Yu Luo's words came to an abrupt end.
He saw the sect leader, Yu Yuanzhen, slowly turn around.
There was no angry roar, no surge of soul power.
In an instant, Yu Luo felt as if the air around her had solidified into a block of iron, and an invisible yet heavy pressure, as heavy as a mountain, was pressing in from all directions.
His breathing stopped.
His heart felt as if it were being gripped by an invisible hand.
His soul power, his proud cultivation level, paled in comparison to this aura, as insignificant as a speck of dust.
Yu Yuanzhen's eyes were calm, and his voice was calm as well.
"I don't want that."
"Within the sect, we will not allow any further criticism of Qingyuan to be heard."
Do you understand?
"I see..."
Elder Yu Luo used all his strength to squeeze out these words from his throat, and cold sweat was already streaming down his forehead.
Yu Yuanzhen withdrew his gaze, no longer looking at him, and continued walking forward.
Only after that imposing figure disappeared at the end of the corridor did the terrifying pressure that could change the very fabric of the world quietly dissipate.
Thump!
Elder Yu Luo's legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, like a fish out of water.
for a long time.
Several elders who knew him rushed over upon hearing the news, and were shocked to see his distraught appearance.
"Elder Luo, what's wrong with you?"
"Who dares to attack you within the sect?"
Yu Luo's lips trembled as she recounted everything that had just happened.
After listening, the elders looked at each other, their faces full of disbelief.
"The sect leader... he actually went to such lengths for a mere Jade Purity Source?"
"Are you crazy! That kid is just a piece of trash who has been cultivating for over ten years and is only at level twenty-something."
"That's right! The future of our sect belongs to Tianheng! It belongs to Yu Tianheng, the captain of the Royal Fighting Team!"
"The sect leader is truly senile. For the sake of a discarded pawn, he actually dared to intimidate the sect elders. Alas..."
The group lowered their voices and kept complaining, their words filled with contempt for Yu Qingyuan and incomprehension of the sect leader's decision.
...
On the other side.
Inside the courtyard of Yuqingyuan.
Yu Yuanzhen returned, but this time, his expression was much more relaxed.
He handed over a plain-looking blue cloth bag.
"Inside are some gold soul coins, some basic supplies, and a token from the sect."
"If you encounter trouble, you can speak up. On the mainland, most people will still give you some face."
"Thank you, Grandpa."
Yu Qingyuan accepted it without hesitation, without the slightest bit of politeness.
"Woof!"
Suddenly, Xiaotian came over and sniffed the cloth bag curiously with its wet nose. Then it raised its head and wagged its tail affectionately at Yu Yuanzhen.
Looking into its clear, star-like eyes, Yu Yuanzhen felt the last trace of resentment in his heart vanish.
He bent down and reached out to stroke Xiaotian's soft fur.
"Good boy, take good care of your master when you're out here."
Xiaotian squinted comfortably, stuck out his tongue, and gently licked Yu Yuanzhen's rough palm.
"Do you have a purpose for coming here?"
Yu Yuanzhen stood up and asked one last question.
Yu Qingyuan did not hide anything; he gazed into the distance, his eyes filled with a distant longing.
"I have heard that in the far west, there is a treasure land where ice and fire coexist, called the Eye of Ice and Fire."
"There lies my opportunity to break through my bottleneck."
"Breaking through level 30?" Yu Yuanzhen frowned. "Aren't the spiritual herbs in the sect's treasury enough?"
"not enough."
Yu Qingyuan shook his head and calmly dropped a shocking secret.
"Grandpa, actually my martial spirit has not truly awakened."
"It is still in the process of merging with my body, or rather, with my soul."
"The bottleneck at level 29 is less a barrier of soul power and more a limit of physical strength."
He paused, looked at his grandfather's shocked expression, and continued.
"I need a genuine celestial herb as a catalyst to complete this final fusion."
"Only in this way can my martial spirit be completely stabilized, and my path of cultivation truly begin."
"Only by then..."
A faint smile appeared on Yu Qingyuan's lips.
"Only then can I cultivate and become stronger quickly, just like a true Soul Master."
After Yu Yuanzhen left, the courtyard returned to silence.
The oppressive dragon's might dissipated, and the air seemed to become a little fresher.
Yu Qingyuan casually tied the cloth bag around his waist and patted Xiaotian's head.
"Let's go, Xiaotian."
"Woof!"
With an excited growl, Xiaotian and his dog, like two wisps of wispy smoke, silently departed from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
No one was alerted.
...
Heading west.
Yu Qingyuan was not in a hurry to travel. During the day, he and Xiaotian traveled along the mountain roads, and at night they would find a secluded place to meditate and cultivate the "Eight-Nine Arcane Arts".
Although his soul power did not increase, the connection between his physical body and soul became increasingly closer through daily training.
Half a month later.
A figure of a man and a dog appeared on the outskirts of Sunset Forest.
This is one of the three most famous gathering places of soul beasts in the Heaven Dou Empire, and it is also the first stop on his journey.
"The journey to the Yin-Yang Eye of Ice and Fire is long and there is no need to rush."
Yu Qingyuan stood under a towering ancient tree, gazing at the deep forest, and spoke to himself and to Xiaotian beside him.
"I can get rid of my first spirit ring here."
Yes, the first one.
The Eight-Nine Arcane Arts is incredibly profound, forging the body and refining the soul. It can be cultivated without a soul ring, but now that I've reached level twenty-nine, my physical body has reached a bottleneck, and the fusion of my divine soul and martial soul also requires external force.
A spirit ring is the best "key".
Moreover, thanks to the powerful physique honed by the Eight-Nine Arcane Arts, his first soul ring started far ahead of ordinary people.
A thousand years is just the beginning.
Yu Qingyuan closed his eyes, and at the center of his brow, the skin twitched slightly, as if something was about to burst out of his flesh.
The next moment.
His eyes snapped open, but this time, a vertical pupil appeared right between his brows!
Between the opening and closing of its vertical pupils, there was no earth-shattering power, only a faint golden divine light that flashed by in an instant.
The Heavenly Eye!
open!
At level twenty-nine, after the initial fusion of the soul and body, the first innate divine power awakens.
In the view of the FAST telescope, the whole world looks different.
The vitality of plants, the veins of rocks, and even the ethereal energy in the air all transformed into colorful light, clearly visible.
Within these lights, life force of varying strengths, like candlelight in the darkness, is nowhere to be hidden.
Yu Qingyuan's gaze quickly swept across the entire forest.
Ten years, a hundred years, he simply ignored those faint specks of light.
His gaze finally settled on a powerful aura deep within the forest, emanating a ghostly green light and appearing to be about two thousand years old.
(End of chapter)