Becoming a Soul Spirit!

Ling Xuqing's words fell, and a deathly silence settled over the dormitory.

Only the occasional birdsong outside the window reminded them that time was passing.

The soul fluctuation within his right leg bone trembled violently, as if undergoing some indescribable, agonizing struggle.

"Reincarnate..."

At last, a faint, hoarse female voice, like sandpaper scraping, struggled to ring out in Ling Xuqing's mind.

It was filled with boundless exhaustion and the desolation of a heart that had died of grief.

"Erase all my memories... erase my love for Brother Hao..."

Ah Yin's soul groaned in pain.

To her, her memories were the only proof she had ever existed in this world. Even if that love had been battered and broken, even if that man had pushed her into an abyss of eternal damnation, he was still her "Brother Hao"—the beloved she had been willing to protect with her life.

"But..." Ah Yin's voice trembled harder and harder. "But Brother Hao... was he really only using me? I don't believe it... I don't!"

Even after Ling Xuqing had dissected the truth with the cruelest words, deep in Ah Yin's soul, she still clung desperately to that last, laughable delusion.

Ling Xuqing listened coldly, not a trace of pity in his eyes.

"Whether you believe it or not, the facts are right there." His voice was a cold blade, mercilessly slicing through her illusions. "All that remains of you now is a wisp of remnant soul attached to my right leg bone. Do you think you can still wait for him? He has a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring and a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone. He's already the renowned Clear Sky Douluo. He even abandoned your son, Tang San, in Holy Soul Village and never gave him a second thought. How could he possibly still remember you?"

"No!"

Ah Yin let out a piercing wail.

"Enough, Ah Yin." Ling Xuqing's voice rose sharply, carrying an unquestionable dominance. "How long are you going to keep deceiving yourself? You don't even qualify for reincarnation anymore. If you don't attach yourself to me, sooner or later you'll vanish completely in this endless despair!"

"Become my Soul Spirit, and you won't just stay alive—you'll also get to see with your own eyes how I climb to the peak, step by step, and how hypocritical those people who call themselves righteous really are!"

"Or you can destroy your own source right now and disappear from this world forever, so your 'Brother Hao' will never know you existed!"

Ling Xuqing's final ultimatum crashed down on Ah Yin's already shattered heart like a heavy hammer.

In his sea of consciousness, Xiao Wu hovered silently, watching Ah Yin's faint glow writhe and twist in violent struggle.

Though she sympathized with Ah Yin's plight, she also knew that in this cruel world, a weak person's tears were worth less than anything.

Time passed, second by second.

At last, Ah Yin's anguished wails gradually subsided.

The glow stopped struggling and slowly, helplessly, unfurled.

"I... choose the first option."

Ah Yin's voice sounded again. This time, there was no hysterical collapse, only the deathly stillness and numbness of someone who had finally seen the truth.

"I... don't want to forget."

She didn't want to forget the pain Tang Hao had caused her. She wanted to live on with that pain.

She wanted to see with her own eyes just how far this boy named Ling Xuqing could go. She also wanted to see for herself what would become of Tang Hao without her.

"Good."

A satisfied curve lifted the corners of Ling Xuqing's mouth.

"Since you've made your choice, open your soul completely. Don't resist at all."

As he spoke, Ling Xuqing's thoughts stirred. The dark golden blood energy of the Golden Dragon King Bloodline surged through his body, following his right leg bone straight into Ah Yin's faint glow.

"Ah!"

Ah Yin let out a muffled cry.

The Golden Dragon King's aura was overbearing. The instant it touched her soul, it forcibly branded her spirit with Ling Xuqing's mark.

It was absolute submission and binding.

From that moment on, her life and death, her joy and sorrow, would all be tightly bound to Ling Xuqing.

When one prospered, both prospered; when one suffered, both suffered.

Wrapped in the Golden Dragon King's blood energy, Ah Yin's once-miserable, battered soul began to merge with Ling Xuqing's sea of consciousness in a strange way.

She didn't provide a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring like Xiao Wu, nor did she provide a Spirit Bone—after all, the right leg bone had long since merged with Ling Xuqing.

