Hongchen's Blessing

Ye Chenxing took the metal case. It felt heavy in his hands, its surface engraved with extremely intricate soul tool patterns that flowed with a dark golden sheen under the light. He gently opened the case, revealing an exceedingly thin metal disk inside.

The metal disk was round and emitted a soft golden glow. Its most remarkable feature was the openwork carving. The carved patterns were fine and orderly, yet brimming with creativity and imagination.

No soul power fluctuations leaked from it, yet merely resting there, it possessed a special solidity as weighty as a mountain. Faint golden light shimmered across its surface. The radiance was not intense, but it was irresistibly eye-catching.

"What is this...?"

"This soul tool was made by me personally. I named it Hongchen's Blessing. It is a triggered defensive soul tool. Place it over your chest, and it will automatically adhere to a soul master's body, absorbing their soul power and becoming one with them. Once the soul master comes under attack, it will sense it in advance and defend them. It can be activated or deactivated with a thought."

"Hongchen's Blessing has several features I am rather pleased with. First, it does not restrict the user's cultivation level. Even soul masters with only one or two rings can use it. Its defensive power is equivalent to the user's strongest attack without using a soul skill, after gathering all their soul power. Yet it consumes only one-fifth of the soul power required for that strongest attack. It is suitable for soul masters of any level. In the hands of a Titled Douluo, it can provide defense at the Super Douluo level."

"At the same time, it has a special activation method. By actively activating its core formation, it can generate an invincible barrier that lasts fifteen seconds. Its defensive power reaches three times the user's own cultivation. The reason it can be considered a ninth-grade soul tool lies precisely in the ability of this invincible barrier. However, after this special activation is used once, it must be recharged. There is no need to deliberately recharge it. As the user cultivates naturally, it will gradually replenish the required soul power, a process that takes roughly three days. Of course, it can also be charged actively. In that case, all one needs to do is meditate for a full day and night while continuously pouring all their soul power into it."

Ye Chenxing's heart jolted.

It was actually Hongchen's Blessing. This was a life-saving treasure that even Titled Douluo would covet. Publicly speaking, the original three Douluo kingdoms did not even possess a decent ninth-grade soul tool, yet Jing Hongchen had given it to him so casually.

There was no need to elaborate on this item's strength. Its repeated rescues of Huo Yuhao from dire peril in the original work were naturally the best proof of its value.

"Hall Master, this is too precious..." Ye Chenxing instinctively wanted to refuse.

"Precious? Nonsense!" Jing Hongchen cut him off directly, speaking in an unquestionable tone. "You are the future pillar of the Sun Moon Empire. Your safety is more important than anything else. What is one ninth-grade soul tool? If there had been enough time, this old man would have wanted to tailor a full set of equipment for you! Take it. Stop talking nonsense!"

Seeing Jing Hongchen's unyielding expression, Ye Chenxing fell silent for a moment. In the end, he solemnly put away Hongchen's Blessing and gave a deep bow. "Thank you for this generous gift, Hall Master. Chenxing will remember it in his heart."

Jing Hongchen nodded in satisfaction and patted Ye Chenxing's shoulder. "Go on, prepare well. We leave this afternoon."

Jing Hongchen brought the three of them outside Ming Capital, then rose into the air. Two slender golden lights abruptly unfolded behind his back, carrying his body slowly upward.

Ye Chenxing carefully observed the flying soul tool he was using. It actually looked like a pair of wings—thin and soft, without the slightest metallic feel. Pale golden light flowed across them, yet no soul power was seen spurting out. With only a gentle stretch, they carried Jing Hongchen into the sky.

"You three have not reached four rings yet. Using flying soul tools below four rings carries certain risks. The refinement of this technology is still being perfected. With your talent, you should be able to use them already, but for your safety, I will take you there myself this time!"

As he spoke, the cicada-wing-thin flying soul tool behind him suddenly blazed with golden light. Ye Chenxing only felt a layer of golden radiance descend from the sky, and the next moment, their bodies were enveloped within it.

Immediately afterward, the four of them soared skyward as though riding clouds and mist. Jing Hongchen's pair of flying soul tools suddenly expanded a thousandfold, while the three youths were wrapped in a layer of golden light film, floating behind him. Two enormous golden wings, each ten meters wide, gently beat in the air.

