Chapter 471: Spiritual Force Enhancement

Imagine a sea of darkness before you, every single figure kneeling a Dou Zun-level powerhouse, each one famed across the Dou Qi Continent.

Yet now, these renowned Dou Zun masters knelt before a youth who appeared no older than seventeen or eighteen, their heads bowed so low they dared not meet his gaze.

Not even the Star-Plucking Heavenly Venerable, but even the Ninth Heavenly Sovereign beside Xiao Yan, and the Eighth, Seventh, and Sixth Heavenly Sovereigns nearby all stared at this new Heavenly Venerable with solemn eyes.

Since ancient times, the Soul Hall has always had exactly nine Heavenly Sovereigns—this number has never changed, for these nine positions are not merely about power, but also the credential to join the Soul Sovereign, and their placement is decided by the Soul Clan High Rank.

Now, the Hall Master is, in a sense, opening a back door.

But this back door seems meant only for the Ninth Heavenly Sovereign Mo Yu, for anyone with eyes can see that Mo Yu would surely lose in a fight, and even Qiu Di might not even hold his Eighth Heavenly Sovereign position.

Xiao Yan yawned, then waved his hand and said, "Rise."

At Xiao Yan's words, everyone exhaled in relief and slowly stood, the Star-Plucking Heavenly Venerable daring not even glance at Xiao Yan, fearing this new Tenth Heavenly Venerable might "light three fires upon taking office" and make him an example.

But clearly, Xiao Yan had no intention of even acknowledging the Star-Plucking Heavenly Venerable—he had, after all, helped Xiao Yan slightly, giving him the chance to practice using the Ancient Phoenix Wings, so he'd earned some merit.

For a moment, the entire Tian Dian fell silent again, for the ceremony was far from over; even though no one else would challenge the Nine Heavenly Sovereigns—no, the Ten Heavenly Sovereigns—everyone still awaited the promised reward.

"This feels a bit like a year-end bonus."

Xiao Yan winning the Pill Gathering championship didn't just make him the sole candidate for the Imperial Pill Plan—it also fulfilled the task assigned by Hun Xu Zi. After all, he'd served the organization, shed blood!

As the Tenth Heavenly Venerable, Xiao Yan could now enter the Soul Sovereign to attend the Adult Ceremony; he already possessed the Dou Di Bloodline—so surely this year-end bonus must include his share.

The Soul Hall had no formal order or calling of names; seeing no one step forward to challenge the Nine Heavenly Sovereigns' rankings, Hun Mie Sheng slowly rose from the Imperial Throne. As Hun Mie Sheng stood, every Soul Hall Venerable—even the Great Heavenly Venerable—glowed with burning anticipation.

Even Xiao Yan's eyes gleamed with greed—whether his Soul Force could break through the Spirit Realm and enter the Heavenly Realm depended on this moment.

If his Soul Force reached the Heavenly Realm, Xiao Yan could demand the true Asura Soul-Cutting Art from Hun Lao Gui—and his confidence to enter the Ancient Realm would surge!

Hun Mie Sheng waved his hand coldly and said, "State your wish."

The moment Hun Mie Sheng spoke, every heart thudded. All drew forth their Soul Tokens.

This was the Soul Sovereign's strength!

The Soul Sovereign's reserves were sufficient to fulfill any cultivator's wish! Whatever you desired, they had it.

Of course, not every wish could be granted—each person's contributions varied in scale, and wishes were adjusted according to merit and desire.

Take the Qinghai Heavenly Venerable: though Xiao Yan hadn't refined an elixir to heal his hidden injuries, he had given him Mu Gu's Soul Body, allowing him to claim a reward.

Qinghai Heavenly Venerable gripped his Soul Token, thought of his wish, and the token responded—emitting a beam of soul-light that formed a Soul Passage. Without hesitation, he stepped into it and vanished.

Xiao Yan also gripped his Tenth Heavenly Venerable Soul Token—he'd heard Qinghai Heavenly Venerable describe this step. The Tian Dian was like a heavenly palace granting wishes: if you reached it, your heart's desire could be fulfilled.

Xiao Yan focused his mind, and his Soul Token trembled slightly—a Soul Passage appeared before him.

