Fusion of the Soul Bone, Ji Juechen's Challenge

And the most absurd part was that most of the Sun Moon Empire's upper ranks knew one fact.

The Crown Prince, Xu Tianran, had ties to the Holy Spirit Cult.

But ties were one thing—you needed evidence.

Otherwise, they would come after you.

More precisely, things had not been like this from the beginning.

It was only after Xu Tianran lost his legs in the royal family's—or rather, the battle for the position of Crown Prince—

That the fratricidal slaughter beneath the veneer of brotherly respect had become the norm...

For the first time, they arrived above Radiant City.

They did not immediately stop flying. Instead, everyone below was cheering.

"The heroes have returned!"

"Lin Yuan!"

"Lin Yuan!"

Wave after wave of cheers rose alongside the sight of people standing on tiptoe and shouting.

They packed nearly every street.

The Sun Moon Empire had finally broken Shrek's monopoly on glory.

For that very reason, if they truly walked back from below, the fervor of the masses would clog the roads so completely that they might not reach the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy even after two and a half days.

Thus, after choosing to fly back to the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy—

Countless students within the academy were also looking at their group with excited eyes.

The moment they landed, countless cheers erupted.

Fortunately, Jing Hongchen's status spoke for itself.

"Everyone, I know you are excited, but let our heroes rest first. They have spent a long time traveling back."

At his command, most of the crowd gradually dispersed.

"The others may leave. Lin Yuan, stay behind."

After Jing Hongchen spoke, quite a few people departed one after another.

Only Lin Yuan remained. After following Jing Hongchen back to the office—

Jing Hongchen gave a light cough. "Lin Yuan, given the current situation, I will arrange a new residence for you. You may need to visit the imperial palace as well, and I will help substantiate certain explanations for you."

Lin Yuan nodded. Jing Hongchen snapped his fingers, and Lin Jiayi soon entered.

He led Lin Yuan to another residence, one as luxurious as a villa.

Even at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, such a place was generally reserved for top-tier instructors.

After bringing Lin Yuan inside, Lin Jiayi spoke softly.

"Lin Yuan, if you need anything later, you can come to me at once."

"Thank you, Director."

Lin Yuan nodded slightly in thanks.

Only after watching Lin Jiayi leave did he finally let out a breath of relief.

He also understood that, as he had stirred the strings of fate—

Everything... had become entirely different.

The royal family, the Holy Spirit Cult, conflict was about to arise...

After shaking his head briefly, Lin Yuan suppressed the jumble of thoughts in his heart. He took the initiative to lie down on the bed and sleep.

After all, ever since transmigrating, he had spent his days in a somewhat tense atmosphere, either meditating or cultivating.

This was truly his first time relaxing.

Then, once he had finished resting...

The first thing Lin Yuan did after getting up was take out Xuanzi's Hundred-Thousand-Year Spirit Bone, the right arm bone.

Without much hesitation, he pressed it against his right arm and began fusing with it.

The fusion process could be said to have gone extremely smoothly.

The quality of his martial soul was there for all to see, and he encountered not the slightest resistance.

After a long hour passed, Lin Yuan opened his eyes.

After sensing it for a moment, he grasped the two spirit skills he had gained.

First spirit skill: Myriad-Calamity Rock Armor. Upon activation, defense increased by one hundred percent. Its passive effect required only that he stand upon the ground, granting him a fifty-percent increase in soul power and injury recovery speed, while increasing the power of earth-element spirit skills by an additional twenty percent.

It was a remarkably well-rounded spirit skill, worthy of the name of a hundred-thousand-year spirit skill.

Of course, its weakness was that if he kept jumping around or fought in the air, its injury recovery effect would disappear.

As for the second spirit skill: Rockburst Shaking Fist.

With the right arm Soul Bone's power unleashed to its fullest, a heavy layer of molten ore rock armor rapidly covered the surface of the arm, while sharp mineral crystal ridges protruded from the fist.

A single punch released a concentrated earth-element shockwave, splitting the ground into ravines wherever the force of the fist passed.

It had two modes:

1. Straight Punch Impact: A gigantic rocky fist projection was launched over a long distance to crash into the enemy. Its impact carried concussive internal damage, capable not only of shattering flesh, but also of shaking the bones and internal organs.

2. Close-Range Burst Strike: In close combat, the mineral crystals on the fist exploded, inflicting tearing and crushing damage. Upon landing a hit, it could briefly petrify the struck area of the enemy's body, restricting the movement of that limb.

It was likewise not particularly stunning, but it was still fairly well-rounded.

Afterward, Lin Yuan took a deep breath and planned to head outside for a stroll.

After all, he had already slept for an entire day. It was time to get moving.

Yet the moment he opened the door, he saw an exceptionally handsome figure standing silently outside, his face even somewhat pale.

He looked rather like an ascetic. Upon seeing Lin Yuan open the door, the man's thoughts stirred, and an ancient sword abruptly condensed in his right hand as he spoke in a deep voice.

"Hello. I heard that you are also a swordsman and that you are very strong, so I came to challenge you specifically after you returned."

As Lin Yuan watched this unfold, the corner of his mouth twitched. Even without anyone telling him, he could roughly guess the other man's identity.

Ji Juechen...

Well... how should he put it? He was an exceptionally pure swordsman.

He was also the only person who had taken the saying, "There are no useless martial souls, only useless soul masters," to its absolute extreme.

Born with innate soul power rank three, he had cultivated all the way to become a Titled Douluo without relying on external aid.

He had fulfilled a certain master's theory.

Lin Yuan naturally admired someone like that.

Just as he was about to nod and agree, a somewhat crisp voice suddenly sounded beside him.

"Lin Yuan, I'm afraid the two of you can't fight for now."

Lin Yuan turned his head and saw Meng Hongchen, who also seemed to have been waiting nearby.

Meng Hongchen saw that Ji Juechen's stubborn gaze had merely swept over her before returning to Lin Yuan. She hurriedly explained.

"It's not that I'm forbidding you from fighting. It's just that Grandpa said today is the day Lin Yuan is to represent us in entering the imperial palace to receive rewards."

Ji Juechen frowned slightly at those words, but quickly sheathed his sword. Looking solemnly at Lin Yuan, he said—

"In that case, Brother Lin, we shall fight tomorrow."

With that, he left without looking back.

Lin Yuan's eyelids twitched, but he was not surprised. It suited Ji Juechen's personality perfectly.

"Lin Yuan, say... you must have been holding it in for a long time too, right?"

As Meng Hongchen led Lin Yuan toward the office, confusion flickered in his eyes.

But he soon seemed to recall something, and a hint of complexity surged into his gaze.

More than his own concealment, it was because after the fusion—

He had sensed that the original Lin Yuan and Lin Xi had grown up with Lin Xi serving as an elder brother who was like a father to him.

He had always accompanied him silently. This time, Lin Yuan let out a breath of turbid air and made up his mind.

Even if going there might prove troublesome, and even if the outside world might find it bothersome, he should still leave for a while.