Jing Hongchen turned around and smiled faintly at them. The next instant, the golden light abruptly intensified, and the scenery around them instantly became illusory.

Everything outside became entirely blurred, but the three within the light film felt no discomfort at all. It was as though they were sitting in a quiet room; they could not even hear the wind. If not for the scenery constantly streaking past outside, Ye Chenxing would not have felt that he was flying through the sky at high speed.

Although his Martial Soul could fly, Jing Hongchen's flying soul tool gave Ye Chenxing an entirely different experience.

"How is it, Chenxing? Is this your first time using a flying soul tool? Are you feeling uncomfortable?"

Meng Hongchen leaned closer from the side with concern, a hint of careful apprehension hidden in her eyes.

In her view, Ye Chenxing had grown up in a backwater like the Heaven Soul Empire. He probably had never even seen what a flying soul tool looked like, much less used one himself. It was only natural for him to be nervous and frightened on his first time in the sky.

Hearing this, Ye Chenxing turned his head and smiled faintly at her. "I'm fine. With Hall Master Jing here, I have nothing to worry about."

"That's good!" Meng Hongchen visibly relaxed, and the smile on her face grew brighter. "You don't know this, but when my brother first used a flying soul tool, he was a complete mess. He's afraid of heights! His face turned white from fright, and he clung tightly to Grandpa's clothes, refusing to let go. It took him a long time to get used to it!"

"Meng!! What nonsense are you talking about?!"

Xiao Hongchen, who had been maintaining his cool demeanor beside them, abruptly turned around. His originally cold and fair face instantly flushed crimson, and even the tips of his ears were dyed red.

"I wasn't making it up!" Meng Hongchen stuck out her tongue and hid beside Ye Chenxing with the air of someone who had backup. "Grandpa can testify!"

Xiao Hongchen gritted his teeth, but he could do nothing to his younger sister. He secretly glanced at Ye Chenxing. Seeing the faint, half-smiling curve at the other boy's lips, he wanted nothing more than to crawl into a crack in the ground.

It was over. His lifelong reputation had been ruined in one blow.

When he thought of how much embarrassing history his sister might expose in the future, Xiao Hongchen felt that his life ahead was utterly bleak.

Jing Hongchen, flying at the very front, turned back to watch the three young people bickering behind him. A genuinely gratified smile appeared on his face. He stroked his wind-tousled beard and laughed heartily.

"All right, all right, sit tight! This old man is speeding up. We must reach the Jingyang Mountain Range before nightfall!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the dark golden flying soul tool behind Jing Hongchen erupted with even brighter light, and he shot westward like a meteor.

The sun slanted toward the horizon, its golden-red afterglow spilling across the earth and coating the rolling mountain range in a warm halo.

Looking down from high in the air, Ye Chenxing saw the land ahead as though it had been crumpled by an invisible giant hand, rising into countless uneven ridgelines. Lush primeval forest blanketed the entire mountain range, from dark green to emerald, layer upon layer stretching beyond sight.

This was the Jingyang Mountain Range—one of the largest soul beast gathering grounds within the Sun Moon Empire.

Unlike the ancient, profound, suffocating sense of danger that seemed to lurk everywhere in the Star Dou Great Forest, the Jingyang Mountain Range felt more open and majestic.

Between the mountains, waterfalls like silver ribbons could occasionally be seen pouring down from cliffs. The rising mist refracted seven-colored halos beneath the setting sun. In distant valleys, groups of unknown flying soul beasts could faintly be seen returning to their nests together, their calls long and resonant.

"We're here. Let's descend." Jing Hongchen lowered their altitude and flew toward a relatively flat area at the edge of the mountain range.

He looked around, confirming that there was no powerful soul beast aura nearby, before nodding in satisfaction.

"We'll camp here tonight. Tomorrow morning, we'll head deeper into the mountains to find suitable prey." He looked at the three youths, a faint smile appearing on his round face. "Rest well and recover your energy. Tomorrow's soul beast hunt will not be a game."

Naturally, the three of them did not need to personally handle every little matter as Huo Yuhao had when he first entered the Jingyang Mountain Range in the original work. For this trip, their storage soul tools had long been stocked with prepared food and tents. Before long, a simple yet comfortable camp had been set up in a clearing within the forest.

