Chapter 539: Flaw

Wei Zhenjie knew Hua Changxi would not yield, but he hadn't expected her to be so decisive—she had simply opened the Nine Nether Soul Realm with only the Vermilion Bird Army.

Even the Five Generals of Xuan Yuan were caught off guard.

Lu Tingzhen suddenly spoke in a low voice: "The Preaching Hall really does need to be opened as soon as possible. Ling... some cultivators are sorely lacking a sense of the bigger picture for the human race."

Wei Zhenjie glanced at him: "Have you secured the instructors?"

On this topic, Lu Tingzhen's tone carried a hint of helplessness: "Those invited have all expressed willingness to come to Xuan Yuan Manor to teach, but the timing is a bit unfortunate."

"Some are in the middle of breaking through bottlenecks, others are in seclusion, and one is exploring a secret realm ruin. In short, everyone is busy, so the opening of the Preaching Hall will have to wait a little longer."

Those worthy of teaching the human prodigies are by no means ordinary individuals. The instructors Xuan Yuan Manor has engaged this time are mostly veteran cultivators who have trained for over a thousand years.

But since Xuan Yuan Manor has yet to truly reveal itself to the world, although these people act under its name, they cannot truly represent the Manor in exercising authority over the human race.

When you have to ask something of others, you can only accommodate their schedules and make some allowances.

Since the resurgence of spiritual energy, resource allocation has been a thorny problem, and mobilizing talent has been even more difficult.

Wei Zhenjie was well aware of Xuan Yuan Manor's current situation and difficulties, so he did not ask further, and the topic was dropped.

"Let's head back."

The Demon-Suppression Army and the Xuan Yuan Army had rushed over in a hurry and now left just as hastily.

On the warship, upon learning that the Lord of Lingguang Hall had already entered the Soul Realm with the Vermilion Bird Army, both the Demon-Suppression Army and the Xuan Yuan Army exchanged glances, their expressions varied.

"This Lord of Lingguang Hall really is..."

Chu Junyi had received an urgent summons, dropped everything, and rushed back from the Central Gate of the Nine Nether with his trusted men like Meng Ziyu.

And now, it had all been for nothing.

Meng Ziyu took over the conversation: "Just as the rumors say, she acts without any regard for consequences."

Sheng Pengyun sighed: "No one likes being coerced, especially a strong cultivator like the Lord of Lingguang Hall."

Ye Jingzhou, however, held a different view: "But sometimes, for the greater good, compromises have to be made. The Minister does it, and so do the Five Generals of Xuan Yuan."

"The Lord of Lingguang Hall is so unconventional—she may be domineering, but in the end... she will offend all parties."

"So what if she offends them!"

Jiang Yanyi snorted coldly. "The Lord of Lingguang Hall has the ability and the confidence—why should she suffer in silence?"

"I've long been disgusted with those aristocratic families and sects. They talk loudly about righteousness while doing nothing but enriching themselves. I think, sometimes the Minister gives them too much face, and that's why they get bolder and bolder."

Chu Junyi did not join his subordinates' debate. His thoughts drifted to that mysterious Lord of Lingguang Hall.

Hua Changxi...

Although there was no solid proof, based on his understanding of his own master and all the clues he had gathered, he was ninety percent certain that Hua Changxi was the Lord of Lingguang Hall.

As a daughter of the Hua family, she was not close to her relatives and was even stingy about helping them.

As the peak master of the Elixir Saint Hall, she was extremely generous to her disciples, never stinting on resources.

Yet as the Lord of Lingguang Hall, she deliberately concealed her identity and rarely appeared in public.

In the Elixir Saint Hall, she was extremely high-profile, but in Lingguang Hall, she was overly low-key. This person was truly full of contradictions.

Amidst his tangled thoughts, Meng Ziyu suddenly leaned in and lowered his voice to Chu Junyi: "Boss, think I can come up with an excuse to transfer Hua Hongyi under my command?"

Chu Junyi gave him a brief glance and said nothing.

Seeing his reaction, Meng Ziyu chuckled: "Then I'll take that as your approval." After saying that, he slipped away quickly.

The news that the Demon-Suppression Army and the Xuan Yuan Army warships had flown to Lingguang Hall and returned empty-handed soon spread everywhere.

