Willow Dark, Flowers Bright, Guanjiangkou

"Rolling raging waves swept up frost and snow; Thousand Fathom Peak's walls cut through the clouds. What a formidable mountain pass."

On the pebble-paved riverside path, Minghui gazed at the crashing waves ahead, the river stretching so far behind that its distance was impossible to judge, and the blade-like peaks rising into the clouds farther beyond. He was deeply shaken.

It was his first time seeing such a wide river.

Well, he had died young in his previous life and had never gotten the chance to see all the great rivers and mountains of his homeland.

As for before his death, it had been an era of fierce competition, and he had been caught up in it too. Competing in studies, competing in games and anime—he simply had no time to travel far. Well, even playing was a form of competition.

"Hui'er, is it shocking?" Du Busi asked with a smile when he saw his beloved disciple staring blankly beside him.

"Yes, Teacher." Minghui nodded. "It is my first time seeing such a wide river."

He had heard of it before. According to his mother's introduction before he left, this river had formed from the collision between the Sun Moon Continent and the Douluo Continent. It also served as a natural barrier between the Sun Moon Continent and the Heaven Dou Empire. The Body Sect was located atop the tallest of those peaks.

Tall—it truly was tall, practically a pillar holding up the heavens!

In the original novel, the Body Sect served as the Heaven Dou Empire's protector sect. What they guarded was probably this natural barrier, Minghui thought.

Unfortunately, they had overlooked the progress of the times.

Soul Tools could not only grant flight, but also launch long-range attacks. Such rivers and natural barriers had long ceased to be fearsome.

"I was also greatly shocked when I first saw it," Du Busi said, looking out over the river in the distance. "But after seeing it often enough, I got used to it."

"Hui'er, you will get used to it too."

As he spoke, he reached out and patted his disciple on the shoulder.

"Let's go. The boat is here."

They had been traveling for several days. His disciple could rest on the boat, while also becoming familiar with one of the Sect's ways in and out.

As he thought, a small single-cabin wooden boat approached across the river ahead.

Minghui noticed it as well. He nodded and followed his bargain-basement master toward the wooden pier ahead.

A moment later, he was pulled into a light leap and landed steadily on the deck.

The boatman was a young man dressed like an ordinary fisherman. His skin was dark, his features weathered, and his bare arms were exceptionally thick.

Upon seeing Du Busi board, he respectfully cupped his hands.

"Greetings, Sect Leader!"

Du Busi smiled, then turned toward Minghui. "This is Minghui, Old Man's newly accepted Personal Disciple."

A Personal Disciple! Surprise flashed through the young man's eyes. Then he said amiably, "Greetings, Junior Disciple Minghui. My name is Meng Tao. My Martial Soul is Double Arms."

Double Arms? Rowing against the wind certainly trained arm strength. Minghui instantly realized that this fisherman's job was one of Senior Brother Meng's training assignments. It suited the local conditions well enough. To match his current age, he immediately gave a deep bow.

"Greetings, Senior Brother Meng!"

Meng Tao was delighted to see Minghui show such courtesy. He grinned, revealing white teeth that gleamed against his dark face in the sunlight.

"You are too polite, Junior Disciple. Once you join our Body Sect, we are family!" He laughed heartily and raised the oar in his hand. "Junior Disciple, go sit in the cabin. We are setting off."

"Sorry to trouble you, Senior Brother." Minghui politely replied, then followed his teacher into the cabin and sat down.

The river was vast, and even after a long while, they still could not see the other bank. The wind was strong as well, making the boat sway heavily. Minghui was not seasick, but he still found it difficult to adapt for the moment. Unable to focus his mind and meditate, he could only chat with his talkative Senior Brother Meng along the way.

During that time, he introduced his Body Martial Soul, which could be considered a response to the other man's earlier initiative in revealing his own Martial Soul.

As for his other Martial Soul, Teacher Du Busi had told him to keep it secret for the time being during their journey.

About half a shichen later, propelled by Senior Brother Meng's powerful arms rowing swiftly, a natural stone cave appeared amid the crevices of jagged rocks.