Jing Hongchen watched the three children bustling about, and a gratified smile appeared on his round face. He stroked his chin, then suddenly said he would inspect the surroundings to see whether any foolish soul beasts were wandering nearby. With his hands behind his back and a tune humming from his lips, he tactfully disappeared into the depths of the forest, leaving the quiet camp entirely to the three youths.

Ye Chenxing snapped his fingers, and a bonfire immediately rose up. The orange-red flames illuminated their faces, driving away the night's chill in the mountains.

Meng Hongchen held a cup of hot tea in both hands and secretly glanced at Ye Chenxing several times. Finally, as though she had made up her mind, she carefully asked, "Chenxing, your older sister... Ye Xue, what kind of person is she? You grew up together. Was she especially good to you?"

Ye Chenxing paused slightly.

His first reaction was a slight tightening in his chest—had Meng Hongchen noticed something? After all, the "Ye Xue" Qian Renxue was disguising herself as only possessed the Bright Swan Martial Soul. His Sun Martial Soul was flawless, but Qian Renxue was a suitable point of entry.

But he soon noticed Meng Hongchen's expression as she asked. Her hands unconsciously tightened around her teacup. There was a trace of nervousness in her blue eyes, yet she pretended to be merely making casual conversation. Her gaze drifted everywhere, except she did not dare look directly at him.

Ye Chenxing laughed silently.

So that was it. What she cared about was not Ye Xue's identity at all, but whether the "older sister" who had grown up with him day and night, his childhood companion, might be a potential romantic rival.

With that thought, Ye Chenxing set down his teacup and replied in a gentle, candid tone, "Miss Meng is overthinking it. My sister and I grew up in a small village in the Heaven Soul Empire. Grandfather was very kind to us, and the villagers took good care of us as well. My sister may be somewhat aloof by nature, but she has always looked after me. Still, when all is said and done, we are simply ordinary siblings living ordinary lives."

After hearing this, Meng Hongchen's tense shoulders quietly relaxed. She raised the teacup and took a sip, using it to conceal the smile she could not hide at the corner of her lips.

Good, good. For now, they really are just ordinary siblings.

"Oh, right!" She suddenly lifted her head, her blue eyes sparkling as she looked at Ye Chenxing. With a touch of coquettishness in her voice, she said, "From now on, just call me Meng! Calling me Miss Meng is far too formal. We're going to attend school and cultivate together as classmates!"

School...

In his first life, those two words had occupied nearly the first twenty years of his existence.

Only a little more than a decade had passed, yet it already felt impossibly distant.

He looked at Meng Hongchen's cheeks, faintly flushed by the firelight as she sat across from him. Dancing flames reflected in her clear blue eyes, which were filled with the unique anticipation and nervousness of a young girl. In a daze, he seemed to glimpse the shadow of another world.

Without realizing it, his gaze lingered for a little too long.

Under Ye Chenxing's fixed stare, Meng Hongchen's fair cheeks turned crimson at a visible rate, and even her ears began to burn red. Her heartbeat accelerated, and her hands unconsciously twisted the hem of her clothes. Even her voice trembled slightly. "I-Is there something on my face?..."

Ye Chenxing abruptly came back to his senses, only then realizing his lapse in composure. He concealed the barely perceptible melancholy in his eyes, and a gentle smile returned to his lips as he said softly.

"Sorry. Then I will call you that from now on, Meng."

Meng Hongchen's voice was already as soft as a mosquito's buzz, nearly melting into the night breeze.

"Mm..."

"Xiao."

Ye Chenxing and Meng Hongchen turned their heads at the same time. Xiao Hongchen was sitting with his back to them on the other side of the bonfire, showing them only the back of his head. His voice was muffled and held a trace of unnatural stiffness. "Y-You can call me Xiao too. Calling me Brother Xiao, Brother Xiao all day sounds awkward."

Meng Hongchen froze for a moment, then burst into laughter. She laughed so hard that she bent forward and back, tears nearly coming to her eyes. "Brother, are you... being tsundere? Putting on that reluctant expression!"

"Meng!! What did you say?!" Xiao Hongchen abruptly turned around, his fair face flushing red. "W-Who's tsundere?! I just think that form of address is too troublesome!"

"All right, all right, not troublesome at all, not troublesome in the slightest~"

Before they knew it, the atmosphere around the bonfire had become relaxed and warm. Watching the bickering siblings, a sincere smile unconsciously curved Ye Chenxing's lips as well.