Spirit Devouring Carving Knife Obtained, Ghost Nana's Matter

Dinner was prepared by Yi Hongchen and Liu Yueming together. It was obvious neither of them had cooked in a long time, and they spent nearly two hours busying themselves in the kitchen.

Although Jing Hongchen had returned, seeing Yi Hongchen and Liu Yueming cooking, he was in no rush to speak. Instead, he first found Xiao Hongchen, Meng Hongchen, and Yan Hongchen and gave them their academy ID cards.

He then explained which classes they would be attending, some of the academy's rules, and guided them through things like the student handbook and campus map. They could take their time getting familiar with everything.

When the dishes were brought out, Yan Hongchen took a look. They looked quite presentable. The family gathered around the dining table, with Jing Hongchen seated at the head. The lighting was warm, bowls and chopsticks lightly clinked together, and low conversation and soft laughter occasionally drifted through the room.

After dinner, Liu Yueming gathered the dishes and entered the kitchen. Jing Hongchen watched her back, and only after confirming that the kitchen door was tightly shut did he take a specially made storage ring from his robes.

The ring was entirely black, its surface engraved with intricate sealing formations. Faint dark-red lines of light moved between the formation patterns. At a glance, it was clearly designed specifically to store certain "not very stable" objects.

He placed the ring on the table and lightly tapped its surface with a fingertip. A dim gleam flashed, and an item emerged from within it.

The object was very small, roughly half a foot long and no thicker than a finger. It tapered in a streamlined shape from wide at the bottom to narrow at the top, ending in an extremely sharp-looking point, while its base held a blade about half an inch wide.

It was ancient and black, with faint decorative patterns carved across its surface. It exuded a subtle, archaic air, but also an indescribable gloom, as though it carried resentment and hatred that had settled over a thousand years.

Jing Hongchen set the carving knife on the table without touching it directly. His gaze fell upon the black blade, and he spoke in a steady, low voice. "This is the Spirit Devouring Carving Knife that Little Yan wanted."

He paused before continuing, "Although this Soul Master Tournament was held in the Heaven Dou Empire, I still had people keep an eye on the situation in the Star Luo Empire."

"In order to equip the various academies within its borders with soul tools, the Star Luo Empire held an auction. This carving knife was among the lots. I had someone purchase it and secretly bring it back together with Old Ma when he returned."

Yi Hongchen's gaze settled on the carving knife, and his brows drew together slightly. Though he did not possess a ranked carving knife himself, ordinary carving knives could still produce excellent engraving results when paired with his martial soul.

But this carving knife gave him an entirely different feeling. It did not possess the docility of a tool, but the defiance of a weapon—along with a trace of... malice.

Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen had initially merely leaned closer out of curiosity for a look, but their expressions changed in less than a moment. It was far too evil.

Yan Hongchen, however, only watched quietly for several breaths, his gaze steady and his expression unchanged. He could sense a faint, indistinct will stirring within the carving knife, but when it collided with his spiritual power, it was like water crashing against a reef, silently retreating.

Jing Hongchen took in all of this and swiftly returned the carving knife to the storage ring. The sealing formation lit up once more, completely locking away that gloomy aura.

"The Spirit Devouring Carving Knife has a history of more than three thousand years." Jing Hongchen pushed the ring a little farther away, leaning back slightly against his chair.

"Three thousand years ago, it appeared in our empire. Its creator was a stunningly gifted soul engineer, said to have eventually reached Rank 9."

He paused, his eyes growing somewhat distant. "Furthermore, he was not merely a soul engineer. He was also a terrifying evil soul master. Three thousand years ago, he once brought bloody chaos to the continent."

"According to legend, this vicious blade, Spirit Devouring, contains a sliver of the soul of that genius evil soul master from back then and can lead people toward evil. Those without firm resolve cannot use it, and it absolutely must not be used often."

When he finished, his gaze rested on Yan Hongchen's face. He did not say, "Don't use it," nor did he say, "I won't give it to you." He simply looked at him, like a silent question.

Yan Hongchen met his gaze, his tone calm and certain. "I understand, Grandpa. I know a little about it. It's just an experimental subject. I won't let anything happen to me."

He paused. "Give it to me after I obtain my third soul ring. Keep it safely for now. As long as no one touches it, it'll be fine."

Jing Hongchen nodded, returned the ring to his robes, and asked, "Your soul power has already reached Rank 30. Have you considered obtaining a soul ring?"

Yan Hongchen shook his head. "I plan to take this carving knife to the Extreme North and try to purify it. I'll need quite a bit of time. If it truly doesn't work, I'll seal it in ice so it doesn't harm anyone. As for this bottleneck..."

He lifted his chin slightly, confidence coloring his tone. "It isn't a major problem. I can transfer excess soul power into my external soul bone. Once the external soul bone improves, it can nourish me in return after I obtain a soul ring."

Yan Hongchen naturally knew that once a soul master reached a certain bottleneck, it was best to obtain a soul ring. Otherwise, once the body reached saturation, cultivation would yield half the results for twice the effort. But that was only when there was no way to store excess soul power.

