The Fickleness of Fate, Three Methods to Strengthen the Soul

Qiu Yan had only opened his aperture yesterday, and his Nature Cultivation was still shallow. But he carried a Divine Power Star left behind by his true self. After all, flesh and blood had their limits and could not bear any more; otherwise, to guard against unforeseen circumstances, he would certainly have left more stars within his body.

When he stepped forward to examine her just now, he had drawn upon a thread of divine power and attached it to his eyes, intending to investigate Pan Rongniang's illness. Yet with that one glance, he discovered that the figure lying on the bed was merely an empty shell—the soul inside had vanished without a trace long ago.

A person possessed Three Souls and Seven Souls. The souls governed the inner self, while the seven souls formed the body. Only with both soul and body did one have life. Without the Seven Souls, one became a wandering ghost; conversely, without the Three Souls, even if the body remained whole, it would lose its central pillar and consciousness, becoming nothing more than an empty husk.

Pan Rongniang's body and Seven Souls were still present, but her soul was no longer inside her body. How could she possibly wake up?

Without the soul, the body lost the Central Pivot that directed and mobilized it. Vitality and blood became unable to circulate, slowly settling and congealing. Even if a physician examined her, he would only conclude that her end was near, her oil spent and lamp extinguished, and tell them to prepare for the funeral.

"But that is only the surface of it. Her body is still here, so at least it can lock in the basic vitality and blood. Though she looks no different from someone at death's door, she is actually still alive. It is like brain death or a vegetative state from my previous life. As long as she is fed every day and given the necessary nourishment, her life is not in danger."

Realizing this, Qiu Yan felt his body lighten as the power of Karma that had constricted and bound him suddenly dispersed. Only then did he notice everyone's expressions around him.

Liu Yue's face was dark with gloom, while Liu-shi looked utterly flustered. As for the little maid, she had gone completely blank.

"What did Third Young Master mean? Could it be that even I am to be driven out?" Liu-shi was clearly at a complete loss.

"Madam, Madam, please beg Master! If you are driven out, what will this servant do?" Tears streamed down the maid's face. The Liu-shi mother and daughter she served had possessed little standing in the household to begin with. A servant rose with her master; if the master was weak, the maid's days would naturally be difficult. But if even her master was gone, she would lose all support entirely, and her plight would be even more miserable than it was now.

As the mistress and servant panicked, footsteps sounded outside. The two burly men guarding the rear courtyard gate entered the room.

Seeing the scene inside, the two men sighed. One said, "Fifth Madam, Steward Liu, Liu Yue, the young master has ordered you to leave the Pan Household."

The other said, "Old Steward, we were sent here under orders. Please make things easier for us."

"I have done so much for the young master, yet this is how I end up?" Liu Yue suddenly looked despondent.

On the other side, Liu-shi rose to her feet as well. "Where is Master? I have served him for so many years. Now that Rongniang has met with such a calamity, I do not believe Master will simply ignore me!"

The two burly men looked at everyone in the room and gave bitter smiles. "Old Steward, please make things easier for us. We are only carrying out orders."

"Alas." Liu Huai sighed. "Enough. Pack up your things. Yue'er, Yan'er, you two hire some sedan bearers. We will carry Rongniang in a while. Third Sister, stop crying. There is nothing to be done. Everything our family has was given by Master Pan. You all know his temperament. We can only accept our fate. Stop dawdling and do not let others look down on the Liu Household for nothing!"

At Liu Huai's words, the room suddenly fell silent.

By the bed, Qiu Yan lightly twitched his fingers. In his field of vision, several streams of black qi drilled out from the ground and rose to wrap around him, yet the people around him noticed nothing at all.

What a headache. The Karma of gratitude and enmity has grown heavier again...

Vaguely, the entire Pan Household seemed to become connected to him through a bond of hatred.

So be it. Liu Huai and the others have treated me well and have always been kind to others, while this Pan Household turns ruthless the moment it changes its face. Even without the entanglement of Karma, I cannot simply stand by!

With that thought, an idea gradually formed in his mind.

Half an incense stick later, Liu Huai's group departed in misery. Most of the servants in the Pan Household were well-informed, and seeing this scene, they pointed and whispered along the way, their voices carrying more than a hint of gloating. A few even deliberately came over to humiliate them.

Upon reaching the gate, Qiu Yan and Liu Yue placed Pan Rongniang in a sedan chair and escorted her all the way back to the Liu Household's courtyard.

