The Second Martial Soul

Looking at the two items Qin Muchu had taken out, the young man's eyes filled with memories. "This flower is called the Guixu Other Shore Flower. I once used it to save someone very important to me when I was young. I'm giving it to you in the hope that you'll protect this realm. It can become your Second Martial Soul. As for this pearl, it's called the Soul-Raising Pearl. It will serve as the bridge that awakens your Second Martial Soul."

"A Second Martial Soul? I can awaken another Martial Soul?" Qin Muchu was overjoyed. When he had first crossed over, he had dreamed of awakening Twin Martial Souls. Unfortunately, all he had awakened was a rusty iron sword. Heaven knew how much he envied those with Twin Martial Souls, or even Triple Martial Souls.

"Why couldn't you? A Martial Soul is merely a vessel of power formed when bloodline and soul force coalesce under the rules. Once you master the Great Dao, you can awaken as many Martial Souls as you like. Of course, by the time you truly understand the rules, Martial Souls themselves won't be of much use. Having enough is all that matters." The young man's words were astonishing. After a brief pause, without any visible movement from him, the Dancing Shadow Sword flew out of Qin Muchu's body and landed in the young man's hand. Bound to it by his soul, Qin Muchu could clearly feel his Sword Martial Soul's deep attachment to the young man.

Qin Muchu turned pale with shock and stammered, "Don't tell me the Dancing Shadow Sword was yours too..."

The young man did not answer. He gently stroked the sword in his hand and murmured, "Qingming, it's been a long time." Only then did he look up at Qin Muchu. "I wielded this sword in my youth. Now that it has become your Martial Soul, be sure to take good care of it."

"I will," Qin Muchu said solemnly.

"Have you ever resented how damaged your Martial Soul was?"

Qin Muchu lowered his head, shame flashing across his face. "I did complain at first. But it's been six years, and it has been with me as I've grown. I've long since come to see it as a companion. Besides, I firmly believe that if I work hard enough, I can make up for the gap in Martial Soul quality."

"Good," the young man said approvingly. "With that understanding, you may one day master a path of the Great Dao yourself." After a pause, he continued, "The Dao disperses to become a vessel; the vessel condenses to reunite with the Dao. A Martial Soul is the rules given form. Bound by those rules, it is confined to a tangible substance, yet boundless truths lie within it. People know only that Martial Souls have higher and lower grades. They fail to see that even ordinary things hold true meaning. Even in a rusty sword of common iron, though its form and substance are constrained, that strand of the Dao's root has never been severed. Now that you have set foot on this path, you must find the original Dao within what has form yet no bounds, break the shackles of the finite, and bring forth the infinite wonders it holds."

Qin Muchu bowed in acknowledgment. The young man looked down at the sword in his hand once more. "Now that you've grasped this, it's time for it to reveal its true appearance." A faint light bloomed from his hand and swept gently over the blade. The once-rusty, broken sword immediately turned clear as water, its entire length radiating a sharp sword intent, resplendent as an emperor among swords.

He handed the transformed Dancing Shadow Sword to Qin Muchu. "The sword has regained its original appearance, and your Martial Soul has reached the divine level. Keep working hard."

Qin Muchu took the sword and turned it over in his hands, unable to put it down. "Thank you, senior. A divine-level Martial Soul... Is this what it looked like all along?"

The young man waved a hand. "It's time for you to go."

The world spun around Qin Muchu, and his vision went blank. Through the haze, he heard a voice fading into the distance. "Go. The Soul-Raising Pearl has merged with your soul. Place the Guixu Other Shore Flower against your brow, and the pull of your soul will make it your Second Martial Soul..."

As his awareness returned, Qin Muchu slowly opened his eyes on the bed. For a long while, he said nothing. Everything that had just happened felt like a fleeting dream, too unreal to believe.

He looked down at his hands. The Soul-Raising Pearl was gone, while his soul felt clearer than ever. Even his Sea of Consciousness seemed to have expanded by a full measure. Qin Muchu retrieved the Guixu Other Shore Flower from the corner of his Soul Tool where he had tossed it. The flower was red-gold, shrouded in a hazy glow, with fine, winding patterns on the backs of its petals. He held it in his palm and examined it closely. For a moment, he seemed to see endless scenes of flowers blooming and falling, of life and death, of reincarnation without end.

Is it because I just saw those lights of the Great Dao that I can see all this? Qin Muchu hesitated no longer and pressed the flower to his brow.

The red-gold light instantly poured through his brow into his Sea of Consciousness. Warmth rose from deep within Qin Muchu's soul. At first it felt wonderfully soothing, but the temperature climbed higher and higher. In the blink of an eye, it became a wildfire's searing heat, as though his entire soul were about to catch fire.

Clenching his teeth against the pain, he sent his awareness into his Sea of Consciousness. There, the Guixu Other Shore Flower was slowly blooming. Threads of dark purple spread along the edges of its once red-gold petals. Its aura of life, death, and reincarnation grew ever stronger, nearly engulfing his entire Sea of Consciousness.

Just as he was about to give out, the Dancing Shadow Sword hidden in his Sea of Consciousness trembled gently. A wave of icy cold swept through him, easing the scorching heat.

After an unknown length of time, the burning gradually faded. In its place came a wondrous bond, as though it had merged with his blood. Qin Muchu focused inward. Deep in his Sea of Consciousness, beside the quietly floating Qingming sword, a red-gold other shore flower now gently opened and closed. Streams of fresh Soul Power flowed through its veins, blending perfectly with the Soul Power he already possessed.

He took a deep breath and willed it to appear. A fist-sized red-gold flower materialized above his palm, its familiar aura of reincarnation washing over him. His Second Martial Soul, the Guixu Other Shore Flower, had awakened.

And from what he could sense, his Second Martial Soul had probably reached the divine level too. He had finally become a genius in the truest sense.

Qin Muchu could barely contain his joy. It was a divine-level Martial Soul! Before this, across the entire continent, only Qian Renxue's Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul and Bo Saixi's Sea God Martial Soul had reached the divine level.

Once his excitement passed, a new problem troubled him. A single Soul Ring cost ten billion Gold Soul Coins. He had only just thought he would have enough Gold Soul Coins from now on, but with two Martial Souls, he would have to start slowly saving up again.

"Ah, if only I could awaken a third Martial Soul that made Gold Soul Coins," Qin Muchu sighed. But it was only a thought. He had never heard of anyone with a Gold Soul Coin Martial Soul.

As he swung between joy and worry, a plump white figure suddenly emerged from his Sea of Consciousness.

"Phew, you scared me half to death! Where in the world did you just go?" Sky Dream Ice Silkworm patted his chubby body with his short forelegs, still looking shaken.