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--- Chapter 495 ---
"What?!" Han Tianyi, Zhen Hua, and Mu Ye were stunned.
Even the other Ultimate Spirit Souls looked confused, turning their gazes toward the seventh pillar that housed the 'Number 67' Spirit Soul. They all knew what Number 67 was on paper, but never expected it to resonate with Han Yuan on such a level.
For a Spirit Soul to achieve an involuntary origin-resonance with the boy meant its potential was inextricably tied to a much higher dimension than theirs.
"As expected... You possess the same power as mine... The power of the Stars," Number 67 let out a soft, echoing voice that sounded like distant wind. "Are you perhaps... the Son of the Stars?"
"It is truly my greatest luck to encounter you here."
Han Tianyi blinked in disbelief before narrowing his silver eyes. "Number 67..."
"Have you been concealing your true power all this time? A Star Attribute? The Spirit Pagoda's central archive never recorded such a thing in your file."
"That is hardly my fault..." The seventh Ultimate Spirit Soul sneered softly in response. "I agreed to cooperate with your Spirit Pagoda, but your researchers could not see past my surface-level shell."
With a low, buzzing hum, the energy barrier of the seventh pillar dissolved completely, and 'Number 67' finally revealed its true form.
It was a compact, purplish-blue creature shrouded in a swirling, gaseous nebular haze that sparkled with countless tiny stars, and at its very center rested a small, solid golden orb resembling a closed vertical eye, pulsing rhythmically with a mysterious aura.
Upon observing this strange, incomprehensible entity, both Zhen Hua and Mu Ye couldn't help but furrow their brows tightly.
"What exactly are you... An Elemental Spirit Soul? Like the Thundercloud Beast and the Nebula Iron Spirit?" Zhen Hua couldn't resist asking, his senses as a Divine Craftsman thoroughly baffled.
Mu Ye rubbed his chin, staring intently at the floating orb. "The structure... the energy signature... I can't connect the dots at all."
Number 67 let out a soft, melodic laugh. "Haha... if we are strictly talking about origins, Number 30 and I could indeed be considered from the same domain."
"The vast universe... or what you people call the starry sky."
"However, no offense to Number 30, but it is merely a rare piece of space rock that happened to traverse the void and crash onto the Douluo Star by complete accident."
"Affected by the native laws of the Douluo Plane and refined through your Spirit Pagoda's artificial methods, it naturally adapted into an Elemental Spirit Soul."
"But I am inherently different..." The starry haze around Number 67 flared with a sudden, radiant brilliance. "If I must explain my origin, I was once the dense core of a distant star, burning bright and glorious for long eons before a destructive cosmic storm destroyed my shell and dragged my remaining body to this planet."
"Broken and stripped down to a minuscule fraction of my original power, my current form is merely a degraded version of my true, ultimate form."
"Your Spirit Pagoda completely misread my innate power, assuming I was just a strange Elemental Spirit Soul with the Ultimate Light attribute and some Spiritual nature... when in reality, that 'light' was merely a wisp of stellar energy leaking from my core."
"As my power weakened, I was also affected by the laws of the Douluo Star and degenerated into a Spirit Beast..."
"You idiots... even classified me as an ideal contract partner for defensive Soul Masters simply because my dense core happened to be impregnable to your probing!"
The orb let out another light chuckle. "So, as I said... it is definitely not my fault."
"..."
Everyone stared at Number 67 in silent wonder. Whether it was the three guardian elders or the remaining Ultimate Spirit Souls, none had expected its origin to be this massive.
Of course, everyone except Han Yuan. He had seen through Number 67's true roots using his Eyes of Truth.
Even then, he hadn't fully expected the dying core of a star to become a Spirit Soul. Still, considering the sheer amount of stellar-scale absurdities that happened in the continent's latter history, this was entirely within reasonable limits.
And it would be a lie for Han Yuan to say he wasn't thrilled. Number 67 was a flawless match for the Star Liberation Crown.