"So this is a Soul Passage directly to the Treasure Hall," Xiao Yan said, unimpressed—he'd seen this function before in the Treasure Hall.

One step into the soul-path, a flash of light—and Xiao Yan stood in the vast white space of the Treasure Hall, several glowing orbs floating before him.

All these orbs were Treasures capable of enhancing Soul Force, for that was precisely what Xiao Yan needed.

"Hmm, each of these would drive countless Alchemists mad if found outside," Xiao Yan murmured, regretting he could choose only one.

"Nine Flower Spirit Honey—directly consumable, enhances Soul Force slightly and repairs minor Soul damage; though the increase is small, it has no resistance and can be used repeatedly, and can also be used to refine elixirs that heal Soul damage."

Xiao Yan shook his head—he had no Soul damage. Though the Nine Flower Spirit Honey could be used in refining, he needed something to break through the Spirit Realm, and he had neither time nor a Pill Formula.

He turned his head to the second orb—a pill.

"Corrupting Soul Minor Demon Pill—an Eight Grade Pill that draws Four-Colored Pill Lightning, suitable for Spirit Realm Souls, usable only once in a lifetime—the second will be ineffective."

At the sight of this pill, Xiao Yan frowned. He needed a pill to enhance Soul Force, but this one was too weak—Four-Colored Pill Lightning meant it was only a mid-tier Eight Grade Pill, perhaps even the inferior kind.

Its Soul Force enhancement was limited; its only advantage was the lack of side effects.

The remaining two orbs were undoubtedly high-risk, high-side-effect options—but offered the greatest Soul Force increase. Only the Soul Sovereign's deep reserves could offer so many choices.

"So this is the Soul Origin... different from what I imagined." Xiao Yan stared at the third orb—undoubtedly the Soul Origin.

Inside the third orb floated a fist-sized orb, bound by thick black chains. Though small, it likely contained the refined Soul Bodies collected by the Soul Hall over ten years at the level of a Di Sha Hall.

One could imagine how many Soul Bodies were needed to produce this fist-sized Soul Origin.

But the problem was, this Soul Origin wasn't a pill—it was unrefined. Even without using Soul Force Perception, Xiao Yan could sense the immense negative energy within.

Resentment, bitterness, and despair from those who died lingered inside—these emotions were extremely difficult to fully refine; if absorbed carelessly, they would inevitably corrupt the mind.

The final orb was a piece of Soul Information—not one that enhanced Soul Force, but one that warned of the risks of this choice.

"Bone Soul Valley Secret Realm—a Soul Sovereign Eight Grade Peak Secret Realm. At its deepest core lies a Soul Gathering Basin; cultivating within can break the Soul through to the Heavenly Realm."

Even without explicit danger levels, Xiao Yan knew from the order—lowest to highest—that this Secret Realm was perilous.

"The Nine Flower Spirit Honey can only enhance Soul Force slightly—it's here only because it also repairs Soul damage. Useless to me." Xiao Yan waved his hand, and the first orb vanished.

"The Corrupting Soul Minor Demon Pill won't do—it only draws Four-Colored Pill Lightning. Not even enough to reach Spirit Realm Great Perfection, let alone break into the Heavenly Realm. If it drew Seven Colored Pill Thunder, I'd take it."

"Only these two left..."

Xiao Yan narrowed his eyes, thinking. He estimated entering the Secret Realm's Soul Gathering Basin would elevate his Soul Realm to the Heavenly Realm.

The Soul Origin would fall slightly short—perhaps reaching Spirit Realm Great Perfection, but unlikely to break the Heavenly Realm barrier.

After no more than three seconds of hesitation, Xiao Yan made his choice—unexpectedly, he dismissed the fourth orb and selected the Soul Origin.

Gazing at the orb before him, Xiao Yan smiled in satisfaction, eyes half-lidded, murmuring: "Spirit Realm Great Perfection is enough."

He withdrew his Soul Token, tapped it lightly—and all its Soul Force and Soul Points were absorbed by the white space. A Blood Bottle, half-filled, floated before him.

The Blood Bottle visibly filled until it was completely full, hovering before Xiao Yan.

