Nine Yang Divine Skill and the Mysterious Jade Pendant (Please Vote!)

He climbed to the mountaintop.

All around him were lush green grass and broad stretches of grayish-white stone. Looking out, beneath the cliff lay an endless expanse of verdant forest.

Lin Ye sat cross-legged on a grayish-white boulder.

Facing the rising sun, Lin Ye closed his eyes and began regulating his breathing.

Faintly, wisps of barely visible airflow could be seen continuously entering and leaving Lin Ye's body, forming a perfect cycle.

Still no good. Why can't my Nine Yang Divine Skill break through to the first level? The true qi in my body has clearly reached the limit the first level can hold...

After a long while, Lin Ye suddenly opened his eyes. Looking at his fair, clean hands, he furrowed his brows, a trace of confusion flashing through his bright eyes.

Could it be because I haven't awakened that Martial Soul Grandpa mentioned?

I heard that after awakening a Martial Soul and becoming a soul master, once one's strength reaches a certain limit, they'll also hit a bottleneck. They have to absorb something called a soul ring before they can continue cultivating.

That sounds rather similar to my current situation.

Thinking of the mysterious power Grandpa Old Jack had always spoken of—the Martial Soul—Lin Ye fell into thought.

The Nine Yang Divine Skill was the Cultivation Method Lin Ye was currently practicing. That was how the information that had suddenly appeared in his mind described it.

Lin Ye had not learned this Cultivation Method from anyone. Rather, when he was three years old, he had once been playing with the jade pendant he had worn close to his body since childhood.

The jade pendant had suddenly shot out a streak of light that struck Lin Ye's head. Then, for no apparent reason, this Cultivation Method called the Nine Yang Divine Skill appeared in his mind.

Through cultivating the Nine Yang Divine Skill, an unusual energy called Nine Yang True Qi had been produced within Lin Ye's body.

As this energy circulated through his body, it gave Lin Ye physical qualities far beyond those of ordinary people from a young age. Whether it was strength, speed, or reaction time, Lin Ye far surpassed even adults.

Beyond strengthening his body, Nine Yang True Qi possessed many other effects.

For example, it could generate pure yang energy, allowing Lin Ye to feel no cold even in winter while wearing only a thin shirt.

It could also strengthen his constitution, keeping him free from all illnesses.

It protected his body, making him difficult to injure with blades or swords, and could even deflect some weaker attacks.

Because of the Nine Yang Divine Skill, Lin Ye had become very interested in the jade pendant he had worn close to his body since childhood.

To uncover the jade pendant's purpose, Lin Ye had tried many methods. In the end, he discovered that infusing Nine Yang True Qi into it could actually trigger some kind of energy barrier.

Lin Ye had a feeling that if he could break the barrier within the jade pendant, he might gain something—perhaps other martial arts similar to the Nine Yang Divine Skill.

Yet when it came to the energy barrier within the jade pendant, Lin Ye could clearly sense that the true qi in his body was already enough to break it. But it seemed as though he lacked some crucial element. He was always just a final sliver away, only to fail at the last moment.

Based on the information he had received from Grandpa Old Jack, Lin Ye felt that the reason he could not break the jade pendant's energy barrier was most likely because he had not yet awakened a Martial Soul.

The Martial Soul Awakening Ceremony will be held today. If I can awaken a Martial Soul, I'll be able to verify my guess.

Lin Ye thought to himself.

Aside from confirming his suspicions, Lin Ye had another purpose for awakening a Martial Soul: uncovering the truth of his origins.

Lin Ye was not Grandpa Old Jack's biological grandson. According to Old Jack, he had found Lin Ye by chance. After hearing a knock at the door, he had opened it and found Lin Ye outside.

At the time, Lin Ye had been wrapped in gorgeous brocade. Ordinary families could never afford such fabric, so Old Jack guessed that Lin Ye's background had to be far from ordinary.

However, Old Jack had never met Lin Ye's biological parents, so everything was merely speculation. The only thing that could prove Lin Ye's identity was the jade pendant on him.

Originally, Lin Ye had thought this jade pendant was merely an ordinary proof of identity.

But after obtaining the Nine Yang Divine Skill, Lin Ye no longer thought so. This jade pendant was definitely more than a mere token of identification—it was a treasure that could reveal his identity!

