Homesick, Heading Out

He wiped away his tears.

Mu Tian'en forced his eyes open.

But just as he wanted to reach for some pastries to replenish his strength, he found that opening his eyes had already used up the last of it.

He couldn't lift his arms.

Unprecedented pain came from every part of his body.

It was as though something had passed through him and forcibly expanded his meridians to their very limits.

Mu Tian'en grimaced and tried again.

But that struggle was enough to make Mu Tian'en lose his cross-legged posture entirely.

He toppled onto the bed.

Fortunately, Mu Tian'en had worried from the start that something might go wrong with his cultivation, so he had surrounded himself with pillows.

The fall itself didn't hurt too much.

But after the pain that had spread across his skin from the fall passed, the pain and fullness coming from his muscles and meridians took turns battering Mu Tian'en's mind.

At that point, even wailing was a luxury he couldn't afford.

Tears fell, patter, patter~

Mu Tian'en thought that if he were at home, with his mom and dad still around, they would definitely notice him like this and take care of him.

Mu Tian'en had only been nine when he left that world, and he had been well cared for in a world almost obsessively protective of young children.

But care couldn't save him from a serious illness.

And in this world, Mu Tian'en had left his parents behind at an early age.

He still remembered that mother holding him and humming a song.

Whether in his previous life or this one, Mu Tian'en was still a child.

Tears flowed from Mu Tian'en's eyes.

They slid down his cheeks.

And dripped onto his pillow.

A whimper like that of a small animal escaped Mu Tian'en's throat.

But the whimpering didn't last long.

Unprecedented exhaustion came over Mu Tian'en, urging his eyelids shut.

But at that moment, Mu Tian'en was afraid of falling asleep.

He couldn't sleep.

If he fell asleep, he might never wake up.

But~

He was only six, after all.

Even though he had awakened the top-tier Martial Soul, the Black Hole Whale, Mu Tian'en had still paid the price of near collapse and terrible pain in the muscles and meridians throughout his body during his first Soul Power cultivation session, in exchange for his Martial Soul teaching him almost everything it knew about the relevant Soul Power cultivation method.

Unfortunately, Mu Tian'en was still too young.

His mind couldn't withstand this meditation session.

It was also at that moment that Mu Tian'en's Martial Soul Possession ended completely.

The physical and mental strength enhanced by Martial Soul Possession began to fade.

Already unable to withstand the strain, Mu Tian'en finally succumbed to the mental exhaustion.

He fell into a deep sleep.

The next day~

Mu Tian'en got out of bed, his eyes hazy with sleep.

The moment his feet touched the floor, he woke up completely.

He rushed into his bathroom. After taking care of his personal needs, he grabbed the breakfast Yan Bohan had brought him and stuffed it into his mouth under Yan Bohan's puzzled gaze, taking a moment amid the flurry to pick up his little schoolbag.

"Tian'en, it's a rare day off today, and there are no classes. Why don't you sleep a little longer?" Yan Bohan called out to Mu Tian'en.

After dinner yesterday, Mu Tian'en had shut himself in his room.

Yan Bohan had wanted to knock on his door and take him out for a stroll.

It had been ten days since they came to Spirit Hall's Vast Sea City main hall, and the little fellow had spent almost all his time going between the dormitory, cafeteria, and classroom.

He had no entertainment whatsoever.

He was just like the ascetics Deacon Yan Bohan had read about in the records left by their predecessors, who worshipped the Angel God and chose to bear the suffering of all living beings on their own shoulders, believing that the more hardship they endured, the less suffering there would be in the world.

But Mu Tian'en was just a child.

He wasn't old enough to see through the mortal world and pray for all living beings, nor was it his place to plead for their well-being.

But just as Yan Bohan was about to knock, he heard a whimper from inside the room.

Yan Bohan gave up on knocking and taking Mu Tian'en around Vast Sea City.

During the past few days, Yan Bohan had also found time to visit Anlan Village.

