicinal properties were mild, focusing on nourishing the meridians and strengthening one's foundation. They were suitable as restorative spirit fruits for daily conditioning.

The last two were both silver-white, each about the size of a baby's fist. Their skins were translucent, and within each fruit, strands of silvery light slowly swirled, like condensed starlight sealed inside its shell.

These were Star Marrow Fruits, exceptionally rare spirit fruits that increased spiritual power. They were even more precious than Deep Orchid Spirit-Focusing Fruits.

Legend had it that they could grow only at leyline nodes rich in stellar energy. They bore fruit once every five hundred years, with only three to five fruits each time.

From what he had read, these fruits greatly increased spiritual power. In addition, they also improved physical strength.

Two Deep Orchid Spirit-Focusing Fruits, two Star Marrow Fruits, and the few other spirit fruits with varied effects that he had seen earlier—nine fruits in total.

Chu Yan withdrew his awareness from the storage space. His teacher's welcome gift was far more generous than he had initially thought.

She had only just taken him on as a personal disciple, and they hadn't even held a formal apprenticeship ceremony, yet she had casually filled the storage bracelet with so many things.

That showed just how highly Leng Yaozhu regarded him, while also offering a glimpse of the tremendous resources she had at her disposal.

But Chu Yan didn't bask in his excitement for long. He simply committed the fruits' types and effects to memory, then turned his attention elsewhere.

Night gradually deepened. Chu Yan sat cross-legged in his room and circulated his Soul Power through his body. Only after confirming that it flowed smoothly did he take the blue-purple Deep Orchid Spirit-Focusing Fruit from his bracelet.

Holding the fruit, he wrapped its skin in Soul Power and slowly dissolved it with a stream of exceedingly pure, gentle energy.

Deep blue-purple juice seeped through his palm and into his skin. An intensely crisp chill, like an icy spring, surged into his meridians and swiftly spread through his entire body.

Chu Yan closed his eyes and focused all his attention on directing his spiritual power.

The cool current flowed slowly through his meridians before finally converging at the point between his brows. It was as though something deep in his mind had given a gentle tremor.

Nourished by the cool sensation, his spiritual power grew more active. The parts that had previously felt a little sluggish gradually opened up, as if a slow-moving stream had been given a wider channel.

The process lasted about fifteen minutes.

When the chill had finally merged completely with his spiritual power, Chu Yan slowly opened his eyes. He could clearly feel that his spiritual power had undergone a qualitative improvement.

It had increased by more than half compared to before. And the Deep Orchid Spirit-Focusing Fruit wasn't a one-time-use item; its medicinal effects would continue to release slowly over the next few days. Its full benefits wouldn't become apparent until then.

Chu Yan crushed the remaining peel with Soul Power and cleaned it away. Then he closed his eyes again and circulated his Soul Power through his body, consolidating the changes brought by the spirit fruit.

Two more days passed in the blink of an eye.

The morning of September 2.

After finishing his morning exercises, showering, and changing clothes, Chu Yan heard a light patter of footsteps outside the courtyard.

"Brother Yan!"

Her voice arrived before she did. It could only be the adorable Xu Xiaoyan.

Chu Yan had just stood up when a figure in a pale blue dress darted into his courtyard.

Xu Xiaoyan looked especially excited today. Her little face was rosy, and her twin ponytails bounced behind her as she clutched a small ice-blue booklet in her hand, as if she had just received it from somewhere.

"What's got you so happy?" Chu Yan greeted her with a smile.

"Brother Yan, look!"

Xu Xiaoyan ran up to him, held the booklet in front of his eyes, and opened it, proudly waving it as she said, "I went to the Spirit Pagoda yesterday!"

Chu Yan glanced down. It was a copy of a Soul Spirit Contract, with the Spirit Pagoda's insignia and the Xu Clan's crest printed on the cover. Inside was a clear written record and a pale blue Soul Spirit mark.

"You got a Soul Spirit?" Chu Yan raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise in his voice.

"Mm-hmm!" Xu Xiaoyan nodded hard, her face full of barely contained pride. "Dad took me there yesterday morning. He said my Soul Power had stabilized, so I could absorb my First Soul Ring."

As she spoke, she took two steps back, drew a deep breath, and released her Martial Soul.

An ice-blue staff appeared in her hand. Its shaft was clear as ice, and a faint mist drifted across its surface. It was just like the one he had seen on the day of her awakening.

Next, a Yellow Soul Ring rose from beneath her feet and slowly revolved around her.

Chu Yan's gaze lingered on the Yellow Soul Ring.

Its color was pure, putting it within the range of a normal Hundred-Year Soul Ring. It was around five hundred years old.

For someone like Xu Xiaoyan, who had Innate Full Soul Power, a First Soul Ring of this age was well within her limits.

"It's four hundred and eighty years old."

Xu Xiaoyan lifted her chin proudly and continued, "It took ages to find the right one. The Spirit Pagoda staff said this Soul Spirit was a perfect match for ice-type staff Martial Souls. Dad said I was lucky to catch the latest batch of Soul Spirits, and this one even has a trace of the Starry Sky Attribute."

"Oh, right, Brother Yan. I feel like there's something different about my Martial Soul. After fusing with this Soul Spirit, I feel like I have the Starry Sky Attribute too."

At that, Chu Yan's gaze lingered a moment longer on the ice-blue staff in her hand. Then the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

"Could it be that your Martial Soul isn't the Ice Staff traditionally passed down in your family, but one with an additional Starry Sky Attribute?"