They entered it and traveled onward for a long time. After passing through darkness and chill, they finally caught sight of light.

After that, it could truly be described as willow dark, flowers bright, another village ahead. There really was a village. A sign hung at the entrance pier, bearing the name Guanjiangkou.

"This is the village where the families of Sect disciples usually live. Many of them do not possess soul power," Du Busi explained.

"But to the Sect, they are equally important."

"Most of the supplies we need in daily life are procured with the help of these families."

Minghui nodded lightly. His teacher carried him ashore in a leap, and as they walked forward, he observed the surroundings.

The terrain in the valley rose and fell. Most houses were built along the mountainsides, while terraced fields planted with crops spread below them. Several small streams converged into one in the middle. Following those streams back to their sources, they all flowed down from the lush green mountains around them. The water was exceptionally clear and clean.

"Greetings, Sect Leader!" The villagers were all very enthusiastic. When they saw Du Busi, some bowed while others waved in greeting.

The children raised their heads to look at Minghui, and some gazes carried envy.

For him to have been personally brought back by the Sect Leader, he had obviously awakened a Body Martial Soul and possessed a certain level of talent.

Minghui silently estimated the children's ages. Some were clearly over six just from their height, and he understood.

These were most likely children whose Martial Souls had not awakened soul power.

That was how Martial Soul inheritance worked. Even if both parents were Soul Masters, their child might not necessarily awaken soul power.

Otherwise, after years of survival of the fittest, Soul Masters would already be everywhere across the continent.

Even the Azure Family and the Body Sect are like this, so ordinary families must have it even worse. Some people probably do not even awaken Martial Souls at all... Thinking of this, Minghui felt somewhat emotional.

Although he had always stayed at home, it was not as though he had never heard about the outside world.

In the current Heaven Dou Empire and Dou Ling Empire, awakening a Martial Soul required payment, and the fees were not standardized.

That was because the method of conducting awakening ceremonies had changed. During the era of Douluo I, Spirit Hall would proactively send deacons to villages to conduct them. Now, people had to go to the city lord's manor in the city themselves.

The mountains were high and the emperor was far away. I can charge however much I want—what can a mere commoner do about it?

Power without oversight was the most troubling thing.

As for the Star Luo Empire, it was even worse!

At least the Heaven Dou Empire and Dou Ling Empire had places where commoners could pay to awaken their Martial Souls. In Star Luo, however, the authorities had not established awakening institutions at all.

Because of this, the overwhelming majority of Star Luo Empire commoners had no Martial Souls, including soldiers in the military.

Even without soul power, a Martial Soul could provide a certain degree of enhancement to its host. Logically, soldiers, as those who defended their homes and country, should have their Martial Souls awakened to ensure their combat power. Yet the Star Luo Empire had not done so. It was simply absurd!

The Sun Moon Empire, on the other hand, had begun moving toward free Martial Soul awakening for all due to its advanced Soul Tools and preparations for war.

With a Soul Tool scan, whether one possessed Innate Soul Power could be seen at a glance. It was extremely convenient.

The reason the Azure Family still retained the traditional awakening ceremony was entirely to strengthen the family's cohesion through this method.

There is a reason the Three Great Empires could be fought one against three by the Sun Moon Empire in the original novel—and still lose. The Soul Master World of the Three Great Empires has already become entirely a circle for nobles. While their top-tier combat strength has not been cut off, their foundation is steadily weakening, Minghui sighed inwardly.

If not for Huo Gua and Shrek Academy in the original novel, and even Tang San meddling as well, Minghui believed the original Three Great Empires would have long since been unified by the Sun Moon Empire.

When the Sun Moon Empire's army marched in, there might even have been commoners lining the streets to welcome them.

With that thought, he continued onward behind Teacher Du Busi, occasionally smiling and nodding in response to villagers who looked over.

After some time, they arrived before a stone wall fitted with a pulley lift.

Minghui looked up. Several meters up the cliff face stood a sentry pavilion.

As he and his teacher stepped into the wooden "elevator," a figure flickered within the sentry pavilion, and the rope beside it instantly tightened.

"Creak, creak."

The wooden frame rose with a faint swaying motion.