Two days later.
"Phew..." Yu Xuan slowly opened his eyes. After getting up and loosening all his joints, he murmured, "I've finally broken through to level thirty. I'll tell Father the news and rile Gangzi up while I'm at it."
In the dull life of the clan, only his younger brother Xiaogang could relieve his boredom.
Yu Xuan pushed open the door, and glaring sunlight washed over him. Once his eyes adjusted, he hurried toward the clan leader's residence.
As he passed Yu Xiaogang's room, Yu Xiaogang was tugging on Luo Sanpao's balls, bullying the big fat pig.
Xiaogang was startled to see his older brother in such a hurry.
What's Big Brother going to do? I rarely see him in such a rush.
Yu Xuan happened to notice Gangzi looking at him. Seeing his indecent behavior, the corner of his mouth twitched.
Without speaking to Yu Xiaogang, Yu Xuan turned and left, soon disappearing from his sight.
After a guard announced him, Yu Xuan was admitted to see Yu Yuanzhen. "Father, I've broken through to level thirty."
"So soon?" Surprise showed on Yu Yuanzhen's face. "I thought it would take you a while longer."
Yu Xuan said, "I was close to breaking through a few days ago. Otherwise, I wouldn't have gone to the grand training ground to spar and look for a chance to break through."
"Good," Yu Yuanzhen said. "Then we'll set off right away. Is there anything you need to bring?"
"Nothing. Let's leave now. I can't wait any longer." Yu Xuan smiled and urged him on.
"All right, then. We'll leave immediately."
Yu Yuanzhen scooped him up, spread a pair of dragon wings, and flew into the sky.
Elsewhere, Yu Xiaogang saw his father take his older brother away. His brows knitted tightly. "Why did Dad fly away with Big Brother? Where are they going?"
"Could Big Brother have broken through again?"
"No, impossible. Big Brother is only nine. How could he possibly break through to level thirty at nine?!"
"I've crawled and struggled for three years and worked so hard just to reach level seven. What gives Big Brother the right to cultivate so quickly?!"
Yu Xiaogang was jealous again, jealous to the point that his eyes turned red.
Clearly, he was the one who should have been the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's most outstanding disciple.
He was so clever, while his older brother was nothing but a mediocrity.
Damn the heavens!
The thieving heavens were jealous of his wisdom, so they had given him a trash martial soul to suppress his world-shocking talent.
"Young Master Xiaogang, your ten-minute break is over. It's time to get back to cultivating!"
Suddenly, two burly men from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan walked over.
One had a scar on his face, while the other had a face full of coarse flesh.
Yu Yuanzhen had sent them to supervise Yu Xiaogang's cultivation.
Yu Xiaogang's talent was already lousy, and ever since awakening a trash martial soul, he had put on the air of a man whose talents had gone unappreciated, slacking off every day.
For his sake, Yu Yuanzhen had gone to great lengths, specifically assigning two burly men to watch him cultivate.
To keep Yu Xiaogang in line, Yu Yuanzhen had even given them considerable authority.
If Yu Xiaogang refused to cultivate, the two had the right to punish him without reporting it to Yu Yuanzhen.
"I'm in a bad mood. Let me rest for a day," Yu Xiaogang pleaded, his face downcast.
"No! Young Master Xiaogang, the clan leader ordered you to cultivate every day. You're not allowed to slack off or grow lazy!" the scar-faced man sternly refused, suddenly kicking Luo Sanpao flying.
"Luo, luo..." Luo Sanpao scrambled to its feet in pain, its face full of grievance.
Following Gangzi had been hard on it too.
Not only was it bullied by Gangzi every day, but outsiders bullied it as well.
Yu Xiaogang lowered his head and said listlessly, his voice weak, "All right, I'll go back to my room and cultivate."
Meanwhile, elsewhere...
Yu Yuanzhen brought Yu Xuan to the Star Dou Great Forest once again.
It was the largest Soul Beast forest on the entire continent, spanning two empires and boasting an abundance of Soul Beasts.
"Father, I plan to absorb a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring."
Worried that his father might not know what he needed, Yu Xuan told him his goal for this trip in advance.
"A Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast?"
Yu Yuanzhen frowned and said earnestly, "Xiao Xuan, a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring is very different from a Thousand-Year Soul Ring. It's not just the increase in age; it also has something a Thousand-Year Soul Ring doesn't: Soul Shock."
"Soul Shock is a special ability produced by a high-level Soul Beast after death, before its soul has dissipated."
"Even a level-fifty Soul Master must be especially careful when absorbing a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring."
"Your Soul Power is only at level thirty. Your body might withstand the energy impact from a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, but Soul Shock directly attacks and damages your spiritual world."
"I understand. Of course I know a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring has Soul Shock." Yu Xuan smiled. "Father, have you forgotten the Immortal Herb I took three years ago?"
"That Scarlet Fire Crimson Spinach?" Yu Yuanzhen asked.
"Yes, that Immortal Herb. It strengthened my spiritual power."
"And that's not all." Yu Xuan met his gaze. "I also tried guiding my origin flame into my Sea of Consciousness."
"Like forging iron over a gentle flame, I slowly burned away the distracting thoughts and muddled emotions in my mind. To my surprise, I found that my spiritual power had grown tougher and stronger."
"From then on, I occasionally guided the flame in to burn away those distracting thoughts. It not only helped me calm down and cultivate, but also tempered my spiritual power..."
At the end, Yu Xuan added, "Father, I think my reasons are enough to convince you."
"Guiding fire into your Sea of Consciousness? Xiao Xuan, you're far too bold. Weren't you afraid something would go wrong?!"
Yu Yuanzhen's pupils contracted. He had never imagined Yu Xuan would dare do something so reckless.
"But it worked, didn't it?" Yu Xuan said.
Yu Yuanzhen took a deep breath. "Xiao Xuan, you've convinced me. I agree to let you absorb a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring."
"But-"
He paused, his tone turning grave. "You must promise me not to keep tempering your spiritual power this way. I'm truly afraid you'll play with fire and burn yourself!"
"All right." Yu Xuan nodded and agreed.
"Sigh... Let's go."
Yu Yuanzhen raised a hand helplessly, feeling that each of his two sons gave him more cause for worry than the other. One was too useless, and the other was too bold in what he did.
Come to think of it, if Yu Xiaogang had Yu Xuan's ruthlessness, he should have broken through to level ten by now, even if his talent was hard to improve.
The more Yu Yuanzhen thought about it, the angrier he grew. If Yu Xiaogang had been there, he felt he wouldn't have been able to resist slapping him.
The two said no more and headed straight into the Star Dou Great Forest.
As they made their way through the woods, Yu Xuan was much more at ease than he had been on his first visit.
They did not linger in the outer region, instead heading straight into the mixed zone.
The Soul Beasts here were much stronger than those in the outer region.
After searching for six days straight, Yu Yuanzhen and Yu Xuan finally encountered a ten-thousand-year One-Horned Fire Tyrant Dragon that met their requirements. The Soul Beast fled swiftly, but it could not escape Yu Yuanzhen's grasp and was gravely wounded in the blink of an eye.
"Xiao Xuan, come kill this One-Horned Fire Tyrant Dragon."
Yu Xuan stepped forward and summoned the Sword of Flame Radiance, intending to finish it with one strike and end its suffering.
But just then, a shout rang out from the distance: "Stop!"