"Six Paths of Reincarnation"? Surely collecting a little interest from the Tang Sect wasn't too much?

Heaven Dou City, the Blacksmith Association.

Mu Ye and Han Tianyi engaged in a heated exchange of opinions. After finally reaching a conclusion, they looked at Su Xun and said solemnly:

"Your martial soul is far too unusual. Its second awakening will probably be exceptionally difficult."

"For the second awakenings of different body martial souls, generations of our Body Sect's predecessors have already developed a largely complete system."

"For most body martial souls specializing in strength and vital energy-such as skin, hearts, bones, arms, and so on-the best place for a second awakening is deep in the sea."

"In the depths of the sea, the ocean's pressure comes from every direction and is relatively comprehensive. It's best suited to drawing out the potential of such body martial souls and bringing about a second awakening."

"For body martial souls involving spiritual power, the ideal solution is stimulation from psychic-type immortal herbs."

"The next best option is continuous stimulation at the limits of the mind, keeping it constantly teetering on the brink of collapse."

"This is extremely difficult. The slightest misstep risks leaving you mentally incapacitated."

"However, my martial uncle's spiritual power is virtually unrivaled. Aside from Yun Ming and a handful of others, probably no one can compare."

"The mental illusions he creates not only have a strong chance of stimulating a psychic-type body martial soul into completing its second awakening, but are also extremely safe."

"For body martial souls skilled in hearing or smell, such as ears and noses, the boundary between spiritual power and vital energy is actually rather blurry."

"The best method of stimulation we've found so far is to block off the other senses and rely on a single sense alone, either fighting at one's limits or entering a dangerous environment specifically suited to that sense."

Mu Ye laid out the experience the Body Sect had accumulated over ten thousand years directly to Su Xun, then continued with a complicated expression:

"As for your martial soul, although the six roots converge into a single body martial soul, it happens to possess every one of these traits."

"So, for your body martial soul's second awakening, you'll probably have to go through every single method."

"Finally, once all six roots are activated, you may well have to undergo another round of..."

"Ultimate Training."

By the end, Mu Ye no longer knew how to describe it. Only after a long pause did he spit out the word "ultimate."

Su Xun's mouth twitched as he listened.

Going by what Mu Ye had said, his second awakening would require one round for his eye root, one for his body root, perhaps one combined round for his ears and nose, one for his tongue root, and another for his mind root.

Then, once all six roots were activated, he would have to do another round for the whole lot...

Was this really a second awakening, and not the "six paths of reincarnation"?

Even Zhen Hua, standing nearby, gave Su Xun a sympathetic look after hearing all that.

Such a good kid. What a miserable fate.

"What's wrong? Scared?"

Seeing Su Xun remain silent, Mu Ye immediately tried to goad him.

Su Xun drew a deep breath and shook his head slightly.

"I'm not scared. It's just that I'll be putting you and Elder Han through a lot of trouble from now on, Senior Mu."

Mu Ye smiled faintly at that. He casually hooked an arm around Su Xun's arm, raised an eyebrow, and said:

"What's this 'Senior Mu'? We'll all be family from now on. Just call me Uncle Mu."

"Mm, and you can call this old fellow Uncle Zhen... Uncle Hua."

"Calling us 'senior' all the time feels a bit too distant."

Su Xun didn't hesitate. He bowed to each of them in turn and said:

"Uncle Mu, Uncle Hua."

Mu Ye and Zhen Hua both nodded in satisfaction.

Zhen Hua even gave it some thought before saying:

"This was rather sudden, so I haven't had time to prepare a welcoming gift for you. Let me think it over properly. I'll definitely make it up to you."

Mu Ye's eyes widened, and he cursed inwardly: You old bastard, you just had to turn this into a competition!

Then he smiled at Su Xun as well and hurried to jump on the bandwagon:

"Same here."

Su Xun scratched his head, feeling a little embarrassed. He had wanted to tell them there was no need to be so courteous, but just as he was about to speak, a surge of spiritual power sealed his throat, silencing him outright.

He blinked and looked at Han Tianyi.

Han Tianyi's voice, brimming with amusement, immediately rang in his ear:

"If they're willing to give you something, why stand on ceremony?"

"The Body Sect may have declined, but this brat Mu Ye has traveled far and wide over the years looking for disciples. He might have collected some good things. Making him bleed a little won't hurt."

"As for Zhen Hua, that goes without saying. As the only Divine Craftsman alive today, the wealth at his disposal and his channels for acquiring resources are no worse than anyone else's."

Su Xun nodded inwardly.

That made sense. He would just have to accept under duress.

Zhen Hua and Mu Ye both noticed that Su Xun had been silenced and shot Han Tianyi disgruntled glares.

Han Tianyi pretended not to see and changed the subject:

"Little Xun has been training his spiritual power under me all this time. Since I didn't have your approval, I never taught him the relevant secret arts."

"Now that you've agreed, leave his eye root's second awakening to me."

"As it happens, although Little Xun already has three rings, he's still young. It would be better to put him through your trials once he's a little older."

Mu Ye nodded at that. Then his gaze suddenly flickered, and he sent a voice transmission:

"Martial Uncle, we can't let talent like Su Xun's go to waste."

"I think we should pull off something big!"

Han Tianyi's eyes flickered.

"What do you mean?"

Mu Ye gave a soft snort and said coldly:

"Martial Uncle, you may be a generation above me, but there are certain secrets known only to the sect master that you probably aren't aware of."

Han Tianyi's brows drew together slightly.

Mu Ye continued:

"Ten thousand years ago, to keep the Body Secret Art from being lost, our former sect master, Senior Du Busi, entrusted his legacy to someone from Shrek, placing the Body Secret Art in that person's temporary custody."

"But from that point onward, the Body Sect began to decline."

"The secret arts the Body Sect possesses today are all the result of our predecessors compiling and refining them anew over these past ten thousand years."

"That's the real reason I resent Shrek."

Han Tianyi's expression shifted slightly.

Mu Ye continued transmitting his voice:

"Of course, some records are incomplete now, and I don't know the exact circumstances either. But judging by the traces left in history, the person Senior Du Busi entrusted with his legacy was probably none other than the founder of the Spirit Pagoda, Huo Yuhao!"

Han Tianyi's body swayed slightly at those words.

Spirit Ice Douluo Huo Yuhao had once been someone he revered and aspired to emulate.

Now Mu Ye had brought him this revelation, and for a moment, he found it difficult to accept.

But Mu Ye didn't seem to be joking.

And when all the pieces were connected, the possibility was very strong. After all, the Legend of Huo Yuhao clearly stated that Huo Yuhao's martial soul, the Spiritual Eyes, had completed a gold-level second awakening.

Related "unofficial histories" even claimed that after Huo Yuhao became a god, he immediately ascended to the Divine Realm to pursue his beloved.

In plain language, he had become a god, done absolutely nothing else, and run off to chase romance.

Although there was no telling whether those unofficial histories were true, taken together, they gave a distinct sense of "the truth coming to light."

Han Tianyi let out a soft sigh, his expression complicated.

"What's past cannot be undone, but what's to come is still ours to pursue."

"What we need to do is make the most of the present."

"Besides, why bring up these secrets when you say you want to pull off something big?"

Mu Ye chuckled mischievously:

"Shrek and the Tang Sect are one. Shrek brought calamity upon our Body Sect, so surely collecting a little interest from the Tang Sect isn't too much?"