When the various factions learned that the Lord of Lingguang Hall had already opened the Nine Nether Soul Realm and entered with the Vermilion Bird Army, they were all dumbfounded.

At the Four Seas Tavern, Tong Yao, Yan Zhenzhen, and Jing Zi gathered again.

Yan Zhenzhen looked at the two silent people and spoke first: "The Lord of Lingguang Hall actually... isn't very good at hiding herself."

A person's words and actions follow a consistent pattern, especially for those who wear their hearts on their sleeves—they are easily recognized.

Back when Changxi was recruiting apprentices at the Elixir Saint Hall, she had faced a joint siege from various factions. At that time, her counterattack was also fierce.

Tong Yao and Jing Le looked over and did not refute.

Tong Yao sighed, "Actually, the first time I saw Changxi, she gave me a very strong impression. That undeniable aura was eye-catching and highly distinctive. Anyone who has interacted with her will probably remember her deeply."

Right now, the reason various factions still can't confirm the identity of the Lord of Lingguang Hall is that most people haven't interacted with her.

Jing Le said worriedly, "But this trait of hers, to some extent, is a huge flaw."

Yan Zhenzhen looked at Jing Le: "I think you're worrying too much. Changxi does have shortcomings, but her advantages are also very clear. On the path of cultivation, she has gone much further than we have."

Jing Le's brows remained furrowed, and she said nothing more.

Tong Yao spoke up: "The Soul Realm has opened, and we don't know when it will open again. Let's discuss the specifics of our training trip to the South Sea."

"By the way, for the South Sea training, I plan to bring Hua Liulang along."

Yan Zhenzhen and Jing Le exchanged a glance and both indicated they had no objections.

The Nine Nether Soul Realm.

Hua Changxi released her soul domain and let out the Vermilion Bird Army.

The reason she constructed a soul domain was that while she was moving the Nether Firewood, her mind automatically received some information about the Soul Realm.

For example, the number of people entering the Soul Realm was not unlimited.

The upper limit on the number of people was determined by the strength of the soul power of the one who opened the Soul Realm.

Generally speaking, the person who obtains the Nether Firewood uses their own soul power to maintain the operation of the Soul Realm's entrance. When their soul power is exhausted, the entrance closes.

But since Hua Changxi could construct a soul domain, in her case, the rule changed: she could use her soul domain to bring in however many people she wanted.

Fortunately, she had consumed the Nine-Orifice Exquisite Soul Heart Fruit, and her soul domain was sturdy enough to bring all twenty thousand-plus people in at once.

However, this was pretty much her limit.

Hua Changxi snorted to herself, thinking that the various factions still felt she was asking for too much; now she felt she had set her conditions too low.

Besides the headcount limit, she also learned that after entering the Soul Realm, once a cultivator's soul power reaches the limit their body can withstand, they would be automatically teleported out.

[Realm: Nascent Infant Realm 99.99 billion/1 billion; Spiritual Sense: 9.9 billion points]

Hua Changxi checked her spiritual sense data and was a little annoyed.

The maximum spiritual sense she could currently withstand was 10 billion points, meaning that if she absorbed another 100 million points of soul power, she would be teleported out.

What a loss!

If she had known the Soul Realm was like this, she wouldn't have absorbed the Soul River water.

The soul power in the Soul Realm was indeed dense—so dense that it directly burrowed into her body.

Hua Changxi quickly said to the Vermilion Bird Army, "Each of you find a suitable place to cultivate. Remember, the Soul Realm is also a secret realm, and secret realms all have their dangers. You must be careful."

"When your soul power reaches your body's limit, you will be automatically teleported out."

"Alright, dismissed."

She had to explore the Soul Realm before her soul power reached its limit.

As soon as the Vermilion Bird Army was dismissed, Hua Changxi flew into the distance. After she was far away from them, she released A Niu, Yu Gui, and the others from the Sumeru Pearl.

Hua Changxi repeated the same instructions she had just given the Vermilion Bird Army, then let them find their own cultivation spots.

As for herself, she found a place rich in soul power and began to cultivate the "Twelve Forms of Soul Control" and some soul techniques from the "Soul Canon" that were suitable for human cultivation.

Only after her soul power was more than half consumed did she begin to explore the Soul Realm.