Xiao Yan had no need to directly break through the Spirit Realm into the Heavenly Realm—he already had a way to shatter the barrier. Don't forget: Xiao Yan came to the Soul Hall ceremony to obtain the Soul Sovereign's Dou Di Bloodline, to cultivate the Emperor Soul Scripture!

As long as his Soul Force reached Spirit Realm Great Perfection, with the Soul Sovereign's Dou Di Bloodline and the Emperor Soul Scripture, breaking the barrier would be no problem. As for the negative energy within the Soul Origin—Xiao Yan was far too familiar with it.

Wasn't the Asura Soul-Cutting Art precisely this kind of negative energy that once drove Xiao Yan mad? But now he had fully mastered it—this Soul Origin's negative emotions and energy could be used to feed and forge it, pushing the Asura Soul-Cutting Art to complete Great Perfection.

Why risk his life in some Secret Realm when a far more comfortable method existed?

Gazing at the small vial of Dou Di Bloodline in his hand, he murmured: "So this is the Dou Di Bloodline that all Dou Emperor Family heirs covet?"

Though Xiao Yan had spent countless efforts and emptied all his Soul Points, he estimated this vial wouldn't grant him a high-grade bloodline.

Hun Lao Gui had told him long ago: this vial's bloodline rank was Six Grade—the bare minimum required to cultivate the upper volume of the Emperor Soul Scripture. And Six Grade was merely the baseline.

Moreover, whether six-grade bloodline counts as high-level, Xiao Yan suspected it really wasn't that high.

Six-rank elixirs correspond to Dou Huang; although elixirs are nowhere near comparable to Dou Di bloodline, those Dou Emperor families divided bloodlines into so many ranks, probably because they were linked to elixir grades.

A six-grade Dou Di bloodline probably wouldn't be very strong.

"I wonder if other Dou Emperor families also have methods to enhance Dou Di bloodline, or if only the Soul Sovereign do?" Xiao Yan shrugged, not caring whether the Spirit-Eating Clan's refining of Dou Di bloodline was exclusive to the Soul Sovereign, and tucked the Blood Bottle away.

"First, refine this Spiritual Soul origin to boost my Soul Force."

Xiao Yan reached out and seized the light sphere, then applied slight pressure—boom—the orb exploded, and a fist-sized Spiritual Soul origin orb was caught in his palm.

In an instant, a chorus of grotesque, resentful, and hateful voices flooded into Xiao Yan's mind.

Hatred! Rage!

Scenes of him being seized by Soul Hall Venerables and Guardians flashed into Xiao Yan's mind as if he were experiencing them firsthand, as if he were enduring their final moments.

Xiao Yan couldn't help but sneer—playing soul illusions on him? This was like moving earth atop Tai Sui's head.

"Asura Soul Severing Art—Chen Yuan!"

Rattling, rattling—the iron chains of the Soul Technique shot up from beneath Xiao Yan's feet, and with a few puffs, pierced through the Spiritual Soul origin.

Yaaaaaaaaa!! As it was pierced, the entire orb emitted a piercing scream, as if alive.

Normally, to refine a Spiritual Soul origin, one must first purge its negative emotions. As an Eighth-Rank Alchemist, Xiao Yan certainly had ways to do so—but as a Ten Heavenly Elders of the Soul Hall, would he dare show fear of such negative energy?

Am I afraid of you?

Xiao Yan immediately sat cross-legged, and instantly, a dark shadow engulfed the entire world—a shadow resembling a demonic Asura appeared behind Xiao Yan.

This shadow held a trident and fork, gazing at the orb before it; its crimson ghostly eyes gleamed with hunger—it loved this thing.

"The origin is mine; the rest is yours." Xiao Yan's deep eyes glanced at the ghostly shadow behind him, his voice calm as still water, utterly unafraid of the Asura demon hidden deep within his soul.

The ghostly shadow looked down at Xiao Yan, then narrowed its eyes slightly—but even now, it dared not resist him; it was not yet in its complete form.

Xiao Yan slowly closed his eyes, mentally directing the Asura Shadow, its fork and trident delicately, gently, processing the Spiritual Soul orb.

As the soul-fork cut through, the Hun Chains gradually seeped in; the Spiritual Soul orb began to gently boil, faint wisps of black mist rising from within, absorbed instantly by the Asura Shadow behind him, vanishing without trace.

