Domain: Throne of Eternal Night

Nibelungen.

Li Yuan slowly opened his eyes, and a dark-gold vertical line flashed through the depths of his pupils, gone in an instant.

He rose to his feet. Two soul rings, black shot through with gold, emerged from beneath him, one encircling the other, steady and heavy.

First ring: ten thousand years.

Second ring: twenty thousand years.

He flexed his wrist, his gaze falling on Di Jun and Long Yuan, who stood side by side in the distance, and the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.

"Let's try something new."

Li Yuan raised his right hand, spread his five fingers, and pressed his palm gently downward.

"Second Soul Skill: Throne of Eternal Night."

With him at the center, a dark-gold circular domain patterned with dragon markings suddenly spread outward. Within a fifty-meter diameter, intricate lines surfaced across the ground, and black mist rose from them, shrouding the entire area in hazy twilight.

The sky seemed to be covered by a pair of invisible giant wings. The light dimmed, and the air filled with a pressure that made the heart tremble.

Di Jun and Long Yuan were enveloped within it.

Long Yuan's brows furrowed sharply.

He could clearly feel that the Nine Nether Burning Heaven Dragon martial soul inside him seemed to have been gripped by the throat. An instinctive shudder surged up from deep in his bloodline, and even the flow of soul power throughout his body became sluggish.

He instinctively urged his soul power to resist, but that suppression was like heavenly might descending into the world, utterly impossible to defy.

All his attributes had dropped by at least ten percent.

Long Yuan's pupils shrank slightly, and his expression changed. "This is... a domain? Master, you awakened a domain-type soul skill with only your second soul ring?"

No sooner had he spoken than Di Jun, beside him, raised his brow slightly and lifted a hand to sense the black mist permeating the surroundings.

"Hmm?"

A wisp of soul power gathered in Di Jun's palm, circulating with exceptional smoothness—more active than usual, even.

He could clearly feel the circulation speed of the Ruins of Time martial soul inside him had increased, as though an additional force had been poured into his entire body.

Li Yuan withdrew his hand. The dark-gold circular domain slowly dispersed, the black mist receded, and the sky returned to clear brightness.

Long Yuan strode forward and said in shock, "Master, what exactly is going on? Why was my martial soul suppressed, with all attributes reduced by at least ten percent, while Di Jun received an enhancement?"

Li Yuan smiled and spoke at an unhurried pace. "This is one of my second soul skills, Throne of Eternal Night. It unfolds a fifty-meter domain centered on me. All dragon-type and beast martial souls will be suppressed, lowering all attributes by ten to thirty percent. Conversely, allies within the domain receive a twenty percent boost to all attributes."

He paused, shook his head with a sigh, and added, "Unfortunately, my soul power level is too low. Right now, I can only maintain it for three minutes at most."

Hearing such a humblebrag, the corner of Long Yuan's mouth twitched.

Three minutes?

In a duel between soul masters, three minutes was already enough to decide victory or defeat.

And this was a domain. Ordinary soul masters might not even touch the threshold of domains even after reaching Soul Sage or Soul Douluo level, yet Master had awakened a godly group-combat skill directly with his second soul ring.

Suppress the enemy, enhance allies—offense and defense in one.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk..." Long Yuan clicked his tongue, and the look he gave Li Yuan held a few more traces of admiration. "Master, if this ability were put on a battlefield, it would be a living strategic weapon."

Di Jun stood to the side and pondered for a moment before suddenly speaking. "Master, this soul skill probably isn't that simple, is it?"

Li Yuan glanced at him and nodded slightly. "You noticed?"

"The domain's range, as well as the degree of suppression and enhancement, should increase as Master's soul power rises."

Li Yuan nodded. "That's right. For every ten levels gained, the range, suppression, and enhancement values each increase by ten percent."

Long Yuan froze, then rapidly did the math in his head.

If he reached Soul Douluo level, level eighty and above, then the suppression and enhancement would approach... ninety percent?

His eyes suddenly widened. "Doesn't that mean when Master reaches Soul Douluo, once the domain opens, the entire enemy side wilts while our entire side takes off? This ability is way too monstrous, isn't it?"

Li Yuan waved a hand. "In theory, yes. But against experts at your level, the effect will still be greatly reduced. In clashes between powerhouses, when the gap in soul power level is too large, domain suppression will also be weakened by cultivation."

Di Jun nodded. "Even so, with Master's current soul power level, here in Soto City, even a Soul Di Jun-level opponent who steps into the domain may not necessarily come out ahead."

Li Yuan drew the two soul rings back into his body. The dark gold in his eyes completely faded, returning to his usual calm.

He rolled his neck, and his joints gave a soft crack.

"All right, that's enough testing." He walked toward the manor's main building. "Let's go see what's happening outside."

Li Yuan crossed the courtyard and headed for the gate. From afar, he saw a long line queued up at the entrance.

Commoners had brought their families with them, holding children and carrying bundles, staring eagerly at the few tables and chairs inside the manor gate.

Mu Sheng sat behind a table. A soul-testing crystal lay before him, and his expression was gentle, though tinged with a little helplessness.

"Martial soul: Blue Silver Grass. Soul power: level one." Mu Sheng lifted a hand. "Next."

A middle-aged man hurried forward holding his son. The child looked about seven or eight, and timidly placed his hand on the crystal.

The crystal lit for an instant, then its faint glow quickly dimmed.

"Martial soul: rolling pin. Soul power... half a level."

Mu Sheng fell silent for a second, then smiled politely.

"Next."

The next little girl skipped forward and pressed her palm to it. The crystal gave off a ring of oily green light.

"Martial soul: stinky tofu. Soul power: level one."

The villagers waiting behind her whispered among themselves, disappointment written all over their faces.

The martial souls awakened one after another were all sorts of bizarre things—"broken-legged stool," "sprouting potato," "singing egg"—all useless martial souls that did not even qualify as chicken ribs.

Li Yuan stood on the steps and watched for a few breaths, then shook his head.

He was just about to turn and leave when his gaze suddenly fixed.

At the end of the line, near the roadside beneath an old locust tree, stood a man.

The man was leaning against the trunk, wearing a wide-brimmed bamboo hat pulled somewhat low, hiding half his face.

A worn gray cloth robe hung loosely on him, its collar open to reveal sharply defined collarbones.

A faint layer of stubble covered his chin, and he had a foxtail grass stem between his lips, the stalk bobbing up and down at the corner of his mouth.

His features were actually well formed, even handsome.

It was just that his lazy air was completely out of place among the honest, simple villagers around him.

He, too, was looking at Li Yuan from beneath the brim of his hat.

Their gazes met across a distance of more than a dozen steps.

Li Yuan studied him for a few seconds.

This man's clothes and bearing... why do they look a little strange?

A cloth robe, a bamboo hat, a grass stem in his mouth—he looked like someone who had walked straight out of a martial arts storybook.

Curiosity stirred in him. Li Yuan stepped down from the stairs, passed through the line, and walked straight to the locust tree.

The man watched Li Yuan approach without dodging or flinching, the foxtail grass at the corner of his mouth tilting upward a little.

Li Yuan stopped in front of him, looked him up and down, then asked, "What's your name?"

The man raised a hand to press down the brim of his bamboo hat, turned his head slightly, and his mouth curved into a lazy arc. He spoke slowly, his voice languid, the last syllable drawn out a little.

"A Liang."