He had learned about Mu Tian'en's past from Old Beita, and the old man, who had gradually come to use Soul Power cultivation as a daily means of restoring his strength rather than pursuing advancement, had felt a sense of helplessness for no clear reason.

Sea Soul Beasts~

Too many Soul Beasts lurked in that vast ocean. Even Spirit Hall, powerful as it was, could only protect some of the people when disaster struck, then go to the surrounding villages and towns afterward to help those still alive.

The little fellow had suddenly been left all alone.

If not for Old Beita, that kindhearted old village chief, little Tian'en would never have lived to see the day of his Martial Soul Awakening, when Yan Bohan brought him into Spirit Hall.

The little fellow was only six.

It was normal for him to suddenly miss his family.

Crying it out was better than keeping it bottled up inside.

Besides, Yan Bohan had sensed fluctuations of Soul Power flowing through Mu Tian'en, and knew that little Tian'en must have completed his first meditation session with the Basic Soul Power Cultivation Method yesterday, gained an initial sense of his own power, and begun to make his Soul Power flow according to his will.

Only now could little Tian'en be considered a true Quasi-Soul Master with Innate Full Soul Power, capable of absorbing the power of his First Soul Ring.

A little more joy appeared on Yan Bohan's face.

He had heard from the cardinal that a letter had arrived from Spirit Hall headquarters: an important figure had already set out and would soon arrive at Spirit Hall's Vast Sea City main hall to take Mu Tian'en back to headquarters.

When that lord arrived and saw Mu Tian'en's current state, she would presumably be pleased as well.

Now, as long as Mu Tian'en recuperated a little longer, he could theoretically absorb a Soul Ring at the age limit.

Only then did a trace of the pride that came with being a Spirit Hall deacon flash across Yan Bohan's face.

How could an ordinary Soul Master realize that control over Soul Power was also an important means of increasing the age limit of the Soul Rings they could absorb?

Knowledge was already in the hands of Spirit Hall, which had passed down its inheritance for hundreds and thousands of years.

But before Yan Bohan could take pride in it any longer, before he even had time to say another couple of words to Mu Tian'en, Mu Tian'en had already stuffed all the breakfast Yan Bohan had brought back into his mouth and finished eating.

Mu Tian'en's cheeks bulged, packed full of food.

An ordinary person would have been unable to speak clearly with a mouth stuffed full of food, but Mu Tian'en had no such problem.

Mu Tian'en answered Yan Bohan with remarkably clear enunciation. "No, Grandpa. I found a fun place with lots and lots of books."

Mu Tian'en didn't tell Grandpa Yan about the painful experience he had suffered yesterday.

For one thing, when he woke up today, his whole body, which had been sore and aching yesterday, felt much better in an instant.

For another, Mu Tian'en instinctively felt that what he had experienced wasn't something an ordinary Soul Master would encounter. Even if he asked Grandpa Yan, he was bound to get no answer.

If he asked the cardinal of Spirit Hall's Vast Sea main hall, Mu Tian'en might get an answer, but at the same time, his backside might get a spanking.

Rather than get his backside spanked, he might as well search through those books. He should be able to find an answer there too.

Watching Mu Tian'en put on his shoes and prepare to leave, Yan Bohan, who was sitting at the dining table, suddenly came to his senses after marveling at the little fellow's astonishing eating skills. He hurriedly called out, "Remember to go to the cafeteria for lunch and dinner. I'm going out to awaken Martial Souls for people today, so I won't be back."

"Grandpa Yan, I know."

Mu Tian'en looked back and smiled at Yan Bohan, then darted out of the room, which was no different from a little cottage, like a little whale.

Anyone who didn't know better would have thought something terrible was chasing Mu Tian'en.

Yan Bohan looked at the closed door and cheerfully brought his own breakfast to his mouth.

He had some strenuous work ahead of him, so he needed to replenish his energy too.

For some reason, Yan Bohan felt that he would land a big catch while awakening Martial Souls today.