Seeing these black mists, Xiao Yan paid them no mind, sitting cross-legged and activating the Tai Yi Soul Art, ready to devour the Spiritual Soul origin at any moment.

As the Asura Shadow absorbed more and more of the resentment energy, its body gradually solidified, becoming more tangible.

After a small half-day, Xiao Yan finally withdrew his Soul Force, gazing at the crystal-like Spiritual Soul orb floating before him, and couldn't help but smile.

He changed his hand seals, and Soul Force surged from his third eye, his mouth slightly open, a powerful suction emerging.

As this suction appeared, the Spiritual Soul orb trembled slightly, releasing an extraordinarily pure stream of Spiritual Soul origin energy that curled around Xiao Yan's soul, entering through his mouth, nose, and pores, flowing steadily into his very soul.

As more and more Spiritual Soul origin was drawn in, a strange crystal-like layer began to form on the surface of Xiao Yan's soul.

Hua hua! The Spiritual Soul orb rippled gently, emitting clear, water-like sounds, as an endless stream of pure origin Soul Power flowed into Xiao Yan's soul.

Under this infusion, a faint expression of bliss slowly surfaced on the face of Xiao Yan's soul-form; enveloped by these origin Soul energies, he felt as if his soul were bathed in warm light, a sensation like a fetus within its mother's womb.

Layer upon layer of faint, strange crystal layers quietly formed on the surface of his Soul Body, appearing almost solid—extraordinarily wondrous.

Within the Spiritual Soul orb lay an immensely terrifying amount of Spiritual Soul origin power; even Xiao Yan felt a faint sense of insignificance before it.

Xiao Yan continued slowly activating the Tai Yi Soul Art, absorbing the Spiritual Soul origin while cultivating; time passed day by day in that silent cultivation, and before he knew it, he had trained for two full months.

Xiao Yan did not know that while he absorbed the Spiritual Soul orb, three pairs of eyes had been watching him.

In the center of the Soul Realm, within a manor, three figures stood, gazing through a soul-light membrane at Xiao Yan, seated in meditation, refining the Spiritual Soul origin.

The figure on the far right was Hun Xu Zi, whom Xiao Yan had seen several times; the one on the far left wore a black robe, with faint black shadows burning upon it.

But the central figure broke the norm—he wore a white robe, hands clasped behind his back, a smile on his lips, a graceful youth, radiant as jade standing before the wind.

Such striking beauty, wherever placed, would be the brightest, most dazzling star—especially his eyes, clear and luminous, shimmering with subtle brilliance, revealing immense wisdom.

In simpler terms: He was a gentleman among men, peerless in the mortal world.

Absolutely a refined gentleman of the secular realm.

But if his name were spoken upon the Dou Qi Continent, it would make every soul on the continent tremble—for he was none other than the Soul Clan Clan Leader, Hun Tian Di!

"His innate Soul Force is exceptionally strong, his talent remarkable," said the black-robed man on Hun Tian Di's left, watching Xiao Yan in the vision.

Hun Xu Zi nodded; years ago, he had taken interest in Xiao Yan not merely because the boy, so young, had achieved Two-Rank and nearly Three-Rank Alchemy through self-study, but also because of his naturally immense Soul Force.

To possess such Soul Force without any cultivation—even the Soul Sovereign rarely saw such a thing.

Xiao Yan probably hadn't realized that because he was refining the Spiritual Soul origin, the Soul Sovereign's Adult Ceremony had been delayed by ten days!

Even the entire Soul Clan Elder Council didn't know what had happened—they only knew it was the Clan Leader's order!

"His strength isn't just in his Soul talent," Hun Tian Di smiled, gazing at Xiao Yan in the vision; he had seen something else.

The black-robed man glanced at Hun Tian Di and said, "Aren't you afraid of raising a tiger that will turn on you?"

Hun Tian Di smiled and slowly shook his head. "Of course I am."

The black-robed man and Hun Xu Zi's eyes narrowed—they had never imagined Hun Tian Di would so directly admit he feared something!

"Surprised?" Hun Tian Di smiled faintly, his eyes as if recalling something. "I am human—I naturally fear."

"When I faced Xiao Xuan, I feared. Even now, facing the Gu Clan, I still worry."