She simply became Ling Xuqing's second Soul Spirit in the form of a pure soul.

"Vmmm—"

An incredibly gentle, pure life force rose from Ling Xuqing's right leg bone and instantly coursed through all his limbs and bones.

It was the Blue Silver Emperor's source of life.

With Ah Yin's addition, the three forces within Ling Xuqing—Golden Dragon King Bloodline, Xiao Wu's hundred-thousand-year cultivation, and the Blue Silver Emperor's life force—finally reached a perfect dynamic balance.

One strong, one gentle; one life, one death. They intertwined and flowed on without end.

"Haa—"

Ling Xuqing let out a long breath and slowly opened his eyes.

Dark golden light flashed deep in his eyes, replaced by an unprecedented depth and calm.

"Xuqing, did she... really become your Soul Spirit?" Xiao Wu's voice in his sea of consciousness carried a hint of curiosity.

"Mm." Ling Xuqing nodded, answering softly in his mind. "She's very weak now and needs to sleep for a while to repair her soul. But her life force has completely merged with mine. My ability to heal will be even stronger from now on."

"That's good." Xiao Wu breathed a sigh of relief.

"All right, Xiao Wu. You should rest too. I'm going to cultivate and stabilize my current level."

"Mm, do your best!"

Xiao Wu replied obediently, then turned into a pink streak of light and retreated deep into his sea of consciousness.

The dormitory fell quiet once more.

Ling Xuqing sat cross-legged on the bed again, closed his eyes, and began circulating his Soul Power.

For him, level twenty-eight was still a number that needed time to settle into.

He needed to fully refine this immense power and make it as easy to command as his own arm, so that he could bring its full might to bear in future battles.

As his Soul Power circulated, streams of refined energy surged through his meridians, nourishing his body and soul.

At the same time, in another teaching building at Nuoding City Junior Spirit Master Academy.

Inside a somewhat cluttered teachers' dormitory sat a middle-aged man in a gray robe washed pale from wear, his hair somewhat unkempt. He was seated at his desk.

In his hand was a list of new students he had just picked up from the academic affairs office. His gaze skimmed over it without much interest.

This man was none other than Yu Xiaogang, who fancied himself "unrivaled in theory."

"Innate Soul Power level six... another one with level five..." Yu Xiaogang muttered, a hint of disdain in his voice. "Children these days are more talented than the last, but without my guidance, they'll inevitably take the wrong path."

Just then, his gaze suddenly stopped at the very bottom of the list.

"Ling Xuqing, six years old, Wuxi Village, Martial Soul: Golden Overlord Spear, Innate Full Soul Power."

Yu Xiaogang's eyes lit up instantly.

He sprang to his feet and paced excitedly around the cramped dormitory, muttering to himself:

"Golden Overlord Spear... a top-tier weapon Martial Soul! Six years old, with Innate Full Soul Power! This... this must be the Heaven-ordained disciple this Grandmaster has been waiting for!"

The more Yu Xiaogang thought about it, the more excited he grew. Even the muscles in his face trembled faintly.

"A six-year-old child, no matter how talented, what does he know about cultivation? How is he supposed to cultivate?"

"He has full Soul Power, but no proper guidance! Without the theoretical foundation of my 'Ten Core Competencies of Spirit Masters,' he'll end up mediocre sooner or later!"

Yu Xiaogang slammed a hand on the desk, his eyes gleaming with fervor.

"Only I! Only a master of theory like me can mold him into a true peerless genius!"

"Once I take him as my disciple and arm him with my theories, I'll cultivate him into a Titled Douluo..."

"Then let's see who dares look down on me, Yu Xiaogang! Let's see how the Blue Silver Grass clan can still find the nerve to mock me!"

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha—!!!"

Yu Xiaogang's near-mad laughter echoed through the silent dormitory.

He could almost see himself making Ling Xuqing famous across the continent, while everyone who had ever looked down on him trembled at his feet.

"A Heaven-ordained disciple... I, Yu Xiaogang, am finally going to turn my fortunes around!"