The contract would not only allow the Spirit Soul to gradually rebuild its true star form by gaining access to the higher dimension of the starry sky through the Gate of Stars, but it would also allow Han Yuan to seamlessly channel and convert that immense stellar energy into his own power.
One could say the Star Liberation Crown and Number 67 were literally a match made in the starry heavens.
"Do your kind have a name?" Han Tianyi couldn't help but ask.
Number 67 tilted its body slightly. "My kind? No, there is no such thing. I am a unique existence, a sentient celestial body that gained sentience over the long, endless stream of history, much like how wild beasts developed into Spirit Beasts over years of cultivation."
"By the way... your Spirit Pagoda's naming sense is utterly dreadful. I still can't accept that your archives called me the 'Golden Guardian Orb.'"
"If I must choose a name for myself... I prefer calling myself the Cosmos Eye Lord."
"Because my core is essentially the watching eye born within cosmic gas."
"I see..." The elders murmured under their breath.
Han Yuan gazed directly at the Cosmos Eye Lord and asked, "Would you like to be my partner?"
"That depends..." The Cosmos Eye Lord tilted its floating body toward the silver-haired boy. "I need to see whether you are truly the Son of Stars, or merely another lucky soul blessed with a wisp of luck."
Han Yuan smiled faintly. Without another word, he summoned the Star Liberation Crown, allowing the tool spirit to rest atop his head.
BANG!
Immediately, several sharp gasps echoed throughout the subterranean vault as a surge of raw, terrifying stellar energy erupted into the chamber like a supernova.
The Cosmos Eye Lord's body trembled violently. Even through its sealed state, it could clearly feel that the Star Liberation Crown possessed an endless stellar source.
One capable of rivaling an entire expanse of the universe. If it bound itself to such a Martial Soul, recovering its glory and becoming a true, living star again was no longer just a fantasy!
Yet, what shocked the ancient stellar entity even more was Han Yuan's physical transformation.
Han Yuan's skin turned slightly darker, taking on a subtle, luminous dark-cosmic undertone while his ears elongated slightly into sharp, delicate points.
His silver eyes gleamed like deep star specks, and two pairs of ethereal wings composed of swirling, concentrated stellar energy unfurled majestically behind his back.
"A Star Elf... No, a Star-gazed Elf... To think it would be this ancient lineage!"
"No wonder..." The Cosmos Eye Lord's voice vibrated with awe. "Rather than the Son of Stars, calling you the Prince of Stars is far more appropriate."
"And this is merely the beginning of your evolution. Beyond this lies King, Emperor, and eventually... God!"
"Your future is very bright, young man."
Despite its excitement, the Cosmos Eye Lord also caught a faint, terrifying glimpse of another primordial authority sleeping deep within Han Yuan's soul. Wisely, it chose not to probe or make any assumptions about that dark presence.
"Very well!" The Cosmos Eye Lord declared, its stellar gas expanding in celebration. "I am fully willing to become your Spirit Soul! It is indeed my greatest honor to serve as your guide along the path of the stars!"
"However, I sense that you possess another... equally terrifying Martial Soul."
"And I doubt you came all the way down here without intending to grant it a proper companion as well."
"My fellow Ultimate Spirit Souls here are all exceptional beings."
"As someone who has known them for years, I ask you to choose one among them as well, Oh Prince of Stars."
Han Yuan deactivated his transformation, retracting the stellar wings and pulling the Star Liberation Crown back into the depths of his soul sea. He nodded at the Cosmos Eye Lord before turning his gaze toward the remaining Ultimate Spirit Souls.
"The best Spirit Soul for my other martial soul... the Underworld Anchor of Heaven..."
Han Yuan's eyes locked onto a specific container, his expression settling into total confidence. "It can only be you..."
"So... I choose you!" He raised his hand, pointing straight at his other chosen partner.