Qiu Yan's aunt and sister-in-law had already received the news and were waiting at the entrance. The moment they saw Liu Huai and Liu-shi, they hurried out to greet them. When the family met, another round of sighs and lamentations was unavoidable. Several women wept without end, and for a time, gloom hung thick in the air.

Quite a few neighbors gathered at a distance to watch, pointing and whispering.

Liu Huai shook his head and said softly, "Stop crying out here. Even if people see us, no one will pity us!"

Though he said that, once the family entered the courtyard, another wave of sobbing began. They grieved not only for Pan Rongniang and Liu-shi's plight, but also worried about their future livelihood. Liu Huai and his son had now "lost their jobs." The family's remaining money might last them for a while, but given enough time, even finding food to eat would become a problem.

"The fate and livelihood of an entire family, young and old alike, are held in another man's hands. One moment, they are stewards of the household; the next, at someone else's word, they are reduced beneath others, despised even by their neighbors."

Watching the scene before him, Qiu Yan recalled how harmonious and joyful the family had been only days ago. He could not help but lament the fickleness of fate, and he understood even more clearly that this was a world of sharply divided classes.

No wonder the former owner of this body was so determined to seek fame and rank. He wanted to change his family's fate.

Meanwhile, in the City God Temple, the divine true self was still speaking with the Yuanning City God. Though the avatar and true self shared a connection of consciousness, they remained relatively independent.

The previous topic had already ended, replaced by a question from the divine true self—

"City God, after a Living Soul leaves the body, how can it be strengthened?"

The City God glanced at him. "You are asking for that mortal, are you not? He has only just obtained the Lying God Inner Art. He should be trying to preserve the spirit through meditation, striving to open his aperture and project his soul as soon as possible. There is no need to think so far ahead. But since you have asked, I shall answer."

As she spoke, she raised a hand and pointed. A streak of starlight shot forth and landed on Qiu Yan's hand.

Qiu Yan squeezed hard, shattering the starlight. The scattered motes were drawn in with a breath and swallowed into his mouth.

The Yuanning City God said, "There are three principal ways to strengthen a Living Soul."

"The first is Soul Night Roaming, entering the dreams of others. Humans possess seven emotions and six desires—joy, anger, sorrow, and delight—as well as thoughts that twist through a hundred turns and circle back a thousand times. These are especially abundant in dreams. At night, they scatter around the sleeper and may be selected and devoured to strengthen one's own soul. However, emotions and thoughts are rather chaotic. One must not consume too much at once, or they will seep in and influence the soul by imperceptible degrees. If one's will is not firm enough, one's temperament may change."

"Oh? No wonder there are tales of entrusting dreams and making mischief in dreams. It seems someone may be cultivating the Soul Dao within another person's dreams." Hearing this, Qiu Yan recalled some strange tales and rumors he had heard during the past three days of inquiries, as well as stories from his previous life.

"The second is devouring souls, especially the souls of the newly dead. When a person has just died, the emotions and thoughts they held in life remain within the soul and have yet to dissipate. If consumed then, they can be merged into one's own soul and strengthen it. But such Living Souls often contain intense and extreme emotions and thoughts that are difficult to dissolve. The more one devours, the greater their influence on one's own soul; they may even drastically alter a person's temperament."

"Devouring souls?" Qiu Yan shuddered at those words. Could Pan Rongniang's soul have already been... No, if a Living Soul were devoured, it would mean the soul had scattered and vanished, its connection to the body completely severed. If that were so, her body's vitality would have ended long ago. She would be truly dead.

As he pondered, the City God continued, "The third method is the simplest, yet also the hardest to achieve: calm the heart and settle the spirit, nurturing it with a method. The speed of progress differs from person to person and from cultivation art to cultivation art. However, obtaining such a method or cultivation art is not easy."

"Oh? Calm the heart and settle the spirit, nurturing it through a cultivation art?" Something stirred in Qiu Yan's heart, as though he had grasped hold of something.

On the other side, as the City God finished speaking, she waved her hand. A talisman paper appeared in her palm, covered in winding, intertwined lines that formed a complex pattern, resembling a deity's Core Talisman.

"Since you are helping someone, help him thoroughly. This talisman was obtained from a Daoist of the Pure Peace Dao. Once that mortal's Living Soul undergoes Spirit Projection, burn it with divine power, and it may give him a helping hand."

P.S. First update of the day.