Fallen Marrow Forged into an Edge · Refining Lightning Sha's Marrow into a Weapon Embryo

With the Thunder Sha extinguished, the curtain of the Broken Realm Severed Abyss slowly closed.

The three stepped out of the spatial rift in the Misty Soul Rift. The Soul Bone Edge was sealed in a black gold ancient box, the only source of soul weapon extracted from the Soul-Shattering Lightning Sha's body. Its sharpness had not yet appeared, but the thunderous aura had already penetrated to the bone.

Mission accomplished.

Qin Yu walked with his hands behind his back. The Azure Ring behind him had fallen silent, but he knew that the suppression beneath the silence was slowly brewing for the next outburst. Although that move [Silent Origin Wheel Prison] was only the third move of the Azure Ring, it had almost pushed the foundation of his Soul Seal into an extreme cycle between destruction and rebirth in that battle.

Zhou Yu, however, focused all his attention on the thunder weapon that was about to be completed.

"The Soul Bone Edge, the marrow of the Lightning Sha's Original Spine." Qin Yu handed him the black and gold ancient box, his tone steady. "This is the only one; it can withstand the lightning of your initial tribulation in the Nine Abyss."

Zhou Yu took it, his expression solemn. He knew that this was the only possibility to inherit the first move of the "Nine Abyss Silent Lightning Canon"—[Initial Tribulation: Lightning Mark Opens the Abyss]—.

"I will forge it myself," he said.

Instead of returning to the main peak, they temporarily stayed at an unclaimed forging platform in the Northern Region of the Thousand Realms Sect.

This forging platform was left behind after the sect failed in its attempt to forge a 'Realm God Weapon'. It contains the Ancient Soul Furnace Seal and the Heavenly Flame Stone base. Although it is not suitable for reforging Realm Artifact, it is more than enough to forge a Thunder-Bearing Weapon embryo.

⸻

The night before forging.

Silent lightning surged within the box, as if trying to break free of its shackles and roar out the lingering remnants of its Thunder Sha.

Yao Wanqing stood quietly on the other side of the forging platform, watching Zhou Yu repair the array plate, gently stroking the inlaid soul crystals in her hands, her expression no longer as indifferent as before.

She recalled the scene during the battle against the Thunder Sha, when Zhou Yu disregarded the turmoil in his own soul and forcibly sealed off the invasion of the Thunder God for her.

"Back then... you didn't have to save me," she suddenly whispered, breaking the silence.

Zhou Yu didn't even look up, simply stating, "We are a team."

"But you knew perfectly well that my soul resistance wasn't strong enough, yet you still made me cover the retreat."

This time, Zhou Yu finally paused, looked up, and glanced at her.

Yao Wanqing smiled slightly, her voice as gentle as a breeze across a night lake. "The way you blocked that lightning rod didn't seem like you were doing it for a mission."

The air remained still for a few breaths.

Zhou Yu said softly, "... Maybe not."

In that instant, Yao Wanqing's eyes trembled slightly, but she did not speak again. Instead, she quietly picked up a slender soul needle in her hand.

"This is Soul Sensing Needle I crafted myself," she said. "If your sea of consciousness becomes turbulent in the future, hold it tightly."

Why give it to me?

Yao Wanqing whispered, "If you fall in the future... this mission will have no meaning."

The soul needle trembled slightly at her fingertips, but did not fall.

At the Northern Region Forging Platform, thunder and fire have already begun.

At the center of the array plate, the Thunder Sha Bone slowly rose. The spine, which had been cut from the body of the Soul-Shattering Lightning Sha, was entirely blackish-purple, with lightning patterns swirling around it, and it emitted its own soul's wailing breath. The lightning on it formed its own soul consciousness, which not only refused to be refined, but also continuously emitted fiendish soul lightning, piercing people's sea of consciousness, and was extremely difficult to tame.

"This bone is the 'Lightning Sha's Original Spine,' a highly rank mutant among extraterrestrial soul beasts—its soul marrow forms its own domain." Qin Yu gazed at the center of the formation and said, "To completely refine it into a weapon embryo, only the ultimate thunder intent is required."

Zhou Yu's expression was solemn. He tried to use his initial mastery of [Nine Abyss Silent Lightning Canon - First Level: Lightning Mark Opens the Abyss] to trigger the resonance of his soul bone, but he was repeatedly repelled by the Thunder Sha Soul Intent.

The Soul Bone Edge trembled violently, as if unwilling to submit to human hands.

Yao Wanqing maintained the outer ring of soul pressure with the Soul Protection Array. At the center of the array, flames and lightning went berserk, breaking through the lightning seal three times, and the array base almost collapsed.

Just as the soul bone was about to backfire and destroy the array plate--

A faint blue light slowly emanated from Qin Yu's palm.

Instead of activating his combat skills, he extracted "Breath of Azure" from the source of Azure Ring, using the power of the first form of Qing Huan in the Soul Realm to nourish his spine, guiding his soul with his thoughts, calming the thunder with stillness, and using the "Order of the First Realm" to make the Thunder Sha recognize him as its master.

At the center of the formation, the soul gradually calmed down, and the lightning slowly receded.

Zhou Yu, within the formation, closed his eyes and concentrated, activating his own Soul Sea and drawing the Nine Abyss Thunder Dao to resonate with it.

"With me as the master, I will forge the first tribulation of Silent Lightning!"

Hiss--!

The Thunder Sha Essence suddenly exploded, a heaven-piercing thunder pattern bloomed in the flames, and layers of Silent Lightning locks sank deep into the spine.

Lightning converged, and the evil patterns were reconstructed, revealing an unformed weapon embryo—its entire body was jet black with a purple glow, like a broken blade from Realm Splitting. Even before it was drawn from its sheath, the void trembled slightly.

At that moment, Yao Wanqing held her breath, while Qin Yu narrowed his eyes and whispered:

"This is no ordinary True Soul Soldier Embryo."

"In the future... it will give birth to 'Source Life'."

--

[Soul Bone Edge - Thunder Sha True Marrow] successfully forged, a preliminary body-forging stage - True Soul Extreme Realm, capable of future fusion with a "Source Artifact," already possessing "Lightning Abyss Divine Soul Consciousness."

It is no longer merely the embryo of a weapon, but a "soldier's soul" with its own will.

In other words, Zhou Yu needs an Orthodox God of the Source Artifact level to perfectly fuse with this weapon embryo.