Since the jade pendant could grant him the Nine Yang Divine Skill, it surely contained information about his parents. The reason it had not appeared yet had to be because he was not strong enough and had not met his parents' requirements.

Lin Ye firmly believed that his parents had not abandoned him.

If they had abandoned him, they would never have placed him outside Grandpa Old Jack's home and allowed Old Jack to raise him. They must have encountered some kind of hardship and had no choice but to leave him in someone else's care.

And this jade pendant was the clue his parents had left behind.

The energy barrier left inside the jade pendant was proof of that. Although he could only sense one energy barrier now, there were likely many more.

As long as he continued breaking through those energy barriers in the future, he would be able to obtain more things.

In addition to Cultivation Methods like the Nine Yang Divine Skill, there had to be other, more valuable treasures. Once his strength reached a certain level, perhaps he would receive the information his parents had left behind.

Moreover, parents capable of leaving him such a miraculous jade pendant could not possibly be ordinary people on the continent. They were likely legendary, incredibly powerful soul masters.

As long as he awakened a Martial Soul and became a soul master, he would come into contact with more people and things during his future cultivation. Then, he would surely be able to find news of his parents.

"It's getting late. Time to head back."

After finishing his cultivation of the Nine Yang Divine Skill, Lin Ye looked at the sky. Seeing that it was already late, he stood up and prepared to descend the mountain and return home.

Lin Ye nimbly made his way down the mountain and returned to the village. By the time he got home, Grandpa Old Jack had already finished cooking and placed the dishes on the table.

"Hurry up and eat. We still have to welcome the Lord Soul Master from Spirit Hall soon."

Seeing Lin Ye return home, Old Jack sat down beside the table and urged him.

"Don't worry, Grandpa. I eat quickly."

Lin Ye answered as he sat beside Old Jack, picked up his bowl, and took up his chopsticks.

Since they had to welcome the soul master coming to conduct the Martial Soul Awakening Ceremony, Lin Ye and Old Jack both ate quickly. In less than ten minutes, they had finished all the food.

"Alright, let's go wait at the entrance of the village. The Lord Soul Master from Spirit Hall should be arriving soon."

Old Jack spoke after glancing at the sky outside.

After eating, Old Jack did not wash the dishes. Instead, he placed the plates and bowls into the pot, filled it with water, covered it with the lid, and prepared to take Lin Ye to the village entrance to welcome the soul master sent by the Nuoding City Spirit Hall Branch.

The two left the house and made their way to the entrance of Holy Soul Village.

By then, the sun was nearly up, and the weather was beginning to grow warm. As they waited beneath the shade of a tree, a figure slowly approached along the distant road.

He was a young man who looked to be in his twenties. He had a tall, upright build, sharp brows and bright eyes, and a handsome face. He wore a grayish-white uniform.

On the left side of his chest was a fist-sized character for soul, while on the right side was a badge engraved with swords. There were three interwoven longswords on the badge.

Thanks to Grandpa Old Jack's explanations, Lin Ye knew that the number of swords on the badge represented the young man's rank as a soul master—the third rank, Soul Grandmaster.

The swords represented that this young soul master's path of development was that of a battle soul master.

Soul master was a realm that those who awakened Martial Souls and developed a power called Soul Power within their bodies could reach through cultivation. This cultivation was probably similar to the cultivation of his own Nine Yang Divine Skill.

By realm, soul masters were divided into ten major ranks: Soul Scholar, Soul Master, Soul Grandmaster, Soul Elder, Soul Ancestor, Soul King, Soul Emperor, Soul Saint, Soul Douluo, and Titled Douluo.

Legend had it that powerful high-level soul masters could crush an entire legion head-on and possessed the ability to determine the rise and fall of a nation. Such power was what Lin Ye had always longed for and admired.

"Honored Battle Soul Master, you've arrived!"

Upon seeing the young man, Old Jack respectfully bowed and greeted him.

"No need for such formalities. Let's go in early. The sooner I finish holding the Martial Soul Awakening Ceremony for your village, the sooner I can head to the other villages."

The young man stepped forward, helped Old Jack up, and spoke calmly.

"Yes, honored Battle Soul Master."

Old Jack remained respectful.

PS: The protagonist's Nine Yang Divine Skill is not the version from The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber, but a higher-level martial arts version. Its abilities may therefore differ from what everyone knows—or rather, it is a bit stronger. That is perfectly normal.

Also, please vote!