He possessed a wing-type external soul bone. Storing excess soul power within it and tempering it would do him no harm. Moreover, the nourishment provided by a soul bone was sometimes more effective than merely raising one's rank. It was also a way to improve physical constitution; otherwise, he would have gone to obtain his third soul ring already.

Jing Hongchen pondered for a moment before speaking again. "If it's because of your coursework, you needn't worry so much. Even if you have to study a little longer, it isn't necessarily a bad thing."

Yan Hongchen understood what Jing Hongchen meant. He felt that he had plenty of time, yet he did not know whether it would truly be enough.

Not long ago, he had thought of Ghost Nana. He just did not know whether she was currently at the academy. If she was not, there might still be a chance for her family to reunite.

Ultimately, Yan Hongchen's interest in this matter stemmed from two things: a soul leaving the body and a special body martial soul.

Had he not thought of her, he would not have paid much attention to it. At most, he would later seek out a soul beast capable of doing this.

"Grandpa, Dad." He raised his head, his gaze shifting between the two of them. "Do you know if there are any academy members or students in our Sun Moon Empire... who possess a martial soul that allows their soul to leave their body?"

Jing Hongchen's brows twitched slightly.

"I want to equip myself with a soul skill that, given sufficiently strong spiritual power, can let the soul leave the body, or exchange places with the physical body." Yan Hongchen's voice was quiet, but exceedingly serious. "That way, I can try entering the sea of spirit directly to perform treatment."

Jing Hongchen fell silent. Yan Hongchen's idea was too bold. Normally, the body remained outside while the soul was within; if it were completely reversed, with the soul outside and the body entering the sea of spirit where the soul should have resided... even he did not know what would happen.

Yi Hongchen suddenly spoke. "I know of someone unusual."

Yan Hongchen turned his gaze toward him.

"There is a hereditary baron in the Sun Moon Empire. His wife and daughter are quite special—their martial souls are Ghosts." Yi Hongchen paused. "Little Yan, are they who you're looking for?"

Yan Hongchen froze slightly, then nodded. He had not expected Yi Hongchen to know so precisely.

But Yi Hongchen had begun taking over the title of Duke Hongchen, so it was only natural for him to know something about the ownership of noble titles and the circumstances of their families.

The Hongchen Family's noble title had always been hereditary. Jing Hongchen had already begun transferring this burden to Yi Hongchen. Unless they committed some grave mistake, like the great explosion at Mingde Hall from the original story, it would not be stripped away in the end.

"A Ghost martial soul meets my requirements, and it also counts as a spiritual-type body martial soul. That's already quite rare." Yan Hongchen considered it. "If possible... don't let them be targeted by evil soul masters. If you can guide people toward good, don't make enemies of them."

Yi Hongchen nodded. What Yan Hongchen said made sense. That family had actually lived rather peacefully, and he had had some minor dealings with them. It was just that the wife's condition was somewhat strange, so they could only discuss it after confirming the details.

Yan Hongchen looked at Yi Hongchen, his tone becoming more serious. "Dad, then I'll have to trouble you to keep an eye on them and talk with them. If they really are targeted by evil soul masters... you can handle evil soul masters, right?"

He paused, as though choosing his words carefully. "If it comes to it, if they do not care about their noble title and only want a peaceful life, then when we go to obtain soul rings, we can take them to live in seclusion in the Extreme North."

"If they were forced into evil, restrain them first. Then I'll examine their souls. Perhaps it's some special method, and I can get some practice in. But if they truly want to do evil themselves..."

He did not finish, but his gaze had already said everything. "I may be kind, but if they truly bring disaster upon the world, then it is best to eliminate all future trouble."

Yan Hongchen considered himself quite compassionate. Ghost Nana's mother had apparently lost control of herself and been manipulated by others, which led to her killing her husband before ultimately dying for love. Best to spare them when possible.

Yi Hongchen listened to Yan Hongchen's words, fell silent for a few breaths, then slowly nodded. Though it sounded somewhat extreme, reality was what it was. He, too, would choose to eradicate evil soul masters; otherwise, if they were truly allowed to wreak havoc, he would never be at ease.

Jing Hongchen knew there were some things he could not stop. He suddenly said, "Yi'er, if you're going to act, try not to reveal too much."

He stretched out his hand and produced a golden-red greatsword. "I have a newly completed Class 8 soul tool here—the Sword of Judgment." His voice was low and steady. "It hasn't been unveiled yet. Use it for the eradication."

Yan Hongchen's gaze fell upon the short sword, and his heart stirred slightly. The Sword of Judgment—the dual light-and-darkness treasured sword from the original work that had triggered Ma Xiaotao's evil fire, causing it to mutate.

It seemed Jing Hongchen knew about the Holy Spirit Church's methods. Fine. If they acted, they should keep themselves as cleanly removed as possible.

Yi Hongchen accepted the Sword of Judgment and held it for a moment, sensing it before carefully putting it away. "Got it, Dad. I won't act recklessly."